Last Sunday we left Lincoln, NE at about 1:30am driving
through the night heading east toward Indiana and Kentucky. I think this is one of the most difficult
things about what we do – play a show, then immediately tear down afterward,
get in the van and drive overnight. The
reason we do it is logical: it is the last show and we all want to get home as
early the next day as possible. But actually driving overnight following a gig
is rough. Some of the guys fall asleep
easily after a show and are able to sleep for a few hours as we drive down the
interstate. But someone has to drive,
right? And we try to have a policy that
during an overnight run, someone stays up with the driver. And as difficult as it is to drive late at
night when you’re tired, it is often more difficult to stay awake with the
driver. There’s nothing to keep you
awake except energy drinks and the radio.
So the best you can really hope for is to find an old radio station that
plays all the best classic country that you never get to hear on Top 40 stations anymore. I was
struggling to keep my eyes open at 4am driving through Des Moines just wishing
to find a station with some George Jones or Haggard or something. Well, guess it was just another glamorous
night as a musician. Sure wish we had a
bus driver. And come to think of it, a
bus too. Eh, maybe someday soon.
Someone recently asked what each of us would be doing if we
weren’t in a band. Good question,
although one I’m sure none of us really wants to think about. But now that I am thinking about it, it kind
of makes me laugh to think about what the other guys might possibly do with
their lives if they weren’t musicians. I
picture Steve as a Radio DJ. He has the
perfect voice for it. Probably working
for one of those classic country stations we try to find on late night
drives. I picture him doing the
overnight shift, playing the songs he wants to hear, tapping along with the
music with his headphones on. How about
Josh? Well, he is actually taking
recording classes as we tour, so I know that his goal is to record and
produce. But what if he weren’t doing that? Hmm… Josh seems to have had about a million
odd jobs, so I’m sure he’d have no problem finding ways to make money; but who
knows where Josh would be without a bass guitar in his hands. Kevin: this one is easy. He has so much knowledge about how sound
systems work, and how stages should be run, etc. And he also is pretty good at building
things. So Kevin would probably be doing
one of two things: either he would be a stage manager for some touring band, or
he’d be building and selling road cases (and pedal boards, and amps). Have you seen our drum case he built? It is pretty impressive. As for me… I’d like to think I’d somehow put
my education to good use. But I have a
biology degree, and can’t see myself stuck in a lab. So maybe I could use the Psychology minor and
get back into counseling. I wouldn’t be
opposed to eventually starting up my own Indie label and working with other
bands and musicians. Or wait, I’ve got
it: the perfect job for me would be a food critic. Get paid to try new foods! That’s right up my alley. Okay, so maybe we should all stick with music
and this band then. That sounds like a
much better idea.
Well, Christmas is next week. I love Christmas time. For some reason, I really enjoy Christmas
trees. Not sure why; maybe the lights
(or the presents underneath), who knows.
And I actually like old Christmas songs.
The classics though. I’m not
really interested in the current pop star singing “White Christmas”. It is just not my thing. It does annoy me when radio stations play
Christmas songs for the 2 months leading up to the holiday though. I am good with hearing them the week leading
up to Christmas. And on Christmas Eve,
all holiday songs all day long! But that’s
it for me. And I know I just said I’m
not into pop artists doing Christmas songs, so I have no basis for telling you
this, but if you haven’t heard them, you should really check out Straight No Chaser’s Christmas
album. For one thing, it is awesome; but
also has some funny tracks too. It is a
great twist on everyone’s favorite Christmas tunes. And it is all a cappella.
Speaking of Christmas: do you have a Christmas wish? I don’t have anything personally that I need
this year, but I do have a Christmas wish for the band: to find a Label that
suits our needs. Which brings forth the
question: what are our needs? Well, to
become bigger and more successful, radio airplay is a huge step; so having a
label that can get us on the radio in major markets. Then, performing our music to larger
audiences; so having a label that has connections with promoters that can get
us on tours with other national acts, playing in front of thousands of people
at a time would really help push us forward.
And that is really the goal: getting our music heard as often as
possible by as many people as possible.
Then I guess keeping our fingers crossed that people actually like the
music and want to hear it again. There
are thousands of labels out there, but probably only a handful that are right
for what we are doing and for where we are right now as a band. But that is the hope, that they can find us,
or we can find them. Wow, as I read that
back, I realize I have just shared the one major thought that keeps me up at
night: moving forward and becoming a successful artist (and yes, it definitely does keep me up a lot of nights). I guess I will be writing completely openly
and honestly on here, huh. So, if by chance
anyone out there reading this has a relative working for a record label that
you want to put us in contact with, that’d be very helpful. haha.
We are heading to Illinois this weekend, which is always a
good time. I’m sure I’ll have a good story
or two for next week’s post. Stay safe
out there. Hope you all have a wonderful
Christmas (or whatever other holiday you might be celebrating this season). Check out our WEBSITE and other social media
sites. If you haven’t already, make sure
you like our FACEBOOK Fan page, and be sure to follow us on TWITTER as
well. And as always, if you have
anything you’d like us to write about on here, feel free to EMAIL us with any
questions or comments. We love hearing
from everyone out there!
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