The healing power of music through misery

I went to play a show in Denver this last weekend at the Lion's Lair and the highlight for me was playing on the street for a homeless man. When we arrived I noticed a disheveled man sitting by the pub entrance but I didn't pay too much attention to him at that point. Later through the night he started to get belligerent and angry. He tried entering the bar and the bouncer told him several times he was not allowed in. He got even more angry and started yelling obscenities and cursing at the bouncer and was slurring and drooling on himself. We asked the bouncer what was going on and he said the man was a local drunk who knew he was not allowed inside. He also said the guy used to be really nice but turned into a raging alcoholic.
     Before we played on stage I went to grab my instrument to load in and the rest of my bandmates grabbed theirs as well. We decided to do a quick warm up outside the venue and play a few songs. As we did so the homeless man came up to us and sat quietly and calmly to listen to us play. I noticed he had a big grin on his face as he said "Thank you. I have been so blessed to see you guys play tonight. I am so lucky". He stayed seated watching us and he just smiled. "You are awesome. You have the voice of Jesus and love shinning through you" Perhaps he was a rambling bum and perhaps we really weren't awesome. Perhaps the booze just made him think we were. I don't really care. What I do care about is that the music calmed him down. As we played music I watched an angry man pissed off at the world transform into a calm individual, for a moment he was able to forget his misery and whatever pain in his life had lead him to drink so much. It takes a whole lot of mental illness, self hatred, confusion, misery and pain to lead yourself to drinking that much. I know many people (myself included) who have struggled with life acceptance, alcohol and substance abuse. Not that they are the victims, in most cases they inflict more pain on those around them. I still see it for what it is though, no untroubled man or woman will chose to abuse a substance or alcohol as they are deeply troubled individuals overflowing in pain, suffering and anguish.
    That moment made my night though as I realized why I do what I do. The man was too drunk to probably even remember the night, our name or our songs. He probably doesn't have a facebook or instagram and will not be giving us a like or a follow. Again, I don't really care. I care for that small moment in time and space as I'd like to think our music gave him a temporary peace of mind and dose of medicine. For whatever small moment it was, he was happy. I saw him smile and that was that. He left a happy man that night.

On the streets of Denver

 

Upcoming shows with The Raven Claw Hammer

Mini tour dates that I will be touring with The Raven Claw Hammer

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 3rd Rollinsville, CO- Stage Stop w/ Bone Orchard Revival

 

October 4th Denver, CO- Lion's Lair w/ Bone Orchard Revival

 

October 29th Eugene, OR- Sam Bond's Garage w/ Sweetwater String Band

 

October 30th Medford, OR- Johnny B's

w/Jeannie Reno Band, Some Kind of Nightmare and Snakes in the Grass

 

October 31st- Hepner, OR Bucknum's

 

 

Playing again with The Raven Claw Hammer September 20th

 

The Raven Claw Hammer playing with Flip Cassidy and Acousta Noir September 20th.

 

 

Opening for Heathen Apostles: March 8th

Hula-La's band The Raven Claw Hammer will be opening for the Heathen Apostles at their EP release in downtown Los Angeles at the Redwood.
 

March 8th. Free Show. 9pm

Super excited to play with them, awesome band!
 

 

http://www.theredwoodbar.com/2012/march14.html

Banjo Darlin

     I never thought I would become a banjo player though I heard it in The Geraldine Fibbers 'Get thee Gone' when I was 13 and thought it was cool and interesting it never crossed my mind to play. I've played guitar for years now since I was 12 years old. It was in 2008 that the banjo made an impact on me and my life when I stumbled across some Dame Darcy video clips. I was on tour through Northern parts of Mid-West America working as a comedy striptease dancer and I came across the banjo yet again. It held significance to me for personal reasons and upon my return home one day from tour a beaten up banjo case laid across the living room floor for me. My grandmother found it in the family tool shed as it was passed around in the family. I took it as a sign from the universe that I needed to learn how to play it and so I did.

 

 

     I had actually wanted to learn the fiddle instead but the banjo drew me in due to the personal connection. I learned how to play banjo from an elderly gentleman who was born in Kentucky and moved to Nashville playing in the country music scene before retiring to California. I studied it for about 8 months under his discipline. Now the banjo is an essential part of who I am and what I do with my time and music. Much of the stuff I write now grew from my experiences traveling through America right at the peek before the American Economy took a turn for the worst. I came from west Montana with a banjo on my heart  and knee. That's my banjo darlin story!

 

 

The Raven Claw Hammer with Dan McNay and Dar Stellabotta

Aside from dance Hula-La in her music known as "The Raven Claw Hammer" will be playing a banjo and guitar set alongside Phil Cunha and Dar Stellabotta.
Free show all ages.

 

Dar Stellabotta