I am sad to say this is our last “On The Road” with The Rocketboys. : ( I can’t wait until they come back to South Carolina so we can work with them again. They are finishing up this tour tomorrow night in Austin.
Our last entry comes from Mitch of The Rocketboys.
After our second round of Ohio dates, we ventured into new territory in Carmel, IN, and played a sweet show at The Warehouse, where they grilled us some burgers (veggie burgs for Brandon). We stayed with a friend’s parents that night and made our way to Cardinal Country the next day to play at Off Broadway in Saint Louis.
The first time we played at Off Broadway was about three years ago (pre-Justin days), and we played for the bartenders, the sound guy, and the other band. Because Dear Future is from the area, we were hoping for a bigger turnout than the first time. Our expectations were met and a solid crowd showed up, despite there being other competitive indie shows that night. Dear Future had the next day off so Dear Future Brandon and his girlfriend could go to a Coldplay concert, so the majority of DF went back to Du Quoin after the Saint Louis show. We drove about an hour north and stayed with Marshall, one of DF’s roommate’s friends. Hung out with those dudes for awhile, then went to bed.
Before we left for Springfield, IL, the next day, we watched The Hangover … twice … on a bootleg DVD (Note: bootleg DVD’s get a bad wrap. They aren’t that bad if you don’t mind seeing random people walk across the screen in the theater where it was illegally taped). After the movie finished the second time around, we headed to Springfield.
In Springfield we played with So Long Forgotten and Skies Revolt at Blacksheep Café, another venue we’d played a few years before for a couple lucky souls. The show was awesome and we had a great time, and we were happy that Blacksheep has a real stage now. After the show we drove seven hours to Memphis, mine and Brandon’s hometown. Getting in at 7 a.m., I slept for a few hours and then went with my parents to pick up my lovely fiancé, Lindy, from the airport so she could spend the last week of tour on the road with us. Mrs. Kinder made The Rocketboys and Dear Future her famous build-your-own burritos before the show. We had several hours before the show to recover from the huge Mexican meal, so we headed over to Young Avenue Deli to prepare for the evening.
The Memphis show was like a Brandon-and-Mitch high school reunion, and there were about 200 people that showed up for the night of great music. Our friends in Memphis band Streetside Symphony played a great set and were fun to hang out with. Young Ave Deli hooked us up with tons of free food and sent us on our way.
Mark Mattingly, DF’s manager, hung back with us in Memphis while they drove to Little Rock. The Rocketboys, minus me and Lindy, took Mark on his first excursion to Graceland Too in Holly Springs, MS. If you’ve never heard of Graceland Too, a mere blog description won’t do it any justice, but I’ll try my best.
Graceland Too is the brainchild of the infamous Paul Macleod — the self-proclaimed “universe’s, galaxy’s, planet’s, world’s most number one Elvis fan”. Paul has spent most of his adult life collecting Elvis memorabilia and compiling it all in his Mississippi plantation-style home. Graceland Too is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year and costs $5 for your first three visits (after that you’re a lifetime member). The Rocketboys are proud lifetime members of Graceland Too, and we were happy to start Mark on his journey to become a lifetime member. There’s something different in every tour and it’s the most fun when you go in the middle of the night.
The next day, we slept in and left for Little Rock in early afternoon. Deas Vail joined us and DF at the Rev Room in Little Rock, where we played a pleasant Sunday night show. Deas Vail will be joining us for most of the rest of the dates on the tour. We’re excited about that.
Dignan somehow ended up in Little Rock that night and stayed where we were staying. It was great to see those guys and gals sleeping on the floor when I woke up that morning.
We have a few days left on the road. When we get back to Austin, I’m sure we’ll shower, eat, sleep, and enjoy being home. Please stay tuned for our upcoming full-length record, 20,000 Ghosts, which will be available on iTunes September 29. We’ll be on the road for three weeks in October and we’ll be hitting up Columbia on that route. We love you guys and hope the rest of your summer is awesome!
