Gary's Spot, 1/30/10

Saturday night I had a gig with both of my bands - Kemo For Emo and Krunkquistadors.

As far as K4E is concerned, that is one of the best gigs we've ever played together. We were tight, the crowd was jumping, and I even danced on a stripper pole! (Pic towards the bottom). Due to some technical issues with getting set up (and later with Larry's guitar) we had to cut a few songs, but it was still an amazing set for us.

It was my first show with the Krunkquistadors, which went pretty well as far as "first show ever" concerns go. We messed up every now and then, but the crowd never really seemed to notice, and it was our first gig - things like that are to be expected. Let me tell you, jamming with a DJ is something else. It's weird being one of only two live musicians in the group...until we add a bassist, anyhow. DJ tracks never screw up, so if you end up goofing up something, everybody is gonna know. :D

It's worth noting I was completely exhausted during the second set - I was jumping around and moving so much during K4E I had to tone it down for Krunkquistadors. Gigging with two bands in a night is a sure way to get me in shape, I suppose.



Somebody with a fancy camera was shooting pictures - I have no idea if they were with the press or the venue management or what. I hope I can come into contact with those soon.


These pictures were taken by some of our fans. None of them capture much of my stage antics, but some came out alright.


With K4E:






And the stripper pole...







With Krunkquistadors:









(Check out my awesome Kevin Rudolf shirt, haha)






During the beginning of the Krunkquistadors set I snapped my high E string, hence the switch from the PT to the Tele.



Here's a relatively low quality video capturing about half of a Krunkquistadors song:


Hey, I'm finally on youtube...and I'm there for like 7 seconds! Alright!


I live for playing shows like this - I can't wait til it starts happening more often. Shows like this make me very excited and optimistic about my upcoming future with both groups. Thanks for reading.

Track Record

I'm sitting here right now, listening to a very rough mix of the new Kemo For Emo song. We spent all day Sunday in a recording studio with Kris Krunk, working on a song for an upcoming Space City Records compilation. We were able to knock it out in an afternoon, which, by our last album's standards, was amazingly fast. I'm used to spending countless hours on a song.

Let me tell you something folks - being in a recording studio is stressful, in a way that's hard for me to express in words. Like, REALLY REALLY stressful. For me, the feeling is far worse than any exam I didn't study for, or any knots you get in your stomach on a first date or a job interview. Being in a studio is go time. It's time to figure out if the songs you've put your heart and soul into over the past few months are actually going to be any good in a recorded setting. As a musician, there's times where you'll write something you think sounds good, but then you hear it recorded, and then you'll realize it actually sucks. Oh, and you can't fuck up either. Otherwise, you'll spent hours trying to get a thirty second piece nailed correctly. Studios demand perfection, and sometimes it's really hard to give that, and it takes both a physical and emotional toll on the body. As a 19 year old kid recording the "Omaha" record, one night I was so stressed working on a song I walked outside of the recording studio and cried to myself like a blubbering little girl. That was the first time I had cried from something non-physical pain or girl-related since I was a small child. It can be THAT stressful.

Which is why I'm glad the recording today has turned out quite well, and mostly stress-free. It gives me hope for when we record the whole album (which is still off in the future). It's like getting my feet wet again before I dive in. Except this time I'm ready to get back in the water. The last record felt more like I was drowning.

For me, writing music is catharsis. I want people to feel my emotions I cannot always express in words - my joys, my anxieties, my excitement, and sometimes, my loneliness and despair. Sometimes I feel like the music I write is the only way to get my darkest secrets out, even if I never actually say a word. While Larry wrote the lyrics, musically this newly recorded song is essentially mine as far as the music goes. And lately, life has been very stressful for me. Between school, dealing with stupid girls, and looking for a job, I needed some sort of release.

Today was that release for me. There's something about beating your stress into three chords and a few riffs that somehow makes it all better for me. It's almost medicinal. And any second of pain I have to relive to carve into song worth hearing is totally worth it.


I'm excited for when we do the whole album. I hope you are too.