Stoned Hill

Stonehill College, 4/7/2006

So I woke up this morning after maybe four hours of sleep and went to get the van that was parked over at the piers. I was crossing my fingers that it would still be there since I had to pay off the night guy to even let me keep it there. Grabbed Dunkin Donuts for the band over on West 4th and then was able to get the van no problem. Went and woke up Q and Fran who had slept at my girlfriend Liz’s place in Sheridan Square. Let me tell you it is no easy task getting these 2 going especially after a 6am night at a club in Manhattan. I finally managed to get them in the car and headed over to my apartment in Gramercy Park. Rob, Nathan, Mark and Kevin were all waiting for me on the corner of 23rd and Park. Apparently, Nathan, Mark and Kevin had quite the night as well down on the lower east side. I think it was safe to say that the seven of us had seen better days. We were all dragging and it took us a while to make the drive back up to Mass. That 95 drive from NYC to Boston can be a bitch. This tour was really poorly routed but that’s what it took to get this tour off the ground. If we didn’t make the drive to Stonehill to get that nice college money, this tour might not have been possible. And we didn’t find out that the band had this gig until about march 20th or so. So considering the tour began on April 1st, we really only had 11 days to get all this stuff finalized. That’s about the same time I quit my job and realized that this tour was meant to be.

So anyway we make the trip up. Saving grace being Nathan’s purchase of 2 incredible sunglasses for a total of 15 dollars. We’ll see these later in Baltimore. We roll into Easton,MA and it’s raining. Of course. They did have some loaders which helped and a great dressing room. The one thing about colleges is that they treat you very well. You can’t drink there but at least the sobriety is done in comfort. We gotta be in DC the next day so I switch set times with the opener. He’s thrilled that we’re opening for him but I know how long it will take them to set up and sound check so he’s gonna be waiting for a while. While I’m setting up merch for the night my mother and Thom walk in. It’s great to see them and they’re very excited to see the band that I quit my job for. My brother then strolls in with 6 of his friends. I’m glad they could all make it because West Indian Girl’s music is perfect for their demographic. We chatted it up, my brother is a senior in high school and he’s in that “get me the hell out of my mother’s house” phase. He’s been getting into a bit of trouble as a senior but who didn’t right. I’m excited for him to get out of Mass and experience something new.

Anyway, West Indian Girl goes on after I had to search everywhere for Mark Lewis, the drummer. They open with Hollywood which sounds great considering the terrible sound system that they were dealing with. I can tell right away that my brother and his friends like the music, just as I thought they would. Rob is having fun with the crowd. There’s about 10 kids in the front row of chairs that are loving the music and it provided the energy needed for the band to feel a bit more comfortable in this awkward room. I sit with my mother and Thom for much of the show. My mom has been listening to the record incessantly. How cool is that. I think she’d like it even if it weren’t for the band I was on tour with. The band closes up the set with Trip. Trip is a spectacular song but I think WAYAO deserves to be last. It truly is a tough act to follow. My mom gets a litho and gets all of their autographs. So funny. I hope my brother and his friends had fun and now have a new favorite band. It’s gonna spread like wildfire at some point and they’ll be able to say they heard it first. We hang out a bit afterward. Some of us eat, some shoot pool, others go on some “nature hikes”. We head out around 9 and head down to Washington DC. It is decided in the car that we’ll stay at a Motel 6 in Aberdeen,MD which is about 8 hours away. Now this is livin…Be back after a few hours of sleep so we can make our noon load in time at George Washington University…