Transfer Tour Diary

Here we are on the back half of our US tour with the Kaiser Chiefs and we are still somewhat reeling from the extreme spectacle/cluster-fuck that is SXSW. Great times but every time we leave Austin I feel like I've taken another few years off my life. Oh well…all in the name of Rock n Roll. Before I go tits up, here's a little bit of a Texas recap:



Dallas and Houston were great shows. We wound up running into The Silent Comedy and had a great time post show hitting a nearby bar for drinks. Low and behold another San Diego band Italian Japanese happened to just finish playing so, being surrounded by all the familiar faces made it feel like a satellite home for a bit.

Houston happened to be a day off and I got to catch a Jesus and Mary Chain show the night before we played at The House of Blues. We had the opportunity to hang out after the show and found out it was their first performance in 3 years. Despite the moments of out of control feedback between songs, stopping and starting a few times at the guitar player's frantic hand wave and looks of confusion painting the picture of a hot mess, they pulled songs together and delivered an impressive set.



On to SXSW - our first show was an acoustic performance for Slacker Radio at the Gibson Showroom in Austin. We got to play three tunes for the segment so we chose something old, something off of Future Selves and a new song we've been playing. I'll post some footage from that performance very soon. Thanks again to Slacker Radio and Gibson for the hospitality. Turned out to be a great time!


We went out that night and caught sets by fellow San Diego bands The Silent Comedy and Little Hurricane. Saw a band called POND that I loved through beer goggles. Confirmed after listening to their album on the ride home. After a little more research I found that the band is comprised of members of Tame Impala. I then realized why it was impressive. Love that shit.

The next day was Saturday and our double show day. First being the Sea Now! Showcase. If you're unfamiliar, check out who was involved www.seanow.org. Pretty cool. We were glad to take part and were paid by a surprise visit from our tour mates, Tribes. It was great to catch up with those lads and we made some plans to go deep sea shark caging while they are in LA in the fall. Wicked!



Also got turned on by a four-piece from Montreal called Plants and Animals that blew me back. Great sound and a killer live show.

The 11pm show at the Whiskey Room would be the last of our 2012 SXSW experience and it turned out to be a blinder. The sound was terrible and the stage was as hot as a hair dryer but we blasted it out and walked away feeling complete. A full house and great spirit in the audience made the last performance the best for us so thanks to Mario Escovedo and Requiemme for inviting us and BIG thanks to all who were there sweating it out.

After this, we got in the van and drove for 24hrs straight back to San Diego, stayed in our beds for ONE night, played the Belly Up and are now making our way to San Francisco to play THE FILLMORE. The second we start to peter out from the insane amount of miles on 2hrs sleep, wandering around LOVE'S Travel Stop like un-showered zombies, staring at the same candy aisle, drinking shitty coffee, considering trucker tweak, sharing countless beat down hotel rooms…I think to myself, we're playing the fucking Fillmore…ALL GOOD!



A moment to introduce our crew:

Soundman Pete, my nephew, Matthew AKA SPARROW and young SPARROW (as a baby)









MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!


Morale is high...

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TRANSFER TOUR BLOG

WEEK ONE - Third time to the UK and running strong. The first day was a marathon as we had to hit the ground at Heathrow -

Off the plane to meet Platinum Tom, who was waiting with our rented splitter van, (RIP White Rider) and so it goes…

Picked up the gear we had waiting in storage and found our way to Stoke Newington to sort out a rehearsal space to try everything out. It took about 5 hrs from airport to practice space to navigate through London traffic so by the time we got there we were slightly cooked. All we had to do was get enough rest for the Hyde Park endeavor that awaited.

Our first festival in England and a fest it was. We showed up with time for a series of press obligations before hitting the stage at 5:30. As we walked on we realized there was a problem with the keyboard. One of the obstacles to overcome when touring outside of the US is the difference in power for electronics. The issue was that one of the stage hands, not realizing that we need to plug all of our pedals and keyboard into a power converter had fried our keyboard 5 minutes before we were to start. Festival changeovers happen at a very quick pace and I can see how it could happen easily if there is a lack of communication but nonetheless we were kinda fucked. Someone produced a replacement in the nick of time and we were allowed to play our whole set in front of the packed audience. Whew…stressful moment but was abated in time to let loose and move on to do what we came for.

Once the set was over we were escorted to do our final bits of press with Absolute Radio who set us up on a small stage inside of a swanky lounge to play and acoustic set for a table crowd. Quite the dichotomy of performances to walk from a giant feeling festival stage, straight to vegas lounge act…In the INTERVIEW that followed we were asked if we had ever done something like that before. Andy answered with an astute, "Any band that says they've never played in front of a crowd eating, is full of shit." (I'm paraphrasing, of course but you get the point), Well said.

