First donation to the band room! We’ve got our first piece of gear — a bass cabinet colossus! This 8x10 Ampeg powerhouse will make sure there are zero issues hearing the bass in the Fairfield band room. Next up, I’m hoping to pair it with the quintessential bass head: the all-tube Ampeg SVT Classic. Project update: I had a great meeting with the owner of the building where I’d love to set up a dedicated band room here in Fairfield. The space I’m eyeing rents for about $300/month per bay, and utilities will likely run around $300–400/month (rough estimate). One of the bays already has hookups for a shower and kitchen—a huge plus! Each bay also has its own garage door, which makes the layout super practical for a shared music space.

You know that moment before you jam with someone new? You're trying to figure out—do we even like the same music? Are we on the same page? Will this be awkward? Yesterday I had a phone call with Band Room member @JeffCarey from Cedar Rapids. We spent time just talking—what he's into (JJ Cale came up), what kind of setup he's imagining. And here's where it got interesting. As I'm explaining the Band Room concept—thinking I'm just clarifying the vision—Jeff mentions he actually knows of a couple places that already exist in the Southeast Iowa are doing something similar. Then drops this: he used to work with someone here in Fairfield who has a building, and thinks there might be space that could work. He's willing to come down and meet both of us for lunch to talk it through. One post. One conversation. And suddenly we're looking at: • Lebowski's in Washington, Iowa – bowling alley with rehearsal/jam space already built in• A 151 in Fairfax – another spot doing something similar• A potential Fairfield location through Jeff's connection Here's what this taught me: When you put something out there with clarity—even if it's still just a concept—you'll be surprised how much support comes out of the woodwork. People in the exact same situation. People who want to help make it real. The bigger picture? Take the simple action. Post on Craigslist. Post on social. Clearly state what you're up to. Let it go and see what comes back. One post turned into three leads. So here's my question for you: Who's one musician you've been meaning to text this week?Someone you used to jam with? Someone you've been curious about collaborating with? We're networking online here—but what can we do offline to move this forward? I'm driving up to Washington this week to check out Lebowski's. Just to see it. See how long the drive is. Check out the town. Small action, but it's a step. What's yours? P.S. I also had an awesome Google Meet recently with Band Room member @IvanNistarov. Looking forward to sharing what we discussed in the next post. It was a long 2 hour convo so i am still processing exactly what it is i want to share. 🙏

Belated Mardi Gras: a video of me six years ago - enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUrafXR2rQI

Are there any jam sessions happening?

One of the biggest differences between practicing and performing is mindset. When you’re practicing, it’s perfectly OK to mess up—to play out of time, to stop and repeat passages, or to fumble through tricky spots. That’s part of the process.