Sweetness Follows

Contacts dry. Dehydrated. No dinner. Drank a skunked Sam Adams that’s been in the fridge for months. Listening to REM’s “Sweetness Follows” (“It’s these little things that pull you under / Live your life filled with joy and thunder”). Fresh from rehearsal…

I foisted all kinds of new wrenches on the band. Todd’s never played a big rock show with us (just the acoustic show with Julia), so there’s that to adjust to. Ran through the basics. Hit our stride on “Summer’s Gone” (of course, as always) and with that confidence, tossed “Hollywood Arms” and “California” onto the pyre. Mass confusion. With the clock ticking, began to find our way inside both.

Kicked “Hollywood Arms” up a few keys, lent it a Wilco/Rolling Stones circa “Country Honk” vibe. “California” rocks now, hard, a la Oasis. It earned a new refrain at the end, “I won’t fall down,” almost shouted.

So I can assure you many leaps of faith Wednesday night. I assume we’ll land them all. If not, we’ll be better for the endeavor. Don’t miss it.