Summer 2017 - Scratchblog
Well here we are again - Scratchblog! For those of you who used to read our always eventful blog of adventures as Scratchdog Stringband, you will have noticed our rather lengthy absence in the writing world. Life as a touring full time musician is rife with many uncertainties and challenges that leave such writings in a secondary category to the current challenges. Much has happened in so many wonderful ways and we keep pushing ever forward to life goals and dreams as musicians. We are terribly excited for the future, music that is on the horizon, and the many hurtles and red tape we have yet to face. It has all been possible by the support of fans (such as yourself), venues, and most of all family and friends who encourage us to push forward. Let's do a little catch-up. First of all, as many of you know, our bass player, Kimbo, left us at the end of the tour season last summer to pursue other life goals. It was difficult to see her move on and we wish her only the best on her new adventures. Life on the road is difficult and is sometimes where the hardest work for a musician will occur. We were able to have a great tour season for the summer of 2016, playing some festivals and traveling all over the Pacific Northwest. She is missed, yet Scratchdog must go forward in our ongoing pursuit of music. As Andrew and James pushed forward through the winter, many new tunes were written and have since been captured on “Scratchdog Saloon.” You can get that album at our website or pretty much any online store that offers music. As winter passed, we auditioned quite a few musicians, trying to find the perfect fit to match our energy and dedication to music. We began with an amazing musician who grew up playing rock and roll with James in Maine. While working up to the recording of “Scratchdog Saloon,” Pete Herman was hired for many of our live gigs and lived the Scratchdog life of touring for a few months. Though our original idea for “Scratchdog Saloon” was to do a duo album, it quickly became apparent that Pete’s addition to the sound was an undeniable embellishment. It was thus decided to have Pete join us on “Scratchdog Saloon.” Unfortunately, Pete already had plans in motion to move back to Maine before Scratchdog approached him, and our short time together came to an end. Nevertheless, we were not discouraged and sent Pete off with many thanks and good memories of playing - plus a great album! Since we had known all along that Pete might not work out longterm, we had been scheming up other ideas for the future. We decided to hold auditions for our upcoming California tour. We were fortunate enough to get to meet and play with Audra Nemir, who got picked up by Crow and the Canyon before we could get her. Eventually we found our spring touring bass player, who will forever be “Uncle Michael” to us. Around the same time, we had an idea that nobody thought of. Our good friends, The Licklog Disputes! An ensemble which James was already sitting in with, these boys were going through bass player problems as well. We began chatting about working to fill out shows together and before long Andrew and Steve began learning each band's songs on bass. It was an immediate idea made brilliant after several weeks of live shows together, yet they were unavailable for our California tour. Thus we practiced Uncle Michael up and set out through California for our “Scratchdog Saloon” CD Release Tour, returning to many of our favorite spots and having a blast with friends and fans. Ah! life on the road - there is nothing like it; filled with adventure from day to day. As the tour came to an end we thanked Uncle Michael for being such an awesome road buddy and musician and thus we began the full rebirth of Scratchdog Stringband with the Portland boys. We are back in full-dedicated force and welcome Maxwell Countryman Skewes and Stephen Eggers to Scratchdog Stringband. Our christening occurred a few days after returning from California in James 11th Street house. Full of music and booze, the boys had a wonderful gentleman’s night of band bonding, which may or may not have left some sore heads the next day. Since that day we have been working steadily in pursuing our new groove. It is exciting to add two more voices and writers to the band, making our sound even more diverse. We are all excited for what the future holds: planning for yet another Scratchdog album, a tour to Washington, Idaho, and Montana, and always pushing our limits as performers. Plus, we were fortunate enough to be a part of the core crew of the Park Blocks Bluegrass Festival, which Max and Steve (founders) had been working on during the California Tour. It was Portland, OR's first bluegrass festival in more than 20 years. It was amazing to see the amount of work Steve and Max put in to preparing this festival, and the glory of its fruition. James and Andrew had a blast joining the efforts and can't wait for next year to help make it even better. We hope to see you all out on that road as we continue our climb ever upward and outward in the pursuit of good music. There are many great things to come, so keep an eye out for us - and thanks again for all the support you all have shown us over our first two years. Here’s to many more to come!
