Technorati Tags: sapphire rebellion, Steampunk World's Fair, tour

I’m hoping some of you will catch my live performance(s). I’m scheduled to perform:
Sat May 19th, 10:05pm – 10:45pm Embassy Small Stage and
Sun May 20th, 4:00pm – 4:40pm Embassy Main Stage (woo hoo!)

I’m also excited that the Steampunk World’s Fair is on board with busking because I also love performing covers on my acoustic guitar. Even if you can’t make my original music performances, you might be able to hear me break down some Depeche Mode or Johnny Cash on my acoustic while contributing to my “gas to get home” fund.

Hope to see you there!

Technorati Tags: Boots, Steampunk, Steampunk Boots, Steampunk Fashion, Steampunk World's Fair, World's Fair

I recently got approved to play at an annual festival called
Wicked Faire in Somerset, NJ! This was a complete surprise
to me as many festivals require you to apply a year in
advance. I’d all but given up hope on getting to play any
of them anytime soon.

But, luck struck and I got accepted. This set into motion
a fury of activity to get ready for the event, i.e. planning
my practice schedule, making sure I have supplies, arranging
for the time to drive, and…

Making this short video to introduce myself to any attendees
who might watch it:

It’s part of my plan to make more video updates, so it’s
kind of like “step one.”

Hope you enjoy it!

Technorati Tags: faire, sapphire rebellion, tim curry, wicked, wicked faire

Before buying a trailer, realize that trailers are not hard to steal, so you’ll need locks. You’ll need a lock that goes inside the part that fits onto the hitch, as well as one for the lever that opens and closes it. However, even with both of these locks in place, your trailer can still be stolen. The best protection is a wheel lock that goes right on the wheel. The catch (there’s always a catch, isn’t there?) is that a wheel lock attaches to one of the lug nuts of the wheel you wish to lock. So, every time you wish to remove or use the lock, you must remove or secure the wheel lock fastener onto or off of the lug nut. The alternative is to get that tire balanced with the fastener on it so that you don’t ever have to remove it.

Also before buying a trailer, know that parking is going to be a hassle. Your combined vehicle will now take up two spaces everywhere you go. To park on the street, you’ll need two consecutive spaces; good luck with that. Some parking garages won’t even let you in! And any parking lot or garage that does let you in is going to charge you for each vehicle. That’s right, you’ll pay parking fees for the towing vehicle and the enclosed trailer you are towing, and it adds up fast!

And finally before buying a trailer, note that your gas mileage is going to take a hit. This will depend on the size of the trailer that you wish to tow because of the weight, as well as the dimensions of the trailer. Even when an enclosed trailer is empty, it can add a considerable amount of wind resistance to your towing vehicle and it’s kind of like pulling a giant sail. With a 4-cylinder engine like mine, this really affects fuel economy. You might not notice as much of a difference if you drive an 8-cylinder diesel van that already only gets 13 mpg, or if you only plan on towing around town where your speed is relatively low. But I would recommend getting only a smaller trailer like a 4×6, if you have a big enough 4-cylinder engine, and to have at least 6 cylinders to tow anything larger than that.

I hope these points will help you in making your decision about buying a trailer. Had I known all that I know now, I might have made some different decisions, hopefully you can learn from my experience. -Tim

Technorati Tags: buying a trailer, enclosed trailer, first time, first trailer

Get up, eat, do an hour or so of online activity, go through e-mail etc. Do practice warm-up before practice. Practice guitar for 1.25 hours, make dinner, eat, try to fit a workout in, get ready to go run sound, run sound from 8pm – 1 or 2am, come home, decompress for a bit, get to bed, repeat. That’s for the days I am running sound.

I have to get my practice in because I have an important gig coming up on Sat. Jan 14th in Cape Coral (at Rack ‘Em Billiards,) so I’ve been really strapped for time. It’s been very intense, but I know it will be worth it. I signed up for an online practice scheduler, and it has been kicking my ass, but it has really forced me to up my guitar playing, so I’m hoping that’s going to come through in my live show.

I intend to start making videos, but I need for things to cool down a bit so I can wrangle up the time. I could do it all low-key, but I like to add extra touches like lighting and having what I’m going to say rehearsed so I don’t waste time thinking of what to say.

That’s all I have to say at the moment. Thanks for reading and hope to see you at a show!

Read more: Dark Wave Band Risks All

Click to read the write up!

So, we go out to Pravda, which was a neat little place. They had absinthe which was rather expensive, and after much debate, decided I would indulge in one. I really like absinthe as a treat. I spent time trying to get pictures while I was out. I realized that I left the batteries to my nice flash, the one that makes all my pictures come out great, at home in Tally, and then the batteries died in my camera. I couldn’t find an outlet to plug my charger into either. So, I borrowed Val’s and later his girlfriend Marion’s camera to take pictures and had someone hold a flashlight for lighting. I couldn’t adjust the aperture or shutter speed to compensate, but I got some pretty decent results that way.

