Home again for a few days, under the dome hanging out in environment suits as we test the new… yeah, no, Dr. Horrible taught us about not blogging things like that, right. We’re here ’till Thursday, then it’s back on the road again for a few. Harrison Hot Springs was pretty and relaxing, we played a lot, I met some musicians and we hung out Sunday night late and kicked it a bit.

Whup – I’d type more, but it’s time to throw the battlesuit into the dryer. Enjoy some picspam, or else. There will be a quiz. And by quiz, I mean interrogation. And by interrogation, I mean lasers.

We went to the mountains

We went to the beach
(Does it count as a selfie if it’s only your shins and feet?)

We visited some historic lairs – we actually reached the legendary Doctor SulFURY’s front door! It’s even still radioactive. I miss her.

We met some musicians
(I’m pretty sure this band is 2/3rds clones – their opposites are in Le Vent du Nord)

Anna’s keeping this one
(Thankfully supervillains ignore customs fees, or we couldn’t afford him)

We ate out a bit

Panda is delicious!

Visited our compatriots at the Laser Cutter Cafe
(and if those aren’t supervillains in streetclothes… well, let’s just say my ph33rdar is well-calibrated)

We had tea! And lasers! Just like it says on the tin. Or the wall.

They made a Jiji! These guys are awesome.

Those Amoeba Boys, I gotta tell you, they know how to rock a town. Vancouver will never recover.

Clallam Bay is up next. You’ll be there, if you know what’s good for you.

Nice little theory posted at marco.org which is very much along the lines of Facebook Destroys Everything, attributing Google’s shuttering of Reader as another step in the centralisation/corportisation of the internet, and replacing free/distributed content with corporate-owned. It’s a nice little rant, tho’ some of the commenters at jwz’s DNA Blog dispute it. You might give it a glance.

jwz also provides your advertising horror of the week: using bone sound transmission to drive ads into passenger’s heads if they try to nap by leaning against windows.

Ah, well, enough of that. We ran into the De Temps Antan. I told Eric that Anna said he’s a better bouzouki player than his brother Simon and everybody exploded. It was hilarious. Ah well, Simon can have the consolation of being hotter. XD

Here, have a phone picture from last night, of the lake from the beach of the festival. Well, of my feet in the lake, really. XD

Heading off today, north! To festival! To Harrison Hot Springs! Back on Monday. I’ll probably be tweeting a lot tho’. Remember: send any geekmusic news you have for the podcast by Monday if at all possible! If you don’t have any, forward that link around to people who might.

Here, have an awesome link – I actually already knew some of this but not this particular early outright-digital state. Ironically, I think this process got more analogue before it got less – there were comparably-small machines in the 60s and 70s which did more or less this, only with a single copy of the photo print. But they sent over ordinary phone lines, and I think those machines were varying tone in a more analogue fashion. But I could be wrong; maybe they were digitising down to these same five-bit images. Anyway, enjoy:

How Photos Were Cabled Across the Atlantic Ocean in 1926

Finally, welcome Radish Review readers; I think you’ll find this post on harassment in person vs. online trenchant. It’s called “Power and Supervillainy.” And my regular readers may also enjoy Scalzi’s Q&A on his anti-harassment-policy policy, including complaints made by some calling his policy anti-free-speech, an idea about which I can only giggle sadly, not manically. And if I’m not giggling manically, you are doing it wrong and I have a heat ray. Shape up – or else.

TO THE NORTH!

Greenwood was super-welcoming and a most excellent first exposure to renfaire. Thanks to every one of you! Eight shows in two days, omg – photos, details, more all over here, in a post made earlier today. Thanks again, Leannan Sidhe, for having me along!

Thank you, Greenwood Faire, for the welcome and the fantastic first experience at a renfaire – and thanks also Leannan Sidhe for bringing me onboard for the series! And also to Zinger and Royal Magic for letting us stow equipment and showing such hospitality. And to pirates and supervillains, yet!

Fun. Exhausting, but fun. We ended up doing eight shows, not six, not counting ‘gate sets,’ which are kind of open-mic length. Since I was filling in for so many people that meant four-instrument setup/takedown per show; I got really fast at that by the end of Sunday. So the whole thing is kind of a blur of setup-play-takedown-setup-play-takedown until dark.

That didn’t stop me from staying up late Saturday night with the Tri-Cities Drum Circle, tho’. They have a facebook page but I can’t find it – if you guys come find me, give me the group name again and I’ll link you! Thanks for being so welcoming, playing with you was really cool.

High-drama weather: 3am hour-long thundersquall with continuous lightning and nearly-continuous thunder, all experienced from a tent (which, thankfully, held out the water just fine); a mid-morning reprise the next day, scattering everyone but providing a desperately-needed reprieve from the sun. The heat was pretty brutal late Sunday, but the Faire itself is extremely well situated, in a little cool pocket by the riverside, sheltering us from the worst. It’s a fantastic site for it.

Have some pictures – I have to finish unpacking.

No more than 10 minutes after that morning squall

Jousting ponies at sunset

Ponies! The chestnut in front is pretty friendly. The grey in back, despite appearances, is not an Arabian. I was totally surprised by that; I knew an Arabian who could’ve been his twin, years ago, except the one I knew had slightly more mottled/patterned fur.

