Live at Lake Temescal

I wasn't even really aware that there was a lake at the top of Broadway, but we carted our battery of acoustics up there today and rocked it lakeside.

There were lots of us today - enough to throw a real practice/party. Steven, Vijay, Russ, Devin, Molly, Angela and I played through most of what we're calling our setlist. Devin also brought a magical little book of every American folk song ever sung and then some. I insisted Russ do Ciana's birthday song and if I'm not mistaken he was playing some of his old ep stuff in between songs over on his edge of the blanket. We're playing Grizzly Bear's Knife more regularly now, which makes me happy. I love that song. Still need to work out how we want to fill in the atmospheric layers they do, but even our impromptu covers sound pretty decent.

We're all way into Steven's new song Picture - which I always want to call Picture Yourself. We played Siki Siki Baba twice and relived Diggin' a Grave. Angela somehow managed to bike all the way up the hill with an accordion in her bag (and a clarinet, a fancy harmonica and I don't even know what else) and worked her clarinet magic on Twenty-Five. I think the musical highlight for me was Russ covering Idea in his big band voice while I did a pretend singing saw. We really need one of those things. I don't know how our band has gone so long without such an essential instrument.

There was some serious partying going on around us too - a very intense group badminton game with this really deep grunting and yelling, a little smash ball, and a couple birthday parties. We were joking on the way over that we should play kids' birthday parties since kids love us and today was no exception. Three or four kids wandered over to watch and touch things.

Really though, we should have been playing at this one birthday party next to us. These people really went all out. They had the clown, the face painting, the caricaturist, the works. Both the clown and the portrait artist showed a little love on their way out. The portrait guy asked if we were a real band or just kids who get together. A little of both? We pointed him to our Myspace/Facebook page. I hope he checks us out. It would be rad if at some point we were together enough that we could just post up where we'll be for the day on our site(s) and people could swing by to enjoy if they so pleased.

All in all, good times. I even managed to score a slew of pirate songs that I am loving. Thank you, Russell.