rockstar lifestyle

feels good to get back into the rockstar mode, even though its probably the last time for awhile....(this is our final final FINAL tour, madog and i split in early march).

last night we played at this rockin' conservative synagogue in birmingham, pre-services show and then rabbinic back-up for kabbalat shabbat and maariv (friday night shabbat services). i fantasized about getting involved in the west coast religious music scene. afterward we headed across town to chez lulu's, a tiny, dimly lit french bistro with delicious sandwiches and tile floors. both shows were a bit lacking as we grind back into gear from our 9 month respite. breaking out the new stuff was fun though. we just worked up one called chicken stew, medleying old-timey chicken reel with a raucosly rollicking russian tune.

today was pretty mellow, we worked up a new tune combining jigs with this crazy sirba, including a crazy sirba breakdown in the middle. it has that verge-of-a-train wreck sound to it(our specialty). afterward we went and saw persepolis in the theatre, intense and poignant given my background (half persian on my dad's side, most of his relatives still live there and my uncle narrowly escaped life in prison during the revolution), the movie was sweet and intense and depressing. a little too self indulgent but great little details, like marx and god chatting in heaven.

then we rolled out to tuscaloosa, a sleepy little town that doesn't seem to have changed much since 1950. we were playing at the food fest portion of the tuscaloosa jewish film fest, set up in the lobby while folks milled about and tasted the borscht, challah, pineapple kugel and tuna sandwiches (from the southern jewish table). it took a little while to get going, but eventually a big crowd had gathered and we really rocked out. it felt so good to fall into the music, letting it overtake me, drawing me deep into my gypsy roots. on our breaks i filled up on rainbow cake and smoked fish, finishing off the evening with an alcoholic chocolate egg cream. we stayed for the film aftrward, black book, which was an intense, gut wrenching, heart wringing film about dutch resistance during world war II.

generally, i'm happy to be back in this mode--it feels good to be able to connect deeply to my authentic self and express it in a way that is meaningful and important to other people. tomorrow, on to NOLA!!