The Alchemy @ The Spotted Cat (NOLA), Aug 14 2023

The best of Monday night jazz in New Orleans. 

I’m here on a business trip during the boring part of the week - Sunday to Wednesday.  After some Facebook advice, I went to Frenchman Street and found this good quartet playing modern Jazz originals and IIRC a tongue in cheek cover of “Just the two of us”.  The small crowd was into it and grooved attentively.  Entry was $5 plus 1 drink minimum.  I'll take it. 

The last day of my trip I got to visit the Jazz Museum, which had an exhibit about the history of drums (above, a Ludwig pedal from early 1900s).  

Even better I got to visit Congo Square, which is were all modern music started. Amazing stuff. 

Punk Rock Xmas All Stars

 

Here's another post in the series "My Bands".  At college I found anyone who was really into music.  Punk, metal, hardcore, ska.  Many of us were DJs and ran the college radio station.  And we also would make ad-hoc cover bands.  In '98 and '99 we put on a punk rock xmas party in our campus house/dorm thing.  This pic below is the first instance.  

On the left, my boy Sol on bass rocking the Black Sabbath shirt.  In the middle is Matt on guitar who would later go on to play in Missionshifter with me.  And cut off on the right is Chris, also a future Missionshifter member.  I can't remember what song this might have been, but it was hella fun. 

Horse of a Different Colour

Another one from the archives.  Here is a pic of my very first band, "Horse of a Different Colour" (with the English spelling to be fancy)

This band started with me on drums and my high school friend Will Kerr (sp?) on bass.  I can't remember the girl on vocals but she was friends with Will.  This portrait shows us in a Emo stance.   

I think we only played cover songs and we never played out.  Will was probably 2 years ahead of me so my the time we got rolling he graduated.  This was probably around 1994 or 1995. 

Some of the songs we rocked:

Here Comes Your Man by The Pixies

These Boots by Op Ivy (who was covering Nancy Sinatra)

Negative Creep, Floyd the Barber, Son of Gun (Vaselines) by Nirvana

To this day, my neighbor is still jealous that I got to play drums and be in a band! 

From an older, wiser musician - if you can avoid it, don't ever sell equipment.  I still wish I had that awesome dark red/purple Tama kit. That green box fan in the left corner, though, is still around at my dad's house.