James's tire went flat yesterday so I took him to the Target parking lot so we could figure out the situation. We took the tire off and threw it in my trunk to go find a new one.
We decided on a used tire which ended up costing half the price of a new one at a different tire place. We didn't have to wait too long before they had the tire on the rim and we were back at the car putting it on. That was easy.
It wasn't long before we headed off to Hangar 84 for the LTJ show. Cheezy and the Crackers played early so we were there to see them as well. They were good but very loud. I have only seen them once or twice before.
We went out to the designated smoking area because the new policy at Hangar is no re-entry. At least for this show that was the rule. We mostly went out to avoid hearing Angels 8 Riot. How they ended up on this show is beyond me... actually what really confuses me is that people get into them.
The Menzingers were up next and they were really good. They are a local band from Philly but they have some really catchy tunes. I picked up their CD after the show and I'm looking forward to hearing the recorded stuff.
Less Than Jake finally took the stage and went on to play a ton of great songs. They talked a lot (read: too much) about how the venue doesn't have a bar and they couldn't wait to get to the bar at the Ramada Inn. They were good when they played music though.
We were in the pit a decent amount of the time dancing. A lot of people were into it even though the crowd wasn't as big as I expected it to be. It's cool to see bands I love at the local venue but I feel like it might not be good for them.
After I dropped off Chuck at home I met back up with Sam and Jeff at Applebee's for some food and beer. We got veggie burgers that took way too long to come out. Our beers took a while too but once we downed one we weren't so hungry anymore. It was still a good time and much to Jeff's worry we were almost the last people there!
It was a really fun night with a bunch of friends and good music. Almost perfect..
I worked at the Senior High in the morning for an English class. They didn't give me too much trouble. I read a lot of my new Klosterman book (not the new one... though I want that one). I had coverage on my break, which is always annoying but I managed to get away long enough for lunch.
I didn't have much time after work before Dan met me at the house and we went to Hangar 84 to load in our gear. After load-in we left for a while and then came back with Chuck to find out when we played and all that.
We hung out in and around Jeff's car in the parking lot, waiting for our friends to show up so we could sell them their tickets but not many people came, including the ones who said they were going to be there... it happens. I did get a free cough drop though. Eventually we had to call it and head in to get ready.
We played to a crowd of about thirty probably. It just wasn't a big drawing show in general. We didn't play at our best, it was a little slow but we haven't practiced in a while either. At least there weren't many people to disappoint!
I was determined to have a good time playing whether there were a lot of people or not. And I did have a really good time, so I accomplished my goal.
I came back to my house with Chuck and watched the AG DVD that I got the other day. People began to show up and we hung out and had a few drinks until Katie got back with Cranium.
It always ends up being a fun time when we play that. My sister and a couple of her friends joined in as well. Chuck and Erika got a drawing clue where Erika had to draw "tea bag" and Chuck had to guess what she was drawing. His first guess was "the big dipper." I'll leave you with that.
Whenever there was a Club Cranium (where all the teams play at once), Ryan and Carissa would kick our asses. They just seemed to get it right away. The humming/whistling ones didn't always go as well...
Katie and I were on the fast track most of the way and we won! Everyone cheered. Not so much for us but for the fact that they could go to sleep now that it was over.. it was a somewhat long game of Cranium.
I cleaned up the living room a bit and then I was ready to go to sleep as well.
I worked for a science teacher in the morning at Memorial. The assignment was to do a worksheet while watching The Crocodile Hunter movie. It was ridiculous (real ridiculous) and I had to watch it three times.
After work I didn't have much time before we had to be at Hangar 84 for load-in. It turned out we didn't really have to be there because all the openers were sharing a drum kit. But we hung around and set up our "merch," which consists of free stickers and our burnt cd. Michelle got us vegetarian foods so we partook instead of going out to eat.
We stood outside waiting for our peoples to show up until it was about time for us to play. We played right before the touring bands which was nice.
We had a shorter set than usual but we managed. The songs were not perfect and slower than we'd like to play them but the crowd didn't seem to mind too much.
Regardless of how we did it felt really good to be back up on the stage.
After the band they were touring with played, The Ataris came on and played through a bunch of old and new tunes. They played some off of their newest cd which I didn't expect.
It's somewhat nostalgic seeing them play. All of their songs remind me of a long time ago and it's strange to see the progression they have made through the years. I'm glad they're still touring.
We hung out for a while after the show but not for too long. I came home and watched some Californication before bed. It wasn't like the last time we opened for them; it just didn't feel the same. I wanted to be excited but I felt like things kept knocking me down. Oh well, I guess every show can't be the best of your life. At least we had the one last year.
I didn't work in the morning because I knew it was going to be a hectic day. I spent most of the morning finishing burning CDs and trying to sell the rest of our tickets. I managed to sell a handful more before we had to head over to Hangar 84 to load in.
We had some food at Dreamz Cafe while we waited for the alarms to get fixed and then we came back to load in. I managed to sell the rest of the tickets to people coming in at the door. So we ended up selling 77!
We set up our "merch" area really pretty with our new stickers and demos and a mailing list. We were really excited and we talked to Brian, the bassist for the Ataris, in the green room for quite a while before we played. He's an awesome guy.
Then we took the stage. It's a stage we've been on before but it felt bigger last night.
We played all of our original songs.. all nine of them.
We had a great time and had lots of energy.
Steve brought Gary along to the show this time.
I was just caught in the moment having a really great time and the set went by fast.
The crowd was pretty energetic too, there were a lot of people there and there was actually a pit for a little while.
We hung out at the merch area after the set chatting up all of our screaming fans...
We gave away quite a few demos and stickers too so that's awesome.
Tips are sexy!
Pull the Pin played next, followed by The Ataris of course. They played some great old songs and some "newer" ones from 2003.
They played the singles and fan favorites.
When it was time for San Dimas, they chose Chuck to play it!! I think his expression says it all.
He played great, he nailed all the stops and little parts.
The rest of the band seemed totally into playing with him as well.
I don't think he wanted to get off stage.
We hung out backstage with the bands for quite a while after the show. They are all awesome dudes.
Once it was finally time to go we got one last picture with the whole group, The Ataris, Pull the Pin and half of Argyle Gargoyle.
We met Tracy, Christie and Ian at Denny's after the show for some feed and talk about the night.
It was a completely amazing night that was better than I even expected it could be!