A music video for “Nail Clippers” is online and can be found HERE in MOV format…

Check it out

-Shaun

The intro for the video diary of Morningbell’s Georgia tour.

click on our video’s page on myspace to see the intro for the video diary of our Georgia tour.

also, click here for a booty thumpin new song from travis. www.morningbellonline.com/morningbell_animal_dance.mp3

Florida Music Fest 2006:

So, here we are, finally at the FMF.  We arrive in downtown Orlando and actually have to check in to get passes to get into the venues.  But we have to check in at this hotel like a mile or 3 from the venue.  So, I check in while Jake (fill in Evan) drives in circles waiting for me.  I get the passes at the table where fame and fortune are waiting in the form of shwag bags (basically a bunch of crap that other bands paid for to get put in the bags).  Off to the AKA lounge.  NOw, this place isn’t usually a venue, it’s upstairs and looks very fancy and trendy.  Regardless, the stage was huge and very cool.  It honestly felt like we were playing some loft party from an early 90’s movie with and alternative music soundtrack.

There was some prissy hispanic guy who was having a poorly planned art show in the room where all the bands were supposed to be storing their gear and he kept getting pissed at us while loading in.  They moved a bunch of stuff on top of our keyboard and for some reason, I just started arguing with him.  I didn’t feel like being cool, I was just like “do you see how you just made more work for us?”

So, they actually did a great job with planning and we had more than ample time to load on and set up.  We only got 6 songs, so it was a whammy bammy set.  It went over very well and the crowd roared like a lion. There were actually about 100 people there for a 9:30 set at a non major venue for the fest.  IT was quite impressive. 

REgardless, there were about 230894u230482304 guys in dress shirts walking around downtown and up in the venue who were either industry dudes or just losers posing as industry dudes.  Either way, we sold 1 CD and went on our way.  We actually had a whole lot of friends come out and see us, which was nice. 

Travis had to pull the hit and run because it was Camille (his girlfriend’s) 21st birthday.  It was a solid good time. 

Fast Forward to Saturday May 20th at the WMNF Tropical Heatwave!

We pull into Ybor around 5:30 to grab some grub with the fam and our common law cousin, J-5.  Keith from New Granada records described Tropical Heatwave pefectly.  IT’s a bunch of old hippies with big straw hats who want to get trashed and pull up lawn chairs and listen to music.  YOu know, because they love live music, Period!  It don’t matter, they love it.  If it’s live, it’s great.

So, some band played before us at the orpheum who I called Uncle Nutsy and his wacky bunch of aging hipsters.  That’s kinda mean, but seriously, they played like an hour and 15 minute set and took their sweet ass time breaking down, thus delaying the night by 30 minutes.  They also demanded that the sound man go find their drummer sticks because he forgot his.  Once the sound guy brought some, they were mad that he didn’t bring brushes too.

So, we went on around 12:00 and played to a solid crowd of about 150 and they were totally into it.  IT was nice b/c all the drunk hipsters who were watching Uncle Nutsy all took off and a bunch of younger people came in.  They were very supportive and we actually sold every single CD we brought and had a list going of people who wanted us to mail them one. 

We cut one song, but it actually made the set tighter.  When we were setting up, I plugged my pedal board in and sparks came out of my strobe light switch box.  Everything shut down after that point, my pedals…dead.  the spotlights…dead.  Everything….dead.  So, after a few minutes of near panic, I realized that I just blew the venue’s surge protector.  Thankfully, the problem was fixed and the show was able to go on.

Travis got the whole crowd to sing along to the ending of I FOund Jesus without instructing them before hand.  It was f’in cool.  They were actually singing really loud.

Montage and Tomorrow Never Knows closed the set and brought great cheer.  It was good times!

Some guy who was drunk and a coworker of STeve Hiraga’s old roomate’s brother was in the crowd and offered to buy us drinks in the middle of our second to last song.  In THE MIDDLE OF THE SONG! 

We got to catch Candy Bars and and Dear and Glorious’s sets at New World and had an all around great time. 

Great weekend of festivals to follow our great weekend in Georgia.

Now, 2 weeks of well deserved rest. 

Currently listening: Off the Wall By Michael Jackson Release date: By 25 October, 1990

This past weekend marked the very first out of state show and actual tour of the Bell.  We know it was only 2 days long, but it was tour living.  We played every night, stayed in hotels, lived off the land, drank puddles, you know.  Standard stuff. 

