Volume 5 – #4 – April 2002

I’m neglecting my cassettes! I never listen to them anymore and some of my favorite recordings are only on cassette. This is depressing. Somehow I have to work these gems back into my day-to-day life. In some ways they seem as clumsy and inefficient as 8-tracks were. And, for sure, cassettes are limited in how many times they can be played. But there’s so much good stuff on my cassettes sadly stacked away against the wall in my office. I tried to organize them to make them more player-friendly last year, but became overwhelmed and moved on to other projects. My world is project-driven. There are lots and lots of things to do that have defined goals. For instance, we need to finish the video we’ve been dilly-dallying with for about six months. We need a new T-shirt design that rocks. We need to organize a master song list. We need to decide what to do with the five different versions of “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” we recorded a couple of years ago. There’s promotion for this gig and promotion for that gig. Of course, we play gigs. We’re planning to record a new CD for Rounder very soon. And we would like to redecorate the interior of the Donut (our van/bus thing). Non-Brave Combo things I’m working on include my hymn medley, my weekly radio show on 247polkaheaven.com (check it out) and the cat litter. Not all of this stuff is glamorous and exciting. But most of it is.

The Donut had a $1600.00 brake job just before our trip to New Mexico. If you feel sorry for us, send us money. If we don’t hear from you, we’ll assume you don’t feel sorry for us.

Speaking of New Mexico, they do Mexican food their own way there. Rice is not a given. Beans are usually not refried. Enchiladas are flat, not rolled. Chili powder plays an important role and blue tortillas are common, although it’s rare that you get complimentary chips and salsa. I know it’s almost cliché to point out these characteristics. Many people have commented on the unique taste and attitude of New Mexican cuisine, but I always find it interesting, albeit somewhat unsettling. But, you know, even if restaurant food varies from region to region you can always take comfort in knowing that the convenience store down the street has about the same crap as the convenience store on the other side of the country.

Speaking of traveling, how can there be so many cars? There are lots of them out there and most of ’em are in my way. One time we were walking around Amsterdam and came across an anti-car rally. That would be a pretty futile thing in most US cities. We prefer late night driving because there aren’t as many cars on the road then. Instead, there are a bunch of semi trucks; giant stiff caterpillars hauling important cargo, I guess. Sometimes they carry infected medical waste, sometimes candy. I hate to see doomed cows or chickens in transit. It’s barbaric. They’re crammed into each other and ….Uh oh, I’m gonna make someone mad now. Actually, you know, I bet the cows and chickens are having fun, taking in the scenery before they’re tortured and torn apart. I apologize for bringing this to your attention. However, if just one of you feels guilty the next time you bite into the remains of an unhappy, probably unhealthy, chicken, it was worth it. I know, I know. These are animals raised to be eaten, with emotions, fear, intelligence and pain genetically removed. Okay, really, shut up, Carl.

How did that last paragraph turn so dark? Let me say something happy and uplifting. Uh, everyone loves puppies. In some parts of the world they love them best with sweet and sour sauce.

Sometimes I think about what originally motivated me to form Brave Combo. I wanted to play polkas in a rocking manner, but that’s about all I knew. I really didn’t expect it to go as well as it has (knock on wood). I knew we were on to something conceptually solid and I hoped we pulled it off technically and with feeling, but we didn’t plan to strike so many nerves. And most of the time it wasn’t about money. Good thing, cause we didn’t make much the first couple of years. We were mainly just trying to get the word out. But, unfortunately we did eventually figure out how to make money. And, of course, money then became a priority, as it always does, and everything started to revolve around that. So we decided that disco Muzak would be the most lucrative avenue to take (sorta like the Bee Gees) and we veered away from our original purpose, eventually opening a chain of hardware stores, specializing in no-nonsense do-it-yourself kitchen cabinet kits. The craze was psychedelia and the climate was ripe for such a thing. Those last few sentences are lies, but you get my drift, right? Did I ever mention that our first bass player was a manager at J.C. Penney’s department store? See, with the luxury of hindsight, it all makes sense. We’re a very lucky and thankful band, although it’s far from perfect. Radio might as well be solely devoted to aliens talking about Jesus coming back to Mars as far as we’re concerned and television is just as elusive. Mainly our survival has been dependent on word-of-mouth advertising. This guy tells this gal, “Hey, have you heard Brave Combo?” She says, “No, but they sound interesting and cute.” And he says, “Oh, they’re both, and more! Would you like to check ’em out with me this Saturday night?” “Sure, she says. Can I bring my husband?” And before you know it, everybody is dancing. It’s funny. I don’t dance much, but I beg the audience to dance. What is wrong with me?

I get my share of emails. Sometimes people ask for CDs. Often they want to send me their CDs. Usually the messages are friendly and supportive, but once in a while they’re hateful. Mainly people just ask questions. And I’m almost always slow in responding. I recently received an email from a fan that doesn’t get “Skytrain,” a song from POLKASONIC. She suggested that I address this in the newsletter and apologized for bothering me. I thought it was a pretty good idea; cause “Skytrain” is rather abstract. It’s about a humbling event that produces horrendous results, but also gigantic leaps of enlightenment. Materialism fades away as we lose our possessions. Change is painful, yet essential. As we deny physical entrapments, our soul emerges. Our priorities change and our perspectives shift. And when our eyes have wings, we will no longer care about our favorite things. That’s about it. It would be funny if someone asked what the song, “The Chicken Dance,” was about.

Okay folks, you’re on your own for another month. And don’t forget, we are officially into festival season. Which means many opportunities to see your favorite bunch of misfits act like big shots on outdoor stages, usually for free. Check our itinerary for times and locations. My name is Carl. And there’s Bubba and Danny and Alan and Jeffrey. And our molecules cling together to give our bodies form. Sleep well.