Backward Vision.

The tour has been done for a couple of weeks and we are already in the process of setting up more stuff for February and March-April. I want to thank everyone who frequents this blog for your interest, and to keep checking it out, because we are already working on new material, and setting up another tour(s). So stay tuned!

Here are some shots that encompass the whole trip. It is unfortunate that the last half of the tour had less pictures. It is the hardest thing to charge batteries in a bus parked in a vacant lot. Next time there will hopefully be a whole lot less vehicle problems to deal with, and a whole lot more shows and music related pictures. It was an adventure none the less....... enjoy!




Safe at home in the K-dub. Just outside of the Boathouse-still pimping Thor's ride. Showing him off before our K-W kick-off with our good friends 'The Free Press'
Set'n up for our Tour Launch at The El Mocambo.
Mr. Cutler even made it out for the gig. Unbelievable!
Chatting with friends and well-wishers while loading up for the trip back to Kitchener.
Cultural experiences in Marathon Ontario.More cultural experiences.The Starbuck's in Marathon. Grande Bold please.
The haunting face of auto-shops of yet to come. Oh.. Thunder Bay.
Taco Time eluded us the entire trip... yes this is a true regret.Another attempt at fixing the speed sensor in Brandon Manitoba. Shop #2.
Flat flat flat flat flat flat. The desolation of the prairies is actually quite beautiful.
Saskatoon. Buds on Broadway, just down the street from the much cooler 'Amigo's'
Oh my god it is my dream car! Seriously... this is sweet.
Shop #3, The death of Thor, the God of broken imported axles. Lloydminster, AB/SK
Rental Truck #1
Rental Van #2.
The 4th and final vehicle, the beauty that is Atlas. Chevy 30 = Lego mobile.The head on shot of the beast.
Packed to the brim.
This is Wilkie Saskatchewan. Home of Tim Lee, and the source of our rescue. Tim saved us when we were pretty sure there was no way to make the rest of the tour fly.
On the way to Slave Lake, Alberta. Freaking spooky ass highway.Our very short experience with Edmonton.
The Watch store in Stettler, AB. Biggest sign for miles around.

Atlas refuels... hot diggidy!
Mountains beckon. On our way into the Rockies.
Revelstoke! Oh my god.
Near Kamloops.. Insane surroundings.
The Lions Gate bridge in Vancouver. Our good friend Ryan Layfield was kind enough to show us around. Wicked city.
The Pacific Ocean. The furthest point of the journey
More Van-city.Coolant problems just outside of 'Hope' BC.

Seriously sunny but cold in the mountains.
Skip the prairies and we are back to north of Superior. This is between Wawa and Sault Ste. Marie.
Sleeping in a Tim Horton's parking lot leaves you weathered. An absolutely grotesque scene in Northern Ontario.
This is how to kill time while draining BBQ tanks into a bus tank.
So close yet so far in Ontario. Close enough to the end of our tour. After this our water pump broke. Atlas had been so good to us up until then. All the way through the rockies and back with only a trip permit, and the topping up of random fluids from time to time. Not bad for an '86.
It felt good to be home and clean again, surrounded by loved ones. Something strange happens after about a week though... there is this itch... like you need to be doing something... I have come to the conclusion that something might be booking another tour.

Backward Vision.

The 5th of November

Happy Guy Fox Day.

Read. More. Here.

g.

The 5th of November

Deadly Compounding

If you're like me and don't understand a goddamn thing about this 'economy crisis' that is unfolding, I highly recommend this video 'Crash Course' by Chris Martenson.

Not to be pushy, but it kind of directly affects your future so it might be in your best interest to make some time for it.

g.

Deadly Compounding

hey. you.

video.



enjoy.

-e

Tour Debrief

I've been home for a week now. Just over a week? I'm not really sure. My mind is still making it's way back from the west. I suspect my entire brain will never make it back. That's okay.

