Monday, December 29, 2008

TLCB Wants To Play On This Cruise

Ok, who doesn't want to spend four days in the Gulf of Mexico on a cruise ship with John Mayer, Guster, OAR, etc? If you answered "Me," then you aren't human; it's very simple. I guess the point is that The Lucas Cates Band is in this online voting competition to play on such a cruise in 2009. The Mayercraft cruise is hosted by John Mayer and features a number of amazing bands. This year they want to bring unsigned artists along, so we're going for one of those spots. It takes 3 minutes to register on the site and vote (ideally for The Lucas Cates Band). If we can cause a stir then we get to play on the cruise, and if we play on the cruise y'all are invited! We'll just cram everyone into my cabin....it will be sweet, seriously.

You can find the link to vote at our myspace page : myspace.com/lucascates (the link is to the right of this post). Every vote helps! You can only vote once a day, but you can vote everyday! Go ahead; put it into your routine....kind of like.....brushing your teeth, or checking your email (for those of you who don't brush).

Thanks so much! Y'all are awesome!

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

What Are They Saying?

SO every now and then I google "The Lucas Cates Band" (among other things) and see what pops up. So far there haven't been any naked pictures or mudslinging (at least what I have found), but there have been some cool responses. Here are some links to those:

http://hypem.com/track/680020/The+Lucas+Cates+Band-Through

http://www.maximumink.com/index.php/reviews/disc_review_permalink/all_the_pieces

http://www.indietree.com/index.php?contentID=611&profileID=3685

http://www.prweb.com/releases/2008/08/prweb1241624.htm

http://www.thedailypage.com/isthmus/article.php?article=24054

You ca also go to lucascates.com to more reviews and such. By the way....if you do have naked pictures of us please keep them to yourself.

Sunday, November 30, 2008

I'm Thinkful for......yup I meant to type "thinkful"

I just drove for five hours in shitty weather(ice, snow, wind, etc.) from St. Paul, Minnesota to Madison, Wisconsin....the epic end to my Thanksgiving weekend. I also poured myself a strong drink(to relax from the tense drive) and now feel compelled to write some nonsense. I am really excited for the band. We are in that stage where things are happening, but we are still rocking the cougar bars in small-ass wisco towns; we can still play a four=hour show and people feel compelled to yell "Freebird"; there are still a million ways to spell Cates, cate, caates, catis, kates, kate's; backstage means a parking lot, a basement, a trash can, a Chinese restaurant. Don't' get me wrong, I am not trying to come off like a whiny bitch. To be honest, I kind of like it all. There is a satisfaction in setting up your own system, fighting for your payout, sleeping in the van, taking a sharking lot, and playing as much as you can.
This year I am thankful for my family and friends, as well as my band, who through thick and thin will always be my brothers. You guys are the best. I love you and look forward to every experience we encounter.

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

but the words are mine.


