The Story So Far

It has somehow been just over a week since I packed up my car and left Seattle. After a seemingly endless stream of setbacks and false starts, The Jackie Whelan DoE Solo Tour is officially underway, and I couldn’t be happier.

Ashland was the usual good time it always is: I played my first solo show of the tour at The Creek and woke up the next morning hog-tied and covered in permanent red ink. I will end my story there, but know that there is more.

On Friday, a quick 12 hour drive got me to Claremont just in time to catch the free rock show, followed by a very compressed series of aborted afterparties with We Are Scientists and The Bish, then 3 x 3 x 4 (36?) heartfelt vanside goodbyes before I caught a cheap flight to Denver and bedded down in a dormitory full of Mexican day-laborers.

And now I’m here, gasping for air in the Sangre de Cristo mountains and wishing I’d packed some Chapstick. Sure is nice out here.

in the last two days i experienced the best and the worst that music has to offer.

the worst: kenny chesney and uncle cracker on conan obrien.. it was seriously the most derivative frankensteined focus-grouped song that i have ever heard. it has the chord progression of the famous uncle cracker song (follow me), the intro riff of the sugar ray classic (fly), and the feel of jimmy buffet (who, as a sidenote, i like from time to time).. the song included a lyric that went something like “we’ll be hanging around, things will be easy/we’ll by lying in the hammock, where it is breezy” and kenny chesney was wearing a cowboy hat, a cut-off baby blue shirt, jeans, and sandals (the style-child of garth brooks and jack johnson).. and it was all done seriously.. awful.

the best: the we are scientists/bishop allen/on the speakers show.. it was an all-out rock extravaganza.. on the speakers was great, bishop allen was fantastic, and we are scientists made people touch themselves.. honestly, it was the truest rock show that i’ve ever been at. thank you WAS and company for redeeming music for me.

this is pure excitement.. this is great.. i’m web logging.