I’m writing from my parents’ kitchen in Burlington, Vermont, looking out over a beautifully crisp fall morning on Lake Champlain. This first leg of touring with The Presets is over! Some observations on The Presets:

– Kim and Jules are two of the nicest, hardest-working, most well-grounded, politest, and most personable guys I’ve had the pleasure to meet.
– Their live show kicks ASS!

We go back out as main US and Canada support for The Rapture, starting 25 OCT. I’m taking the time until then off, to relax with my family and my favorite singer/songwriter.

Hi! I’m back.

Burning Man was amazing. I got there a little uncentered, and so felt the need to put myself through a sort of spiritual boot camp. I did two to five hours of yoga and meditation a day for the entire week – problem solved! The art was amazing, per usual, but the highlight was definitely having the chance to take time to focus on myself. I needed it. And now I’m back, optimized, and hitting the ground sprinting!

I’m writing this from Montreal, where I’m starting my next tour with The Presets. My itinerary is here – I hope some of you can make it out and say hi!

I’m in Reno, at a little breakfast place called Deux Grand Nez. In two hours from this post, I’ll be off the grid for the next week! Send good thoughts my way, and take care of Shannon, and I’ll see you on the other side :-)

My friend Aaron Axelsen celebrated the 10th anniversary last night of Popscene. The special musical guest was … The Killers! Seeing a band of that caliber in a 400-person club was pretty great. The energy was amazing!

Popsceene is a hell of a fun time. Congratulations, Aaron!

The talented and lovely Shannon Curtis and I shacked up this weekend and did a marathon home recording session! I built out a little mobile recording setup with an MXL tube microphone and a MOTU Ultralite, and we did three new tracks right in my laptop.

They came out amazing! Shannon will be rotating these new recordings through her MySpace site. They’re called Rainy Day Lover, Leave You Behind, and Everyone I’ve Ever Loved. Go check it out!

Shannon’s driving me to LAX in a few minutes, and I’m headed back to SF. I have three and a half days to advance the first week of the Presets tour, pack for tour, shop for Burning Man, pack for Burning Man, and catch up with my friends. No problem! Heh.