the south has spoiled me.

years spent below the mason/dixon line.

the first time i saw chamberlain, (the artist formerly known as split lip), was in ny at brownies with nicole. we were supposed to go see texas is the reason, but the show was 18 and over. since it was october, i was a month shy of legal. we ended up at the other show instead. no idea who went with or if any other bands played. but chamberlain is embedded in my memory.

white v-neck t shirts, tight jeans, cowboy boots. country twang to them. would've fit right into williamsburg 2 summers ago! i liked it, even though it didn't mesh with the other crap i listened to at the time.

another show at american university. no stage. i feel like it was the day we got back from somewhere? detroit fest maybe? no, i missed jeremy enigk at the black cat that night due to exhaustion/lack of funds. still regretting that to this day.

i refused to call them "chamberlain" for a long time. if someone asked me about them, i'd reply "who?" always split lip to me.

a compilation tape from my friend j.d., made during high school, had split lip and falling forward on it. he'd go on to listen to gangsta rap a few years later while at SU, trying to make the movie "kids" into real life. haha. now i think he's a hippie. no one's kept track.

the tape was made after much harassment. i was still new to the scene and didn't know what to buy, so this was a sampler of sorts.

jeremy, jd and i would hang out around SU. sometimes with will, er bill, sometimes with pat. always at sunspot and everson and oliver's. then they'd go to true value on westcott to attempt to steal spray paint with which to tag later. i sat in the car for that part, too much of a goody two shoes to be a silent partner in crime. also skipped the mall when they'd wedge stacks of banana clothes between their backpacks and aluminum foil.

"indi(ana) rock." a shirt the guy who ruined my back with the jailhouse tat used to wear. and i used to covet. maybe i'll see if doghouse online has them. or see if bryan can score me one...

-mjm

for n.c.k.
who is always the angel over my shoulder,
the voice of reason,
my most patient friend.
glad you saw something in a 17 year old kid
that she didn't see in herself.
love always.

post script...
"maybe we no longer know who we're supposed to be"

"fate's got a driver" has been in constant rotation for me over this last month.
contemplating if i'm the one behind the wheel of my own kismet.

coming to you live from the 315. ha.