i guess we're going on tour sorta?
life is a highway and i have active lane assist
just added another bunch of new folks to the list here, so if this is your first email from me, hii howdy thanks for being here! and hello again to everyone else :~)
I’m sitting outside a cafe in sweet lil downtown Troy the day after labor day. we’re coming into one of my favorite times of year now. something about mid september has always seemed emotionally charged to me, i think there’s a certain mania or potency in the air around the equinoxes as we all get ready to shift into different modes of living. i’m a big proponent of september still being primarily a summer month, at least for those of us not tied to school year schedules, but i will admit summer is definitely on its last legs. cherishing every time we get to enjoy 80 degrees during the day and then 60 degrees at night. really into it.
this past weekend was another edition of bradstock, eastern long island’s best kept secret. don’t tell anyone I told you. it’s a great little music festival held in center moriches every labor day with three stages, camping, impeccable vibes, and a lot of blueberry beer. i had the immense joy and honor of playing with both Sarah Gross and Pete Mancini this year, doing something i don’t get the chance to do very often: i played straight up rhythm guitar on someone else’s songs. and I gotta tell ya, i loved it. with Sarah, i played the first half of the set on bass then handed the role over to my pal Dave March for the second half. We have an unofficial collective of musicians we like to call Second Hand Twang, and it was such a gift to share the stage with just about everyone who’s been a part of our many projects. I just can’t express how grateful i am to be surrounded by such talent and mutual support. i don’t take it for granted.
the gigs have been gravy
the last couple months we’ve really had some great shows. in august we paid a visit back home to Long Island and played with Paris Ray at People’s Pub, opened for Weeeds in Hudson, hosted nola pals Big Leather at Unihog with 518 locals Rover, joined some fun bills at No Fun in Troy, all while experimenting with new lineups and instrumentation. and that was just august. in july we started a new album and i’m really really (really!) excited about it. if you’ve been to any of these shows lately you’ve heard quite a few of the new songs that are on it. i plan on doing the opposite that i did with subject to change and releasing this album as soon as it’s finished. i don’t see the point in waiting around and being overly precious with the “release cycle”. I just want the damn thing out there. if all goes according to plan (and it often does) it will be out by the end of the year and I can be touring and telling folks about it on my way back down to new orleans for the winter.
which reminds me: if you or anyone you know has a venue suggestion, is in a band, runs house shows, or anything along those lines between Maryland and Louisiana - let me know! i’m planning out my route down in January, so far i’ve got leads in philadelphia and annapolis for january 3rd and 4th, but there’s lots more past that to get myself to new orleans. and of course i’ll have to come back in the spring, so let’s chat bby
anyway, first things last: a whole slew of shows coming up, which makes .. a tour?
lots of upstate NY, one east end LI visit, plus we are FINALLY coming to new york city!! it’s been a min!! you got two chances to make a gig in NYC, one weeknight in manhattan and one sunday matinee in queens. new faces, new songs. it’s pretty consistent so i’m gonna go ahead and call this one a tour.
what else is up? I’ve been riding my bike a lot, celebrated my cousin’s wedding, saw Bob Dylan & Willie Nelson & Lucinda Williams & Wilco (!!!) at Jones Beach, keeping in touch with friends, playing with my house plants.
that’s all for now, love u see u soon <3