"Is Monkey Now."

The other day our friend's two-year-old daughter was desperately looking for her monkey. She does not, of course, actually have a monkey, not even a toy stuffed monkey. But after a diligent search and with much boisterous encouragement from Lucy Cate, her mother uncovered a small finger puppet in the shape of an angel.

"Monkey!" shouted Lucy Cate, reaching for the object.

Her mother handed her the little puppet. "Sweetie, that's not a monkey, that's an angel."

Lucy looked her mother square in the eyes and said "Is monkey now."

Rabbit Rabbit.

Here we go, already into the first bright hours of a new November. I like November. It's starting to get cold, yeah, but it's the month in which that nice Autumn crispness enters the picture. The air seems to be cleaner and easier to see through. The fallen leaves get more brittle and they crunch underfoot. It's like walking through potato chips. I don't like the cold much, but I love the sound. October gave us the heady scent of Fall: the deep richness of the still soft, damp earth and leaves. But November solidifies it all and gives us the sound of it.

Speaking of sound, we have two gigs coming up:

Thursday, December 31st.
First Night Northampton.

Saturday, January 9th.
McFadden's Pub, Williamsburg.

Consider this as advance warning, as the dates are still pretty far off from right now, but it's good to mark your calendars well in advance. We know how busy you are. And if you're half as busy as we are, we're still twice as busy as you. We have this new album to finish, for one thing. We're down to the mixing and mastering now, but there's still work to do. It's one of the reasons we've played so few gigs this year. Next year is gonna be different. We're hoping to fill it up with shows, starting with the above two.

Details to follow, just like always.

Happy Halloween.

In the spirit of the holiday, we now return to the usual nonsense and harmless mayhem that is the ordinarily happy norm here at the GDV blogsite. To get the (ahem) ball rolling, we present this latest item from drummer Nick Dines:

BHI Implant Research Laboratory Bulletin
October 2009 • Volume 10 • Number 5
BHI Develops iBall® Scrotal Implant for Somaphonic Therapy®


BHI iBall® Scrotal Implant on display at the American Society for Scrotal Implant Research Annual Meeting and Trade Fair. Implants are controlled and charged wirelessly.

Broad Hill Institute Implant Research Laboratory • Boston (EPI):
The Broad Hill Institute today unveiled an important new development in Bioacoustic Scrotal Implant Technology. BHI has developed the BHI iBall®, which can directly receive Bioacoustic Somaphonic music containing vibroacoustic properties by means of wireless technology. It is controlled and recharged by means of an inconspicuous remote device.
Centered Somaphonia is a promising application of bioacoustic therapy made possible by a licensing agreement between the GDV Research Orchestra at the MRRI Center for Advanced Bioacoustic Research and BHI. BHI was established by the New England Chapter of the Ancient Esteemed Royal Order of the Emeriti Brotherhood, to improve the quality and efficacy of Gin through Agricultural Research. The iBall was the result of a misappropriation of funds according to BHI Director, Dr. H. C. Davis. —(Aaron Rothchild, EPI correspondent)

October Days.

It's been quite a month so far.

I'm going to get the sad news out of the way first. My father shuffled off his mortal coil on October 2nd, going peacefully and within sight of the ocean he so loved. The significance of his passing away on my birthday was not lost on us. He always said I liked to get the last word in, and this was his way of getting the last laugh.

On a happier note, I will say that the band played a truly wonderful show at the Iron Horse on October 4th (which would have been my Dad's 83rd birthday). We packed the house, we made the rock, we kicked the ass. A couple of days after that, Sarah and I headed up to Maine to be with Mom for awhile.

I expect that I'll write more frequently in here before too long. It's just that these past few weeks have been full of activity and change, but short on opportunity and inclination.

The Fistbump Explodes.

RIP, Timmy Young.



Tim died last week. Gone is one of the Valley's most joyful, supportive believers that the power of art and music can triumph over the mundane. In each day's list of events, he found more than a mere handful of shows to attend; he found a way to go through life and to share that joy with his many friends and neighbors. Tim, I wish that your days could have gone on a much longer time. I shall miss you.

Rick Solo.

Tuesday • September 22
Wrongways Tuesday #4 at The Elevens in Northampton
Rick Murnane
School for the Dead
Nuclear Waste Management Club
7:00 - 9:00 - Free - 21+

Ciao My Shining Star.

The tribute album of Mark Mulcahy songs will be released in this country on September 29th, but a sneak peek of the CD is available for streaming at the Shout! Factory site right now. You can listen to the whole album in order or fast-forward through and listen to whatever suits your fancy. The song that I sang on with Chris Collingwood is "Cookie Jar," track 11. That's me doing all the backing vocals. There are a lot of cool versions of Mark's songs here...Chris said listening to them made him want to go out and get all of Mark's records. I hope a lot of people feel that way.

UPDATE: You can preorder your copy at Amazon.