The final push home was a nightmare. Atlas had been having issues related to overheating since The Rockies. A phone call to my dad helped to isolate the problem. I don't know enough about motor vehicles. I am convinced that they run on a mixture of hope, magic, and will power. Just kidding, everyone knows they really run on two things; CASH and SOUL. Through cellular static my Dad explained to me that one of two things were wrong with Atlas:

1) Thermostat. Very cheap. Very easy to fix.

2) Water Pump. Not so cheap. Requires mechanic.

We replaced the Thermostat and lucked out. Atlas was eating up prairie highway faster than he had in weeks. Our tour schedule on the way home was pretty intense. We were driving 800km with shows at the end almost everyday. This isn't as much of a problem in a vehicle that can go faster than 90km/hr and doesn't require propane as a fuel source. Most places that supply auto propane don't have an employee certified to pump after 6pm. On fumes we arrived in Winnipeg and even made it to Thunder Bay where we were rewarded with an awesome night at Black Pirate's Pub.

Tim Lee (the wonderful man who sold us Atlas and arguably saved our tour) supplied us with a life line. It is a hose that allows us to transfer the propane from a BBQ tank into Atlas' tank. It is not a lot of fuel, but it will get you a little further down the road. The problem is that the road in Nothern Ontario is extremely fucking long. We went through a stretch of over 300km with no auto propane. We collected BBQ tanks and swaped them out whenever the chance arose. On our way to Sault Ste Marie for the evening's show at The Grande Theatre we ran out of fuel in Wawa. Unable to transfer enough fuel into the tank to make the show in time we were forced to cancel. This was unfortunate as Emeri's parents had driven from Kitchener to meet us for the show. However, thanks to them we discovered that the venue was not open on Sundays and regardless of our tardiness - there was no show that night anyways. Hmmm.

We slept in Atlas in a Tim Horton's parking lot. Their coffee tastes like dirt and nicotine but their parking lots are large and their washrooms are somewhat clean. The police banged on our door at 6am demanding to know what we were doing there and why we were doing it. After a brief explanation we hit the road, continuing homeward.

The next day Atlas' water pump broke. If you've been listening you'll know that is the other thing that could have gone wrong. That is a beautiful picture of our luck. After much fuckaroo we ended up separated and stranded. Thankfully the next day Emeri and Paul were able to get Atlas repaired. They picked Rob and I up in Sudbury. I honestly cannot remember how many more times we ran out of fuel on that last day. At least three. We made it home around midnight, disheveled, but intact.

Apologies to those of you in the east that were looking forward to a Vacuity fix. It wasn't in the cards this time around. Hopefully next time.

Now that we're home a little earlier than anticipated we have a few weeks until our rehearsal space comes back into our possession. It's time off. None of us are very good at taking time off for more than a few days. I have already half unloaded Fiver (our original van) into my basement. It is a cramped space that I share with 3 girls, a rabbit and a chinchilla. The company listens quietly and the melodies are coming out - all is well.

I will do my best to keep this blog updated and interesting. We're planning to write for the winter and tour again in the spring. With hopes of releasing our next album in the summer.

Oh plans!

g.

Tour Debrief

Burlington

Every time we have a show at The Red Rooster we post something about how much we like playing there. It is the simple truth. Clubs and bands jive. Some better than others. Plus, Ken, Vince and the rest of the staff kick ass. We get good vibes there. Then we can give them back.

Think about it - who doesn't like good vibes?

Get in on it tonight.

g.

Burlington

don't be a fool

Go here and listen. Realize the music is beautiful and then buy the new record.

The Dears

g

don't be a fool

home for 4 hours

I feel weird. What is a cupboard? Why is there stuff inside of it? Whenever I need something I usually look on the moving floor, assess how dirty it is and then proceed. At least I will be gone again shortly. Back in the van, back on stage. Is it ever gonna end? Do I ever want it to?

g.

home for 4 hours

Guelph show canceled! Thunder Bay awesome!

