Tour Diary #1: Parade in the 9th Ward

Hello earthlings,

Sorry for our absence. You see, we were preparing for a massive east coast tour and, now, we're actually on it. This post comes to you from the mighty city of New Orleans, where the guy on the corner is actually a jazz legend and your aunt makes the best gumbo in town.

We left Austin at noon on Friday- loaded up our RV, met Matt's (our bassist) mom, and waked Travis by telling him that a homeless man had broken into the RV and was currently sleeping in it. He stormed outside in a rage to discover that it was just Pec- his roommate (nice prank, Marshall). Standing in his boxers and panting from adrenalin, Travis introduced himself to Matt's mom as the sane older voice of reason that would guide her son on a velvet rope tour of America.

So we left Austin and 8 hours later we were in New Orleans and we played a show and-what can I say- it was wonderful as always. I drive around the country sleeping on your couches and playing our songs and it's my job. How cool is that?
The Neutral Grounds is a folk coffee shop- too small for a rock'n'roll band- but we made it work. We packed in like sardines and rocked our hardest. Played the new songs. Played the old songs. It was a success and a proper start to a 5 week tour.

Yesterday, Allen took us around New Orleans. I think I've finally got a sense of the city. The vibe. Outside of Allen's house, the 9th Ward neighborhood parade (let by Quintron) was practicing for the upcoming Mardi Gras festivities. We followed them along their parade route and it was joyous. Rifle girls, trumpeters, and drum majors marched their way through "The Boys are Back in Town" and, while I've always hated that song, this rendition sent chills through my body (the good kind). New Orleans, beaten and bruised from the hurricane, still finds in her neighborhoods the spirit of the parade. I'm energized. I'm inspired. I'm ready for another Frontier Brothers tour.

- B