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Now In Stores: The Fisher-Price "My First Blog"™ |
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Saturday, 14 February 2009 |
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By Arco Paulo, aka Arco, Arcoslav, Arcoslaw, Arcosaw, Arkansas, Pizzburg, Apple Drink, Paul Kowert.
I’m writing from Chico, CA.
For those of you who are new to the band, I’m new too. I started playing bass in the band in October 2008. Now I’m nearing the end of my second tour and have moved into my apartment with Critter in Brooklyn, NY, just a few blocks from the rest of the guys. Our apartment got broken into already.
Touring has been really fun. I’d never done it before. As those of you who read the last couple of blogs can tell, the guys are a constant source of entertainment. They’re a great bunch to be on the road with. Here’s an overview of life on the road:
We do as few flights as we have to (it can be a real pain to fly with our instruments) and do the rest of our traveling mostly in a rental fifteen-passenger van we christen “Xplorador” with a magnet labeled as such. On our drives between cities we listen to the board tape of the show from the night before (to see how we did) and other recordings. Pickles has brought some interesting “radio lab” shows on his iPhone. We’ll do a few consecutive show days with short drives between them, and then a travel-only day for a long drive or flights (flights usually at the beginning and end of the tour, and one in the middle). We might have a day or two off with no travel during a tour too. Tours last about three weeks.
After the show we’ll find dinner (which is late), and retire to the hotel where we check emails and sleep. Maybe some drinking and socializing will also occur. We’ll leave about 10 minutes late from the hotel the next morning, stop for coffee and a bite, and arrive at the next venue for load-in and sound check, usually around 3:30. We’ll either stay at the venue until the show or go back to the hotel if we got there before load-in to change. Spare time in the morning before departure is the best time for exercising, and time during load-in (while Sinky Si our trusty sound man is setting up the system for sound check) and after sound check is the best for practicing, at least for me (bass carries through hotel walls).
There’s a lot of Xplorador time. As a bass player, traveling on the road is much happier than flying. However, it can also be frustrating, because we can’t listen to music through the Xplorador speakers when somebody is on the phone. It’s hard anyway because of road noise, and volume levels in the different parts of the van. It’s hard to read with music or conversation around, for me. It’s difficult to have a whole band conversation, those in the back usually not hearing what those in front are saying. Sometimes, sitting in the Xplorador is an exercise in patience and serenity despite idleness. That said, my band mates are easy to be with in a van on long trips.
We like to find good coffee and food in the cities we stop in, but often have to settle for Starbucks and diner or bar food because of time constraints and our late night schedule. However, there have been some really enjoyable meals on this last tour, like a top-notch sushi meal and shrimp and grits in Baton Rouge, LA, and last night we were at the Sierra Nevada Taproom and Restaurant in Chico, CA. Tonight I had my first In‘ N Out Burger.
I really enjoy checking out different halls, how they sound and feel. Also, experiencing different cities has been cool, and seeing friends around the states that I wouldn’t normally see has been great, as well as meeting new friends.
Ultimately, performing our music for people is the reason we tour and my favorite part of it. I’m really enjoying playing this music the best I can every night.
Band idiocy is central to our lives, especially on the road. Here are some of the ways we entertain ourselves:
--Pull pranks on each other, like stealing Holt’s wallet and phone (texting each other embarrassing messages from his phone), tying each other’s instruments to chairs and tables, unbeknownst to the owner. Stealing each other’s shoes.
Nota bene: most of these pranks are instigated by Pickles and directed at Holt.
--Reference band member lore. Add details to lore, and expand upon each other’s nicknames.
Nota bene: most of this is instigated by Pickles and directed at Holt.
--Talk about women.
--Play with the iFart application on Pickles’ iPhone.
--Fight off inconsolable sadness.
--We just had a snowball fight at the Lakehead rest stop yesterday. I started it by hitting Judge square in the back of the head. It was his first snowball attack.
I think that’ll do for now.
Happy Valentine’s Day Mom and Annaliese,
Arco
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