Roadwork: The Parson Red Heads, Part Three

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Roadwork is a recurring feature on Web in Front, one in which members of our favorite Los Angeles bands scribble, shoot photos and quietly fall asleep in the backseat of the van as they crisscross the roads of America and beyond while on tour. December’s Roadwork entries are from members of the Parson Red Heads, written as the band performs their magisterial Californian country-rock on the road with Blitzen Trapper.

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Roadwork: The Parson Red Heads, Part One (Denton/Dallas, TX)

Roadwork: The Parson Red Heads, Part Two (El Paso, TX)

By Evan Way (vocals, guitar)

Hey, y’all!!
Been a bit since we’ve updated you on our progress on the road. I believe we left off at Thanksgiving (and oh what a Thanksgiving that was…never has so much gross Denny’s gravy been seen before or since).

The day after Thanksgiving we drove to Tucson, AZ. It was an easy one–-only four hours, and the sights were really beautiful. It was a real quiet and thoughtful stretch of road–lots of mountains and wide open skies. And we got to see a really perfect Arizona sunset through the clouds.

The venue that night was an incredible art space called Solar Culture. It was located right by some train tracks, and minutes after we arrived we were greeted by a huge freight train flying by. Pretty thrilling, being five feet away from something that huge and fast–also kinda terrifying. It was a fun way to start the night, though.

Followed that up with a great home cooked meal by the owners of the venue (some curry, rice, and what seemed to be left-overs from Thanksgiving dinners). By the time we got on stage, the place was totally full, and we played a set to a really, truly amazing crowd. They were so great. They danced and hollered. We had a SUCH a great time. And of course, we were followed by Blitzen Trapper, who just killed it. What a night it was!

After the show the Trappers and Parsons found a cool bar in downtown Tucson called The Surly Wench, which sported air hockey table, to everyone’s delight. What transpired after the discovery of the table was a truly epic tournament, which tested everyone’s might and mettle. Man after man (and woman) fell to the wily David Swensen of Team Parsons. After he disposed of the Trapper boys, he turned his sights onto his fellow team, and quickly disposed of us, as well. All hail David Swensen, King of Air, Duke of Hockey.

After a comfortable (kind of) and smokey (extremely) night spent at a Tucson Motel 6, we woke up early and headed to San Diego. This drive really felt long. Only 6 hrs or so, but it definitely tested our durability. We went directly to dinner, to our favorite little Italian Pizza/Pasta place in Little Italy. Had a good time (drank some good wine, personally, and David – the aforementioned champion–had himself two espressos! What a man!). Then we made a quick drive by the airport and picked up our man Charlie Hester (who some of you
may know). Charlie has been a Parson for years. He moved to LA with us in the very beginning, but now resides in Portland, remaining as a member of our permanent touring lineup. He is along for the rest of
the tour as our third guitar player, as we have to leave Aaron Paul Ballard in LA for work reasons. My sister, Erin (our keyboard player and tambo queen) also met us at The Casbah. So we were at more than full strength for this show–a giant 7 members on the small Casbah stage. The show was completely sold out, and we got to see some familiar faces, which was great. The sound for us on stage was a little off (largely because we weren’t able to get a soundcheck or linecheck, really). But we still had a good time, and I think/hope played a decent show for everyone who came out.

We drove home after that show, all the way back to LA, to stay in our own beds for a change. The next morning we had to be at The Echo at 11am for a really exciting event – a Kidrockers show with our pals Henry Clay People. What is Kidrockers, you may ask? Well, let me tell you. Two bands play 4 or 5 song sets, followed by question and answer sessions. People can only attend if they bring at least one child with them (thus the name … duh). So we got to play a great afternoon rock show to a great crowd of eager kids. They were a great audience. We handed out a bunch of tambourines and shakers, and invited a good

10 to 15 kids on stage, and had a real party. Those kids can really play! They put us to shame!

It was a real Echo Park day. After the show we walked down to Brite Spot and had a meal. Then we stayed over at Sam/Erin/Dane’s place, which is just a few blocks away from The Echo. Hung out there for a few hours (after visiting Liz Garo’s great new bookstore/café called Stories… that place is so cool!). Then it was back to The Echo for the evening show with Blitzen Trapper. Although early (first act scheduled to go on at 7:30), the place filled up fast, and soon sold out. We played, quite happily, to an excellent LA crowd. It felt so good to be home. It was such a nice halfway point. Friends and familiar faces filled the audience, and everyone packed in. A great sweaty night. If I need to say so AGAIN, Trapper blew many minds, despite having a number of technical difficulties. Those guys are real pros.

To cap off our beautiful “home day”, we and the Trappers went up the street to Gold Room and enjoyed each others company, as well as some mariachi music and free Asada tacos (some of the best in town!!! ). I tried a new whiskey–Cutty Shark. It was good–had a real bite. I also made the decision that I will try a new Whiskey at every show I’m able. Why not get well rounded while I still can?

Spent the morning and late afternoon of Monday in LA doing some errands–new tires on the van, extra copies of the key for the van, laundry, etc etc. Left town around 4, heading North on the 101 to Santa Barbara. We arrived, due to traffic, in about 2 ½ hrs, at Muddy Waters. Muddy is a real tiny coffee shop/café that puts on some great shows. Very DIY, in the very best way. We packed in about the capacity of the venue–right around 100 folks. What a fun time!!! The crowd was right up by us, all of us on ground level, and they were really into it. Dancing and pogo-ing–the whole 9 yards. Same for Trapper. The Santa Barbara audiences are the best you could ask for. They can do no wrong, in my book. They really made us all feel so welcome and comfortable.

Coming next… onward and upward to San Francisco!

December 3, 2008 | Filed Under Exclusive Features, Music News 

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