We take off from Scott's in Chicago around 4am by my estimation...Bobybag Bob is riding along with us this time as well. Figure we had the room in the van, we may as well take whoever wants to ride along. Plus, it gives the riders in the Gravehill Durango a bit more room...
I crashed again. Have you been keeping track? I slept in the van every day so far during this tour...Mike drove a part of the way and when we gassed up, Bob took over...It was nice to not have to drive for awhile.
The drive was not bad, but then again, I slept through it all...We make it to the Pittsburgh area, and that's when the "fun" began.
I don't know if anyone reading this has driven in Pittsburgh before...It is a clusterfuck...It is not on a grid system, people there drive like shit (Jim is from that area, so his driving skills make sense now) and areas are just really crowded...Plus, there was a lot of construction which added to the confusion.
As stated, Jim is from that area, so I figured we would be fine. Turns out, Jim was not familiar with the area we were going to. And now his robo fuhrer (GPS) was not cooperating either...
We were somewhere in this hilly area. Bob is still driving...He is doing fine, but there were so many short stops, turn arounds, twisting, turning, etc. I was getting fucking sick. I used to get motion sickness a lot when I was a kid, and I have not felt as miserable since then...
We were all going to stay at my friend Ed's house. And we were just having a hard time finding it.
And, now for Tom Tour Freak Out #3
As said, the directions were just taking us everywhere...Jim is navigating and a turn comes up too quick and he tells Bob to turn, but it was too late...He attempts the turn, couldn't do it and my stomach got jostled for the last time...
"STOP THIS FUCKING VAN RIGHT NOW!!"
At this point, no one knew what was going on with me. I was sick, miserable, and cranky because of it. Jim thought I was fucking with him, but I wasn't...I needed to get my feet on the ground...Besides, I was going to call Ed and see if he could give us better directions since it is his city...And it is difficult to do this when we are moving. I just wanted to stay put somewhere...
We find a parking lot in a particularly seedy looking area in Pittsburgh...I fly out of the van. Had a bottle of water and was much better. No folks, I did not blow chunks...But someone did before the night was over... :)
I called Ed, and he figured out where we were at and came and met us. This way, we would just follow him back to his pad. As we were waiting, I get a call from Thorgrimm and they are at Ed's...Jim's mom was also at Ed's waiting on her loving son...Awwwwww :) Go figure...The knuckle heads from California find Ed's place without a problem and a former Pittsburgh area resident can not...Score one for the Gravehill robo fuhrer!
So Ed meets us, and I ride back with him to his place while the van followed...I noticed that Ed picked up a 30 pack of Rolling Rock and a 30 Pack of Busch for us. What an excellent host!
We get to his place and Jim takes off for the day to spend time with his mom. We all hang out at Ed's. Another great break in the travel as we had several hours before we had to get to the club. Those that wanted to sleep did just that...others did laundry, showers, etc. We watched Night of the Creeps on Blu Ray, which was awesome. Ed and his wife Romina also cooked for us. I just want to say this...it is awesome to eat real food when on the road...After the last two days now, we were getting spoiled...
A funny thing happened too...Mike was out of stage blood...He asked Ed if there was a place to get any around...Are you kidding...in the Zombie Capital?? Of corpse!! Romina took Mike to get the blood, which I believe Mike bought what was left...
Ok, now on to the gig. It was dubbed the Ibex Moon Fest. It was at Belvidere's, which was not too far away from Ed's place.
Incantation
Gravehill
Cardiac Arrest
Funerus
Abysme
What a line up!!
As soon as we pull up, I see my friends Bryan (Burn), his wife Nikki, her sister Kory and her hubby Brad. This is my Cinema Wasteland crew and I was stoked to see them. But, I had work to do (unloading) so our reunion would have to wait...
Lots of friends at this show...The Ibex Metal Family as I now call it...It was great to see Jill, (John's wife and bassist/vox of Funerus) again as well as all the other cast of Ibex characters...And Jill even brought food for all the bands! How cool it that??
