shows

San Francisco embraces the traveler w/ Strictly Hardly Bluegrass

Hardly Strictly Bluegrass
San Francisco always welcomes us with open arms and crazy fun free activities features thousands of people. Last tour we got to the Bay Area just in time for Bay to Breakers (see Hooch’s blog post); this time we got there just in time for Hardly Strictly Bluegrass. This is a MASSIVE (ie 600,000 people), three day long music festival held in Golden Gate Park. The best part – its FREE! It’s like Austin City Limits but four times as many hippies (remember, its free), spread out over a much larger park.

Occupy Wallstreet
Liza and I got there pretty late Sunday afternoon but still got to catch some classic acts like the Dark Star Orchestra, Gomez, and Emmy Lou Harris (she’s closed the festival every year since it began 11 years ago). I also saw my first “Occupy Wallstreet” sign there. Not knowing anything about the movement yet (this was a few weeks ago after all) I thought it pretty ironic- The festival is free because its funded by a guy who made a ton of money investing in stocks. Actually, I had a great conversation about the whole thing with a buddy of mine from SF. I’ll include some of that email exchange HERE, for those of you interested in my thoughts about the whole thing.

We had a free day in the area, which gave us a lot of time to relax at Ryan’s long time family friends’ the Burger’s (who have now hosted us three times, always very welcoming!) and catch up with friends from the usual: Rice, Ghana, high school, Austin, etc.

The SHOW
Our show at Kimo’s was cool for the following reasons:

• Great surprises of people who came to see us (thank you Facebook for connecting us all)
• Delicious Indian food before hand. My buddy Chek ate lamb brain. I tasted it. Very strong flavor.
• The Official Story was funky, talented, and super fun to dance to!
• Void 808 Band- cool guys whom we played with again the next night in Sacramento
• We freakin’ rocked

That about covers it. We’ll strive to play Strictly Hardly … next year? Either way I’m sure San Fran won’t disappoint as even if there aren’t absurdly fun large and free events to attend, there will be awesome people to hang out with.

Los Angeles / Tarzana

When i think about our time in Los Angeles a few Wednesdays ago I think mostly of the great people we spent time with.

• Our gracious host James Leffler was hilarious as usual (check these vids for examples of his humor)
•  Ben Carson threw a pre-party and is now the only person to make it to all of our LA appearances.
• Surprise Rice friends I did not realize live in the area including Lila and Will
• I saw Marty who I studied in Ghana with for the first time in a couple of years
• Joe – one of our Ashland buddies we met through Karrgo Bossa Jova -was an absolute hoot to hang out with. We had some lively and engaging discussions about the purpose and character of higher education, with many references to Harry Potter. Nothing more can be said that is fit for print.

We played an awesome show, as usual. Los Angeles really reminds me that when it comes to my life, it often comes down to this: I love people. I used to hate the city because of the traffic, the pollution, and the superficiality. But the fact that there are so many people I love there – cousins with babies in the belly, old camp friends, comedian advisors – I can’t help but enjoy myself.

The intensity of travel and the nonstop social interaction of our tours challenges the psyche. Yet, I get so much energy from the good people surrounding us, that even a week of sleeping on the floor can’t suppress my almost constant giddiness. I feel so lucky to have the opportunity to stay connected to these people distributed across the world.

Introductions: Liza

Let’s start with the basics: My name is Liza Mitrofanova and I’m accompanying your favorite Achachay! boys on their 2011 West Coast Tour. Why, you ask, do I have the supreme honor of making this pilgrimage? Well, it’s all quite simple, really. The only cosmic alignment that had to take place was their need to promote and sell merch on the road, my availability and pre-existing plans to forage into the West, and a tiny amount of social network intervention.

This is why there has been a random girl you probably don’t recognize popping up in the later posts by Jordan and the Ryan’s. So let’s get cozy – here are a few factoids about Yours Truly.

I was born in the wintery month of February in Siberia…. As a point of reference, pull up a map of Russia, now point with your index finger to the exact middle of that glorious country, and Voila! You have now, more or less, identified my birth place: Novosibirsk.

Three of the people I consider my parents are either biochemists or moleculuar biologists. Nevertheless, neither my sister or I have (or intend to) follow these career paths.

