Don't know how I did it, but I managed to sleep until 9 this morning. That's 7.5 hours, which is the most I've had in months. Throw back the curtains to some miserable weather. Evidently the leading edge of the storm that was Hurricane Katrina has arrived, and will be dumping rain on us for a couple of days.
Sit by the window and try to get caught up on newspapers. Still have half of a USA Today from the 26th, along with comics from 2 days ago, yesterday's entire paper, and this morning's.
Finish all that by noon, so I work for a while, then grab a shower and head down to start the check out around 2:15. Our bus call time to go to the venue is 3:00. The rain is blowing completely sideways as we make our way out of the hotel and load up the buses. Man, this weather sucks. One good thing, though, is that we're so far north that the temperature is to my liking.
I love it when we play 2 in a row at the same venue. I'll only be here today from 3:30pm until about 1:30am. Unfortunately, since we added this second date in Q.C., we've got hell to pay to get to Toronto on time tomorrow morning. It's a 500 mile drive and we've got about 7 hours to do it, which means we'll be late.
I'm done early, so I get caught up on all my blogging and websurfing. Heading to the bus around 1:40.
I'll be on the plane in 79 hours, 24 minutes…
Goodnight…
Wednesday, August 31, 2005
Tuesday, August 30, 2005
Show Day in Quebec City (first of two)
First of two show days here. We're at the Colisee Pepsi. That's French – if you can't figure out what it means, stop reading now and just kill yourself.
That's a joke.
Lighten up.
Yes, I've been drinking…
Not much to report today. But since we're doing two-in-a-row here, the crew doesn't have to load out, and I don't have to settle tonight. We order a bunch of pizzas, and get a couple of cases of beer on ice for the production office. I watch my now customary first 2 songs of our set, even drag Janet out of the office to see 'em for the first time, then it's back to the office for the funk music fest and a few beers.
Show's over just before 11, we're on the bus heading to the hotel by 11:40. Head down to the bar with a shitload of crew folks, but I’m just not into hanging out tonight. I have a couple of beers, and I'm back in my room by 1am.
I'll be on my flight home in 104 hours. Time's just not moving fast enough for me.
Out…
That's a joke.
Lighten up.
Yes, I've been drinking…
Not much to report today. But since we're doing two-in-a-row here, the crew doesn't have to load out, and I don't have to settle tonight. We order a bunch of pizzas, and get a couple of cases of beer on ice for the production office. I watch my now customary first 2 songs of our set, even drag Janet out of the office to see 'em for the first time, then it's back to the office for the funk music fest and a few beers.
Show's over just before 11, we're on the bus heading to the hotel by 11:40. Head down to the bar with a shitload of crew folks, but I’m just not into hanging out tonight. I have a couple of beers, and I'm back in my room by 1am.
I'll be on my flight home in 104 hours. Time's just not moving fast enough for me.
Out…
Monday, August 29, 2005
Show Day in Montreal
Good news! We've moved our load-in times an hour later for the remainder of the tour. Which means that my bus doesn't leave the hotel on the morning following a day off until 10:30am. I can get an extra hour of sleep, or, like I did this morning, get and extra hour of piddling about done.
Get caught up on the blog, and make it downstairs by 9:45 to start the check out procedure. Richard at the desk does a great job and I'm on the bus by 10:15.
We're playing the Bell Centre today in downtown Montreal. About 12,500 crazy French-Canadian kids here tonight. I go out to watch my customary 2 songs, the first of our set. I guess I just like watching the kabuki drop.
Settlement is quick and easy with Sergio, so I get to go back out and watch the last 5 songs from the side of the stage.
Back to the office for phone calls, blog work, and conversation.
Head out to the bus around 1:30. I want to start the new book. Looking forward to my extra hour of sleep. Nine AM load-in indeed!
P.S. I'll be on the plane and homeward bound in 127.5 hours…
Get caught up on the blog, and make it downstairs by 9:45 to start the check out procedure. Richard at the desk does a great job and I'm on the bus by 10:15.
We're playing the Bell Centre today in downtown Montreal. About 12,500 crazy French-Canadian kids here tonight. I go out to watch my customary 2 songs, the first of our set. I guess I just like watching the kabuki drop.
Settlement is quick and easy with Sergio, so I get to go back out and watch the last 5 songs from the side of the stage.
Back to the office for phone calls, blog work, and conversation.
Head out to the bus around 1:30. I want to start the new book. Looking forward to my extra hour of sleep. Nine AM load-in indeed!
P.S. I'll be on the plane and homeward bound in 127.5 hours…
Sunday, August 28, 2005
Day Off in Montreal
Wake up at 8:15, just as the driver is stopping the bus at the border. Time to do the old song & dance routine to get into Canada (not that any of us wants to…).
Once we get through, it's about another hour or so to downtown Montreal. We're staying at the Marriott Chateau Champlain. I get everyone into their rooms within an hour of our arrival – not bad for a Sunday morning around 11am.
After dropping my stuff in my room, I ask about a Starbucks location and head out. Should known it would be up on Saint Catherine's, which is 3 blocks north of us, in the mega-shopping area. There's actually 2 'Bucks – I go to the one inside a bookstore called "Chapters" because I need a new book today.
A drink and a scone for lunch, buy a book and a magazine, and head back out to rediscover the neighborhood. It's been a couple of years since I wandered around up here. There's a helluva lot of people shopping today, the sidewalks are all jammed. Pass the occasional crew guy, and a few ask questions – "Seen any pubs?", "Radio Shack?", etc. They know I always like to wander around to see where everything is.
Back to the hotel, finish the old book, take a nap, grab a shower. The audio guys have invited me to go to the strip club around the corner tonight. I appreciate it guys, but I have a sudden bout of anal glaucoma – I can't see my ass doing that. I'll probably crack the new book and I wanna watch the MTV Video Awards. Might see whoever I'll be working for next year or the year after.
Oh, yeah, here's a shot of the crazy sculpture a block away from the hotel. It makes me think of the SouthPark Anal Space Probe or something. Very phallic, indeed…
Take another walk, gotta find some chow to bring back for dinner. Walk for about 45-50 minutes before deciding to just grab a Subway back by the hotel. Forty feet before I reach the Subway, I come across 4 of our guys (Steve, Andy, Shawn and Jesse) sitting in the open air section of McLean's Pub and they invite me to join them. I get a great people-watching seat by the sidewalk and order a Boddington's and a sandwich. Get some jalapeno poppers, too, which for reasons known only to French-Canadians, are served with strawberry jam.
Huh?
I try it. Not too bad. A little strange, but not bad.
While sitting in the window seat, I spot Joe & Geddy, and give them a shout out. They join us. Two minutes later, here comes Janet, Mark and Robb. Suddenly we've got a gang of 10. Drinking, eating and storytelling ensues. Several people inform me that I won't be able to see the MTV VMA's because the hotel only has Much Music, the Canadian equivalent to MTV, not the real deal.
Fuckin' Canucks!
Joe and I walk back to the hotel around 10:30 or so. I want to crack the new book and check to see what's going on with the hurricane that's about to trash New Orleans. Never make it to the book. Looks like the hurricane's gonna be BAD. I fall asleep watching pre-strike coverage…
Once we get through, it's about another hour or so to downtown Montreal. We're staying at the Marriott Chateau Champlain. I get everyone into their rooms within an hour of our arrival – not bad for a Sunday morning around 11am.
After dropping my stuff in my room, I ask about a Starbucks location and head out. Should known it would be up on Saint Catherine's, which is 3 blocks north of us, in the mega-shopping area. There's actually 2 'Bucks – I go to the one inside a bookstore called "Chapters" because I need a new book today.
A drink and a scone for lunch, buy a book and a magazine, and head back out to rediscover the neighborhood. It's been a couple of years since I wandered around up here. There's a helluva lot of people shopping today, the sidewalks are all jammed. Pass the occasional crew guy, and a few ask questions – "Seen any pubs?", "Radio Shack?", etc. They know I always like to wander around to see where everything is.
Back to the hotel, finish the old book, take a nap, grab a shower. The audio guys have invited me to go to the strip club around the corner tonight. I appreciate it guys, but I have a sudden bout of anal glaucoma – I can't see my ass doing that. I'll probably crack the new book and I wanna watch the MTV Video Awards. Might see whoever I'll be working for next year or the year after.
Oh, yeah, here's a shot of the crazy sculpture a block away from the hotel. It makes me think of the SouthPark Anal Space Probe or something. Very phallic, indeed…
Take another walk, gotta find some chow to bring back for dinner. Walk for about 45-50 minutes before deciding to just grab a Subway back by the hotel. Forty feet before I reach the Subway, I come across 4 of our guys (Steve, Andy, Shawn and Jesse) sitting in the open air section of McLean's Pub and they invite me to join them. I get a great people-watching seat by the sidewalk and order a Boddington's and a sandwich. Get some jalapeno poppers, too, which for reasons known only to French-Canadians, are served with strawberry jam.
Huh?
I try it. Not too bad. A little strange, but not bad.
While sitting in the window seat, I spot Joe & Geddy, and give them a shout out. They join us. Two minutes later, here comes Janet, Mark and Robb. Suddenly we've got a gang of 10. Drinking, eating and storytelling ensues. Several people inform me that I won't be able to see the MTV VMA's because the hotel only has Much Music, the Canadian equivalent to MTV, not the real deal.
Fuckin' Canucks!
Joe and I walk back to the hotel around 10:30 or so. I want to crack the new book and check to see what's going on with the hurricane that's about to trash New Orleans. Never make it to the book. Looks like the hurricane's gonna be BAD. I fall asleep watching pre-strike coverage…
Saturday, August 27, 2005
Show Day in Worcester, MA
Today we're playing the Centrum in Worcester, Massachusetts. Worcester's about 45 miles west of Boston, and is a much cheaper place to do a show. We've got about 9,000 ticket sold for tonight's show. Today's also the last US show until September 23rd in St. Paul, MN. Gotta deal with foreign currency for awhile…
I wanted to watch the NASCAR race from Bristol tonight, but didn't really get the chance. Saw about 50 laps, but settlement prevented me from seeing any more. What moron had the bright idea to schedule a damn rock concert on a race night?!? Oh, well.
Big fight out on the street by our buses tonight. Two assholes were talking shit about some kid's girlfriend, so he took his man pill and started swinging. A few of our crew guys saw the whole thing – at one point Asshole #1 got the guy in a headlock and dropped him to the ground, slamming his skull into the curb. I had it described to me as making a sickening, hollow sound when it hit, not unlike the sound you get when you thump a fresh melon. Poor guy got his nose broken and his eye fucked up, too. I heard about all this after the fact, but walked outside to see the cops UN-handcuffing the 2 jackasses who started the whole thing and sending them on their way. There was blood on the side of my bus, on the sidewalk, in the road, you name it. The kid was being treated in an ambulance, but wasn't sent to the hospital – I know this because some crew dudes spotted him after the show. Ugh!
The driver's show up just before 2am. We head north around 2:30…
I wanted to watch the NASCAR race from Bristol tonight, but didn't really get the chance. Saw about 50 laps, but settlement prevented me from seeing any more. What moron had the bright idea to schedule a damn rock concert on a race night?!? Oh, well.
