John Hendow

Last night was a great show for 80s Invasion. We played the Triple Door, which in my opinion is Seattle’s finest live music venue. The house production crew is amazing, well organized, and very professional. This is the kind of gig musicians dream of… an amazing light system, top-tier audio system, fabulous food, great wine list, helpful cool people on staff. During our soundcheck we were informed we’d sold about 2/3 of the house in advance, which was pretty good news! The rest of the audience showed up in force and purchased tickets at the door. Courtesy of support from Jack FM, friends from work, and other local musicians, we had a very large and enthusiastic crowd. Even my mom and dad showed up (!), which marks the first time in my life when both of my parents have been at one of my gigs. After 25+ years of playing professionally, it’s surprising that it hasn’t ever happened before.

One wonderful thing that made this gig so fun was having a really good guitar tech along. My good friend Frank Snow (who is a blazing guitarist and a very smart HVAC engineer) was free that evening and kind enough to help me load in, act as tech during the show, and to load out. The load-in at the Triple Door is pretty easy. There is a freight elevator in the alley, and it’s a more-or-less simple process to roll gear down a series of ramps on the way to the stage. The small stuff is what matters, and my night really benefited from having such a skilled pair of hands helping out.

As we prepared to take the stage last night, the band gathered in the green room to share the usual pre-gig goofiness / encouragement / comradery. Excitement and plenty of smiles. You know that it’s going to be a great night when have that kind of energy in the huddle.

I enjoyed seeing so many friends from work, from my wife’s company, my next-door neighbor, and my friend (and co-worker and fellow Preon) Brad. I look forward to our next show at the Triple Door.

 Set list:

Take On Me
Living In Oblivion
Be Near Me
Lies Lies Lies
Girls On Film
Always On My Mind
Reap The Wild Wind
Obsession
Metro
Sweet Dreams
Situation
Don’t You Want Me
Together Forever
Let’s Dance
Red Skies
Rock The Casbah
I Can’t Wait
Voices Carry
Walk Like An Egyptian
Hungry Like The Wolf
I Ran
Respect
Stop
You Spin Me
Enjoy The Silence
The Promise