I was amazed at the cast of characters that you see wandering around the dressing trailers set up at these events…I looked to my left at one moment and saw that I was standing about 5 feet from Prince Harry. He was in festival mode with couple royal body guards directly on his heels. I have never thought I would be so close to not only Royalty, but men in Docker's packing heat. Dignified protection.

Not sure how much this one might be worth but just as we were waiting to be led up the side-stage to watch The Killers performance Prince Harry entered the port-o-potty right in front of us. Amazingly enough, the body guards waited for him to exit and when he did…Photo credit Andy Ridley

Watching The Killers perform to a sea of people in the rain was cool…We celebrated into the wee hours of the morning and slept it off the next day.

BIRMINGHAM - The Home of Metal

This show was anticipated for us, as we were there not long before with The Bravery and were looking forward to our inaugural headline voyage. The best part about this one was not only seeing some fans awaiting our arrival in line as we arrived but the interpretive dancing chap with corn rows shouting at us as we played through our set. I didn't realize until Card brought it to my attention that it was the same guy that was screaming that it was his Birthday, shirtless at The Bravery show three months ago. Yep, amazing…

We drove through the night after the show, entertained by a hard nosed game of 'Would You Rather…' "Would you rather be baldheaded with a birthmark on your dome in the shape of cock-n-balls or have a hairline that starts 1" above your eyebrows?" Good question.

This was followed by a new game we created called 'At Capacity'. The object of this one is to think of a ridiculous support scenario and choose between the lesser of two evils. For example: 'At capacity: Nickelback or WHAM!?' The first game was funny…the second stressed us out to invision the obligation of a horrible reality. Found it to be a tad masochistic but we were quite entertained driving through the night to Newcastle to say the least. Our surrogate home away from home. Bridgette's Manor. xoxo Wey aye, man.

More UK Babies arrived to this show to greet us before we performed. When we arrived, I saw we had barely missed ANVIL playing the same room. SHIT! If you haven't seen the documentary, "The Story of Anvil", do yourself the favor.

That show went well and was our first opportunity to play a full set which was a lot of fun and a nice change from our standard 30 minute banger we had been playing on the past two passes through England in support slots. Many thanks to all the fans for making the trip to see us and hanging out after for photos and such.

After some much needed rest and a great visit with our tour mom, Bridgette, we set off again to our next stop, Manchester. HERE WE, HERE WE…HERE WE FOOKIN GOOOOO!

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xo

TRANSFER TOUR BLOG - SCANDINAVIA TO COPENHAGEN

Show in Hamburg - Dock's. Very cool venue tucked away in the red light district. Unfortunately we arrived late, so we were unable to tour the city. The show went well, especially given we had to be on stage at 6:30pm! The audience was energetic and responsive, and everyone we met after the show was warm and friendly. I had the pleasure of speaking with a very drunk German woman who offered to trade me her half-eaten bag of gummy bears for a CD. Sorry ma'am, I can only accept half-eaten Mars bars or Biscuit Boosts as currency. Bizarre (and a bit awkward), but friendly nonetheless.

SCANDANAVIA = Long Drives and cold feets…

Caught the ferry over the water with the Crocs.

The drive to Oslo was cold, man. COLD. Grown men huddled under blankets in the vansion, heater blowing full blast, and STILL our toes are frozen! Beautiful countryside, however; definitely a winter wonderland. We arrived at the venue and piled out into the snow to load in our gear and check out the surroundings. We had to do our best to be speedy as we were a little behind the clock due to a long ass drive. Show was good… aside from some technical difficulties we pulled through well and got a warm reception. After the show we blew off some steam by having a spontaneous yet vicious snow-fight in the parking lot of the hostel where we were staying. Let's just say at that point of our collective inebriation, none of us minded being slightly wet and banged up - good times!

On to Stockholm - another long drive through the frigid Nordic countryside. Toes numb, but I don't mind… this place is amazing. Driving into Stockholm is an awesome experience - frozen rivers, buildings built into granite cliffs, blanketed with snow.

The venue, Cirkus, is an amazing theater… gorgeous! Fortunately for us, our man Cooker is on hand so he was able to capture some really nice shots. The show was great, and the crowd response was even better. Met some really cool locals after the show, and we learned some very useful Swedish phrases. We did a bit of sightseeing the next morning, but had be on the road somewhat early as we were heading back to Copenhagen. Stockholm is such a beautiful city, we will definitely return…hopefully when it's warmer!

Ferry back to Copenhagen.

