(Back Log) Tour Day 7 Recap - The Fire (Philadelphia, PA) 3/3/2011

Last night in Philly was a mixed bag of experiences. We met some cool folks and some really not cool folks. I won’t focus on the negatives here, instead I’ll just start with noting that the staff at The Fire kicked ass.

If you were at Empty Bottle last night, you likely saw our bartender Arrah and her band Arrah and the Ferns performing. Arrah is a hell of a bartender at The Fire and in general is just a badass chick. So far we’ve seen our fair share of folks get bounced from bars for drunken assholery...but have yet to see a bartender take charge of a chaotic situation like Arrah did on Thursday night. All I’ll say is don’t smash a bottle on someone’s head when she’s around…

Next, El Fuego…holy shit these guys rocked. Great sound and absolutely great guys to meet. Turns out we’ve played a lot of the same places in our respective travels. It’s so nice to meet bands who blow you away with their show, and have the personalities and professionalism to match. These guys offered us a place to stay which was awesome of them too. Unfortunately, my phone died and I couldn’t get their number back until way later in the wee hours of the morning.

For us, the show was one of those quality over quantity shows. There were those who had a warm welcome for us.

And yet several more that were difficult to pull into the venue from the adjoining bar (please note these are NOT the assholes I'm referring to above).  At the end of the day it was a fun show. We played for a small but really energetic and fun crowd, most of which ended up on stage with us by the end of the show (videos still to come). Sometimes you can’t ask for anything better though, if our “letting go” inspires others to do so as well, it’s a win in my book.

On a positive note we patched up the broken guitar from two nights before, thanks to handy man Tony Focht. It was nice to get the hollow body back in action.

The night ended when someone got a bottle smashed on their head and the cops came and threw everyone out. Arrah let us stay for a few more drinks and then it was off to the 24 hour diner around the corner.

 
We slept in the van outside the bar next to a hooker. Didn’t get to see Paddy’s Pub after all…it’s okay we confirmed it doesn’t actually exist. Thank you for the closure Milly.