Date: September.18.2003

Place: Otto's Niteclub- DeKalb IL

Hola senors y senoritas,
This was our second trip to DeKalb to play Otto's. I have to say, the people at Otto's are some of the best in the business. They all will do whatever it takes to make you feel welcome, and they seem to work harder to be professional that most other places I have ever played.

We played last on the bill tonight and the turnout was light. As often happens when you are an out of town band in a new market, you end up playing for yourselves, the other bands on the bill, and for the staff at the venue. Fortunately, the bands we played with tonight were pretty stellar. Court and Spark from San Francisco had a very laid back alt country sound - very polished. The lead singer also has a voice unlike anyone I have heard. Matt really enjoyed Cameron McGill's set, and I must agree that they were pretty tight, as well.

We played pretty well tonight - very confident and relaxed. The stage at Otto's is also great, and unlike most places, I can actually hear my vocals in the monitors. One other thing we got to do tonight was let loose and play a few improvised jams. This is something we don't always get to do because of time constraints, but I love the danger of improvising in front of an audience, and not knowing where we are going to go next. It looks like we are going to come back to Otto's next month, and I like sound of that.

Love, el senor Brion

Write Brian at: bb@upsidegc.com