Nicholas David West coast Tour ’13: Sacramento loves us.

Today we left the Avett Brother's tour and headed to Sacramento.  This show was a nice change of pace.  It felt gratifying be the headliner.  Tonight, the world revolved around us.  We were in charge of sound check, the dressing room was stocked for us, and everyone was there to see us (well, Nicholas to be more precise).  A nice little ego boost.

The wavy wall in the background.

We played at Harlow's, a cool little venue.  For those of you familiar with Twin Cities' music venues, Harlow's is what would happen if the Fine Line and the Dakota had a baby.  One of the walls was carved out of wood to make a wavy, rippled water effect.  I couldn't stop staring at it all night.  I didn't know it was carved out of wood until after the show.  I'm sure the staff thought I was a weirdo while I was rubbing the wall after everyone left.

Local performer Quinn Hedges opened the night.  He performed with just his accoustic guitar.  He was extremely gracious and excited to share the stage with us.  I liked his music, but wanted to see him with a full band.

As the headliners, we got to play a ninety minute set. It was refreshing to be able to stretch out on songs and play some of our tunes that haven't made the cut for the short opening sets we've been doing.  The crowd was great.  They were loud and boisterous when it was called for, and silent and engaged during slower songs.  Even though Harlow's serves alcohol, it didn't feel like a bar gig.  People were there to listen and enjoy the music.

In a nod to our home town, Nicholas and I did a duet on a Tom Waitts' "Christmas Card From A Hooker In MInneapolis."  As Nicholas says, "the title is a little racy, but the content is PG."

Nicholas during his standing ovation.

At the end of the night we had people up and dancing, and received a standing ovation.  The band was all smiles.  After meeting with the fans and tearing down our gear, we noticed that there was a basketball hoop behind the club.  As we lamented over how much fun it would have been to shoot some hoops, the manager grabbed a basketball and told us to play away.  Apparently the club is in a non-residential zone, and we wouldn't bother anyone.  A fierce game of "pigs" ensued.  It was broken up when two drunk guys started watching us play and then became super annoying once they found out who Nicholas was.

Tomorrow we start the drive to Boise.