If they're the third best, what are we...?

We went in the morning to Powell’s City of Books, and browsed for a while. It’s an amazing bookstore. There is a new Haruki Murakami collection of stories that I really want to get. I’ve read all of his books, and he’s one of my favorite authors. Chuck Klosterman also has a new book out that looks interesting. Essays and such. His writing is good for reading on trains. Across the street at Jackpot Records, I got the new Magnolia Electric Co. CD, ‘Fading Trails’. It’s a collection of songs from four different recent session in different studios, and it sounds like a collection. There are some very good songs, on there. Jason Molina has been consistently putting out good music for so long now. It’s inspiring. There’s a new Tara Jane O’Neil record out now that I really want to get. Justin Timberlake, too.

So we went to Edmonds, WA to this new venue called Halcyon. The bill was only Hotel Alexis and Tiger Saw. With no locals, only a few of our friends came out to the show. The place is really nice, and the people running it are cool. Sid, Gregg, and I did a long spacey jam for sound check. Then Tiger Saw played. Chris Barrett joined us now on trumpet, and Sid sat in on guitar, too. We played a good set. Very dense. Hotel Alexis played, with Chris Holt guesting on keyboard, Chris Barrett on trumpet, and I sat in on guitar. It was so fun playing with Hotel Alexis again. It’s been a while. I easily remembered all the songs. It’s so fun being here, playing with all these friends. After the show, we went back to Sid’s for the night. I slept on the floor. He just moved into this house, so there’s no furniture yet.

We drove to Salem, OR. The birthplace or the Erector set, and allegedly the meth capital of the west coast. A girl at the café asked Jarid to sign her Unbunny CD and her typewriter ribbon. She said Unbunny was her third favorite band, after Tammy Wynette and another rotating, unspecified artist. Jarid was pleased an embarrassed. The show was really fun. Café Noir is a wine and coffee bar, but lots of people came out just for the show. Unbunny opened the show, and they played a tight set. Jarid is such a great songwriter. His songs are the classic hits of tomorrow. It’s so nice to be able to see them play this week. Testface was next, and they played the best set I have ever seen them play. Dave had a whole new crew tonight, and played a more subtle, nuanced set. They had weird keyboards, trombone, guitars, background singing. It was a real accomplishment. Everyone was really excited about Testface tonight. Just powerful, without being forceful. The Hotel Alexis played next, with both Chris’s, but not me. They also played a more subdued set, and it was really fun to watch. Everyone feels like they are on tonight. Tiger Saw played with Dave from Testface on bass. He didn’t know any of the songs, but we called out the chords and changes, and he was great. I think the show was a really good on. It was loose and fun, and people seemed to enjoy it. We had these great chocolate-dipped macaroons and Russian Tea cookies. Yum! After the show we all went back to Portland and stayed at various houses for the night.