Copenhagen - Sometimes your experience with a city can depend entirely on the locals who open their homes to you and act as a tour guide; lucky for us we met some amazing people in Copenhagen who put us up and showed us a truly memorable time. Johan, local music producer and drummer from The Good The Bad, let us crash at his pad for a couple nights. A very warm person and a gracious host, we feel indebted to his hospitality. Even Andy, or as we refer to his alter ego, Ron Ridley, the regional director of Food and Hospitality, was impressed with Johan's kindness. Not to mention how good his band is… CHECK IT OUT

Michelle, another Copenhagen local and a close friend of our Tour Manager, bravely volunteered to guide us around Copenhagen for the day. What an experience. We filmed a live acoustic performance walking down the oldest street in the city, went through the city center market place, had an amazing lunch at a local favorite cafe, walked through Christiana (famous counter-culture commune), had a private viewing of one of the oldest churches in Copenhagen, and finished the night in one of the coolest piano bars I've ever been to.

HERE'S THE VIDEO

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PLATINUM

Atlantic City - Our faithful friend and stage technician, Platinum Tom gets escorted from the stage of the dance floor at the Showboat Casino. "DJ needs room!", they say. It appeared that his milkshake brought all the security to the yard as there was evidently no more space for the Double Barrel Platinum Chicken Strut. This was post gambling all per diems at the craps table…some winning, some losing, all falling victim to the free jack and coke. Ah, Casinos…they really have the science.

Meet Platinum


~GENO'S

Philadelphia, PA

Before our show at The Electric Factory, with time to kill, we decided to head out on a search for the city's quintessential cheese steak. After parking, we ran across this mural by Shepard Fairey.
A reminder of home was cool to see in a random neighborhood in Philly.
On to Geno's. There was a line and we were told it was worth it, so we waited it out. I could sense the urgency of getting your shit together before you got to the window by the orders taken from the customers in front of me. , (side note - the window had stickers all over it that read things like, "I'M MAD AS HELL AND I WANT MY COUNTRY BACK!" and "THIS IS AMERICA. When ordering, SPEAK ENGLISH!!!" They also served FREEDOM FRIES). "You're next, GO!" "I'll take a Philly cheese steak, please."…"GIMME A WHIZZ WHIZZ WITH ONION! NEXT!!" I was fortunately able to sort my order in a speedy fashion. Rosey, on the other hand was not so lucky. He got yelled at twice and stood like a deer in the headlights. Philly patience has about as long of a shelf life as a fart in the wind. I think someone actually stepped in and ordered for Rosey as he stood there. Amazing.

The cheese steak was just OK but the hot sauce was extremelyfuckinghot and nearly burned my esophagus to a shredded ribbon. We'll hit Pat's next time.

The show at the Electric Factory was a good one and very well received. Great venue and guess what food was served after…yep.
Andy ate three that day. AMERICUH, FURCK YEAHRRR!!!

~TESSA ANGUS~www.tessaangus.com
Queen Bee of Photography
This U.S. run provided so many incredible moments. We were lucky enough to be joined by amazing photographer and friend, Tessa Angus and will be posting some of her work with us in the coming weeks.
Here are a few that she captured.


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NEW TOUR DATES ANNOUNCED SOON!!!

Transfer Tour Blog ~December 2, 2010

It's 1:30am and there's a bar somewhere in Montreal that has a mechanical bull in it and right about now I believe that 2 of the 4 members of Transfer along with some of the tour crew are engaged in a battle of man vs. machine! (VIDEO SOON). I don't know about you but I have high hopes of some quality pictures surfacing tomorrow of which will have to be posted. In the meantime I'm sitting in the hotel room at 2am deciding that now would be a good time to tell you a little about the trip so far.

This is Transfer's first trip to the East Coast and has been nothing but amazing on all accounts. We find ourselves again sharing the stage with Brandon Flowers for the US/Canada leg of his 2010 tour and it seems as though every night has been getting better and better for us. Tonight was the smallest venue of the tour but you would have never known from the noise and response we received, my first impression is that I can't wait to figure out when we can get back here and play another show.

The tour starting with a grueling 3 day drive from San Diego to Detroit about 2 weeks ago, rain and snow, road closures in Utah and ridiculously long drives, it was seriously one of the toughest things I've ever had to do.........and by toughest thing ever I mean make sure I had time to go to the bar at the airport before I caught my flight because I decided that I would do the complete opposite to spending 3 days traveling the road and meet everyone there........true team player right?? Anyway, after meeting up with our main man Super Tom who flew in from London to Detroit, the Transfer team were together once again and ready for the first show.

