WINTER (no discontent . . . . at least not much)

Hello, folks! I hope all is well with you and yours during this potentially blustery season (it depends on where you live -- here in Reno it's pretty nice at the moment).

So this first part of next year will be a pretty exciting time for Mister Vague. I'm planning on releasing two different EPs within a few months of each other -- one as an online only deal, the other an actual for-sale release. I'm not planning any recordings beyond publishing demos in 2009, so this will be it for the year.

First, the freebie (sort of): it will be called "See What I Mean" and my hope is to have it out by the start of 2009. It may be earlier actually, but I'll let you know on that one! It features the former Reno live trio (me on guitar and vocals, Marcus Mayhall on bass and vocals, Jason Thomas on drums) and will have some of the songs we were doing regularly at shows this year, recorded excellently by good ol' Chris Finley at his Toxic Studios in Reno. At least half of it is quite loud, I can tell you that much!

"See What I Mean" will be available on the Mister Vague Music site for free, complete with some artwork (not CD size, but nice and big so you can print it out and actually read it!). You can download individual tracks or a ZIP file that has a surprise or two placed in its little folder. I'll also have a PayPal donate button if you are so inclined, but no pressure! I see this as a thanks for the five-plus years that many of you have stuck with Mister Vague and his humble little tunes.

Next, the non-freebie: I just got back from recording five songs in Madison at Smart Studios, co-owned by Butch Vig. It's known as the recording or mixing site for a bunch of records I like: Nirvana's "Nevermind," the first two Smashing Pumpkins records, Overwhelming Colorfast (look them up!) and Death Cab's "Plans," among tons of others.

While I was talking with Dorraine on the phone from Smart one night, I looked up and there was the MTV award for Garbage sitting on a shelf! Reminded me of the Helmet gold record that was tacked up on the toilet wall at Am Rep in Minneapolis back in the '90s.

Anyway, this second EP features excellent players from Madison, set up by my label prez Eric Hester, who is also the producer this time. I'll have more details on this one later as we get closer to release.

I'm also planning a bunch of shows as the year turns. They will be on this site as I get confirmations, but you can always see the latest at the My Space site: www.myspace.com/mistervague

Thanks very much for keeping the support going. During my recent hibernation in the fall, I got a lot of supportive emails and such for Mister Vague, so I appreciate it. I'll keep it going as long as we all can possibly stand it . . . .

MARK E

Hi, folks! So we are having a little run of shows here at the end of May and early June. Here's the first one. . .

THIS FRIDAY, MAY 16
At the ZEPHYR LOUNGE in Reno
9 pm start, 21-plus, $5

So this is the first official "Mister Vague" show at the Zephyr in almost two years. Whoa! Yeah, it's been awhile. I have to credit both Jason and Marcus for pushing me to go back to the old haunt, and for Blackie and the cast and crew of The Flesh Hammers for wanting to do a show together again -- hence this ideal location, home of several strange moments in the lives of Blackie and myself (and that was offstage ha ha!).

Anyway, this should be a fun one for you, especially if like the rawk side of. We're gonna debut a coupla new covers (if we play them OK at practice that is) and we are planning to rattle fillings a few times during the set. Rest assured, that we won't be doing anything nice and easy at this show. We'll do it nice. And rough. A little tune called "Proud Mary . . ."

Oh, crap, got away from myself again on that one. Anyway, for those of you who remember the hazy daze of the early '00s, stop on by.

MARK E

BEST. TOUR. EVER.

No, really! That's what Marcus and Jason believe also. It was a really good trek for us at the end o' April, and I wanted to share a bit of the glory and the gore with y'all. So here goes....

THURSDAY IN CHICO
Started the band portion of the day at noon-ish at our Vague World Headquarters (shared with others of course) going over the songs we were gonna play on the trek. We don't really have a "set" setlist of the same 9 songs over and over again, but we did cut some, add some, try to play some, to see what would work on this trek. With the Vagueomobile ready to go (after spending the requisite $70,000 on gas) we headed toward Chico, which I hadn't been too since I saw Low and Shannon Wright there in the late 20th century.

