Ridgefield

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Tour Diary – Ridgefield, CT; Brownsville, ME; Great Barrington, MA (March 6 – 8, 2014)

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We have had three days of clear blue skies. The temperature hasn't risen all that much, but the sun feels a smidge warmer, I have spotted an occasional dripping icicle and the other day I came upon a bunch of robins pecking and bob-bob-bobbing along…so change is in the air. Spring can not be far behind (at least that is what we keep telling ourselves). If we had put our marketing caps on before we began this leg, we would have printed up a bunch of “F@%K, I Hate The Cold” t-shirts for this run of dates. It has been the unofficial anthem and we have opened every show with it….it's our way of helping to chase away those winter blues.

Along with enjoying the sun we have also been enjoying the towns we've been in for the past few days. Ridgefield is one of those Connecticut postcard towns, with sprawling 18th century homes and a pedigree that stretches back to before the Revolutionary War. It's about as archetypical New England as these places come. Our venue in this town is the Ridgefield Playhouse, which we have played a few times over the past ten years or so. Its a good sounding little theater with a nice sized stage and a good crew. We did a Trinity show tonight. I thought we were a little sleepy, not quite clicking on all cylinders, maybe it was a hangover from three days in NYC.

We spent Friday at one of our favourite places: the Stone Mountain Art Center. This is a beautiful little venue nestled in the Maine woods just across the border from North Conway, NH. It is owned and run by Carol Noonan an ex-touring musician, who knows what its like to be on the road. She understands that providing the most basic things, like decent food and a comfortable clean backstage area, can make all the difference in a bands day and therefore in their mood and ultimately in their performance. Carol and her staff take that extra step to make every band that comes through her venue feel special. We had a great day and an excellent show in front of an excited full house.

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Today we are in Great Barrington, MA. A very vibrant little town, nestled in the Berkshires…and today it definitely feels like Spring…I think we may have broken Winter's back. It's also the last day of the tour. We played here for the first time about four years ago and have been excited about getting back here ever since. Another very nice theatre and another excellent crowd, we gave them the last few drops of energy that we have left. It was a very good show, our tenth in eleven days.

We have a light touring schedule ahead of us for the coming year. It's time to pull back a bit and see where the post Nomad phase takes us. We'll be doing a short run in Southern California in June and then a few scattered dates throughout Ontario in the summer. We hope to see you out there, but if not, please keep in touch through the website or Facebook….pray for Spring…we'll see you soon.

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Tour Diary – Providence RI and Ridgefield CT, (Feb 25 and 26)
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Tour Diary – Providence RI and Ridgefield CT, (Feb 25 and 26)

Providence
There is no getting around it…it’s a weird town. A huge organized crime presence, two prestigious educational institutes (Brown and RISD) and the money and culture that comes along with those institutions, and lots and lots of street crime. All of our gigs here have been a little unsettling and I don’t know if we’ve ever played any venue here other than a bar. Tonight was no different: although the Fete (where the gig was tonight) is a very good venue with a very friendly and helpful staff. I think we rocked like demons. I think the audience enjoyed themselves, although the bar at the back attracted the geese, who were polite enough to stop honking during the quieter numbers. We definitely rocked liked demons.

We spent the day on the bus in the alley behind the club. A very sketchy part of town, but there seems to be concerted effort to reclaim it as an Arts area. It was right around the corner from the world famous New York System hot dog joint. We ate wieners all day.

Ridgefield
Money, money, money, moooooonnnney……the Ridgefield anthem. Just far enough outside of Manhattan to keep the rabble at bay, but a close enough commute so that the battle can be taken-up at dawn. This is a beautiful town with a spectacular collection of 19th century mansions along its Main Street. While walking along the pre-revolutionary war downtown strip, I was accosted by two post-revolutionary war women who asked me to sign a petition to keep a high density (four stories), affordable housing development from being built in/near the town…”near single family homes”. It’s a beautiful town….and they’re going to keep it that way, goshdamnit. I’m not sure if it was the building that they were against or the texture of the people that would be inhabiting it…although I can probably guess.

The Ridgefield Playhouse is a very nice little venue and we always feel very supported when we come to this town. We had an amazing show tonight; full of energy and invention and passion. While on stage tonight I had my bi-annual epiphany….man this is fun, I don’t want to ever stop doing this.
 

Old Saybrook 2
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Tour Diary – Ridgefield, CT (May 14, 2010)

Old Saybrook 2

(Jason Lent has forsaken the island paradise of Hawaii to follow us around for a few months. I have happily placed the tour diary in his capable hands. It should bring a new perspective to our ramblings.)

The deep-rooted wealth of Old Saybrook transitioned into the more recently won prosperity of Ridgefield, CT as the tour descended on this perfectly manicured village. The main street was full of happy teens sharing ice cream and not a piece of trash could be found on the streets. Property values were holding steady and the parade of luxury cars were full of smiling people. As one of the locals remarked after the show, of course this place is nice, we’re rich.

To pass the time driving from show to show this week, Crazy Ed, Cookie Bob, and I held a fantasy set list draft with each of us drafting five songs. It’s amazing what three music geeks can come up with when stuck in a rental car for 2,000 miles. As we enter the final night of the tour, Bob’s first round selection of “Renmin Park” has paid off huge but I’m hanging on to a thin lead. The new songs bumping “Stranger Here” to the side have left me precariously close to a Boston Bruins-like collapse.

The show tonight took place in a restored theater (I type this a lot in New England) on the grounds of a high school, I think. I’m not really sure but there were a lot of kids skateboarding, playing baseball, and running around the parking lot. The music and the band sounded connected throughout the evening while the crowd bordered on raucous by Ridgefield, CT standards. Mike obliged the crowd with a short blast of “Sweet Jane” on the acoustic guitar and then we returned to the regularly scheduled music. A near perfect night of music in a eerily over-perfect town


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May & June Tour Dates

We’ve added a bunch of new tour dates. In May, we’ll be in Troy and Bethel, NY; Bellows Falls and Burlington, VT; Providence, RI; Old Saybrook and Ridgefield, CT; and Great Barrington, MA. In June, we’re headed south and west, to Memphis, TN; Baton Rouge, LA; Dallas and Austin, TX; Albuquerque, NM; Phoenix, AZ; Salt Lake City, UT; and Arvada, CO, with more to come.

More info on the tour dates here.

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