3 shows in 24 hours

What?  That’s it?  Summer’s over?

Here we are under a week to go until Labour Day and a quick visit to our website made me realize that I haven’t posted a blog about any of our July or August shows.  I’ll stick with July in this post and do a separate entry for August later.

The month started off on a busy note with BarCode appearing for a second time at Cliff and Theresa Pellizzari’s 20th Annual Canada Day BBQ on July 2nd.  We were first invited to gig in front of this great crowd last year, who are all about live music and appreciate what it is we do.  Many of their friends have become friends of ours and come out to our shows on a regular basis.

The food and company were excellent, the weather was more than cooperative and the fireworks display was dazzling!

The highlight of the month came in the form of the following weekend, which inspired the title of this post.  In just over 24 hours we performed at 3 different venues, returning to McLauchlin House on July 9th, sweating it out in the sun on the afternoon of July 10th at the 1st Annual Summertime Streetfest on Grand River St. North in Downtown Paris and finishing it off that evening with rousing finale at the Liquid Lounge.

First, McLauchlin House.  Our return to the stage that we have called home for 7 years came about pretty quickly. New owners Lisa Bate and Ken Stefan, who also own Lexton’s Tap & Grill  on King George Road) contacted us to help them get some people back in the doors, having  taken over the bar just a few weeks ago.

We were happy to oblige, as we hadn’t played this venue for over 10 months, gigging there only twice when it briefly went by the moniker of Steve-o’s Bar & Grill.  In the crowd that night were a ton of familiar faces (many of who we hadn’t seen since our last show at this spot), plus the former owner, staff and customers of Norm’s Pub, who hadn’t been there since the closing night of Norm’s on June 30th, 2006.

The night was exactly what I’d hoped it’d be, with plenty of laughs, dancing and sociables.

Onto the 1st Annual Summertime Streetfest.  Our appearance here was booked through the Paris BIA and based on a recommendation from Hairy Mulligan frontman David Griffin.   Mulligan was originally requested, but given that the band is currently on hiatus, Dave was quick to pass along the opportunity to BarCode.

The afternoon was a real scorcher as we set up in the shade on Grand River St. North, directly across from one of Les’ favourite spots, the Brown Dog Coffee Shoppe.  We’d stopped in there prior to going on in the hopes of setting up an acoustic show on their exquisite patio, which boasts a  panoramic and picturesque view of the Grand River.

We were well-received by the folks volunteering from the Paris BIA as well as many local passersby, plus we managed to get rid of a handful of business cards.  Here’s hoping we see some new business!

And last but not least, onto the Liquid Lounge.  We had taken our gear down in Paris, paused for a beer and headed straight to ‘the Lounge’ to avoid having to set up our gear right before the show.  Of course by this point, set up seemed to take no time at all and the PA was EQed just the way we like it.

The night was the epitome of a hot n’ sweaty rock n’ roll frenzy, with the audience delivering and responding in the way that we have come to expect from their regulars.  Plastic tambourines a shakin’, drinks a spillin’ and hands a wavin’, we got down and dirty and were tight as could be thanks the weekend’s previous gigs that acted as the most intense warm-up imaginable.

Although it was a wild ride, I don’t think 3 shows in 24 hours will be something we’ll repeat anytime soon.  However, it does look good on the band resume.

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RPM Powerfest & Media Weekend

Well here we are once again; several weeks after the fact, and I’m just getting around to blogging about our weekend at Grand Bend Motorplex.  I do have a viable excuse this time around, as we have been very busy with gigging pretty well straight through the end of June and halfway through July.

On top of being one of the most unique performances we’ve ever given, it also signified the start of our summer season, being the first of six outdoor gigs over the next few months.

We arrived Friday afternoon to our separate locations within Grand Bend; Samantha, myself and our friends to a rented cottage a block off the main drag and five blocks from the beach, Andy and his wife to a nearby hotel and Les and the members of Unanimous Maybe and Team Deadly to the free camping area provided at the Motorplex.

