Ego Tripping at the Gates of Heaven with The Trippers

Once again, I was made very, very happy by Egotrippi’s latest awesome live gig. They performed under the secret name The Trippers, which they usually do for a couple of times before starting an official tour. As usual, the gig was very long, and they played every song from their new album (probably except for Purple, a short instrumental interlude).

It was so amazing. The band plays extremely well together, and when they have so many wonderful, melodic, harmonic, and sentimental songs it’s such a joy to listen to them. It’s also always a huge thrill to see so many people enjoying melodic pop rock. Egotrippi is brilliant because they are one of the very few domestic powerpop acts ever to gain some sort of mainstream success in Finland. Thanks to Egotrippi there are thousands of Finns today listening to powerpop – not all of them probably realize they are listening to music called powerpop but it’s not much of a problem..

I’ve been a fan of Egotrippi for over five years which isn’t very long compared to the group’s age – they started in the early 90s. My enthusiasm level towards this band has varied quite a lot during that time, but I really feel I’m starting to get into the spirit of their music again.

The group’s new album is out now. It’s called Maailmanloppua odotellessa (Waiting for World’s End) and it’s their seventh and most folky album so far. Egotrippi used to be known for fun power pop songs that had clever, quirky and relatively tongue-in-cheek lyrics but they’re now making a lot more serious songs – with the high melodic quality and emotionalism remaining, or course. The album often deals with melancholic subjects but does it in a happy way, even a bit humorously.

Here’s Egotrippi’s latest music video Valssi, directed by movie director Aku Louhimies.


Egotrippi at MySpace

Bubblegum Is Back!

Once again, I've found myself in the middle of a huge 60s bubblegum craze (although I spent a considerable amount of time listening to Bay City Rollers today..)! I'm seeking new bubblegum bands and CDs and listening to the ones I already have although I'm supposed to be doing my homework. Good for me..

I also finally realized (given a hint) that The Archies, having being a cartoon band, can be viewed at YouTube - with relatively poor quality, but it's much better than nothing. Having a proper Archies DVD.. That would be something..

I'll give here one example of The Archies excellence. This is a wonderful song called Comes the Sun. I just found it.. Check out other Archies songs too, they're amazing! The graphics are also pretty cool.

Visual Music from Japan

Now here’s the MOST nasal band in the world. It’s Japanese Oshare Kei band An Cafe that has been very successful lately, also in Finland. At first I couldn’t believe how nasal a voice this band’s lead singer Miku had. Then, I thought it was already too nasal. Finally, I came to a conclusion: there is no such thing as too nasal…

An Cafe has been a small hit to me, although their music is complicated due to a couple of reasons. Oshare Kei is a subgenre of Visual Kei, a genre that could be seen as a Japanese version of glam rock. However, it’s a bit more that just glam rock, because it contains happy punk rock, hard rock, as well as even hardcore, and definitely some hints of new wave dance rhythms and funny keyboards.

Probably the most unusual thing about J-Rock bands in general is their incredible way of breaking genre boundaries. Japanese rock bands usually tend to explore many genres in their music – genres that may be very, very different from each other. Also, no western band performing hardcore music would ever have a completely nasal bubblegum singer! An Cafe vocalist Miku does sing in a hardcore style, too, but the first thing you’ll notice about him is that incredibly nasal sound.

Gokutama Rock Cafe (2008) is An Cafe’s latest full-length release. Its first half focuses on relatively melodic punk/alternative/pop-rock. Towards the end the album starts to show heavier sounds. It’s in fact a quite divided album. It’s as if the first half was designed for fans of melodic rock and the latter half for hardcore people. Perhaps the band couldn’t decide if it wants to be melodic or hardcore? I couldn’t say..

This band does have some really cool songs. My #1 favorite song is S*B*Y. I think it’s really brilliant! You can listen to it at YouTube. I also adore a song called Hatsukoi from their Ademama Rock (2005) album. It’s a most wonderful song. Check it out too! You’ll see their crazy visual side there, too... I also recommend Nyappy in the World 3. There's some definite disco powerpop there! Finally, here's a link to my J-Music geek friend's (who introduced me to this band) favourite An Cafe song, Nyappy in the World. It's strange how they name these tunes..

An Cafe at MySpace

Monsters of Pop Sept 6th - Day Three

I just love writing when you don’t have a deadline – except for the final deadline, your own actual death. However, here’s the final part of my MOP report.

