(PARDON THE SPELLING/GRAMMAR, I HAVEN'T REALLY SLEPT SINCE SATURDAY NIGHT)

Okay, there is something to be said about getting home at 8:30 Monday Morning after a 3 Früvous shows, 1 speeding ticket and virtually no quality sleep.

It all started in Detroit (cue flashback special effects)...

I take a couple of hours at the end of the day Friday and leave early from work, drive to Toledo to hook up with Barb and Matt... we travel up to Detroit (after a brief turn around after getting lost) Luckily, Joe, Vincent and the rest of the 'Frübus' were in the front of the already long line, so being totally rude, I hopped in since they had my tickets. Sorry to those behind me :)

The show was GREAT! Opening with Poor Napoleon... Marion Früvous in the middle and closing with GWS off mic.... what more could you want?? The staff was rather rude, as someone had complained about a mic stand, and an apparent 'the music is too loud, and I didn't hear what you said so I'm going to get lippy' discussion, in which we were threatened with "How about I throw all your $hit out n the street!" But past that this was a killer show!

After an excellent breakfast thanks to Vincent's Mom, we trotted down to Toledo once again to pick up Barb, and Vincent, Barb and I drove to Chicago... we once again hooked up with the now expanded Frübus and went in hopes of catching GBS... unfortunately we didn't make it, so we ended up grabbing dinner and wandering around a bit. The late start aside, this was another great show (thinking about it even deeper, have a seen a bad show?) Kick in the Ass was great, although I was hoping for a Columbus tie-back with a dedication to Attila.... I have decided that, no matter how much I like MPG, it doesn't make a good closer... IMHO take it or leave it :)

Now, at this point I WAS GOING HOME.... or so I thought....

I fell asleep Saturday night with Früheads, Sunday morning I woke up with the Borg and they attempted (successfully) to assimilate me in to the Frübus headed for Milwaukee... ack!

The set had a lot of energy, even though it consisted of more 'laid back' material. High lights included River Valley and Stuck in the 90's... I felt sorry for Jian, he was looking very upset about the East Timor activity, and people in the audience were laughing... some people... nevermind.

All in all Milwaukee was great, except for some drunk (expletive deleted) that insisted on singing 1) out of time 2) out of tune 3) very loud and 4) next to the tapers... which proved interesting when one of this woman’s friends decided to come over after the show and start crap.

In the parking lot, the drunk (expletive deleted) asked her friend if she was really that loud during the show, and being ACROSS THE PARKING LOT and hearing it I shouted 'YES, YOU WERE!' ...so she showed me her breast... oh no! not mid-40 saggy breasts! HELP!!!

Hindsight being 20/20, it was so worth it, even the speeding ticket I got on the Ohio Turnpike... I think the cop thought I was full of it when I told him what my weekend had consisted of...

Finally it was great to meet everyone and hang out, and I can't wait to get together with everyone very soon!

"First we were the reason, then we were the excuse, now we're just irrelevant" :)

From Laurie:

Here's a quick set list:

Laydown Sally into Twist n Shout
Earthquakes
Johnny Saucepan
Michigan Militia
I Will Hold On
Fulsom Prison
You Will Go To the Moon
Pisco Bandito
Stuck in the 90's
My Poor Generation
Lazy Boy
When She Talks
Spatter Splatter
It's Too Cold
Independence Day
Nuits de Reve
River Valley
Get in the Car
Your New Boyfriend

Encore 1 --
Horseshoes
Half as Much

Encore 2 - 
The Band Played On

Notes:

The crowd was much a little bigger than the last show at Shank but nobody danced :( Except for me and a few others in the way back. They didn't leave a dance floor this time.

I can't remember much of the banter except for them talking about a river in Chicago that they never knew was there and Jian talking about the great article bringing attention to the war in the Middle East. There was a lot of other stuff but my mind isn't too clear.

I was very glad that they didn't play "Sad Girl"! And was excited to hear several songs that I haven't heard live before. I also had several friends comment who were "Fru-Virgins" that they didn't play "King of Spain" which I knew they wouldn't since they played it in Chicago. But they didn't play it the last two times they were in Milwaukee, nor in Madison, WI on 1998...so I've come to the conclusion that they don't like playing KOS in Wisconsin...we're obviously too good for that song. Or maybe we're not good enough..... depends on your point of view.

But I brought along 5 people who haven't seen the show and they all enjoyed it!!!

On a side note, a funny thing happened I went to cash in my miles since I knew I wouldn't be able to see any more shows this year. So Tobey told me to quit my job and travel with them in the band van.

