Yesterday was the first time I played my flute for an extended amount of time after we started this whole Guitar Hero business, and I have to tell you, at the beginning of the night I was a little worried. For one thing, I knew I was hurting my hand while I was playing Guitar Hero, yet I continued on anyway. For another thing, my left hand has been really sore since Tuesday night, and I should've been practicing the real instrument I actually play... so did I? No. And there are some new very good players this quarter, not to mention the ones who've been around and know me: I gotta be on my game. Yep, all this means is, more long tones and less trying to master that damn Slayer song on Medium. I finally beat Tom Morello and his idea of "music," but yeah, I gotta play the flute, not the plastic guitar. Anyway, the good thing was, at the end of the night I wasn't as sore as I thought I would be.
Oh, and Roland let me play his bass flute (not the big contra or double contra, the bass is the lower one that you play like a regular flute, but about 2 times as big, and just one octave lower than the C flute), and he played his C flute on the opposite side of the room... after we were done (the piece had a beautiful lyrical bass part, instead of the oom-pa-pa parts the basses usually get stuck with; I was very lucky), he goes, "Wow Irene, that sounded good!" Okay, maybe he didn't say "wow." I'm not good at direct quotes. Whatever.
I've considered getting a bass for awhile now but they're expensive and it's kind of impractical - and then he offered to pick one up for me this year at the flute convention in Kansas City, and it would only cost me $11, 000. "Only." My car "only" cost me $21,000, and I'll be paying that fucker off until 2009.
I know there are cheaper, perfectly good basses out there, but this is a typical reaction from me: I can't have the best? Then fine: I'll have nothing, instead. Anyway, if I think my hand was sore from stretching it out to play a game, imagine how it will feel after an hour or two of playing bass: that thing weighs a ton.
In other news, Patrick has been at NAMM the last couple of days (yesterday he saw Tony Levin, today he got a glimpse of Slash [photos when I upload them], and Vinnie and Carmine Appice, Derek Roddy, John Tempesta, and Herbie Hancock; and tomorrow he's all excited because Lenny White is going to be there), and I think he's been having a lot of fun. He's been hanging with his friend (and MTP guitarist) Chris, and Chris's friend Danny. Chris and Danny were in a band in Santa Cruz called Honkey - before Honkey was Honkey, they were Titty.
This reminds me, I've been meaning to compile a list of the bands Patrick's been in.
Patrick's first band was called "Fester." He was only 16; they started out playing covers of stuff by The Lovin' Spoonful and The Who. Then they started writing their own songs; one title was "Funk Bitch." After that, he was in "La La La." La La La was the same people and music as Fester, but Fester didn't play any shows. With La La La, Patrick played his first gig at Club 88. He was still 16, 17, and even though they were underage, they still got to play.
Sometime around this time, Patrick first saw Dave (the bassist from MTP) and Chris and their friend Jon play with their band, "Killer Gumbys" at a private party, and he was really impressed. They were playing all 70s punk songs.
After that, he was in The Kine Boys, and they were a ska/reggae band. Hence the name. They played places like the Troubador and Madame Wong's. It must've been sometime in the 80s. Patrick says there was one rehearsal at the singer's house where Angelo and the keyboard player from Fishbone showed up, he says they lived in the area and knew his singer.
Then he was in Magnolia Thunderpussy. Better writers/historians have told that story, which you can read at their website (see "Cool Stuff" on the right of the screen).
Then he was in Spleen Ripper, then a party band called "Third Notice." After that, he was in Halfway to Cleveland. After that, Pipsqueak.
I love those band names. I think Spleen Ripper is my favorite. They were a speed metal/punk band. I only got to see him in Halfway to Cleveland once, and MTP only for the 20 year reunion tour shows. The other day we were discussing band names for me, and I came up with "Killer Pinky" and "Toxic Babies." "Killer Pinky" has potential. I may have t-shirts and stickers made up.
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