Penfold, The Volunteers

Belated show journal...

Larry called me to let me know that Roger was going to miss his set, but with a valid excuse. I was already at Matchless with no guitar- so, we'd just get a little later start. Penfold arrived with a cool guitar I'd never seen before. As the clock starts to creep past 9 I begin to get a bit nervous. I'd never met Spider before, and besides being very anxious for her to play, I was just anxious in general with the first two musicians MIA.

The clock headed straight for 10pm, then Penfold started to play. A few minutes later Spider walked in with a friend. She'd tried to call the bar and didn't have my number. Only later did I find out from one of the owners that the bar phone was broken. If nothing else the night was a learning experience. There is always some detail or emergency or contingency I didn't plan for.

At this point though, I didn't know what to do. I wasn't sure how long Penfold's set would last, and I wasn't sure how anxious the Volunteers would be to get going with their set. Penfold generously offered to play for 30 minutes, giving Spider a 30 minute window to play. Of course, tear-down and set-up are my old nemesis time-eaters and the 30 minutes was quickly melting to 15 or 20.

All the guys from the Volunteers were so easy-going. Dan came up and said that they didn't mind waiting, and they'd like for Spider to play a longer set. She has a very distinctive voice, and a whisper-quiet delivery that captivates an audience.

After Spider, it was the Volunteers giving their first-ever acoustic performance. They are indescribably good. Dan is a truly gifted singer and every song has an irresistable hook. All these boys can PLAY! Don't miss any opportunity to see these guys in action.

Night wraps itself up and I can't remember falling into bed like I always do, but it was the sleep of angels.