Friday May 12, 2006:

Destination: Athens, GA

We woke up and hit the road at the crack of 12:45.  I bought cool little two way radios so we could talk to each other from the different cars without having to use cell phones.  Needless to say, I managed to piss off Steves carload by 12:54.  The drive to Athens took 6 hours.  We had to get off the interstate in Macon and take backroads for the last hundred plus miles.  The countryside was surprisingly beautiful and it actually made this leg of the trip go by quite easily. 

We rolled into town and found the venue.  Hungry for food (and love), we walked to a highly recommended vegetarian restaurant called The Grit.  The place was kinda like Athens version of The Top, but less bar themed and less ambiance.  The walk to the restaurant was absolutely gorgeous, the weather a cool 60-some degrees, the grass an exceptionally brilliant green, and the town quite charming.  After setup and sound check, we took the stage and played a decent set to a respectable crowd.  We could have played one note for 35 minutes to no one and it still would have been one of the most fun shows ever.  Theres just something about playing in another legendary town that makes everything better.  The dudes from Team Clermont came out too, so that was cool. 

After the set, we decided to explore what the town had to offer, rather than stay in the same place all night.  The downtown area (which is situated directly across the street from campus) was approximately 5 blocks wide by 3 blocks deep, so you could hit every bar, restaurant, and shop within minutes.  We set out for the 40 watt and the Caledonia Lounge, two of Athens legendary venues.  They were hard to find, and everyone around had baseball hats on, so we figured they didnt know where the clubs were.  We checked with a few, they never even heard of them.  Getting a bit frustrated, we checked out a basement bar.  It kinda sucked, but it looked really cool.  You could see the foundations of the building and the granite earth that it was dug out of. 

Undaunted, we kept walking.  Eventually we found the 40 Watt, but it had some really hard metal show going on, so we didnt go in.  The Caledonia was around the corner, and after having walked this far, we decided to go in for a drink.  Afterwards, we hit up a hot dog guy named JB for some veggie dogs.  Stacie had the foresight to ask him if he had veggie dogs and he said hells yes.  He had a sign out front of his stand that said Get yours with the famous comeback sauce.  So, naturally, we inquired about this.  It turned out to be his secret bar-b-que sauce that his grandfather taught him how to make.  It was fin good!  JB was quite possibly one of the best finds of the entire trip and we talked to him for nearly 15 minutes.  During the middle of the conversation, he said to Steve, Hey, you look like that guy, you know, whats that picture that comes on every day?…Saved by the Bell.  I think we all peed some comeback sauce of our own after laughing at this for like 20 minutes. 

On our walk back, we decided against half of the groups wishes to check out this shady bar with a lone lit Schlitz sign out front.  It turned out to be the Manhattan, which was also highly recommended.  It was a very cool counter culture bar with a laid back vibe.  Oh yeah, you cant smoke in any Athens bars.  AWESOME.

As it was getting late, we headed back to Tasty World, which was the venue we played at, to settle up and head out.  We then had to drive 30 minutes to the next town down a pitch black leg of 441.  The reason for this was Athens had no available hotel rooms because it was graduation weekend. 

Its now nearly 4 AM.  Check in, lights out, pass out. 

Saturday May 13, 2006:

Destination: Atlanta, GA

Luckily, Stacie woke up ridiculously early in order to get us massive plates of food from the free continental breakfast, another lucky find and huge money saver.  We decided not to head back the 30 minutes to Athens and just head straight for Atlanta.  A straight shot down I-85 got us there in about an hour and change.  We found our hotel (by the airport) and headed downtown to check it out.  They just opened up a HUGE aquarium (one of the biggest in the world and the biggest in North America) so we hit it up ATL style. 

As it was a new attraction, it was packed and you had to buy tickets with an entry time on them.  We couldnt get in till 4:00, so we spent the next hour and a half in Atlantas Olympic park.  I know that wasnt the proper name, but it was the park they built for the 96 Olympics.  It was the one where that bomb went off at the closing ceremonies.  It was quite beautiful and peaceful.  The weather was spectacularly breezy and cool, so we just relaxed in the park. 

Aquarium time.  It was huge.  It was massive.  There were so many people.  More people than fish, in fact.  The fish were beautiful, but we were getting really hungry and tired.  Once we finished, we hit up one of the best Thai restaurants weve ever eaten at. 

Back to the hotel for a quick nap and then off to Lennys.  Now, Lennys came highly recommended but with a caveat.  We were told it was the place to play, but it was a total dive.  That was an understatement.  It was in the middle of the Ghetto and it was the only thing open for blocks.  Immediately surrounding it were only condemned buildings.  It was dark, it was dirty, the bar stocked their beer in Styrofoam coolers full of ice, but it was an amazing show.  The crowd was humble, but extremely attentive.  Everyone was enthusiastically into the show and we sold a bunch of merch. Afterwards while we were hangin out, these two big black dudes came up to us and said that they loved it.  They were both Hip Hop producers and we ended up hanging out and talking with them for a good part of the evening. 