Alright so let me catch up with our adventure. The remainder of our days flew by us. We bid goodbye to our friends in Sharp and Harkins Band as well as Mike Droho and Anthony, and traveled to Spartenburg, South Carolina. Now Spartenburg is famous (to me at lease) for two things. 1. This private all -girls school, and 2. the world headquarters for Denny's. Unforunately we couldn't get a grand slam at either! We played at Wild Wings, which is a restaurant chain in the south, as well as an awesome venue. Our sound team was amazing and we had some of the best sound we'd had on tour. Everyone we met that night was super cool and supportive even though throughout 3/4 of the show their backs were toward us while they watched that Patriots/Jets game. I can't lie, Chet and I were watching too. We had some friends who saw the Duo in Arizona drive from Maryland to see the show which was a show of serious dedication. The highlight of the night for me was seeing Chet and Richard have a dance party with themselves once we got back to the hotel room....and as you should assume this was fuled by booze, and my documented evidence of this event will never be shown. Friday night was SWANGIN'! We played at the Atlanta Brewing Company, which is THE place to go before you go out in ATL. Some of you might have seen this on Dirty South TV, but if you didn't it was in a warehouse and smelled like feet. The crowd was strong, though and we made a lot of new friends and sold a good number of discs. It was so hot in there I had never sweat so much...I felt like Styles...seriously I'm sure you can see it on the video. Many props go out to G from Dirty South TV who helped us out, and cracked me up when he was filming by holding one "rock and roll fist" in the air while he ran the camera and ate a massive sub sandwich....a man of many talents and styles...all awesome, by the way. After that we kicked it with some people from the show at Fox and Hounds. We drank some drinks, shot some pool, had a great time, and decided to go to the Pink Pony. Now did I mention Harie is one of the baddest dudes I know. This guy hooked us up with some premium apparel for his clothing line, Rejunio, and took us out that Friday for a night on the town!!! All I will say is this Pink Pony = VIP, Free Drinks, Free Hotel, and Jessica Linn a foot from my face. Swangin!!! Harie....we can't thank you enough for your generosity, hospitality, and overall awesome spirit. Thanks, brother! We wrapped our Atlanta session up with an acoustic show at Marlow's Tavern. We played on the porch above the restaurant which was heated and intimate. It was great to see some of our friends from the night before (not Jessica :-( and great to meet all of the new people. It was a great way to end our southern experience. Hey bartenders....y'all were the best! Now don't think this tour was all about boozin', after all we are professionals :-) Finally there isn't enough thanks, love, and appreciation that I could express with words to adequately show my love for Shirley, Georgia, and Teresa. Y'all are family to me and I love you very much. Thanks for making me feel at home away from home. I can't wait to see you...believe me you will just have recovered by the time we come back. Thanks for believing and let's keep this mutherfuckin train-a-rollin'.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Georgia on My Mind

Wow, I meant to keep up with this tour and post something each day, but between the Kentucky moonshine and twenty plus pounds of bbq breakfast it must have slopped my mind. So please allow me to recap our adventure thus far.
Our first stop was at the Cubby Bear in Wriggleyville, Chicago. This place was awesome; its directly across from Wriggley Park and we were treated like rock stars. Chris Burhle opened the show, and actually they hooked us up with this show as a return favor for us opening for them up in Madison. That band is just awesome and it was realy great to see them in their natural environment. It was great to see our good friends Jess, Andrew, and George come out to support. Honestly, the greatest thing about any show is the support you recieve from your frinds and family. You guys are the best.
We've also met a ton of amazing new friends along the way. Our next two dates were in Bardstown Kentucky....you might be asking "where the hell is Bardstown, Kentucky?" Let me tell you, friends, Bardstown is the Bourbon capital of the world, and that bourbon was flowing like sweet, sweet necture. Tasha, our bartender for both nights was a sweet southern belle for sure! She hooked us up and was super cool. Accually once I started to understand what the hell people were saying to me, thay were all pretty nice :-) Our friends at Still Bill's (the place to chill) hooked us up with some real deal, kick your ass, you better watch what you're putting in yourself cause if you don't you aren't going to play a note tonight Kentucky Moonshine. Supposedly if you put that in the freezer on a summer day they call it ice water!
SO I have to tell you about rolling up to the Inspiration Lounge in Bardstown. First of all, noone had ever heard of this place, yes, that's great news. We headed in the direction of what seemed to be "out of town" and stopped to ask directions at this gas station. Lucas came out laughing his ass off, and shure as shit we were going to be rocking the motel lounge of the Quality Inn....quality. Yep, hotel lounge. Here is where I will give you time to laugh at our sorry asses.........................alright, enough. It accually turned out really well. We had supportive crowds and sold ten times as many cds as we could have hoped. I think we found the Rhinelander of the south.
So we waved good bye to Bardstown with hangovers and fond memories as we headed to Atlanta. Monday night was a gig at the number one indy rock website in the world, Dirty South TV. If you didn't see it, it was a unique expirence, but G (the dude in charge) was super supportive and crass and I think perhaps it will generate some crowd for our Friday show at the Atlanta Brewing Company. We will accually be streaming that live show on the Dirty South TV website Friday at 5:15 central so check it out while you are pre-partying for Friday night. After that we rushed over to Eddie's Attic to play a spot at their open mic. This, my friends, was the best open mic I have ever been apart of. Everybody was paying attention, there was no talking during performances, and every performer was unbelievable. We met great friends who were also touring and locals who were crazy!
I have to talk this oppertunity to not only wrap up this novel but also to thank SKJ productions and Opus entertainment, more specifically Shirley and Georgia who have treated us like kings while we have been here. The Lucas Cates Band, Mike Droho, and the Sharp and Harkins band are all crashing at their place in Stone Mountain, Georgia. It a communal environment with more food that I have ever seen. I am getting fat on this tour for sure! Its great to kick it with fellow Madison rockers and have the oppertunity to support each other while we are on the road. Community is powerful and I am blessed to have such an amazing group of people around me.
More to come as we head to South Carolina tomorrow! Peace.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

