11 Comments

Great post! Feel better and better days ahead.

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Well said. Hope you feel better. I played a show in Minneapolis once where we (Blowhole, a duo at the time) were "headlining", but the previous band was so loud the police shut the whole thing down before we'd even set up. So we played a whisper-quiet set of improvised tiny sounds. It wasn't the greatest musical set ever, but it sure was fun and an engaging challenge. I appreciated it and so did the audience. I guess the question is not the work itself, but how we do it.

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I also caught Covid in Reykjavik. There are so many sick people -- particularly tourists -- and almost no masks.

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author

Not sure where I picked it up but Reykjavik airport is one suspect - so crowded and yup hardly any masks

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Iceland is like Sweden, they're seeking infections as a path to elusive "herd immunity" https://tracingcovid.substack.com/p/tracing-brief-the-tools-were-not

Feb 23 2022 Iceland says it wants as many people as possible to catch Covid after lifting all restrictions (Independent UK) - “Iceland’s health ministry has said it wants as many people as possible to be infected with the coronavirus to achieve widespread societal resistance.”

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Pathetic behaviour by that other band. You should name 'em and shame 'em. Oh, and feel better.

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Hope you feel better, Damon. Props to you for being so professional and level-headed, especially since there were people there to see you.

My favorite/most annoying story like that is a guitarist who walked up to me as I was breaking down, pointed to my Deluxe Reverb and said, "Yeah, I'm gonna need that," and proceeded to plug in before I'd even finished packing up. I liked his bandmates (but not him) so I let him use my amp. Many years later, it's still a running joke, like when my wife orders an dish that looks better than mine, I'll slide it over to my side of table with a "Yeah, I'm gonna need that..."

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These are great conversations to have- hopefully the more we talk about it the more we foster a culture of consideration and respect between performers. I’ve had similar experiences and they can be difficult to negotiate.

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founding

Rudeness! That’s so punk rock! Stickin’ it to the man! Even when “the man” is your colleague and a neighborhood performance space. Were you able to tell that other band to grow the fuck up?

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Please tell us you were able to get the antiviral Paxlovid. We rely on musicians to raise our spirits. Please take care of yourself.

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Glad to hear you are on the mend. I’m sure that the Parisian audience who stayed for your inadvertent lowfi show will remember it as a powerful experience.

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