Hi everyone. Hope you're having an enjoyable autumn season, as the leaves turn, a pleasant chill enters the air, and Mr. Autumn Man comes out of hiding.
First off: I went and did it. Finally, you can download our new album Promises To Deliver from our bandcamp page! Click on over there and do so, if ya haven't. So as not to undercut our labels, we're asking $8 for the digi-download. And we thank you very much for that! Speaking of Promises To Deliver and the fine folks who did the dirty work of actually releasing it, if you're looking for it on colored vinyl... there are 6 copies left, which you can mailorder from Dead Broke Records. There used to be many, many more, so if you plan on getting one, you may want to act fast!
There are a bunch of shows coming up, listed over there on the right. Check 'em out, especially if you live in Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Iowa, or Florida. Tonight, we're playing the benefit for Brody Sotana and Connor Dukes's families, so on the off chance that you're reading this update on the afternoon or early evening of Thursday October 17th... come to the Triple Rock tonight! You can't ask for a better cause than helping out here.
Have you bought your tickets to Gainesville Fest 12 yet? It's coming right up! We're playing Fest Sunday afternoon, opening up the Lucero/Drag the River/Whiskey & Co. rock'n'roll circus at Wooly's. We "officially" start at 3:30pm, but if we aren't too hung over and get moving, who knows? Maybe we kick off a little earlier... also, on Wednesday, October 30th, I'm playing a little ADD Records corporate luncheon showcase with the usual suspects. So, if you're in Tampa and rarin' to go, come see me and probably Sam Beer strum some tunes!
As far as long-term stuff goes, well... it might be irresponsible of me to speculate, but I am an irresponsible fellow so I'm going to do just that. It does look like we're going to tour south to Texas and back in January. And speaking of Texas, we'll eventually get a split 7" with The Distressers (ex-Occult Detective Club) released. Somewhere down the line. Last thing: looks like a very good chance of a round of Live Band Karaoke on New Year's Eve at the Hexagon in Minneapolis. When that's official, any interested parties will be made aware.
Oh, and you're probably wondering why this post is called Lone Justice? Oh, no reason, that's just the band I was listening to when I wrote it, and I couldn't think of anything else to call it. They do a cover of "Ways To Be Wicked" that is just... wicked rad! Allright, that's all for now,
-Nato
Banda Macho!
L to R: Sam, Mike, Luke, Nato, Matt
Thursday, October 17, 2013
Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Back In Mpls: Much To Rake In The Fall
What a summer! I can't believe how much touring we did. People were making fun of me at a show last night for being gone so much. Dang. And you know, we're not done travelling, nowhere near it, we'll be running around the Upper Midwest all autumn and winter, and we've got plans for January that would take us to warmer climes for a week-plus (can't disclose details yet, though). Anyway. After 5 weeks of road partyin', we made it home in one piece - despite the week after Awesome Fest Siete having a couple pitfalls, the tour ended on an extremely high note in Russellville, Arkansas, and Cape Girardeau, Missouri. But hey... oh, once more for the record: Braden Franklin kicked ass on drums all tour long. We were so happy to have him with us! A great guy and a great character.
Awesome Fest VII was so brilliant, people. So fucking cool! We were there on Thursday night for our Pre-Fest show, and then for the Real Deal (tm) on Friday and Saturday (and a little bit on Sunday, just hanging out before our drive to Las Vegas). Here are some photo highlights, and also first a cool video from Eager Beaver Records (not sure which member of Worthwhile Way actually filmed this, so thanks to all of you, and kanpai itsumo, itsumo kanpai!), here we go with "Julie (Hang Out A Little Longer)" and Braden Franklin on the drums!
Mike Cranberry played the second half of our set, by the way. Our set was such a blast! Thanks to everybody involved in Awesome Fest 7, and the good people at The Void (the club we played). You know, I'm sure that people took plenty of awesome action photos of us at AF7 (send 'em to natopaisano@gmail.com or just tag us or something), but there are two photos that sort of sum up everything for me. First, this picture of me eating THE BEST FOOD ON THE PLANET, that is to say Mexican food (fish tacos) in San Diego! (Photo by Dan Anguiano, thanks to Harry Jerkface for tagging me so I could remember this memory)...
Seriously, look at those fish tacos (99 cents each from Vallarta on El Cajon). Look at that IPA of some kind (it was too loud to hear what the bartender said, but he definitely poured me something hoppy). Awesome Taste VII!
And then there is this picture of Sam, which is probably going to win him TIME Magazine's Man Of The Year award...