Detroit was a great first show, cold as hell but nonetheless a good time had by all. The day had it's drama in the face of Card's brand new one week old guitar amp being placed on top of it's flight case with wheels and blowing down the path after the show, the wheel caught on the pavement and face planted the amp off of the top of the case and into the ground, smashing everything inside. Mr. Cardenas definitely needed a drink after that incident SO when the owner of the bar/restaurant next to the venue decides to close down the club and allow you to stay in there til 4am and serve yourself drinks, I think we could say that the first show (and Tom's b'day) started off with a bang!

That leads us to Thanksgiving day.........and our only day off on the whole tour.........unfortunately a very slow moving band had to wake up after 3 hrs of sleep and drive 14hrs to Boston MA. At some point during this trip we (and by we I mean Matt) thought it would be a good idea to take a detour to Niagara Falls, maybe grab some Thanksgiving dinner somewhere and relax for an hour. Having never been, everybody agreed and decided to do it since who knows when the next time we're gonna be in that area, we may never get to see Niagara Falls!! That being said, It wasn't until we were 5 minutes away from it (it's now dark by the way!) that we noticed a city overlooking the falls, “Oh, what city is that?” …....well, that city is Toronto, Canada and in approximately 9 days time we will be performing in that city and will have all the opportunity in the world to see the Falls that day! So, a slightly pointless 2 hr detour was had. However that being said, seeing the Falls at night and the fact that there was no one there because it was Thanksgiving was amazing, the roar coming from it, the intensity of it was unbelievable...so ultimately although I gave him shit for it, Matt's idea actually turned out pretty good.

After a day spent trying to locate a new amp for Card and having it arrive an hr before doors open Boston - House of Blues was a great show for the band, big venue and loud a crowd got us back in the swing of things. We got to hang in the bar at Fenway Park after the show and although I'm not a huge baseball fan it was pretty dang cool to be there regardless.

Shows in Atlantic City, Philadelphia, Washington DC, Asbury Park NJ, and 2 shows in New York City followed. Hammerstein Ballroom in NYC is an amazing room in the center of Manhattan and is the biggest show on the tour. As with most of this tour it was sold out and packed to the top for our set. Over the course of the tour Brandon has a core group of fans that travel to every city and camp out before the shows so they can get in first and at the front, they all seem to take the time after and sometimes before to come say hi and for the most part seem to have accepted us. It was at this show that I first noticed that I started seeing people singing along and a bunch of people wearing Transfer T-shirts! Ultimately our main goal is to gain as many new Transfer fans over the course of this tour and it has been pretty awesome to get to go out there every night in a different city and try and win people over. We're close to selling out of all the CDs we brought with us and the feedback we've been getting has been incredible. A big thank you to all of you who hang around after the shows to say hi, send us messages, buy CDs and generally make this whole touring thing worthwhile for a band trying to pave their way into this market.

I guess at 4am I may not be making sense anymore therefore time to shut up! Toronto tomorrow.

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TRANSFER UK SINGLE REEASE

C H E C K I T

TRANSFER drops a nugget of goodness with a UK Single Release of LOSING COMPOSURE. The single features two tracks from FUTURE SELVES, //LOSING COMPOSURE// and //LIKE A FUNERAL//, along with NEW recording of //WHITE HORSE//...(in a word, E V I L).

DOWNLOAD ALL THREE FOR FREE, along with special edish cover art by D5ive

ALSO - peep the video re-cap of the most recent tour of the UK!

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The Silent Comedy's 2010 Tour Highlights

It's been a busy year for us in The Silent Comedy. It's not over yet, but we decided to put together a collection of some of our favorite moments from this past year (with a couple previously unseen moments from last year's 91X Boo's Cruise thrown in). We've been traveling a lot lately, so this video will give you an idea of what we get up to when we're on the road.

We set the video to one of our favorite songs from our good friends, Fierce Creatures, who will be joining us at the Casbah on November 11th! This show is going to be awesome, so click here to get your tickets now!

Enjoy the video!

Aaron Thompson Joins Fenix TX for European Tour

The other day I stopped in to Analog Bar and caught up with my old friend Aaron Thompson, who you might have seen in Pacific Magazine. Aaron ("A-Fresh") used to front The Stranger's Six and has been working on a new solo record for a while, but he shared with me that his friends in Fenix TX asked him to join them for a European tour. Apparently the band's bassist can't make the tour for whatever reason, so Aaron will be filling in with the pop-punk band. The tour is selling out all over Europe and Aaron has promised that he'll update us with photos and road stories.

Here are the tour dates and what Aaron has to see about the band.

