A Premature Thanksgiving? Maybe not!

    Even though we are still in the process of recording the sound you will actually hear on your silver disk spinning machine or magic pocket noise maker. I would like to take the time and pat the people on the back that have been helping us, up to this point in the project.

    First up to the set is Nathan Payne, He stepped up and sat down behind the set when Craigslist had failed us (and we were too cheap for bandmix)! He came about from TVU's awesome friend David Graham.*tips hat to Dave* Even though Nathan already has an obligation to another band (Verdant Vera) and his own solo work (Nathan Payne), he took his time to help us get a rough idea and tracking of the upcoming album. Though we don't get to play with Nathan as much, he's still from time to time appearing behind the set at a few TVU gigs.

     Next is an example that there are interesting people you work with! Brent McClughen is a co-worker of mine who was able to sit in on a last minute gig! Just like my start with TVU, Brent was able to be ready (He would say semi-ready) in less then a week or two for an outdoor gig. I'm sure you will be seeing him at a bunch of other gigs!

    Lastly to the set is Andrew Moore. Andrew and I knew each other from a few other gigs and we have tried to keep in contact, just in case one of us needed help with another gig or recording. Also one of those gigs went WAY way way south and is not to be spoken of again so we built a good friendship through that! As Verdant Vera was beginning to get busy with gigs and album work, Nathan understandably needed to bow out as the primary drummer. With a phone call Andrew stepped up to the sticks. We began to practice and try to get a feel for the new drive in TVU. After that we started to roll tape on what is to become the new album. If you haven't got the chance to talk to Andrew, make it! He keeps very busy when it comes to the music world composing, and working with his own band (Circle City Steel).

   Now I would be a total jerk if I didn't take the time and thank everyone that has supported/helped us and also all of Jons family and mine. The album maybe being developed very slowly but I can guarantee, you'll love it!

    Now just sit tight, support your local bands and don't touch that dial! You don't know where it's been!


Low Tones Extraordinaire
Noah

P.S. As John Mayer says: "If you are reading this with an instrument in your lap, get to work, and deep in it. We all need you!"

The Progress We Found

What a crazy process making this record has been. Many thanks are owed to Andrew Moore for pulling through with percussion. It has really helped propel this project that otherwise had begun to feel like it might not happen. More thanks are in order for all of the people that have stuck with us over the last year or so. We haven't been performing nearly as much as we have in the past, but I am hopeful that completing the record will change that. I also want to take a second and thank Brendan Cage for pulling through with a location to move our last show to. There was a miscommunication between the venue and the promoter, and Mr. Cage allowed us to bring some friends, and make some noise in his home.

This record makes me a little nervous for people to hear. Mainly due to the nature of its conception. The material feels much more personal than the last record we made. Hopefully, the rawness of emotion is still captured after sitting on the material for quite some time. The contrast of heartbreak and falling in love makes for two separate worlds for my head to explore, and through writing a lot of the new material, I was able to face my demons so to speak. As expected it was incredibly therapeutic for my sanity. I am just a little unsure of how therapeutic it will be for anyone else to listen to.

We will keep working on the sounds and put them together for you to hear as soon as we can. I guess it would be safe for me to say that my anxiety for anyone to hear the record has begun to transform into excitement. Which I consider a positive thing.

From the bright side,
JK

Live & Live

It's been a while since I've been in the "we have a show coming up" mode. I have been enjoying the process of putting together the record - which is strange, because I typically dislike studio work. I have a feeling that by the time our final touches have been put on this record, I will be very happy with it overall. That may sound like an obvious statement, but I have never been happy with anything I've recorded in the past. At least not in it's entirety.

That being said, I know we are looking forward to heading up to Lafayette, Indiana to play some music. After our last adventure up there, Noah and I decided to make it a point to return. I wasn't sure how soon that would happen, but am happy that it is happening now. From what I can gather about this show, it will be played outdoors on the street. This automatically makes my anticipation level rise, as playing outdoors is something we haven't done in a while. Although, it also leads to my personal regret that my master knob falls short of 11.

Ideally, the sun will leave us a strong reminder that it is summer and the necessity for sleeves and pant legs will disappear, and take with it any regard for what others think allowing me the unconscious ability to dance in the street. Of course, as per a typical show, I intend on finding a local establishment to provide ample nourishment (food) and a sip or two of musical energy (drink) pre-show. If successful, this will only lead to a fun night. When playing some TVU tunes in Lafayette, Indiana, the only word that is synonymous in my head is fun - and for some reason the word Saturday, too. Probably, because to this point, that's the only day of the week TVU has played in a town that I once called home.

