Riley's myspace has been updated again, check it out below:
15 may 2008, 12:00 a.m.
Zanax, great for a plane flight...Bad for a gig...by Riley
Just two hours into Hank and I's flight across the pond, a voice came over the intercom informing us that our plane, american flight 136, would be making an "emergency landing"... I dont think it effected either one of us too much as we had both just takin a little zanax to help calm the nerves and put us to sleep... So far so good... Untill about six hours later when we were finally on another plane and half way back to Londons Heathrow airport, when I had the bright idea to take another zanax, as the first was wearing off and i needed sleep before the big gig.. At this point we were four hours from landing, and six hours from stepping on stage for our first of seven shows on our UK TOUR. Needless to say, once we arrived and made it to Birmingham, I was feeling very slugish and out of it.. So what does a guy do in that situation? Drink!... Bad idea 2.... Ya see, zanax mixed with alcohol is not such a good thing for your motor skills, but of course I didnt realize that untill about halfway through the first song. It was then that I realized I was in for the show of a lifetime.... The rest is all a blur for me that night, but what I do remember was how intent the crowd was... Usually a good thing, but for that 45 minutes I felt like I was under a microscope. I do remember the entire place singing "Trouble" at the top of there lunges and for that I thank you.. Not only did it help me remember the words but gave me a nice break from actually singing myself:).... And of course I sort of remember "missing my stool" as I went to sit down during some song.. But it gave me a good oppurtunity to show everyone that I could indeed play guitar on my back... (If anyone has pics or video of that, please burn it, I dont need to be reminded)
All in all it was a good show! From what Hank said, we played every song at half speed, which could or could not have been a nice change up. Im trying to look at the bright side of this learning experience;).. And the best part was, we got to meet and play for some really amazing people from all over the world! Thank you to everyone that was there for sticking with me through the show and being such dedicated cool fans of the music!
The rest of the tour so far has been great! We played a cool loft looking place in manchester and last night my favorite bar from last novembers tour, the portland arms in cambridge. With the coolest sound guy in the world, JAZZY... Really thats his name, and he is such a rad guy! Today we finally have a much needed day off! We were suppose to go to London and see the sights, but hank is currently sawing logs about ten feet from me, so Im assuming that is not happening. But its on to Bristol tomorrow and our last two shows in London saturday and sunday. This tour has given Hank and I a chance to try out some new material, which has been a lot of fun. Getting automatic feedback on new stuff is always the most honest and humbling experience. But best of all, having an entire bar sing all your lyrics back to you has got to be the biggest joy of all. Everyone night I well up with goose bumps just realizing that most of these lyrics were just songs in the shower two years ago, and now large groups of strangers turned friends are singing them back to me... For that I thank you.. Its my pleasure...
Riley Source: Riley's Myspace
And what's the moral of the story? Zanax mixed with alcohol is not such a good thing for your motor skills. So don't try this at home girls/guys! LOL. |