4/26/09 Skipper's Smokehouse, Tampa, FL

We rolled into Tampa around 8am, and since our hotel rooms weren't ready yet, the bus hit up a Walmart where those who were crazy enough to be awake did some shopping. I half slept in my bunk until 10am when my hotel room became available (thanks to Charlie for hooking me up with the first room!!), and then continued my slumber in a real bed until soundcheck time.

The venue was a bit like "Gilligan's Island" as Steve had warned, but it was an interesting change from the run-of-the-mill venues we had been playing on the tour. It was outdoors, but luckily it was a beautiful sunny afternoon and not too hot. Soundcheck was pretty minimal since production was running late, and while we waited for showtime, we dined on some very mediocre food in the venue's restaurant. I do not recommend the grilled cheese! Kimock fans Pam, Andy, Alan, and Cindy joined us for the grub, so at least the company was good!

The first set was a bit shaky, since I think we were all a bit dazed from a poor night's sleep, and the show's early start of 5:30pm certainly didn't help either! We all woke up a bit for the second set, and it was quite the marathon, clocking in at exactly 2 hours. We closed the set with "It's Your Thing," and I did my signature rock star jump, with the additional excitement of being able to jump off the drum riser, adding a good foot or so to my leap. I need to remember to stretch first next time!

The show ended early, and the group sans The Girls (but plus our bus driver!) hit up the Perkins next to our hotel for some dinner. My bad milkshake luck continued, as I soon learned that the Perkin's milkshake machine was broken (are you kidding me?!?!). For those not following along with the previous blog entries, this was failed attempt #3 at getting a milkshake on this tour...I am doomed! (Charlie snapped this candid shot of me lamenting over lack of milkshake). We all enjoyed our food and some silly antics with various jelly packets and creamers, and then hit the hotel for the night.

4/24/09 Revolution, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Click here to stream free audio of the show!

We arrived in Ft. Lauderdale around 1pm after driving all night from South Carolina. I did some sleepy math that 8 hours of sleeping on the bus barely amounted to even half that of actual sleep, so I was glad to grab a nap at the hotel before soundcheck.

The venue was probably the most impressive yet of the tour. Very nice stage and soundsystem, and cool layout with sizeable dance floor and 2 balconies around the perimeter. I was worried about the sound due to the size of the venue and the shiny wooden floor of the stage, but Brian got everything dialed in nicely, and I found the sound on stage to be quite good.

After soundcheck, I had some dinner with hardcore FGC fan, Zach, who was pumped to have any member of FGC in his home state. Oddly enough, it seems that big boy Zach has "switched teams" in the dietary department, going from Midwest-style hearty steak and potatoes to strictly salads. Quite an interesting dinner witnessing Zach dive into a bowlful of greens!

The show went off well, and while the crowd seemed kind of far away due to the high stage, I think it was one of our largest crowds yet on this tour, and they were dancing and enthusiastic. We didn't stretch out too much in the jam department at this show, with the exception of "Ice Cream," which went some cool places. "Tangled Hangers" had some interesting turns, but never really took off the way it did on the 4/20 Annapolis show. Second set's "Why Can't We Be Friends?" got the crowd engaged and Melvin and The Girls worked 'em pretty good.

After the show, I couldn't wait to get back to the hotel, but as luck would have it, was not able to fall asleep as quickly as I wanted. Oh well, at least I will be nice and tired for my overnight drive to Tampa tonight.