Update Jul 2026/Aug 2026

Before we really get into this past month’s shenanigans, I wanted to impart some advice based on my experience as the band’s booking agent because I know many musicians who are not so experienced or don’t know quite how to send an email in regards to booking a show. My fomula is as follows:

Hello, (venue or, better yet, name of booking agent)! My name is _____, and I play in (genre and musical act name) (relevant links here). I was wondering if you had any openings on or around (date); with me on the bill I plan to have (list other bands). My number is (phone number) if you’d like to reach me that way. Thank you for your time and consideration, and I hope to hear back from you soon!

Keep it brief—no one wants to read a novel in their inbox—keep it informative, keep it friendly and polite. And heads up if you are new to this: you will get ignored. Frequently. Especially at first. You must not take this personally; venues get hundreds of emails a week and they simply cannot respond to all of them. Just be persistent. If you don’t get a response, send a follow-up a week later. I believe in you!

Alright, time to get to the “meat and potatoes”, as the caucasians like to say. On July 11th, we played a show at a little hole-in-the-wall cidery called Pux Taphouse in Grand Rapids with Kitten & The Tonics and our own Mark Bolohan opened up for us as well with his solo work!

We really got spoiled this month because not only did we get to play at two different breweries with exceptionally tasty product (the abovementioned Pux Taphouse AND Tenacity Brewing), but we also got to play two shows with one of our favorite bands, Swamp Rats. This band is, to us, analogous to that friend in class with whom you immediately lock eyes as soon as the teacher tells you to partner up. We’d have them on every bill if we could. Anyway, on the 25th we headed out to Flint, MI, where we’ve never played before, and played a super fun show with Swamp Rats and Ca$h O ‘Riley, formerly of the Five N’ Dime poets.

Did we mention the beer is good?

Rounding out July was our show at Ziggy’s in Ypsilanti on the 31st with Swamp Rats as well as our friends Yell at God and a solo performance by John of Lansing folk punk darlings, Rent Strike. It was the most packed show we’ve ever played at Ziggy’s. It had been almost exactly a year since we’d played with Yell at God, and it was really neat seeing how much they’ve grown in just a year. We were also very excited to have burlesque performer Fearless Amaretto do a number to our song “Sweet Nectar”, and you know what I learned? That song’s just not long enough to strip to, which I GUESS means I have to write another one for that sole purpose.

One more quick tip for the newbies before we close out the post: typical show etiquette dictates that at least one member of each band sticks around for the other acts. Of course, things happen; someone has to work early in the morning, someone’s not feeling that well, someone’s got a baby/petsitter waiting at home to be relieved of their shift. But I strongly discourage you from making a habit of leaving immediately after your set without so much as an explanation or even a goodbye, and it looks especially bad if you are the only local act and all the others drove several hours to play with you. It’s rude, and it will not win you friends in this industry. Just a heads up.

Next month! On the 15th we truck all the way on out to Paw Paw to play at the Lucky Wolf, we have a featured set at the Copper Hop open mic in St. Clair Shores on the 27th, the 28th is our show at the Arboretum, and the following night you can find us at the Dreamland Theatre in Ypsilanti.