October 1, 2010 Sommercasino Basel, Switzerland
October 2, 2010 Selig Chur, Switzerland
October 3, 2010 Dynamo Zurich, Switzerland
October 4, 2010 LA Marquise Lyon, France
October 5, 2010 Batofar Paris, France
October 6, 2010 Schlachtof Wiesbaden, Germany
October 7, 2010 Zwolfzehn Stuttgart, Germany
October 8, 2010 Het Front Vroomshoop, Netherlands
October 9, 2010 Chez Heinz Hannover, Germany
October 10, 2010 MTC Hannover, Germany
October 11, 2010 Backstage München, Germany
October 12, 2010 Garage Saarbrucken, Germany
October 13, 2010 Wild at Heart Berlin, Germany
October 14, 2010 Kaiserkeller Hamburg, Germany
October 15, 2010 Melusina Luxembourg, Luxembourg
October 16, 2010 Haus Spilles DüSseldorf, Germany
October 17, 2010 Magasin4 Brussels, Belgium
October 19, 2010 Wedgewood Room Portsmouth, United Kingdom
October 20, 2010 Rescue Room Nottingham, United Kingdom
October 21, 2010 Sugarmill Stoke-ON-Trent, United Kingdom
October 22, 2010 Fibbers, York York, United Kingdom
October 23, 2010 the Academy Manchester, United Kingdom
October 24, 2010 Cathouse Glasgow, United Kingdom
October 25, 2010 O2 Academy 2 Newcastle, United Kingdom
October 27, 2010 Slade Room Wolverhampton, United Kingdom
October 28, 2010 Corporation Sheffield, United Kingdom
October 29, 2010 Six Feet Under Newport, United Kingdom
October 30, 2010 Academy 2 Oxford, United Kingdom
October 31, 2010 Freeze Festival London, United Kingdom

Fenix TX came together on the north side of Houston, TX in the balmy southern autumn of 1995. Originally known as Riverfenix, the band moved their operation to sunny San Diego, CA in late 1999 and after a string of successful DIY tours the band released its first full-length album on Drive Thru Records. Riverfenix merged their association with the indie label together with MCA Records, after the album's first single “Speechless” hit full rotation on LA’s legendary rock station KROQ. The band remixed and rereleased their self-titled album with two new tracks produced by Ryan Greene (Megadeth, NOFX.) With a new album came a new name. Looking to leave behind the drug-free image of their former namesake, and also to avoid a lawsuit from the estate of the late River Phoenix, the band dropped the River and added the TX to become Fenix TX, paying homage to the state that spawned them. Fenix TX continued to tour extensively and 4 years later with a new line up, the band went back into the studio with producer Jerry Finn to work on their sophomore album “Lechuza.” Featuring singles “Threesome,” “Phoebe Cates” and “A Song For Everyone” the album showed the bands versatility and evolution towards a bigger and better sound. After a few more years of touring the world the band decided to call it quits while in the studio writing their next record. The band went their separate ways in 2003 citing creative differences as the reason for the breakup. Fenix TX reunited in 2005 to record the live album “Purple Reign In Blood.” They continued to tour with a better outlook towards the future. Since then the band has been busy in the studio and with individual side projects, but with the 10-year anniversary of their sophomore release ‘Lechuza’ in 2010, the band is commemorating by touring the world once again starting it all off in Europe!

Transfer: ~ONTO THE FUTURE~

The second leg of the FUTURE SELVES Tour brought us from sea level, (Popscene - San Francisco) to the Rocky Mountains of Denver, CO, (Larimer Lounge). “John Denver's full of shit, man” - Lloyd Christmas
San Francisco was a challenge of wits, as we fought to keep them about after a 10hr trek in the magic bus with Gengler's baked goods, only to arrive in The City with an over-thought set list and a great thirst.
Good morrow, Stellastarr*. Nice to meet you…shall we roll out the gear and see if it is satisfactory for both of us to abuse? Ah yes, very well then. Plug into our janky, road jangled tube amplifiers. The refrigerator sized bass cabinet marked CONVOY. Arthur, please be our guest to tweak the high riding stands and snare/ throne posish to your fancy. Don't mind the dried blood, spattered on the snare head. It adds a bit of dark cowboy edge.
Popscene has hosted many of our esteemed forefathers. This was brought to our attention by classic black and white photography displayed on the walls. Epic moments captured and framed. I wish I had them hung on the walls in my house to remind me to work when I feel inspiration is lost.
The crowd and hosts of Popscene were quite gracious. A very special thanks to Aaron Axelson at Live 105.5FM. Listen to Radio Soundcheck from 7- 10pm on Sundays. You Just might hear LOSING COMPOSURE ~or~
MY SUSPICIONS ~
Thanks Aaron!!

