Big Trouble Live at the White Squirrel
Getting to play once a month at the White Squirrel has been a godsend for me. Here are some highlights. I get to see people in a night timey environment but not a night timey time. 6-8pm. Good grown up hanging time. And after most every gig I’m getting dinner with Josh and Steve. I have been campaigning, largely unsuccessfully, to have more social time with Josh ever since he said he quit Heiruspecs in probably 2002 when it was time to start going on tour. I remember giving him like $132 I probably owed him from seven gigs he hadn’t been paid for. I thought he was making a huge mistake to not hit the road with us, but I also thought he would have been making a huge mistake to come with us. I don’t think he would’ve have enjoyed any of those years on the road. But since 2001 I’ve probably suggested getting lunch with Josh one hundred and fifteen times. He had my family over for brunch once. That was nice. Suffice it to say a meal with Josh is a rare thing indeed. And with Steve living all the way in Northeast and having a tight neighbor circle over there and me having much of the same in Saint Paul means I don’t see Steve as much as I’d like to. And there’s something nicer about a dinner after you play a gig than just getting together for dinner. Also I simply can’t see Josh, Steve and I having dinner without an attached obligation. Okay, I’m blogging just trying to get you to a show I’m playing and I’ve been yapping about a dinner you aren’t invited to for six lines.
The music side of the show has been very rewarding. I’m very comfortable on the White Squirrel stage. I feel comfortable stretching out. I am seeing that we have a supportive fanbase that believes in what we’re doing and comes out to check out the music. I also think a lot of people swing by for a drink and get impressed with what we’re doing. As I step up on to the stage I feel comfortable trying out something because we are in a spot where we can understand the volume dynamics, we can understand each other.
My favorite part about this extended residency is getting to practice every month, add some tunes, brush the dust off some tunes and see what works for us. As I start to get some new music under my fingers each month for the first time in about five years I’m reminding that music is muscle. You train your connection to music with reliable challenges and it behaves better. My ears are stronger. I hear chord progressions and melodies notated simply as a listen. I am so thankful to have music as a part of my life. And I’d be doubly thankful to have my music be part of your life. Join us on Saturday May 25.
