Tour Diary. Providence

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.