The Journey

2010-09-12T17:43:56-04:00

Inaugural Entry

29 December, 2009; 7 pm.

Arriving at the load in door, I see the crew waiting in the cold. The man is late. George pulled in just ahead, truck laden with equipment. Well as long as we have a moment, let's make some new friends. Jump out of the car. Whoa! Damn boots are slick!
Big dude introduces himself as Kidd. Friendly... I like him. Around the circle, skinny guy, Tim. Plain looking guy with a beard, James and a somewhat rodent-like dude, who's name escapes me... Thin, wiry, funny, a good man. Finally, the girlfriend, Kate. Cute, good lines, piercing eyes usually averted. All uniformed, all ex-military I am informed, with one female exception. Professional, tight, driven by purpose and the obvious leader, Kidd.
Small talk, banter, chit-chat... Call it what you will, I enjoy it thoroughly. We meander through the past like Theseus through the Labyrinth, though less dramatic an end. A car rolls up on the cold, damp asphalt. The man is finally here. Lets us in and as the band and I start to grab our gear Kidd pipes in. “Nah man, you guys are the band! Just tell us where it needs to go.” There began a night we were treated like, as George would later, aptly put it, Motley Crue. I can't say I disagree with him.
Hosting the show, we were docketed last. Two opening bands, the first? A punk band, not bad good energy. The second, I can't define a genre for and, wishing them no offense, not quite so good.
The night progresses and Kidd insists on treating us like a Top 20 band. We chill in the Green Room and the crew gets us whatever we need. Nobody get back there without our approval. It's intoxicating. The other band murmur more than once, “You see that? Who are these guys and why don't we know about them?”
Show time rolls around, the boys take everything out and set it, without us ever being seen by the crowd. Silence grasp the room like an iron gauntlet. “Check, check... Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Kidd and I would like to put your hands together and make some noise for my boys Valince!”
To the roar of the crowd we enter and the first note to the final downbeat seems to pass in the blink of an eye. Before I know it I'm leaving the stage, to applause, on top of the world.
For treating us as kings for a night we insist on taking the crew to dinner. Over the course we get to talking once more and Kidd is a hip hop artist himself, working on a new album. Sitting back to contemplate a moment, he then brings forth the idea of a cooperative project. Our sound and his together in one place. An intriguing prospect, to be sure. We agree gladly and say our goodbyes ending the night amiably.
The next night a call greets me at around 10 pm. It's Kidd: “Hey brotha, can you spare the time to come over for a bit?” “Sure” I say as I haul my ass outta bed and pull on some clothes. The night is spent in an apartment with the boys from the band and Kidd talking. This guy is good at what he does as proceeds to show us. Several albums, multiple Sundance appearances and a tour with Lil Wayne. Impressive. Next comes the hashing, a rough product ends the night, but though it's unpolished it is something we are all proud to have made. Shocked that in a matter of an hour we produced something the world had never heard and, we would later discover, was dying to.
For thus was the beginning of the CAHCE VALLEY CARTEL!

Daredevil's Life

2010-09-04T01:37:45-04:00

Hi folks, I'm Viktor Shaw and ya know somethin'? I am shocked that I have not been paralyzed or killed by now, given some of the stupid stunts I've done. Anybody hear me? Come on! Who's done something that they were honestly surprised to have survived and after taken a firm belief in a supreme being's love of themself? %)

Give you an example: When I was 8, my grandma had a ravine by her house, we called "The Hollow". Contained within, a scenic trail ending at a rope swing. Now when I say rope swing, I don't mean your average, run-of-the-mill watering hole rope swing. This thing was tied to a branch the size of most trunks, suspended FIFTY FEET IN THE AIR! On one side of the clearing this monstrosity inhabits there is another tree of comparable size with a ladder and several platforms built onto it. The highest of which sit a good 30' off the ground. Now at the temporal juncture our story takes place I have used all of these many times, but it seems if you keep tempting fate he will smash you in the face with a brick eventually! See, the topmost platformed involved here, the one that is naturally the MOST fun, required what I like to refer to as the Leap of Faith. The rope, being just a touch short to reach the slab comfortably, necessitated a free-falling, gut-wrenching, adrenaline-spiking jump for a split second to reach the knotted foot and hand holds. You'll never imagine what happens next... I certainly have to with the last thing I remember being a slipped footing, then waking up in a bathtub at grandma's house having a massive laceration on the back of my noggin clean of dirt clods, rocks, leaves, twigs and various other detritus...

Walked away from it with a gnarly scar and a minor concussion! Moral of the story is: Pain is temporary, the young human brain has an almost regenerative property in it's healing capacity, chicks dig scars and my future wee pups are going to hear about how their grandpa Viktor "Single-Headedly" defeated the ground!

Come on now... I know somebody out there has a story they wanna tell me!

Blog for KIDD KAZMEO

The Journey

Daredevil's Life