July Tour Recap

This week is the first in months where I can decompress and organize my thoughts. Since the release of Doozy, I have been basically working non stop. I think it’s time for a break: however, the feedback, encouragement and fun I had while on the road has me more excited than ever. I’ve been sitting here coming up with a new plan and schedule for the next album. I couldn't be doing it without the support of everyone following along.

Thank you for coming out to see the Slam Bam Tour shows. I received so much love and support, I was amazed. I got to see so many friends, family and fans that I haven't seen in a long time. There were high school friends I haven’t seen in 10 years, old Kalamazoo college friends and even multiple people that traveled from out of state to come see a show. One of the hardest things about being a musician is sacrificing the ability to visit friends and family regularly. Seeing so many people while on tour helps a lot.   

Here is just a small recap of that weekend.

Chicago

In Chicago I played a small club called the Elbo Room. It was the perfect rock n’ roll venue in my opinion. A small and dungy basement venue with pitch black walls, cheap drinks and bathrooms defaced with graffiti. This is where bands like mine get our kicks. It was a blast to play for the local bands and show them what Nashville is all about. Unfortunately, I learned a couple lessons with this gig, like make sure you know the door deal so you’re not disappointed when you don’t make any money. Also, don’t get a parking ticket, they are more expensive than the money you will make.

My favorite experience of the tour was in Chicago. A complete stranger came up to me after the show and told me he was blown away by my music and performance. He told me all of his favorite parts about my music and why it got him excited. He then proceeded to buy a t-shirt and follow along on all of my socials. My music must have gotten to him.  It may have only been one person but I feel like that one person was worth the trip.

Dowagiac

Coming back home is one of my favorite things to do; unfortunately, I haven't been able to do it often since moving to Nashville. Many people from my hometown have never seen me play music before, so it was great to show everyone how much work I was putting in and how much fun I was having. I was so happy to see so many old faces. I didn’t even know half of the people there were still keeping up with what I was doing. Playing The Moose Lodge was exactly how I imagined it to be. Hot and sweaty with a little dancing, and lots of beer buckets. It was a great feeling after the show seeing everyone come up and chat with me already keeping their beers cold with my new koozies. When we were done we headed to one of my old watering holes, the Indian Lake Pub. It was a blast to see everyone else take the stage and belt out their favorite karaoke tunes. Heading home I may have even gotten the boys in the band lost on a couple backroads - just to show them around town.

Detroit

Playing at Atwater Brewery in The Park was a perfect way to end the weekend. I had so many people come to the show I was taken back. I got to see some of my favorite family, old Kalamazoo college teammates, best friends and even new fans. One friend said he didn’t even see that many of our friends at the last college reunion. I must have played for over 100 people that night and over 30 were there to support me.

The end of that night was a pretty good one and a perfect cap to the tour. After the show when the crowd was slowly starting to dissipate, I was standing around with a group of friends trying to sneak in a couple more stories before the night was over. Suddenly one of the servers came walking up frantically with a note in his hand. He said that the other band had taken my guitar and that they had left this message for me. Written on the back of a receipt was an address and that was the only part of the message. I said, “Boys, it looks like we have to go find my guitar.” Not knowing what we would encounter we just typed in the address and took off. When we arrived there was a women waiting for us on the curb flagging us down to show us in. As we walked in she took us by the garage full of people, full of music, full of dance lights all surrounding an old Corvette. It didn’t take us long to realize it was a party. The next thing we know we were imbibing beers and jamming Tom Petty tunes with the other band.