Day 6 From The Road – Ottawa, Ontario – October 16, 2011

Hello everyone. I’m writing you from the back lounge of our tour bus which is currently parked by a river here in Ottawa. I’ve been having the time of my life on this tour and this is only the 6th day! We kicked off in Halifax and the show went great! I was a little nervous before that show for some reason…I normally don’t get nervous before shows. I think it was prob because I hadn’t played an “acoustic” set in a long time. Luckily, it went great and I made a few new friends. After Halifax, we traveled to Moncton, where I sat down at a slot machine in a big Casino. The gambling age in Canada is 18 or 19, so I had every intention of gambling away my small wad of Canadian cash. As I sat down and pulled out my money, my manager’s voice came over the radio (that I now keep with me while wandering around the venue), “Ducky 4, It’s your turn to soundcheck.” So I got up and walked back towards the stage. I meant to go back so I could at least try out a couple of slot machines, but I completely forgot to as the night progressed. The show was a lot of fun, I don’t think any sort of gambling could’ve compared. The crowd was insane and everyone made me feel right at home. After the Moncton show, we had an overnight ride to Montreal. I woke up outside of a beautiful old hotel and it was pouring rain. I took my guitars up to my room, and immediately took off into the city to kill some time on my day off. The next night we played at the Place De Arts. It was a beautiful theater and the crowd was amazing. Jeff called me up to play Sly & The Family Stone’s “Higher” with him and the band during their encore. Talk about energy…man. The band was killing it and the room was full of good energy. About halfway through my solo, I broke a string. When I noticed that it was broken, I just kind of laughed to myself and had one of those “this can’t be real kind of moments”. I was so happy. I didn’t even care if my string was broken. We were just rocking out. It’s part of it. A little destruction can be a really inspiring thing when you’re in the moment. Jeff and I kept trading licks like nothing had happened. I loved it. The crowd was on their feet and everyone was dancing and singing along. It was a great way to spend my last night in Montreal. After the show, we went out to a little Jazz club and hung out for a while. I had a great time in Montreal and can’t wait to head back with the Shakedown in the near future. I think it’s almost time for my soundcheck, so I’m gonna grab my guitar and go make some noise. I’ll keep you guys posted on the rest of the tour! Thanks for the support.

-Tyler