Things to do!

Checked out the Brick open mic last night, and saw a band called
"River Bottom Funk" (same name .com if interested) Tight funk/Blues
all covers but I had a great time and they were decent guys to boot.
It was great to get out, meet more musicly inclined people here
in my "new" hometown. I think part of the reason I've felt that the music scene
here is pretty thin, was that I wasn't trying hard enough to immerse myself in it.

But then again, everyone else I talk to complains about it so, who knows..
Maybe it's time for me to do something about it ;)

Bad Fish

Will it really kill me? Or just make me sick for a few days...
I Think I'm about to find out..

"Best Show Ever..."

NOT!

But Best New Years Ever? Quite Possibly!

What happened at 11:40pm last night in the town of Belfast Maine, is something I am not likely soon to forget. Now keep in mind the town of Belfast might at best be called a one horse town. They literally have one four way intersection (with traffic light) in the center of town. Back to the tale.. We finished our set at 11pm walked next door to the library performance hall to see a jazz trio for a few minutes. Walked out of the library door and heard the sounds of drums in the distance. Now here we are walking to the 4 corners of main street, following the sound of the drums, and I can see about thirty to fifty people milling about in the intersection. As we get closer I can clangs of trash can lids hit with wooden rods. Then the 'Ting of a sauce pan hit with a wooden spoon. As I step into the crowd somehow the number of people seems to have doubled! There are three men playing a four foot wide drum that shakes my chest to be so near it as it drones out these deep bass tones.. I look around to see people streaming into to the town center from all sides. Banging tin cups together, playing kazoos and your typical new years noise makers. Merlan of course playing his harmonica all the while. There are hoots and hollers and cheers reminiscent of Native American tribal songs shouted out into the crowd which by 11:50 is in the hundreds of people! About this time several men in marching band uniforms arrive and begin to solidify the rhythm of this literal mob of momentary musicians, and at just minutes to midnight this whole crazy party begins their parade! Mother fathers, bankers, lawyers, hippies, teenagers, grandparents, firemen, by the size of the crowd I think the whole dam town must have been there! Whole families, musical groups that had performed during the evening, everyone in town got together to make some noise. It was almost overwhelming the cacophony of it all, tin whistles and cowbells, plastic tubs and shakers of every kind..
Boom bang boom bang tick boom tick bang whooshwhossh boom ta'chicka boom..Tong, tick, clack, ping, dun dun dun, tattattatrataratattat. The whole group marching together playing together down to the edge of the bay, just a short walk down the road. Where a huge bonfire was setup and ready to light! About this time I had the opportunity to play on of the very large drums. The music getting frantic, I can barely hear my addition to the amature symphony of percussion that surrounded me. Yet I put great effort into that drum to accentuate the beat and rhythm that the mob itself had dictated. And at midnight like the falling of the crystal ball or the fireworks of Bristol a torch was lit and tossed into the twenty foot tall bonfire! It wasn't very long before the cold overtook many of us, it was nearly fifteen degrees and the bonfire was just well timed. The crowd in its natural way letting everyone have a chance to get close enough to warm ourselves at the fireside before saying our good byes and making our ways home.

Talk about community, about togetherness and enjoying life.
I'll talk about living in Maine.
Happy New Years everyone!
<3 Brad