Last night was the first show of our mini tour with minus the bear. We played the varsity theatre in Baton Rouge,La. The crowd was fantastic and it felt so good to be playing. Baton Rouge knows how to rock out! Skysaw is coming into it's own as a live band and I am so proud of my bandmates and their continued dedication to music. Paul Wood flew from New York yesterday, missed his connection in Charlotte, and not being able to get to Baton Rouge, hopped on a flight to New Orleans and drove the 80 or so miles in a rental car up to Baton Rouge to make it in time for the show with an hour of so to spare!
For me personally the band , tour, marks a return to a lot of things that I haven't done in a while. Being on the road with just the band , no crew, no tour manager, staying in cheap hotels, setting my own stuff up every night and tearing it down - loading the trailer! I must say that it brings a different resonance to the music. One I haven't enjoyed in a while. When you set your drums up yourself , you play differently. There is a reverence to the art as a whole, not just the performance, but the life. It is sacred. I love these times and I thank every one of you for making them possible.
We are off to florida to rock out again tomorrow. I look forward to seeing some old friends and making some new ones.
I might, might, be able to coax JC and Skysaw to answer a couple of questions...
I have my own super nerdy ideas of course, but rather than just ask them - I thought I'd throw the floor open to you guys... So, post away in the comments.
Apparently Mike writes the lyrics and they might play some festivals this summer
This just doesn't get enough plays...
When JC has talked about Machina being " the most honest record [Smashing Pumpkins] ever made, because it's the least least forced. It's what came out of us naturally, as opposed to songs like 'Geek'..."* I just think that this is a perfect example of SP playing naturally back in the day. At the very least, it's one of the great examples of JC playing what seems to come completely naturally to him: The ease, power, swing/feel and harmony with the guitars he injects is well... just, absolutely, splendid. G&TGC and Stellar went on to echo this type of playing from JC perfectly, as far as I'm concerned.
Let us know if you feel differently;
Cheers.
*Rhythm magazine Christmas 2000
P.S I may have had a dram or two 2 many, please excuse me.
