The Machine’s Pump Volume 27 – #10 – October 2024

END OF OCTOBER, 2024. Brave Combo just played its final Oktoberfest of the year and that’s fine with me. From a musician’s perspective, there are some great ones, with engaged, happy audiences getting loose and dancing up a storm and there are some stinkers, which resemble frat parties held at giant sports bars. And, honestly, for lots of folks, this is not a bad thing, if they like giant sports bars. As I mentioned in September’s newsletter, I think many of these events want to come off like big ol’ crazy carnivals, full of non-stop laughs and noise and color and thrills and contests and revelry and, of course, beer. Massive amounts of beer. Some other polka-oriented festivals are much simpler. Mainly just music, tents and beer, with music being the primary focus. It’s a lot more fun for me to mess with an audience who is actually paying attention us, rather than whatever big game is on the big screen at the moment. I guess TV sports are like comfort food or a security blanket to some. If they’re on nearby, there’s always something familiar to look at. However, we did perform at many Oktoberfests this season with no televised sports in sight. And the attitude of the promoters can be wildly different. And as I’ve also mentioned before, some put the music makers on pedestals, but to others, a band is just another vendor. All I know is that we put on a much better show when we’re treated like the stars we imagine ourselves to be! Everyone should be aware, and in awe, of how cool we are! Cause we like to enjoy a friendly game of Easy-Listening Name That Tune on the way home, after gigs. See? We are super cool! Don’t mess with us!

Speaking of thinking highly of oneself, I finally figured out that Satan is your ego. Yep! Figured it out! We are already in hell, people, and the trick is to figure out how to escape, but if we just keep feeding our ego, we’ll never get out. Any takers on this? Also, don’t be afraid! Instead, dwell on how many gigantic galaxies there are in the universe. And galaxies are packed with stars, many with planets orbiting around them. I honestly can’t give you better advise. There’s a lot going on out there which has very little to do with us teeny-tiny self-centered Goldilocks-zoners.

Let’s see. An over-the-top Halloween, followed by the scariest election in the history of the United States! Perfect!

Andy Grof, a long-time devoted Brave Combo fan and friend, recently sent me a beautiful lagerphone! A few weeks later, Andy came to Denton to visit and attend our annual Arts and Jazz Festival and I took a photo of him standing with it. He built this thing and wrapped it in stiff cardboard and FedExed to me! It’s big and awkwardly shaped, for an item to mail to someone. Hats off to Andy! And, although he’s eccentric and driven by artistic endeavors and whimsy, I think Andy’s lagerphone is also a tribute to Joe Cripps, a percussionist who played with us for many years, often dramatically banging and swinging around a lagerphone on stage. Tragically, Joe disappeared in his hometown of Little Rock, Arkansas in October of 2016. Gone eight years, this month. No clue about what happened to him. Here’s a photo of Andy with his lagerphone. Expect to see it on stage soon!

HUNTING JOKE:
Friend #1: Hey man, what’ve you been up to for fun these days?
Friend #2: Hey buddy! Well, I really enjoy waking up early, going to a place where I don’t live and ending the lives of innocent, defenseless animals who were, themselves, enjoying life before I came along and killed them. I use one of my guns, of course. It’s a blast! Get it? A blast!
Friend #1: Wow! That’s cold!
Friend #2: Yeah, man. Cold, like an ice-cold brewski! Want one?

BIG NEWS! Brave Combo’s guitarist, Robert Hokamp, recently won the International Polka Association’s Young Composer’s Award for his original polka, “To the Hills.” Damn, Robert! Congratulations to one insanely talented person. I guess we’ll be adding it to our repertoire soon! Request it when you come out. Robert’s pretty good at Easy-Listening Name That Tune, too! Here’s his winning entry.

November is vacation month for Brave Combo, which, for me, means working harder than ever, catching up on the myriad things I put off while we were rehearsing and playing so much! No need to check our schedule for a little while. I’ll close with this timely little song.  Enjoy our break!