Long Overdue

I do apologize for the lack of updates. Things always get a little crazy this time of year! I warn you...this will be a long one :)

Alrighty, to start off, October was my music month and I kicked it off with a weekend in SF. The Friday (last day of September) my mom and I went and saw The Jayhawks at Slims. She has played their stuff since I was a kid so I'm fairly familiar. They just came out with a new album with all the original members, so this show was kind of a big deal. Carrie Rodriguez opened the show and was really entertaining. The Jayhawks played for over 2 hours and seemed to be enjoying it as much as the audience. Unfortunately, we ended the night by returning to the car to find the back window smashed and our bags missing. Now, I carry a purse about 2% of the time. I knew I was going to be out all weekend so I had some extras with me. My mom however has a "mom" purse with all kinds of important info. We covered everything up and the seat was pushed back slightly over the bags so someone had to be watching us get out of the car. I mostly lost my keys, Rx glasses, and camera. I felt worse for my mom who now had to replace a window, cell phone, ipod, and other key info in her purse like her RN license and Chemotherapy certification. Way to start the weekend :(
Well, the next day we decided to not let it ruin our weekend since there was nothing we could really do at that point. We took my car and headed back down to SF for the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival. That day could not have gone better! The weather was brilliant, we found reasonable parking, and someone called about finding my mom's purse. This girl found it thrown across a sidewalk about 2 blocks from Slims. She collected it and managed to find a phone number. We met up with her on our way home. The phone and ipod were gone but all her other essentials were there! After seeing Patty Griffin, The Belle Brigade and A.A. Bondy, (who all put on great sets!) we had really turned things around.

The rest of October was filled with some great shows. The most anticipated was the opening night of Dawes & Blitzen Trappers co-headlining tour. They played at the Mystic Theater in Petaluma. It was my first time there and I thought it was a pretty cool venue. Dawes closed the show but I have to say Blitzen Trapper was quite the act to follow. They put on an amazing set and rocked a lot harder than I expected. Another act that I was pleasantly surprised by was The Head and The Heart. They give off so much energy, it's just infectious! They played the Independent with Release the Sunbird.

The Fling rounded out the month with a small opening set at Bottom of The Hill. I saw them play a couple of songs at The Fillmore when they opened for Delta Spirit but this was much better. I love getting to see bands when they're still up-and-coming. After suffering through a local band opener (yikes) I got to hear them play almost, if not all, of their new EP What I've Seen. Needless to say I bought it right after and it has been on constant repeat at my house. They are coming back in a couple of weeks with Yukon Blonde...already have tickets!

The Fling "Dogpile" (Official Music Video) from Chad Huff on Vimeo.

Halloween came and went. I actually dressed up and went to Lindsey's so it wasn't too bad. Work at the store has been weird. The girl I work with keeps getting really sick and then takes off for days. It's been stressful but hopefully she is done with that for a while. Saw Dawes and Blitzen Trapper again at The Fillmore...just can't get enough! John came down for Thanksgiving. It has been sooo long since I've seen him so I was pretty happy.
Now December is here with some of the nicest weather. It's so weird. My family is headed to Disneyland for Christmas this year. Timing isn't great for my job but it is what it is at this point. I've got most of my X-mas shopping done, now it's just pack for LA. I'm so excited to be having any kind of vacation. I can't remember the last one. It's gong to be so fun seeing Disneyland with the first timers Dillon and Travis!
Thanks for hanging in there and I'll be updating more, sooner than later.

Let's Change The Song

Via: This Is Not Porn

Man oh man, I'm glad I don't own a TV. The news is about as depressing as it gets these days.
I really shouldn't say things like that because I have it sooo good compared to so many right now.
The other night I was babysitting Travis at my parents house. He had gotten out of bed and so I let him cuddle with me on the couch. Wanting to see what has been going on, I decided to watch the 11pm news as Travis fell back to sleep. After only a few minutes I started crying. Here I sit with a sweet baby boy in my arms, an entire life before him, and all that is on the news is death & destruction and the possibility of more war.  I was incredibly overwhelmed and felt absolutely helpless. Needless to say it's been hard to come back from that... I'm just trying to be grateful for what I have and make the most of my actions.
In addition to that we had a time change, lots of rain, St. Patty's Day and more rain. I'm ready for some sun and a better mood. I have the day off tomorrow so this evening I'm determined to start improving it.
Tomorrow will consist of getting new shoes, a haircut, and investigating the cost of 4 new tires. I got my tax refund so new tires it is.

And now to the music...

The big news is that SXSW was last week. Overhyped but still fun. Maybe I'll go someday. Anyhoo, Dawes did a gig for Rolling Stone where they announced the name of their new album. It's called "Nothing Is Wrong" I haven't seen a track listing yet but I'm 90% sure I've heard almost all the songs live because I love them that much ;) I was surprised to hear that "Million Dollar Bill" will be on the new album. Speaking of Middle Brother, their show here in SF is right around the corner! I'm going to spend that afternoon in the city. I planned a little picnic at Alamo Square for before the show. I think Ashley is going to come with. To bad more people don't want to come because I think it's going to be a ton of fun. I get all excited and then remember Blake Mills will be there too!! Hello gentlemen...

Photo by Doug Seymour

A little over a week ago I discovered this band from Seattle that I'm now seeing everywhere. They are called The Head and The Heart. They have such a sweet but raw sound that I quickly was hooked on. Lucky me they are playing in SF next month too. I'm going to try and go but we'll see.

Here is my list of shows coming up... join me, won't you?!

Middle Brother @ The Independent - Sun. April 3
Young The Giant @ Slims - Fri. April 22
The Head and The Heart @ Bottom of the Hill - Wed. April 27
The Boxer Rebellion @ Slims - Fri. April 29
Nathaniel Rateliff @ Bottom of the Hill - Sat. April 30
Other Lives @ Cafe Du Nord - Tues. May 24
Brett Dennen with Dawes @ The Fox Theater - Sat. June 25