Big fight out on the street by our buses tonight. Two assholes were talking shit about some kid's girlfriend, so he took his man pill and started swinging. A few of our crew guys saw the whole thing – at one point Asshole #1 got the guy in a headlock and dropped him to the ground, slamming his skull into the curb. I had it described to me as making a sickening, hollow sound when it hit, not unlike the sound you get when you thump a fresh melon. Poor guy got his nose broken and his eye fucked up, too. I heard about all this after the fact, but walked outside to see the cops UN-handcuffing the 2 jackasses who started the whole thing and sending them on their way. There was blood on the side of my bus, on the sidewalk, in the road, you name it. The kid was being treated in an ambulance, but wasn't sent to the hospital – I know this because some crew dudes spotted him after the show. Ugh!
The driver's show up just before 2am. We head north around 2:30…
Friday, August 26, 2005
Show Day in Philadelphia
Up bright and early at 6:40, at the Starbucks at 7, back in my room reading the paper by 7:10…
Our show today is at the old and famous Spectrum in Philadelphia. It's now called the Wachovia Spectrum, but fuck 'em, it's the Spectrum. This venue shares a parking lot with the Phillies baseball stadium, the Eagles football stadium (where there's a game tonight), and the Wachovia Center (which is the building that replaced this one, and is where the Flyers play).
Take a walk around 4pm to get a picture or 2. I find some statues on display out front. Oh, shit, there's a statue of Sylvester Stallone as Rocky! Unbelievable – that is just so corny and these idiots have a fucking statue of him right out in front of the main entrance of the building:
There's also a statue of Julius Erving, also known as Dr. J. Now THAT one I get. He was an incredible athlete in his time, and some people will always consider him to be the best player ever in the NBA.
But a statue of fucking Rocky Balboa? What a joke.
Here's Dr. J…
It's official now – I've been offered the tour accounting gig on the upcoming Audioslave tour. Can't do it though, because that tour is 18 days in by the time I finish this tour. Oh, well, maybe next time.
Not much else to comment on today. Head to the bus around 1am…
Our show today is at the old and famous Spectrum in Philadelphia. It's now called the Wachovia Spectrum, but fuck 'em, it's the Spectrum. This venue shares a parking lot with the Phillies baseball stadium, the Eagles football stadium (where there's a game tonight), and the Wachovia Center (which is the building that replaced this one, and is where the Flyers play).
Take a walk around 4pm to get a picture or 2. I find some statues on display out front. Oh, shit, there's a statue of Sylvester Stallone as Rocky! Unbelievable – that is just so corny and these idiots have a fucking statue of him right out in front of the main entrance of the building:
There's also a statue of Julius Erving, also known as Dr. J. Now THAT one I get. He was an incredible athlete in his time, and some people will always consider him to be the best player ever in the NBA.
But a statue of fucking Rocky Balboa? What a joke.
Here's Dr. J…
It's official now – I've been offered the tour accounting gig on the upcoming Audioslave tour. Can't do it though, because that tour is 18 days in by the time I finish this tour. Oh, well, maybe next time.
Not much else to comment on today. Head to the bus around 1am…
Thursday, August 25, 2005
Day Off #2 in Philadelphia
Up at 8am, work until 9, head to Starbucks. Crazy lady with the action figure is there again. I guess this is her spot to get money from suckers like me. Get my scone & drink and head back to my room. Read the Enquirer, the WSJ and USA Today. Why don't they call it USA Yesterday? That would be more accurate.
Around 2, I head to the mall a block away. Hit the record store (they still have those in malls?) to buy a copy of System's latest – my brother needs an autographed copy for a co-worker. Wander the area for a while. Find a cool marketplace/restaurant area kinda like Pike Place Market in Seattle. Lots of lunch options.
I sit down at a place called Delilah's Country Cooking. I'm gonna have Cajun Catfish, with Candied Yams and Mac & Cheese. According to the sign up front, no less a Mac & Cheese authority than Oprah Winfrey has declared Delilah's to have the "BEST MACARONI AND CHEESE IN THE U.S.A." We'll see…
Shit!!! They're out of catfish. Nothing else on the menu is really pushing my buttons, so I head to Pearl's Oyster Bar because it seems to be very popular. No "R" in August, so I'm sure there won't be any oysters, but I'm sure they'll have something I can eat.
Sho'nuff, no oysters. I settle for a combo plate – flounder, shrimp, deviled crab, clams, etc., along with fries and coleslaw.
It's fucking awful. Really. What the hell is wrong with these people? I can't believe they're even in business. And these stupid fuckers lined up to eat here? They don't know shit about fried seafood. Really. I suffer through about 5 bites and leave it. I think if these people ever had real Calabash-style seafood, they'd think they'd died and gone to Heaven.
Pooch calls mid/late afternoon to remind me about having dinner with the audio crew tonight. We're meeting in the lobby at 6:30, not sure yet where we're going.
I read for awhile, then grab a shower and a 20 minute power nap. Meet the guys downstairs at 6:30. Just Pooch, David Coyle, Brett Stec and me are going. Jesse went home for the days off – so did Dan. Pooch has a line on a "killer" Chinese place. We walk about 4 blocks to the entrance of Philly's Chinatown, and another half-block to the place the concierge told him about.
I'm kinda in a drinking mood after not having anything last night, so the first beer goes down real easy. Me and Brett are the only ones drinking tonight. Seems everyone had a big night last night while I was laying low. Brett's still nursing a hangover, but he says he doesn't wanna make me drink alone. Hey, I've used that one before, too!
The food's good, but no better than the two places I get Chinese from in Raleigh. After dinner, we walk back to the hotel. Just before crossing the last street, I beg off. I've only had 2 beers and still have work to do. David and Brett's eyes light up, and decide to join me at the Independence Pub, near the hotel. We're only there for a round though, before we all decide to head back. Fours beers in, I call it quits for the night.
I'm in my room, in my PJ's, and reading by 9pm. Stop to work on the blog for a bit, then finish my evening with the book…
Around 2, I head to the mall a block away. Hit the record store (they still have those in malls?) to buy a copy of System's latest – my brother needs an autographed copy for a co-worker. Wander the area for a while. Find a cool marketplace/restaurant area kinda like Pike Place Market in Seattle. Lots of lunch options.
I sit down at a place called Delilah's Country Cooking. I'm gonna have Cajun Catfish, with Candied Yams and Mac & Cheese. According to the sign up front, no less a Mac & Cheese authority than Oprah Winfrey has declared Delilah's to have the "BEST MACARONI AND CHEESE IN THE U.S.A." We'll see…
Shit!!! They're out of catfish. Nothing else on the menu is really pushing my buttons, so I head to Pearl's Oyster Bar because it seems to be very popular. No "R" in August, so I'm sure there won't be any oysters, but I'm sure they'll have something I can eat.
Sho'nuff, no oysters. I settle for a combo plate – flounder, shrimp, deviled crab, clams, etc., along with fries and coleslaw.
It's fucking awful. Really. What the hell is wrong with these people? I can't believe they're even in business. And these stupid fuckers lined up to eat here? They don't know shit about fried seafood. Really. I suffer through about 5 bites and leave it. I think if these people ever had real Calabash-style seafood, they'd think they'd died and gone to Heaven.
Pooch calls mid/late afternoon to remind me about having dinner with the audio crew tonight. We're meeting in the lobby at 6:30, not sure yet where we're going.
I read for awhile, then grab a shower and a 20 minute power nap. Meet the guys downstairs at 6:30. Just Pooch, David Coyle, Brett Stec and me are going. Jesse went home for the days off – so did Dan. Pooch has a line on a "killer" Chinese place. We walk about 4 blocks to the entrance of Philly's Chinatown, and another half-block to the place the concierge told him about.
I'm kinda in a drinking mood after not having anything last night, so the first beer goes down real easy. Me and Brett are the only ones drinking tonight. Seems everyone had a big night last night while I was laying low. Brett's still nursing a hangover, but he says he doesn't wanna make me drink alone. Hey, I've used that one before, too!
The food's good, but no better than the two places I get Chinese from in Raleigh. After dinner, we walk back to the hotel. Just before crossing the last street, I beg off. I've only had 2 beers and still have work to do. David and Brett's eyes light up, and decide to join me at the Independence Pub, near the hotel. We're only there for a round though, before we all decide to head back. Fours beers in, I call it quits for the night.
I'm in my room, in my PJ's, and reading by 9pm. Stop to work on the blog for a bit, then finish my evening with the book…
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
Day Off #1 in Philadelphia
The alarm screams my name at 11. I drag my butt outta bed. Starbucks 50 feet from the hotel entrance. Get a drink and a scone. Give 10 bucks to a crazy woman sitting on the sidewalk playing with an action figure. Even if she's faking, it's seems to be money well spent.
Back up to my room to read yesterday's USA Today, today's USA Today, Philly Enquirer, and the Wall Street Journal.
Try to check email – the damn ethernet cable's too short to reach the far side of my laptop (where the damn port it. Walk to Staples to buy an inline coupler so I can use my cable as an extension. Also hit the CVS for some stuff.
Spend about 4-5 hours working, finally leaving the hotel around 9pm to find some dinner (never had lunch, just the Starbucks). Don’t really feel like a sitdown, so I grab a sandwich at the Wa-Wa. That's a Philly Circle K, and they have made-to-order sandwiches on site. I'd like a couple of beers to take back to the room, but you can't buy beer in convenience stores in Pennsylvania. Oh, well, no biggie. Back in my room, I eat, watch the 11:00 news, read, and then fall asleep on the chaise lounge. Wake up around 1am and crawl into bed…
Back up to my room to read yesterday's USA Today, today's USA Today, Philly Enquirer, and the Wall Street Journal.
Try to check email – the damn ethernet cable's too short to reach the far side of my laptop (where the damn port it. Walk to Staples to buy an inline coupler so I can use my cable as an extension. Also hit the CVS for some stuff.
Spend about 4-5 hours working, finally leaving the hotel around 9pm to find some dinner (never had lunch, just the Starbucks). Don’t really feel like a sitdown, so I grab a sandwich at the Wa-Wa. That's a Philly Circle K, and they have made-to-order sandwiches on site. I'd like a couple of beers to take back to the room, but you can't buy beer in convenience stores in Pennsylvania. Oh, well, no biggie. Back in my room, I eat, watch the 11:00 news, read, and then fall asleep on the chaise lounge. Wake up around 1am and crawl into bed…
Tuesday, August 23, 2005
Show Day in E. Rutherford, NJ
Up around 7:45, in the building a few minutes after 8. Shebetka's leading the load-in charge, says Eddie and Steve are still asleep. I go back out to Eddie's bus to wake him up.
I've got a private office today. After I shuffle the table around sideways in the room, it's even better, because 1) now I can look directly out the door into the hallway and into the production office across the hall from me, and 2) now there's not a shred of room for anyone else to come set up in here with me. Happy, happy, joy, joy…
New York shows are always a pain in the ass. Hope this one turns out OK. Ticket sales are around 15,000 for the show tonight, and we should have a decent walk-up.
Familiar faces abound. Lisa and Scotty, 2 of my favorite NY runners, are here today. Good folks. Although with the band having hired Janet (our production assistant), I no longer have to deal with runners.
