Wouldn't Have it Any Other Way

Words cannot express the level of stress I have been experiencing the last couple days. Tomorrow we are going to be playing a really interesting show in Aston, PA with August Burns Red, Bela Kiss, The Divining, The Burning Season and quite a few other bands. So needless to say, I'm a little worried about My America's placement on the bill. It is a great oppurtunity, and it's really cool to play with some very recognized acts, but at the same time I hope we are well received. We are going to be playing a slightly revamped sort-of-tour-setlist. Mainly, we will be playing a new song that we just finished about two hours ago today.

I think we can safely say this is the first song written for our next release. This song represents the sort of direction we are heading in with the next batch of songs, and is sort of a little precursor to all of the things we want to accomplish when we hit the studio this spring.

I hope after this song that some of the songs come together a little easier. Working on this song and finally completing it was an extremely difficult undertaking. Today was I believe our 5th session on that particular song. We rehearsed aruond four hours on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, as well as Monday-Wed. this week if I am not mistaken.

I don't know if we are just more picky now and have really high expectations (and the song is really tight and well practiced) OR it's just deteriorating musical talent and exteremely difficult shit that is taking forever.

We have some beginnings of some other songs/ideas too, but they are all in their most humble stages. We have decided on the next idea we are going to be working on, but we have a lot of stuff to do before we get to that. We are still so stressed out getting prepared for tour. So finishing this song, and playing a show tomorrow hasn't made any of this shit any easier. It's been a challenge to say the least. I can't say we have ever really worked this hard, at least in the songwriting department.

Brian and I drove seperate from David this afternoon so he could leave earlier, meeting up first at Earl Teat's so I could get a pack of back-up guitar strings. Then we pretty much just played the completed instrumental of the new jam, a little fine-tuning went on, but mostly repeating parts over and over so David could work in his parts. After David left for his dinner engagement, Brian, Andy and I worked for another hour or so and then watched the Flyers game.

We rounded out practice by throwing a nice little area rug on the bottom of our trailer, which works out really well. Then we loaded it up, and went our seperate ways and now I am finally just settling in at home. Maybe eating a pot-pie?

I don't know how I have been doing it lately. All I have been doing is band shit, which is extremely frustrating. It's going to be nice to have a little break after this show tomorrow. I need to have fun for New Year's, hang out with my girlfriend, eat food. Relax. Sleep. Shop? Things I haven't been doing much of. After tomorrow's show, I'll be back at home for maybe another night that is completely free. I imagine I'll be headed upstate for New Year's engagements on New Year's eve, during the day. Get to see my girlfriend, who I haven't seen in close to two weeks, see some other friends, have some drinks. Then after that I'll stay with Amanda for two more nights before we head for Altoona on the 3rd.

So after tomorrow I should have a little breather. Let's hope so.

Although, I feel like I am complaining entirely too much. I feel really bad for Amanda, who has worked like 100 hours since I last saw her. I have just been hanging out with my friends writing songs. It's still sort of tough though. I guess I'm not sure. Maybe it just seems that way?