Onward, etc. – 3rd ROAD BLOG from their “2014 U.S. Tour”

The folk band, Onward, etc., is currently on a tour across the United States throughout April and May. While they’re on this tour, they will be writing a blog for us. You can check out the third entry, after the break.

Fight or flight. After the dents and burdens of a frozen Colorado landscape became nothing but a sight in our rear view mirror we finally saw a clearing ahead. While entering Utah we spent the evening gazing the blood moon high up in the mountains with a Zebra named “Zolou” and a miniature pony named “Buddy” (no joke!) We were given beds to sleep on and a beautiful roof over our heads.

The following day we decided to escape into nature for a while. Rosco bare backed a Clydesdale, Rod got a hair cut, a new cello and played the piano and Dave explored the estate. A handful of us trucked up a mountain pass to breathe a little fresh air. This was followed by an amazing steak and potato lunch with beers and cheers! We left the Rodriguez Ranch after lunch and took off towards the venue.

SLC has always treated us dearly and like always they did once again! The show was a fantastical house filled with chants and dancing. The after party was a doozy as well…

We awoke the following morning in route for Boise, ID. The show was a decent crowd for the first time playing in the city and we saw some familiar faces which is always nice. I think everyone’s mind was just excited about getting to the west coast!

We arrived in Seattle, WA the next day to meet our banjo player Tyler Mongan, who flew in from Hawaii to do the west coast run with us. He was the first banjo player for Onward years ago while we were stomping around the islands! We played a punk rock club called the Kraken where the cheap whiskey and PBR welcomed us once again. We had a fantastic time and really enjoyed the energy of the crowd!

Oh Portland! This is a city that never fails for us! We have had so many spectacular shows in PDX and once again we rocked the rooftop off the Alhambra Theatre. The owner “Chick” literally gave Rosco the leather jacket he had been wearing for the last 20 years right off of his back! They treated us like family and we also had Mark Mcintire up playing trumpet for us! It was a six piece of passion and absolute wildness! The house was packed to the brim and the vibes were all positive!! Cheers to Portland!

After tango with the Northwest we sailed our ship to the Bay Area and there we hit a house show and spent Easter/4:20 with some friends we hadn’t seen in awhile. Nolan our session drummer split for home and we drove to LA overnight to prepare for our show at Hotel Cafe. It was a great crowd and an amazing venue. We had some guest musicians join us for our set including Stan Dewitt and Derek O’Brien (Producer/Drummer Social Distortion). The crowd was pleased and we spent the night in Pasadena with our best friends Nicole, Nils, Mila and Izzie! They are the best hosts ever!

As for now folks, we just picked up our newest drummer, Mr. Jon Via, in LA and are en route to Tempe to test out his chops! Wish us luck and we will see you down that dirty road!

-Onward!

Keep up with Onward, etc. on Facebook and Twitter. Check out all of the band’s upcoming tour dates here!