Jimmy Archey calls, he's not gonna make it out to visit today. He always comes to hang out with me during the afternoon, anytime I'm in the New York City area. He's about to leave to spend 3 weeks at the family house in Spain, so he won't have time to drive out here today. We're playing at the Continental Airlines Arena, which is in the Meadowlands Complex in New Jersey, across the river from Manhattan. Giants Stadium is also a part of the complex.
My phone is ringing off the hook today. I have a lot of tickets and passes to coordinate today for my guests and my friends' guests. Did I mention that NY shows are a pain? The requests keep coming until well after doors are open. We're out of tickets, because the band used all the comps, so what I'm having to do is leave sticky passes in envelopes at the box office for them, have them walk around back to the top of the backstage ramp, then I walk all the way out there to meet them and escort them in. I'll do this about a million times today…
And I do.
Can't wait to play cities where I don’t know anyone and no one I know knows anyone.
After the show, I take Sarah & Alex up to my bus for a beer. Sarah's my buddy from the BBMak tour (2000). A bit later, Jerry (King's X's drummer) and his 2 friends come join us. Other crew dudes are bringing their friends onto the bus, so I move all my peeps out into the parking lot. The weather is absolute perfect – the temp's around 78 and the humidity is low.
Shortly after Jerry and his friends split, Sarah & Alex take off. Me and Za go grab a shitload of chairs from the KROQ tent about 40 yards away and start a circle party. The drivers show up around 1:45 and we're off to Philly.
I watch T3 most of the way there, falling in and out of a catnap. We arrive at the hotel just before 4am. I get everyone checked in and make it to my room around 4:30. Of course the damn air conditioner's been turned off, so the room's hot. Takes about 30 minutes to cool it off to where I can go to sleep…
Szzzzzzz.
I've got a private office today. After I shuffle the table around sideways in the room, it's even better, because 1) now I can look directly out the door into the hallway and into the production office across the hall from me, and 2) now there's not a shred of room for anyone else to come set up in here with me. Happy, happy, joy, joy…
New York shows are always a pain in the ass. Hope this one turns out OK. Ticket sales are around 15,000 for the show tonight, and we should have a decent walk-up.
Familiar faces abound. Lisa and Scotty, 2 of my favorite NY runners, are here today. Good folks. Although with the band having hired Janet (our production assistant), I no longer have to deal with runners.
Jimmy Archey calls, he's not gonna make it out to visit today. He always comes to hang out with me during the afternoon, anytime I'm in the New York City area. He's about to leave to spend 3 weeks at the family house in Spain, so he won't have time to drive out here today. We're playing at the Continental Airlines Arena, which is in the Meadowlands Complex in New Jersey, across the river from Manhattan. Giants Stadium is also a part of the complex.
My phone is ringing off the hook today. I have a lot of tickets and passes to coordinate today for my guests and my friends' guests. Did I mention that NY shows are a pain? The requests keep coming until well after doors are open. We're out of tickets, because the band used all the comps, so what I'm having to do is leave sticky passes in envelopes at the box office for them, have them walk around back to the top of the backstage ramp, then I walk all the way out there to meet them and escort them in. I'll do this about a million times today…
And I do.
Can't wait to play cities where I don’t know anyone and no one I know knows anyone.
After the show, I take Sarah & Alex up to my bus for a beer. Sarah's my buddy from the BBMak tour (2000). A bit later, Jerry (King's X's drummer) and his 2 friends come join us. Other crew dudes are bringing their friends onto the bus, so I move all my peeps out into the parking lot. The weather is absolute perfect – the temp's around 78 and the humidity is low.
Shortly after Jerry and his friends split, Sarah & Alex take off. Me and Za go grab a shitload of chairs from the KROQ tent about 40 yards away and start a circle party. The drivers show up around 1:45 and we're off to Philly.
I watch T3 most of the way there, falling in and out of a catnap. We arrive at the hotel just before 4am. I get everyone checked in and make it to my room around 4:30. Of course the damn air conditioner's been turned off, so the room's hot. Takes about 30 minutes to cool it off to where I can go to sleep…
Szzzzzzz.
Monday, August 22, 2005
Show Day in Baltimore
In my bunk around 2:15am, jolted awake by the driver jockeying the bus around in the parking lot of the venue at 6:20. Back and forth, left and right, rinse and repeat. Try to go back to sleep. Fuck it, not gonna just lay here. Get up, and ask a venue security guy for directions to the Starbucks. I know there's one nearby, but can't remember exactly where it is. It's on the street level of the Radisson Hotel 1 block away. Starbucks here I come…
Back at the venue and bored out of my mind by 8:00. Not a stick of furniture in the production office yet, so no way I can set my shit up. Head out again to go find some newspapers. You'd think in downtown you'd find paper boxes on every corner. Not here – I actually spend a few minutes chasing 'em down. Back at the venue and have my world set up and rocking by 9:30. Shower Time!!!
Today is Saint PD's Day (I distribute per diems on Monday), so I'm everybody's favorite guy today. Money always makes people happy.
I take another walk over to Starbucks around 4:30 to reload. Gotta ween myself offa this shit.
Eddie's old friend Walt shows up around 5:30. Walt always comes out to visit us whenever we're playing in the DC/Baltimore area. As usual, he's brought a BUNCH of steamed shrimp and three of the most awesome baseball-sized crabcakes I've ever had. Me, Eddie, Andy and Walt retire to a table in the catering room to attack the goods. Walt's also brought along about a gallon and a half of his mother's shrimp soup. It smells amazing, but I'm not gonna have any because he tells me there's a couple of big old chunks of ham in it, too. I do eat about ½ of one of the crabcakes. Heavenly! One thing I miss about living in Maryland is the seafood here.
My buddy Ivan surprises me by walking into the production office. He's married to my travel agent Debra Copelan. He's out tour managing the band Seether (from South Africa). They've got a gig here in Baltimore tomorrow, and are staying at the hotel on the corner across the street from our gig today. We hook the band and crew up to come to our show – all they have to do is flash their laminates to get in.
Meet up with Ivan at FOH when it's time for System to go on. Watch my usual 2 songs, then back to production. Ivan comes to hang out for a few minutes, then heads back to his hotel. Says he has work to catch up on, and just dropped by to see me and watch a couple of songs.
Janet, our production assistant, sits in on settlement with me tonight. She wants to learn how to do it, and I don’t mind showing her the ropes.
I quit working around 11:15, write a bit in the blog, then start in on the 2 newspapers (USA Today, Baltimore Sun) I bought this morning that I haven't even touched yet.
Out to the bus and in my bunk by 2am…
Back at the venue and bored out of my mind by 8:00. Not a stick of furniture in the production office yet, so no way I can set my shit up. Head out again to go find some newspapers. You'd think in downtown you'd find paper boxes on every corner. Not here – I actually spend a few minutes chasing 'em down. Back at the venue and have my world set up and rocking by 9:30. Shower Time!!!
Today is Saint PD's Day (I distribute per diems on Monday), so I'm everybody's favorite guy today. Money always makes people happy.
I take another walk over to Starbucks around 4:30 to reload. Gotta ween myself offa this shit.
Eddie's old friend Walt shows up around 5:30. Walt always comes out to visit us whenever we're playing in the DC/Baltimore area. As usual, he's brought a BUNCH of steamed shrimp and three of the most awesome baseball-sized crabcakes I've ever had. Me, Eddie, Andy and Walt retire to a table in the catering room to attack the goods. Walt's also brought along about a gallon and a half of his mother's shrimp soup. It smells amazing, but I'm not gonna have any because he tells me there's a couple of big old chunks of ham in it, too. I do eat about ½ of one of the crabcakes. Heavenly! One thing I miss about living in Maryland is the seafood here.
My buddy Ivan surprises me by walking into the production office. He's married to my travel agent Debra Copelan. He's out tour managing the band Seether (from South Africa). They've got a gig here in Baltimore tomorrow, and are staying at the hotel on the corner across the street from our gig today. We hook the band and crew up to come to our show – all they have to do is flash their laminates to get in.
Meet up with Ivan at FOH when it's time for System to go on. Watch my usual 2 songs, then back to production. Ivan comes to hang out for a few minutes, then heads back to his hotel. Says he has work to catch up on, and just dropped by to see me and watch a couple of songs.
Janet, our production assistant, sits in on settlement with me tonight. She wants to learn how to do it, and I don’t mind showing her the ropes.
I quit working around 11:15, write a bit in the blog, then start in on the 2 newspapers (USA Today, Baltimore Sun) I bought this morning that I haven't even touched yet.
Out to the bus and in my bunk by 2am…
Sunday, August 21, 2005
Show Day in Hampton
The alarm's set for 7. I'm up at 6:25. I can't sleep more than 6 hours to save my life. Oh, well. Guess I could use the extra time today – I have more guests coming to tonight's show.
Up and at 'em, Atom Ant!
I always hit the front desk 45 minutes before bus call, to give plenty of time to get the checkout done. Checking out of this many rooms can be a complete pain in the ass if you don't set it up correctly while checking in. Allen, the manager on duty yesterday when I checked everyone in, is back today. He is totally prepared for what I need, so the entire process is under 10 minutes. What a great way to start my day. On top of that, there's a Starbucks in the lobby. One Venti Caramel Macchiato later, I'm sitting on the bus reading the morning paper with 25-30 minutes to kill. I could walk to the venue – it's less than ¼ mile from where I'm sitting – but I think I'll just sit here and enjoy the downtime.
Hotter 'n hell here in Hampton today. Glad my fat ass will be sitting in A/C all day.
Nikki Knott's husband is driving up from Raleigh to see the show tonight with a buddy, so I leave them a couple of VIP laminates at the box office. They come back to the production office to visit about 30 minutes before System's gonna go on. I walk them out to the Front-of-House position and up onto the 2-foot riser that the lighting console and the LD are perched on. It's the best spot to see the show. As we're up there chatting, we're kinda watching the crowd milling about. My jaw drops at something I see and I have to run back to the production office to get my camera. It takes me about 10 minutes to find her again on the arena floor, but finally I spot her to one side of the stage. I ask if I can take her picture and she's more than happy to pose. Ya just don't see outfits like these every day, ya know?
Enjoy…
She says she's coming to the show in Baltimore tomorrow. Ha! Can't wait to see what she'll be wearing then.
When the band hits the stage, I join Jim and his buddy for a few songs, then head back to work.
After the show comes down, Jim and his buddy come to say goodbye. They're heading back to Raleigh. I pack my crap and finish the newspaper.
I'll wake up in Baltimore…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Up and at 'em, Atom Ant!
I always hit the front desk 45 minutes before bus call, to give plenty of time to get the checkout done. Checking out of this many rooms can be a complete pain in the ass if you don't set it up correctly while checking in. Allen, the manager on duty yesterday when I checked everyone in, is back today. He is totally prepared for what I need, so the entire process is under 10 minutes. What a great way to start my day. On top of that, there's a Starbucks in the lobby. One Venti Caramel Macchiato later, I'm sitting on the bus reading the morning paper with 25-30 minutes to kill. I could walk to the venue – it's less than ¼ mile from where I'm sitting – but I think I'll just sit here and enjoy the downtime.
Hotter 'n hell here in Hampton today. Glad my fat ass will be sitting in A/C all day.
