The Darns Days of Summer Part 2 - TOUR!!!!

I’m at it again! And this time I am consulting my personal journal, a rare treat for those of you in blogworld. But I won’t be dishing, I will merely be referencing. And overviewing.

And no pictures today because I CANNOT FIGURE OUT BLOGGER.COM. Seriously cannot.

After driving through the gorgeous country that is Wyoming, we made a stop at the Terry Bison Ranch in Cheyenne. Camping! My favorite thing! And, wouldn’t you know it, when you go camping these days, you can surf the web from anywhere in the campground. We have certainly evolved.

The following day we drove to Olathe, Kansas. Oh-Lay-Thu. I think. After getting out in Nebraska and nearly choking to death in the humidity, we took a two hour detail around Missouri because apparently the highway was floating away with the river. Which is really too bad for Missouri. We didn’t try the famous BBQ in Kansas City but instead drove to St. Louis. Have you been to St. Louis? It is an impressive city, with that arch welcoming all who enter. Truly lovely. But somehow we made our way into the south side, whereupon we were the only folks speaking English. It’s cool, we’re men and women of the world. And we were too deliriously overheated to notice much of anything. That evening we played to 4 people, but a devoted audience they were. And the man working the counter was none other than up-and-coming lead singer for the band Union Tree Review.

We stayed with our good friend Heather Bosshardt and her husband Greg, who were all too kind to put us up for the evening. (Shout out: Heather is also a fine musician, both classical and jazz. You can check her out at http://heatherbosshardt.blogspot.com/).

This is the part where I talk about how great it was to have friends to stay with all along the way and how grateful we are for their hospitality including: The Players in Olathe, The Bosshardts in St. Louis, Drew Becker in Nashville, Jessica Watson in Knoxville and The Gardners in Ohio. How can we ever thank you???

Then we get to Nashville Part 1 – we had a gig in (Franklin) Nashville! It was really, really great. Our first time around in Nashville (Franklin), we didn’t see much. We went to our gig, we played a rousing set at the Bunganut Pig, we feasted on “southern food” and hit the sack. What? We were in Nashville and didn’t even go to a honky tonk? Patience, blog friends. Notice I said Part 1. Actually Nashville Part 1 was brief and uninteresting. Don’t get me wrong. You can’t possibly go from the desert of Utah to the lush greenery of TN and call it “uninteresting”. Because it is so gorgeous, and the hills just roll, and you can’t see anything but trees everywhere. How can that be bad - - - from the inside of an air conditioned car? Perhaps this is biased. Perhaps Lacey, Annemarie and Kelin had no problem with the near-heat-stroke humidity and temperature. But I am in charge of the blog.

I’ve reached my blogging limit for the evening. Part 3 to come….

The Darns Days of Summer

Wow...has it been 10 months already? Time flies.

It has been a summer of epic proportions according to us darns. Really, I think it's safe to say that all of us couldn't be happier about the leaps and bounds we've made and the awesome things we have been able to do (you may find throughout this post that one of my favorite words of all time is "awesome". It is just so ... descriptive).

Let's talk about a few of those, shall we?

1. ALBUM RELEASE

Yes. It has finally arrived - two months ago. The Pretty Darns debut album, aptly named "The Pretty Darns". If you haven't bought it yet, and we recommend that you do, here are some tidbits about it.

Cover Art Revealed:

We're so pleased with the work MEGAN BELL did for us on the album art.

And the photographs that LEVI SIM

(http://SDesignsPhotography.blogspot.com) took for us. And the recording engineering brilliance of Tim Moes at Why Sound Recording Studios in Logan.

I could go on and on about who to thank for this album, but I'd probably miss someone. So, you should just buy the album and see for yourself.

And for those of you with a favorite song which will make or break a deal (and because this will further satisfy my need to make a list) here is the track listing on this album:

1. Senseless

2. Crooked

3. Manless Woman

4. Wendy and Peter Pan

5. Lullaby

6. Spring Chicken Inn

7. There's Nothing I Want More Than You

8. I Never Will Marry

9. Confessions

10. Wake Me Up in Winnemucca

We had a CD release party at my residence in

Logan (as a side note, this is Liz balaaaauuuggghing) and we were pleased as punch at the turn out and the reception. What a remarkable thing to have so much support and, dare I say, fans!

We will be putting the album up on iTunes shortly but if you'd like a CD before we do so, contact us at theprettydarns@yahoo.com and we'd be all too happy to get you one!

2. SUMMER GIGS

This is just a bulleted overview.

• Summerfest (see photo, thank you Jen Allen) in Logan UT. I tried my first funnel cake. Gotta say, I wasn't all too pleased. I'm not one for those fried fair foods (corn dogs excluded) Perhaps I need to try that fried butter stick they were boasting about in Iowa (no, I really don't).
• SLC Arts Fest, Downtown SLC - what an opportunity! We were chosen out of 300 bands or something. We played a short set, but we stopped those fest-goers in the street and I saw some of them shaking their hips and clapping their hands. Yes, to our music! What a treat!
• The Annual Fountain Green Lamb Days - Ah, sweet mutton fry. Ah, lemon greek rice (of which I am now the proud owner of the recipe). Lamb Days is one of my favorite parts of the year. I know a dear friend that joined in the festivities this year has some trepidation about the size of the town and the freaky things that can occur in small towns. But there are very few places that I love to be more than Fountain Green, Utah. It's such a nice getaway and the mutton is to die for. If you will.
• Fourth of July in Ruby Valley, NV - I also love Ruby Valley, and it's neighboring Valley, Clover Valley. A house concert in Clover Valley (A BIG thanks to the Midaughs and Ken Grandjean), The Annual Fireman's Picnic, the dance at Woodpecker Hall, decorations courtesy of the 4-H-er's, not to mention the BUGS. I love the bugs. Seriously, so so much. (no) And even if Lacey and I did get home at around 4 AM after the long long drive from Ruby Valley to Logan, it is always a pleasure to play for the citizens of Ruby Valley.

Oh, I'm sure there are more. There was a whirlwind of gigging activity throughout June and July. Summer seems to be a good time of year for us Bluegrassers.

3. NEW BASS PLAYER!

We were lucky enough to have Eric Thorin play on our album, but we needed a bass player a little closer to home. And what a friend we have in Kelin Gibbons. He can do it all. If you think I am exaggerating, you are mistaken. Lacey and I know him through another band we play with, The Dry Lake Band. He plays the banjo in that group and just "picked up" the bass for us. And what an addition! Come see us live and see for yourself, we are complete!

I think I must be done blogging for now. On our next post, you will hear many tales from our SUMMER TOUR. Yes. Summer tour. I could go on about that for days. Which means I should stop now, because I've been at this for a long while already.

I hope all of those who were just itching for a blog post (and since we have all of 5 followers...) feel like this will suffice for now. Ahhh...there's nothing like putting our history to electronic pen.

LOVE,

the pretty darns

P.S.

Please notice that I only actually used the word "Awesome" once in this whole thing. I should do this more often, as it serves to expand my vocabulary. And who doesn't want that?

ALSO, I really don't understand blogger.com. It turns out so differently in the preview than it does in the compose box. If any avid bloggers have some advice for me, help a sister out!