Spaceland was next. Ah yes, Silverlake, The hub and hierarchy of indie credibility. Birthplace of the infamous, 'I hate my dad' haircut. The place in CA you could smoke in, until recently.
This show proved to be the most challenging when we found ourselves faced with the adversity of simultaneous equipment failure. Card's pedals went out during the first song, throwing our entire plan of satanic delivery out the window. Cooper blasted his snare and rendered it useless at the very next, unplanned song as Zane returned to his piano stool and fell, ass over tea kettle, on the stage, garnering a massive applause from the crowd. Kudos to Zane for providing a very classic moment for all to enjoy. We all had a brief, yet cheerful celebration on stage, and with the crowd, as we discovered our loving spoonful of admiration for Zane's unique ability to eat a large slice of humble pie with a smile.
Just when we thought we were out of the woods…last song of the set, mind you, the legs fell off the keyboard, mid song, and slammed to the ground. FREEZE At this moment, as a musician, you have a choice. Your first option would be to sit there with your thumb up your ass and look stupid. OR, you could shrug your shoulders and try to put the instrument upright again, turn beat red and act like nothing happened. Or, my personal favorite, (and what Zane actually did.), Fall on the ground next to the keyboard and slam on it like you meant to summon its final sound for the epic crescendo you have created. Honestly, I had a flash of a moment where I tried to rationalize smashing everything on stage into a thousand pieces, like a possessed mongoloid. What a primal urge the Who must have fulfilled when they destroyed their instruments like a band of heathens.








We drove home that night and got to sleep in our own beds, only for a moment as we had The Casbah show, followed by the Rhythm Room in Phoenix the following night with Denver, CO and the Larimer Lounge looming in the distance. And when I say distance, I'm not fucking exaggerating. We all felt like veal calves after being folded up in the van for so long. Phoenix, AZ to Santa Fe, by way of Flagstaff. We were fortunate enough to thread the needle between storms as Flagstaff received 2’ of snow the night before. Made for a sketchy drive, to say the least.
Although Denver was a beautiful site, we realized we were quite far from San Diego once we saw the temperature drop below 2 degrees, which was uncharacteristically cold, we were told by the natives. Met some friends of friends and sold the last CD copies of FUTURE SELVES that we had brought with us. One of the rare occasions for traveling musicians where it is a GOOD feeling to know that your seed has been left behind. ZANG!
Grow for us, the saplings of musical fancy, into bold, beautiful trees. Bear the fruits of our musical labor to share and celebrate with us as we trek across the land, smelling of Gardettos and body odor.
Fan our fires that lead us through the darkness of obligatory alcoholism and financial instability as we carry forth on our mission to proclaim our message. The message carried forth for ages by our forefathers of Rock and Roll. The very greats that have left a stamp in our hearts and minds as Genius, or Inspired. The ones who have generated a spirit and religion where the sole directive is to share a moment where music transcends space and time.
Thank you for keeping the fire burning, dear friends, and a happy holiday season to all. We look forward to sharing more with you and getting to know our family a little better in 2010 as we start our journey in support of our FUTURE SELVES all over again, coast-to-coast, sea to shining sea.


read "ROAD TEST ~ FUTURE SELVES PART I" in our BLOG

TRANSFERBAND

Transfer Update: ROAD TEST

Road test - It always feels like that. A test of endurance, patience,
levels of tolerance...a test of organization, sleep deprivation,
direction, digestion. The things in life that are ordinary seem more
of a challenge when on tour. Time is different. You feel like a week's
worth of experiences are crammed into two days. It is very weird and I
have been trying to figure it out. This last run was the beginning of
the rest of our year and a fine set of times, completing the first
half.

Hometown shows with all the bells and whistles, or horns and strings,
(Marta, Erdis, Frank and Freddie). New team building. One show at
the Viper Room made good on a Monday then off to Seattle, WA where we
had the 7 man crew jammed in a Ford Flex, (Space toaster). Sold out
showing at the High Dive - DAMN FINE rendition of DARK SIDE OF THE
MOON, by Elder Mason closed the eve. Fucking stellar, lads! Zane lost
his mind on mushrooms and wandered off in the night as Cooper and I
lost our composure. Intense lapel negotiation just before 4am
cardboard pizza showed up to beckon the wasted sandman.

On to Bellingham where the beer flows like wine and the women
instinctively flock elsewhere. Played to the family who scream, buy
shots and jump on stage during the set, (the best part). All the
while, filling the cash registers in trade for booze with corn
husking, hard earnin, tig weldin money. Actually, I have no idea what
the occupational trend is but they drink a hell of a lot and seem
aggressive by nature.

We shall carry on with our patronage, propagate our seedlings in an
establishment with a light in the dark. Maybe some erotic photos on
the wall and a sprinkler system in case there happens to be a fire.
Thanks to all who listened to the live version of FUTURE SELVES. The
ones who took a copy home and told someone. it seems that our family
has grown and continues to do so exponentially....For this dear
friends, we thank you. This was the Washington we long for after we
leave.

www.transferband.com


xx

Josh Damigo Tour Diary: What I learned on tour...