It's a pretty cool town, y'know. Remembered seeing a big ol' sequoia tree bursting forth from the sidewalk on the street close to the club, which was freaky but cool. We got to Cafe Coda way way too early, so we bummed around the downtown a bit, which was hopping with a Farmers Market type-thing. Went back after some time at the Normal Street Bar and set up shoppe at the Coda, a small cool room that felt like a good listening space. And it was!

The bill was pretty neat: a solo artist named John Staedler who did guitar and voice loops, sort of art-song-like. Then it was the fantastical Lasher Keen, a trio from Nevada City that mashed up its own sound: downtown NYC doom circa 1985, trad folk at its most dark, gothic country intensity. A totally different and unique experience. We should bring 'em to Reno someday. Then our pal Spencer (disgused as Catlike Reflexes) played a boss Townes cover and two very funny acoustic songs about life's travails.

We did probably the mellow-est show of the tour, with a bunch of slower songs amongst the rock. We also had the first instance in some time of PUBLIC DANCING to Mister Vague music. It was beguiling. After the show we headed with Spencer and the Lasher crew to Duffy's, a sort of Hideout-Bar-writ-large in downtown Chico. A fitting fun end to a good tour kickoff. Thanks to Dan at Cafe Coda for setting it up, to Spencer for helping out so much with everything, and the Lashers for a fun night on da town.

FRIDAY IN EUGENE
The tour gets increasingly surreal from here on out, likely due to the sleep depravation thing. Have you seen "Altered States?" It's like that but way more benign.

Anyway, the Vagueshuttle went onward to Oregon and its trees and laid-back vibe and lack of pumping yr own gas. We hit Eugene at "rush" hour as it were and settled downtown for exploring and food. We sat about at Luckey's, the great venue. We need to transplant it for Reno - cool historic vibe but mod as well with excellent sound and folks behind the bar.

We went on first this time and brought the rock, or something like it. This probably went the best of the tour and especially toward the end as more people showed we got a great reaction, I must say! It was gratifying. Next up was the great Dead Americans, coming to Reno on June 6. Imagine Blondie and the Cars with a classic-rock bent playing very political/social songs. Yep, it's THAT cool. They are theatrical geniuses of the highest order. And fun.

The night was closed by the uber-talented band called Runaway Slave, an amalgam of smooth funk mixed with ska/reggae, hip-hop and straight-ahead rock. Great rapper/singer in this band and the guitarist was from the Cherry Poppin Daddies, which was a fun surprise (and a nice fella to boot). The show ran long - so long that I missed the call from Dorraine about the Reno earthquake! - so we ended up at Casa Dead Americans for a long unwind that rebooted us til 3:30 am or so. Huge thanks and props to Kyra and Zak for the show set-up and hospitality, to Sam and the wonderful crew at Luckey's, and our new friends in the Eugene area.

SATURDAY IN RICHLAND
So, Zak and Kyra made this really cool thing for breakfast I want to share with you:
1. make toast
2. cut a hole in the middle
3. place it over an egg you're about to cook sunny side up
4. place a piece of cheese on top
5. cook till the egg yolk is hard
6. eat that bastard!

It was really good. Try it someday, you will be pleased.

And with that, we set out for Da Tri-Cities, home of several past Vagueshows. Once we arrived at Deano's house, it was practically time to go, and so we did. For those who don't know, Deano is the former Mister Vague drummer and all-around great person, and he helped set up this show for us.

When we get to the place, called Kimo's, we were greeting by a group of middle-to-older aged folks quite tanked and wearing Mardi-Gras-style beads, for reasons never explained. They were thrilled or shocked (or something) that we were rockers from Reno (they *really* liked Jason for some reason!). With the stage arranged, we then returned for some relaxing at Deano-and-Lisa's place, then we met up with the rest of Blue Is Cold, Deano's band, back at Kimo's, where we ate and drank and ate and drank some more.

