We’re in Washington DC, trying to plan the next 48 hours until our next show, in Philadelphia. Right now our tentative plan is to try and hit an open mic and blow the minds of these District of Columbians.

(Marshall got a haircut. He has two mohawks now.)

Last night we played the Sidebar Tavern in Baltimore and had a wonderful time. It was a small, divey basement bar, so it seemed crowded even if there were only maybe thirty people there. The other bands, the psychedelic seven-piece King Cloud and the playfully proggy Cat, were the perfect match. We’ve been blessed with some really nice bills that just kind of fall together, where the bands all complement each other really well.

The same was true with our shows in Brooklyn and Boston: What they lacked in attendance they more than made up for in the sheer enthusiasm of the people who were in the audience, and the friendliness and overall quality of the bands with whom we shared the bill. We were especially impressed by local singer/songwriter Chris Wilhelm in Boston, and last night in Brooklyn we were blown away by the Kansas City dance-pop trio Antennas Up (they even brought their own light show!). We would very much like to drive in a southwestly direction and play a KC show with those gentlemen soon.

Playing the drums makes me very angry.

Also in Brooklyn we got to soak up the beautiful confusion that is Williamsburg. Indie-rock mentor, spiritual advisor, personal hero, and all-around friend of the band Travis Morrison was kind enough not only to stick around to see our midnight set even though he had to work early the next morning, but also took us out to a lovely BBBQ* dinner at Sette Fau a few blocks from the venue. And he bought one of our t-shirts.

Run At The Dog t-shirts. In men’s and womens’s sstyle’s.

Loading up, playing Tetris.

(More photos here.)

The weather in DC is already summerlike. Driving down from Baltimore this afternoon we listened to Songs From The Big Chair and I realized I was passing within miles of the DC suburbs where I spent my childhood summers, specifically Greenbelt, where I first heard that album.

* (The extra B is for extra Brooklyn.)