Am I right? Anyway, thanks SO MUCH to everybody who came and saw us on this insanely long Promises To Deliver Tour Part II! And really, almost half the summer was spent on the road, trying to reach ya, so if you caught us anywhere out there, thanks to you, too. We'll be back! And right now, we're playing lots of local and a few regional shows, so you Upper Midwesters will have a chance to catch us if ya need one.
That's all for now,
-Nato Coles & the Blue Diamond Band
p.s. ADD and Dead Broke are going to repress Promises To Deliver soon. If you're the sort of person who wants to make sure you get a copy of the first pressing, you better get you one soon! Also, Dead Broke Distro still has some colored vinyl available for ya, but they're running out so head on over!
Awesome Fest VII was so brilliant, people. So fucking cool! We were there on Thursday night for our Pre-Fest show, and then for the Real Deal (tm) on Friday and Saturday (and a little bit on Sunday, just hanging out before our drive to Las Vegas). Here are some photo highlights, and also first a cool video from Eager Beaver Records (not sure which member of Worthwhile Way actually filmed this, so thanks to all of you, and kanpai itsumo, itsumo kanpai!), here we go with "Julie (Hang Out A Little Longer)" and Braden Franklin on the drums!
Mike Cranberry played the second half of our set, by the way. Our set was such a blast! Thanks to everybody involved in Awesome Fest 7, and the good people at The Void (the club we played). You know, I'm sure that people took plenty of awesome action photos of us at AF7 (send 'em to natopaisano@gmail.com or just tag us or something), but there are two photos that sort of sum up everything for me. First, this picture of me eating THE BEST FOOD ON THE PLANET, that is to say Mexican food (fish tacos) in San Diego! (Photo by Dan Anguiano, thanks to Harry Jerkface for tagging me so I could remember this memory)...
Seriously, look at those fish tacos (99 cents each from Vallarta on El Cajon). Look at that IPA of some kind (it was too loud to hear what the bartender said, but he definitely poured me something hoppy). Awesome Taste VII!
And then there is this picture of Sam, which is probably going to win him TIME Magazine's Man Of The Year award...
Am I right? Anyway, thanks SO MUCH to everybody who came and saw us on this insanely long Promises To Deliver Tour Part II! And really, almost half the summer was spent on the road, trying to reach ya, so if you caught us anywhere out there, thanks to you, too. We'll be back! And right now, we're playing lots of local and a few regional shows, so you Upper Midwesters will have a chance to catch us if ya need one.
That's all for now,
-Nato Coles & the Blue Diamond Band
p.s. ADD and Dead Broke are going to repress Promises To Deliver soon. If you're the sort of person who wants to make sure you get a copy of the first pressing, you better get you one soon! Also, Dead Broke Distro still has some colored vinyl available for ya, but they're running out so head on over!
Thursday, August 29, 2013
A Mid-Tour's Afternoon Update
Hello, citizens of the Republic of Rock And Roll! Nato here, your loyal public servant, checking in from City Mouse HQ aka Miski and Mono's apartment in Riverside, CA. Me, Kyle, Sam, Braden, and Matt are having a great time! It's been fantastic out on the road this summer. Most of the shows have been top-notch. So many kind people, friends old and new, have helped us out! And noteworthy also is that Promises To Deliver has been flying off the merch table - sometimes literally (no, that was a Used Kids LP in Portland actually). Luckily, Mike from Dead Broke can re-up us in San Diego tomorrow for AWESOME FEST... Awesome Fest 7, of course, is why we're on this crazy long roadtrip in the first place!
So let me try and recap what has happened so far. On Monday August 5th, we woke up and drove all day and into the night from Minneapolis to Russellville, Arkansas. That's where we met Braden Franklin, our drummer for this tour (Mike Cranberry couldn't do this one 'cause of work issues, but he's still our number one home drumdude in case anyone was wondering - and he will be at AF7). Here's a scene from our first show a couple days later. You can almost see his entire head in this shot! Whatta scoop.
Then it was time to roll out! We headed over through Chattanooga, had a late-night Jack Palance Band dance party loud enough to wake folks from there to Dalton GA, and went on down to Florida. Braden was drumming GREAT. Every show in Florida was awesome in its own way. I've really been digging the "Dale And The Careeners" album, so it was great to see the metamorphosized Grabass Charlestons turn into The Careeners and rock it! We had wanted to hit the southeast this summer in case we were pressed for time around Gainesville Fest later this year, so to those of you who came to see us in Gainesville, Tampa, St. Augustine, Atlanta, Athens (Happy Birthday, Derek!), and Asheville: thank you so much, and hopefully we can do this again in late October/early November, but if we can't - you made the right decision! And we will be back in the southeast as soon as we can. Here's a picture of the tattoo Sam Beer got in exchange for a gift certificate with which someone purchased a copy of Promises To Deliver.
