All In The Name Of Progress

      I know it’s only been a week, but it feels like a really long time since I did this. Especially since, all things considered, I haven’t really done that much in the past week. Practice last week was awesome! It felt really good to get back to the Eruption. It was almost like no time had passed. Almost. There were a few rusty spots. Not so much on the new songs, which are almost not new at this point. But we dusted off some oldies, and they felt, well, old. We sounded good, and it felt good, but I have to say: It felt a little different. Last week was the first time all three of my bands practiced in the same week. The Calvins and the Heartbreak Hustlers both have short, upbeat songs. I’ve been pretty much only practicing those songs for a month now. So, much to my chagrin, the Eruption songs seemed a little… drawn out. Not that we’ll change anything, it was just a feeling I had. Some of the Eruption songs are the length of 2 of the other band’s songs. Not that it’s good or bad, just different. We’ve been playing these songs a long time, and I know some people like the longer jam vibe that we have. I’m excited to get it back out to people. I’ve been playing in front of so many people recently, and yet no one really knows what I do. I’m kind of becoming this enigma bass player, yet most people don’t know what I really do. It’s a little strange. I hope it changes soon. The Eruption are turning 20 in November, I hope to show people what we’ve been up to. I’m trying to put a show together. I reached out to the place we used to play often, Pete’s Place in La Mesa. They don’t have bands anymore, but we used to play there often. It’s kind of where people started to know us from. I hope we can get in.

     My wife and I are pretty tight with the owners. We used to live right across the street. So, we spent a lot more time in there than we should have. But, we made a lot of cool connections, so it is what it is. I was a little nervous to ask, since they don’t have bands anymore, and we don’t hang out there that much anymore. They haven’t responded yet. I’m taking that as a good sign. I half expected an immediate response saying “no.” But that hasn’t happened. That leads me to believe that they’re actually considering it, which makes me happy! I hope I’m not fooling myself. They could just not check their messages that often. But I like to think they’re considering it. We would get to play early. A lot of our friends will come. And, if we’re going to make someone a bunch of money, I’d rather it be friends of ours. I think it’ll be mutually beneficial. I hope they see it that way too. If not, I plan on reaching out to hopeful venue number 2 next week. I tried talking to the band about their druthers last week, but they all just kind of shrug and nod. I know they don’t want to play late. I don’t think our people want to be out late. So, it kind of limits our options. I thought if we played at a local brewery, it would be cool to have the Hustlers open. It would get exposure for my new band, but also expose people to my old band. I thought it felt like a win-win. However, last week at Hustlers practice our electric guitar player, George, said he doesn’t want us to play any mixed genre shows. I thought that was a little odd. Cow-punk is not that exclusive of a genre that we can only play with others like us. Sometimes, when he says things, I’m not so sure if he really thinks about what he’s saying.

     Oh well, I guess that’s part of the fun in being in different creative environments. A band that he fronts, that I used to be the bass player in, is playing tomorrow night. I’m interested in seeing how it goes. It may be a determining factor in the Hustlers. If he’s awesome, I’ll be a little more confident in his “opinion.” If he stinks, some of my suspicions may be confirmed. I don’t like that I feel that way, but it is a consideration. Lots of times actions speak louder than words, and I have a lot more respect for people who walk the walk. I used the Bolt Brewery show as a determining factor as well. We pulled it off! We did what we said we’d do. That’s good! But now things seem to be changing a little. So, I’m still in a holding pattern. I don’t like feeling that way, but we have to have a way to determine whether something’s a “right” fit or not, and too often, judgement can not be made by what people “say.” Anyway, I didn’t plan on spending the whole time on that. This past weekend I spent a lot of time alone. My sister-in-law left on Tuesday. So, my wife was with her the whole weekend. I get it, they want to spend time together while she’s in town. It makes me feel a little weird because my sister lives less than 10 minutes from me, and I don’t even run into her at the store. Actually, I’m not even sure that she goes to the store. She did come see the Hustlers though, that was cool. I think my water just came back on. It’s been off all day, they’re repairing some kind of leak. Nothing like having no water to make you realize how nice it is to have some. And how much you actually use. My dishes have been piling up since breakfast. I don’t like that. Oh well, all in the name of progress!