Nikki Knott's husband is driving up from Raleigh to see the show tonight with a buddy, so I leave them a couple of VIP laminates at the box office. They come back to the production office to visit about 30 minutes before System's gonna go on. I walk them out to the Front-of-House position and up onto the 2-foot riser that the lighting console and the LD are perched on. It's the best spot to see the show. As we're up there chatting, we're kinda watching the crowd milling about. My jaw drops at something I see and I have to run back to the production office to get my camera. It takes me about 10 minutes to find her again on the arena floor, but finally I spot her to one side of the stage. I ask if I can take her picture and she's more than happy to pose. Ya just don't see outfits like these every day, ya know?
Enjoy…
She says she's coming to the show in Baltimore tomorrow. Ha! Can't wait to see what she'll be wearing then.
When the band hits the stage, I join Jim and his buddy for a few songs, then head back to work.
After the show comes down, Jim and his buddy come to say goodbye. They're heading back to Raleigh. I pack my crap and finish the newspaper.
I'll wake up in Baltimore…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Day Off in Hampton, VA
Wake up around 7:30. Not enough sleep, so I roll over and catch another hour. Get up to enjoy the last 30 miles of I-85 in NC. I'm less than 50 miles from home right now, but I can't talk the bus driver into dropping me off in Raleigh. Asshole!
We make it to Hampton around 10:30. The hotel's not quite ready for us, but I get everyone in their rooms within an hour.
I go chill out in my room for a bit. Start working, knock out all my email, then decide to go shopping at the Target ½ block from the hotel. Don't really need anything from there, but I'm not quite ready to hit the mall. Buy some personal stuff (new PJ pants, Yay!) and a paperback – James Patterson's "The Big Bad Wolf". From there I walk down the street to scare up some lunch. Hmmm, Outback, Hooters, McD's, Golden Corral, yadda, yadda, yadda.
DING DING DING, we have a winner. Waffle House! One dude at the counter, and 3 crew guys in a booth. I enjoy a wonderful lunch of 3 scrambled, bowl of grits, and raisin toast. Mmmmmm. Sit by myself at the counter because 1) the lighting dudes were smoking and 2) I wanna start my book. Knock out about 25 pages while I'm there eating, then walk back to the hotel with the crew dudes.
Head up to my, finish reading my paper, work some, watch the NASCAR Busch race, falling asleep during the last 30 minutes. I hate that damn Michigan track – it is so fucking boring to watch them race there.
Grab a shower and meet Joe Paradis (our LD) and Geddy (his tech) downstairs for some dinner. Geddy's from Hamilton, Ontario, about 40 miles from Toronto. He's really skinny and when he was younger he had hair down to his ass. He sorta kinda resembles Geddy Lee (from the band Rush), so everyone started calling him Geddy. His real name is Anthony Kordyjaka.
Anyway, this hotel has only been open for 15 days, so it's great. Everything's brand new as hell, and the staff couldn't be more polite and accomodating. There are 2 restaurants in the lobby and we decide to dine at the finer dining establishment, the Cypress Grill.
I have the Fried Goat Cheese Salad and all 3 of us order Crème Brulee for dessert. It might be the best I've ever had.
Back in my room by 10:30. Talk to Terry Beal - she's at the family beach house 25 miles from here (Virginia Beach). She's there with 4 or 5 female friends, sounds like they're having quite a big time. She tries her best to get me to come join the party, but it would be a $50 cab ride there, another $50 back, and I'd feel like shit tomorrow morning. I finally convince her that it wouldn't be in my best interest to participate tonight. So I catch the 11 o'clock news and I'm in bed reading by 11:30. Snoozing by midnight.
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
We make it to Hampton around 10:30. The hotel's not quite ready for us, but I get everyone in their rooms within an hour.
I go chill out in my room for a bit. Start working, knock out all my email, then decide to go shopping at the Target ½ block from the hotel. Don't really need anything from there, but I'm not quite ready to hit the mall. Buy some personal stuff (new PJ pants, Yay!) and a paperback – James Patterson's "The Big Bad Wolf". From there I walk down the street to scare up some lunch. Hmmm, Outback, Hooters, McD's, Golden Corral, yadda, yadda, yadda.
DING DING DING, we have a winner. Waffle House! One dude at the counter, and 3 crew guys in a booth. I enjoy a wonderful lunch of 3 scrambled, bowl of grits, and raisin toast. Mmmmmm. Sit by myself at the counter because 1) the lighting dudes were smoking and 2) I wanna start my book. Knock out about 25 pages while I'm there eating, then walk back to the hotel with the crew dudes.
Head up to my, finish reading my paper, work some, watch the NASCAR Busch race, falling asleep during the last 30 minutes. I hate that damn Michigan track – it is so fucking boring to watch them race there.
Grab a shower and meet Joe Paradis (our LD) and Geddy (his tech) downstairs for some dinner. Geddy's from Hamilton, Ontario, about 40 miles from Toronto. He's really skinny and when he was younger he had hair down to his ass. He sorta kinda resembles Geddy Lee (from the band Rush), so everyone started calling him Geddy. His real name is Anthony Kordyjaka.
Anyway, this hotel has only been open for 15 days, so it's great. Everything's brand new as hell, and the staff couldn't be more polite and accomodating. There are 2 restaurants in the lobby and we decide to dine at the finer dining establishment, the Cypress Grill.
I have the Fried Goat Cheese Salad and all 3 of us order Crème Brulee for dessert. It might be the best I've ever had.
Back in my room by 10:30. Talk to Terry Beal - she's at the family beach house 25 miles from here (Virginia Beach). She's there with 4 or 5 female friends, sounds like they're having quite a big time. She tries her best to get me to come join the party, but it would be a $50 cab ride there, another $50 back, and I'd feel like shit tomorrow morning. I finally convince her that it wouldn't be in my best interest to participate tonight. So I catch the 11 o'clock news and I'm in bed reading by 11:30. Snoozing by midnight.
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Friday, August 19, 2005
Show Day in Atlanta
Today's show is in Duluth, GA, a suburb of Atlanta. I stick my head into the promoter's office during the early afternoon and am shocked by who I find there. It's Chris Hendley, my old physical trainer from Raleigh. I started going to Chris back in '97 or '98 when he was a trainer at Phase II Fitness downtown. He kicked my ass into probably the best shape of my life and became a friend as well. Sure wish he was kicking my ass NOW.
Anyway, he's the Marketing and Media Manager for the building here these days, having lived in Atlanta for about 4 years now. We get caught up on what's going on in each other's lives. It's great to see him and I really enjoyed the visit.
The rest of the day is pretty much routine. My old friend Jen Tressler and her buddy Patricia come visit tonight. I squeeze them into the meet & greet after the show so they can meet the band. After some hang time with them, I walk them out to their car about 1am, then head to my bus.
Day off in Hampton, VA tomorrow. Mall across the street with a Barnes & Noble. I need a new book.
2:00 = Snnnnzzzzzzz…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Anyway, he's the Marketing and Media Manager for the building here these days, having lived in Atlanta for about 4 years now. We get caught up on what's going on in each other's lives. It's great to see him and I really enjoyed the visit.
The rest of the day is pretty much routine. My old friend Jen Tressler and her buddy Patricia come visit tonight. I squeeze them into the meet & greet after the show so they can meet the band. After some hang time with them, I walk them out to their car about 1am, then head to my bus.
Day off in Hampton, VA tomorrow. Mall across the street with a Barnes & Noble. I need a new book.
2:00 = Snnnnzzzzzzz…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Day Off in Atlanta
Arrive at the hotel around 12:30pm. After I get everyone checked in, I walk about ½ mile with our merch guy Robb to eat lunch at the Waffle House.
After that, we part ways and I head to the mall near the hotel. Wander around there for a couple of hours, but don't buy anything. As I'm leaving, I spot a Fry's Electronics store ¼ away across the parking lot. Holy crap! Don't know if you've ever been in one of these, but it's incredible. Pretty much the same stuff as Best Buy, but you could easily fit 4 Best Buy stores inside of it. By far the biggest electronics selection I've ever seen under one roof. Finally get out of there an hour and a half later, successfully. By that, I mean that I managed to escape having spent only $30.00.
Walk the ½ mile or so back to the hotel and drop off my new stuff, then take off around 5:30 for Starbucks, which is about a mile away. Get a drink and just as I'm sitting down outside it starts to rain. I'm under a cover, so I continue reading my newspaper. About 10 minutes into the storm, it turns into a full-on gully washer. The wind picks up dramatically, blowing the rain all the way up under my shelter, forcing me inside for awhile. Twenty minutes later the storm disappears as quickly as it had arrived, so I move back outside to enjoy the now cooler temperature.
Finally head back toward the hotel aournd 7:15, scoping out my dinner options along the way. Decide on a burrito from Chipotle Grill, get it to go. Back in the room I grab a shower, then sit down to dinner and the football game. New Orleans vs. New England are playing a preseason game tonight. I hate both of 'em – I'm a Panthers fan. But I especially hate the N.E. Patriots, so I’m pulling for the Saints. Catch the news after the game, then it's snoozeville…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
After that, we part ways and I head to the mall near the hotel. Wander around there for a couple of hours, but don't buy anything. As I'm leaving, I spot a Fry's Electronics store ¼ away across the parking lot. Holy crap! Don't know if you've ever been in one of these, but it's incredible. Pretty much the same stuff as Best Buy, but you could easily fit 4 Best Buy stores inside of it. By far the biggest electronics selection I've ever seen under one roof. Finally get out of there an hour and a half later, successfully. By that, I mean that I managed to escape having spent only $30.00.
Walk the ½ mile or so back to the hotel and drop off my new stuff, then take off around 5:30 for Starbucks, which is about a mile away. Get a drink and just as I'm sitting down outside it starts to rain. I'm under a cover, so I continue reading my newspaper. About 10 minutes into the storm, it turns into a full-on gully washer. The wind picks up dramatically, blowing the rain all the way up under my shelter, forcing me inside for awhile. Twenty minutes later the storm disappears as quickly as it had arrived, so I move back outside to enjoy the now cooler temperature.
Finally head back toward the hotel aournd 7:15, scoping out my dinner options along the way. Decide on a burrito from Chipotle Grill, get it to go. Back in the room I grab a shower, then sit down to dinner and the football game. New Orleans vs. New England are playing a preseason game tonight. I hate both of 'em – I'm a Panthers fan. But I especially hate the N.E. Patriots, so I’m pulling for the Saints. Catch the news after the game, then it's snoozeville…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Wednesday, August 17, 2005
Show Day in Miami
Up at 7:30, head in to scope out a shower. Get that out of the way, set up my stuff, have breakfast and get to work. All four bus drivers come in and drop a mountain of receipts on me. I do receipts with them every other show day and today's the day. Extra heavy load today, because we're on the East Coast, which means lots and lots of toll receipts. Every tollbooth we hit generates 4 receipts (one for each bus) that I have to mount and process. I'm glad we've only got 4 buses on this leg of the tour – there'll be 6 when we go out on the next leg.
Anyway, Tank, who is Daron's bus driver, doesn't have his shit together when he comes to do receipts, so I give him a time-out.
He promises to be good, so I turn him loose after a few minutes.
Factoid: There are 2 cities in Florida with the some name. This one's in Broward County, about 30 miles from the center of Miami. The other on is 195 miles away, on the gulf side of the state, in Sarasota County.
