Nov. 10th - Dec. 6th

We are hitting the Road again in a couple weeks. This time we are going out with Outbreak from Maine. This is one of the first time's since I've been in the band where we aren't booking this tour ourselves. We'll see how things go, we are hitting up some of the same spots. Hoping to see some familiar faces and looking forward to playing some warm spots and some new places. Come hangout and show us around your city!

Tue, Nov 10
Albany, NY @ Bogie's

Wed, Nov 11
Rochester, NY @ Dubland Underground

Thu, Nov 12
Cleveland, OH @ Now That's Class

Fri, Nov 13
Dayton, OH @ C-Space

Sat, Nov 14
Springfield, MO @ Club Neon

Sun, Nov 15
Lincoln, NE @ Knickerbockers

Mon, Nov 16
Denver, CO @ Blast-O-Mat *pizza deal spoken for*

Wed, Nov 18
Reno, NV @ TBA

Thu, Nov 19
San Francisco, CA @ Sub-Mission

Fri, Nov 20
Fresno, CA @ The CYC

Sat, Nov 21
Anaheim, CA @ Chain Reaction

Sun, Nov 22
Riverside, CA @ Pharaoh's Den

Mon, Nov 23
Phoenix, AZ @ The Phix

Tue, Nov 24
Midland, TX @ The Ground Floor

Wed, Nov 25
San Antonio, TX @ Ten Eleven

Thu, Nov 26
Corpus Christi, TX @ Zero's

Sat, Nov 28
Jacksonville, FL @ The Pit *pizza deal spoken for*


Sun, Nov 29
Lake Worth, FL @ Club Eclipse

Mon, Nov 30
Tampa, FL @ Transitions Art Gallery

Tue, Dec 01
Atlanta, GA @ PS Warehouse

Wed, Dec 02
East Ridge, TN @ The Warehouse

Thu, Dec 03
Louisvlle, KY @ Skull Alley

Fri, Dec 04
Harrisonburg, VA @ Festival Conference & Student Center FREE SHOW

Sun, Dec 06
Worcester, MA @ London Billiards (Club Oasis)

Long Overdue

Things are always moving forward or setting us backward in some sort of fashion, after all that is life right? Well this picture sums up me getting a little McGyver on the Nugget. We were driving north on our way to Winnipeg when we had to pull over because something was scrapping underneath the van. I was just oping that it was the muffler because well we can deal with the loud noise and not miss any shows and spend money we don't have. So we pull off onto the side of the road and jump out of the van to check to see what the issue is, and I guessed it the muffler was dragging. Waiting for the muffler to cool, we see this older couple also pulled off the road smoking a cigarette and they decide to notify us "oh yeah you've been dragging that for a longtime". Thanks for letting us know something we figured out on our own, could of used some help before hand though. Once the muffler is cooled I use some of Eric's old bass strings and tie up the muffler so it no longer will drag on the ground. As I'm taking on this task and under the van some of the other guys decided to play kick the water bottle around while I'm under the van. As I'm finishing up a knot on the bass strings I get a water bottle kicked into my temple. Great timing and a wonderful shot, needless to say I yelled because a) it fucking hurt and b) I couldn't move when I got hit. Finished the knot and finished up that process. The strings are still holding the muffler up and the nugget is still cruising along just fine for our liking.

We've been playing some new spots on this tour and that's always exciting for me, I like seeing what and how people react with each other in different communities. We played this house show in Boise, Idaho and it was pretty funny to me. You could tell that the people at the show felt so awkward being there, in my eyes if that's the case break the wall down. It doesn't have to be nail biting silence and nerves, you don't have to always try and impress people with who you know and what new bands your into. Let that guard down and just be for a moment or two, it'll make things less tense in the long run. So I found that very interesting and we also ate some of the best pesto pasta ever that night.

Seattle and Vancouver were both collectively awesome, in Seattle we got to see and hang with so many friends. It seriously feels like home on the West coast. Mighty O Donuts, WOW bubble tea, and quality people made it just a wonderful time. Plus the show was fucking great. Also after show siting of Jeffery Ross( that comedian on Comedy Central). As we shredded down to California and met up with Dangers for a few shows I got excited. They are seriously one of the best bands playing hardcore music right now. The new songs they have are great, keep an eye out for that record.