Ville Särmä is known from the Finnish rock band Kevin. This time Särmä performed his new solo material under the name Ville Särmän illuusio. While Kevin’s latest album was psych-garage-oriented, Särmä’s new material is more folky and melancholic and features careful arrangements and progressive song structures. It was actually very melancholic music. Särmä channelled his inner melancholy through his music, and the result was beautiful and organic.

Then came that moment.. Suddenly I felt like I was at the IPO. It’s not like I know what it’s like to be at the IPO, but this was definitely the band that would have suited to that festival better than any other act of MOP ‘08. The stage was taken over by Forest & Crispian, a Swedish trio that performed very cool garage-influenced music that the band calls new wave barber shop rock. The guys had practised their three-part harmonies carefully, and there indeed was something quite new wavey in the group’s exciting melodies and lead singer/standup drummer Adam Hjertström’s excellent vocals. Band members chatted with the audience in a lovely way. It’s really important, in my opinion, that the performer talks to the audience between songs.

After F&C’s gig, I thought to myself: “We have a winner.” Those songs, that energy.. Wow! Forest & Crispian’s gig was my favourite performance of the entire festival.

Joose Keskitalo performed at MOP together with Risto Ylihärsilä two years ago. Now it was time for a Joose Keskitalo show with his band Kolmas maailmanpalo. Keskitalo’s songs sounded once again really good, although they did sound quite dark right after Forest & Crispian’s happy high-energy gig. The audience, however, seemed to be even more excited about Joose Keskitalo than it had been during F&C’s performance.

The final act of the day, occurring at Klubi, was Swedish Familjen who had recently toured with another Swedish band, Kent. Familjen comes from Skåne, Southern Sweden, where people speak a lovely, incomprehensible dialect. Johan T Karlsson sang in Skånska, and along with the cool electronic beats it really sounded easy-going. A female guest vocalist was also a really good addition to the set.

All in all, it was a good festival. It wasn’t perfect this time either, but the majority of shows were top-class. If I just could decide which bands play next year.. Seriously, the number of powerpop acts was for the third time in a row ZERO. Gee, what kind of a pop festival is that?

A not so bad one, really.
But I have to do something about the powerpop statistics of MOP. Until next year..

Mosters of Pop Website

Monsters of Pop Sept 5th - Day Two

Day two of MOP started with a rather unusual performance by Credit - a very new group formed by My Lovin Martian of I Was a Teenage Satan Worshipper and Cute Pint of Pintandwefall. It was actually the duo’s first gig, and their first practise session had been held on Monday. Cute Pint and My Lovin Martian performed lots of good electropop songs, and I liked them all. My Lovin Martian is getting better and better at writing pop songs.

Le Corps Mince De Françoise was the next band. It was an all-girls band that performed energetic pop songs with electronic beats. It was basically good, but something about it bothered me.. It was those ultra cool beats that confused me. I believe those beats reminded me of the ones that are used in contemporary r&b – a type of music I spend considerable amounts of time trying to avoid at all costs. I couldn’t shake that uneasy feeling during the entire gig, but I’m willing to listen to this band again, see if my mind was just playing tricks on me.

If you look at the outer appearance of the members, Jesse is probably the unsexiest band you could imagine.. The guys wear denim with leather vests, sunglasses, and caps. Their music, however, is very interesting. It reminds me a lot of Aavikko, a electropop group that played live at last year’s MOP (what an amazing gig it was – I probably lost 2000 kcal during the performance…). Compared to Aavikko, Jesse is a lot more 80s-styled, and all their songs seem to be about cars, or driving fast in cars.. It’s probably the band’s unusual image that has gotten them a lot of attention, but their music is well worth checking out.

Then, it was once again time to move to Klubi. The second international guest of the festival took over the stage. The Deer Tracks played music that probably could be described as a form of post-rock. It surely sounded like Sigur Rós, though it was more electronic. The music was very beautiful and surely required some patience since the songs were sometimes quite long. The band had some reinforcements on the stage, including a trumpetist and a clarinetist. In addition, it was quite confusing how much lead singer and keyboard player David Lehnberg looked and sounded like AFI’s Davey Havok..

Regina played at MOP for the second time. In a bigger club environment the band’s sound was a lot different than what it was a year ago at Artturi. This time Regina also performed songs from their two albums, and new tunes. The songs sounded good and Iisa Pajula’s vocals were lovely, but the overall performance somehow felt.. slightly cold. Maybe the lights weren’t blinking as colourfully as I’d hoped for.. Or perhaps I just have a lot to learn about the nature of electronic pop. However, it was cool that their drummer had adopted a standup playing style..

