Jared, Author at Champagne Sunday

The Transition to Being a Phony Douchebag

I’m fighting it. I truly am. But I feel it creeping in on me. In a business where some of the biggest assholes have the most influence, you can’t afford to blow off or be rude to anyone you meet at a show. The plain fact remains that sometimes, I just don’t recognize you. I...

Growing a beard . . .

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 3 comments

For the longest time, I could not grow a good beard. Well, being hairy was never a challenge, but there were little spots on the sides of my mouth that refused to connect. Guys know what I’m talking about. I always wanted a nice, full beard. Not necessarily in the Grizzly Adams or ZZ Top...

Kristof and the few (an ode to good sound guys) . . .

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 2 comments

In our business, a lot depends on someone else. You can practice for years, master every aspect of your performance, then get to the stage and have the whole thing fucked up by a sound guy that doesn’t know what he’s doing. And good sound is all about subtleties, so you need someone that pays...

A New, Strange Way to Injure Yourself

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 2 comments

Ice blocking. Requires: A big hill, a big block of ice, cojones, cover of darkness, and most importantly, lots of beer. You can kind of connect the dots based on the requirements, but basically, it involves carrying a big block of ice up a hill, sitting on it, and riding it down a grassy hill...

Further adventures in Portland . . .

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 1 comment

We’ve discovered some more things about Portland. The place where we’ve been parking is a sweet little nook between a dive bar and a funeral home. In the wee hours, between the time when we’re done gigging and the time that we go to bed, we’ve found that the dive bar is a wonderful place...

Guerrilla Parking in PDX

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 4 comments

We’re up in Portland, the land of the earth-tone hoodies. It’s incredible up here. The people smile and say “hello” on the streets, trees intermingle with the city buildings, musicians talk to each other without pretension, bouncers are polite, and the beer is AWESOME!!! Another nice feature of the town: No cops knocking on the...

Amazed by Strange Things

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 1 comment

How many chances does the average person get to see a car on fire on the side of the road? Unless you’re either setting the fires or putting them out, I’d imagine a ballpark average of maybe ten in a lifetime. Last night, we were on our way back to Tacoma from an open mic...

Making the Album: Easter Eggs

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 2 comments

Throughout the album, there are several little hidden treasures that many people either don’t notice or can’t identify. Being privy to those little things makes us feel special, so we thought we’d share some of them with you so you can feel special too. Exile: In one of the choruses, after “I’m running out of...

Podcasts, Parades, and Pubs

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 1 comment

Had a busy past few days. Wednesday: Headed up to Seattle to meet an old friend (Joe Motor, former owner of Club Motor) and play an open mic at a new place – the Blue Moon in the University District. From the looks of it, I think this is the bar where Lewis and Clark...

Strange Things in the Woods

11 years ago2 years ago

Jared Fredeen 1 comment

We had a wonderful show up in Bremerton at the Hi-Fidelity Lounge this past Friday. The crowd was right there with us, the sound was kicking (which is great because we get a little nervous when someone else is running our sound), and we just had an all-around excellent night. But that’s not the main...