Monday, November 26, 2012

Tour Recap: Eliquate - The Day Job Tour Oct. 9th - Oct. 20th

A Story of a Northwest Tour    
The first thing you have to expect when going on tour is that the bus is going to smell bad. Though you can try to mask this smell with air fresheners, sprays, and pot smoke; there is no repellent from the conjured odor of seven men on a bus. I speak, of course, in generalities. I don’t know what its like for other bands when they tour; because, frankly I have never been on tour with any other band. In fact, none of us have. So for us (the respective members of eliquate) to say that this is what tour is like is really another way of saying this is what tour was like for eliquate. That being said, I think it is important to distinguish that we (Eliquate) don’t do things like most bands. We run this band very much like a kid who discovered how the gas pedal works, before he learned how to drive.

Yet despite our best efforts at self sabotage, we always seem to land on our feet. This is because failure has never been in our vocabulary, and remains as obscure a concept as say, giving up, or backing down. As cliche as it sounds, we would just as soon die than give up, on anything... ever. However, one thing that I find remarkable is that it has become undeniable that we are getting better at this. On our first tour of the Pacific Northwest, we left with no home to come back to, and a bus that barely made it 10 feet before it attempted to off itself. This bus was filled with stuff that had more business in a storage unit or a dumpster then on a three week tour. Our next tour, same story, homeless upon arrival “home,” same deadbeat tour bus.

We were then forced to humbly admit that Carla Malone had met her match, and that touring was going to have to consist of a caravan of cars and Dan’s pick up truck until we could save enough money to purchase another bus, preferably one that wasn’t going to break down every thirty seconds. After some fancy footwork, we were able to procure Carl Malone, a top of the line International diesel school bus with a huge Aztec calendar airbrushed on the side. This coupled with the fact that we were all comfortably residing in a consistent living situation at “home,” eliquate was more ready for this tour than anything we have done in the past. However, despite all our preparation, the weeks leading up to the tour were hectic to say the least. We  even ended up staying awake the final three days before departure tying together all the details.  

Which bring me to another important fact, we (Eliquate) do everything ourselves. From construction of the bunks on the bus, to rewiring of the dashboard, to booking dates, to mailing our promo material, we do it all. Though not all the members actually play music, eliquate is a seven man operation and every member contributes to be as hard headed and un-discourageable as possible. Another thing that sets us apart from a lot of touring bands is that for the most part they are going to play for already established fans.

When we go out on the road we treat it as if no one knows who we are (which is more often the case), but we are not going to give them a choice but to find out who we are.

Honestly, to say it was our pleasure to live like gypsies and tour this great land would be a horrific understatement, it was our honor. Not just because we got to spend nights partying with the Washington State Cougars, or cyphering till the sun came up outside the 2 Bit Saloon in Seattle (big ups to The Knowgooders, Kelly Castle Scott, and The Nightcappers. and Thad Wenatchee for making it happen) Or basking in a warm Oregonian hot spring with 6 of your best friends. It was mostly because we were able to give back. In Point Arena we played a fundraiser for the Grace Project : Our good friends Dysphunctional Species, have a wonderful cause they call the Grace Project. They host events that bring Autism awareness to those in the Humboldt County and surrounding areas. The whole town showed up to The 215 (Main) and we were able to raise a good amount of money. Not only that but they came to party, like par-tay! Playing shows is always the most fun we could be having, and to know that our fun helped contribute to a good cause automatically validates every bit of effort we have ever invested, and makes any discomfort we have ever endured seem so trivial that it is hardly worth mentioning.  

Riding that high we entered Chico. We had never played in Chico before so we made up for it by playing three shows in one day. Again, cyphering till the sun came up. This all served as a good warm up for the reason we were there, to play Splatterfest with Del the Funky Homosapien. However, there was a misunderstanding about permits or something and the show got shut down before we were able to actually able to hit the stage. Our sentiments were equally matched by that of the crowd, but being the kind of band that never takes a shitty situation as anything more than encouragement to triumph over adversity, we grabbed the acoustic gear and headed for the middle of the compound. After crashing someone’s campsite we played to a growing and captive audience of previously disappointed and disenchanted festival goers who did not get to enjoy the show they were promised. It all culminated with a crowd of about 60 singing ‘Just a Friend’ at the top of our lungs, dancing and celebrating in the stead of lamenting and sleeping. A lot of people spent a lot of money for a show they didn’t get to see, and to be able to bring people together in a shitty situation is another significant perk of what we do. We then returned to Downtown Chico, where Common Culture Clothing hosted us at Lost on Main for an insanely fun last minute show. Those folks sure do know how to have a good time.

After that we pressed on home where it was back to the real world. Exhausted and hungry we couldn’t help but feel a bit anxious about when our next departure would be. Sure enough we began planning that trip the day after we got back. It may not be the most glamorous or impressive way of going about things, but its our way, and its getting really exciting, no matter how bad it smells.    