Hopefully, anyone who reads this non-sense will make themselves present... We are looking forward to it... See you under the stars...

I may get my life back...

So, I should probably be finishing up studying for my last final for this semester. However, I have been studying since about 4 AM, so I figured I would take a quick break to say that I am excited to have my life back. It won't be long now before we can crank out some new sounds. I have been eager to let everyone hear what we've been working on for what seems like a long time now, so hopefully whoever listens enjoys it. Alright, I am going to go throw myself at the mercy of the chemistry gods, who in my experience have been ironically merciless.

The Emerson Theater - 4/21

Ok, so it's been a while since anyone has written anything. We have a show coming up on Saturday April 21 in Indianapolis. It is not a traditional show. It is the final round of a Battle of the Bands contest. I think we can win if we have your help. Here's how it works: We have tickets that we are available for presale. The more tickets we can sell, the better for TVU and the better for you. There are several bands (~8-10) playing in the final round. The winner of the contest is chosen by audience applause at the end of the day's event. So, the order of the bands is set based off of the amount of tickets each band sells. The band who sells the most tickets will get to play last, leaving them the most likely to have the most "fans" around when the audience applause determines the winner. So even if you are unable to attend the show, and would like to help us out, feel free to purchase a ticket or two... Having said all of that... Some of you were in attendance the last round. As you may remember, our set was second to last in the day, and made for a lot of waiting around for us. If you do not want to see the other acts, let me (Jon) or Noah know and we will make a list of people to text or call once we know an estimated time for our set. The earliest our set would be is around 4pm. We will also keep the band's Facebook page and Twitter updated the day of with what we know as we know it. We are really hoping to have all of your help in winning this thing, as there is a prize of studio time and some money, which we could obviously use. So help us spread the word. Get everyone you can think of to the show, and come on out yourself. Thanks for your help and support!

Hunter's Down Under

Its always an interesting experience for us to get to play in a new venue - let alone a new city. I'm not so much a stranger to Lafayette, Indiana (the home of Hunter's Down Under) as I lived there for three or four years a while back, and my dad's side of the family is rooted there. However, I hadn't ever played a show there. I've always looked forward to the potential opportunity to play in Lafayette as I imagined it to be some sort of baptism of my confidence. This primarily due to the fact it is the very town where I lost the confidence I had once had in music as my last project that fell apart called it home. However, those illusions were all in my head, and as we pulled up to venue I saw this fact clearly.

It is always nice to see family when in town, and I was not let down as both family and friends showed up to the show from Indy, Chicago, and obviously Lafayette. The show went pretty well, aside from the fact that I had my wah pedal engaged for half of the show without realizing it. The funny thing is, I realized something was not right with my sound, and during sound check I mentioned it to Nathan. We thought somehow I had cracked a cone in a speaker. Turns out the wah was on - they really should start putting some sort of indication light on those things. Either way, the energy in the room was good and it felt as though everyone enjoyed the majority of our stuff. We also used the opportunity to play a handful of new songs live for the first time. They all went pretty well for the most part.

The highlight of the show for me was playing, "I Know a Girl", which is a song I wrote for my grandmother (on my Dad's side) when she passed a couple of years ago. I knew I wanted to play that song that night, as she called Lafayette home, and in some way it felt like if I played it there she might hear it a littler clearer. The funny thing is, right as we started to play the song, my Dad walked into the venue, and was able to hear the song in its entirety. Earlier in the week, he had said that he didn't think he was going to make it to the show at all. Funny how things work out sometimes.

New Sounds

It's been a while since we have posted anything here. Probably because no one reads it. But in the event that one of our two or three fans stumbles across this from time to time, maybe it is appropriate for someone to update you with the goings on of The Vintage Union.

We are working on a new album. I hope to have it done by sometime early 2012, as I'm excited to hear what everyone thinks of the new material. A lot of the new stuff is based on some personal heart break that I have suffered in the last year or so, but it isn't what I would tag a "break-up album." The songs don't really come from the vulnerability of experiencing tragedy so much as processing the tragedy and moving on. Stay updated with everything that's going on with us on our website or Facebook. I'm sure we'll post some previews of some of the new stuff as time goes on.

Until then, hopefully you can make it to our show at Hunter's Down Under in Lafayette, Indiana tomorrow November 19, 2011... See you soon...


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