Tour Diary – Boston, MA (April 18, 2010)

(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.)

Something always seemed to be missing today. The tour bus was missing air in a tire, I was missing a sock until after lunch, and the flowers were missing from stage when the band opened the set. Even worse, the band was missing hockey on the bus when the satellite went down. It was that sort of day as the quiet villages of Maine were quickly replaced by the insanity of the Boston area highways.

The Sommerville Theater sits in Davis Square on the outer banks of Boston’s urban sprawl. It still functions as a movie theater and the smell of popcorn permeated the concert. Downstairs, we stumbled upon a funky little art museum to help pass the rainy afternoon. A few of us early arrivals rummaged through a pawnshop’s CD collection and I found every CD I ever sold for beer money in college. Hootie, Gin Blossoms, Garth Brooks (don’t ask), Belly, and countless others looked at me like abandoned children. Oops, sorry guys!

Mary Gauthier opened with deeply personal songs from her upcoming release produced by Michael Timmins. Tonight’s show followed the opening script of last night’s set and the show found its’ footing once the missing flowers were retrieved for Margo. Aaron Goldstein’s pedal steel sat perfectly inside “Southern Rain” and adds a distinct tone to the overall sound of this tour.

The stage was adjusted slightly placing the penalty box of percussion (it’s playoff time and the Avs won, expect some hockey references) on an angle to the rest of the band. This allowed better viewing of Pete’s life behind the glass. He wields the sticks like paintbrushes and the little flourishes on the ride cymbal during the bridge of “Sweet Jane” gave an old tune a fresh coat of paint.

The Bruins are playing well. The Celtics are showing some heart. The Sox were in town and a marathon was commencing the next day. Despite all the distractions, the fans came out and supported the band. A nice end to the “work week” but I’m already looking forward to Syracuse on Tuesday.