First Binge of the Tour

I finally got a good night's sleep, and it was well-deserved. I got up around 1:00 in the afternoon, and after a quick shower and "breakfast", I found myself back on my way to Stiletto's with the intention of learning songs. I ended up drinking instead. Sheena was there in the afternoon, she greeted me warmly and placed a beer in front of me. Instead of "working", I was socializing with the staff. A Caesar came next, and then I decided to make a stop at the Royal Hotel and check out the afternoon jam.

The Royal isn't one of those places that you would consider a 4-star hotel... It probably does not even deserve a half-star, but it is "The Good Times Bar", where people from all walks of life hang out and drink copious quantities of cheap beer. I sat down with SF, who happens to be another drummer, and we talked a bit, mostly waiting for the jam to begin. The band opened the stage at 4:00, and by 4:10 there was already a drunk couple dancing. They were older, possibly in their thirties, and the woman appeared to either have a glandular problem, or a compulsive eating disorder. My guess would have been the latter. This woman, while dancing with this guy, lifts up her t-shirt, pulls it over this guy's head, exposing the shocking contents underneath -- no bra. I figured this was my cue to leave, so I quickly finished my beer, and decided to go back to a place where the women would be wearing a bit more clothing: Stiletto's!

I was back at the lingerie bar again, but this time I actually managed to listen to some songs, instead of drinking, since by this time I managed to be wearing a "healthy glow". I stayed at the bar for about an hour, and then went home for a home-cooked meal.

I returned to Stiletto's somewhere around 7:30, and somehow a Paralyzer would up in my hands. So much for learning a few more songs.

We began playing around 9:00. The band sounded more together than the night before, but the improvement wasn't considerable. At least there weren't any major train-wrecks. Dave was picking material they didn't normally play, so Dave and Arleen had a bit of a refresher course as well.

I shouldn't hesitate to mention that Stiletto's bar is located adjacent to a retirement condominium. In fact, the condominium is about fifteen meters from Stiletto's back door. As soon as we started playing, the old farts called to cops on us and complained about the noise. This little ordeal happened last night, but it didn't stop us from playing...

That is, until the police decided to show up and check out our volume situation. Those old buggers called the police on us four times that night, which basically denotes once for every 40-minute set we played. When we started to play our final set at 12:30, we had only played our second song when the police called the bar and informed them of more noise complaints. Dave, Arleen and I were doubled over laughing. We weren't even playing loud! Here were some old fogies, with nothing better to do with their time except bitch, bitch, bitch. You'd have thought that they turned up their hearing aids to aggravate themselves (and us) even more.

First of all, it's the weekend. Second of all, the noise bylaw doesn't come into effect until 11:00 pm, so why are they calling the police at 9:30? Third, and lastly, who goes to bed at 9:00 on a weekend? Needless to say, we finished our show a bit early, but we played a few songs extra loudly to grandma and grandpa could hear us loud and clear. I recall Dave shouting: "Wake up, Grandma!" during a few of our songs. It was a nice humourous touch.

I think Dave and Arleen are pleased with my progress. They will be rehearsing this upcoming week, which means they will be learning the songs they hadn't played in months, plus learning half a dozen new ones. If I wasn't up to speed, I guarantee that they wouldn't be learning a dozen new songs for this weekend. Maybe they will have a bit more fun if they play some new songs instead of the ones they normally play four nights a week.

The first week of the tour is now over, and I am 300 bucks richer. Too bad my pay was already spent before I even got it. Next week, we will be playing for three nights in Yorkton, Saskatchewan, wherever that is. Until then, I will become a drum teacher for a couple of days, and an unemployed bum for a few more. Not unlike a superhero, next weekend I will instantly change from a geeky nobody into the "rock star" that I am. But for now, chilling out is a necessity.