Mission Tobacco Lounge

April FOOLS

Let the games begin!



Mmm...leper pizza



My castle by the freeway. What is this? Mexico?



Da da da da da duh duh da da duh...



Seriously?

The Luck O The Half Irish

Another day of searching for gold and replacing my blood with Guinness has come and gone. The cafeteria at OCC was actually serving corned beef and cabbage and, after an eternity of waiting, I consumed it with Irish vigor. A brief nap followed, History class, then a case of Irish milk aka Guinness was procured and later accompanied by yet another case brought over by Cadbury, Matty, and Amanda.
Fiddles were played, beers raced down throats, and many laughs were had. I woke the next morning in my bed, surprised to see that my clothes were off. Veg comes home from the gym and recants how I am a terrible drunk. Apparently I stumbled into his room at 4 am and he woke up to me grabbing his work shoes. Guess I have a drunken shoe fetish? Cherry on top of a fun night.

Pink Parlour Festival

This hottie is the epitome of the Pink Parlour Festival we had the opportunity to play last week. Pink was everywhere as rows upon rows of tables and booths littered with rockabilly inspired clothing, jewelry, and even jams. The event was held at the Santa Anita racetrack and was the first time I had seen a live horse race. After a bass debacle, we watched a sexy runway show that featured a lot of the wares the venue had to offer.








The all female band Rocket rocked the stage before us. Great sound and a lot of energy. We hit the stage in fear of the giant chandelier above us and after a few hiccups we played a concise set and made some new fans. All-in-all a great experience and definitely excited for our upcoming shows!

Hail Queen Mary!!!

Are you serious? 100 bands on 10 stages in two nights? Madness to even conceive. Matt and I park outside the historic Queen Mary and unload our instruments as cat-suited girls and mo hawked guys pass us and have us (?) pose for photos. Guess the suits are working. We meet up with the rest of the Ready For Vegas crew and load our gear down by stage 6 as numerous bands are playing in various corners of the ship. The three floors of the galley were littered with stages, vendors, and food stands. The traffic of bands and fans was immense up and down the multiple flights of stairs and non-working escalators.




Many of the bands were emo-style along with a few rockabilly and scream-o. Only a few of what I heard really stood out. One of such was Red Devil Squadron, a fresh take on classic punk/rock n roll.



As stage 8 screamed 'music' to their awkward fans, we set up and got ready to blow some minds. Ruby and Beulah wore their sequined dancing girls outfits, which got more attention than the other band alone, and the rest of us had our shirts buttoned up and instruments tuned. The last note of stage 8 resonated through the galley and two seconds later the clicks of Dans sticks summoned the start of One Guy. Our horn sections load had been lightened by the lack of Lackey and was tight and collected while accenting Ruby's wailing voice. The beats were held tight by Dan and Beulah kept the bass in check. Chris's guitar echoed during Mikey's ripping solos. The crowd grew and grew until the sides of the stage were overflowing with patrons. Our set was cut short due to the massive time restrains but what was played was awesome! Many new fans made and pictures taken we unloaded, shed unnecessary layers and enjoyed a few other bands before disembarking the ship.



A few texts and calls later, we joined some friends at the Slidebar in Fullerton to catch Starpool at midnight. They always put on a great show. While in line for the bathroom I saw a shadowbox of Save Ferris signed by the majority of the band I was there to see. Surreal. The original drummer for Save Ferris was there and joined them to play a few old songs sung by random audience members.



A great night and another great show with Ready For Vegas.

Flying ghetto at the Airliner

Our equipment rocks and settles behind me making clicks and rattles like an old house in anticipation of playing. I'm surprised by the amount of traffic there is on a early Sunday night and come to find that a roadkill coyote is the culprit. After diverging around the sporadic parking lots of traffic we finally reach the Airliner, a unique bar nested between nothing and next to nothing. At least it was right off the freeway. Tonight both of my bands play: Stupid Flanders and Ready For Vegas. RFV goes on first on the tiny stage tucked in on the left before the bathroom. The stage upstairs is much larger and another one outside would be much more ideal, but we'll take what is give. A few new faces joined us in the crowd and the set went great. Heads bopping and hips swaying to the lounge rock n roll.
The Decision were up next, a punk rock girl-powered band with a lot of style, then our old friends Failed To Victory. As I changed outfits for my set with SF, I was serenaded by a drunken transient doing a performance in front of a 99 cent store across the street. Black shirt and tie donned I joined my fellow Flanders on our little stage. The clock read midnight and most of the crowd had left already. The remainder was just friends and family. We cut a song or two and focused on the new songs to give them a chance to reach new ears. A few laughs were had and all-in-all a good night. Taco Bell put the cherry on top of a double duty evening.

