performance review 4/29 - 5/4

1. Small amount of editing on copyright essay. Deadline in < 2 weeks, need to make finishing a priority.

2. Worked on Human Hearts show at Mama Tried on 5/29; mainly, communicating with booker and other bands on the bill. This started last week: some progress, but still some things to nail down.

3. Saw Amps for Christ (Henry Barnes) and other local musicians at Claremont Lewis Museum of Art (Sat. 5/3). Good opportunity to catch up w/ people. Add’l social engagements in Upland/Claremont on Mon/Wed/Thurs.

4. Signed paperwork at my family’s attorney’s office, brought back papers requiring my dad’s signature.

5. Made sautéed zucchini w/ onions & garlic for my dad, for dinner Sun.

Cardio at gym 4 days of 7.

reading april 2025

Heinrich von Kleist, Michael Kohlhaas, trans. Michael Hoffman
Daniel Dutton, Prairie, Dresses, Art, Other
Faye Hammill, Sophistication

[a lot of travel and music, not much reading or writing edition]

performance review 4/21 - 4/28

1. Played the last 2 Tsunami shows in SF (Wed.) and L.A. (Thurs.). Members of Ida were sick, so both shows involved shorter opening sets from remaining members, from me fronting the Tsunami rhythm section, and/or with Jenny. In SF, I got Kyle Brodie up to play drums for Wckr Spgt’s “International Church of Pancakes,” with Jean Cook on violin. In L.A., Rachel Haden sang “Geniuses of Crack” with Tsunami, which was great.

2. Had an enjoyable post-show conversation about musical theater and, strangely, Oingo Boingo, with Karla Schickele’s cousin Train (with whom she plays in Penny Guitar), and his girlfriend Taylor Morgan (the subject, and title, of one of their songs). 

3. Made it to my dad’s in Upland on Friday night, and managed a few tasks for him Sat.-Sun.: e.g., sorting accumulated mail, depositing checks, putting new insurance registration cards in both cars.

4. Wrote a longish email to clear the air about a personal matter. Can’t provide details here.

5. Attended Ida’s hastily arranged and announced make-up show in Laurel Canyon on Sunday, out of friendship. Glad they were able to do it; was able to say goodbye to most of them.

1 good cardio walk on Wed. morning before we left for San Francisco. I also did some credible Spotify DJing for the band’s in our Sprinter van (though not as good as Miggy’s), did some book and record shopping in Chico, CA and SF, and sang “The Ladies Who Lunch” at karaoke in Pasadena the night before our last show - but perhaps those are not accomplishments. 

performance review 4/14 - 4/20

1. Played an instore as “Franklin Bruno & Friends” at My Vinyl Underground in Portland, OR (4/20), with local bands Big Top and Field Drums (ft. Jeffrey Underhill from the White Sisters/Honeybunch/Velvet Crush and Rachel Blumberg, drummer for the Decembrists, Michael Hurley, others) and Big Top. Played a few songs solo, others w/ Jean Cook, Trip Grey, Rob Carmichael. Set included “Inexpressive,” “Milkcrate,” “Sad and Afraid,” “Enemies of Song,” “Flag Pin,” and covers of “International Church of Pancakes” (Wckr Spgt), “Model Worker” (Magazine), and “Another Bridge” (Everything But the Girl). Jenny sang “Tempting” and “The Loyal Oppositions.”

2. Played two shows w/ Tsunami/Ida in Seattle (4/18) and Portland (4/19); Steve Turner joined us for the “Academy”/“Courage” encore in Portland; Ida’s guests included Rebecca Gates of the Spinnanes. Calvin Johnson came to the Seattle show, which was nice; also saw an old college friend, Doug Brody. Also played a radio session at Seattle’s KEXP, which will be broadcast at a later date: 4 songs from the Tsunami set, and the Liqorice arrangement of “Keeping the Weekend Free.”

3. Saw my cardiologist in NY, Tue. 4/15, just before leaving on tour. I didn’t have blood work this time, so there wasn’t much new to go on, but she continues to be happy w/ my progress re weight, exercise, diet. Coming up on 2 years this July since my heart attack and 3x bypass.

4. Had a conversation about Kenward Elmslie and the Tulsa School w/ a bookseller in Portland who happened to bring him up (we were talking about poetry presses, and he said that he couldn’t sell Song Cave’s reprint of The Orchid Stories). Kinda talked at him about the subject like a nut/monomaniac, but he wrote later to thank me, and even made an intstragam post about the guy (me) who “made his week” in the store. (Part of a generally excellent day of book shopping + buying records at the instore that night.)

5. Saw Nels Cline Konsentric Quartet at Le Poisson Rouge (Mon. 4/14) w/ my friend Scott Jacobson. 

Cardio 3 days of 7 - 1 trip to the gym at home, and 40 min. morning walks in Seattle (well, Shorline) and Portland. Eating healthy, overall, but still struggling not to overdo carbs on tour. Will see if weight has changed when I get to Upland next week.

performance review 4/7 - 4/13 [

Got back from Chicago Wed. 4/9; no Tsunami shows this week.

1. Assembled papers for [my wife] Bree’s official name change application; this involved various steps to dull to go into, over a couple of days. Took the packet to Queen Civil Courthouse in Jamaica (Fri.), only to find out that (since I’m not an attorney, and don’t have power of attorney), she has to file them in person. Still, now we have the application ready for when she’s here in July. (This has nothing to do with a “married” name; the name on her birth certificate is different than the one she’s used most of her life and appears on most documents, and it’s creating issues w/ her insurance.)

2. Human Hearts rehearsal (Sun.) for a show in May; concentrated on unrecorded songs.

3. Positive feedback from editor on revision of copyright chapter, which he returned w/ a very light copyedit. Still have to write an abstract and assemble “Further Reading” list; not sure of deadline, but the heavy lifting is done. Did a minuscule amount of drafting (Sun.) for a paragraph I may want to add.

4. Wrote many emails/replies - people I want to see in L.A., setting up Portland instore, etc.

5. Heard Aubrey Johnson/Helen Sung/Dave Douglas &c., Lives of the Saints CD release, Dizzy’s Club (Thu.); Tape Hiss w/ Peter Gordon, Ki Smith Gallery (Fri.), Tim Berne’s Warped Ensemble, 2 sets, Jazz Gallery (Sat.). Saw King of Hearts (Philippe de Broca, 1966) and Psychotherapy (Tolga Karaçelik, 2025).

2 days cardio, out of 5 days home. Unpacked; arranged for a pair of glasses I left in Chicago to be overnighted home. Better format for the dating of these posts, I think, but I’m not going to go back and change older ones.