We've come across an issue at two separate shows on this tour. The excessive drunk dude. What do you do when there is someone getting into your band, but in a very destructive manner. Bumping into/ knocking over gear and smashing into you as well over and over again. After some verbal warnings and so forth where do you go from there? Where is the line we draw in order not to be a dick, but still want people to enjoy what we're doing. I feel like the responsibility isn't just on the band our the people doing the shows. If you don't want security at shows then we have to be the security. If you see someone being a total annoyance, maybe we collectively take care of it. Both times on this tour it's gotten physical and that just bums me out. I guess this will always be something we have to deal with, but we should be able to find a middle ground. Excitement doesn't mean we disrespect and break a bands expensive gear.

Currently in St. Louis, Missouri hanging at Tony from The Effort's place. It's been a pretty chill day which is nice. Watching football and eating food, I can't really complain at all because well I love football and food. Plus last night we explored this crazy City Museum complex. It was pretty amazing, they created this park out of scrap from all around St. Louis and they had planes, buses, crazy slides, and wild spots to crawl through. It was awesome! So much fun, plus we snuck in so that makes it even more exciting.

More later.

So I thought I had forgotten my camera until two days ago, not that I'd be going crazy with it, but since I've already lost an ipod and am without that I need to fill my technological void with something right? Well now that I have it I may just put it to more good use than previously sitting in a small pocket of my shoulder bag. As I wait for people to finish showering I figured I would throw up a quick update, It'll be the first time we've really had access to the internet and time to do so.

Well we have been loudly chuggin along in the Nugget the past 6 days now and well she's starting to get louder. I hope she holds together for this tour, I think she'll get through because I have some love there. She's made it this far and has gone 205,000 miles that's a hell of a lot longer than I ever expected her to last. The pillow palace has been a great addition to the riding in the Nugget, plenty of laying down and leg room, this is what happens when you don't bring anyone on tour with you, you have some extra room. But then again you have to do everything else the other person would, like merch, loading in and out, driving, organizing our messy lives, you know that sort of thing. Somehow we can manage ourselves though and it's going pretty well. Sure I may have to do merch covered in my own sweat and have to sit through bands that need to practice a lot more, but hey I could be home laying in bed listening to Frat parties out of my window.

We've had the chance to hit some awesome new spot's on this tour so far and we are excited about that. It's nice to play new places you've never been and have people excited that you came. So I would like to thank those wonderful people and places without naming them, well because you can check our tour poster and do the checking yourself. I will say this we did get to hit up the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago for free, our pal Pat hooked us up with that. How could we say no to that? We arrived with plenty of time to walk around and checkout all of the sea/ocean/river/amazon life we could want and still have time for the Dolphin show. I got to see some crazy seahorses and my favorite of the day was the river otter, to bad their was only one because I think if their was another that would make them a lot happier. So a part of me was a bit bummed about that at times, but I tried to not let it sour my experience. Aquatic life was pretty cool although the Dolphin show was lame, I'm very glad that I didn't spend any money on it, because if I had I would have been furious.

I almost lost my sacred Rochester Red Wings hat in Milwaukee. I left it hanging on a fence outside the venue after we played and I was changing out of my sweaty show clothes, hopped in the van and took off. I realized later that I left my hat hanging on the fence, I said fuck it we'll go back tomorrow morning and see if it' still there. If it was cool if not, oh well, chalk it up to another thing I've lost on tour. But it so happened that as we pulled around the corner of the venue my hat was still on the fence where I left it and I was really happy. I know it's a dirty peace of shit, but I love it.

Off to Winnipeg!

U.S Tour. . .

I know I didn't update much from Europe. Not as much access to the internet as I thought I might have. So I wasn't able to give you all the juicy details while on the road over there. I will say this, we had a blast despite having to cancel some shows because of border crossings and impossible drives, and we got some shows canceled on us as well which sucked, but we tried to make the best of any situation given to us. The Balance guys are a bunch of sweethearts and were very kind to us the whole tour, so I'm glad we got to meet and become friends with those guys. We also meet a ton of wonderful people from all over Europe, people that housed us, cooked us food, played tour guides, so many gracious smiles we can't thank you enough. So in between getting really sun burnt to the point of sun poisoning and spending 30plus hours in a van on a certain drive, plus some other long haul drives our spirits weren't broken to bad.

