January 27, 2009
TourSaw with Scotty Don’t and Badfish
(visit www.fullservicemusic.com/media-videos.php to catch all videos!)
There have been many an amazing tour in the history of this here band. There was, of course, Toursaw I; “the first” always has a special place in the heart. The Takeover Tour, too, was memorable for obvious reasons. But this last tour definitely ranks high. Our friends Scotty Don’t (who moonlight as “Badfish: A Tribute to Sublime”) invited us to play 4 dates with them in Baton Rouge, Dallas, Houston, and Austin. As the following videos will attest, one of the reasons these shows were exciting was because of the venues and the large crowds (House Of Blues in Dallas and Houston, Varsity Theater in Baton Rouge, and Emo’s in Austin). But perhaps more importantly, the shows will forever go down in history because of the bond we formed with a band who proved to be, by the end of our little run with them (they continue on for months after last Sunday’s Austin date,) our kindred spirits.
They were into playing soccer, they had a trumpet player who was kind enough to sit in with us for “Trumpets,” their merch dude was one of the kindest, funniest people we’ve ever met, their drummer greeted us at our first show with them in Baton Rouge holding an ice bag to his ridiculously swollen black eye (something about defending Pat Benatar against an angry drunk bully after their show in New Orleans?), their singer pins a photo of The Fonz on his amp and skates around on his ripstick inside the venue before shows, and their bass player repeatedly challenged Bonesaw’s manhood with competitive banter on and off the field. And not only this, but they work harder than any band we’ve seen and they play their hearts out every single night. So, many thanks to these guys for the opportunity to play those shows with them. We made a boatload of new fans and we are greatful for that chance.
Some highlights from the mini-toursaw:
1) In Baton Rouge, the microphone on my tom-tom fell off after the very first hit, prompting me to call over to Smell for assistance. The mic had landed on my snare drum and I needed him to take it off to avoid further catastrophe. As the following video shows, poor Smell thought he had found a spot in the song where I would lay off the snare for a few seconds so that he could sneak his hand in and clear the mic away. However…I ended up smashing his hand as he was doing me this courtesty. He doesn’t react much in the video, but rest assured he layed upon me a series of vitriolic epithets that shook me to my very core. I’m sorry Smell.
2) Also in Baton Rouge, we happened to catch Bonesaw on video at Subway making one of his notoriously awkward requests for special treatment because of his food allergy. (He’s allergic to wheat.) Enjoy…
3) At a rest stop near Dallas, we had trouble with Twink causing unnecessary delays…
4) In Houston, my bass drum kept sliding away from me. I offered anyone in the crowd $5 to jump the railing in the front row and sit on stage to hold my drum in place. Between the time it took me to say that and reach down for a drink of water, somebody had appeared, seated in front of my kick with his feet holding either side. As we started the song, I yelled “ARE YOU WITH THE VENUE??” He said “NO!, I JUMPED THE RAILING!” I said “COOL!!” After that song, security took him back out onto the floor and replaced him with two 45-lb plates. Bummer, but I met up with him later and made good on the reward.
So, great tour. New friends, new fans, good times.
What’s next for El Service? We’re heading out on tour again in early February, and the album is coming out in a few weeks (CD Release show at Ruta Maya on Feb. 28th). We also have this, the name of the new album… THE EARTH STILL WANTS YOU
Stay tuned for artwork and track-listing… Love, Vitamin Hoag
