Think about it – how did YOU learn the alphabet? By singing it. If you make it through to the end two or three times I guarantee you you’ll have the descending-thirds melody stuck in your head. The payoff is at 0:39 when you finally hear them sing “Rooski Alfabeet.”

It put a smile on my face, anyway. If you feel like that’s a little too weak for you though, you can always rock out with this guy:

<object width=”480″ height=”385″><param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/MujWdvUaq_c&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1?color1=0×2b405b&amp;color2=0×6b8ab6″></param><param name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”></param><param name=”allowscriptaccess” value=”always”></param><embed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/MujWdvUaq_c&amp;hl=en_US&amp;fs=1?color1=0×2b405b&amp;color2=0×6b8ab6″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowscriptaccess=”always” allowfullscreen=”true” width=”480″ height=”385″></embed></object>

Vent just played a pretty alright show at Goodbye Blue Monday in Brooklyn. There’s a huge fire in Brooklyn right now so I’m writing in the car, on the way home as we sit in diverted traffic. It smells like a charcoal factory is on fire.

Anyway, like I said, the show was alright. There was a ton of confusion at first; usually there are two stages at Goodbye Blue Monday but due to noise ordinances, anybody with a drumset can’t play on one of the stages. Unfortunately, nobody seemed to have told the bands so seven bands were cramped onto one bill. Half hour sets for all. We still got to play first though, and then we had to bounce back to Boston. Nine hours of driving!

There were some downs – upright drummers and bored hipsters, but I finally got to say bye to Abe as he left for tour (he was also on the bill) and also I noticed that they had a Fun Machine on stage! So cool! My grandmother had one when I was little.

Every now and again we get a most from the harbor and the.grey shroud of cumulus above the city descends itself to gobble up the top of the skyscrapers. It looks pretty cool.

I need sleep, but that probably won’t happen until Sunday at some point, maybe after yoga.

Here’s the breakdown of my weekend: get out of work at six on Friday, play a show at Gemstones (aka The Blue Shamrock’s upstairs, formerly known as Club Fuel) in Lowell, help a somewhat hapless roommate clean for his going away party, go for a long motorcycle ride with one of my oldest friends, help host said party, sleep a bit, go to yoga, and then hopefully sleep some more.

I’m at Gemstones right now catching the last of Red Quiet’s set. The show is a benefit concert for the Lowell Humane Society, where I actually adopted my cat! Just tonight, there was a rumor floating around that this place was closing along with The Blue Shamrock downstairs. The sound guy dissuaded that for me though. I mean, who are they kidding? The Folk Festival is next week.

Red Quiet is playing well but the sound is like everything in Lowell, alluring but ultimately flawed. I lived in Lowell, MA for about six years between 2001 and 2007 and being back here is a trip.

I went to the alley door that led to the basement where we used to make our zine. I caught a whiff of what it smelled like down there, and that sad nostalgia washed over me. I don’t regret leaving Lowell but the simple fact remains that that was then and this is now. I do notice that the big fish / small pond feeling returns whenever I come back here and.I get a bit bolder and outspoken because, well, it’s Lowell. Who cares?

Vent played well. I wore a Sugar Shack t-shirt on stage.