Being on the road is a strange reality for me I guess. Some of my friends were asking me today about the tour coming up and how it feels to be on a tour. I told them it is exciting and that I think I have one of the best jobs in the world. I mean, being in a band and traveling the world making music is a blessing that few people are able to experience. So, I thought I'd give you a quick snapshot of life on the road.
First of all, I usually sleep in because I usually stay up late the night before. Makes sense right? It takes me a while to unwind after a show and really, I just like to hang out at night. I keep my watch on California time, which helps me keep my body clock consistent through all the time changes. Living on the bus is like a really being on a small rolling apartment with ten or more people in it continually. As you can imagine there is lots of "stuff and things" everywhere and "excuse me I need to get by you again in the hallway." It looks glamorous to roll up in one, but after a month, it gets feeling really really small. One of the daily challenges is figuring out what my schedule is (cause it's different most days). Questions like "Where is a shower? Where's the bathroom? and Where is food?" are ones that I ask each morning. This can be tricky since we drive at night and wake up in a new city every day. I usually just search "coffee" on my phone and start heading that way. Mornin!
Aside from the logistical things about being on the road, I always look forward to meeting people and taking in the vibe of different cities. I love roaming around Denver, Seattle, Atlanta, New York and Chicago. Wow, these are all amazing places that each holds stories and memories for me. I'll just start walking and get lost in a city for a few hours. As long as I have my phone, wallet and tour pass, I can do just about anything. One of the most unique things about touring is living with your friends and working shoulder to shoulder. We are on a journey together with music that we believe in whole heartedly and that is a rare thing. I look forward to running into you in your city.
-Drew Shirley
See the source article here.
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It's out. This week marks the birthday of our seventh recorded work. A collection of musical ideas wrestled into specific form and presented as a complete statement. If we were living in the time of Bach or Beethoven I might be referring to our seventh concerto or symphony. Today I am referring to a collection of digital ones and zeros that we still call an album. It seems a little surreal to be holding the finished product, or even weirder to see a stranger walking down the street with one tucked under their arm.
Two years of my life represented on a few ounces of round shiny plastic and less colored cardboard than I throw away with a venti chai latte. We celebrated the release date here in San Diego playing a few acoustic songs for an electric audience of family and friends. My favorite moment of the night was when a little boy in the crowd broke the ice shouting, my soccer team is named the Hurricanes! Out of the mouths of babes... That pretty much summed up all the excitement in the air tonight. What a gift it is to play these songs! I am honored to be part of this moment when these songs are being heard for the first time. I hope they move you as much as they move me. Go Hurricanes!
-Chad Butler
See the source article here.
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On Tuesday our record came out. We leave for L.A. in the morning and then head east. I still find the whole idea of modern travel fairly incredible. I find it remarkable that in a few weeks time I will be on the other side of the country- looking out across an ocean that is not the Pacific. And it's not just physical travel that impresses me- almost everything around us moves incredibly quickly. I am typing these words on a laptop that will wirelessly transmit this message to be read by you, the reader, wherever you may be. Or take in this modern marvel: our entire record (songs that took three years to conjure up!) can be downloaded in a few minutes. These are truly incredible feats.
And yet, most of our modern technological achievements are implemented in an attempt to accomplish the foundational elements of the human experience: communication, community, identity, self-expression... With all of our "progress" we are no closer to answering the timeless questions that define our lives. We are looking for answers. Facebook, Twitter, MySpace... we are social beings looking for meaning, purpose, and relationship. Who am I? What is meaningful? What is worth living for? Technology cannot define these things. We define these answers with our actions. "Who am I? Well, maybe I'm a guy who spends way too much time on his laptop! What is meaningful, or worth living for?" Apparently, (judging from my use of the time I've been given on the planet) this laptop sure is!
I'm not knocking technology, (as I already mentioned that I'm using a laptop to write these thoughts down!) but I am saying that every blessing is a curse. The incredibly sharp blade of the binary world can be used for good and for evil. I know first hand. I'll be using cell phones, emails, Skype, and all the rest to try and connect with my loved ones while I'm gone. But I miss the physical element the most. I guess I'm simply a voice in the digital world crying out for an analog conversation. Physical hands holding each other. Physical eyes looking at one another, looking around at this planet and marveling at it. None of us are immortal. These hearts only beat for so long. So don't wait! Why talk to Facebook for another hour? Shut down your computer, give your daughter a kiss and take a walk with your wife.
-Jon Foreman
See the source article here.
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Here I am the day before our new album is released feeling a bit contemplative as I think back over the last two and a half years of the recording process and the remarkable journey the five of us have gone through in making this album. I feel so proud to be in a band with Chad, Drew, Tim and Jon. I loved seeing how the songs have grown from a tiny idea to where it is now.
Jon, thank you for allowing me to help you sculpt these very personal songs. It's truly an honor. Tim, your vision for the details of the tunes has not gone unnoticed. The final product is a reflection of that. Chad, not only are you an awesome drummer, but your encouragement throughout this whole recording process has been so welcomed and much needed. Drew, not only do you push the boundaries of creativity, but you've also helped me to push my own boundaries of creating music as well.
To me, you are the "fountain of sound." I feel like the five of us have just gone on a roller-coaster, inching its way to the highest peak. Looks like we're just about there... I begin to raise my hands... here we go! Hello Hurricane!
-Jerome Fontamillas
See the source article here.
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Last night was actually pretty emotional for me and I think it was for the other guys too. We played the entire new record live, front-to-back, for the first time ever, for a sold-out hometown crowd here in San Diego. It marked the end of a long journey making this record and the beginning of a new one as we begin touring these songs around the world. We've poured so much into these songs over the past three years and it feels a bit surreal to see this album finally breathing in the daylight.
Playing twelve new songs in a row that people haven't yet heard is a real stretch for almost any audience to sit through and we were really blown away by the enthusiasm and excitement that was expressed last night from the crowd. It was as if they had shared in the journey with us, as if these songs were connecting with them in the same way that they connect with us. What a gift. We are truly thankful. Hello Hurricane.
-Tim Foreman
See the source article here.
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