Mom! I'm on TV-sort of

Hi everybody! The Lucas Cates Band's (of which I am a part)southern tour leg of our cd release starts this Thursday, and we have some really cool opportunities while we are on the road.

Dirty South TV was started by a music video lover who became disgusted with both MTV and VH-1, as their focus turned from videos to reality TV and other things. He started Dirty South, and he shortly thereafter began “Live Sessions from the Dirty South,” which is now the #1 watched weekly indie music show. The Lucas Cates Band will be performing on Monday, November 10th from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m. Being on this show is a privilege, as bands, both local and touring, are clamoring for a slot.
G, the owner, CEO, or whatever you prefer to call him, loves our band and wants to do what he can to help with our exposure. To that end, Dirty South will now be feeding live from your show at the Atlanta Brewing Company on Friday night!
So, while we are on the road you can watch the performance at Atlanta Brewing Company Friday, the 14th and our in-studio show on the 10th.
This is a really big deal for us and we really need to generate as much support as we can. If you have a spare moment please tune in to Dirty South TV (don't worry, it's not dirty like that) or our live show on Friday. If there is a jump in ratings for this station they will know it's because of the band and this will open some big doors for us.

Here is the link to Dirty South TV:
http://www.dirtysouthtv.tv/LiveSessionsFromTheDirtySouth.html.

Thank you guys. Your support is appreciated so much more than you know. To see more dates/pics/details visit:
www.myspace.com/marknoxon
www.myspace.com/lucascates
www.lucascates.com
or find me of facebook!

much love.

Tuesday, October 21, 2008

Sick of Being Sick

I was feeling so invincable. I havn't been truly old-school sick in a long time until yesterday, and today, and for who knows how long. Last weekend was pretty good, though. THe Lucas Cates Band CD Release Party was Saturday night at the Brink Lounge in Madison. We all dressed classy for this very loungey atmosphere. Its kind of a cross between a hotel lobby and a porno set....fake fireplaces and all! Our management team Shirley and Georgia were in town from Atlanta to give their support and talk about the future. Its pretty sweet to have good people on your side who tell you things straight up instead of blowing smoke up your ass....they smoked menthols, too...so bonus. Some of my students were there too. I don't think there is more pressure than having your students watch you perform. There were like 300 people in that room and the only reason I got even a little clammy was the fact that these kids were there. I love them to death, though, and I think its really cool that they came to support just like every other TLCB fan in the room.
SO we have a show tonight in Madison at the Cardinal bar. It's an old club that's been there forever...Tuesday night is tough, especially when you have a chest and head cold, but I'm going to follow that advice of Kenny, my guitarist; "just get a rocks glass, fill it with makers, and sip on it...but let it run down your throat really slow. That shit will clear you right up!" - for better or for worse.