House of Blues in detailio

Image via Wikipedia

The view from the cheap seats

Beulah, Ruby, and Mikey

Our eclectic Horns

Most of the band

So my Valentines Day treat came a few days early when I had the pleasure of playing at the House of Blues Anaheim with Ready For Vegas. HOB has been my top venue of desire to play at for the last decade or so. So many amazing acts have graced that stage, many of which have inspired and shaped my musical prowess, as it were. Matt and I park around back at the well guarded band entrance and take the elevator backstage. The rest of my fellow band mates wait anxiously as our call time creeps closer. Our intimate greenroom is shared by all the other bands but we manage to take it over. The ladies do their hair and makeup as the guys wax idiotic about chicken tenders and Bryans sweatshirt. So much history is tied to this place and I am backstage soaking it all in.

After a brief all-band meeting, we get everything ready and take a few sips of my pre-show Jack. No more time to be scared or nervous, the 20' tall patchwork curtains are parting. I scan the room, then my music, then the room again in search of friends whom are scattered everywhere. The sound and lighting was unreal. This is most definitely not a hole-in-the-wall operation. Our set goes off nearly flawless minus the usual hick-ups. Mikey had to Macgyver his guitar strap with screwdrivers and duct tape mere seconds before we began. After a great set we joined our friends on the balcony for drinks and fries. An unbelievable night to say the least.

House Of Freakin Blues!

Backstage


Our dazzling bass player Beulah and trumpet master Matt


Master vocalist Ruby


The view before the storm

Ready For Vegas?

A second band? Really? I think this venture is a great opportunity to expand my music abilities, due in part to the insanely difficult horn parts written by our eccentric trombone player Bryan. The whole band is very mellow, down to earth, and extremely talented. My fellow Flander Matt is in the band as well and one of the main reasons I joined the band. The sound is a mix of Rockabilly/rock/punk. I would imagine many of the tunes playing in the background of a Tarintino flick, lots of style and attitude.
We had the pleasure of playing at the Continental Room in Fullerton (http://www.myspace.com/thecontinentalroom), one of my favorite bars. Small stage tucked behind a retractable curtain more suited to a Vegas nightclub than a quaint bar in Fullerton. Suit, tie, and fedora matched the surroundings well as we started the set and Ruby's amazing vocals permeated the crowded room. People were packed everywhere, standing on booths, bar stools turned and bartenders ignoring guests to catch a peek of the show. Midpoint through the set the band was joined by burlesque dancers which made all eyes divert from the band and many a jaws dropped, including my own. What a unique experience to play in a new band in one of my favorite bars as beautiful women sing next to me as well as dance in front of me. A great night for all and thrilled to be playing the main stage at House of Blues in Anaheim for my very first, not the last, time this Thurs! Nervousness blended together with angst and excitement!

Here we go again...

So another year is already underway and I have yet to get in my rhythm. The restauraunt that I was employed at, the Clubhouse (where you belong...) for almost 3 1/2 years closed on Dec 31st due to the lease being bought out by the Darden group (corp that owns Red Lobster and Olive Garden). They are splitting the giant expanse of the Clubhouse into two restaurants: Capitol Grill and Seasons 52. I guess if you have the means then go for it. Every single employee was forced to seek new employment, this sucks in part to 1. the current economy and 2. the huge drop off in business that most restauraunts encounter come Jan and Feb. Way to pick an opportune time Darden/Clubhouse !
After a lazy, mostly earned, month off and a handful of applications blanketed around the area without response or real interest, I finally got a bite on a job thanks to my good friend Lisa. All the bar positions were full but I think a rest from doing more for less will be a nice change. I filled out an app on Wed along with my good friend Daniel in a cold parking structure because the store itself was still under construction. After an aptitude test and a brief interview with one of the managers I felt I was a shoe in. They informed me that we would be notified by Sat if we were hired. Lisa and Daniel both got calls Thurs but my phone never rang. I also joined a second band (www.myspace.com/readyforvegas) since I had so much down time. I told them that I was commited to play but was waiting to see if I was going to be hired or not. Sat night rolls around and at 5 pm I emailed our lovely bass player, Beulah, and told her I was in for the band. My phone rings at 6 pm and I got the job. Way to wait til the last minute! I was still happy but had to work out both training for the new job and training for the other band together with current shows/practices with Stupid Flanders and school starting a week after that. The new job is great. The place is called the Catch (www.catchanaheim.com) and is a semi-upscale steak and seafood restaurant. They were forced to relocate from their old residence a few blocks over and after two years of planning, they reopened earlier this month. Everything is brand new! Everything! The whole layout is beautiful and almost everything had to be taken out of plastic and a home found for it. The training was condensed down from two weeks to five days! My brain almost trickled out the side of my head. Too many ingredients and names for one brain to recall. We all barely made it through training and are now in the midst of finding the flow of day to day traffic. I have high hopes for this place and the staff, so far, is very easy to get along with.