The only non-electronic band of the entire day was the final act, Swedish First Floor Power that used to have Jenny Wilson as a member. The band seemed to enjoy performing their songs. However, honestly, I expected more from a critically acclaimed Swedish pop band. Their songs had potential but somehow they felt a bit faint. I also felt I’d heard a lot more interesting melodies before - that’s surely not a good thing to happen when you’re trying to find new favourite bands. Have I gotten myself used to so extremely catchy and complicated melodies that I now find it hard to appreciate a band that isn’t melodically so.. sparkling? I don’t know. Maybe someday I’ll find out.

When I hear music that doesn’t immediately sound good, I never blame it on the music. It is my fault, my flaw if I can’t see the beauty of some specific music. This way of thinking does get problematic in many ways sometimes, but I won’t discuss it now.

In the end, it’s art. Who can really say the final word about it being good or not?

Monsters of Pop Sept 4th - Day One

Ever since Monsters of Pop indie festival was launched back in 2006 I’ve attended every concert. Last year it was quite difficult to see all gigs from beginning to end because at some points there were two bands playing in different venues at the same time. This time it was much better. You could easily see all bands and the festival had been moved to Klubi and Telakka from Yo-talo and Artturi.

The obviously well-named indiepop band Goodnight Monsters started this year’s festival and played a set of great pop tunes, mostly from their new album Summer Challenge. I had never listened to this band before and I noticed I totally loved the stuff and the gorgeous hooks. This type of twee-ish music is exactly what you might assume I listen to all the time, but I really haven’t really gotten into the genre yet. I’ve checked out some material from twee groups but usually ended up thinking: “This stuff kinda lacks rock’n’roll riffs.. and it could use some additional power and intensity, too.” I guess I’ll learn to love twee music as I listen to it more – a lot more.

Kastor was the second band. They played quite original alternative rock (which made me wonder why they chose rock bands again to this festival when it’s supposed to be pop) and it was really good. I might check out the band later. I still remember vividly how serious Kastor members seemed to be about their music. They really put all their energy and skills to the performance. It was almost scaringly intense.

Kiki Pau ended the first part of day one. This band was probably the most confusing thing of the entire festival. It was catchy and wild alternative pop-rock with very groovy rhythms. The confusing thing was the band’s lead singer, he looked and sounded somehow familiar.. I felt like I watching and listening to Janne Laurila’s brother who had made a bit different choice about his musical career – a bit more groovy and aggressive choice.

At Klubi, the opening act of the evening was Last Calls, a group that played very peaceful and melancholic music with film music and country qualities. It wasn’t the most exciting gig I’d seen, but it was quite suitable after two very loud, high-energy gigs.

Then, it was time for the first international guest, Russian post-rock group Everything Is Made in China. Post-rock was one of this year’s new themes in Monsters of Pop, and EIMIC gave a nice introduction to the subject. Very sympathetic, curly-haired Fedorov Maksim sang and played guitar while Zotov Aleksey banged the drums and cool graphics illustrated the silver screen.

Risto was the last performer of the day one of MOP. Risto Ylihärsilä’s anti-melodic pop was once again a big success, and having seen two Risto gigs before, I have to say Mr. Ylihärsilä’s performances just keep getting more and more demonic.. Risto creates entertaining pop/rock songs out of dead serious topics, performs them manically (scaringly intensive gig of the day #2), and makes the audience dance - Diskopallo being the biggest hit, of course.

More blabber to come..

Hops and Pop

Monsters of Pop Indie Festival was good, as always.. Goodnight Monsters played some catchy Beach Boys-esque pop treats, and the gorgeous Swedish band Forest & Crispian (probably my next favourite band) did the same thing, especially with their last song. There will be a full Monsters of Pop report as soon as I get the inspiration. When I listen to bands play, there are always cool review lines spinning in my head. To write them down later at home is not as easy as reviewing a concert in my head while listening bands play live.

My head seems to be stuck in (a) decade(s) I’ve never actually lived. I watched 16 episodes of Happy Days, I listen to fifties and sixties pop bands all the time, I buy 60s and 50s compilations.. I also grabbed the official soundtrack for a cool film, American Graffiti. It is a two-disc collection of some of the coolest vocal pop, rock’n’roll, doo wop and other r&b of the 50s and early 60s featuring Chuck Berry, The Platters, Buddy Holly, and The Beach Boys, of course, and other top class stuff.