Now you know.
Lauren's coming back to visit today with another friend. Also, my friend Alyssa's coming out tonight when she gets done with work. I haven't seen her for 2 years, so it'll be cool to get caught up on things with her.
Andy Battye comes in and tells me of his adventure in the shower just now. After he set up the band's Tuning Room (full of gear for them to jam with before the show), he jumped in the shower in the same room – a locker room here at the Office Depot Center, home of the NHL's Florida Panthers. He turned on the water, and as soon as the runoff hit the drain, a LOT of Florida's finest cockroaches came scurrying out. Yuck!
After I stop laughing at his story, I grab my camera and we head off to see if we can recreate the event. Well, except for the part where Andy's naked. We turn on a couple of the showers – remember, this is your basic locker room "prison-gang-rape" type setup. Guess they all moved on to other digs, because this little fellow here is the only one who came up to get his picture taken.
I grab a cup of coffee and head back to work. Want to get as much done as I can today before 8, so I can hang out with Alyssa.
John and Shavo (drummer and bass player) join me in catering for dinner around 7:30. Get caught up on their Palm Beach adventures. They're hubbing out of Palm Beach for several days – fly to the shows, then back to PB.
I watch the first 8-10 songs of our set tonight, then go settle. Hang with my friends afterwards, then it's out to the bus for our overnight ride to Atlanta…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Anyway, Tank, who is Daron's bus driver, doesn't have his shit together when he comes to do receipts, so I give him a time-out.
He promises to be good, so I turn him loose after a few minutes.
Factoid: There are 2 cities in Florida with the some name. This one's in Broward County, about 30 miles from the center of Miami. The other on is 195 miles away, on the gulf side of the state, in Sarasota County.
Now you know.
Lauren's coming back to visit today with another friend. Also, my friend Alyssa's coming out tonight when she gets done with work. I haven't seen her for 2 years, so it'll be cool to get caught up on things with her.
Andy Battye comes in and tells me of his adventure in the shower just now. After he set up the band's Tuning Room (full of gear for them to jam with before the show), he jumped in the shower in the same room – a locker room here at the Office Depot Center, home of the NHL's Florida Panthers. He turned on the water, and as soon as the runoff hit the drain, a LOT of Florida's finest cockroaches came scurrying out. Yuck!
After I stop laughing at his story, I grab my camera and we head off to see if we can recreate the event. Well, except for the part where Andy's naked. We turn on a couple of the showers – remember, this is your basic locker room "prison-gang-rape" type setup. Guess they all moved on to other digs, because this little fellow here is the only one who came up to get his picture taken.
I grab a cup of coffee and head back to work. Want to get as much done as I can today before 8, so I can hang out with Alyssa.
John and Shavo (drummer and bass player) join me in catering for dinner around 7:30. Get caught up on their Palm Beach adventures. They're hubbing out of Palm Beach for several days – fly to the shows, then back to PB.
I watch the first 8-10 songs of our set tonight, then go settle. Hang with my friends afterwards, then it's out to the bus for our overnight ride to Atlanta…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Show Day in Orlando
Wake up on the outskirts of Orlando because the driver stopped at a tollbooth. I thought we were at the venue, so I practically jumped out of my bunk. Kenny, the driver, tells me that we've still got about 30-40 minutes before we arrive. Sit up front with him and read yesterday's paper. Finish just as we're pulling in. It's now 10:15, whereas we normally start loading in at 8, so the crew is behind the 8-ball and really hustling. Me, I go take a leisurely shower in my private office's bathroom.
Another average day for me, just doing my gig.
The thought occurs to me that I'm not taking very many pictures on this tour. Certainly not like I was doing in Europe. But over there the venues are always in interesting places, with lots to do and see nearby. In America, it seems that the venues are always in stupid places. For example, the RBC Center in Raleigh. Now where the hell am I gonna walk to from there to take a picture on something cool during one of my little get-out-of-the-building breaks.
I promise I'll try to get some new photos on my days off…
My friend Lauren comes to visit tonight with her friend Kim. I've known Lauren since she was 15 years old and worked at Radio Disney here in Orlando. She's now 21 and just back from spending a few months in New York interning at Rolling Stone magazine. Don't get to spend much time with her because I get crazy busy after the doors are open. I get one of the band assistants to take Lauren & Kim out to watch the show from a primo spot onstage. The promoter's really late coming to do settlement because the building took so long in doing their part of the settlement with him. Lauren can't stick around and tries to call my mobile to say goodbye just as I'm knee-deep in settling with the promoter. I won't answer calls at that time unless it's a band member or the band's manager. As soon as we're done and he leaves, I call her. They've already taken off. Oh, well, she's coming to the show in Miami tomorrow. I told her that if she would get up early (late riser), she could come by and I'd make time to have lunch with her.
I decide to sit in my office and listen to music while catching up on my blog. A few crew guys come by to hang out. David Coyle (audio tech) comes in to invite me out for a drink at the bar his wife bartends at. it's only 5 minutes away, but by this time it's 1:10 and I just wanna get this thing caught up, so I beg off.
Finally pack up my stuff and head out to the bus around 1:45 for a 2:00 bus call. 200 miles to Miami, do it all over again. Can't wait until Thursday – we've got a day off in Atlanta with a mall within walking distance of the hotel. I wanna go see a movie! I don't even know what's out. Still haven't seen War Of The Worlds, so maybe that'll be the choice. Of course, that's assuming that this mall even HAS a theater. I better get online tomorrow and check it out.
Bobzilla – out!
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Another average day for me, just doing my gig.
The thought occurs to me that I'm not taking very many pictures on this tour. Certainly not like I was doing in Europe. But over there the venues are always in interesting places, with lots to do and see nearby. In America, it seems that the venues are always in stupid places. For example, the RBC Center in Raleigh. Now where the hell am I gonna walk to from there to take a picture on something cool during one of my little get-out-of-the-building breaks.
I promise I'll try to get some new photos on my days off…
My friend Lauren comes to visit tonight with her friend Kim. I've known Lauren since she was 15 years old and worked at Radio Disney here in Orlando. She's now 21 and just back from spending a few months in New York interning at Rolling Stone magazine. Don't get to spend much time with her because I get crazy busy after the doors are open. I get one of the band assistants to take Lauren & Kim out to watch the show from a primo spot onstage. The promoter's really late coming to do settlement because the building took so long in doing their part of the settlement with him. Lauren can't stick around and tries to call my mobile to say goodbye just as I'm knee-deep in settling with the promoter. I won't answer calls at that time unless it's a band member or the band's manager. As soon as we're done and he leaves, I call her. They've already taken off. Oh, well, she's coming to the show in Miami tomorrow. I told her that if she would get up early (late riser), she could come by and I'd make time to have lunch with her.
I decide to sit in my office and listen to music while catching up on my blog. A few crew guys come by to hang out. David Coyle (audio tech) comes in to invite me out for a drink at the bar his wife bartends at. it's only 5 minutes away, but by this time it's 1:10 and I just wanna get this thing caught up, so I beg off.
Finally pack up my stuff and head out to the bus around 1:45 for a 2:00 bus call. 200 miles to Miami, do it all over again. Can't wait until Thursday – we've got a day off in Atlanta with a mall within walking distance of the hotel. I wanna go see a movie! I don't even know what's out. Still haven't seen War Of The Worlds, so maybe that'll be the choice. Of course, that's assuming that this mall even HAS a theater. I better get online tomorrow and check it out.
Bobzilla – out!
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Monday, August 15, 2005
Show Day in Pensacola
Man, talk about a day with nothing to talk about…
Stay busy all day. Every Monday is what we call Saint PD's Day, the day I give everyone (band & crew) their per diems. I've also got a mountain of receipts to process and several settlement packages to tidy up for submission to the band's business manager.
Abby finally shows up around 5 in the afternoon. Hangs out with me in my office for a while. We have dinner together, then she goes to find Shant (band assistant) to see if any of the band's wardrobe might need in repairs or maintenance work.
Just before System goes on, I walk her out to the front of house mix position. We take up spots on the LD's riser – the best place in the house to see the show from. You can see everything over the tops of the heads of people on the floor, and the volume is incredible. From there, you're about 15 feet behind Pooch (the band's FOH engineer), and Pooch has the sweet spot going right about there.
After a few songs I head back to the office – the promoter should be coming to do settlement with me soon.
Setttlement's a piece of cake. Pack my stuff and hang out with Abby. Shant, Hamps and Sevag all wander into my office to hang out. Daron (guitar player) shows up a few minutes later. 30 minutes later we've all about busted a gut from laughing so much. These guys are just so fucking funny!
We used to have a lot more good times like this before the band got really big – just hanging out and cutting up. When I started with System in late 2001, there were only 4 band guys and 10 crew guys total. Now it's the 4 band guys and a crew of over 30, not counting the 6 truck drivers and 4 bus drivers (soon to be 6 bus drivers). And of course now there's the private jet…
We've got to try to get out early tonight. We've got 450 miles to go for tomorrow's show in Orlando. We normally load in at 8am, but we won't be leaving here until around 1 or 1:30am tonight. Plus there's a one hour time change working against us. The good news is I'll be able to get about 6 hours sleep tonight (I hope).
On the bus by 1, we're out by 1:15 or so.
G'night!
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Stay busy all day. Every Monday is what we call Saint PD's Day, the day I give everyone (band & crew) their per diems. I've also got a mountain of receipts to process and several settlement packages to tidy up for submission to the band's business manager.
Abby finally shows up around 5 in the afternoon. Hangs out with me in my office for a while. We have dinner together, then she goes to find Shant (band assistant) to see if any of the band's wardrobe might need in repairs or maintenance work.
Just before System goes on, I walk her out to the front of house mix position. We take up spots on the LD's riser – the best place in the house to see the show from. You can see everything over the tops of the heads of people on the floor, and the volume is incredible. From there, you're about 15 feet behind Pooch (the band's FOH engineer), and Pooch has the sweet spot going right about there.
After a few songs I head back to the office – the promoter should be coming to do settlement with me soon.
Setttlement's a piece of cake. Pack my stuff and hang out with Abby. Shant, Hamps and Sevag all wander into my office to hang out. Daron (guitar player) shows up a few minutes later. 30 minutes later we've all about busted a gut from laughing so much. These guys are just so fucking funny!
We used to have a lot more good times like this before the band got really big – just hanging out and cutting up. When I started with System in late 2001, there were only 4 band guys and 10 crew guys total. Now it's the 4 band guys and a crew of over 30, not counting the 6 truck drivers and 4 bus drivers (soon to be 6 bus drivers). And of course now there's the private jet…
We've got to try to get out early tonight. We've got 450 miles to go for tomorrow's show in Orlando. We normally load in at 8am, but we won't be leaving here until around 1 or 1:30am tonight. Plus there's a one hour time change working against us. The good news is I'll be able to get about 6 hours sleep tonight (I hope).
On the bus by 1, we're out by 1:15 or so.
G'night!
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Sunday, August 14, 2005
Day Off in Pensacola
Wake up in a truckstop somewhere about 9:30. Run in to pee on solid ground and grab a newspaper. Damn it's hot in Florida!
