I like throwing songs in to my blogs every now and then. Sometimes I feel like someone else can explain how I feel better than I can. That’s the power of great music. It occurred to me at once
That love could be a great illusion
That makes fools of brillian thinkers everyday
And turns hearts of stone and steel
To a place where they would feel
Like they are falling, falling quickly in its way
Falling, falling quickly in its way
Is it any surprise that you feel so overrun?
And all this time you had no one to tell you how to love
And do you thinks it’s unwise to go and break yourself on this one?
And all this time you didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love…
It occurred to me at once
That love gets everything it asks for
Like a young girl picking flowers in the lawn
She gets every kiss and tear
She gets every smile and fear, but still
She never finds the last of them is gone, oh
She never finds the last of them is gone
Is it any surprise that you feel so overrun?
When all this time you have no one to tell you how to love
And do you think it’s unwise to go and break yourself on this one?
And all this time you didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love…
Is it any surprise that you feel so overrun?
When all this time you have no one to tell you how to love
And do you think it’s unwise to go and break yourself on this one?
And all this time you didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
Is it any surprise that you feel so overrun?
When all this time you have no one to tell you how to love
And do you think it’s unwise to go and break yourself on this one?
And all this time you didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love (didn’t know love)
You didn’t know love.. Goddamn I love Copeland. Aaron Marsh is an amazing man. News: I have a couple days of tour left with Thee boys then I’m home for good (for now.) I need to get my life in order, get some things figured out, work on some stuff. I hope to be able to go back out with them one day or with another band. For now though, I need a break, I need a plan. Yet another birthday is rolling around which means yet another year and yet another chapter… Don’t worry friendly readers, this blog will continue. It always does… -Mandi Location: Tampa, Florida. Laying on the floor of Select Start’s bassist, Adam.
Weather: Cool with an amazing Gulf Coast breeze.
Mood: Blank.
Random Thought: I’m loosing a fight right now. Listening To: Copeland - Eat, Sleep, Repeat - Where’s My Head
I was talking to my good friend Derek for a long time the other night in Poughkeepsie and he said something that’s been haunting me a little bit. He said that touring means being alone. Its weird to the non-touring eye because your constantly surrounded by the same 5 people 24/7, how can you be lonely? Imagine going away for 2 months and then coming home. Think of how much happens in 2 months, how much you miss. People’s hair gets longer, cut or colored, birthdays occur, relationships start, hook ups go down, people move, buy new cars, furniture, clothes, people lose weight, people gain weight. (I could keep going but you’d stop reading.) All the while you’re in a van with the same 5 people. Then trying to go home and become a part of your society again means catching up on all that you’ve missed. You’re sharing your life with 5 people and everyone on the outside doesn’t get it. Its not the same for any band. And people back home have no clue. But why talk about what’s happening with 5 people that are going through the same thing you are? They know, they’re there too. So where do you go? Who understands and is willing to listen? Today we’ve been on the road for a month. If I go back out with them in April it’ll be 2 months. Its hard, its fun and awesome and a great experience, but its hard. I counted today, I’ve been to, driven through, stayed at or eaten in 32 states. For early 20’s, that’s awesome. I’ve done so much more than friends my age have. The grass is always greener though… We just passed the South Carolina border. Only another half hour before we get to the hotel. We’ve been driving all day, I’m down for some TV or a movie, then hitting the hay! -Mandi Merch Location: North Carolina/South Carolina border.
Weather: Cold. 37 degrees.
Mood: Contemplative.
Random Thought: Derek is an amazing person.
Listening To: Bayside - The Walking Wounded. And I’ve realized
There’s no right way to go
So what if I’m a sinner
I’ve got black spots on my liver
And cancer grown on both my lungs
We take everything we know
About ourselves and put them in
A diary in a firing
Scrutiny blown on me now
I think I’m ready to go..
I don’t get it. I don’t get it. Kids eat it up. They love it. “Bands” that have no talent whatsoever except some expensive equipment and a strange desire to be famous, fast. Instead of learning an instrument and trying to be good at it, they want this insta-band. While other bands are hard at work making real music, these “bands” put out a full length album with 2 days in a studio and no practicing. I hope this fad dies. Its sad and dissapointing to see these bands make it. Its even more sad to see their fans blinded by the sounds coming from laptops. I hope good music comes back soon, for the sake of our future children and children’s children. In other news, I’m tossing up the idea of starting to book tours. I have a couple friends working for Music Inc. (former Lucky Artist.) I feel like I have to start somewhere but I don’t want to do another thing half assed. I’m always trying to figure out what to do next… I’m the only one with the answers. -Mandi Merch Location: Shamokin, PA. It sounds as podunk as it is. Their downtown is the size of Montrose in Houston. Weather: Chilly. 41 degrees. Mood: Annoyed. A little tired. Random Thought: I’m done with this show. Listening To: A not too bad acoustic act.
Hello! Welcome to my new blog. Quick intro, my name is Mandi. I tour with Thee Armada from Houston, Texas. I’m their merch girl, part time tour manager and pretty much their mom. I’ve been touring with them for almost a year now. Girls in the music industry, especially the touring world, are pretty rare and are much different than guys in the industry. This blog is for rants and raves, tour stories and pretty much keeping me occupied in a van with 5 guys. Its 1:30 in the morning right now. Were driving from Pittsburgh to New Jersey. Half the drive tonight and half tomorrow. Bryan is driving and I’m riding shotgun (shotgun has to stay awake with the driver.) My mind is exhausted but my eyes are wide open like a deer in the headlights. I’m sure I’d look quite ridiculous on a night vision camera right now. I just finished a Full Throttle, which is my drug of choice for staying awake for night drives. This is my second time writing this blog because I accidentally deleted the first one. We still have another hour of driving until we get to the hotel and we’ve been driving for 2 hours now. Josh just tried to trick me in to drinking a bottle of his pee, I know better. To be a girl touring with a bunch of guys you have to be have a certain level of sassyness, have tough skin and be able to outsmart them 95% of the time. Yesterday was the last day of the Back to the Futour with Callahan and Asteria. All the guys on the tour were awesome. We got especially close to the Asteria guys. Closer then I thought we’d get. I miss them already, we had so much fun on this tour. Last night Terrence said something to me that kind of stuck with me. He told me that I changed his opinion of girls touring. That made me feel good as a person and a little proud. Proud that I could show at least one band that all girls are not bitches or sluts. Granted, I’ll say that most girls are, which makes the sensible girls look bad on the outside. Joe from Select Start and I had a long talk the other night about the stigma’s of girls in the music industry. All I can do is to keep trying to show people they’re wrong. Tomorrow we’re in New Jersey for the Bamboozle Break Contest. I’m going to stare at the dark Pennsylvania highway and sing as loud as I can to stay awake until we get to the hotel.
-Mandi Merch Location: Somewhere in between Pittsburgh and New Jersey.
Weather: 50 degrees and just stopped raining.
Mood: Extremely exhausted.
Random Thought: I really miss my boyfriend and I really have to pee.
Listening To: Bryan and Mandi’s Super Awesome Night Drive Stay Awake Playlist. (Right Now: “Everything I Ask For” by The Maine.)
