Never Signing Off

  Silent Sound Check Crystal didn't move from her bunk until we arrived in Harrisburg. Even then, I had to convince her to brave the world outside her curtain. I only saw Jared once, but he came out when Christopher announced we were at the venue. Needless to say, it was an awkward trip. It didn't get any easier during sound check either. Crystal was still so angry she refused to even look at Frankie. If he would try talking to her, she would blatantly ignore him. It was childish, her way of coping I suppose. On the rare occasion she had to acknowledge him, she shot daggers in his direction. Luckily, Charlie decided to resume his neutral approach. He apologized for his reserved reaction earlier, aiming the apology at James. After all, he was greeted with a cold shoulder by everyone. They spent most of the sound check making jokes back and fourth. Charlie was only upset because of Crystal and Jared. Like me, he thought the show was better without Frankie anyway. ...

  Fire It was hard to sleep last night. Frankie's absence was felt throughout the group. A few of the roadies were starting to worry too, although they thought the show was great without him. There was still a looming question of “what happened”. Crystal feels bad that we just left him there. She asked if I was sure he would know to catch up with us. I honestly don't know, but, what else would he have expected? Assuming nothing is wrong with him, he knows we had a show. We have to keep this moving forward. If something had happened to him, Christine would have been able to figure it out by now. After all, she is his manager. She has been pulling every string. The phone book search turned out to be useless. No one even knew who James was, let alone where he might be. Crystal sighs, kicking her shoe against the side of the bus. I look over at her, raising my eyebrow. “ Hey, the bus didn't do anything to you.” I remind her. She shakes her head, looking around ...

  The Show Must Go On We're impatiently waiting in the dressing room of the venue in Cincinnati. We still haven't heard from Frankie. His now-assistant manager is consistently checking reports from Detroit. She's calling the hotel every couple hours. She's even started calling random numbers in the Detroit phone book with the hopes of finding him. So far, she's had no luck and there's only an hour before we're heading on stage. Between phone calls, she's asking me if this is typical behavior for Frankie. If he's often gone missing in action. She's been on this tour too. She knows he hasn't taken off before. But she's a representative from his new label. She doesn't know his typical behavior. I ignore her rambling about how much trouble we're going to be in if he doesn't show up. I leave the worrying to her. The rest of us are getting ready for the show. The opening band is some local group that was able to come ...

  Wait We were all so sure he would show up on time. He would be alive and well and ready to get going. But two hours after the bus was supposed to leave Detroit, we're stuck waiting. The first hour, only Crystal seemed to be worried. The rest of us figured he just was running late. The second hour, Jared seemed to be on edge. Then, our driver, Christopher, started complaining about the schedule. Frankie knows the schedule we're on. He knows we have to get on the road. But, he's still no where to be found. I tried calling his cellphone, but every time, it went straight to the machine. That means he has his phone turned off, which is useful. Crystal tried calling the hospital, but it wasn't any help. Besides, there have been no reported accidents in the city. So, it seems like Frankie is still alive and well. We even called the hotel to see if he had gone back at any point. The receptionist informed me that he had checked out in the early hours of the morn...

  Berries We played an amazing show in Detroit yesterday. I didn't mess up a single note. I was proud of myself. We went out after to celebrate, before checking into our hotel. Today, we have the day off, so everyone has gone their own ways. Frankie went to meet a local friend of his, James. He was the drummer of Frankie's first band. The two kept in touch, but haven't had many opportunities to see each other. Since James has a typical job, it's hard for him to get time off. He wasn't able to come to the party last night either. So this morning, Frankie jumped up and headed out to his place. I would have gone along with him, but I wanted to give them privacy to catch up. I know having a girlfriend around can put a damper on a dude-only outing. Besides, James will be joining us later this evening. He's going to be filling in on the drums. Crystal wants to play guitar and Jared is going to take over the bass. I've made it clear I don't want to be o...

  Wallpaper We had a day off between Greenville and Tampa. Instead of staying in Greenville, we decided to keep driving. We booked a hotel in Tampa for the following night. I didn't even think about where we were staying, but we ended up in the exact same hotel. I know there are other places in Tampa, but I always seem to end up at this one. I head to the reception desk when we arrive. I grab keys for the two rooms and toss Crystal's to her. After checking in, we head to our separate rooms to drop out suitcases off. Jared is in his own room this time, while Frankie and I are booked in the room next to his. Crystal and Charlie are on a different floor entirely. Within minutes, Crystal is down at our room, knocking loudly on the door. Frankie opens it, letting her into our room. “ I want to go to the beach. I want to go swimming, I think.” She announces, looking around the room. I raise my eyebrow. “ It's the first week of May.” I remind her, but she shakes her he...

  The Industry If you've ever been in a band, you know the industry can be fickle. Music is a living creation. By itself, it can be a world of magic, transporting the listener to a different place. The writing process can do the same for its' creator, allowing the expression of feelings that might otherwise be bottled up. Music itself is a gift to all. But the music industry is nothing more than a monster. It feeds off the souls of those foolish enough to get close enough. Those who aspire to be musicians; take note. The industry isn't looking for creative individuals. They aren't looking for words that come from the heart or music the comes from the soul. They aren't interested in ideas or concepts. They are looking for products. They want music that can be manufactured. Names that sound good on the radio or in print. A look that fits with the style. They want a product they can sell . If you arrive with your heart in your hands, they will take it from you....