Cassavettes

So, it’s a bit early, I suppose, for me to say where I stand on the 2008 presidential elections. After all, we don’t even know all our options yet. But that doesn’t mean I can’t write a bit about what I see and how some of my opinions have changed. I’m no expert or even a truly “political person,” just a mere voter looking to be informed. Now, feel free to leave comments on this, because I know politics can ruffle some feathers, but if so, let’s keep it clean and honest, kids. And if anyone has any good links I should post, let me know. I’m still sizing everyone up.

There was a point when I thought I’d never vote Republican. Not that I’ve been very impressed by Democrats in recent years, but the thought of supporting a Republican sent shivers down my spine. That’s what happens when you come of voting age in the George W. Bush-era, though I’ve been loosely following politics since I was a youngster. Anyhow, after the 2000 elections, I read a piece on John McCain that somewhat changed my mind. It was a Rolling Stone piece, a publication who can sometimes have acceptable political pieces that appeal to younger folks (though I think many, flip past it to see the Panic! At The Disco spread). Anyhow, the piece made him seem like the anti-Bush, a straight-talking, no-nonsense, widely-appealing, center-riding politician who didn’t think, let alone vote, on party lines. But as McCain now shifts toward the 2008 vacancy, I’ve seen a change in him (not too surprising). He’s visiting evangelical groups, knowing he needs their votes and support. He’s changing gears and stance on the war too frequently. Which leads me to the latest email I received, toting the outing of the “Real McCain” (a nice play off the “Real McCoy” by the way). Check it out here to see it, but warning: watch for major spin.

Anyhow, my opinion of McCain has steadly dropped over the past, eh, nine months (not that I was ever a “McCain guy”). And he’s the only Republican who has ever looked half-good (Romney WILL crash and burn, and perhaps won’t even get that far due to his religion being somewhat unfairly attacked — I say this for the first-time as a Bostonian who has watched him ignore his own people long enough; meanwhile, I loathe Giuliani and can’t understand why everyone adores a man who is so two-faced and I don’t even want to talk about the Bible-beating Brownback. He just angers me). I, like many others, have been dazzled by rising star Barack Obama. I’ve been reading his latest book, and interestingly, rather than make me feel closer to him, I’ve found it to be pushing me away (which may say something about his honesty, in a good way). He’s an excellent writer, no doubt, and what he’s doing here is precisely laying out his plans for his potential presidency. He would be a welcome change in politics — he’s energetic, tough but compassionate, and quite eloquent. But that doesn’t make a president, many say, it’s experience. The all-important record. And yeah, he doesn’t have much of one (he may have thrown himself into this race a bit too quickly, riding a wave of hype and celebrity, though he directly says his opinion to run for president was not based on hype in his declaration video). In fact, in some ways I kind of like his lack of experience for that, because he doesn’t seem disillusioned in the way some politicians do. But I still need to be convinced. Big time. Many of the same questions about Obama can be applied to John Edwards, as well.

At the same rate, it seems Hillary Clinton may get the nomination. We all knew she was going to run, but honestly, I didn’t think she’d have so much support (and I’m a big Bill fan). Well, is it support, or is it money? Either way, she’s doing dandy but I’m not into this whole down-home facade she’s put on to combat her image as a chilly character (though I see her point). Don’t believe me? Watch her “let’s chat” declaration video and count how many times that right elbow goes onto her back-support cushion. None of this really has to do with her politics, but rather her viability as a strong candidate. I personally kind of align with some of Clinton’s stances; truth be told, I’m just not sold on her yet.

Which brings me to my big conclusion. Who should run from the Democratic side? On the Republican side, it looks to be McCain (right now, at least). But amongst the major contenders right now (Obama, Clinton, Edwards, Vilsack — OK, maybe not Vilsack), nobody seems perfect. But secretly, I’ve been pulling for Al Gore. I think he’s made a lot of good moves since losing in 2000, and it’s true, he can beat everyone else in the pack — well, for the nomination. In fact, there’s a decent article in Rolling Stone right now called “Run, Al, Run” by Tom Dickinson. It brings up the reasons of why he’s a viable candidate. Right now, I’m just waiting to see who does what and who throws their hat in the ring. But like I say, I still need to be convinced.