As is made obvious by my decision to embark on a six week tour in a van with three strangers, I like journeys, people, music, and all kinds of new experiences… preferably the ones you can’t predict. The elements just mentioned have brought me to an appreciation of Peruvian box drums and sharing yerba mate.

I don’t get homesick really ever (though I do love my family very, very much), but I do miss my 120 pound pooch. Home is where your dog is, I say.

All in all, I’m a pretty simple being, and all I want right now is to see the West the way Thomas Moran did… and despite all the domestication of the Wild that’s taken place, I’d say I’m feeling it.

Nice to meet.

-Liza-

Getting started in Norman

Later that night, they fixed the sign

Exactly one week ago we played in Norman Oklahoma, home of OU.

Hooch went to school here for a while, back when he thought he wanted to be a weatherman (yeah, Anchorman is one of his favorite movies) so it was cool to see the town and hear his stories. I even found a healthy, locavore place with Free Range turkey to get some grub (somewhat rare in OK).

Our show was sparsely attended. This wasn’t unexpected, since it was our first time playing there. Luckily we impressed the bookers, staff, and everyone in the bar so we’ll be coming back. We still filled up a page of emails on our signup sheet, and sold some CDs. I consider that a big success. The bar wants to set us up with a big name local so we can start building a bigger following. This is great! It’s how we start, every single time.

Since everyone was really supportive, digging every song, and we played for a couple of hours, we got a chance to test some new stuff out. We played one song that is sort of afro-beat influenced, and everyone gave us very positive reviews.  We’ll definitely be playing it again.

Another big positive was that we got to spend some time with Autumn and her family. They’ve been huge fans since Hooch joined the band, and are always very welcoming to us on the road. They make us feel so at home that I don’t even mind raiding the fridge for leftovers.  Here’s a pic of the kids – Rayann, Gunner, and Barak. We always love spending time with them .

All in all, a solid night with a big foot in the door to a new market. Great stuff.

Hooch promotes via text message before the show

The Q Spot: Right on cue…

Ahh the Q Spot. I grew up playing pool at the Q spot and now we get to play shows there. Pretty awesome. David is always great to us. From the Apple Pie shots to the great crowd that he has come out on Tuesday nights. It’s just great to come back to the Q. Another surprise at the Q spot is who I will see from my childhood. It’s always crazy to see people I haven’t seen in well… 15 years…. Every time there will be a couple of people I would never expect to see. It has always been that way in Enid but lately more and more people seem to come out and really dig the funk we are growing.

That pretty much sums up the evening. A great crowd and venue. Catching up with old friends and just having a great time. So far this little tour has been a blast! Gotta keep the good times rolling! Hooch out!

(PS: Most of these pics are from the after party at The Ramada)

Tilapia at IHOP?!?

Enid is where Hooch grew up. Fugly’s is one of his best friend’s brother’s bars – so when he heard we didn’t have Saturday booked he offered us the night. Even with only one day’s worth of time to promote, we got a decent crowd digging our grooves. We tried out some experimental new songs. They were received well. We also really enjoyed the high quality PA. It was possibly too loud because the room is a brick and tin box, but man the vocals sounded awesome.

Tilapia at iHOP?

For months, I’ve been saying I’d get the tilapia at either iHop or Denny’s. Everyone looks at me like I’m crazy. They assume I’ll have gastrointestinal issues for days. But it actually looks good to me, and its probably the healthiest thing on the menu. I like to eat healthily, finding protein on the road can be difficult since I only consume free range meat, and if I extend that to cage free eggs there’s almost nothing I will put in my belly at those all hours diners. Friday night, I finally ordered it!

The waitress gave me a horrified look. I immediately doubted my choice. “What – is it bad?” I asked. “I don’t know, no one’s ever ordered that before” she responded. The rest of the guys laugh maniacally. I mention something about fish and the waitress responds, “Tilapia – that’s a fish?”
OK i think, she really just doesn’t know what she’s talking about. My resolve is bolstered, and I stand by my decision.

Turns out, the Tilapia at iHop is good. I recommend it to anyone. Not only is it tasty, but it’s been over 48 hours and I’ve had completely normal bowel movements.

Enid, which is “DINE” backwards, I’ll always remember my for my first fishy late night diner experience.

Mini Tour to Oklahoma + Kansas + MO

We’re super excited to bring a bunch of new music back to one of our favorite states – Oklahoma – and branch out into new territory in Kansas and Kansas City, where we’ll catch up with new friends from SXSW.

