The month of April was a small musical whirlwind for me considering that I only play about two gigs a year as a band member and have not played solo shows since I retired from DJing in 2017. Yet somehow through some strategic planning back in January with Kavin Allensen, we parlayed two shows for April in Fort Worth and Austin to premier our new album, ‘Wide Skies‘. It started as a long-form companion to my 2022 solo work, ‘Callanish‘, but took on the Duo format when I realized that it was missing something unique to the mix that I couldn’t reproduce. Kavin and I work well like that, as we are like minded as well as have many of the same influences which we happily wear on our sleeves brightly. As we were finishing our 47 minute keyboard and guitar opus, my close friend Baird Blanton came into the picture. A video auteur, musical iconoclast, and South Austin legend, Baird took the basic tracks of Wide Skies to another place, creating a long-form video for the live performances. And then by complete coincidence, another band member, Joe Ben Clark, asked if I wanted to present any music at the second annual “Nerdfest” which he was booking for April 18th. We accepted which in turn lead to Kavin and I booking The Grackle Gallery for April 5th as a “Record Release Party”, and first show. Two solo gigs in one month. No problem, right?

I stop here to mention a few other things that came into the picture in March which played into this ever building busy-body month of activities:

• Joe Ben and I have been rehearsing a new psychedelic-rock trio called JBX since January. In the past, we played together in Treachery Of Others with Baird, but this project was put on hiatus due to our bassist Walter’s sudden exit from Austin. Joe and I were already working on new music together so we added Devin on bass with intentions of JBX playing at the 10th Annual PeteFest in East Austin on April 26th. Another gig.
• Around this same time, my pal in Arlington, Jeffery Christian called me to ask if I could play the Skippy’s Mistake Reunion party with his band, The Sultans on May 3rd. I naturally agreed as not only do we have major history together (see my ESP blog post) but I also love playing music with Jamey, Brent, and Jeff. I also figured that two ambient gigs along with two rock gigs in five weeks would be no big deal. Right?
• Then suddenly a house came into the picture. My Wife and I were NOT LOOKING FOR A HOUSE TO BUY. We were fine renting again for the time being. It was a sometimes conversation, if-the-right-house-came-along-again thing; we were not viewing, but we were saving actively like we always do. Then we ran into it in late March in our same quiet suburban neighborhood. In the next five days we drove by to look, set up a viewing, loved it, made the first offer, and was accepted. When the agent and title company sent over the closing timeline, I immediately saw that it was right smack in the middle of all of the April gigs. I was in for it…

April came along soon enough, the album was released worldwide on April 4th, and the record release party at The Grackle was a major success! Kavin and I played very well together, improvising a lot of the album on the spot. It was the largest crowd that I’ve ever seen at the gallery, friends and family everywhere. Baird said that it reminded him of South Austin underground happenings from back in the 90’s! Everyone sat through the entire 47 minute film and score in wrapped concentration. It was quite the fun little séance. Video and photographs below by Taylor Collins.

The ABGB show a week later was a completely different affair altogether. Large venue, multiple artists, and a beer-drinking crowd that was used to Texas troubadours, indie rock, and country swing. However, I knew it was our crowd when I spotted an Aphex Twin t-shirt on one of the kids. Nerdfest was soundscapes, dark ambient, experimental, and ECM styles all night long, where we fit in perfectly. Two shows down, Kavin and I really started to get our improvisations down well, and we sounded magnificent on the big stage. Maybe we will revisit more live shows together in Fall? At any rate, below is some video of the night courtesy of Linda Little.

This year was my third PeteFest as a performer and the 10th anniversary of the event. It’s absolutely my favorite Spring backyard party in Austin, and getting to play it every year is icing on that cake. Usually, Treachery Of Others plays it but due to Walter’s departure to Colorado, we were caught short a member. Luckily, Joe Ben and I had been woodshedding since January on a revival of his JBX project. With Devin from Grack Attack on bass, we quickly developed a barn-burning live set of covers and Joe originals. Our first gig went over very well at Petefest, and few more are planned for the future. Stay tuned! Photos by Jamie Clark.

A few days after Petefest, we closed on our house in Cedar Park. Somehow through the gigs, a heavy Spring at work, and the stress of finalizing the purchase, we made it out unscathed and right on the timeline. We started slowly moving in the week before my final gig of the season…The Skippy’s Mistake Reunion!

What can I say about my pals, The Sultans? We shared a warehouse back in the late 80’s and I sat in with them quite a bit at Skippy’s as well as The White Elephant Saloon when their drummer was out of town. They were THE HOUSE BAND in the 80’s and 90’s at The Mistake! With a tight repertoire of Stones, Beatles, Doors, Mott the Hoople, and some new wave, we tore through three full sets of music without any rehearsal beforehand. Yeah, we were having way too much fun, some flubs were made here and there, I probably played way too loud and Moonish which is what happens when I get excited playing a band that I love. For me, it was glorious to get back behind the Yamahas with these gentlemen. What a gas! Video and photos below.

What a heavy 5 weeks! I loved it. I’m going to spend the summer finishing two new projects with no more gigs until September. And I’ll be enjoying the new house and studio, thank you very much!