Too many canceled Guelph shows this year. We were scheduled to open for Jimmy Swift Band. They lost their drummer and have canceled their tour as a result. I love playing Guelph. It has an incredible nightlife. Mr. Smith wants to have us back as soon as possible and we want to be back as soon as possible. It won't be long.

Thunder Bay tonight was fucking awesome. Thanks for a great night everyone. We will be back in the spring.

Our good friend Katie has let us stay at her place again. THANKS KATIE.

Paul is cooking dinner. Then sleep. Long driving these days.

g.

Guelph show canceled! Thunder Bay awesome!

Land of the Living Skies

Land of the Living Skies

Fottergraphs frozen in time

Downtown Vancouver.

Farewell Breakfast with friends.

Atlas cools down. We look around in awe.
Scrapyard in Kelowna.
Wandering Osoyoos in the dead of night.
Nice view to wake up to.

Keg slayers. Pat and Jerimiah from Ponoka.

g.

Fottergraphs frozen in time

Quinzy

As promised:

Quinzy

Check 'em out.

Quinzy

Brooks. The little town that kicked ass.

Last night we played with a bloody brilliant band from Winnipeg. They are called 'Quinzy'. I will dig up a link for them when I have more than 25 seconds of battery life left. I am certain they would pop up in your favorite search engine though. Great guys, great sound.

Tonight we are playing in Brooks, Alberta. It is a small town of about 1500. Steve was kind enough to book us in very last minute. I don't think I even had a chance to post the show. He is a super nice guy. We are sharing the stage with a couple of touring erotic dancers tonight. It is very cool. I will not say much more as me Mum does check in on the blog. I wish I could get a picture of our bass drum that says Vacuity and a dancer but they frown upon pictures, which is understandable.

Tomorrow we are fixing Atlas.

g.

PS - we are not mechanics.

Brooks. The little town that kicked ass.

werd from Ponoka

Computers have become lost relics. Granola bars have become survival biscuits. What the hell is a blog anyway? We are on the home stretch. It will be followed by a slew of shows less than 1500km from our homes. Sunday morning we awoke in our amazingly sweet hotel rooms in Osoyoos. The sun was beaming in through my window from across the lake. I called the King Size bed that night though I certainly don't feel like a King.

Osoyoos is the only desert in Canada. It is a crazy place. My laptop is on the fritz so I will have to wait to upload pictures (pictures added). The lady at the checkout desk took a liking to us and allowed us to access the breakfast tray after hours. She also invited us to do Laundry. Paul is the only one of us who brought 18 pairs of everything. The rest of us are dying. We then realized we had a show in Ponoka the next night. Laundry had to wait.

Rob chugged Atlas through the Rockies once again. It was a clear night with only the occasional snow cloud lingering around the moon lit snow capped peaks. We were blarring Radiohead's Amnesiac through our improperly wired stereo. It created an insane remixed soundtrack to an equally insane visual through the windshield. We were almost out of propane when we entered the 'HIGH TRAFFIC DANGEROUS ANIMAL CROSSING AREA'. I shit you not. We spent the night in Lake Louise and fueled up in the morning.

We met a super cool guy named Pat in Ponoka. We went back to his place and with his friend Jerimiah in an attempt to help them finish off a keg. What a night. The road is kind, but you have to keep your eyes open.

Laundry + Calgary today.

Yay.

g.

werd from Ponoka

Vancouver

Today our friend Ryan from way back showed us around Vancouver. I can see why he moved out here. There seem to be a good number of people from Ontario who've relocated to BC. Pictures later.

Tonight we are going out for Mexican. Tomorrow morning we depart for Enderby...the town no one in BC has heard of...

g.

Vancouver

surviving the mountain descent

We sadly left Revelstoke behind. What a cool town.

Our descent from the mountains was slightly terrifying. Multiple 'Weather Changes Abruptly' signs were no joking matter. We quickly found ourselves in a raging snowfall in an avalanche zone. Mountain driver McFee cautiously steered us onward. We arrived at our friend Ryan's house in BC early in the night and had ourselves a good sleep. It is good to see a familiar face this far into the tour.

