4 June 2007

We finished up in Spain at the jazz festival in Santander, one of the few concerts on the tour when we played only one set. This was a really strong gig, probably the best one we played in Spain. Then, of course, we faced a tough day of travel to get to Brest, France for the final show of the tour. Sometimes the last concert of a tour can prove to be disappointing, people can be done with the work before being finished with the music, ready to be home after so much traveling, so little sleep, so much disorientation. Thankfully, this gig wasn’t such a case and we played hard, the music going in new directions yet again. The next morning was, of course, ridiculously early. After flying to Paris, John and Nate headed home, I headed to Krakow, and John met up with his family in France. We’ve got one more concert coming up, in July for Chicago’s Pitchfork Festival, and after that nothing will happen until winter. Between the four of us, the scheduling from the summer through the end of fall is already booked solid. The band is playing so much better than ever before, and there are so many new ideas about what to compose for it, that it’s going to feel like a long wait before we get a chance to dig into this music again. For me, the only solution is to make a major focus of next year’s work the playing with Powerhouse Sound. And I’m already looking forward to it, that’s for sure.

Many, many thanks to all the fans who came to all the shows. Until next time-

Ken Vandermark, Utrecht, 6/2/07.