box.
“Thanks.”
“Coffee?” he asks me.
“Please.” I find my newest guitar and start strumming the intro to the latest song Peron and I have been working on. My bassist joins me, plucking the strings with me. Eventually, Tavo’s behind his kit, testing out all his drums. I get my coffee just as Damon joins us on stage. I let the sound techs work with his mics while I warm up with my drink.
“Ben doesn’t think we’re gonna make it out of here tomorrow. The forecast just got a lot worse,” Peron says.
“That sucks. Does that mean we’re gonna have to cancel a show?”
“Probably.”
“I hate that.”
“Damon’s pissed. He’s making the call after the show.”
I think to myself. “I’d rather put my life in his hands than Ben’s. I’m cool with that.”
“Guys! You gonna play, or am I doing a cappella tonight?” Damon barks at us.
“I don’t feel much like beat-boxing, so… play, I guess,” I tell him, setting down my coffee. “Name the tune, man. I’m all yours.”
“River Song,” he says. “Tavo, count us in.”
After our sound check, we go to a green room in the back that they have decked out with food and drinks for us. It seems like the further we get into the tour, the better stocked the green rooms are. The other guys all do a shot of tequila before we go on. I stick with my coffee, happy for the warmth and the added caffeine jolt.
“Damon,” I call to him. “Come here.”
“What?” he asks, still irritated.
“Know what?”
“Get on with it.”
“There’s a fucking sell-out crowd out there who froze their asses off waiting to see us. They want to see a mind-blowing show, and I intend to give them that. If we have to take a night off, why don’t we just put the extra energy into this show, huh? Make this one extra special for these crazies. Okay?”
He glares at me for a few seconds, but then breaks into a resigned grin. “Okay. Okay!” he yells. “This one’s for the mad fucks out there who drove in a fucking blizzard to see us!” he rallies everyone else.
“Yeah!” we all yell.
“Let’s hope they all make it home safely, but if they don’t, let’s make sure the last show they ever see is the best show of their lives!”
We’re all quiet for a good ten seconds. “That’s fucking morbid,” Tavo says, doing another shot.
“Yeah, Damon,” Peron says.
“Not quite what I was going for,” I add on. “But, hell, yeah! For the craziest fans we’ve encountered! For Minneapolis! Let’s heat this place up!”
“Yeah!”
Even though the club owners made an announcement halfway through the show that the weather was getting worse, only a handful of people left before we finished our set. We even came out for two encores, although we didn’t have enough original music for the second one. We played a couple cover requests just for the hell of it, and the crowd loved them.
Damon’s in much better spirits after the show, but no one sticks around looking for a hookup tonight. We all just want to get to our hotel for the night and turn the heater on full-blast. I had been sweating from the exertion of playing and the spotlights, but anytime the lights went off for just a few seconds, I could feel the chill in the air. I understood why the fans stayed huddled together in front of the stage.
It takes Ben three tries to turn over the engine on the bus. Not feeling confident about this drive to the hotel . After we finish loading our gear, I walk around our transportation once to see what we’re dealing with. The damn thing is packed in the snow. I have no fucking idea how we’re going to get out of the drive. Ben parked in a fucking snow drift.
I step onto the bus and call out to him. “Hey, uh, genius! In fact, all of you… get out here.” Tavo groans and stays behind, but the rest of the guys come out. “Just, uh… are we imagining this isn’t here, and hoping we can somehow fly our magic bus to the hotel?”
“What?” Ben
“Thanks.”
“Coffee?” he asks me.
“Please.” I find my newest guitar and start strumming the intro to the latest song Peron and I have been working on. My bassist joins me, plucking the strings with me. Eventually, Tavo’s behind his kit, testing out all his drums. I get my coffee just as Damon joins us on stage. I let the sound techs work with his mics while I warm up with my drink.
“Ben doesn’t think we’re gonna make it out of here tomorrow. The forecast just got a lot worse,” Peron says.
“That sucks. Does that mean we’re gonna have to cancel a show?”
“Probably.”
“I hate that.”
“Damon’s pissed. He’s making the call after the show.”
I think to myself. “I’d rather put my life in his hands than Ben’s. I’m cool with that.”
“Guys! You gonna play, or am I doing a cappella tonight?” Damon barks at us.
“I don’t feel much like beat-boxing, so… play, I guess,” I tell him, setting down my coffee. “Name the tune, man. I’m all yours.”
“River Song,” he says. “Tavo, count us in.”
After our sound check, we go to a green room in the back that they have decked out with food and drinks for us. It seems like the further we get into the tour, the better stocked the green rooms are. The other guys all do a shot of tequila before we go on. I stick with my coffee, happy for the warmth and the added caffeine jolt.
“Damon,” I call to him. “Come here.”
“What?” he asks, still irritated.
“Know what?”
“Get on with it.”
“There’s a fucking sell-out crowd out there who froze their asses off waiting to see us. They want to see a mind-blowing show, and I intend to give them that. If we have to take a night off, why don’t we just put the extra energy into this show, huh? Make this one extra special for these crazies. Okay?”
He glares at me for a few seconds, but then breaks into a resigned grin. “Okay. Okay!” he yells. “This one’s for the mad fucks out there who drove in a fucking blizzard to see us!” he rallies everyone else.
“Yeah!” we all yell.
“Let’s hope they all make it home safely, but if they don’t, let’s make sure the last show they ever see is the best show of their lives!”
We’re all quiet for a good ten seconds. “That’s fucking morbid,” Tavo says, doing another shot.
“Yeah, Damon,” Peron says.
“Not quite what I was going for,” I add on. “But, hell, yeah! For the craziest fans we’ve encountered! For Minneapolis! Let’s heat this place up!”
“Yeah!”
Even though the club owners made an announcement halfway through the show that the weather was getting worse, only a handful of people left before we finished our set. We even came out for two encores, although we didn’t have enough original music for the second one. We played a couple cover requests just for the hell of it, and the crowd loved them.
Damon’s in much better spirits after the show, but no one sticks around looking for a hookup tonight. We all just want to get to our hotel for the night and turn the heater on full-blast. I had been sweating from the exertion of playing and the spotlights, but anytime the lights went off for just a few seconds, I could feel the chill in the air. I understood why the fans stayed huddled together in front of the stage.
It takes Ben three tries to turn over the engine on the bus. Not feeling confident about this drive to the hotel . After we finish loading our gear, I walk around our transportation once to see what we’re dealing with. The damn thing is packed in the snow. I have no fucking idea how we’re going to get out of the drive. Ben parked in a fucking snow drift.
I step onto the bus and call out to him. “Hey, uh, genius! In fact, all of you… get out here.” Tavo groans and stays behind, but the rest of the guys come out. “Just, uh… are we imagining this isn’t here, and hoping we can somehow fly our magic bus to the hotel?”
“What?” Ben
Similar Books
