On​ the eve of Show # 300, as Hurricane Ian rips across the state of Florida, I am sitting next to my sleeping wife, and my mischievous cats for the first time in 2 weeks. Me and my friends The Shake are about to close out the insane chapter of our lives that we dubbed the Too Poor To Tour. 6 states (originally 7) 12 shows in 15 days, up the East Coast of the USA. It's hard to even attempt to recap the madness that went on, but thankfully, we brought Justin Hucker, of Live Music Community, along to document the entire thing! 

There’s a bunch of stuff that went on, and you’re going to have to watch the movie to get all the stories! But here is a quick recap.

We started the tour with a couple of South Florida shows, one in Pompano Beach, and one in Delray Beach. They went well, and were a nice send off for us, as we prepared to venture into the unknown. For this tour we had gotten an RV, something that still seems surreal to me. We’re used to touring in vans, that break down most of the time. Now we had a hotel room on wheels that was going to take us up and down the East Coast.

Our first stop was South Carolina, a sick little punk venue called Tin Roof in Charleston. It was also my birthday, as well as the release day of my new album, “For Life”. Spirits were very high. The show itself went amazing, and we then retired to the RV for some of Aquilla’s amazing cooking, all the while watching Cheech and Chong’s Up In Smoke, reciting every line (except Ricky, he fell asleep!). We turned in for the night, then headed to Raleigh, North Carolina, where we played at a record store called SchoolKids Records. While sparsely attended, the show itself was a blast.

We were starting to get in the swing of things - life on the RV was feeling more comfortable, load ins were starting to be relatively an easy routine, and we were all eager for what the next city would hold for us. Our next stop was Washington D.C., our nation's capital. I believe Ricky was the only one who had been to D.C. before, and even that was back when he was in 5th grade, for a school trip. We played a fun show at The Public Option, a venue on the corner of the street that could easily be mistaken for a house. It had a real punk DIY vibe to it, and the band we played with, Pajama Day, brought a bunch of their friends - all wearing pajamas! We had the next two days off so we did some sightseeing in D.C., then headed north to Baltimore where we stopped for food and more touristy sights.

After our brief break, we went to Philadelphia, playing at the famous Dobbs On South. As a lifelong Pittsburgh Penguins fan, I’ve been conditioned to hate Philly. As a lifelong punk rocker, there’s nothing but admiration. You can feel the punk rock culture in the city as soon as you step foot in it. We saw some more sites, the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, etc. but also got to stop in some really cool punk art stores off of South Street. Of course, we also all ate Philly Cheesesteaks for breakfast, except Justin who got a burger like a weirdo. The show at Dobbs was invigorating, and a perfect halfway point of the tour.

Next up was upstate New York, a small town called Pleasantville. I think Ricky will one day retire to this quaint town, he was lovestruck immediately. The venue, Lucy’s Garage, was a beautiful place, with an amazing staff. After the show we parked the RV at a campground in Croton-on-the-Hudson, which was beautiful.

New York City was a date that everyone had circled on their calendars. The Big Apple, city that never sleeps, Sinatra - you know? We played at Otto’s Shrunken Head in the East Village, arguably the most energetic show on the tour. Aquilla was also thrilled that he was able to find parking for an RV in New York City.

The next night I had off, while The Shake had a show in Huntington, Long Island. Prior to this tour I had taken on the job of Tour Manager for them, so the night was mainly making sure equipment came in AND out, communicating with the promoter so that they could handle what they needed to do, and stuff like that. It was a nice break for me, and The Shake put on an amazing show as always.

We were supposed to be playing in Somerville, Massachusetts the next night, but after driving all the way there from New York, the venue owner cancelled on us for no other reason other than he’s a dick. I don’t like to be so negative about it, but seriously, the guy is just trash. All I’ll say is, bands, beware of Union Tavern. Read the google reviews, and get contracts signed.

Luckily, we had made some amazing connections on this tour. All of them are amazing, but Maxwell Peters of Long Island deserves an extra hat tip. We let him know what was going on in Massachusetts, and he immediately offered for us to play a show in Setauket, Long Island. Another amazing show, and one that we chalked up to serendipity.

Now, it was time to head home. We had scheduled a show at 1904 Music Hall in Jacksonville, FL for 9/28/2022. Mother Nature had other plans. Hurricane Ian had been forming when we had left for tour, and initially looked like it would hit while we were in Philadelphia. Instead, it slowed down, eagerly awaiting our arrival. As we started the trek home, keeping an eye on the storm, it solemnly became clear that we were going to need to cancel the show, for both our safety and the safety of others. “Cancel” is typically considered a dirty word for us, but it needed to happen. Now, we had to race against the storm to try and get home, specifically because the RV can’t withstand heavy winds.

In the end, we all made it home safe. Now, in a few hours I’ll be playing Show # 299, a rarities set at Prosperity Brewers, before heading home to Propaganda Lake Worth for a full band Show # 300.

This has been the most productive year for me, probably even before covid. After 300 shows, I’m still learning, I’m still eager, and I’m still desperately in love with music. Cheers, friends, and here’s to the next 300 shows!

