2005 blog
friday, december 2nd at sally o'brien's - somerville, ma
we got steve breman to sit in on bass and he kicked the low end out nicely. we even got him to play keys on "ventriloquist". it was nice to get the chance to play for jay's brother steven who hasn't been able to make a goh show in quite a long time... it's quite a trek from DC. it felt like a snowy night, but it was merely a cold night... thanks to those who came out. and thanks to shiner jones for inviting us to join them and share the stage.
sunday, november 6th in the north end - boston, ma
filming of theresa, day 2:
post day 1, we looked at our shots, figured out what was missing, did a little scrambling and came up with a new shot list. fortunately, we got all the important shots with our "crew". we just needed to fill in some missing pieces. this time, we went with our families down there and cast ourselves as the extras and finished it up pretty quickly. our goal was to be done in that weekend, and we did it.
note: the final copy of the movie is here:
saturday, november 5th in the north end - boston, ma
filming of theresa, day 1:
alas, our prep work was done and we all met up in the heart of the north end for filming. we had no idea what to expect. nothing ends up as planned after all. the first thing we discovered was that it's probably not best to location scout by biking around in the middle of the night. our spot was right across the street from the freedom trail, which we didn't realize till we showed up that day. fortunately, we were able to edit out all the "paul revere's" that walked by.
although we like to operate by the seat of our pants, we were glad we had our shot list and quickly realized we needed to get to business. we decided to start by filming the quiet (i.e. non yelling scenes) first and move on to the louder scenes. we had no idea how well we'd be received there. we figured we'd be somewhere between being completely ignored, or we'd have the cops asking us to leave. turns out we were mostly left alone and there was lots curiosity. i think having a tripod and headphones and a clipboard somehow made us look official enough that they all figured we were supposed to be there.
it was a lot of fun, a lot of work and we slogged on through it. as the day went on, we all got much better at all of it (acting, filming, etc.). and we filmed and we filmed and we filmed. and then we realized it was late in the day.
sometimes a great idea amongst a group of people seems to pop up and nobody really knows where it came from. that idea was pizza. and it was the best pizza any of us had ever eaten. we didn't realize how hungry we were until it showed up.
with a little more fuel in our bellies, we cranked through the remaining shots and called it a wrap. and then we took everyone out for drinks and food. and that was that. it was the most fun we've ever had in the north end.
saturday, october 15th, at PA's lounge - somerville, ma
it was a tribute to they might be giants. great idea. as with any truely great idea, it has the potential to completely flop. and if no one showed, we'd probably all play bad. and forget words. and be uncomfortable. we dropped off our equipment to a quiet hall with the other night's musicians hanging around and realized we had forgotten chris' trumpet. so we went home and got it. by the time we were back, the first band was already playing and the place was totally packed. and everybody was into it. they were singing along. and cheered when you played. and if you slowed down and let the song breathe for a moment, they all would yell out an holler. and be rowdy. and shout out requests. and clap and snap. and shake shakers when we handed them out. in lucky ball and chain, we had to alter the way we sang it because everyone in the crowd was singing it the "right" way. there are people that really connect with a band through their songs. for a certain band, those people would either want to be at a tribute night or play at one. so you're in a room with people you have a lot in common with, though you don't know one another. and you're in a crowd where everyone is out there routing for you.
everyone can appreciate a good song. but it's not too often you get the chance to play the hell out of a song and try and do it justice. that's what we did. and then we drank millers.
wednesday, october 5th at the fillmore - san francisco, ca
how cool is it to play the fillmore again? we had no idea we'd even attend
a fillmore show this soon after moving away, let alone playing it. lots of
photos were taken, which we'll post up here in the near future. everyone
had a good time. i'm sure the open bar helped out greatly. we invited
hilary along to play bass with us since he'd be able to practice with us
on the east coast and would be out there on the west coast to play.
he totally rocked on bass and backing vocals. it was a fun night
talking about the good old days of macromedia in the last hurrah before we
become adobe. just about everyone there acted like a rock star... we did our best,
but the crowd, of course, did better. we were lucky enough to see modest mouse play
twice that night... earlier in the soundcheck, it was our own private show... and later
on, it was a little bit of a drunken celebration by all. super duper triple extra mucho
thanks to frank germano for making this amazing flyer. perhaps it can be worked into
the artwork for the next album? 