I ate plenty of Falafal, some good some awful, I ate plenty of bread and drank lot's of water. The rest of my band ate more vegan food than they were used to normally. Mushrooms were picked out of meals so I could eat. No big allergy flare ups. We got to hang with our friends from home a few times, Outrage, The Effort, On, Trash Talk, Polar Bear Club, and Wait In Vain. I will say this, that new Outrage is damn awesome and I want that band to conquer the world ASAP. We got to play with some sweet bands like Oathbreaker, True Colors, and Rythem To The Madness to name a few.

So with the very condensed Europe wrap up comes the new found U.S tour we are about to embark on. We are back in Providence,RI for a short time and hit the road again very soon. Come hangout if we are in your neck of the woods, We will actually have our new LP with us this tour, very happy about that. We will be using our own gear and I have lot's of hope that our van "The Nugget" will make it the whole tour.

I'm going to work on some new interviews and put them up, until then I'll update from the U.S tour more frequently most likely do to WIFI and more accessable connections to this wonderful technology.

Also I got to swim in Europe alot and I was very happy about that. Thanks for all the sick oceans and lakes, plus the fucking bath house in Budapest, Hungary. See you again soon!

Europe 2009 post #1

We're in Europe, Currently in a town outside of Ipswich, England staying with some suckers. They told us we smell like feet, but hey hat do you expect from 9 guy's in a van, although it is only day 2 of playing shows. Eric decided to purchase this awesome hat for this tour, sometimes I forget he's wearing it and I'll just start laughing. So good! The Balance guys are stand up dudes, stoked to be sharing a van with a bunch of nice swedes.

We stayed in the red light district in Antwerp, Belgium that was pretty interesting and entertaining in some regards. We had balcony access so we got to watch some action from above and we got some snears from the ladies. One woman of the night yelled to us " This is not a cinema!" We didn't think of anything snappy to say until after the fact. It's just totally wild being in a a different country and they view sex as something total acceptable even if you pay for it. Just makes you think and wonder about how we Americans do things. I don't know it's always nice challenging your own thought's on things espcially when you're surrounded by it. Well thats about it for now. Who know's when I'll have access to the net again.

Europa Tour 09'

We embark on another tour this Wednesday, our first time heading over to Europe together. We'll be raging with Balance who are from Sweden. I'm excited to meet those guys and hopefully become great friends. I know Soul Control has toured Europe before, but not with this group of guys in the band, so I'm really excited to be apart of this trip.

Ryan and I are also moving out of our house this month and well it's a pain in the ass trying to get everything together. I'll be pretty much homeless until Nov. because I can't afford to pay rent while we're going to be gone and well one less expense to worry about really. It's a kind of freeing situation really. Plenty of great friends have offered me their couches in the mean time, so thank you so much to everyone. Also my friend Melanie is letting me store my meager amount of things in her basement so I'm very grateful for that. Honestly without our support network of friends I don't know where I or this band would be, so thank you to everyone who has really gone above and beyond for us, we really do appreciate it.

So these are the dates for our Europe trip.

EUROPE:
all shows with BALANCE (SWE)
31/7 BE Antwerpen @ Den Eglantier
1/8 UK Ipswich @ The Rose and Crown
2/8 UK Sheffield @ Upperthorpe Hotel
3/8 UK Stoke on Trent @ Harry's Bar
4/8 UK Nothingham @ The Old Angel
5/8 UK London @ Grosvenor
6/8 BE Izegem @ Didi's Kot
7/8 BE Ghent @ Frontline (W/ DYS)
8/8 GE Wolfsburg @ Jugendhaus Ost
9/8 GE Hamburg @ Hafenklang
10/8 SWE Malmo @ Utkanten
11/8 SWE Goteborg @ Nortgarten
12/8 NO Oslo
13/8 NO Stavanger @ Kvitsøygata 25,
14/8 SWE Lindesberg @ Musikhuset
16/8 POL Warsaw @ CDQ
17/8 NEED HELP EMAIL stief@poweredrecords.com TO BOOK US
18/8 SLO Kosice @ T klub
19/8 UKR Kyiv @ Sokol Café
20/8 HU Zamárdi @ Közösségi Ház @ Rise Fest
21/8 AU Vienna @ Centro Once!
22/8 GE Hohenstein-ernsthal @ Voice Of Art festival
23/8 GE Bochum @ Zwischenfall @ Light's Out Fest
25/8 SP Madrid @ Barracudas
26/8 PO Porto @ Pin Up Bar
27/8 PO Faro @ A.R.C.M.
28/8 FR Angers @ T’es Rock Coco
29/8 BE Ieper @ Ieperfest

Time to Rage!!!

