TOUR DIARY: That Old Dutch Touch

Goededag! Last night in Den Haag (The Hague) marked the start of almost a month of tour dates with The Mastersons. It was a strange day to be out of the country, but ultimately I'm glad to have had some distance. After soundcheck we saw a bit of the inauguration on a TV in the production office. The Dutch are not shy about saying how they feel and what they mean, and they (like most Americans) are not fans of our new president. One woman at the merch table told me she was shouting at the TV so much her daughter tattled on her for "being rude to Donald Trump." The girl's father told her it was an exception, and in this case very much allowed. The Mastersons performed their song "Good Luck Charm" with an upside down American flag behind them, which I think says all they needed to say about the day.

We're staying at a music themed hotel right now called the Backstage in Amsterdam, where they treat artists extra-well. It's right on a canal and with my windows open I can watch and listen to boats go by and the trams cross the bridge. It seems like every building here is historic and gorgeous. You assume it must be a museum or house important government officials until you get closer and realize that's just where they have their Apple store or another cafe.

The gig last night was a blast, and The Hague was really beautiful, too, though I didn't have much time for exploring. We head to Groningen today, and though I'm excited for the scenery, I have a feeling I'll pass out as soon as the van starts moving due to good old fashioned sleep deprivation (I flew overnight from NYC to Amsterdam and had to play the first gig on about 1 hour of sleep). I did get to watch the Anthony Weiner documentary on the plane, though, which is more uncomfortable than any episode of The Office could have ever hoped.