We played first again, but a bit longer set. Still pretty rock though. That was the theme for this tour: rock. Trying to exude rock and have it seeping from our pours as we play these thorny little pop songs. It worked, I think, as we had some folks who liked us last time show up and dig it, and we met some new pals as well.

Blue Is Cold were just dandy, friends: a mix of super-upbeat trad-country and the occasional indie-rock move to throw you off balance. Just super cool. We then repaired to Deano/Lisaland for talking and such until God Knows When O'Clock.

Big fat thanks as always to Deano and Lisa, who we miss greatly down here in Reno, for the hospitality and kindness and Sunday breakfast before the big drive back, and to Tracy at Tri-City Events for running such a great show, and to Joe and John of Blue Is Cold for the usual good times in Tri-Color-Pasta-City-Land.

And the Asian food in Ontario, Oregon is great. Trust us.

MARK E

Hello folks!

So were now in the swing of a busy time for the Vague. I figured that the spring of '08 would be happening, but not this much! Thanks to those that have helped make it so through your interest in the group and what we are doing.

So the shows earlier this month were quite fun. First, I did a solo show at the Discology record store in Reno, with the great Kung-Fu Sophie on the bill. It was a great time and I'd like to try it again in the near future. Davids got a great store going on there, so you should check it out – it's above the Satellite and Blue Moon Pizza on California and Plumas-ish here in Reno. You can see more about it at this link: www.discologyreno.com

The show itself was a fun experience. My pals there really liked Sophie's songs (as did I – her new material she played here and the next week is some of her finest work). As for me, I played some newer ones as well as some of the hits, as it were. It's always nerve-racking to play solo shows (still!) but I'm learning to get better at it and just roll with the feeling in the moment, which is something harder to do with the band (not saying that it sucks that way, just sayin'…). Anyway, thanks to the new friends I made at the show and to Sophie for playing and Dave for hosting us. Looking forward to a return trek at some point.

Then we finally had the More Barn benefit show. To be honest, I was just happy to have it be over after many delays, but it did not disappoint. We had a good, attentive crowd and some amazing performances. Tyler Futrell is a great up-and-coming songwriter who has a good twist on the solo performer mould. Gabe Traverso was his usual compelling and intense self (and he did a great Neil Young medley that knocked me for a loop!). It was my first time seeing Neil Greene's solo work, and I loved it (and wanna book him for some more shows!). Kung-Fu Sophie was great again and played some new politically-charged material. The Stately Gentlemen were also great and played a nice set of their own '60s-style pop with some good Neil Young rewrites/covers. Burning Peace closed it all out with a fun, typically emotional set of their pop'n'roll. We, meanwhile, managed our Neil-Young-only set fine (we did Bandit with Sophie and then 3 others from the Young canon). We like one song so much – Hey Hey My My – that it's pretty much a permie part of the set at the moment. Yay to pressure! Anyway, thanks to those who paid the fee and came out to the show, and big thanks to Todd South and his Reno Music Project crew for being so on-the-ball with the details and such.

Finally, we did a nice little stint on KRZQ's Wake The Neighbors show just last night. It was an interesting experience to say the least! Sims is an informal, not-uptight host who knows his rock (and modern hip-hop) and we got to meet and hang with a great new Reno band called Lakes Crossing. They sound really interesting – a rapper with great flow backed by a funkier live group. We’re looking forward to seeing them out and about. For our part, we played some songs from the Allergic disc and made obscure jokes, so yes it was a typical night out.

Anyway, more after this next little tour (see our shows list for details!)….

MARK E

MISTER VAGUE SPRINGS FORWARD AGAIN

Hello again, folks! Once again, Mister Vague has decided to participate in the Spring Forward to Pay Forward campaign through KRZQ-FM. This is the annual event the alt-rock station in Reno does to help raise funds for worthy causes in our area. It's a competition between bands, and the top 3 fund-raising bands get an air-shift to themselves on the station to play whatever they want, a song in rotation at the station, and a few other fun prizes.

