Tour Diary – Madison, Cincinnati, Nashville, TN (April 21 – 25, 2012)

Madison, WI (April 21 and 22)
Yesterday was a day off and we watched hockey. It was a beautiful early-spring day: chilly but lots of sunshine and lots of people in the streets enjoying the day. We sat in the bus and watched hockey, except for the couple of hours we went to dinner at the local pub…. and watched hockey. We watched the Penguins extend their life and the Bruins begin to totter. And then there were the late games from the West…but those games are pretty much a blur.

We started today with more hockey. We watched Pittsburgh go down with barely a whimper…a very pathetic showing for a team with so much talent. In the afternoon, Margo, Jeff and I did a short radio performance at Triple M 105.5 , which was fun and a much appreciated opportunity. After radio was more hockey, as Jared’s Bruins forced Game 7. The gig tonight was at The Majestic which is a well run venue, but the sound is a bit tricky, especially on stage, which made for a difficult night. The audience did a great job at pulling us through. After the show we watched as Al’s Canucks were eliminated by the Kings in 5 games, pathetic.

Cincinnati, OH  (April 23 and 24)
Another day off. Another beautiful spring day. Another couple of hockey games. In preparation for the days viewing, Jared, Pete, Jeff, Al and I went to see Cabin In The Woods….if you are a fan of horror movies and the genre, I would definitely recommend it…it’s a very clever and funny movie. At night we watched the Rangers push the Senators to a Game 7 and the Coyotes eliminate the Blackhawks…..man, this has been an action packed few days.

Cincinnati is looking pretty good these days. Ten years ago its downtown core was a pretty bleak place to spend a day off. It has a bit of a sparkle these days, it’s not exactly bustling but at least there is some life. Perhaps all those new downtown stadiums have done the job. The gig tonight was a little out of town at the 20th Century Theater. It’s a nice venue but it has a terrible sounding stage which they could easily remedy by adding about six feet in width to it and by treating the rear brick wall. Despite our woes on stage, the audience was incredible and made what could have been a terrible show into a very fun night. We did another radio session today at WNKU and it looks like Jeff has been struck down by the bus plague. Karin Berquist our friend and collaborator from Over The Rhine stopped by to say hello….and there was more hockey…..

Nashville, TN (April 25)
A nice size audience tonight, but they seemed a little reserved…maybe we have been spoiled by the last few nights. Jeff is fully in the grip of his disease. I can’t even remember what hockey we watched; it’s all becoming a blur. We spent the day wandering around the community that surrounds the Belcourt Theater: a very active little area that services Vanderbilt University. Our old friend Dave Henry joined us for dinner. Nice weather, an excellent coffee shop, a very good book shop….an enjoyable day.