So, last night we played a show and it was pretty bland. But that’s not exciting, so we’ll talk about that after exciting talk.

In one of the biggest honors to date for Cassavettes, we were invited to play the WBCN Rock ‘N’ Roll Rumble. Don’t know what it is? If you trust Wikipedia, here’s a history lesson. Our good friend Kier from Three Day Threshold, who I often think of as a mentor to this band in some ways, told us awhile back that the Rumble is the bridge for Boston bands, or as he put it: a “rite of passage.” Most groups that have gone on to bigger and better things must first prove themselves locally by owning the Rumble. Jake Brennan & the Confidence Men did it, so did Dresden Dolls, all the way back to Gang Green in 1986. At the same time, some notable bands have fallen, including Morphine, the Lemonheads, Piebald, and Kier’s band itself. Win or lose, we are enormously honored to be a part of it. So, how about that?

And it makes last night at the Bulfinch Yacht Club feel better. It also parallels the reality that we aren’t big time or anything. A lot of internal focus lately has been on not getting down if the crowd is small or uninvolved. It happens — you max out a draw by playing too many shows, it’s not a good night, or maybe the crowd isn’t going to feel it no matter what you do. It’s not a personal offense in my book any longer. I’m having fun every time I’m up on stage, and you know what, I’ll say it: as corny as this is, I love playing live shows, even to nobody sometimes, because I realize how amazing it is to play onstage with three of my best friends. It’s a special thing, and I don’t want to take it for granted. I can’t get so caught up in worrying about draw, and who’s there and who isn’t, because when it’s time to play, all you can do is PLAY. That’s it. Scott says he has more respect for bands who overcome small crowds by still turning the place upside down, and I’m inclined to agree with him. Playing to small crowds is part of the life of a band, and we better get used to it again if we hit the road. Like Matt said, not everyone can be those losers from Panic! At The Disco, where were playing packed stadiums before they ever played an empty bar. It’s all luck. But playing small shows toughens you up in a way that group never will be tough — in some ways, it already shows since they have ZERO stage presence from what I understand. If you want longevity in a business, you need to take a hard road to get there oftentimes. So, while we played a few sold-out shows and were riding a high, when we maxed out last night, it was a reality check. A necessary one. We still met the club’s minimum at the bar and ticket sales, so we didn’t get in hot water, and we’re buds with the talent buyer there. Our set was strong, we played pretty well (despite some technical difficulties) and amazingly, we sold a fair amount of merchandise. That’s EXACTLY why you don’t fold in the face of a small crowd — in fact, there’s MORE pressure to play well, I think. And I’m proud of these dudes, because I think we did play well. Pictures here.

Speaking of playing, we did not do a conventional set. In an attempt to snag some people who’d seen us recently, I baited the show by saying we’d do all new stuff (two), covers (one), and rarities (three) — (We also did four recorded tracks). And for the most part, we did. Here’s the set list:
Whitewashed / Loose Lips / Carolyn, Don’t Leave Like This / On The Lam / The Devil’s Arms / Research Blvd. / Shotgun Wedding / Bad Luck / The Weight (The Band cover) / Better Than This

All in all, the night turned out OK. And sometimes that’s necessary. We’re playing a lot lately (next show, Feb. 6 at afterHOURS/Northeastern University), anyhow, for two reasons: we have debts to pay off and we’re getting as tight as possible for SXSW and, well, now, the WBCN Rumble. So, it’s a good, hard-nosed experience.

Anyhow, more on Worcester. Apparently, Worcester Magazine saw my recent tag on the Ralph’s wrap-up and this blog will be featured in their next publication! Wild, eh? It feels strange writing up someone writing about this blog that I write on them about. It’s like one big circle that just keeps turning.