By the time I had touched base with the other guys and headed down to check things out at the track, most of the gear was already set up and we were waiting on the hydro.  After walking around the grounds to check out the competitors and vendors, we settled on watching the trials from the VIP beer gardens.

I had never been to a racetrack before, let alone a drag strip.  I was in for a treat; the stage and beer gardens were right next to the starting line, which is where we spent 90% of our time.   I came prepped with earplugs, knowing it was going to be loud.  Now, I’ve been playing onstage and watching bands for over 10 years, but I had no idea what loud was until the night of Friday, June 25th, 2010.

The noise was deafening and coming from not one, but two sources simultaneously: both the engines and the tires as dragsters, hot rods, motorcycles and even snowmobiles (no tires there,  just treads) bolted down the strip.  Not only were these sights and sounds to behold, but these mechanical masterpieces also put your nostrils to the test with the piercing scent of burnt rubber.

After downing a few beers and watching several trial runs, it was clear that we weren’t going to get our hydro anytime soon, so we parted ways for the evening and set about exploring the town with the few daylight hours that remained.

After a comfortable and air conditioned sleep, I awoke and celebrated the day by cracking open a breakfast beer and relaxing on the porch.  I was on vacation, after all.  Once breakfast was out of the way, those of us at the cottage made our way down to the beach for a swim.  Not a bad way to start a Saturday.

I made my way to the Motorplex in the early afternoon to see where set-up was at, since I had yet to hear from anyone about a meeting time.  I arrived to find most of the main system ready to go with Andy working on getting his kit up.

I hauled my gear into the VIP area and began my set-up, since BarCode would be starting the show.  Now, there’s an interesting little side story that goes along with the next few minutes of our present story…

Several weeks ago after our gig at the Liquid Lounge, I failed to do a dummy check and ended up leaving my canvas bag behind, which contains all of my patch cords, XLR cables, pedals and microphone.   Since we didn’t practice on the Sunday, I failed to notice until I arrived to set-up at our show at the Oxford Circus the following weekend.

I sped over to the Lounge to see if it was still kicking around, but the folks who were working the night of our show did not come in until 10pm that night, so I was S.O.L.  Luckily, Jr. was able to loan me some cables and a mic.  I hopped in Monty and jetted back over a second time on our first set break.  Huzzah!  A hurried inspection under behind some empty beer cases under the counter turned up the missing gig bag.

Good news, or so I thought at the time.

Since we already had the extra mic and cords set up, like an idiot, I didn’t bother to check the ‘little green bag’ to make sure all of its contents were intact.

Flash forward 3 weeks later to Grand Bend.  I open the flap and begin rummaging in there, only to find (technically, not find) that my mic and two XLR cables are missing.  Once again, it was Les to the rescue with extra gear, while I tried to wash the metaphorical egg off of my face with a couple of literal beers.

With everything ready to go, all there was left to do was crank out some tunes and impress the racers and crews that’d began enjoying the roast pig and salads from the ‘hambulance’.  As the last cars made their way down the track, we hit ’em just as hard and just as fast with ‘Too Little Too Late’.

Our setlist was entirely improvised and included some special guests; Jenny Friesen Pomerleau who joined us to sing ‘These Boots Were Made For Walkin’ and Jessica Townson, who played June Carter to my Johnny Cash on  the always popular ‘Jackson’.

The great  thing about BarCode is how we can do a show of even this calibre and completely make up the setlist as we go along; we just have that much material that we’re comfortable with.

As we performed, Richie handed out our business cards, which I may have gone a little overboard with by ordering 1,000 at the printers.  At least I’ve got them if I need them and they now have our website included on the reverse.

Unanimous Maybe took to the stage after us, churning out a set of their fantastic originals, including ‘Who Ordered the Sunshine?’, ‘Sunday Best’ and one or two covers.  There’s such an intense energy about this band, especially when all four come together at the mics to tackle some harmony work.

And completely obliterating any remnants of hearing you may have had left was the awesome Team Deadly, which features both Les and Andy doing what it is they do best (or one of the things) and the unbelievable guitar talents of Red LaForme.   These guys are as tight as tight can get, with Red manipulating the axe in ways other guitarists can only imagine.