I guess I’m quite happy at the moment. I’m starting my Swedish studies (one of the most wonderful languages there are), listening to cool pop and watching cool TV shows. Also, I walked into the record store Jukeboss today, and The Sun Sawed in 1/2 was being played there.. That was so cool that I couldn’t believe it. Thanks, Bruce Brodeen, for sending those CDs to circulate in used-CD bins in Finland (and no one wants to buy them, even though Fizzy Lift is the coolest album ever)..

When will people come to their senses and realize that The Sun Sawed in 1/2 is/was the most wonderful and gorgeous band in the world? I guess it might help if I spread the word..

The Art of Happy Music Videos

Once again, it’s time for a nice music video. This time it’s Weezer’s Keep Fishing, probably from 2002. It is an excellent video that will surely bring a smile to your face.

I love this song, I love this band, I love Rivers Cuomo. Also, the gigantic distortion wall brings me constantly a lot of happiness. There really is something about loud and distorted music.

Sugar, Sugar, More Sugar

First, it was Ohio Express, then 1910 Fruitgum Company.. Recently I’ve been focusing on The Archies, an animated bubblegum/garage band of the 60s that lived in the Archie universe and appeared in a TV show called The Archie Show.

The music in gorgeous! There’s plenty of light-hearted sweetness, absolute catchiness, songs about sugar and pretty girls.. It is the most wonderful antidote against the rainy weather, darkness and coldness of early fall. Just like with all the other bubblegum bands I’ve listened to so far, the quality and entertainment value of the music is very high throughout an entire 24-song compilation (I managed to grab a release called Sugar Sugar..).

Sugar, Sugar has been heard a thousand times already, but it’s still good. However, it takes about two minutes to find equally good (or better) Archies songs. I’ll mention Feelin’ so Good (S.K.O.O.B.Y.D.O.O.), Who’s Your Baby, Bang-Shang-a-Lang, Sunshine, Jingle Jangle, Sugar and Spice.. Today, a random song suddenly popped into my head, and I soon realized it was an Archies song called Bicycles, Roller Skates and You. I had listened to that song once five days earlier. My brain surely functions in weird ways, but that song is very good, I must say.

I really don’t know where you could properly listen to these bubblegum bands on the internet. I recommend using your nearest library. That’s what I do.

Update: YouTube seems to be a pretty good source of Archies music! You can even find songs that have never been released on LP or CD there.

The Archies at YouTube
The Archies at last.fm

Summery Pop Punk and Catchiness

I’ve been trying to mention this band already for some time. So, here it is. Definitely the best new pop punk find of my summer of 2008 was Boys Like Girls and their self-titled debut album, released in 2006. This album seems to have been a real success. A deluxe edition of the album has already been released.

I love pop punk. I don’t listen to it very much but almost everything I listen to is so closely connected to it anyway, so it really doesn’t matter.. Boys Like Girls is very emotional, loud and energetic music. The main focus, to me, seems to be on melodies and pop-styled expression with such emotions as angst, melancholy, happiness, and general sentimentality. There is a modern teen-punk vibe in the background, but it’s very different from Ramones or similar music. Also, some people would definitely call this kind of music emo, but that is a bit misleading. The whole concept of emo is all mixed up these days.. So, the best solution might be describing punk-related music in some other ways than (always) saying it’s emo.

This album has been stated to be full of potential hit singles, which seems quite reasonable when you listen to these songs. The songs are all very good, but this hit single-approach might not be the best way to compile an album after all. When every song sounds like a radio hit, listening to the stuff gets a bit heavy. Perhaps it’s because the songs are a little bit too similar in style.

Check out songs like Five Minutes to Midnight, Thunder, and especially the vocal and melodic beauty of Hero/Heroine. Listen, it might even give you goosebumps!

Boys Like Girls at MySpace

My New Favorite Band!

This stuff should interest anyone who likes The Sun Sawed in 1/2. It might actually sound very good to anyone who likes melodic pop music – why not? For me, this is the coolest music there is. As I’ve already stated a couple of times in great detail, I’m somewhat addicted to Doug Bobenhouse’s vocals. I’ve become a real The Sun Sawed in 1/2 enthusiast during the past year, so I was very, very happy to find out that my favourite singer had started a new band called The Effingways, and he is writing the songs too!

