New Music on the Cruise

The nicest thing about the cruise is discovering new music, usually new music Canadians have known about for decades, like Jason Plumb. There's never enough time to hear all the bands, so you discover new music by walking past their venue on the way to the bathroom.

Gary and I both picked up new favorites this year. Gary, as usual, was drawn to the singer with breasts, Jenn Grant.

She has a very nice warbly voice. And breasts, and you know that's all Gary needs. I need lyrics, but she had some good lyrics in her song about her dog. (No lyrics inserts on the ship. Boo.)

I think my favorite artist this time around was Mike Evin. His recent visit with his grandmother inspired a few songs about being old. I'm not old enough for those songs, but at least they weren't songs about New Love and the way You smell in the morning and how You broke my heart and the summer We turned eighteen.

What I need is a song about the summer We turned 48 and how the beast with two backs has lots of saggy fat. There. That's a lyric. Writre a song about that.

There were some bands I haven't had a chance to hear, like Massachusetts band Stephen Kellogg and the SIxers. Here's what troubles me: I recognize that guy in the white tie below. Perhaps he's been on the ship before, or perhaps he just resembles my hairdresser, Hot Steve, who has his own album on Amazon and iTunes now.  Even odder: the guy to his left is wearing a Kutis funeral home t-shirt which, if the commercials are to be believed, is a "Saint Louis owned and operated funeral home."

 

Now, this last thing is remarkable. I'm so deep in the indie music scene that I recognized "Longtime [Alternate Routes] band member, bassist Chip Johnson." (Guy on the right.) They played at Blueberry Hill. I plotted to breed the guy next to him with Steven Page.

 

I went up to him, and said, "Aren't you the bassist with Alternate Routes?"

"Alternate Routes ... goes on without me."

"So are you performing on the ship?"

"I'm just hanging out with Stephen Kellog. He had room and I said sure, free cruise."

I KNOW. I sensed that he was temporarily One of Us and was able to speak with him without making an ass of myself.

Comments

[Tami]

Totally wow. Every time I saw Chip Johnson on the boat I pointed out to whomever I was with that the man just moves "hot". I also wondered what the heck he was doing there, and now I know.

[TheQueen]

Tami - He does move hot.

[Tami]

Also, he is way better looking in person than he is in that slightly goofy picture.

[TheQueen]

Tami - true.