I’m playing a Natural Stage Project (aka “Hikes Without Mics”) field trip to Joshua Tree National Park tomorrow, which I expect to be fun, sweet and ridiculous. Here’s my blog from the last time I did a Hikes W/out Mics thing:

In practice what this meant was a longish walk on a barely-visible trail by a creek, at the the end of which was a pretty waterfall with a woman standing in front of it to sing indie-rock type songs while she accompanied herself on ukelele. I did the hike with my Estralita on my back in a gig bag for bass, and instead of the bowler and brogans I usually wear I had a coonskin cap and psychedelic emerica sneaks. I ran into Pamita halfway up the path. She was rocked out in cowboy boots, a dress, and fishnets, which is an outfit that’s just slightly better adapted to scrambling over boulders than the corset she usually wears.

There was no real crowd to speak of, but there were plenty of musicians there to play and play for. The acoustics out in the forest were special and listening to the other acts was a profound pleasure.

Because the issue is lurking, I should point out that this was not a Grateful Dead setup like a drum circle. These people knew irony. The tactic is along the same lines as a dance party on the subway, where a group meets up at a subway car and dances to electronic music on a boom box for a few stops, then gets off and disperses. This was an acoustic flash mob.

Something I love about playing is the way it draws me into unexpected places. I end up in places I would never have gotten to go to, meeting people at events I wouldn’t have been invited to, like this one. So cool.

And afterwards in Historic Pioneertown:

A cosmic prehistoric natural environment, and an indie rock honky tonk bar and grill, 2 hours away with cheap lodgings. Stunning monster rocks, a movie-set town for 40s Westerns, spacerock, country/rock DJs, danceparty, hottub, and general good times. ALSO! Daytime acoustic concert in the park at Jumbo Rocks put on by The Natural Stage Project’s “Hikes Without Mics”… info on that here.

Pappy & Harriet’s is an honky tonk in historic Pioneertown that books both country and psychedelic indie rock like Cat Power, Spindrift etc.