Yes, that's Princess Leia done Sailor Jerry style, or thereabouts. He got that in Gainesville. Meanwhile, in St. Augustine a couple days later, we met friends at a Mexican restaurant called Playa Chac Mool, and I ended up jamming on guitar with the owner, Javier! We did "Here Comes The Sun" and then a 12-bar blues. Maybe my favorite set of tour?
We played Chicago's Township Bar, and then drove all night to have a full day in Minneapolis! It was nice to chill out for a moment. And then it was time for Dave Strait Fest, also known as Fuck Dave Strait Fest. We were only there for our Saturday show at the Triple Rock, but a ton of bands played, including the Future Virgins! I love that band. It was a fantastic party all-around. Here's a picture of us, playing Dave Strait Fest! Look at Braden, he's pretty damn good...
Onward to Sam's old home: Grand Forks, North Dakota, where we played possibly the coolest dive bar in America - The Hub. Minot was next, and trust me, if you're ever passing through Minot, make sure you check out the Souris River Brewpub - great pizza and craft beer! We have so many friends in Minot, that night was a true highlight of tour. Braden made this happen:
Then came Montana, perhaps the most beautiful state in the union. Billings, then Missoula. Missoula! We had such a great time, at the show (maybe the best show I ever played in Missoula in any band I've ever been in), and then Marty's house for an afterparty hootenanny. Townes Van Zandt definitely was rolling in his grave that night.
The Pacific Northwest welcomed us with open arms - our buddy, CJ Frederick, put on not one but TWO spectacular shows in Seattle for us, plus we got to reunite with old buddies Big Eyes (played with 'em) and some of the Trashies (did not play, just hung out). Seattle in the summertime is probably the best place to be, weather-wise, on the entire planet! Bellingham, WA was a fun time too, and it was nice to get back to a town I'd not been to since the Modern Machines days. Here's some jerk blowin' harmonica onstage at The Kraken in Seattle.
Down in Portland Oregon, we played with Divers, who are one of the best bands around right now. No exaggeration. Highest recommendation. Club 21, the place we played, looked like a bar in the north woods of Wisconsin! And Jon Hanson, that old dingus, was seen live and in person! After that was Chico, where we stretched our set out and worked up a couple new ideas and songs (including "I Miss My Records", which we were getting requests for and were up to that point not sure we knew. Braden knew it without a practice. Whoa.). And then the Bay Area...
We drove to San Francisco over the Golden Gate Bridge, and went straight to the beach (it was cold!), where we celebrated our arrival by donning jackets against the "cold summer night" breeze and blazing one in a small cove accessible only through a dark tunnel and treacherous climb. The Knockout treated us wonderfully, as did the Mission District burritos. The next day, we walked around the Mission, then went to the Muir Woods and marvelled at it all. Redwoods are impressive, folks. Oakland was fantastic, Max "Jesse Cody Trashie" Nordile made a great flyer!
Yes, like the flyer says, we played with Courtney & the Crushers, and the Chuckleberries. And Russell Quon, their drummer as well as iconic icon of punk rock, had this to say to us:
"You are a breath of fresh air."
-Russell Quon
Wow. Also, Danielle Bailey took this picture.
The next night was Awesome Fest Pre-Fest in Pomona, CA. Vince Lombardi High School never lets us down! We played an all-star lineup with Shellshag, Lipstick Homicide, Upset, and Crow Bait. Marty Ploy is THE MAN. What a rad night! And we stayed in Riverside, and we woke up, and I wrote this, and now you have just read it! Who can say what awesomeness awaits in San Diego? Stay tuned to find out! See you down the road...
Tacos,
-Nato Coles & the Blue Diamond Band
So let me try and recap what has happened so far. On Monday August 5th, we woke up and drove all day and into the night from Minneapolis to Russellville, Arkansas. That's where we met Braden Franklin, our drummer for this tour (Mike Cranberry couldn't do this one 'cause of work issues, but he's still our number one home drumdude in case anyone was wondering - and he will be at AF7). Here's a scene from our first show a couple days later. You can almost see his entire head in this shot! Whatta scoop.