At the moment, there are three songs at MySpace: Memories of Doubt, Polly Chromatic, and Two By Two. They are all good, and when the full-length album comes out, I’m not gonna miss it. Doug’s songs are very interesting because they don’t sound like Tim Rose’s compositions but the gorgeous sound of The Sun’s lead vocalist is present.

The Sun Sawed in 1/2 really should make more music. It’s been eight years since the last Sun album, so it surely is about time they got something new (besides side/solo projects) going on. I’m convinced that the band hasn’t yet shown everything – there really could be more excellent pop albums by The Sun Sawed in 1/2. The quality of the group’s work has been very high since the early stages of their career. Tim Rose’s first solo album Fresh Mowed Lawn from 2006 showed that he still has full capability of capturing magic in his music (I should praise that album soon).

There are so many things to look forward to! That is so great. If there wasn’t anything to wait for, life would be much more boring.

The Effingways at MySpace

Coolest 60s Summer Music – Part 2

The Hollies: Evolution (1967)

They made so many albums in the sixties, and I’m finding it hard just to stop listening to Just One Look on repeat.. It’s quite hard to say yet which album I like best. Evolution is very good. Water on the Brain, Have You Ever Loved Somebody?, and You Need Love are some of the songs I tend to listen to the most at the moment. When Your Light’s Turned On, to me, sounds like a typical example of power pop before power pop.

The Association: Just The Right Sound - The Association Anthology

Enjoyable, sophisticated sunshine/baroque pop (It’s quite difficult to tell what it really is – it’s probably both most of the time) from a band who worked a lot with Curt Boettcher as their producer. This music certainly has some Beach Boys vibes in its harmonies. This is a huge 2CD collection, I still have a lot more to listen.

The Byrds: The Sweetheart of Rodeo (1968)

This is a very, very nice country album. It has great sounds, great songs, peacefulness and lots of melancholy. I always enjoy listening to this. In a way, it’s a bit hard to believe this is The Byrds, the same band that performed songs like Mr. Tambourine Man and I’ll Feel a Whole Lot Better because the stuff sounds so different.. But it’s awesome that they decided to do some country, too.

The Turtles: 20 Greatest Hits

Pop, or should I say folk-pop from a cool American band with nice harmonies, energy, and awesome songs like Happy Together and Love in the City. However, You Baby is the ultimate hit song on this CD. Glorious falsetto wailing is something I can’t live without – at least for long.

Tommy James & The Shondells: Anthology

The new last.fm is not as good as the old one in some ways but the new recommendations function is brilliant! The recommendations are already starting to control my life.. There are so many great bands recommended that checking them out is really keeping me busy. I’m generally a very slow music listener (I listen to everything a hundred times before I think I can say I’m familiar with the music), but I really want to hear new stuff all the time, so it’s quite tough to keep up with all good music.

Tommy James & The Shondells is one of the nicest new things I’ve found through last.fm. The songs are awesome, and I Think We’re Alone Now is a wonderful song (I had only heard the Rubinoos version before). Timeless music, stuff you never get tired of listening to.

Kris Kristofferson Live at Tampere-talo Aug 5, 2008

Not many country artists come to Finland to perform. Here, country music is generally quite unappreciated, even misjudged due to misunderstandings about what kind of music country actually is. For instance, people in this part of the world don’t know much about its various forms since it is not mainstream music even a bit. However, there are also enthusiastic and active country fans in Finland, there is no doubt of that. For instance, I’m probably developing into one, I hope.

Famous country artist and actor Kris Kristofferson played two gigs in Finland. I saw the gig in Tampere. Kristofferson is known not only for his acting career, songwriting and several hit songs but he was also part of the country supergroup The Highwaymen with Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Waylon Jennings in years 1985-1995.

Kristofferson performed alone with his acoustic guitar and harmonica in the great hall of Tampere-talo. It was a very stripped-down performance, but it really didn’t miss anything. I was very moved by Kristofferson’s absolutely sincere performance and the warmth of his vocals. 72-year-old Kristofferson still has a lot of charisma, it’s like all his life’s experience is congragated on his presence, and especially audial output. His strong performance brought such legends as Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, and Willie Nelson to mind.

Kristofferson didn’t talk much between the songs – instead, he basically sang everything he wanted to say. For a non-lyrics-focused person like me this was extremely refreshing since I realized right in the beginning that you really should listen to the lyrics. They were very easy and pleasurable to listen to. Kristofferson has written them in a style that is very down-to-earth – typical of country music. There are no unnecessary verbal decorations, it’s just the straightforward content presented in an honest way. Kristofferson sang songs he had written for his children, their mothers, and his dad. George W. Bush also got some verbal treatment (not too positive, though), and Kristofferson’s heroes such as Jesus, Gandhi, and Martin Luther King Jr. were mentioned.