       One of the things I love most about this way of life is traveling. Seeing new places and meeting new people is such a blessing, and I’m honored to get to do it. I can’t fathom how some bands complain about “having to tour” - it’s literally my favorite bit. To go even a step further, I’ve come across bands who seem to sigh at the thought of having to play shows, to which I say “isn’t that the fucking point?”

Regardless, I’m so excited to announce that I’ll be going on tour with my good friends, The Shake, this September! We’re hitting the East Coast, playing a bunch of places I’ve never been to (like, ever!)

         First out of state show will be in Charleston, SC on the day my new album, “For Life”, comes out (9/16: also my birthday!) and the excitement is real! After that we’re off to North Carolina, D.C., Philadelphia, New York, and Massachusetts, before making our way back to Florida for a show in Jacksonville and then a homecoming show at Propaganda Lake Worth. It’s going to be 16 days of putting our money where our mouth is, doubling down on this childhood dream we’ve all shared.

          One thing that is paramount to this whole operation is the DIY ethos. We’re not going to wait around for someone to hand us a career on a silver platter - that happens to maybe 1 in a million, and in all honesty, takes away from the beauty of the journey. There’s something visceral, honest, and meaningful in the way we’ve chosen to grow. It’s manufactured only by how hard we want to push ourselves, and how much support you all choose to show us - which, thankfully, has been quite a bit!

        I think of Robin Williams quote from The Dead Poets Society:

“Medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for.”

I think about this quote quite a bit. I think most people have a handful of songs at the ready for any given situation in their life - songs meant to help them get by. I know I do. It’s one of the most beautiful aspects of creating art: finding a way to communicate and relate with complete strangers. See you on the road. 

Much love, 
Dominic DeLaney

                                                                                Once more unto the breach, dear friends!

Well, it’s official! As I type this, my first studio album The Marrow In My Bones is surpassing 100,000 streams. I truly can’t believe it. I think back to New Years Eve 2017 - after a few months of getting back into playing, and writing, I decided that this was the path for me (and perhaps always was). I had spent a few years DJing, producing music, and did have a dream job of coaching hockey and driving an Ice Resurfacer (not a Zamboni, damnit!). While the thrill of DJing faded, and the ice rink I worked at proved to be a toxic environment for me, I was slowly putting together the songs that would eventually make up the Chubby EP. That night in 2017 I played Show # 1 to a group of friends around a campfire at Joe’s house. From there, the light turned green, and my wheels were spinning. To date I’ve now played 266 shows, in 9 different states, and, now, have an album with over 100,000 streams. All of this is possible thanks to my loving wife, my amazing friends, my very tolerant family, and all of you guys (who I think are friends as well!) who have supported this endeavor.

NOW TO THE BUSINESS AT HAND! While The Marrow In My Bones approaches it’s 1st birthday, I’m excited to announce my follow up album, For Life! Produced by my good friend Ricky Bolufe (of The Shake and Like Minds), this album is a collection of new songs, and a flag planting statement that I’m in this for the long haul - For Life.

I’ve made a lot of changes in my personal life, the biggest of which is getting sober. The new album isn’t a “recovery album” in that sense, but does deal with the topics of change, loss, love, growth, and hope. And while working with Innerstate Music Group produced my first album (100,000 streams, just so you don’t forget), this album was made in a way that felt immensely more natural - sitting in a studio, with some of my best friends, making an album together. DIY, loud, fast, and meaningful.

The album will be coming out September 16th of this year (my birthday!) and there are some other exciting announcements coming soon, so keep an eye out. Once again, thank you all so much! See you on the road soon.

Much love,

Dominic

Hey all! Dominic here! 
Just wanted to pop in and say THANK YOU to everyone who has been streaming the album! Currently, as of 5/15/2022 we're sitting at 78,005 streams on Spotify and climbing! We're on the road to 100,000 streams and every day that blows my mind. These songs were written in bedrooms, corners of coffee shops, in long van rides to shows, hiding in bathrooms at mundane day jobs - all over the place!  I'm so glad that they are out for others to enjoy. I'm still gigging constantly, so check the Upcoming Shows page to see when I'm coming to your area! 

In other news, currently I'm recording my second album! This one's going to be all new songs, recorded and produced by The Shake's Ricky Bobby. So far, the process has been a lot of work, but also a lot of fun. As great as it was recording "The Marrow In My Bones", that album was recorded at the height of lockdown, and had me pretty much converting my living room into a functioning recording space, emailing files back and forth with the producers from Innerstate Records. In the end, the album came out and I'm very proud of it, but I did feel robbed of the typical recording experience  ( Oversized headphones and swirly chairs, dammit! ) 
Thankfully this time around, we get to have a little more of a "normal" recording process, complete with Ricky Bobby frequently facepalming, having to stop the recording, letting me know I'm playing out of time ( working on it ! ). Anyways, that's pretty much the update! Keep on streaming "The Marrow In My Bones" or even grab yourself a CD in the MERCH page ! Hope to see you at a show soon!

Much love!