I finished off my 6 hour nap, and headed over to LeStats to see Lisa Sanders and Molly Jenson. I started thinking about what to type during my blog that would be a good overview of the tour, and what I really learned.

The first thing I learned is that the "touring musician" lifestyle is completely doable. It always seemed like it was something I'd have to wait for a record label to back me before I could get out and go. But I really feel like the last week has just been an appetizer to what I'm about to do. My new goal is by 2010, be out on the road full time.

The second thing is that no matter how far I go, San Diego is my home. Every venue was nice, but none of them compare to my LeStats. I almost feel like I should just stay here, and tell my fans outside of Cali to "suck it up" and just come to San Diego! There really is "no place like home".

I learned not to listen to Nickelback, because they will piss me off, and make me miss my exits.

Always be business minded. Even when hanging out with friends on tour, you have to put music first, or no one will take you seriously. If you treat music like a hobby, it will be a hobby. So treat it like a business, so it can become your business.

It's better driving with a friend. I hope that I never have to tour alone, because Landon Keller was a class act to travel with, and a good sport when I teased him about being a hick.

Things NEVER work out the way you plan them to. So roll with the punches, expect the unexpected. Play shows to 2 people, the same way you play the show to 200.

Lastly, give it your all and enjoy the ride. It's so worth it.

Thanks San Diego: Dialed In for the opportunity to share the tour with you! I'm playing at LeStats on Saturday. I hope you can all make it out.

-j

Josh Damigo Tour Diary: The Last night

After a couple hours of sleep, I woke up with an incredibly bad sinus headache. I updated a couple websites, and let everyone know about the show in Chicago. I then packed up the car and Landon, Kitty and myself started the 4 hour drive. 

The driving is one of the hardest parts. I never told you guys that we had a broken cd player and broken air conditioning. I'm glad I like driving, cause if not.... that would have been the worst! There were alot of times during the trip that it was cooler outside the car than inside the car. 

'Keep on reading' for more.

We had some amazing pizza and watched the Bears game at the restaurant. One of the things that was funny on this tour, was that the last two nights, there were football games for the home team and baseball teams at the same time. It may or may not have directly effected attendance, but as a performer you have to try your best to stay positive. I'm not naturally a positive kind of guy, but I do my best to at least pretend to be. 

Played a very intimate show at Uncommon Ground. I was pretty stoked to see a signed picture of Steve Poltz in the green room. I took it as a good omen. I played the show and we packed up. We got about 2 hours of sleep, and then drove to the airport. 

All in all it was a succesful trip. I couldn't have had a better time. I'll write a wrap up after I wake up. 

Writer Tour Diary: sxsw: el paso to austin

Another Writer tour post. This one's from Dagart.

I am waking up and my stomach does not like me very much at all. El Paso was quite a trip. We pulled into town early and spent about 4 hours in Starbucks using the internet and just figuring everything out. Then we ate at this awesome bbq with our friends Lights On at a spot called the Rib Hut, it was a funny contrast because the two big groups eating were some broski's and us, but everyone had a good time. As we pulled up to the venue, a pleasant surprise as Drew Andrews pulls up in his van. They were playing the Black Market, which was literally across the street, good to see other SD bands on the road. Zeppelin's was bizarre at first as there was no one from the bar knew what was going on, but once the owner showed up all things were cool.

Around 10:45pm Lights On started, pretty much right when the bar started getting full, it's a pretty late scene over here. Plus it was St. Patty's day. Yak Ballz was playing upstairs so the vibe was way different in the upstairs hip-hop venue. Jayme walked into the bathroom as two huge hip-hoppers were taking down some powder. Luckily he didn't get jumped (p.s. that stall didn't have a door, or a toilet seat, NO Deuces)

Writer rocked a good set and since we got lots of drink tickets and the bartenders kept us filled, we were getting pretty wild. Every night the shows have been better, as David starts to really sync up with the brothers Ralph. The young kids from San Fran were Dizzy Balloon and they were amazing. They too are heading to SXSW and definitely Spinto Band style, so that's awesome. They ripped a great cover of "I Want You Back" everyone was bouncing around and dancing.

The night ended with a fight outside the club that shut down the street, and we got kind of weird at the end of the night, possibly letting out some inner tension, but we made up afterwards as we got late night Taco Cabana, and stayed with Andy and Jayme's aunt and uncle as we rolled in at 4am. They were very friendly and cooked us breakfast this morning. We are hung-over but happy. Now we are about to leave to Austin. Adios! til next time.

- Dagart

p.s. if anyone wants a maltese talk to Andy and Jayme's aunt.