We pull in to our hotel at exactly 11:30am. We're staying at the Hilton Garden Inn, right on the beach in Pensacola. Big, new, touristy, and not at all damaged by the hurricane that blasted through here 6 weeks ago. We saw a lot of hurricane damage coming into town, though…
It takes me until 3:40pm to get everyone on the 4 buses checked in. After the initial flurry of about 15 rooms being available, I give my mobile number to Jasmine, the cute young lady at the front desk. I head back out to the bus to watch the NASCAR race and she calls me every 15-20 minutes to let me know as more rooms come open. Such is life when trying to check in about 40 people on a Sunday at a beach resort.
Finally get in my room at 3:45. You can see the view in the photo above. I piddle about the room for an hour or so, then grab a shower. My friend Abby is driving in from about 4 hours away in Louisiana to visit tonight and tomorrow, and she's due to arrive around 6. We used to work together on Slipknot. She just left the Motley Crue tour a few weeks ago and now does wardrobe for Bon Jovi. I tried to get her hired on with System for this tour, but she got the Bon Jovi offer the same week and I don't blame her a bit for taking that tour over this one.
I head down to the parking lot a little after 6. The hotel was kind enough to cordon off a section of the parking lot for our 4 buses to park up, leaving plenty of space to have a cookout today. It's a little too early for that – still hot as hell out. I run into some of the audio guys (my boys!) and join them on their bus for a beer. Abby calls, she's in her room and has been calling mine and getting no answer. I tell her where I am and then jump off the bus to see her waving from her room window about 4 floors up. Goofball!
She's down about 10 minutes later. I introduce her to everyone, then we head off to the liquor store across the street for some ice and a big old bottle of some fancy-ass Tequila. Get there just in time – the store closes at 7 and it looks like we're the last customers of the day.
As we get back to busworld, some of the other folks have started to congregate. The grill's are going and the party's on. Jasmine (from the front desk) has been calling me for the last hour wanting to know when the cookout would start. She got off at 3 and wanted to come back and hang out with us. I tell her to come on back – I want to try and hook her up with Za, our guitar tech.
The sunset tonight is breathtaking, but I don’t have my camera with me. Oops!
By about 9:30, me and Abby are pretty buzzed and in need of dinner. We didn't eat any of the burgers because we want to try the sushi restaurant (actually an Asian/Cajun menu) in the hotel lobby. Invite Andy Battye to join us for dinner and also Za & Jasmine are gonna come along for drinks. Somehow Za & Jasmine never make it to the restaurant, so the 3 of us sit at the sushi bar. Great food, then back to the party in the parking lot.
Drink, talk, drink, talk, drink. Then drink some more.
Look at my watch and it's a little after 11. Because of all the beers & shots, it behooves me to get my butt to my room. Gotta be up at 7, so I want to make sure I'm in bed sometime soon. Could be an ugly morning…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Show Day in Houston
Wide awake at 6:23. Not because I wanted to, because the bus driver switched the air-conditioning from bus air to gennie air, and there was NO air for about 5 seconds, followed by a 5-second blast of warm air. No way I'm sleeping through that in that fucking coffin. I really need some sleep, but I head in to grab a shower.
Today's show is at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. It's the only amphitheater show of our whole tour, to of course it has to be in Texas in August when it's about a million degrees outside. As always though, I'll be in the air-conditioned comfort of the production office.
I manage to catch a few early laps of the Busch race on the bus this afternoon, but don't have time to see the last half of the race.
We roll a little early at the end of the night. It's 575 miles to Pensacola for our day off and everyone wants to be there NOW…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Today's show is at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. It's the only amphitheater show of our whole tour, to of course it has to be in Texas in August when it's about a million degrees outside. As always though, I'll be in the air-conditioned comfort of the production office.
I manage to catch a few early laps of the Busch race on the bus this afternoon, but don't have time to see the last half of the race.
We roll a little early at the end of the night. It's 575 miles to Pensacola for our day off and everyone wants to be there NOW…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Friday, August 12, 2005
Show Day in San Antonio
Wake up about 7:45. Head in to scope everything out. Work until about 11, then grab a shower and some lunch. Leave the building one time the whole day, just to stash some money in the safe.
So…
Not much to report today. Did my job, went to the bus, in bed early (2:00am).
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
So…
Not much to report today. Did my job, went to the bus, in bed early (2:00am).
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Show Day in Dallas
Wake up around 4:30am. Just can't sleep anymore. Toss and turn until 6 hoping to fall back to sleep, then just give up. Amazingly enough, I'm not hungover. Gonna be a long day, though. 2am is a long, long way off.
Get a shitload of work done today. Even watch the first couple of songs of System's set. It's fuckin' LOUD!
Make it to my bunk around 2:45am. Load-in tomorrow is 8am. Ugh…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Get a shitload of work done today. Even watch the first couple of songs of System's set. It's fuckin' LOUD!
Make it to my bunk around 2:45am. Load-in tomorrow is 8am. Ugh…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Day Off in Dallas
Sleep in.
Yeah, right. I'm up by 7. Work for a few hours, then decide to head to Starbucks. It's about 2 miles away and I'm not really sure exactly where it is, but I don't have anything to do today, so I figure I'll meander in that general direction and eventually find it. Takes a while, but I enjoyed the walk. Grab a scone and a hot drink and get a table outside. I share my scone (in the South we call these things stale biscuits) with two of the strangest birds I've ever seen. They kinda look like small roadrunners and are very skittish, but grateful for the chow. I read a couple of newspapers and after being there for a couple of hours I head out to find another way back to the hotel. Wind up walking about 3 miles and get a terrific walking tour of some Dallas projects. Come up on the hotel property from the other side and discover a place nearby called Buck's Prime. According to the sign, they have "Buckin' Good Burgers". Hmmm…maybe I'll have dinner here later.
Thanks to the sunny day, I'm draped in wet cotton by the time I get back to my room. Grab a shower and then Andy Battye calls about going to eat Mexican food. Evidently Forrest, the hotel's shuttle driver, has offered to drive Andy and whoever to any of the local restaurants. We decide on a 7pm meet time in the bar.
Head down at 7. Looks like it'll be me, Andy, Za, Steve Carlsen (stage manager) and Eddie Kercher (production manager). As we're leaving the property with Forrest, we decide to go bar hopping in Deep Ellum and hope that we can find some Mexican food down there. If you've never been to Dallas, Deep Ellum is their French Quarter, their Georgetown, their Greenwich Village, their Glenwood South. You get the picture.
The bar hop starts. A couple of bars in, I spot a table of 4 cops having dinner. I ask them about nearby dining options, they tell. So we're off to Sol's Taco Lounge, a couple of blocks away. Not very crowded, but a great staff. Great food, too. I will definitely be back here next time I'm in Dallas. We completely gorge ourselves and knock back some $17.00 shots of tequila (Don Julio 1942) and then some $13.00 shots (some highfalutin' Jose Cuervo). At this point I’m really glad we've been eating or I'd be trashed. After dinner, we head to the bar and talk shit to the staff. I decide I want a t-shirt, so I offer our waiter Miles some tickets to tomorrow's show in exchange. He jumps at the offer and several of us leave with Taco Lounge T's.
So now we go out drinking. No, really. We hit several bars for a beer here, a beer there, and the occasional shot of ugliness. Wind up at the wrong place, meet the wrong people, and suddenly it's a powder party. I opt out and decide to grab a cab back to the hotel. Andy and Za decide to come with, so we head home.
I sit up websurfing for about an hour, hoping to metabolize some of the ugliness I've consumed. Hope it works…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Yeah, right. I'm up by 7. Work for a few hours, then decide to head to Starbucks. It's about 2 miles away and I'm not really sure exactly where it is, but I don't have anything to do today, so I figure I'll meander in that general direction and eventually find it. Takes a while, but I enjoyed the walk. Grab a scone and a hot drink and get a table outside. I share my scone (in the South we call these things stale biscuits) with two of the strangest birds I've ever seen. They kinda look like small roadrunners and are very skittish, but grateful for the chow. I read a couple of newspapers and after being there for a couple of hours I head out to find another way back to the hotel. Wind up walking about 3 miles and get a terrific walking tour of some Dallas projects. Come up on the hotel property from the other side and discover a place nearby called Buck's Prime. According to the sign, they have "Buckin' Good Burgers". Hmmm…maybe I'll have dinner here later.
Thanks to the sunny day, I'm draped in wet cotton by the time I get back to my room. Grab a shower and then Andy Battye calls about going to eat Mexican food. Evidently Forrest, the hotel's shuttle driver, has offered to drive Andy and whoever to any of the local restaurants. We decide on a 7pm meet time in the bar.
Head down at 7. Looks like it'll be me, Andy, Za, Steve Carlsen (stage manager) and Eddie Kercher (production manager). As we're leaving the property with Forrest, we decide to go bar hopping in Deep Ellum and hope that we can find some Mexican food down there. If you've never been to Dallas, Deep Ellum is their French Quarter, their Georgetown, their Greenwich Village, their Glenwood South. You get the picture.
The bar hop starts. A couple of bars in, I spot a table of 4 cops having dinner. I ask them about nearby dining options, they tell. So we're off to Sol's Taco Lounge, a couple of blocks away. Not very crowded, but a great staff. Great food, too. I will definitely be back here next time I'm in Dallas. We completely gorge ourselves and knock back some $17.00 shots of tequila (Don Julio 1942) and then some $13.00 shots (some highfalutin' Jose Cuervo). At this point I’m really glad we've been eating or I'd be trashed. After dinner, we head to the bar and talk shit to the staff. I decide I want a t-shirt, so I offer our waiter Miles some tickets to tomorrow's show in exchange. He jumps at the offer and several of us leave with Taco Lounge T's.
So now we go out drinking. No, really. We hit several bars for a beer here, a beer there, and the occasional shot of ugliness. Wind up at the wrong place, meet the wrong people, and suddenly it's a powder party. I opt out and decide to grab a cab back to the hotel. Andy and Za decide to come with, so we head home.
I sit up websurfing for about an hour, hoping to metabolize some of the ugliness I've consumed. Hope it works…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Tuesday, August 9, 2005
Travel Day to Dallas
Wake up when my alarm goes off at 8am. We're in a rest area – driver's gotta take a leak. Stop at a truckstop about 2 hours later, so some guys can drop the kids off at the pool. I'm wanting a little "redneck breakfast", so I go inside to buy a Dr. Pepper and some peanuts. Son of a biotch, this place is slam out of DP's. Get the peanuts anyway for later.
Buy the local newspaper and a USA today and read 'em both for a while. Can't get online as there's something wrong with our internet connection on the bus. Hang out with Kenny the driver for most of the day – I'm riding shotgun. Make a couple of phone calls and get the blog caught up. Well, all except for posting it.
It's 4pm and we've still got 350 miles to go. Hope to be in the hotel by 10 tonight. Ah, the glamour of the rock and roll lifestyle. Stuck all day on a 45 foot submarine.
