(NOTE: if you can’t see the above video, click here)

Hey all – here’s the second of two video blogs from our acoustic rehearsal a few weeks back. Many thanks to our friend Ryan for the camera work on these… (in case you missed it, free to check out the Liberator video blog here).  Both songs will be on our upcoming album, “The King Can Drink the Harbor Dry“, which is due out later in the summer.

I hope your week is going well so far – it’s been a nice one here in Portland, though the sun seems to have left us again today. But it’s supposed to be a great weekend, and one that we’re all looking forward to in the Dimes camp – we’ll be opening for the always fantastic Clumsy Lovers at the Doug Fir Lounge here in Portland on Friday night, and again at the newly reopened Crocodile in Seattle on Saturday night. I’m also excited to say our dear friend Ehren Ebbage will be rejoining us with his lap steel for these shows after a few months on the road. These are going to be fun shows for sure…

Have a great rest of the week y’all – we’ll see you soon -

Johnny

I started working on “Clara” a little over a year ago, and at one point was working on a sort of stripped down acoustic version, one that was a bit simpler than the version of the song that will appear on the new album.  I thought y’all might like to hear it – just click the link below to listen or download the acoustic demo -

The Dimes – Save Me, Clara (Acoustic Demo)

The lyrics of this one are inspired by a woman named Clara Barton – Clara was a nurse in the Cival War and was often called the “Angel of the Battlefield”. She later went on to found the American Red Cross after working with the International Committee of the Red Cross overseas during and after the Franco-Prussian War – in fact, she was awarded the Iron Cross of Merit by then German Emperor William I in 1873. Ah, Clara…

I hope you have a great week and if you get a chance, forward the song on to a friend or two…maybe they’ll like it and you’ll be the cool friend who turns them on to all that underground indie music : )

Johnny

This was one of the first songs written for the “Boston” record, and it’s still one of my personal favorites. The Liberator was an abolitionist newspaper from the mid-1800s published by a man named William Lloyd Garrison, who was himself a prominent abolitionist and activist.  Published during the years leading up to the American Civil War, The Liberator grew in circulation and popularity and gave a voice to those who some wanted to keep silent, at a time when slavery still plagued this country and a black man couldn’t even cast a vote.  That said, it was especially cool to get to play this song at a benefit show for the Artist Mentorship Program on November 7th of last year – 3 days after a black man was elected President of the United States.  It wasn’t about politics – it was about an incredible moment in the history of this country – and it was about time.  I think William Lloyd Garrison would have loved that moment, too.

“Liberator” is on our current EP, “New England” (available over on the right), and will be on our new album, “The King Can Drink the Harbor Dry”, due out this summer.  You can also find it on our Myspace and Facebook pages – stop by and say hi!

Have a great week and if you live on the west coast, check those tour dates…we may be headed to a town near you -

Johnny

This weekend marks the start of our short West Coast Tour (see the next blog down for dates!) and we kick things off with a show in Seattle at the Comet Tavern. It’s a special show in it’s own right, being a KEXP Presents show, and oh how we love KEXP.  They’re great people and huge supporters of independent music – they’ve been very kind and supportive to us and we’re always happy to take part in KEXP events.  It should be a great time and what a great way to start the tour…

I’m ready for the road trip, as it’s been quite the busy few weeks here at home…I’ve been a good little history student during the days, and continuing to work on mixing and tweaking the new album at night (gotta love the last minute vocal takes   But I’m excited (and relieved) to say that I sent the final mixes off to mastering last night, and we should have the finished album in hand by the end of the week…well, the music anyway…then we get to play with album art…

Speaking of art…I also had the chance to spend a few hours at the Portland Art Museum last week. A friend of mine told me that the Museum has one of Childe Hassam’s “Isle Of Shoals” paintings, which is mentioned in the song “Celia’s Garden“…and he was right…though it’s not the “Isle Of Shoals” painting mentioned in the song. As it turns out, Hassam painted several different works he titled “Isle Of Shoals” (the one mentioned in “Celia’s Garden” is “Poppies, Isle Of Shoals”).  The Portland Art Museum actually has several other paintings by Childe Hassam on display as well. Incredible stuff.  If you’re in the Portland area, or if you visit the city sometime soon, it’s definitely worth checking out.  They also have works by Van Gogh, Picasso, Monet, and a handful of others I’m sure you’ve heard of.

I hope you’re having a great week and if you’re in Seattle this Friday night, come out and say hi -

Johnny