Minneapolis pictures from July 9-10, 2005

Airiel rocking The Hexagon Club with b/w kaliedascope video

leaving Minneapolis

24oz T-Bone Steak only $13.95

we have arrived

Jeremy is unimpressed by Griff and the scenic view here in Wisconsin

Griff about to select the best meal of his life

Pine Cone 5 at the wheel

the dark room

I saw Brian Jonestown Massacre at Lollapalooza on Saturday and whatever apprehension I had about them was relieved. I thought "Sunday is going to be FUN!" after they were done.

Sunday was indeed fun. The day was over 100 degrees but the Darkroom was air conditioned. We showed up and the staff was awesome (as always) We got our snazzy passes...
NOTE: the address given for Darkroom is Division, NOT Chicago Ave....
got our gear set up, video was ready, band was sound checked and sounded great. We all signed a poster for Darkroom with everybody's name who was performing. BJM showed up and there was a good crowd waiting.

Thax Douglas introduced Airiel with a poem he wrote for the band. This was great because I think that when Thax writes a poem for your band, you've been blessed or something. It's sort of like when you'd get a head butt from Wesley Willis back in the day. The show was great, video looked good and I'm glad I wore ear plugs. I ran out giving ear plugs to friends, their dads, and even Sonia the lovely bartender who became Airiel's newest fan.

The BJM rocked. Anton introduced Matt Hollywood who just came on stage to say hi. He did play tambourine at Lollapalooza the day before though. This was kind of funny because back in the fall I had talked to the label that Matt Hollywood's new band The Out Crowd is on about doing a music video and now here I am opening for the BJM. Anton was totally cool during the show and hoped we all got laid after the show. They rocked out a great 15+ minute song to end their set that was really good.

After the show and people left Jeremy and I went back in to check one last time for gear we left behind and to say goodnight to the staff , Brock and Tobias who played great tunes all night, and the BJM guys if they were around. Sonia poured a bunch of shots that Jeremy and I gladly accepted and Anton stood next to me and said "Why does everybody want to argue with me? I just want to hang out and have a good time man!" I responded something like "...I dunno man, people are assholes". We had our shots, shook hands, said goodnight and got home. Good times. Links to pictiures coming...soon....maybe....

what he said

I can't forget the door guy at the Hexagon calling Airiel "loud ass rainbow shit". They are loud, yes. Does that make me doing visuals the "rainbow shit"? I hope so. The Hexagon had the vibe of the Hideout but 2 rooms and a corner triangular stage that reminded me of the Empty Bottle.

Next show: Darkroom, Chicago. Lollapalooza After Party wih Brian Jonestown Massacre. July 24th, 2005.

About Airiel (from their website): Airiel is rapidly becoming one of Chicago's best kept secrets. Formed in '97 by Jeremy Wrenn, initially a solo project supported by various drum machines, Airiel is now a solid 4-piece determined to be heard. The addition of guitarist Zeeshan Abbasi, bassist/vocalist Cory Osborne, and drummer John Rungger have taken the prior format of warm-as-a-blanket guitar soundscapes and injected a post/pop-rock energy and verve that heralds the coming of a new shoegaze archetype. Many bands try to emulate the sounds of My Bloody Valentine, Jesus and Mary Chain, The Verve, Slowdive and others, but Airiel build off of the foundation of their influences, seeking to push the genre forward. A strident combination of reverb, distortion and sweat, they are advancing the art of sheer sonic energy while utilizing the power of a good melody to provide a basis for the effects, never forgetting the innate human desire to shake one's ass. In short, it's loud, it's beautiful, and you can dance to it.

rock show

This show was the night before ours in Minneapolis

Best. Flyer. Ever.

more minneapolis

matt damon!!


other stuff I'm remembering:
John was reminded as to WHY I was referred to as "the other dumpling". Minneapolis hipsters have a gas problem. If you have to fart, please take it to the bathroom. Jeremy's car grew a meat tongue in its dashboard and I think he's going to make millions from the video game Silent Hill: Volvo. As of this writing, the meat tongue is nowhere to be found. We think it's mutating and becoming one with the car. I learned how Chewbacca dies in the comics. Airiel finished their set not with Kiss Me Sadly as they always do but according to the set list the "Pine Cone Jamboree". In Minneapolis, anybody who is remotely cool and young is known as a "hippie" and reminded to the fact by drunk losers outside country bars smoking at 7pm. On a personal note, I noticed that you can indeed paint your walls a different color other than white if your wood trim is varnished.

I'm sure more will come later...especially when I get the photos developed.

Minneapolis

Long story short: Cory ate 2 steaks, Griff got engaged, John had a milkshake, Jeremy almost shot food and/or drink out his nose several times, and Arturo woke up face to face with a cat. Oh and we played a show. It went very well!

Long story long: I left home at 8:45 and got to Jeremy's by 9. I knew it would be a good trip after the fun we had loading up the cars. At the family restaurant in Mauston, WI we found the meaning of life and it's called Pleasoning. being Star Wars geeks, we talked about Mud Slug, general of the Ewok army. He was the one who cut the rope that swung the logs crushing the AT-ST's.

When we got to the Hexagon Club in Minneapolis, we loaded in and saw that we missed the meat raffle at 2. Damn. After that we hung out for a while with the guy responsible for getting us there, Christian. We went to his place and learned from Griff that Daddy Likes It Here. I can't remember the last time I laughed so much. Now I know what it's like to answer a craigslist ad. We had great sandwiches for dinner, some might say they were life changing. Mine was really good. I took a flyer from a street light pole from the day before that had a picture of the A-Team van stuck in the Death Star after having obviously crashed into it and Darth Vader and Mr. T staring out at us with their bad-assness that only they possess.

The show went well, and I think my black DVD player is dying out or something. I kept losing the picture and it got all glitchy. Sucks. I'll have to test it today and get a replacement if necessary. The other bands were great and nice people. Good size crowd and Airiel sold out the ear plugs provided by the club. Non-smoking bars are cool, but part of me misses the cloud of smoke. I hope the phrase "smoky bar" will always describe a current bar, not just something that once was.

Jeremy and I spent the night with my friends Alpa and Patrick in their lovely house. It was nice to see her again and great to meet Patrick for the first time. The door of the bedroom I was in didn't close all the way and the cats snuck in to hang out with me and scare the holy shit out of me by jumping on the bed to stare at me inches from my face while I was half awake after 4 hours of sleep. After that, I was indeed awake. We left and met up with everybody else at the Triple Rock Social Club for a helluva breakfast. Tons of food on each plate and it was so good. We made our next official stop, the now infamous Pine Cone Restaurant. This is where Cory had the 24oz steak and I had a roast beef sandwich covered in gravy and mashed potatoes. Griff fell in love and got engaged. Photos were taken outside and we were on our way. Lots of annoying traffic in WI, and some in IL but we got through it.

The gear was dropped off at the practice space, and my gear was moved from Jeremy's car to mine and I was home just after 10pm. If this is anything like the tour in September, I can't wait. For now all I can say is "buh-byeee!!!" (while waving and bouncing)