Finally get the internet connection going, so I websurf the last 100 miles to the hotel. We arrive just before 10, drop bags, then off to Denny's with Andy Battye (our boffin) and Za (guitar tech). The hotel's restaurant had closed at 9, so it's really our only option within walking distance. Run into some other crew guys there, and then we're joined by a couple of bus drivers. I've been to this Denny's before – the service is really shitty. Oh, well…
Back to the hotel bar for exactly one beer. Because now the bar is closing. That's OK, though, we're all too ragged out from the submarine ride to get our game on. Everyone heads up to their rooms. I head out to my bus for one more beer. Crack it, sip it, throw it out. Not in the mood. Off to Readville and Sleepville…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Buy the local newspaper and a USA today and read 'em both for a while. Can't get online as there's something wrong with our internet connection on the bus. Hang out with Kenny the driver for most of the day – I'm riding shotgun. Make a couple of phone calls and get the blog caught up. Well, all except for posting it.
It's 4pm and we've still got 350 miles to go. Hope to be in the hotel by 10 tonight. Ah, the glamour of the rock and roll lifestyle. Stuck all day on a 45 foot submarine.
Finally get the internet connection going, so I websurf the last 100 miles to the hotel. We arrive just before 10, drop bags, then off to Denny's with Andy Battye (our boffin) and Za (guitar tech). The hotel's restaurant had closed at 9, so it's really our only option within walking distance. Run into some other crew guys there, and then we're joined by a couple of bus drivers. I've been to this Denny's before – the service is really shitty. Oh, well…
Back to the hotel bar for exactly one beer. Because now the bar is closing. That's OK, though, we're all too ragged out from the submarine ride to get our game on. Everyone heads up to their rooms. I head out to my bus for one more beer. Crack it, sip it, throw it out. Not in the mood. Off to Readville and Sleepville…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Monday, August 8, 2005
Show Day in Phoenix
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP
8:00am
Oh, fucking hell. Please kill me now…
Every part of my body hurts.
Who on earth did this to me?
Oh yeah, I did it. Crap, gotta get In gear. This is gonna be a rough day.
Today's show is at America West Arena in Phoenix. Thank god I've got my own office today, so I don’t have to listen to everybody else all day long. I make it until 1pm before I break down and go out to the bus for a nap. Wake up feeling more human about 2 hours later. Can't eat anything before 6 unless I want to see it again.
My buddy Dennis emails me and asks me to get the local Mac guru into the show. I meet him and his girl outside and give them a couple of laminates. After the show they come backstage and hang out with me for about 45 minutes. Louis is a cool young guy who owns a company called MacMedia. Complete Mac geek in all the best ways. Gets into the Linux core on my laptop and helps me with a couple of problems I've been having. Hey, I'll trade tickets for computer maintenance anytime. He also has another company called Etch-A-Mac that does really cool laser-etching on iPods and Powerbooks. Good hookup to have for future reference.
Bus finally pulls out around 2:40am. We've got over 1200 miles to go to get to Dallas. Should get there tomorrow night around 9pm. No show the next day. Gonna try to stay out of trouble, but who knows? I'm in my bunk just after 3, read a chapter, fall asleep.
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
8:00am
Oh, fucking hell. Please kill me now…
Every part of my body hurts.
Who on earth did this to me?
Oh yeah, I did it. Crap, gotta get In gear. This is gonna be a rough day.
Today's show is at America West Arena in Phoenix. Thank god I've got my own office today, so I don’t have to listen to everybody else all day long. I make it until 1pm before I break down and go out to the bus for a nap. Wake up feeling more human about 2 hours later. Can't eat anything before 6 unless I want to see it again.
My buddy Dennis emails me and asks me to get the local Mac guru into the show. I meet him and his girl outside and give them a couple of laminates. After the show they come backstage and hang out with me for about 45 minutes. Louis is a cool young guy who owns a company called MacMedia. Complete Mac geek in all the best ways. Gets into the Linux core on my laptop and helps me with a couple of problems I've been having. Hey, I'll trade tickets for computer maintenance anytime. He also has another company called Etch-A-Mac that does really cool laser-etching on iPods and Powerbooks. Good hookup to have for future reference.
Bus finally pulls out around 2:40am. We've got over 1200 miles to go to get to Dallas. Should get there tomorrow night around 9pm. No show the next day. Gonna try to stay out of trouble, but who knows? I'm in my bunk just after 3, read a chapter, fall asleep.
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Sunday, August 7, 2005
Day Off in Phoenix
Whoo-Hooo! First day off of the tour. We're at the Hyatt in downtown Phoenix, about 2 blocks from tomorrow's venue. I wake up just outside of town. Ten minutes later I'm jumping off the bus to check everyone in. Make it up to my room, grab a shower, and I'm in front of the TV in time for The Brickyard 400, today's NASCAR race which they're running at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
I've got a coupla slice of pizza leftover from last night's aftershow bus food. Papa John's with jalapeno & pineapple – my favorite.
Fucking 23 car! Idiot Mike Skinner gets in the back of Dale, Jr. on a restart and puts him into the wall totaling his car. Junior finishes dead last, pretty much eliminating any chance he might have had to get into the top 10 in this years points race.
Don't have much interest in the race now, so I knock out the Sunday paper while sorta-kinda listening to it in the background. Watch the last 30 laps or so. Tony Stewart wins – good for him. I like Tony. He's an ill-tempered, hard-headed, whisky-drinking, photographer-punching son of a gun. One of the few guys left in this sport with a little bit of Earnhardt in him.
Do some work and then decide to take a walk around to see what's here. Find a Hooters 2 blocks away, so I go back to grab Za (guitar tech). Hit the Hooters for some Buffalo shrimp and a couple of beers, then we're back to the hotel's bar for more beers and shots. Against my better judgement, I decide to slap back some Petron tequila. This will turn out to be a big mistake, I suspect.
We're hanging with Dino (System merch dude) and Mike (Mars Volta merch dude). Mike's got some girl who's coming to pick him up. They're going to the Martini Ranch in Scottsdale to see some 80's metal cover band called Metalhead. His friend says they're unbelievably good. Her comments make me wonder if it's my buddy Robert Mason's band. Robert was the last of 3 singers in Cry Of Love, a band I tour managed from 1990 until 1997.
I give Robert a quick call and sure enough he's at the M.R. getting ready for the show. We haul ass over there and get in the door about 10 minutes before they go on at 10pm. Robert's decked out in a long blonde wig and wearing some mirror-lensed aviator sunglasses, bearing more than a passing resemblance to Axl Rose. He's lost a few pounds since I last saw him – he's completely ripped – looks like a full on rock star. He's taking major hits from a bottle of Stoli vodka onstage. Of course, it's only water, but the audience doesn't know it. All part of the show, ya know? The band totally kicks ass. They all look like 80's metalheads, and they're great players. They're using a fair amount of backing tracks for extra guitars, keyboards and backing vocals. It sounds amazing, just like the records. They play Warrant, Poison, Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Whitesnake and more. The club is packed to the rafters and everyone's having a great time. Robert says they play this place every Sunday night.
Me and Za are trashed, but bless him, he has the good sense to suggest that we head back to the hotel a little after 1am. We call it a night and jump a cab back.
Hope I didn't drink too much…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
I've got a coupla slice of pizza leftover from last night's aftershow bus food. Papa John's with jalapeno & pineapple – my favorite.
Fucking 23 car! Idiot Mike Skinner gets in the back of Dale, Jr. on a restart and puts him into the wall totaling his car. Junior finishes dead last, pretty much eliminating any chance he might have had to get into the top 10 in this years points race.
Don't have much interest in the race now, so I knock out the Sunday paper while sorta-kinda listening to it in the background. Watch the last 30 laps or so. Tony Stewart wins – good for him. I like Tony. He's an ill-tempered, hard-headed, whisky-drinking, photographer-punching son of a gun. One of the few guys left in this sport with a little bit of Earnhardt in him.
Do some work and then decide to take a walk around to see what's here. Find a Hooters 2 blocks away, so I go back to grab Za (guitar tech). Hit the Hooters for some Buffalo shrimp and a couple of beers, then we're back to the hotel's bar for more beers and shots. Against my better judgement, I decide to slap back some Petron tequila. This will turn out to be a big mistake, I suspect.
We're hanging with Dino (System merch dude) and Mike (Mars Volta merch dude). Mike's got some girl who's coming to pick him up. They're going to the Martini Ranch in Scottsdale to see some 80's metal cover band called Metalhead. His friend says they're unbelievably good. Her comments make me wonder if it's my buddy Robert Mason's band. Robert was the last of 3 singers in Cry Of Love, a band I tour managed from 1990 until 1997.
I give Robert a quick call and sure enough he's at the M.R. getting ready for the show. We haul ass over there and get in the door about 10 minutes before they go on at 10pm. Robert's decked out in a long blonde wig and wearing some mirror-lensed aviator sunglasses, bearing more than a passing resemblance to Axl Rose. He's lost a few pounds since I last saw him – he's completely ripped – looks like a full on rock star. He's taking major hits from a bottle of Stoli vodka onstage. Of course, it's only water, but the audience doesn't know it. All part of the show, ya know? The band totally kicks ass. They all look like 80's metalheads, and they're great players. They're using a fair amount of backing tracks for extra guitars, keyboards and backing vocals. It sounds amazing, just like the records. They play Warrant, Poison, Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Whitesnake and more. The club is packed to the rafters and everyone's having a great time. Robert says they play this place every Sunday night.
Me and Za are trashed, but bless him, he has the good sense to suggest that we head back to the hotel a little after 1am. We call it a night and jump a cab back.
Hope I didn't drink too much…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Saturday, August 6, 2005
Show Day in San Diego
Wake up around 7:30. Load-in's scheduled for 8am. Head inside the venue to scope out my office for the day. Looks like we're all piling into one room today – Eddie (production manager), Janet (production office manager), Mark (venue security), and me. Ted (backline) and Andy (boffin) will work in the office off and on throughout the day, and around 6pm Mike (tour manager) and Sevag (assistant tour manager) will come in and set up. Needless to say, it's gonna be pretty damn noisy in here all day. I'd much prefer to have a small room all to myself, but it won't happen today.
Me and Mark (security) hike ¼ mile across the street to the Target store. He needs some toothpaste and I need a reading lamp for my desk – the overhead florescent (sp?) lighting in today's room just ain't gonna get it done for my tired old eyes. I could whip out my "readers", but I don't really like them and would prefer not to wear them. Find exactly what I'm looking for, a tiny 50-watt halogen desk lamp. They even have the color I wanted. Best $8.00 I'll spend this week.
Get bored around 3 and decide to walk to Starbucks. It's about ¾ of a mile away, and it's a completely beautiful day here. Get my drink and a little something to feed the birdies and head outside to enjoy the fresh air. One of the female employees comes by wiping down tables and strikes up a conversation when she hears me chuckling at something on the comics page. She's a big comics fan, too, and we spend about 5 minutes talking about each of our favorite strips.
I eventually head back to the venue, back to work. Nothing to report about the rest of the evening. Didn't watch the show. On the bus at 2am for our overnight to Phoenix for a day off.
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Me and Mark (security) hike ¼ mile across the street to the Target store. He needs some toothpaste and I need a reading lamp for my desk – the overhead florescent (sp?) lighting in today's room just ain't gonna get it done for my tired old eyes. I could whip out my "readers", but I don't really like them and would prefer not to wear them. Find exactly what I'm looking for, a tiny 50-watt halogen desk lamp. They even have the color I wanted. Best $8.00 I'll spend this week.