Mark Bronzino of Seasick & ANS

Mark and I got to meet when we were both raging in different rock outfits. Since then we've kept in contact through some form or another. I would like to think that we are friends and well when we talk it's usually about girls or punk. Both which beat us up pretty bad, but it's an addiction that we both can't shake really. In all honesty Mark is a very down to earth and compassionate person and I'm lucky enough to call him my friend. He shreds the axe in Seasick and ANS, So this is kind of a twofer. Go see one of his punk ensembles on your this summer while you.

1- How can a normal day of tour be described for you? Please describe
Seasick and ANS differences. . .

a day on the road is pretty normal for both seasick and ANS. wake up
on someones floor or couch that probably smells like cats or punks,
then start driving for about an hour before buying some chips or some
sort of "this happens to be" vegan filth that you find in rest stops
for breakfast. get back in the van and drive for a few more hours, get
to the show, load in, play as hard as you can, load out. then drive to
the sleeping spot, maybe cook ourselves dinner then hang for a bit
before sleeping under a table or on a blow up mattress next to the
bass player. repeat.
last summer on ANS tour we wrote our new LP and splits in the van and
thats sort of started a trend for all of my subsequent touring. on
this seasick tour we are going to be (finally) writing our lp, then on
the following ANS tour we will be writing our splits with ramming
speed and the rats from sweden. the biggest difference between touring
in the two bands is seasick usually wants to stop at cool vegan
restaurants and record stores while ANS usually wants to check out the
rad local skate spot. both bands enjoy partying quite a bit, but we
arent lucky enough nor do we have enough free time to "party all the
time" like eddie murphy's girl.

2- What role do you play when it comes to the band while on the road?
I.E organizer, song writer, motivator, money man. . .

i would like to think that everyone in both of the touring bands i am
in pulls their own weight while on the road. i play a part in booking
the tours and writing the songs in both bands, but everyone does their
fair share and we try to rotate responsibilities and distribute them
equally or to everyones ability/ time schedule. on seasick's european
tour i ended up having my passport copied and signing things when it
was time to get paid at state sponsored youth centers a few times.
that was really strange for us because we almost always get paid with
some sweaty bills and coins blended in with one or two guitar picks
handed to us in a man's top hat. one time in virginia we got paid in
pretzels with peanut butter in the middle... delicious! don't worry
kids they were vegan!

3- How fast does it take for the van to smell bad?

as soon as seasick gets in the van and gore rips one of his classic
potato chip farts (the kind one can only produce from a crude vegan
diet of lays classic original and cola), the tour stench begins.
however on ANS tour the van usually smells already, having just been
abused by seasick or whatever foreign crust band joe decides he wants
to be seen with that month. on the rare occasions we enter a clean
van, its usually within three days of not showering and hours upon
hours of intense driving and listening to power violence that ANS
makes quite a foul smell.

4- Can you explain the appeal of getting in a smelly van and sleeping
on floors to some that might not get it?

unfortunately i can not. my family thinks im crazy because i dont make
any money (in fact i lose lots on every tour!) and who wants to sleep
in a basement filled with rats, old pornography and used needles if
they can avoid it? i guess the best explanation i could give someone
is that this is my life, and this is what i have to do.

5- Most random person you've met while on tour? I.E bumping into
someone from home, celebrities and so forth.

in amsterdam seasick ran into a bar tender at the club we played who
was wearing a fun ghouls shirt (local new brunswick misfits cover
band). i had to ask about the shirt, and it turns out he was also from
new brunswick and used to play in SLAW (local new brunswick punk band)
and i think johnny hot dog and the condiments (pre-ergs). it was
strange being that far from home and meeting someone who was from our
town. he was also very nice. i would say he was the most random person
ive met, next to of course the dude we thought we killed in california
on seasick/ ANS tour. but thats a whole other story for another
time...