And of course, I don’t need to tell you how incredible Les and Andy both are.  These two can easily slip into the groove of any genre of music, make it their own and leave you with the impression that they’ve been playing it for years.  This is one of the reasons it’s such a pleasure sharing the stage with them.

All in all, it was a pretty incredible experience.  The music, the company, the venue and just the overall feeling of being in ‘the Bend’.  It was unfortunate that I had to spend my earnings on replacing my Shure SM58 and a few cables, but a lesson learned.

On the way out of town on Sunday, I stopped at four or five trailer parks and dropped off some business cards with the hopes of securing some shows in the Grand Bend area for the Summer of 2011.

BarCode @ Oxford Circus

Had it been two months already?

When we left the Oxford Circus in April, our June 12th return seemed like a world away.  However, it snuck up on us quickly and we were back before we knew it.  We had a great crowd out to see us, enjoying a pre-show dinner and some drinks.

There were a few special guests in the audience, including a teacher from my days at Ryerson Middle School and some new fans who had seen us the previous weekend at the Liquid Lounge.  They popped in for a drink on a whim and ended up staying the entire evening.  Nice to see folks out two weekends in a row!

Also a pleasure to see Sue, the woman who books us at the O.C. out, even though she wasn’t working.  You don’t find that kind of support at everywhere.

Since the set we had been using was 6 months old, we created a new setlist for this appearance to freshen things up and add in some songs which had been placed on the backburner.  Added back into the rotation were ‘Sitting, Waiting, Wishing’ by Jack Johnson and ‘Get Rhythm’ and ‘Rock Island Line’ by Johnny Cash, among others.

No shows in Brantford now until July 9th, when we return to McLauchlin House for the first time in 10 months!

BarCode @ Liquid Lounge

It had been nearly four months since our last one night residency at the Liquid Lounge when we took to the stage on Friday, June 4th.  As constant supporters of live music, this room is one of the best in the city by far!  During our first 2 times at the Lounge, we were spoiled with rowdy and wild crowds and standing room only.

But that was during the winter.

I was a little worried going in this time, as we were competing with Brantford Hockeyfest, which drew crowds from all over the city to Lion’s Park in West Brant.  Fortunately enough for us, the evening brought rain, which forced it to end prematurely and enabled the crowd to return to their regularly scheduled Friday night, which was pouring into the local bars and clubs (pun intended).

The stage has changed at the Lounge as well.  They have removed the railings on either side, which enabled us to have a bit more personal space.   It’s no fun playing on top of each other.  We’re tight, but not that tight.

BarCode @ McGonagalls Pub

A few weeks after the fact, but nevertheless, I  thought I’d take a few moments to comment on our May 29th return to McGonagalls Pub.  It had been a few months since the last time we were at Brantford‘s premier Scottish pub, but we were able to pack ’em in, even seeing a few faces we hadn’t yet seen out to one of our shows in 2010.

Although the setlist hadn’t varied much since our last appearance, we were able to get together the night before and bring together the old Hollies classic, ‘Long Cool Woman (In A Black Dress)’, as well as throwing out a few numbers not done in awhile, like ‘Last Kiss’ by Frank J. Wilson and the Cavaliers (an old BarCode standard).

It’s the start of patio season and every year that tends to worry me a bit.  If the weather is nice, it’s becomes hard to get people to come inside and stay for an entire night of music.  Luckily, McGonagalls has a small patio at the back and it was cool enough that we were able to have the back door wide open and entertain those inside and out.

Also, a special thanks to George Blahitka for coming out again and filming us!  He seemed to cover all the angles and we can’t wait to check out some of the footage.  Watch for it on the BarCode YouTube channel at http://www.youtube.com/barcodethebanddotcom.  We hope to put some up soon (with George’s permission, of course).

Since the gig was four weeks ago, that’s about all I can remember for now.  I promise I’ll start posting a lot sooner after shows and give the writing a little more meat.