Tonight we play Vancouver. When I was 8, I lived in Victoria so I am wondering if I will see anything that I recognize while out here. We are cracking a bottle of champagne and lighting off fireworks on the coast of the pacific ocean.

The West has been conquered.

g.

surviving the mountain descent

AUDIO FIXED

sorry about that... i watched this video myself and realized some of the audio wasnt aligned properly... thats what happens when you edit a video for too long and just want to upload it already...

please rewatch it with enhanced dramatic audio!

enjoy,

Emeri

AUDIO FIXED

Black Mountains, White Knuckles

Atlas packed to the brim.
Atlas meet THOR. THOR meet Atlas. THOR say goodbye.... Goodbye THOR.
Roosters and fire extinguishers... need I say more?Mr. Bus Driver Man.
Yes.
Flat lands sunset.
Into the hills.
Regency Inn room view.
Another angle.

Last night was indeed awesome. Grant rocked on the sound board, and the people of Revelstoke rocked with us, and we rocked with them. It was fantastic. On the way there I pretty much gripped the steering wheel, and hoped for the best. A winding dark mountain road in the rain, dodging Transports and pulling over when the bus starts to smoke. 2 more pints of oil and we are back on the road. Running late... wait we passed the time zone... we are good again. Intense and rewarded by a great show in a great town. Cheap coffee and friendly peeps. Thank you Revelstoke!

r.

Black Mountains, White Knuckles

Mountain Pass

We are surrounded by mountains.

We drove into Revelstoke at 9pm last night. The bar was warm and the audience was great.

In the dark I knew we were surrounded by mountains but seeing them in the day is another experience entirely. I will not complain that my camera is out of batteries. It does seem untimely though.

Today's plan:

- get up for free breakfast
- nap until late checkout
- enjoy Revelstoke

I think I can handle that.

g.

Mountain Pass

Dangerous

There is much to report. There is a lot to tell. I can't even mentally summarize things anymore as the days are a little out of focus. A little faded around the edges. I wake up. I'm either in a bus, van truck, bus or getting into a bus, van, truck, bus. It doesn't matter. A few hours later I'm unloading and setting up gear. I'm in a shady bathroom learning that 'Reid blows real good 4 u'. The same shitty songs play in the clubs before and after our set. I'm playing 3 sets a night. We're debuting a song we've never played before. Back in the van, bus, motor vehicle of some sort. It doesn't matter. Onward, downward. I'm sleeping in Scooter's burnt out basement. The Twisters tell me to stop fucking around with these shit shows and start booking us into festivals. I'm drinking alcohol with Garret and Garth. A pretty waitress smiles at me. The RCMP knock on our bus door and ask why there are no plates. I'm drinking beer outside of Salty's Liqour. Someone asks me if they can have my sweater. My neck is sore from sleeping wherever I pass out. I'm loving almost every minute and secretly loving every other minute. Whenever a dark cloud passes over I think of the music and everything's fine. What day is it? Where are we today? The prairies stretch on endlessly, but now behind me. I miss my other life, but feel just as at home here. Nowhere. Scooter tells me we're all going to be millionaires. I wake up scared, not knowing where I am. This is chaos, but I like it? Strange faces, new places. I never know there names: Candy, Mandy, Andy, Mark, Matt, Matt, Matt, Paul, Emeri? I'm drinking Guinness with Tim Lee all the while he is saving our tour, and filling our brains with great ideas and stories. I love seasoned musicians. I'm sleeping on the floor. I'm wondering when we're gonna get a chance to stop for dinner. The Rockies lie ahead. Tomorrow is my turn to drive. I still don't like the sun. I'm in another small town for 8 hours. I'm back in the bus, van, car, truck.










I'm building an atom bomb in my basement.

g.

Dangerous