It really was a wonderful gig. All that peacefulness, beauty, and melancholy made an impression on me. I didn’t know Kris Kristofferson very well before this gig, but I’d really like to listen to more of his stuff – all kinds of great country music, in fact!

Kris Kristofferson at MySpace

Coolest 60s Summer Music - Part 1

Honeybus: She Flies Like a Bird – The Anthology

It took me very, very long before I started listening to this. Good is worth waiting, they say.. This stuff is amazingly good, beautiful, melodic.. It’s everything you need from perfect pop. Beautiful instrumentation (those violins in (Do I Figure) In Your Life and She Sold Blackpool Rock!), excellent vocals and harmonies.

It indeed is a huge shame if anyone ends up seeing this band as a one-hit wonder. I Can’t Let Maggie Go is certainly wonderful in every possible way, but there are a plenty of song that are equally good. I recommend Throw My Love Away, Girl of Independent Means, Would You Believe, Story, and Black Mourning Band for starters. I haven’t even listened to the second CD yet and I already feel I’ve got more than I ever could’ve hoped for.

Pink Floyd: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967)

A while ago I thought to myself: “Why not listen to some Pink Floyd?” I grabbed their debut album from 1967 and liked it very much right away. In fact, I liked it so much that I will certainly keep listening to this band. This stuff is magical. It’s psychedelic, it’s dark, it’s mysterious.. Something about this music is simply mesmerizing, it’s different from the stuff I usually have been listening.

This band is famous for progressive rock (20-minute songs, concept albums and stuff). I’m seriously going to check that music out. I’m not afraid of long songs, especially when they sound so good (already listened to some other albums/songs, too).

So, it’s a bit different from your basic pop, but it’s still very enjoyable. My favourite songs from the debut album are Matilda Mother, Flaming, and Chapter 24.

1910 Fruitgum Company: The Best of 1910 Fruitgum Company – Simon Says

Ah, here’s some very, very good bubblegum pop from the sixties. Goody Goody Gumdrops is my personal favourite. You really don’t encounter such catchiness all the time. However, Candy and Dee-Licious are also extremely brilliant songs that always bring a smile to your face. This compilation is actually very good all the way from beginning to end. There are no weak tracks.

1910 Fruitgum Company sounds very much like The Ohio Express. They had a similar approach to bubblegum pop. Both recorded extremely catchy and fun songs with perfect melodies and careful instrumentation that featured organs (and saxophones). While this music is influenced by both garage rock and nursery rhymes, the lyrical content focuses quite often on sexual metaphors. It’s almost childlike music but I’m not sure if it really is suitable for kids.. Anyway, it’s perfect stuff for anyone who enjoys power pop.

A New Star Is Rising

I’m very happy to say that I just played my first gig.. It was yesterday at a private party that was arranged by my dad’s friend and his wife. The happening was dubbed “one of Europe’s smallest country music festivals” which meant that I played country music at the gig.

Originally, I intended to go to this “festival” to help my dad as a roadie, and listen to some great country tunes. As my dad’s band was missing both their lead guitarist and bass player at the time, it became possible that I might be needed to fill in the band with some instrument(s). I was presented to the audience as a cowbell player. As one probably might not expect, I didn’t play cowbell at all during the set. Instead, I was invited to the stage to play acoustic guitar, and later bass.

It was cool to perform. I wasn’t nervous at all, and it really felt good having some real musicians play with me. I played about 6-8 songs including On the Road Again, True Love Travels on a Gravel Road, and Wonderful Tonight. The strange part of it was that I didn’t know the chords to a couple of the songs, and no one had them written down.. It wasn’t actually that bad, however.

So, this really was my first gig! I had performed to relatives before but this time there were only unknown people in the audience. The gig apparently went so well that my dad told me that the band might need me to fill in some other time, too. Here I am, turning into a country musician before I’ve even got to know very many country artists.. I’ve surely listened to my dad’s band play numerous times, but my knowledge of country music in general requires some serious further studying.

Obviously, my dream about a pop band of my own has to wait (since I don’t even have friends who might be interested in playing pop-rock).. I don’t mind. Playing country music is awesome!