Dr. Frank's What's-it

Folk Wraiths vs. the new

Folk Wraiths vs. the new New Dylans

This site is starting to look more like a rockblog than a warblog lately. Sorry about that. Nothing wrong with it I suppose, though I imagine the thousands who still visit this site by googling "war+blogs" will be a mite disappointed. But what are they gonna do, sue me? It's not intentional, and it will only be temporary. For some reason, while I'm travelling and playing, the usual schtick (rote Guardian-bashing, gratuitous, good-natured lefty-baiting, and a few rounds of "ya gotta read this one by Mark Steyn/Johann Hari/VDH via Instapundit") seems to move itself well down the list of Important Things to Do Today. Hence the blogs of war rock.

Rockblog? Maybe I should say "folkblog." Only someone with severely diminished genre sensitivity would mistake my stuff for "folk music," but the fact remains: I am on a folk music tour, playing, as a rule, in folk music venues with folk musicians. Last night we played at the Sidewalk Cafe, noted headquarters of New York's anti-folk movement (which is not as negative as it sounds-- I think "anti" is meant in an ironic "he's good bad but he's not evil" sense.) And tonight we'll be playing at the Kendall Cafe in Cambridge, Mass., another venerable, celebrated hub of acoustic and folk music. (Don't let all the pictures of Jewel fool you-- a lot of famous people other than Jewel have played there, or so I'm told.) Sure, I'm the odd man out in many ways. I did this tour a couple of years ago, and I'll never forget the bewildered look on the faces of the Kendall people when they saw, clearly for the first time, a kid with a skateboard stroll in and take a seat. The times they are a-changin'. I'm trying to fit in, though. Sort of, anyway.

Another indication that we (which includes me, unlikely as that sounds) are truly a part of the folk scene is that we seem to have attracted the attention of the Folk Mafia. Their minions pursue us across the land like black riders in search of hobbits. I'm not allowed to say much more, and I understand very little of their mysterious ways, but it is said that the Folk Mafia can make life very difficult indeed. Evading their grasp requires skill, determination, stealth and subterfuge. But I've said too much. Michael! Row your boat ashore!