So we'd like your help! Please donate at the link that is below. Our hope is that we'd be able to raise funds at some shows in Reno as well, so you may also see a bucket at shows in which to throw some change and such. We'll let you know at shows I'm sure.

Here's where you can directly donate, securely online! Be sure to put "Mister Vague" in the Designation box so we get credit for the prize portion of this one....
Donation link

You can also learn more about the whole project here: KRZQ Spring Forward Page

And thanks in advance for any help you wanna provide to this worthwhile cause!

MARK E
MISTER VAGUE

WITH FRIENDS TO HELP YOU OUT WHEN THINGS GO WRONG....

So sayeth Neil Young in his great song "Hold Back The Tears."

Gosh, I love Neil Young's music. It's been giving me great comfort ever since I was a kid, when I found my sister Sharon's single of "Sugar Mountain." I was a pretty big Young fan through early high school (bought "Hawks and Doves" and "Re-act-or" the days they came out) and have been a fan since.

So it was a great honor when Eric Hester of Slothtrop asked us and Kung-Fu Sophie to record "Bandit" (Young's great tune from "Greendale") for the More Barn charity CD that Slothtop has put out for the Bridge School. Now, that has (finally!) translated to a show in Reno to promote and sell that disc, plus a little more. Here's the skinny:

The show is FRIDAY, APRIL 11 at MAYTAN MUSIC CENTER starting at 7 PM. We are happy to be partnering with the Reno Music Project again for this one. We love their work and love to support it. We'll be playing an all-Neil set and we've been working on learning the tunes all this month (we've previewed a couple of 'em live in recent weeks). We'll also play at the tail end of Kung-Fu Sophie's set to do "Bandit."

Now, the show costs $10 but you get a neat artifact: a download card on a lanyard that lets you have all the tracks from "More Barn"! There's songs by Steve Wynn, Howe Gelb (very excited about that!), some members of Wilco backing up Phil Lee, and the Waco Brothers, among many others. We'll also have some physical CDs for sale as well if you aren't compu-compatible. Also, we'll donate some of the proceeds of the admission fee to the local WARC chapter in town, a great organization for the developmentally disabled that always needs support and help.

We're being joined by an exciting lineup of Reno folks all doing Young tunes as well, and some doing full sets of his work! They include Tyler Futrell, Neil Greene, Gabriel Traverso, the aforementioned Sophie, The Sunjul, The Stately Gentlemen and Burning Peace! Who knows - we may get others to stop by for a song or two (email me at mistervague1@sbcglobal.net if you wanna launch a surprise or three!).

One other show will help promote this, as Sophie and I will play solo sets on Saturday, April 5 at Discology Reno, the awesome and much needed indie record store on California and Plumas, just above the Satellite and Blue Moon Pizza. It starts at 5 and admission is free, although we'll have lanyards for sale that will let you get into Friday's show.

So, stop by if you like to help celebrate the greatness that is Neil Young and to help with the Bridge School. Love to see you there....

MARK E

SPRING HATH SPRUNG

Hi, everyone. Just wanted to give you a little update on things as they sit for these first days of Spring (yeah!).

First, we have many shows coming up. We're on a little jag of 'touring' as it were (that is, playing close-ish to home on little weekend or weekday jaunts). We're pretty much consistently playing for the next 2 months straight, which I don't think has really happened quite in this manner, so that'll be fun to survive! Be sure to see the front page again for details on our stops in Reno, Northern California, Oregon and Washington. And as always, we appreciate that you are interested enough to keep us playing like this.

Second, the third Mister Vague CD, 'Allergic To Everything,' is about to go to non-mersh and college radio at the start of April. If you live in a town that has a station like that, please request us and help spread the word on all things Vague. We would appreciate it!

Third, the new American Music Club record is freakin' great. Go get it. It's called The Golden Age and it's on Merge.