Anyhow, interesting show at the Bulfinch Yacht Club tonight with Cassavettes and good old buddies Dirt Water Refuge, and Nathan Ryan. We’ll be playing almost all b-sides from “It’s Gonna Change” (songs we love but that just couldn’t fit), new songs, covers, and perhaps some jazz oddysey. It’s cheap ($6), so if you’re around, you won’t want to miss this one.

I’ve got some words later. For now, let’s just post some pictures from last night’s band meeting and hang sesh. This is for a project of sorts, so we weren’t necessarily just hanging around with a camera. Although that’s cool, too.

Don’t believe Scott and I are serious about growing our hair? Look how long his normally close-cut locks are now…

Matt was showing off for girls, I’m not certain why. Well, I am, but really? Using a harmless photoshop project to pick up chicks? Actually, on a complete side note, I’ve known more than a few folks who like to use their photo skills to pick up girls. Either way, it didn’t work for him. Besides, I was taking the pictures.

Finally, here’s a shot of Chris theorizing the look on my face when posting these very pictures…

Sorry, it’s been a good while since I’ve written anything. I just switched to the new version of Blogger, so I now must conform with Google rules. Still seems cool, though. Quick sidenote: yesterday, Chris and I watched this Neil Young performance from the Harvest-era on VH1 classic and it was totally weird. Everything he played was a “new song” and he’d introduce it as such and then play “Heart of Gold” or “Out on the Weekend.” And he was actually apologizing about this! Like, “Sorry to hit you with all this new material.” I hope that crowd knew how lucky they were. I talked about this last night, and dedicated it to a Canadian in the crowd. That’s as good a way as any to get into the fair amount that happened this week. I’ll start with the most recent stuff and work backward.

Last night, the group played Ralph’s Diner in Worcester. The last time we traveled out to Massachusett’s no. 2 town we played the infinitely smaller Java Hut. It was weird, and a long time ago, so we shan’t discuss. Regardless, last night was interesting. There were promises of a “built-in crowd” for Saturday night gigs, so regardless that we were the headliner, there were supposed to be a few people out. Interestingly enough, the crowd seemed to shift band-to-band (and there were a whopping SIX bands on the bill, meaning we didn’t play until 1 a.m.). We brought more folks than I anticipated, and despite some early grumblings about playing so late (not realizing that Worcester folks don’t travel via the T, and thus aren’t used to leaving at midnight), it was a really sweet show. The place is cool — this was my first time there in general — and I feel that we played a decent enough show despite only getting about 30 minutes to do it. No pictures or video, though.
Set list: Shotgun Wedding / Shine A Light / Loose Lips / Trouble From The Start / Carolyn, Don’t Leave Like This / Debts / We Could Be Solo Acts

Either way, the club wants us back, which is always a good sign. Also, when we arrived at the club we got our first peek at the new issue of Performer, which features a live review of our Dec. 9 show. It’s pretty good on the whole — they pegged me as being uncomfortable that night. That’s true, I had finals and was out of my element. Since then, I’ve decided not to let there be any internal distraction when onstage. And I’ve kept that promise thus far. So, the review was pretty good on the whole, considering that Dec. 9 was one of our “off nights,” in my opinion. So, I’m pleased with it. The only bummer news of yesterday is that we did NOT get one of the festivals I had high hopes on, the Heart of Texas Festival in Austin. I wrote a follow-up email, just in case they reconsidered, but these days so many groups submit to those things, it’s hard to discern. Plus, they favor Texas bands, according to submission guidelines. I guess I couldn’t spin our Texas tale to sound Texan enough. Ah, well.

On Thursday, I got the day off work (computer problems) and so I spent most of the day doing promotional stuff with Chris. We sent the CD out to a few publications and got in touch with some press contacts, I mailed out some CDs internationally (we’ve had a surprisingly large amount of interest overseas lately… strange, eh?), and we put our discs everywhere in the city we could think of. It felt really productive. I’ve got to do that more often. We must have cleared 150 discs in one day. Something like that.

