I decided this past weekend would be a good one to do some touring. So I grabbed Robare of The Rose West & headed off to Philadelphia to go play at Cafe Fulya. We left New York around 5 & got to Philly just in time to start playing. The show ended up being a small, intimate performance full of geeky and improvisational music, as well as some Rose West tunes & even an Eli August cover (that I really hope someone caught on video!!). Of course, there was also good wine and *amazing* food. I particularly love the Baklava there!! This was the first time Rob & I have played as a duo & we decided it worked fairly well & that we should do more! Favorite moments for me were getting to play a melancholic improvisatory version of Hava Nagilah, and having a passer-by listen to the music from outside and later tell me that my music had relieved her headache!!
After the Fulya show, we drove down to Baltimore to stay with Eli. Rob & I spent the day doing some light rehearsal and then heading over to Ellicot city to browse the shops (ostensibly to pick up a mask for the gig later)… We found this one place that was just full of everything Fantastical and amazing … the sort of place you could spend hours in & still not be done … full of pirates and fairies and masks and action figures and tapestries and all sorts of things … I picked up a Frog Wizard and Bootstrap Bill to add to my slowly growing collection of these things. There was also an *amazing* Antique Mall that was so big we didn't even explore the whole thing!! We also ran into Brennan (one of the Abandoned Buildings members) at the music store he works at! (completely by accident)
(The Cluttered, but slowly-growing collection of Action Figures)
After the fun shopping was over, we got in a little more rehearsal and headed to the MS Fantasy Ball - one very awesome event. To start with, any event with an Open Bar & Free Food is off to a really good start. On top of that, friendly people and good music. The night started off with Spider Lilies, Followed by Red This Ever. Then it was Psyche Corp's turn. There were some sound issues (not on our part), but we did the best of it & rocked out & that was that. Red This Ever saved me by lending me some cables when I discovered that mine had been misplaced (I found them later). Both they & the folks from Spider Lilies were awesome. The event was finished up by Danny Blu, who put on a good performance as always. The MS in front of the Fantasy Ball stands for Multiple Sclerosis - the entire event was a benefit!!
On to sunday, we'd been hearing about this Hurricane all weekend, and we weren't sure if the Cemetery Potluck was going to happen. It did in fact still happen - NO HURRICANE STOPS THIS CELLIST!! - and Rob & I brought Eli along to play some tunes. It was QUITE cold, which made playing a little bit challenging - no matter ... I appropriately ended "A World of Drones" with Chopin's Funeral March (a melody that's been prominently in my head since the day I discovered Metallica's S&M), and we alternated between my solo playing, dueling with rob & playing some of Eli's tunes. I have to confess, I didn't pull out my Black No. 1 cover, or my new song based on Ruby Gloom (they just weren't ready yet) If you're in the DC area - the Cemetery Potluck is definitely worth checking out (happens once a year, around Halloween).
Dr. Who Medley from the Cemetery Potluck
Feria Cinerum by 2/5s of The Rose West at the Cemetery Potluck
From there, it was hanging out, eaten' pizza & sharing good music on the (rather peaceful) car ride home.
For those who don't know - Eli & band (The Abandoned Buildings) are fundraising for our first FULL BAND ALBUM: https://www.indiegogo.com/eli-and-abandoned-buildings
Also, I've got a new video up:
See you on the road!!
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