Day 7: Cincinnati (Golden Hound and a Tommy Gun)

A gold dog stepped by my head as I woke up. We stayed the night in the house of Maggie Gard (the badass pipes of the Bears the of Blue River). She and her roommate made us breakfast while we played with Charlie (the previously-mentioned golden hound) and fired squirt guns into their garden.

Shortly after breakfast, we drove to the Indianapolis Art Museum. After making our way through a European modern exhibit, I wandered through imperial Chinese art displays. Later, I walked around the contemporary art with John and Kristin, who provided some interesting insights, especially concerning Denmark and design.

Cincinnati and Newport were only a short drive from Indianapolis. At my Uncle Dan's house in Kentucky, we dined with some of my immediate and extended family. Around the corner loomed the Southgate House, where we would be playing later.

The Southgate House was the birthplace of the inventor of the tommygun. On any given night, the place hosts up to three shows. With the help of my kid brother and his friend (of the Varner family who kindly made the trip from Muncie to see the show), we loaded our gear up the steep steps to play in the parlor. While we waited for the other bands, John and I chatted with the legendary Steve Varner (whose mustache puts mine to absolute shame) about a blues venue in Indiana funded by lottery winnings. I later learned that, while we were talking, Kristin, Ryan, and Mark were a few blocks away, watching a street magician who took a ten-dollar bill from Ryan and pulled it from a lime.

Toboggan Race started things off with an energized set of Oh Sees-esque garage tunes (with sweet licks, I might add). We played shortly thereafter. Both my mother and my father were raised in Cincinnati; roughly 30 or 40 of my relatives, ranging from cousins to great-aunts and uncles, came out to the show. We played to a mix of family and some of the other bands' fans. I was touched by the turnout, and we had a blast playing in the crowded parlor. Animal Circles followed with some wild surf rock tunes. After the Animal Circles' set, I spoke with my cousin Kevin about music for a little while (he used to be involved in the Cinti music scene; he gave me burned copies of O.K. Computer, Jeff Buckley, Jellyfish, and XTC albums to listen to for the first time when I was twelve).

After re-loading, we retreated to my Aunt Kate's apartment, where we stayed up until four engaged in a semantic debate.

Peace,

Dan/the low end

P.S.

Thanks to all the friends and family who came out to the SGH show. Also, thanks to Maggie Gard, Uncle Dan, and Aunt Kate for their wonderful hospitalities. Much love to all the friends and family who came to the show; I really appreciate the support.