Dreams and Things

So we're here in Abilene, Texas today. I (alex) just woke up from crazy dreams. I don't know if its being on tour singing sad love songs and happy love songs and talking to new and old people everyday that is making my mind schizophrenic but whatever it is, it's making my dreams schizophrenic as well.

On the new EP "El Dorado County: A Tale of Love and Loss" there aren't many songs that are about one person (whereas our last album Orange County, is a conglomeration of songs including love songs about one ex-girlfriend). There is a thin storyline on El Dorado that isn't totally fleshed out by the released songs. The original storyline was going to be a rough sketch and partly fictionous account of a weekend I had in Lake Tahoe. It started with a lot of excitement for the trip (hence the first track) and it ended in Placerville with the realization of failure with 2 girls. Placerville is second because it basically vibes the whole EP and story. It's a glorious failure complete with dark horn choruses, meandering piano, swelling cymbals and long songs of epic prorportions (at least for Your Yellow Dress).
As the EP progresses there is The Desolation Wilderness, a dark tonally uncentered instrumental. Ryan wrote a trumpet part that fits my intentions perfectly. The dark trumpet gleams for moments but the dissolves away into beautiful piano. The trumpet continually tries to make a stand but then cannot maintain, a perfect metaphor for many people I have interacted with or even tried to "flirt" with.
Forgive Me is at best a resignation, at worst a woo-ing love song gone wrong. It's shiny, is plinky but it always gives way to the chorus minor chorus. The song asks for forgiveness for doing things that I should not do but I do them anyway in playing the game of love. This song is about 2 different people, possibly 3 subconsciously.
If there is any glimmer of hope it comes in the form of the last song, while it is a resignation, its also a proclamation. A proclamation that I will do better, that I am going to keep doing what I need to do and be a better person. If no one (in this case women) accepts that or finds it "right" it's ok cause I've done my best to be a better person.

Maybe its the fear that no one will accept you that really permeates the EP, and that being single is frustrating (especially after a letdown from my last relationship) but hopefully anyone who reads this will have a better understanding and appreciation or this EP. A few people have told me its good, bad, confusing, and most of all different from our last album, but ultimately instead of coating the frustrated songs and disappointing (love) songs in major chords and melodies, this EP manifests itself with a schizophrenic melancholy which I hope you will enjoy.

Winter Tour Update #1

So we're in a Motel 6 in Roswell, New Mexico. We got caught in a snow storm which prevented us from getting to Carlsbad but everything is ok since we didn't have a show! Anyway here is a video update:



In Tucson we played the Hangart which was cool like last time. We could've used some practice before the show, but people seemed to enjoy it. We hung out with Jake at the Hangart a bit and then went to Renato's house to stay with him. We had a awesome chill sesh with cookies, tea and cool new friends, even a cute girl.
We went back to the Hangart in the morning to practice (which paid off) and then went to Phoenix.

In Phoenix we went to Walmart and rode bikes around the store until thwarted. We then headed to Trunkspace which treated us even better than last time. We played with Hello the Mind Control (wonderful as usual, so glad we got their CD), Alex Benson (more amazing with a live band), Little Swamp (classic DIY, their set just reminded me of all my friend around the country), Iji (zach played NEW SONGS! they were great), and Gilmore Girls (awesome pop punk to finish the night). We played pretty ok for how much we've practiced but the PA was malfunctioning a bit.
After the show we headed to a diner with the Iji/Little Swamp crew and had some fries and relaxed. We then stayed at Zach from Iji's house and had a good night and played with his friendly dogs. The next morning they fed us and we met his family who were also super kind to us.

We then vacated to New Mexico. Things were good going through scenic Arizona but then as altitude rose so did the intensity of snow. Visibility got low and we took it slow which delayed us a few hours. We stopped at a gas station in Quedamo New Mexico and made our video update. We drove on and on till it was too late to continue driving and then plopped down in Roswell.

We're heading to Abilene to meet up with Neil the Deal and play a show, then onto Fort Worth for New Years Eve!