All goes well and the show is delayed a bit, but we still needed things to run smoothly. I was restringing my guitar, so I didn't get to watch most of Abysme or hang with my friends...I heard them though and they sounded crushing. I was glad to be able to hear them as I have known their bass player Michael for some time now as he is another Cinema Wasteland regular...
I did manage to get done and caught their last two songs...During the break, I hung out with Burn and crew...Anthony Matthews showed up (another Wasteland regular and director of the upcoming Revenge Is Her Middle Name) and it was great to see him...Ed was around, but we all noticed that he was loaded...lol...Other friends that showed was Tony Mollick, who made Adam's Custom V and Timmy Aymar (singer of Control Denied, Pharaoh, etc)
Funerus is up next...I was really looking forward to seeing them again...Every time I have seen them they have kicked my ass. This time was no different. Fuck, one of the heaviest death metal bands around in my opinion.
We were up next, and both bands were a tough act to follow. I think we did well and had a great time. The response was awesome and I really couldn't ask for more.
Gravehill was next and they did their thing as always. You would think by now, I would be sick of them, but it was not the case. They continued to impress me night after night.
Incantation was next...What do I really need to say? They killed as they always do. I always have a lot of fun watching them...
Throughout the night, I was hanging at the merch table and wandering around. Kyle had a set up to show the trailer to the upcoming Afterparty Massacre, he and Kristoff Bates' debut horror film...
But I was in a great mood and just felt really good about things...3 awesome shows in a row...
When Hod decided to drop off the tour a few days prior, I pleaded with them to stay...Kansas City was unexpected, but I knew that Chicago and Pittsburgh would have been great...and they were...We were getting better off financially and the crowds were awesome. Again, 3 awesome shows in a row and we were all in great spirits...
But where was Ed?? We were going back to his place to crash and he was nowhere to be found...
Well, Ed was loaded as I said and got even more loaded, so he was in no shape to drive. Remember what I said about someone loosing their lunch earlier? There ya go!! We had to get him home. There was no way I could because I had been drinking all day and night. David, Adam, and Mike were the only ones that did not drink in the Cardiac van...Mike had to drive the van, so that left David and Adam. David stepped up and got Ed home...We finished loading out, said our goodbyes to everyone, and headed back to Ed's...We had no problems getting back. I actually rode back in the Durango this time for a change of pace.
We get back and had to find parking...It is difficult, but doable...just quite a few blocks down...Some slept, some partied. Tony showed up at Ed's and hung with us a bit. I then got a "what for" from the cops that drove by. I was standing on the sidewalk drinking a beer and they stopped me. I got the whole Pittsburgh law thing and public intoxication threats, as I gingerly and kind of sarcastically tip toed onto the bottom step of Ed's porch and apologized saying I wasn't from here and didn't know...They just told me to stay on the porch...Cool, I suppose...
After another night of debauchery, it was time to crash. David opted to sleep in the van. What?? I was not sleeping in the van??? Surely you jest!!
No bed or couch, so I ended up on the floor...I guess that is the problem when you stay up all night drinking...you can't stake a claim!
I woke up (first one again) and grabbed another shower. Ed's wife Romina was up next and we hung out for a bit as I have not seen her in awhile so we played catch up. Everyone else started waking and getting ready. I think Ed was the last one to rise and with good reason! Ha ha! Now worries Ed, it happens to the best of us!
I got tired of waiting around, so I thanked Ed and Romina and we headed out to the next gig, which was in Allentown, PA. Only about a 5 hour drive, so another easy haul. This time, Corpsie rode with us...All is well!!
And now, the special thanks for this entry...
Ed and Romina. You guys were just so great to us. Thank you for letting me and 8 other people you never met stay at your place. Thanks for the beer and the food! Thanks for the showers and the use of the washer and dryer...In short, thanks for everything!! It is super-mega appreciated by all of us!!!
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