(Note: I’ll be updating these posts with links when I have more time. Until then, Google’s your friend!)

9am - We leave Josh’s place after packing, unpacking and repacking the rental van in search of the keys. Of course, they were sitting on the font seat of Josh’s car the whole time. The van has a 5-disc CD changer and all we have are iPods. Madison begins to look pretty good from the tail end of the stuffed Grand Caravan.

11:20am - Depart the Des Moines Oasis after a quick pit stop. A very kind woman named Priscilla warns me at the convenience store counter that I’m about to buy a $3.50 granola bar. I buy Chapstick instead. Josh has dug out some CDs and we’re listening to what sounds like the history of electronic dance music.

12pm - We’re entering Indiana. Somehow we took a wrong turn and managed to skip past most of downtown Chicago. We managed to catch the express lanes this time around. Gary still smells weird.

3:26pm - We stop at a “travel plaza” about seven miles from the Ohio border. We experience sticker shock when we see that gas is $4.19 a gallon. I’d heard that gas prices were just reaching $4 a gallon out west, but that the further east you went the prices were less. We take a chance that it won’t be getting any cheaper. I find a reasonably priced granola bar (99¢) and a postcard. There’s a mailbox here, but no one sells stamps. Gas winds up at $58. Toll for crossing through Indiana: $6.75.

3:58pm - We just noticed that gas is $3.92 here in Ohio.

6:00pm (EDT) - We arrive at Roc Bar. The club seems really cool. The stage is large and elevated. The PA looks pretty nice. The club is right on the river and has a patio that looks across to riverboats and shipyards. We make hotel reservations and walk down to W. 6th to find something to eat. We see a eight-foot tall pair of embroidered jeans hanging outside a store called Krush. We stop in at Josh’s request. It’s all Sean Jean. Cool looking stuff, but a little more “hip-hop” than I’d be able to get away with. We stop at the 6th St. Pizzaria & Bar. Katy and I order the Strawberry and Blue Cheese salad. Everyone else has a salad or sandwich with a cup of the Italian Wedding soup. Dinner’s pretty good. The weird thing about Cleveland is that all the shops downtown have signs and window stickers warning us that we can’t carry firearms on the premises. The Rock-N-Roll Hall of Fame is having a big Doors exhibit, and the pizzaria hasn’t played anything but since we sat down.

9pm - Show time! The lineup is Stone Relied, us, Anthony Covatta and Lunavelis. Stone Relied put in a good set. They sound a bit like Pavement and the Pixies. They’d probably do really well in Madison. We’re up next. The set goes really well. The sound onstage is great and Katy doesn’t have a problem hearing herself. Anthony Covatta was supposed to play after us but didn’t show. Theron, the promoter/owner of Roc Bar, receives a text message later in the evening from Anthony stating that he was sorry he couldn’t make it as he had to work the door at another club. Lunavelis closes the show with a great modern pop/rock sound. The band is apparently Chris, the singer/guitarist, and a revolving cast of musicians. He writes some great hooks. The whole night went really well. Thanks to Theron and everyone at the club, thanks to everyone in the bands. We had a really great time and can’t wait to come back to Cleveland.

After six months of rehearsals, parties, recording and mixing, we’re finally hitting the road this week! We have one final rehearsal tonight before packing up the van and buying a case of energy drinks. We’re all very excited to get out and play.

After our last gig, we’ve decided to start revamping a few songs. “Postcards” from 100 Unnamed Things, is the first to get the treatment. It now sounds tougher and sexier. A bit Sneaker Pimps, a little Massive Attack and a little Chemical Brothers. (And for all you musos out there, the vocal melody now uses the ascending version of the Melodic Minor, or “Jazz Minor”, scale)

I’m hoping to post a little tour diary this week as we go along. So by all means, return here for news as it happens!

…The Dorothy Heralds! Yay! Last night the band was presented with the 2008 “Best Electronic Song” MAMA for our recording of “What Goes Up“. Thanks to everyone that voted for us and thanks to all of you listening out there. It’s wonderful to be recognized for this crazy thing we do.

I wasn’t at the show last night, but apparently a number of the MAMA’s beneficiaries were present. It sounds like it was a good show, and I’m glad that these kids were able to participate. The MAMAs have gotten a lot of flack in the musician community over the years, so I’m glad that the goal of putting instruments in kids hands remains center stage.

Here’s a link for the complete list of winners this year, as well as a short article of highlights from the show. Congratulations to all the winners and to everyone participating this year.

Okay, free CD to the first person that can name the song referenced in the title of this post.

Davenport, IA we love you! Thanks to everyone that came out to the show on Saturday. We had a blast. Thanks to May Lane and Somewhere Conscious (sorry, no link) for playing so well. We had a great time meeting everyone.

The funny thing about being on the road is that people always seem to be able to tell that a) you’re not from around here, and b) you’re in a band. I don’t know if it’s the clothing or the look of “man, where the heck am I”? We got to Stickman’s before it opened, so we asked around and found Riefe’s. We were there no longer than a minute before someone asked, “So, where are you guy’s from”? Hilarity with the waitress ensued.

The show went off without a hitch. Thanks to Mel for having us and Joe for putting the show together. Our set went off with minimal glitches. I started our medley of “Play” and “Hyperballad” too slow, and our stage volume was a bit over the top for the monitors at first. But we all came together and put on a great show with lots of energy.

This week is the Madison Area Music Awards are this weekend. We’re up for Best Electronic Song again (three years running), so wish us luck. Other than that, we’ve got lots of work to do before heading out east later this month.

Happy Cinco de Mayo! See y’all soon!

For those of you that are interested, here’s our set list for this weekend’s show in Davenport, IA.

1. Happenstance
2. Synergy
3. Nora
4. Sidewinder
5. Postcards
6. White
7. One of These Days
8. Shine
9. What Goes Up
10. Play/Bjork
11. City of Stars and Light
12. Beautiful

Depending on how things go, this will most likely be our set for our gigs in Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and NYC. Hope to see you all out there!