Mark it was very nice to meet you and I look forward to hearing from you!

From Bridget:

We left Chicago. We drove to Milwaukee. It was fun. The End. Just kidding. You didn't _really_ think you'd get off that easily, did you??? (o;

At least we had a short drive. And it was made even shorter with Donna driving! (just a joke, hon!). Not much to report between Chicago and Milwaukee. Our car still rocked, but Amanda and Kat were sleeping, so we just had to rock a little more quietly. Upon arriving in Milwaukee, we stopped at a stop sign to try to figure out which way Shank Hall was. We must've looked lost, because a nice man pulled up next to us and rolled down his window. We told him what intersection we were looking for, and he said "Oh, just follow me!" and proceeded to escort us to the venue. I love Midwesterners. Once we were oriented, we found a hotel close by and were ready to roll. Except for the fact that the skies opened up and we found ourselves in the middle of a torrential rainstorm. But thankfully it let up just when Donna and I decided we were ready to go get in line. (o;

We grabbed a pizza to eat in line, and miracle of miracles, doors opened on time! I loved Shank Hall from the moment I walked in. It is a very intimate room, not a bad seat in the house. Especially mine. Front table, stage Murray. Who says variety is the spice of life? _Murray_ is the spice of life. (o:

High Water Limit opened. I enjoyed them. A lot. They are a Milwaukee band, and the bass player's mom was at the back selling cd's. How could I _not_ buy one??? They're kinda country-rockin', kinda folky, very cool. And they harmonize. That gets me every time. So I totally enjoyed their set, but really looking forward to Früvous. We were expecting a great set.

I don't mean for my review to seem bass-ackwards, but I have to start by saying that immediately following the show, I was feeling very unimpressed. I was expecting a "rare" sort of setlist, and didn't feel fulfilled. At least not right away. Then it hit me... this set was very similar to the second show in Ann Arbor in June. That was a phenomenal set, and I think just having two such similar shows in a short (for me) time made it seem that this show was ordinary. Yeah, color me spoiled... and the more I pondered, the more I let it sink in... I eventually came to the conclusion that I was very lucky to be at Shank Hall on September 19, 1999. They played Stuck in the 90's and Your New Boyfriend, neither of which I'd seen them do before. They played Nuits de Reve and It's Too Cold. Earthquakes. Folsom Prison Blues. More of the setlist is escaping me at the moment. It was a great show. It was a very desirable crowd, with the exception of the people laughing during Jian's really very unfunny introduction to Stuck in the 90's. I guess there's one in every crowd... but for the most part people were polite and attentive. I would LOVE to get back to Shank Hall sometime again.

After the show I had to say goodbye to Donna, Joe, Debbie, Jordan, Mark, Vincent and Karen, as they were all heading home while Kat, Amanda and I forged on to Minneapolis. I miss you guys already, and I have but ONE word for you. Colorado. Say it together... Colorado. Very good! See you there, eh?

RANDOM OBSERVATIONS, ADVICE, AND QUOTES:

Sleeping 7 Früheads in a hotel room is severely underusing that space.

I'm not going to mention any NAMES, but... get enough Früheads sleeping in a room and at least one of them is bound to snore.

If you are lucky enough to have pancakes for breakfast, it is not necessary to share that information with those less fortunate.

Weeping willows are damn cool trees.

Wisconsin is NOT the dairy state. It's the rainy state. There's a big difference.

Apparently, it takes much more than 2 VERY strong Jack & Coke's to get a Denverite buzzed at sea level... (o;

Bands with mailing lists are infinitely cooler than bands with fan clubs.

The weather channel lies.

Feeding Dave Tobey pizza will regrettably NOT get you an extra Frümiles stamp...

People who see the band a lot have a certain "look" about them... perhaps a gleam in their eye. I have said look. (As told to me by Rudy, a guy I met at the show.) (o;

When you have a premonition that Mike Ford will come up with an improv for the sole purpose of rhyming "Shank"... you're probably right.

If the Illinois border is any indication, the porn industry is booming in Wisconsin...

When a Frühead claims he can't go to Milwaukee because he has to work on Monday, it's really just a cry for help. Help him by suggesting that he call in sick.

"I _like_ orange mango... just not piss warm orange mango!" ~Shell

"Hurricane Donna has just been downgraded to tropical depression Donna." ~Mark

"I guess the 'T' was taken!" ~Kat, on the "GURAQD" license plate we saw

"Why are all these songs about ME?!?!?" ~Donna, 2 songs into the High Water Limit set

"I feel like I'm in a locker room..." ~Amanda

Some other tidbits from the performance include:

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