Saturday night is the big performer potluck and little groups all get together and play and hang out all over the camp; after the potluck, I found the aforementioned drum circle – which wasn’t, as they say, difficult. 😀

Also that night:

All Hail Roadie Matthew!

And Matthew’s golden backlit hair. Matthew’s golden backlit hair has a posse.

Leannan Sidhe Without Me

Despite best attempts, I wasn’t on every song, and when you’re not playing, you don’t stand there like a dork, you sit off to the side or front, depending. One set, I was out for two songs, and they were back-to-back, so I had time to grab my phone and snap a picture.

Bards of a Feather

Leannan Sidhe (official) gave way to Mickey and Wednesday’s band Bards of a Feather for the final set, appearing only at the end for one song. And they, in turn, let me open for them as Crime and the Forces of Evil, for one song. Shortest opening set evar! It was hilarious. 😀

Here we go – to the east, to the dry side. Six shows by Monday or bust! I’m going to try to get recordings entirely on battery; I make no promises. If you’re in Richland, we’ll be at the Greenwood Faire, listed as Leannan Sidhe; there are time schedules, tho’ I don’t have one handy.

Whatever I record, I must say, cannot be as awesome as this:

…because it simply would not be musically or physically possible.

And we’re out. Zoom~!

Overdid it a bit singing last night at rehearsal, so today is NO TALKING DAY. Well, not much talking day. I’m okay, really, and will be fine for shows this weekend, but it just shows how much you just have to be careful with songs at the very bottom of your range.

Talking of, I’m really excited that we get to do King of Elfland’s Daughter. We’ve worked out how we’re going to make it work with me having to drop out on rhythm in order to do the bridge solo (on flute, rather than fiddle) then come back in; Wednesday will be echoing me on guitar throughout and will just step it up for that section.

Anybody have advice on what to take for a series of shows where you’re camping instead of crashing with people? There’ll be water but no electrics. I’ll be loading up on batteries and chemical cold-packs because it’s supposed to be nearly 40 for all of these shows. Uh. Nearly 100F. Ish. I am going to die. Dead dead dead. Just bring back the recordings, will you? And put them on Bandcamp. 😀

I’ve never used a tent on tour which is kind of unusual amongst the people I know in music, but for these Leannan Sidhe gigs I need it. SHITTY CELL PHONE PICS, AHOY!

jfc this is a big tent

i really do not remember this tent being so big

This is actually one of TWO tents I own. The other is older because I bought it used and it’s five people, not four like this one, but I think it’s about the same size actually. But MUCH harder to set up.

fred wants to know wtf i am doing with a tent that big

honestly i have had dorm rooms smaller than this tent

I timed taking it down, which is going to be the part that needs to be done most quickly because of schedules: 14 minutes from fully set up (which it wasn’t in these pictures, a kind of rain cowl goes over the top) to fully packed in the single carry bag. I’m going to do it again later for practice because I haven’t used it since I don’t even know. 2005?

ADVENTURE!

Anna is giving away both ebook and audiobook copies of Valor of the Healer. This isn’t the universe the soundtrack is from, but it is the same writer, and you should go enter!

The soundtrack has been dragging on, and how long it’s been taking has been getting on my nerves in a serious way. There’s not all that much to be done about that; I wasn’t ever intending to play melody on the traditional Irish Tune portions, then had to, which means I had to learn tunes playing well enough to do it in studio, and then when some of the selections weren’t going to work in a traditional set type arrangement, meant I had to learn to write tunes, or portions thereof, in a way that sounded right.

We are moving along, tho’. Slowly. We had Ellen Eades in last week, recording hammer dulcimer for one set, and Sunnie Larsen will be in tomorrow, recording more fiddle. I’m desperately hoping that between having to deal with the remains of Sewer Implosion 2013 and rehearsal tonight with Leannan Sidhe for their six shows over on the dry side that I’ll be able to rebuild the Chapter 1 track project, which corrupted itself after a crash.

Don’t worry, we didn’t lose any data, it’s just… jumbled a bit. So I have to import everything into a new project. It’s not difficult, just incredibly annoying and a bit time-consuming.

But that’ll depend upon letting the CD labeller get finished with the short run of CDs that are being printed up for those aforementioned shows. See how everything stacks up and gets in the way of everything else? So frustrating.

Whup, sounds like a certain wallboarder has had to get out a larger saw. I’d best check what’s up.

A reminder that the June 2013 Geekmusic Podcast is up; go listen. We’re also taking material for July. Deadline is July 1st for news and events which will happen late July and August. I’d prefer to need less lead time, but with all the shows coming up (Clallam May, Greenwood, etc) and work on the Bone Walker soundtrack happening, I need more space! Time! Spacetime! One of those.

(Inspector? Why I hardly…)

Also, for some reason last night I dreamt I was staying in a hotel room with Leannan Sidhe and Alexander James Adams, and Alec started playing Gershwin on piano, and wanted it in the act.

First, what act? Second, that wasn’t even Gershwin, except in my headspace at the time. Third, who has giant upright pianos in hotel rooms, anyway?

Honestly, brain, what.