Writer Tour Blog: sxsw: las cruces to el paso

Here's another tour post from Writer on the road:

wow. another great day on the road!

we pulled up to new mexico state's radio station, krux, and did a guerilla in-studio performance/interview. it's a bit stripped down and we were under the gun to get something recorded before booking to our show at el patio, but we think it came out alright. big props to mark for setting it up and getting us some great exposure. we'll update y'all as soon as we know when/where it can be found online.

we stripped down the gear during the interview and crammed it back into the trailer before flying down to the club, where lights on actually arrived before we did. amazing what a relaxing day in the pool can do... hahah

all kidding aside, they *brought* it and literally left the stage covered in blood and sweat. my shoes are starting to wear out from dancing to these guys. i'm actually very upset about this, as i'll now end up back in san diego looking like a hobo with shopping bags tied around my feet.

we can't say enough about how great is having them out here and supporting one another. we make it a party every night, and we're really bummed that tomorrow will be our last show with them.

oh. and not to toot our own horn, but toot toot; our set was friggin' awesome! probably the best so far.

big thanks to las cruces music impresario tucker for booking the show and being all-around one of the coolest people we know. his kindness and passion for music is only exceeded by his magnificent silky pony tail. [jealous]

we crammed into his bedroom for the night and he took the couch. writer votes his shower and its many amenities far and away the most pleasing thus far.

today's drive was only 45 min to el paso, and we didn't even have to stop for an andy pee break (a new record), which usually is prompted by a lot of screaming and clamping.

tonight's show is gonna be great, and we really look forward to sending our friends out with a bang.

-d(avid)

Ray's Tour Diary: Best Week Ever?

My sense of time may no longer be the most reliable thing in the world having been in too many cities in too few days. The week I'm talking about might actually have spanned a full ten days without my realizing it. But it's worth blogging about.

After playing two nights in Manchester, the Killers left the UK to attack the European continent starting in Amsterdam. Now, as far as Amsterdam is concerned, I don't know why, when allegedly 75% of Americans don't have a passport, 18-year olds aren't asking their respective parents en masse for a visa and a ticket to Amsterdam instead of Vegas. It being my first time in Holland, I couldn't help thinking how Amsterdam makes Las Vegas look like Sunday school. I missed my bike terribly and am still kicking myself for not finding out about the rentals available all over the city. Debauchery aside, it is undoubtedly one of the prettiest cities I've ever been in, a real life manifestation of Candy-Land. The fact that the gig was canceled due to a bomb threat was taken quite well by the Killers' crew as it made for a bonus night off in Amsterdam (who knew so many people had it out for IKEA?). Not only that, it guarantees a makeup date for the gig meaning I'll be back in Amsterdam before I know it when I'll be sure to capitalize on a bike rental opportunity.

Gorgeous day off


Bicycle envy


Pastry Porn


Brian XIV's wonderful fiancee, Kirsten arrived in Amsterdam


Night off


After Amsterdam, we set out on a three city tour of Germany including Dusseldorf, Berlin, and Munich. One thing about the German fans, they totally dig the new Killers stuff and so I totally dig them. After exploring Berlin with BKXIV, I met up with my lovely pal, Devon Sproule, whom was serendipitously playing on the other side of town on the same night as the Killers at the Admiralspalast. She was just wrapping up a tour of her own of the UK and Europe and was set to go home the next day when we found out we were in the same city. For our English readers, if you happen to be in London on May 14th, check Devon out at Shepherd's Bush Empire where she'll be headlining and kicking your ass. I'll admit I'm disappointed as the Killers will be their fiftieth leg of a US tour by then.



Dev's Sound Check


Andy's new do


Cornell and Devspro


In Munich, I met up with another old friend from lifetimes ago. Hayato Naka, currently assistant principal 2nd violinist of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, was playing in Munich on our day off. I met Hayato when I was 15 at a Music Festival in Saluzzo, Italy where I found out I didn't have the discipline or drive to practice the requisite 10 hours a day to become a professional classical violinist. It was a nice change of perspective to hear a professional orchestra rehearse again. I had flashbacks to when I used to fall asleep during rehearsals and theirs was no different as I nodded off during Petrushka. However, I have to admit it was refreshing, after almost two years since playing with the La Jolla Symphony, to hear the warmth of sound that only an orchestra in a concert hall can create, completely unlike the orchestral tracks that have been substituted into the sound of so many a rock band. Yada yada yada, Hofbrauhausen, liter steins, crackling roast pig, etc. etc.



Bergen Philharmonic Sound Check


Hofbrauhausen






In Milan (vaguely) today, woefully far from the city center. I'm off to figure out how I'm going to get in a city stroll before sound check.

Ciao ciao.