12/13/08 Private Party (Las Vegas, NV)

The weather was pretty stormy from Flagstaff to Vegas. Of course we got stopped again before the Hoover Dam by some security agency. This time we had nothing in the van, the officer tried to shake me down for a CD (I don't think he believed we were in a band). We were definitely profiled on this trip. It was very stormy in Las Vegas when we rolled into town. Unfortunately most of what happened in Vegas I can't write about for fear of our future generations reading this blog in 50 years. Some band members were in bed and asleep by 11pm, other band members were at the tables until we left town at 9am. There were cards, dice rolling, partying with bull riders, a run in with a couple prostitutes and lots of Beautiful(a kind of drink). By the end of the night one of us was puking and simultaneously laughing hysterically. It was a blast, but by 9am we had to leave town.

12/12/08 Green Room (Flagstaff, AZ)

Fresh after getting our van turned upside down by a drug sniffing K-9 and inches away from us all being arrested we continued on to Flagstaff a little behind schedule. Driving to Flagstaff is always an adventure, one time is was ice and snow storms this time it was the Border Patrol. We rolled up to the venue called the Green Room. One of the coolest places we've played. The staff is amazing, the sound was great and best of all.....they have the video game big buck hunter pro. For anyone out there who know is down for the game you know exactly what I'm talking about. This version was a Safari, so it too us all a little while to adjust to the terrain. Some of the best days on the road have been spent with a bunch of pitches and Big Buck Hunter Pro. The show was a blast, we met lots of cool people that dug the music. We stayed in a cozy little apartment above the venue, and there is nothing better after a gig than being able to stumble up the stairs to your room, not worrying about checking in/out and parking the van. Thanks again to everybody in Flagstaff for treating us so well, hopefully we'll be back soon....

40 Watt Hype meets the Border Patrol (Mexican Border)

We left San Diego to head to Flagstaff AZ. We stopped by Imperial Valley to drop off our boy Ivan who was helping us out on the trip(thanks again homie). We are into Arizona driving along the Mexican Border when we see a sign saying "Border Patrol Checkpoint ahead" I thought no big deal, they'll be looking for illegal aliens and what not, we got ID, no problem. Then we get to the check point and things look very official, K9s, homeland security, trailers etc. They stop us and I roll down the window. "where are you headed? how many people in the van? where are you coming from? are you guys in a band?" it was the last question that sealed the deal, as soon as they knew we were in a band..."would you pull over sir". The agent comes to the window and asks if they can search the van. "step out of the vehicle don't take anything with you, keep your hands where we can see them!"Now I have to be carefull about this next section as to not get anybody in more trouble than they already are. As we park the van we are realizing that there are things in the van that lots of bands have that are illegal (think Cypress Hill, Snoop) They put us under a tent (its freezing and we're all in sweats etc). The agent lets us know we are under federal jurisdiction and that any illegal substance that is found in the van will result in someone or all of us going to jail. I tried to recall the countless episodes of Cops I've seen to think what to do or say. We had to be in Flagstaff in a few hours! Out come the K9s going crazy and running through the van. The agent comes back to do one of those "if you have anything in the van, just tell us and we'll take it easy on you." On Cops the people never admit to everything they have and they always get locked up. Was it a trick question? The tone the agents use is that official cop tone, where they talk really fast then say "yes or no?" The people who had stuff told them where to find it and how much there was. Then the agent came back and started reading us our rights. I was still trying to think how we could make our gig that night....Turns out the agent kept his word and wrote up a misdemeanor for the guilty parties and let us go after processing them and writing them up. The agents admitted it was some of the best stuff they had come across in a long time. They had just arrested Lil Wayne twice for the same thing, coming into AZ and leaving AZ. note to other bands and people in general, other states are not as cool as Cali when it comes to this type of thing. Things we learned, K9s are cute as pets but scary when doing their job, Border Patrol agents should be busy stopping terrorists and securing borders rather than treating us like the gente in "No country for Old Men" and that if you really love weed and are crossing state lines, just keister it.

12/11/08-710 Beach Club (San Diego, Ca)

We roll into Pacific Beach to the 710 Beach Club, which is located right on the....beach. We walk in to what felt like a commercial for the NFL network(we have video clips online). The place is PACKED with Chicago Bears fans watching the Thursday night game Bears vs. Saints on a bunch of big screen TVs. Take one dash of "da bears" skit from SNL, add a touch of frat party, a sprinkle of San Diego chill and a heavy dose of beer and thats where we were. We weren't supposed to go on until 10:30pm but the manager approached us and insisted we go on right after the game ended so the crowd would stay for the rest of the night. Its around 8:30pm, I don't know if we have ever played a show starting at 8:30pm. When we got there the Bears were up by 10 and everyone was in a great mood. As we load in and start setting up I notice the Saints on a drive. They score, the mob starts to get restless, and so do we. We set up and are line checking and Kyle Orton throws a pick....the score is tied and going to over time. I'm thinking, this night is gonna be really good or really bad depending on the outcome of this game. It goes to overtime, we are ready to play as soon as they give us the sign. The room is on edge, the Bears win the toss, I see a lone Saints fan pacing in the back. This crowd is living and dying with every play. The Bears get within field goal range. We all became Bears fans at that moment, because if he makes this field goal the night will be a success. Snap, the hold, the kick is.....goooooood! Crowd goes wild, cue the band, time to party! Also on the bill was OCT and Four Kings of San Diego, thanks to everyone who came out to see us, see you next time.

12/11/08 San Diego State University (SD, Ca)

Our show in LA got canceled so we decided to head to San Diego early. Yes it is possible to fit 6 grown men into a single hotel room. 2 on a twin, 2 on a aerobed and 2 on the other twin, it was very cozy. At 12noon we had a gig on the Aztec Patio on the campus of San Diego State University. Weather was beautiful, it was the week before finals so the crowd seemed a little preoccupied. The video department offered to shoot the performance in HD and had a full camera crew there with a few different rigs, I will post the video when I get it. The staff was very helpful as always and the soundman was a lot less cranky than last time we played there. We wrapped up the show and headed back to the sardine can to rest before the night show