And that will do for now. I'll write later about the upcoming Neil Young tribute show plans that are happening in early April and other things. Take care and stay safe.

MARK E

BACK TO BLOGGING (MAYBE)

Hello everyone! I finally figured out how this thing works, I hope. So the idea here is that I'll blog here every once in a while to give more details on what Mister Vague is doing of late.

We're in the process now of revamping this site overall, with new links, more on the new CD, more giveaway MP3s, and the like. More details soon on that.

Otherwise, it's Marcus Mayhall, Jason Thomas and me playing live as Mister Vague for the time being. As you may have noticed, "Mister Vague" has meant different people at different times, and this year is shaping up to be very similar. I'll have more on that as we get closer to the summer, because how the year ends i think will be both exciting and a bit scary, but if you would like to stay on for whatever the evolution is, then I'd like that!

So the biggest stuff upcoming are our shows in Reno/Carson. We're sticking close to home for this next month, especially since the weather is so unpredictable and such. But we have a Feb. 9 show at Maytan Music Center, a March 21 show at Tonic and a March 22 show at Comma Coffee in Carson. We plan to play both some older songs we've not done in a while and some brand-new material at these shows, so stop by!

We're also working on a new venue for the Feb 24 show that was at XOXO, which lamentably has just closed down. I've often said, in public, that Reno has too many venues, and we've seen a lot close in the last few months, but I am genuinely said when a great venue closes, and that's the case with XOXO. Hopefully, you got to see us or others in action at this adventureous place.

OK! That's about all I can talk about for now. More later....
MARK E
MISTER VAGUE
RENO NV

Test post.

NOW IS THE WINTER OF OUR SURPRISING CONTENT

So there's been a lot going on since we last wrote something here (and the blog was broken, so that was our excuse!). Here's the basics:

1. Neal and I are playing with some new folks, and we are pretty dang excited about it.

Neal has switched over to guitar full-time now. As many of you early Vague-ites know, he's very good, and you heard some of his handiwork on "Trial." But now it's a whole new ballgame. Neal is doing his best to transform my goofy little songs into something grander and more interesting, as is his prelidiction.....

And there's a whole new rhythm section. Travis Ambrose is an old friend of mine, and he's playing bass with the Vague now. Travis is quiet but deadly, as I say sometimes to people. He now takes my place as the person in Mister Vague who talks the least, but he's a talented, creative and interesting bass player. A different style from Neal's but still compatible and risky.

Our drummer is Jason Thomas. Originally we hired him to just play on our new record (see more below) but he's been willing now to do some shows as well, so we'll see how it goes. We've also been friends with Jason for a while and we've often been awestruck by his skills in bands such as Cranium, December, Above All Things and The Novelists. He's still active in most of those actually, so he's a busy guy! And so, as always, when you see "Mister Vague" it will be whoever showed up to the party, and that's OK of course......

Most of December and January has been practice and learning (and in my case, relearning!) our songs that we plan to record for our new CD. It's been a fun experience playing all-new songs with a bunch of folks and then figuring out what fits and what doesn't, and adding everyone's input and ideas. I missed that over the past year (apart from Neal's great suggestions up to this point, which are always given and often spectacular).

We ventured out once thus far for a show at Walden's and we were both surprised and gratified by the turnout and the reaction to a set of all-new songs (or mostly new, altho non-recorded oldies like "Midnight To Seven" are quite different now!). It gave us fuel for the future.

And what is that future, hmmm? Well, the plan is to go to Duluth, Minnesota (my former hometown) in early Spring to record our new CD. Alan Sparhawk will record it (he of many bands, including Low and Retribution Gospel Choir) and Eric Swanson will engineer (and he recorded one of my band in Duluth even, so it'll be like a reunion and such!). After that, it will show up in both the non-corporeal and corporeal worlds sometime later this year.

So anyway, we're doing just fine, and we'll try to be in touch more....

MARK E
RENO NV