Come to Axum's Lounge! See my band bring it!!

My band Braddock Station Garrison returns to the stage this Saturday, April 26, at Axum's Lounge at 1934 9th Street NW in Washington DC. We are first up at 8:30pm. Being old we like going early. Let the young whippersnappers play at midnight. There are lots of cool restaurants in the neighborhood so come on down and make an evening out of it!

We are playing with some great local bands. We are particularly fond of Exit Vehicles. I used to work with Adam many moons ago and am excited to share the bill with his band.

So far we have had three shows with our new bass player Jim. We were very sad to see Patrick leave but it was a good life-altering opportunity for him and his family. Finding Jim was a God-send. He is an experienced touring musician, a great talent, and a really nice guy who fits in perfectly with the rest of us. He brings a unique style to the proceedings. We are lucky to have him part of our little group.

Our CD High Water was recorded and mixed by Don Zientara and is available digitally at iTunes and Amazon and CDBaby and at Bandcamp. It's also streaming on Spotify. We'd be most appreciative if you considering getting yourself a copy. We'll have physical copies and tee-shirts too at our shows.

Here we are doing "Hey Cindy" at our show at Empire in Springfield VA. Come check us out!!

An Apology

Dear Spotify,

I would like to take this opportunity to humbly apologize for the lack of faith  I have shown in you, for not believing that you are as awesome as you really and truly are. You see, I have always been a hoarder. I get it from my mother. Her issue was books. Books and books and books. Just couldn't seem to part with them. Had to buy new ones. Library? Pffft.

My addiction, besides inheriting the book gene, is music. I have long felt I needed to possess the music. So I have about 1000 compact discs. I have nearly 250 gigabytes of digital music. Now that I have re-discovered vinyl I have a burgeoning collection. But all that adds up. It's an investment with little yield except that happiness in my heart it brings.

And then you came into my life. Beautiful, beautiful Spotify. How lovely you truly are. I have known about you for a while now. I have seen Facebook friends using it, the names of song scrolling by the feeder. I thought what a nice thing it seems to be! I have had friends tell me of your charms. Fool! You can have (almost) everything at your fingertips! Just a hot-spot away!

But I must own! I must possess! Even if it's digital, I must own a piece of it. It's the right thing to do. It is who I am! I define myself...I judge others...by the extent of their collection! What? You have Big Star #1 Record too! You are great and now my friend!

That has all changed. The battle is over. I have crossed to the other side.

I am officially won over. For ten bucks a month I have an exhaustive collection at my disposal, through both my iPhone and through my computer. I don't have to pay $9.99 for a record I might listen to 3 times. I can hear new things...not just clips but the whole damn thing. It's all there for me to peruse, to search, to come back to.

That said, I won't completely kick my habit. I will still procure vinyl, but now it will only be for the bands nearest to my heart, the bands I see at small clubs peddling their wares for $5, records I know I will enjoy, the things I really like thats to exposure to Spotify. Records that won't be just another in a massive pile but ones that will have a special place. Still just leaning against my bookshelf; evenutally in a crate, though.

Thank you, Spotify. Thank you for your patience and waiting for me to finally accept you. And please stay in business. Otherwise I am gonna have a SHITLOAD of records to make up for.

P.S. Note, I just went to cancel my eMusic account. They offered me a free month. So I took them up on it. Didn't want to be rude.