Back to the hotel and into the hot tub!  The hotel we stayed at didnt have a roll away bed, so we had to sleep 3 people to a queen size bed.  I was stuck between Steve and Stacie.  It was elbows everywhere.  It sucked.  So, we kicked steve out at 6 AM.

We woke up and drove home.

Surprisingly, we all got the touring bug.  We loved it and want to do it again soon.  Hopefully in September. 

!

I hate these assholes. 

Originally, I took out the curse words b/c my mom reads this sometimes, but seriously, these guys suck.  I need curse words to express my disdain for them.

They are what’s wrong with the world.  They are why Iran is such a nuclear threat.  They are why children are starving in 3rd world countries. 

I hate them

Currently listening: St Elsewhere By Gnarls Barkley Release date: By 09 May, 2006

Stacie and I drove to Orlando last nite to see Fiona Apple in concert.  Since we’re old, we didn’t want to stand in the general pit area, so we got there early and staked out some seats.  Keep in mind, to get ahead of the crowd, you have to either eat dinner at the House of blues restaurant or spend 20 bucks per person in their gift shop.  Whatever, we figured it was worth it, so we did it.  And we got some decent seats.  The opening act played (a solo pianist) and you could see him perfectly.  The curtains then closed as they set up Fiona’s gear.  We’re figuring, man, we sure played this one right, we got smooth seats for a good show. 

Curtains open!  The piano has been moved all the way to stage right and is entirely blocked by a huge pillar in front of us!  We were waiting for like 3 hours to keep these seats too.  Damn load bearing pillar! So, we got up and walked to a standing area of the venue to watch the rest.  the area, btw was open, so we could have just showed up at that moment and stood there.

Oh well, at least we tried.

Now, to the real point of my post.  Everyone around us was talking really really loud.  These 3 girls were all singing along to songs really loud, then would stop, talk to each other really really loudly, stop talking, and yell WOOOOOOOOOO!  repeatedly!

Also, there was this older dude, who obviously had no idea who Fiona Apple was and he kept talking about the House of Blues and all this other bullshit.  DURING THE SET! 

Then, there was this schmuck of a douche who kept trying to hit on the two girls infront of us.  He had absolutely no idea that 1. They weren’t interested in him and were totally ignoring him, and 2. They were Lesbians.  I wanted to tell people to be quiet, but it wouldn’t have worked because there were too many people to tell. 

During her last song, which was clearly her last song because the whole band left the stage and waved as they did so, she played a solo number.  the three girls who had been singing along and yelling WOOOO were trying to get these 4 bar stools from the level below us back up to where they were standing.  But they were all trashed and yelling at each other to “hand it over here” “no, you come get one” “no, I want that one.”  It was clearly her last song, shut the fuck up and wait patiently!

So, this leads me to my theme.  Concerts are like religious experiences for me and my friends.  We go to watch.  We don’t talk.  We don’t drink.  We watch and enjoy. 

Why do people constantly go to these shows if they’re not interested in listening?  Did those girls enjoy essentially paying a 60 dollar cover to buy 7 dollar drinks, and just getting trashed at a rare live performance?

It seems like no matter who I go to see, I’m next to the asshole who ruins it, whether it’s drunk girl, clueless old man, or the cynical bunch.

It honestly made me want to stop going to shows.  Then, I started thinking of all the bands I really like that I have seen, so here’s my attempt to list them.

Aerosmith, Ambulance LTD, American Analog Set, Bela Fleck and the Flecktones (6x), Ben Folds (3x), Blackalicious (going in 2 weeks), Big Bad Voodoo Daddy (when they were cool), BB King, Buckethead, Cheap Trick (2x), Eric Clapton, Dave Matthews Band (5x), Eels, Fiona Apple (2x), Flaming Lips (2x), Foo Fighters, George Clinton, Incubus, Page & Plant, Of Montreal, Parliament Funkadelic, Paul McCartney, Pearl Jam, Peter Gabriel, Pinback, Roger Waters, Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smashing Pumpkins, Tom Petty (2x), Tori Amos (3x), U2 (4x), Van Halen, Weezer, Rolling Stones (2x)

There are probably more, but that’s the basics.

So Inuit Jargon would like to give a big, novelty sized thanks to everyone who has made this the best year in Inuit Jargon history. Hopefully we’ve kept improving from our first show, so we’ve given you all something to watch.

The end is only the beginning though. Be prepared …