A two week break and then a 750 mile drive and a two show night to get us back in the swing of things. Slap, punch, kick…ouch.

We did a long soundcheck to re-familiarize ourselves with ourselves, but there is nothing like getting that first show under ones belt to regain the confidence and remember the attitude that is needed to perform live. You need that first show to rid yourself of your “home” smell, to take off the slippers and put on the walking shoes. As a result the first show was a bit unsettled ( “…so that’s what that pedal does….”). I thought that we made up for it on the second show, but you couldn’t tell from the audience response, a little subdued. It didn’t help that the second show was only half full and the set of songs was a little challenging (lots of psychedelia, new material and the TVZ trilogy), but we played like demons and got little back in return. There were definitely a handful of people in the audience who were trying as hard as we were, but they had as much luck igniting the rest of the crowd as we did.

****

We haven’t been to Knoxville since early September of 2001: back in those carefree, pre-colour coded, gel-free days. This town use to be a semi-regular fixture on our tour schedule, but somehow it has slipped off. Judging by the reaction of the audience tonight and the quality of the venue, we will have to make sure that it becomes a regular stop once again. Top notch all around.

I remember Knoxville as being a slightly run-down, fading city, but there seems to have been an abrupt turn around over the past few years. The downtown core is bustling, there are a lot of restaurants, coffee shops and, the surest sign of modern resurgence, condos. It seems like every fifth building is being converted to condos and, just as importantly, if one reads the graffiti, there seems to be an underground opposition to the resurgence (no doubt the price of real estate and, therefore, rent has skyrocketed). You’ve got to have all strata make a city vibrant.

Overall a very good day in Knoxville.