Get bored around 3 and decide to walk to Starbucks. It's about ¾ of a mile away, and it's a completely beautiful day here. Get my drink and a little something to feed the birdies and head outside to enjoy the fresh air. One of the female employees comes by wiping down tables and strikes up a conversation when she hears me chuckling at something on the comics page. She's a big comics fan, too, and we spend about 5 minutes talking about each of our favorite strips.
I eventually head back to the venue, back to work. Nothing to report about the rest of the evening. Didn't watch the show. On the bus at 2am for our overnight to Phoenix for a day off.
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Friday, August 5, 2005
Second Show Day in Long Beach
As always, up at 7 and off to Starbucks. Shoulda bought stock in this damn place!
C.J., one of the runners, comes to the hotel at 11am to pick up Janet Taylor (the production office manager) and me. We're off to Albertson's (grocery store) to stock up our buses. I have so much shit in that shopping cart an hour later that I can barely push it. Cases and cases of beer, soda, water. Bottles of liquor and wine. Tons of all kinds of food, mostly of the junky variety. The tab comes to $312.03. Head to the venue to load it all onto the bus, then head to the hotel (on the bus) to pick everybody up and finish the checkout. It can be a real bitch to check out 35 people, but that's a story for another time…
Tonight's the first night we'll be sleeping on the bus. My bus has the 4 backline guys (guitar tech, keyboard tech, bass tech and drum tech), the 3 catering guys, the 2 merch guys and me. Only 3 cigarette smokers and maybe a total of 5 pot smokers. Could be worse. At least the front lounge of the bus is a non-smoking area. I was gonna be on the completely smoke-free bus, the for various reasons it made more sense for me to ride this bus. I don't mind, as this bus will leave the hotel an hour or two later than the other buses, so maybe I'll get more QT at a few Starbucks locations around the country.
My bus is red and silver, and is called Tobasco by the bus company. It's got 12 bunks, so since there's only 10 of us, we have a couple of "junk bunks" to throw assorted bags and briefcases into. Luggage goes under the bus in the bays, but most everyone these days has a backpack of some sort.
On this bus, we've got all the toys. The front lounge has a LARGE widescreen HDTV, along with a smaller flat screen diagonally across the bus from it. In the rear lounge, there's a medium size flat screen. Two satellite systems, so no fighting about what's on. Each bunk has its own fold down flat screen TV and its own DVD player. I may need to put a brighter reading light in my bunk, but that's about the only thing I'd want to change.
We also have a roaming internet receiver and our own onboard highspeed wireless network. We can check email and websurf at 70mph. Good stuff!
Tonight's show goes well. Settlement is a bitch and takes a couple of hours. The deal that the band's agent cut with all the promoters is a bit vague and the promoter is fighting me about the language of the contracts. I'm having none of it and they're not too happy with me. My interpretation has me making more and them making about $12k less.
We finally get the deal done – my way, of course.
Make it out to the bus around 1:30 and hang out with a few guys. Crawl in my bunk a little after 2am. Snnnzzzzz…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Oh, Yeah...
Here's a shot of Chris Sheridan and me at our birthday party a couple of weeks ago...
(photo courtesy of Greg Howard)
Thursday, August 4, 2005
Show Day in Long Beach
Finally, the first show of the tour…
As before, I'm up early and off to Starbucks to start the day. The weather here in Long Beach is pretty awesome. Highs have been in the low 80's, and when I'm at 'Bucks early in the day, it just couldn't be nicer. Sip my drink, give plenty of scone crumbs to my little friends. Walk to the venue just before 10am to start my day.
Make an Office Max and Wal-Mart run with one of the runners to get some more STUFF. Can't do my gig without the right STUFF. I never used to get excited about new calculators and shit. What a nerd!
About mid-afternoon I take a walk across Ocean Boulevard to go take a look at the Queen Mary. It's a beautiful day, and it takes me about 20 minutes to get to where I took the photo above.
Backstage before the show, there must be about 300,000 of L.A.'s finest posers and losers. Man, I hate doing shows here. Everybody thinks they're the most important motherfucker on the planet. Everyone needs a parking pass for their Hummer, their Beamer, their whatever. I need more passes for my entourage, blah, blah, blah…
Fuck 'em all! Can't wait to get out of the band's hometown area and away from all the self-important folks
Whew! Got that out of my system. Did I sound bitter?
I'm soooo glad I stopped being a tour manager – Mike's completely swamped today with crazy stuff. He's such a pro, though, that everything's going smoothly for him.
Show goes well. Just under 13,000 in attendance. Have the celebratory beer and shot in the production office afterwards, then I walk back to the hotel. In bed reading by about 12:30. Snnnnzzzzzzz….
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
As before, I'm up early and off to Starbucks to start the day. The weather here in Long Beach is pretty awesome. Highs have been in the low 80's, and when I'm at 'Bucks early in the day, it just couldn't be nicer. Sip my drink, give plenty of scone crumbs to my little friends. Walk to the venue just before 10am to start my day.
Make an Office Max and Wal-Mart run with one of the runners to get some more STUFF. Can't do my gig without the right STUFF. I never used to get excited about new calculators and shit. What a nerd!
About mid-afternoon I take a walk across Ocean Boulevard to go take a look at the Queen Mary. It's a beautiful day, and it takes me about 20 minutes to get to where I took the photo above.
Backstage before the show, there must be about 300,000 of L.A.'s finest posers and losers. Man, I hate doing shows here. Everybody thinks they're the most important motherfucker on the planet. Everyone needs a parking pass for their Hummer, their Beamer, their whatever. I need more passes for my entourage, blah, blah, blah…
Fuck 'em all! Can't wait to get out of the band's hometown area and away from all the self-important folks
Whew! Got that out of my system. Did I sound bitter?
I'm soooo glad I stopped being a tour manager – Mike's completely swamped today with crazy stuff. He's such a pro, though, that everything's going smoothly for him.
Show goes well. Just under 13,000 in attendance. Have the celebratory beer and shot in the production office afterwards, then I walk back to the hotel. In bed reading by about 12:30. Snnnnzzzzzzz….
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Wednesday, August 3, 2005
Yet Another Rehearsal Day in Long Beach
Oh, yeah, here's the view out my hotel window this week...
Up again around 7, shower and off to Starbucks to read USA Today and feed the sparrows. Seems that every Starbucks has a local crew of hungry birds. They know where the good eats are…
Stuck in production most of the day. The band does a full dress rehearsal of the show. They're playing a bunch of new songs that I haven't heard before.
I finally make it back to the hotel around 11:30pm. Once again, everyone's too tired to do anything. I crawl into bed to read myself to sleep again. I'm reading "Tuesdays With Morrie" by Mitch Albom. My buddy Chris Sheridan gave it to me for a birthday present 2 weeks ago. It's a great book, so good that I'm only reading about 10-12 pages per night so I can enjoy it longer.
BD – out…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Up again around 7, shower and off to Starbucks to read USA Today and feed the sparrows. Seems that every Starbucks has a local crew of hungry birds. They know where the good eats are…
Stuck in production most of the day. The band does a full dress rehearsal of the show. They're playing a bunch of new songs that I haven't heard before.
I finally make it back to the hotel around 11:30pm. Once again, everyone's too tired to do anything. I crawl into bed to read myself to sleep again. I'm reading "Tuesdays With Morrie" by Mitch Albom. My buddy Chris Sheridan gave it to me for a birthday present 2 weeks ago. It's a great book, so good that I'm only reading about 10-12 pages per night so I can enjoy it longer.
BD – out…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Tuesday, August 2, 2005
Rehearsal Day in Long Beach
Got up around 7, did the do, walked to Starbucks, then took the long walk to the venue. Getting old and fat, so I need the exercise. It was only about a mile altogether, which is nothing, except for the damn 21 lb. briefcase that rides on my left shoulder. Ouch!
Spent the day setting up all sorts of files for the upcoming shows and I've got lots more to do tomorrow. I wanted to sit outside and read the paper, but was too busy.
We were all done a little after 9pm, so maybe I'll go get a beer with some of the crew dudes.
No such luck – everyone's crashing, they're too tired.
I crawl into bed and read myself to sleep…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Spent the day setting up all sorts of files for the upcoming shows and I've got lots more to do tomorrow. I wanted to sit outside and read the paper, but was too busy.
We were all done a little after 9pm, so maybe I'll go get a beer with some of the crew dudes.
No such luck – everyone's crashing, they're too tired.
I crawl into bed and read myself to sleep…
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Monday, August 1, 2005
Travel Day, Part II
This morning's Arizona Republic informs me that today is National Girlfriend's Day. Where the hell does Hallmark come up with this stuff? Also upcoming:
Sister's Day – Aug. 7
Best Friend's Day – Aug. 15
Be An Angel Day – Aug. 22
Psychic Week – Aug. 1-5 (buy hey, you knew that…)
National Fresh Breath Day AND National Mustard Day – Aug. 6
National Garage Sale Day AND National Underwear Day – Aug. 13
Vinyl Records Day – Aug. 12 (???)
And this one's just for you, Paige:
International Nagging Day – Aug. 14
Again, where's this shit coming from?
Other gems from today's paper:
Thought For Today:
"Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it." – Confucius
Today's Chuckle:
A realist is someone who looks both ways before crossing a one-way street. A pessimist looks up as well.
Yada, yada, yada…
Today's the first day of rehearsals for our arena tour. The band's not coming today, so it's pretty much just setup and tech rehearsals.
David Coyle and I land at LAX around noon, the runner meets us, and we're off to Long Beach. Run by the hotel to check in, toss bags into the room, and head to the venue. It's an important day for me – I've got to get my blog back up to speed. HA!
We've finally gotten a production assistant, Janet Taylor. She fucking just rocks! I've been doing all sorts of stupid shit over the past few years that I never should have had to deal with. She'll be taking over a lot of that crap, so now I can just concentrate on my job. Yeah, yeah, and my blog…
Not much else to report today. See ya tomorrow!
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
Sister's Day – Aug. 7
Best Friend's Day – Aug. 15
Be An Angel Day – Aug. 22
Psychic Week – Aug. 1-5 (buy hey, you knew that…)
National Fresh Breath Day AND National Mustard Day – Aug. 6
National Garage Sale Day AND National Underwear Day – Aug. 13
Vinyl Records Day – Aug. 12 (???)
And this one's just for you, Paige:
International Nagging Day – Aug. 14
Again, where's this shit coming from?
Other gems from today's paper:
Thought For Today:
"Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it." – Confucius
Today's Chuckle:
A realist is someone who looks both ways before crossing a one-way street. A pessimist looks up as well.
Yada, yada, yada…
Today's the first day of rehearsals for our arena tour. The band's not coming today, so it's pretty much just setup and tech rehearsals.
David Coyle and I land at LAX around noon, the runner meets us, and we're off to Long Beach. Run by the hotel to check in, toss bags into the room, and head to the venue. It's an important day for me – I've got to get my blog back up to speed. HA!
We've finally gotten a production assistant, Janet Taylor. She fucking just rocks! I've been doing all sorts of stupid shit over the past few years that I never should have had to deal with. She'll be taking over a lot of that crap, so now I can just concentrate on my job. Yeah, yeah, and my blog…
Not much else to report today. See ya tomorrow!
Follow the Bobzilla's Photos link at the right to see photos from my travels.
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