While we were there, we ran into some goths from Chicago, who were about to give me crap about “dressing goth for Halloween is NOT a costume!” until I told them that, “I dress like this all the time!” One of them was wearing this awesome deep-sea angler fish costume that she had made and I tried to get some good pictures of that. It was hard because it was entirely black and cast shadows on her face. I then got some of her without the helmet, and she really surprised me with how quickly she could get into a pose. I wished I had gotten her contact info so I could try and schedule a shoot if I ever got up to Chicago.

So, the evening went on and we had the security guy dressed as a clown patrolling back and forth throughout the evening. Finally, the liquor had its way with Val (hey, it was my turn the next night!) and we had to get him home. So, we get kicked out of the bar (why we were there past closing I don’t know) and now we have to get Val home, and he’s kind of heavy and can’t really help us by walking.

We were standing on the curb wondering what to do, when suddenly, and I am not making this up, this red Jeep pulls up and over to us. I remember someone saying that they were our ride, so the passenger side doors were opened and I looked inside. The driver turns to me and says, “Hi, I’m Tina.” None other than Josies’s roommate, Tina Root, singer of Switchblade Symphony! “Hi, I’m Tim” I replied. A guy riding in the back seat jumps out and helps me wrangle Val into the front passenger’s seat and everyone piled into the jeep. I made some casual conversation with the guy helping us in the back seat. We made it home safely thanks to “Team Switchblade” and Jack, the guy in the back helped us get Val upstairs and on a mattress.

The next morning, when everyone was among the living again, I checked my Facebook. It turns out that the guy in the backseat with me was none other than DeeJay Jack Phoenix! Of all the ways to meet an influential DJ in the goth industrial scene! Val made the observation, “I got thrown out of a bar by a clown after it was closed…” to which I added, “and then we got driven home by Switchblade Symphony and a famous DJ from Boston!” Only in New Orleans…

Sunday was the day Valek and I were to throw a house party at his place. He had been out of town for the weekend and came back on Sunday. He wasn’t sure he’d still be in the mood to do the party after the long train ride, but after I got him from the train station, he decided we
should do it.

The idea was, that since I couldn’t get an “official” gig at a venue in town
for the weekend, I’d just play at his house and we’d get a bunch of people over to be the
audience. Well, the party was a success, we had quite a few people over, good conversation,
and everyone seemed to have plenty to drink. Unfortunately, the cops got called (about 11:30
on Halloween weekend in New Orleans? Really??) and we had to tone it down. I got up
and played a few songs, but the mood was a little dampened after the police were called, so I
did 4 or 5 songs and then stopped. Overall though, the party was a great success!

At the party, I met a girl named Josie and she had crashed at Val’s place. The next morning,
her phone had died so she couldn’t call her roommate, Tina, to come pick her up. So, I dialed
the number for her so she could get a ride. As it turns out, her roommate is Tina Root! That
would be the vocalist from Switchblade Symphony!

I left for New Orleans to attend the Anne Rice Vampire Lestat Fan Club ball as the organizer, Sue Quiroz’s, guest. I was invited for the music I did to this video piece: ARVLFC video. In order to make trips worthwhile I often try and schedule gigs both coming and going from an appointed destination. I tried to get a gig in Pensacola, since it was about time for me to play there again, but had no luck.

Fortunately, Phillip Makselan in Pensacola pulled a rabbit out of a hat at the last minute and it was a huge help. Phillip is a very talented photgrapher. Here is his official photography page: Phillip Makeselan Photography. His significant other, Sarah Agnew, is a cosmetologist and did a bang up job rescuing my nails after I attempted to paint them black. After a few minutes, with only my $2 nail polish, my nails looked awesome! Here is her info if you are in the Pensacola area: Sarah Agnew Cosmetologist

So, I finally make it to New Orleans with just enough time to run into my host, Valek Reed’s, house, get a shower, turn around and race off to the Anne Rice Vampire Lestat Fan Club Ball. The ball was great! Voltaire did a great job of MC’ing and played a set towards the end of the evening. I met up with writer, Dionne Charlet, who graciously showed me around the venue and introduced me to many people. A fun evening was had by all.

Saturday, there was a small buffet/cocktail party/auction at Chateau Bourbon on Iberville. I again met with Dionne, who introduced me to some of the guests and writers for the Undead Con. I had a really great time talking writing with everyone, how to get readers interested in your stories etc. Many people said that there were attending the Endless Nights event later that evening, so since I was already downtown and had paid for parking, I just stayed and chatted until it was time to walk to the House of Blues where the event was being held.