Then it was time to roll out! We headed over through Chattanooga, had a late-night Jack Palance Band dance party loud enough to wake folks from there to Dalton GA, and went on down to Florida. Braden was drumming GREAT. Every show in Florida was awesome in its own way. I've really been digging the "Dale And The Careeners" album, so it was great to see the metamorphosized Grabass Charlestons turn into The Careeners and rock it! We had wanted to hit the southeast this summer in case we were pressed for time around Gainesville Fest later this year, so to those of you who came to see us in Gainesville, Tampa, St. Augustine, Atlanta, Athens (Happy Birthday, Derek!), and Asheville: thank you so much, and hopefully we can do this again in late October/early November, but if we can't - you made the right decision! And we will be back in the southeast as soon as we can. Here's a picture of the tattoo Sam Beer got in exchange for a gift certificate with which someone purchased a copy of Promises To Deliver.
Yes, that's Princess Leia done Sailor Jerry style, or thereabouts. He got that in Gainesville. Meanwhile, in St. Augustine a couple days later, we met friends at a Mexican restaurant called Playa Chac Mool, and I ended up jamming on guitar with the owner, Javier! We did "Here Comes The Sun" and then a 12-bar blues. Maybe my favorite set of tour?
We played Chicago's Township Bar, and then drove all night to have a full day in Minneapolis! It was nice to chill out for a moment. And then it was time for Dave Strait Fest, also known as Fuck Dave Strait Fest. We were only there for our Saturday show at the Triple Rock, but a ton of bands played, including the Future Virgins! I love that band. It was a fantastic party all-around. Here's a picture of us, playing Dave Strait Fest! Look at Braden, he's pretty damn good...
Onward to Sam's old home: Grand Forks, North Dakota, where we played possibly the coolest dive bar in America - The Hub. Minot was next, and trust me, if you're ever passing through Minot, make sure you check out the Souris River Brewpub - great pizza and craft beer! We have so many friends in Minot, that night was a true highlight of tour. Braden made this happen:
Then came Montana, perhaps the most beautiful state in the union. Billings, then Missoula. Missoula! We had such a great time, at the show (maybe the best show I ever played in Missoula in any band I've ever been in), and then Marty's house for an afterparty hootenanny. Townes Van Zandt definitely was rolling in his grave that night.
The Pacific Northwest welcomed us with open arms - our buddy, CJ Frederick, put on not one but TWO spectacular shows in Seattle for us, plus we got to reunite with old buddies Big Eyes (played with 'em) and some of the Trashies (did not play, just hung out). Seattle in the summertime is probably the best place to be, weather-wise, on the entire planet! Bellingham, WA was a fun time too, and it was nice to get back to a town I'd not been to since the Modern Machines days. Here's some jerk blowin' harmonica onstage at The Kraken in Seattle.
Down in Portland Oregon, we played with Divers, who are one of the best bands around right now. No exaggeration. Highest recommendation. Club 21, the place we played, looked like a bar in the north woods of Wisconsin! And Jon Hanson, that old dingus, was seen live and in person! After that was Chico, where we stretched our set out and worked up a couple new ideas and songs (including "I Miss My Records", which we were getting requests for and were up to that point not sure we knew. Braden knew it without a practice. Whoa.). And then the Bay Area...
We drove to San Francisco over the Golden Gate Bridge, and went straight to the beach (it was cold!), where we celebrated our arrival by donning jackets against the "cold summer night" breeze and blazing one in a small cove accessible only through a dark tunnel and treacherous climb. The Knockout treated us wonderfully, as did the Mission District burritos. The next day, we walked around the Mission, then went to the Muir Woods and marvelled at it all. Redwoods are impressive, folks. Oakland was fantastic, Max "Jesse Cody Trashie" Nordile made a great flyer!
Yes, like the flyer says, we played with Courtney & the Crushers, and the Chuckleberries. And Russell Quon, their drummer as well as iconic icon of punk rock, had this to say to us:
"You are a breath of fresh air."
-Russell Quon
Wow. Also, Danielle Bailey took this picture.
The next night was Awesome Fest Pre-Fest in Pomona, CA. Vince Lombardi High School never lets us down! We played an all-star lineup with Shellshag, Lipstick Homicide, Upset, and Crow Bait. Marty Ploy is THE MAN. What a rad night! And we stayed in Riverside, and we woke up, and I wrote this, and now you have just read it! Who can say what awesomeness awaits in San Diego? Stay tuned to find out! See you down the road...
Tacos,
-Nato Coles & the Blue Diamond Band
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