Josh Rouse - 9/19/07 - Salt Lake City

Salt Lake City has its own set of rules.  Beautiful day and the shower in the bus works!  We were informed that due to noise restrictions we couldn’t soundcheck until 8 p.m. This wasn’t good.  It was suggested by the guy handling tonight’s show that if we weren’t happy with the late start, we could go open for Guster who was playing a mile away. Joe Pisapia (CMCH mixer and player, and Marc’s brother) plays with Guster. We said we’d be up for it but finally it came down to the promoter raising a stink about not selling booze.  So we negotiated an earlier soundcheck, and I set up the merch next to the pinball machines. This was a smoking club, so I eased back on the amount of shirts I put out.  A little over 100 grateful people showed up, and I was pleased with that.  They were actually lined up outside for an hour, and we started at 11:30 on a weeknight.  Salt Lake City has its own set of rules.

I used to live in a suburb of Salt Lake called Murray.  I went to an elementary school called Liberty where they were smoking pot in the 4th grade, if that tells you anything.  I asked from the stage if anyone went to Liberty, and a girl from the back got really excited and started waiving her arms madly. Turns out it was the same girl that served us coffee during the day, and her boyfriend became pissed off, dragging her out halfway through the set.  We were convinced this club was a crystal meth front.  It was my first time playing (as an adult) in Salt Lake City.