Friday, October 10, 2008

Laissez le bon temps roulez

Last night kicked off a very busy next three months. The boys returned from their duo tour (a healthy six weeks long) on Monday and the whole band did two acoustic sets last night at the Bar Next Door. Seriously, that is actually the name of the bar. Its an old Al Capone speakeasy complete with escape tunnels and a kick-ass old fireplace. Anyway things are looking up for the Lucas Cates Band. Aside from the Thursday, Friday, Saturday shows each week, our CD release party is October 18th, we're playing Halloween with one of my favorite bands, Steez, the southern tour is kicking off the second week in November, and New Year's Eve looks like it's gonna rage (we're doing that show with Steez and Chafo...my side project of sorts).
I think the new album is on itunes already...I'm not sure. I happily do not handle the advertising/promotion/business end of things. There will be a solid push on Yahoo and other Internet sites for the CD. Of course, these days it's not about the album since people can just download songs. This is definitely an issue for me, I mean I know that it's all about downloads and making things easy, but there is something about an album: a time capsule of songwriting that is interconnected with the experiences of the songwriters, a musical snapshot of the artists moment in life, a collection that makes sense as a whole. You wouldn't take just the smile from the Mona Lisa, would you? OK, I'm NOT comparing the Lucas Cates Band to Di Vinci, but you get my point.
Wow, I got a little off track there. I think I just tripped over a soapbox or something and can't remember what I was talking about.

Monday, October 6, 2008

Keggers and Cornfields

Last night was my first experience playing country music. As hard as this is for me to admit...it was fun. There are no metaphors in country, man. The singers tell you how they feel about anything. "I kicked my dog and I punched my wife and I never loved America so much in my life.." Its really quite insane. But there is an honesty that appears in other types of music which reveals itself in a different way through country music. And when its all said and done country is just pop music with some twang and a fiddle.

So I'm working with a great songwriter and this great singer who's been sought out by some Nashville producer. It's pretty much a recording gig with the chance to do a showcase later this year. A showcase, for those who don't know is pretty much an American Idol type situation where you play for "industry types" and they decide whether or not they can get rich off of you.

So I've been workin' on ma drawl, y'all. I'm fixin' to get me a naace stetson and hit up them keggers and cornfields so I can feel at home.

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

Wild Card

I have never jumped higher, yelled louder, or smiled crazier than I did on Sunday when sitting in the 17th row at field level I watched Ryan Braun jack a two-run homer to put the Brewers up 3-1 over the cubs in the bottom of the 8th. Pure bliss. I will never forget watching the end of the Marlins-Mets game on the big screen at Miller Park with 30,000 brewers fans, nor will I forget the millions of pieces of blue and gold confetti falling onto us like a blizzard of relief. The stress of watching/listening to 162 games through ups and downs was gone and in its place was pure jubilance. This was most certainly the best baseball game I have ever been to. I only hope it doesn't peak here, and we can keep it going.

Friday, September 26, 2008

loosing my blog virginity

Ok, so I have finally caved in and started a blog. But why? i mean, is anyone really going to be intrested in reading the random things I have going on in my head? Consider this a social expirement then.
In all honesty this may just be another attempt at some shameless self-promotion and a great way to display my piss-poor spelling abilities.
So let's do a little introduction:
Hi, I'm Mark...typically I'm addressed by my last name, Noxon. People seem to like it. It's a pallendrome, you know, spelled the same forwards and backwards. My last name takes it one step further, however. You can read it forwards, backwards, and upside down. NOXON...seriously try it hit ctl + alt + the down arrow and read for yourself (restore your view with ctl/alt/up)...weird, huh?

I live in Madison, Wisconsin. It's a beautiful city, often refered to as a musicians grave yard (I'm sure I will rant about this topic later, so I'll save it)
I play with the Lucas Cates Band. We tour nationally and are working to pay our bills. Check it out on my links. I'm also sitting in with this funk band called Chafo for the next year.
I do studio work for anybody, anywhere, any style.
I graduated from the University of Wisconsin with a degree in history (again, there will probably be more posts on this stuff too).

If you are still reading this I'm impressed...and thanks!