Aug 15 in Stillwater, OK: The College Bar @ 10P

(invite friends to the facebook event)

Aug 16 in Enid, OK: The Q Spot @ 8P

(invite friends to the facebook event)

Aug 18 in Norman, OK: The Brewhouse @ 10P

FB

Aug 19 in Oklahoma City, OK: Belle Isle Brewery

(invite friends to the facebook event)

Aug 20 in Wichita, KS: The Pumphouse @ 9P

on FB

Aug 21 in Stillwater, OK: Ell’s #$%& Cancer benefit @ 5P

(invite friends to facebook event)

Aug 22 in Kansas City, MO: The Riot Room @ 9P

(invite friends to the facebook event)

Stubb’s in Austin 9/10/11 w Full Service

Quantity

1 @ $10.00 2 @ $20.00 3 + EP download @ $30.00 4 + EP download @ $40.00 5 + EP download + Free T-shirt @ $50.00 10 + EP + Free T-shirt @ $90.00

Mailing Address (for tix)

Our next big Austin show is going to be awesome: we’re playing at Stubb’s on September 10th, with Full Service and the Rafiki Project. We start at 9:30 P and will be done by 10:15 so don’t miss it!

We’re preselling tix now – call or text 512-626-7898 to arrange a meetup with one of us, or send your mailing address and $10 per ticket via Paypal (booking@achachay.com) and we’ll mail them to you. We fully expect this show to sell out, so grab one today!

Quantity

1 @ $10.00 2 @ $20.00 3 + EP download @ $30.00 4 + EP download @ $40.00 5 + EP download + Free T-shirt @ $50.00 10 + EP + Free T-shirt @ $90.00

Mailing Address (for tix)

July 4th weekend: Dallas, Galveston, Austin

We’re getting down for a crazy fun weekend celebrating American Independence. All shows will be at least three hours, meaning we’ll mix in our originals with a ton of fun covers. We’ll have quite an awesome time, so come party with us.

Dallas: Trophy Room, 10P
Friday July 1st
2714 McKinney Avenue
Dallas, TX 75204-2567
(214) 774-9395

Galveston: Float Pool and Bar, 10P
Saturday July 2nd
2828 Seawall Boulevard
Galveston, TX 77550-7745
(409) 765-7946

Austin: Thirsty Nickel, 9p
Monday July 4th
325 East 6th Street
Austin, Texas 78701
(512) 473-8891

Kind strangers in Durango

This post has been a long time coming… my apologies. Been busy playing all around Texas, composing new music, booking more tours, and recovering.

This was our second time playing The Summit, and they treat us well. This time was less violent (last time a guy punched someone out for saying he didn’t like the music…) but just as dance-y. We got invited to another after party, which was full fledged; DJ, sound system, honey whiskey, and another sunrise. Hooch wasn’t feeling it so he passed out in the car while Ryan and I socialized.

One of the coolest little things about Durango was this:

Ryan and I went to a Chinese food place to get some din-din. He asked these people at a table near us, “Excuse me, what’s that dish?” They responded, “We have no idea, its not what we ordered. Would you like it?” After some more pleasantries, they gifted us the dish. Then they proceeded to load us up with their rice, and the leftovers they weren’t eating. They were a local couple and some of the most generous and friendly people. They got excited about us playing, and even came to the show and stayed for the whole first set! They like Eric Clapton so we made sure to dedicate our “I Shot the Sherif” Cover to them (although technically I prefer and tend towards the original Bob Marley style). Really cool people. I think they ended up buying up a bunch of our merch too.

All in all, Durango was a good time. Missed Jack and Kat and the two-story bikes, but they weren’t around and staying in town made a lot of sense. Our new couchsurfing host Sunny was friendly as they come. She made the best veggie burrito I’ve ever had in my life. We’re planning on coming back on our next run our West, and I’m excited to get Sunny out on some rock climbing routes.

All in all our show in Durango was  a lot of fun.

Oh yeah, another interesting thing: There was a crazy bike race going on the weekend we were there called the Iron Horse Classic where cyclists race the train from Durango to Silverton. It’s some impressive distance like 40 miles and covers two mountain passes and thousands of feet of elevation, so its a big deal. The town overflowed with cycling enthusiasts, making it fun to bike on my little fold-up.

Achachay! will one day play a show like this in Durango.