West Indian Girl

david dye and west indian girl

before the philly show we were invited over to 88.5 WXPN to tape an interview with David Dye and play a few songs live. xpn is really fucking nice. it’s located on the drexel university campus. if you havent heard of david dye the guy equals legend. check out this npr bio on him. david has been in our corner since the beginning and totally understands what we are going for. our interview with him was extremely fun, relaxed and it felt like we were talking to someone who had definitely done his homework…a total pro. i thought the questions he asked were very well thought out plus his interviewing style is very laid back which made us all feel at home.

personally i love playing live on the radio – it was the first time we got to do this as a band instead of just an acoustic thing with robert and mariqueen. we played ok but it was a bit weird listening to the whole mix in headphones. bass going into headphones is one of the worst things to hear when you’re a bass player cos it sounds like ass…no way around it. anyway, all bass tone stuff aside, this was a thrill and i would gladly put those headphones back on again in a nanosecond if we ever got the chance to go back and hang out at xpn. we played trip, miles from monterey, hollywood, and what are you afraid of. after the interview rob went and did some station ID’s and then mariqueen and i did some together. “hi this is francis ten and mariqueen maandig of west indian girl and your listening world cafe live with david dye” or something like that. hahah it was cool.

Mariqueen’s Mind
philly xpn was a great experience. i expected it to be like my first radio experience at 94.9 in san diego. i didn’t understand how the whole band was going to fit all of our equipment inside a radio station and play live, but the one thing i’ve learned since joining this band is to just go with the flow. expect the unexpected. you might just find a pleasant surprise.

so mark, fran, tommy and i drove into the radio station from our second night staying with becky. let me just say how sad your life is if you haven’t experienced a trip to the mccabe estate. that house slash mansion slash tour godsend was and is my favorite experience on this musical journey. just picture what may very well be the perfect family. tall, dark and handsome husband (tom) with the petite and beautiful wife (becky)… then there’s the girls. gorgeous. all of them. rachel, the oldest and most outgoing of the bunch. she’s always smiling and has one of those super soothing speaking voices. the kind of voice that boys will call and want to listen to. i know it’s kind of wrong for me to say but she has a sexy kind of voice. watch out, rachel… the boys will come running, and start calling if they haven’t already. then there’s katherine. super tall, super pretty and super shy. i don’t know that much about her because she’s so shy but it’s ok. i was and still am the same way around people. then there’s little sara. i got to sleep in sara’s room for the three wonderful days i was able to stay at the mccabe estate. sara is a cutie pop with shirley temple curls and a quiet demeanor. i am convinced that one of her drawings should be a new west indian girl t-shirt. fran, if you’re reading this… you have the power. make it happen. so ok, the family sounds perfect right? it gets even better. the house is siiiiiiick. wireless internet everywhere. eleven rooms. one acre all around. huge backyard with a pond, a hammock, fireflies, a swingset, a tool shed, a fire pit, a deck and room left over to build a pool. whaaat? yuh. for serious. this house was gangster. our first night there we were greeted with sanwiches, a variety of fine beer, and congo bars. i did my laundry, click clacked on my lappy, and watched blazing saddles. dope, right? anyway, i’ve completely strayed from the subject, sorry people. let me just end this ode to the mccabe family by saying thank you. for everything. becky you are so amazing. thank you. i can’t say that enough. lewscious and tommy say thank you as well. lewscious would also like to thank rachel for those amazing muffins. me too me too me too! rachel you are a fantastic baker. the congo bars, the heavenly muffins, the constant smiles and then that voice. you are a going to be dangerous when you get older. the mccabe estate is west indian girl’s official east coast home base. get into it.

so anyway our radio show went great. i was happy and full from the great eggs and cheese and english muffin breakfast that beck had prepared for me. love her. damn. seriously. i got to the building and spent some quality time in the bathroom. i walked out of there ten pounds lighter and ready to sing. i stuffed my face with scones and hot tea while the boys were setting up. when it was time to get it going we banged through “trip”, “miles from monterey”, “hollywood” and “what are you afraid of”. the interview went well. i think i’m finding my groove when it comes time to ask me stuff. i was nervous my first time i was interviewed but there’s something really soothing about being in a huge recording studio with all the boys i love holding their instruments that puts me in a natural comforting state. who knows. i wonder what david dye thought of me? david i know you read the blog, i want to know what you think. i’m bummed we didn’t get to chat more. i didn’t even see you at our show. hmphf.

some live shots taken tommy

F.TEN