Still, plenty to come — a show on Monday at the Bulfinch Yacht Club in the North End with a couple good buddies.

There’s a nice Rodfest V write-up in the Boston Globe yesterday, that I somehow missed. Either way, Jonathan Perry’s got kind words for the whole night, and some cool things to say about Cassavettes.

The Boston buzz band Cassavettes, who last year won a Boston Music Award as “Outstanding Americana Act,” followed with an exuberant set of Laurel Canyon-tinged country rock that fell somewhere between the Beachwood Sparks (the quieter, pastoral moments) and Old 97′s (the louder ones).

As such, the foursome’s pearl-buttoned Western-style shirts and Chuck Taylor All-Star sneakers matched its tastes perfectly.

Again, we didn’t win that award, we were nominated, but it’s cool. The myth is starting to become bigger than reality. I like the comparisons though! And are we a buzz band? That’s alright by me. By the way, here are pictures from that fateful night, from Aram and from ExploitBoston.

So, anyhow, we’re playing more shows in the next five weeks than ever before. It’s going to be awesome, I just hope we don’t wear out our draw. A minor bummer: Yesterday I got an application for this year’s Northeastern Battle of the Bands (which we won last year, and as such, may have saved this band a little bit), but we can’t play it this year! The qualifying rounds are Feb. 16 and 17, and we have shows BOTH those days, one in New York City with Hymns and the other at Harper’s Ferry with Girls, Guns & Glory and 3 Day Threshold. So, we can’t defend the crown. Also, they tightened the rules this year, noting 50 percent of the band must attend Northeastern. Uh oh, only 25 percent of Cassavettes does.

Last night’s practice was lackluster; I’m guessing everyone was tired. Either way, we better get pumped for this weekend with a big show at Ralph’s in Worcester and then the Bulfinch Yacht Club in the North End on Monday.

Also, hopefully some things will come together for Texas soon. I hate not knowing anything about it. But we got an offer to play the start-up SXSA (South by San Antonio) festival, which grabs bands heading for Austin and gives them a show in the Riverwalk city. I’m ready for it. As long as they don’t find out I hate the Spurs.

Oh right, I’m watching my basketball talk.

What a crazy night! Man oh man, what a night! This may be the most fun we’ve ever played, besides MAYBE our one-year anniversary. Rodfest SOLD OUT the Paradise Rock Club — capacity 650! That’s twice as big as any room we’ve ever played. And for those keeping score at home, that’s THREE, count them, THREE consecutive Boston sell-outs for Cassavettes (12/9 CD release at the Middle East; 12/15 Milky Way Holiday Party; 1/19 Rodfest at Paradise Rock Club). Though, that figure is arguable for these reasons: the Milky Way holiday party was free and just hit capacity quickly and Rodfest was just a flat-out excellent bill put together by the man I have the most respect for in all of Boston music: Kier Byrnes.

Now, it’s too late to get into how long this day really was, so here’s a short summary. I didn’t sleep last night, but my buzzer went off at 5:15 a.m. this morning to head to the practice space than Dedham to play Fox 25 Morning News to promote tonight’s show. We did, and it’s posted here. Though, for the record, this clip is the WEB clip and not the same interstitials and what not that ran on TV (plus it doesn’t include the interview). Luckily, Aram taped it in high def and we’re working to get it up on YouTube pronto. So, upon arriving back in Boston, Scott and I hung and then I had to clock in for my FIRST DAY at a NEW JOB. No joke. I was way out of it. But a co-worked alerted me that Cassavettes had a huge picture in the Boston Globe today promoting Rodfest, so that was cool. From work, I went straight to the club and got ready for show time.