Oct. 12th - WSU - Pullman, WA / Oct. 13th - 2BITSALOON - Seattle, WA / Oct. 15th - The Ash Street Saloon - Portland, OR / Oct. 17th - 215 Main - Point Arena, CA / Oct. 18th - TRUCKER - Chico, CA / Oct. 19th - SPLATTER FESTIVAL - Chico, CA / Oct. 20th Lost on Main - Chico, CA

*To help Donate to Eliquate please click on the Ads*

 

Monday, November 19, 2012

Santa Cause n' Santa Cruz 12/12/2012

Come join us and Toys For Tots Wednesday December 12th at the Blue Lagoon for this special event.

10 Local bands all day, starting at 3 p.m. Entry for the entire day requires either a 5 dollar donation, or a new packaged toy.

The roster is as follows...



3pm - Projekt2

4pm - HowDareYou

5pm - Custom Fit


7pm - Grieve



10pm - Atomic Aces

11pm - Eliquate

Wednesday, Dec. 12th, 2012The Blue Lagoon(Santa Cruz)
(3PM)(21+)($Gift for Kids/ Donation)(Facebook Event)(Website)
*To help Donate to Eliquate please click on the Ads*

Friday, November 16, 2012

George Watsky and Eliquate at The Catalyst 12/1/2012

The name says it all.

George Watsky is a rapper, writer and performer from San Francisco now living in Los Angeles. A versatile lyricist who switches between silly and serious, technically complex and simply heartfelt, George won the Youth Speaks Grand Slam Finals and the Brave New Voices National Poetry Slam in 2006. Immediate after, George appeared on the final season of "Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry" on HBO i

n 2007 while himself a college Freshman and subsequently performed at over 150 universit
ies across the country. Rapping all the while under the name 'Watsky,' George released a jazz-hip hop record with his band Invisible Inc in 2007 and the self-titled 'Watsky' in 2010, which peaked at #7 on the iTunes hip hop charts. In January 2011 George's fast rapping went viral and led to two appearances on the Ellen Show, a slot on Last Call with Carson Daly, and an exploding online profile. George has performed at the Just for Laughs festival in Montreal, the NAACP Image Awards on FOX, three times at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, and has been featured in XXL, Billboard Magazine, and the New York Times Magazine. Watsky's social media presence made him one of only 23 artists dubbed by 'The Next Big Sound' as a 'Big Sound of 2011,' alongside Mac Miller, Kreayshawn and Skrillex.


Eliquate


Eliquate 9pm
A-1 10pm

Watsky 11pm


Get your pre-sales, it will sell out.


Saturday, Dec. 1st, 2012- The Catalyst Club
(8PM)(16+)($12ADV/$15DOOR)(Facebook Event)(TICKETS)
*To help Donate to Eliquate please click on the Ads*

12/1/2012
 

Sunday, November 11, 2012

Friday, Nov. 16th, 2012: FOCHO Presents the 2nd Annual Fall Funk Stew!


Join the Cliqua for our 2nd annual smorgasbord of Hip-Hop, Funk, Rock, and Soul! Featuring Performances by:

Hot Pocket (comprised of members of Bayonics) (San Francisco)
The entire FOCHO Cliqua! (Bay to LA to NYC)
Eliquate (Santa Cruz)
Sayo (San Francisco)
and an extra special set from FOCHO's own In(Flu)enza and UniverSAL!

$10 - Doors at 8, Show STARTS at 9, so don't be late!
Friday, Nov. 16th, 2012- Rockit Room(SF)
(8PM)(21+)($10)(Facebook Event)(Website)
*To help Donate to Eliquate please click on the Ads*

Monday, November 5, 2012

Black Apples with Forrest Day/Eliquate at The Crepe November 8, 2012

STOKED to be at the crepe with all our SC friends. This time the Black Apples are bringin their newest addition on bass, long time Santa Cruzer, Mason Rothschild. Sharing the stage is the lovely Forrest Day and Eliquate. $8

Thursday, Nov. 8th, 2012- (Santa Cruz)
(8PM)(21+)($8 DOOR)(Facebook Event)
*To help Donate to Eliquate please click on the Ads*

Saturday, Nov. 10th: The Eureka Effect


Get ready for the greatest mountain gig ever! 9 hours of entertainment coming straight at you!


This is an outdoor benefit concert for The Cabrillo College Outdoor Club and Growing Up Wild, a local nature adventure program located in the Santa Cruz mountains.



Here's your lineup!

Eliquate, Boostive, Ancestree, Drop Bear, Basehead, LabRat, Low Gritt, DownsquareZ, Stony, Dab City, Chops Junkie and Babba Jah I (not necessarily in that order.)



And for further enjoyment...

The Do-Rights Burlesque Troupe, Body Painting, Fire Poi and Dee Dee's Taqueria will be providing food.




18+ event ONLY. Valid ID required.


$10 Advance tickets
(available NOW @ Streetlight Records & Cabrillo College Student Affairs)



$15 At the door ($10 with CURRENT student ID card)

Saturday, Nov. 10th, 2012- (Watsonville)
(3PM)(18+)($10/$15 DOOR)(Facebook Event)