and I'm so disconnected....I'm never gonna check back in

I can recall looking down and realizing last night as our last song was ending that it wasn't my butt on the drum throne; it was my feet. Maybe things got a little out of hand. eh..maybe not. Its been one hectic week.

Since we last talked, we've had some of our best shows in Boston and Troy, NY, we've made tons of new friends and we played a show in a bowling alley where they have tiny balls and mini pins. We also got paid 7 more dollars at CMJ '09 than we made @ CMJ '08!...maybe that should read: We made 7 dollars @ CMJ '09. (Sin)emechanica also served us pretty hard yesterday in an EPIC drive-by mooning. Flawless execution...

Oops, almost forgot.... our van's front end got destroyed last night by a car in front of the venue. Everyone is ok. Griffin was behind the wheel and Aaron saw the whole thing so I'll let them give you more details. After realizing G was ok I became a private dick taking lots of candid photos of the other driver removing several scandalous items from his vehicle's steering column and trunk before and after the cops arrived.



Luckily after abandoning gear and eating a moral boosting Denny's meal, I was able to sleep last night in Double Chinemechanica's spaceship outside the motel where the other 8 guys crammed into one room. We're currently figuring out our van's situation. We're fortunate enough to have insurance and to be in the best of company, so we will not be cancelling any shows on this tour! All trouble aside, this has been one of my favorite trips in a very long time. See you tonight Columbia, SC.

p.s. to the owner of the red, white, and blue "free spirit" bicycle parked outside of the NYU radio station, I feel terrible and am sincerely sorry for backing our van into your ironically bitching ride. I'm sure someday I'll either pay for my crime or make it up to you.

Clayton

Chili in Beantown

Like most tours, ours was preceded by many last minute errands. Before hitting the road I had to register our van in Missouri and get new license plates. On my way back to my car I picked up a life-affirming pork steak (for only $4!) from a stand operated by a father/son team on the corner of Market & Tucker. I took this as a good omen.

Now we are on day 3 of our 13 day tour with Cinemechanica and we already need an oil change.Last night we drove all night from Cleveland to Boston, stopping only for gas and a complementary breakfast at a Holiday Inn Express. We are now taking it easy in Matt & Kristina's apartment. They got married over the summer and we are currently enjoying the wonder of one of the wedding gifts,a kettle corn maker. While I stuff my face, there is a vegetarian chili cooking party going on in the kitchen. Normally I would scoff at the thought of putting cauliflower in chili (AND NO MEAT!) in chili, but it smells too good.

One of most noticeable changes of having Nathan with us is how it is affects our eating habits, since he's vegan. In an effort to accommodate his diet, spend less money, and eat healthier we've been stopping at grocery stores instead of fast food joints. So far it is working out pretty well. I'm eating lots of spinach, but it's only a matter of time before my meat-loving instincts take over and I reach for the biggest rarest cheeseburger(s) I can find.

While refueling in middle-of-nowhere Ohio we actually saw a Truckers Chapel, not unlike the one in Relgulous.

With two shows under our belt it is apparent that following Cinemechanica is one of the biggest challenges we've ever been faced with as a band. For the last two nights they've got on stage and just annihilated. While we can hold our own, they set the bar pretty high. Nathan is holding things down on his side of the stage and has received resounding stamps of approval from people who have been come to our shows for years. He's taken so quickly to our dynamic on and off stage that it's weird to think tonight will only be his seventh show with us.Tomorrow will be his first visit to New York City.

Staying Busy

I want to pour one out for some of our homies. 2009 is not the easiest time to be in an independent touring rock band so you can't blame anyone when they realize they want to move on to other things. In June, our friends We Vs. the Shark played their last show. They are all still friends with us and each other, so we still get to hang out with them when we are in Athens, which despite the many things that make Athens great, that's what really gives it that home-away-from-home feeling. In August we were honored and fortunate enough to play once more with Harvey Danger in Chicago on their final run of shows. Well done gentlemen, and best of luck adjusting to the real world.

And then of course Ryan quit the band. At first I didn't think that we could exist with out him, since he's been at the center of a lot of what we have done as a band. Then Nathan's name came up when discussing people to replace him and it seemed too perfect. Now that we have four shows with him under our belt things are coming together. Our first tour with him is coming up, as is the Cardinal's post season. There's lots to look forward to in our camp.

Despite his departure from Dynamos, Ryan will still be pulling duty as 2^nd lead guitar in our triumphant instra-metal side project, Thor Axe. We're playing our first show in months tomorrow night at a new venue in town,

Antarctica (5226 Gravois, St. Louis, MO) w/ The Bronzed Chorus.

It's $5 and they've got an impressive beer list, ranging from PBR light and Lonestar(!) for those feeling the recession, to imports and micros. Did I mention the Bronzed Chorus is playing?