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.
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.
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.
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
After a glutenous Thanksgiving lots of friends were in town and it seemed like everyone was ready to get away from their families and hear some music. Musically it was an incestuous night. Jay Rossette opened the show with Awall on drums and Quetzal on bass.....so I must admit it was bangin. Then Jay and Quetzal stayed on guitar/bass and I(awall) went to the front to grab the mic. I think it took the crowd a few songs to realize that Jay Rossette Project had ended their set and 40 Watt Hype had started theirs. The highlight of the night was the spontaneous invention of the "Timbale waterfall" no its not a drink (but that does sound good). Richard Juarez and Marisa Orduna(she is the musical director of an all female mariachi that performed at the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Olympics in Beijing) were in attendance. So was conguero Javier Navarette, a Fresno native who has gone on to play with the heavy weights of the Latin community. During one of the songs, Javier jumped on congas and ripped then Richard, Marisa and me grabbed a sticks and rotated soloing on the timbales As one person stopped the next person in line would pick up. The rotation got faster and more intense thus creatin the first ever timbale waterfall. If anybody has video or pictures of it please send them to me(info@40watthype.com). I think there may be a clip of us on youtube. Thanks everyone for coming out and supporting us, it was good seeing some people in from out of town.
For all the people who have been stuck on myspace/facebook or haven't taken a breather from texting eachother or watching "The Hills" this is a notice----there is a national election tomorrow that will elect the next president. The candidates are Barack Obama and John McCain. Also the propositions are in full effect. So don't be an ill informed, unmotivated, complaining but not participating young person and get your overly stimulated, ADHD ass to the polls. so before you make another sad face or write LOL or OMG or make the face with the tongue coming out the side. pretend like your 1000 texts a month depended on it. Or that the next president might make myspace taxable income. Go speak your mind! (no you cannot text your vote or submit your vote through a myspace comment, you have to physically go outside to your local polling place, where other real people with direct you to cast your ballot. remember what the great political analyst dj ez dick said "get the d(^ out your throat and go vote!!"
Aw yes, Halloween at the Babylon in Fresno, Ca.....We've done Halloween shows in Durango, CO, Gunnison CO, and Sun Valley ID and this one was no different. The thing about Halloween shows and Halloween in general after the age of 18 or so is that it is an excuse for girls to wear the things the wish they could wear everyday in public. But now they have a reason....its halloween. Its time to dress up as a sexy- fill in the blank "What are you dressed up as?" "I am a sexy nurse"...."What are you?" I am a sexy vampire" ....."What are you? "I am a sexy homeless person"... "what are you?" "I am a sexy special needs child." Don't get me wrong no one is complaining, but ladies lets get a little more creative with the costumes. From the fellas I saw a few joker/nurses, ghouls, baseball players, a 6 ft genitals complete with all anatomical parts. As a band Sean was dead Elvis on the toilet, JD was a bag of weed, DP was a mad scientist, Kevin was a bud plant and I was Billy Ray Deville the redneck glam rocker. More Than Without opened the show, they do a dead on Sublime, a couple times I thought jukebox was playing. O.C.T. from San Diego followed up with a high energy set that got the crowd moving. The night was behind schedule so we didn't hit until about 12:45 so we didn't have a whole lot of time to bang. The costume contest was pushed back and the crowd wanted us to play more but it was out of our hands. It is pretty surreal to be onstage getting yelled at by a drunken Elvis and headless monster to play more! Here is a shot from the drumset of the crowd....
We were excited when they asked us to perform at the Barack Obama rally at Eaton Plaza. We also played at the opening of the Fresno Obama headquarters during the primary. Anything we can do to raise awareness and support Obama we are down. The event was organized to raise money and register voters. Please everybody go vote, no matter who you vote for, just get out. Don't do that young person cop out thing and say "it doesn't matter" or "they're all corrupt anyways, it doesn't matter." Really? It doesn't matter? George Bush has been our president for the last 8 years and we're fighting multiple wars, American soldiers are dying, innocent civilians are dying, our economy is in the tank, no child left behind left all children behind, basic rights are violated through bills like the patriot act and most of the world doesn't like us. So now that we've established that it doesn't matter who is charge we can move on. Go watch "An Inconvenient Truth" and tell me that Gore and Bush are even on the same wavelength as far as intelligence. But I do have to thank W for one thing. He f'd up his presidency so bad that the pendulum has swung so far in the other direction that we can finally get a person like Obama in the White House. We can elect Obama as a sign to the rest of the world that we have been drunk on the last two election days but now we have officially as a nation, collectively pulled our head out of our ass. To think that Obama has come this far is amazing to me. First of all his name is Barack, not Bill, George, Ronald, Harry, Jimmy or Dwight. a black democrat raised by a single mother who went to Harvard Law. Yes McCain is a war hero no one can second guess that, but he is out of touch. He showed his lack of judgement by appoint Palin as is VP selection. Sarah Palin needs to go back to rural Alaska to exploit her special needs child and return to being a "hockey mom." I want a soccer mom or hockey mom or stay at home mom to give me advice on raising a family or what the best deals at Coscto are, not to run the country. I actually want some one in charge who knows what the Bush doctrine is. Check out this link for more terrifying reality tv(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrzXLYA_e6E) No matter how hot she is it doesn't make up for the fact that anytime she has had to actually speak her own thoughts and been asked questions that were unrehearsed she exposed herself as one of the biggest jokes in political history. This is the most important election in my lifetime. The past 8 years are an example that it does matter who is in charge. The political system wants the young people to not care and to continue to play their video games and space out on myspace and read about Madonna's latest divorce. They want us to stay distracted texting eachother and watching Access Hollywood. Its time to grow up and wake up folks! But hey maybe you make over $250,000 a year and don't care about health care for your family and like the fact that you can't even get a car loan much less a home loan. Maybe Sarah Palin is so hot that we should vote McCain into office to we can see what the milf soon to be gilf will look like shaking hands with foreign dignitaries and holding seminars on how you can see Russia from Alaska. They have tried everything short of calling Obama a terrorist to continue the scare tactics of the Republican party. It worked for 8 years, but like Obama said at the DNC "lets invest in our hopes, not our fears." Of course we all have our own opinion and that is whats beautiful. Register to vote and go speak your voice....and get the hell off of myspace for a couple hours a day and go get some fresh air. here is a picture from the rally and some other funny links to check out.....