Oh, also, before I talk about Rodfest, we confirmed a show in Worcester next week at the excellent Ralph’s Diner and posted another show for 1/29 at the BYC with John Mazcko’s new/old group Dirt Water Refuge and the reliable Nathan Ryan. I was really pumped to see Johnny and co. promoting that show tonight at Rodfest, passing out flyers and promo CDs! We’ve got some other exciting stuff coming up, too!

Now, onto the actual show. We played second, but already the room was packed. The crowd was surprisingly into it despite the fact that a) we played 2 new songs, b) we played a 10-minute song (during which I attacked Shannon, kind of unfairly, but she seemed to be cool with it so it’s all good), and c) most of them didn’t know us all that well. But that’s music for you. During our big closer, the standard “It’s Gonna Be Alright,” we got some folks onstage and had ourselves a bit of a hoe-down. And then we heard it was sold out.

I’m just so happy we could be a part of something so special. I’m very thankful to Kier and all the other excellent people and bands involved. And I’m obviously sounding emotional, but tonight was emotional. Tonight is a good example of the reason I started playing music. What a night.

I’m fairly certain the Dallas Morning News’ David Moore has been reading this blog. Proof? Here’s proof:

Johnson was loathe to shower individual praise on players last season because he was busy building a team. It conflicted with his message.

Now that this concept is ingrained, Johnson is willing to reward the players for buying into his system. He has said he wouldn’t take anyone over Dirk Nowitzki for MVP and admitted he didn’t tout the forward’s performance enough last season. Johnson has endorsed Josh Howard’s All-Star candidacy and wondered aloud if there’s a better defensive point guard in the Western Conference right now than Devin Harris.

“I don’t like to false-promote guys,” Johnson said. “If a guy is worthy of something individually, I’ll say it.”

Uh, remember when I said that last week:

One thing about Johnson though is that when he was a freshman coach of the Dallas Mavericks (a freshman coach who inevitably took his team to the Finals for the first time — yeah, he was a really good freshman coach), he tended to focus on what went wrong during a game’s course, rather than issuing any praise for his player’s efforts. Even after wins, he’d talk about botched defensive sets during the post-game interview. This is probably due to the same reasoning I have: There’s always room for improvement. However, as an avid Mavericks fan and sports reader (though I don’t like pretty much everything else), I’ve noticed that in his second season, after the humbling loss of four straight games in the Finals after holding a 2-0 lead, Johnson has loosened up in his quotes. Suddenly, he has praise where praise previously wasn’t found. And his team is playing well — really well. Best record in the NBA. So, here’s my theory (and follow me here, because this relates to music eventually): In his first season, Johnson had to establish his place with the team and make a statement that he expects the very best out of them. In order to do so, he was a little harsh sometimes — ignoring the positive and focusing solely on what could be better. A lapse in defense. A moment when the player’s focus drifted from the game. In order to win a championship, he drilled it into his team that they needed to all be on the same page, and he did so with brute force. But now, his team knows. They’re playing with a chip on their shoulder after losing their grip on the Finals last year, so he hardly needs to motivate them anymore. And now he can now give them hell occasionally, but also reinforce the positive. See what I mean?

OK, so I’m more long-winded, but know this: David Moore, I’ve got my eye on you. Or maybe we just think alike — great minds, etc. Either way, good column today!

Side note: Perhaps I’ve been writing about the Mavericks too much lately. I’m starting to feel like Bill Simmons, when all he does is write about the Celtics. OK, I’ll keep it in check.

OK, so yesterday I was writing too passionately. Or maybe just being rude. Either way, I don’t wish I had never booked the March trip. I do want to go to Texas, play during South by Southwest, and see what happens. Eight days is a long time, I’m sure something will work out. Plus, I’m going to get a Grumpamoose burger.

Anyhow, things are looking good for a Portland, Maine, show in mid-April, I just have to find a venue, but Jason Anderson has signed on. Also, we’ll be playing a lot in the next few weeks, and might add one Worcester date to that bill. We’ll know by tonight.

Now, to ponder on this Texas issue some more…places to play…folks to play with…