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WHAT’S NEW?
September 23, 2020
Overall Summer Tour went better than expected. Out of 40 scheduled shows, only 5 were cancelled. Almost all were outdoors, and the few that were indoors were in big rooms with open-air designs and huge windows/doors that provided plenty of fresh air. Scheduling was more challenging than usual, as restrictions changed with little notice, and venues had to adjust rather quickly... so many of the the dates were added after the tour had started, and the ones that fell off did so with little notice.
I assume Fall Tour will be more difficult. Indoor shows are more unstable right now for obvious reasons, so I'm focusing on more outdoor shows in the warmer South, but some of those states are rather unstable themselves... so right now the strategy is to book as much as we can in states that we currently feel comfortable with, and we'll just watch carefully and adjust the schedule as needed to stay safe. As I said heading into the Summer, I will not play areas or venues that don't seem to be taking the pandemic seriously. If YOU do not take it seriously, please do not come.
Due to the ever changing circumstances, I expect that the Fall schedule we initially announce will be more abbreviated than usual, with dates continually added as the tour proceeds. Please check here and on Facebook for the latest updates.
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August 8, 2020
Just to make it offiicial, we have decided not to reschedule the annual Memorial Day Weekend Camping Caravan for this Labor Day Weekend. There are too many uncertainties around COVID remaining, and it takes a ton of work to organize the logistics for lodging, etc. only to have it be canceled last minute.
A very special "thank you" to UpCountry, Archetype, and Sierra Nevada breweries for their commitments and patience, and hopefully we can plan to do it Memorial Day Weekend 2021. The one benefit of the delay is that talk of the event continued to grow as people grew weary of being cooped up, so interest in our next caravan is super high!
We'll keep you posted on details as they develop.
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June 13, 2020
With the entire Spring Tour being wiped out by C19, we move anxiously into Summer Tour. This tour should be interesting, as the U.S. is in a state of confustion between trying to open back up, and the reality that C19 numbers are still rising. As such, a few notes about all upcoming dates:
1. I will only play venues in areas that are being safe and reasonable about their policies. Whenever possible shows will be outdoors, or in extremely well ventilated rooms with safe distancing.
2. Due to each state having different rules, and the situation possibly changing rapidly in a given area, dates may appear on the schedule, or be removed from it, with little notice. I'm sorry for any inconvenience, but we have to be safe, and unfortunately the reality is that some decisions may have to be changed with little notice for the wellbeing of everyone.
3. Breweries, by the nature of the brewing process, must be very clean facilities. You can rest assured that any venue I am playing is going to be cleaner and more frequently disinfected than any restaurant or bar you're apt to frequent. Additionally I will only play venues accommodating for safe distancing. In return, please follow all safety guidelines and be respectful of others in attendance. If keeping safe distance or wearing a mask while you're not eating or drinking is too much to ask, please don't come.
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March 19, 2020
Well, COVID-19 wiped out the second week of dates in North Carolina (mostly around the Raleigh-Durham/Chapel Hill area). Funny, because my last run through North Carolina was partially cancelled by a hurricane. So far only the New Orleans dates have been cancelled in April, but short of a miracle I think we all this state of emergency is going to last a while, so fully expect the Spring Tour schedule to be decimated... but I'm going to post it anyway just in case.
The missing blogs from Winter Tour will be going up over the next week or so. I've also been asked if I plan do any streaming events, etc.... I don't know. Seems like everyone with a guitar is doing that right now, I'll probably wait til it either dies down, or I think of an interesting angle to make mine a little different. Feel free to send ideas!
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March 11, 2020
I'm WAY behind on the blog! I lost my notes and a thumbdrive for the Florida tour, and have been really busy with a few other exciting tour-related projects... so it got away from me. HOWEVER, while prepping for the March NC run I found the thumbdrive, and will have a few off-days of solitude, so I hope to be all caught up by the end of the week! 1000 pardons!
Our 2nd "one night only" Grateful Dead concert on Feb 27 was a load of fun. A technical SNAFU wiped out our webcast just as it was starting, but you can check out the last 30 minutes of our 2nd set (audio) here.
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February 9, 2020
The 2nd Annual Memorial Day Weekend Camping Caravan is coming together! This year we'll spend the whole weekend in the amazing Asheville, NC... where we'll be hitting three fantastic breweries each night (and obviously exploring others during the day). Interest is high... if you're interested in joining us on this year's epic roadtrip, please fill out the form on the Caravan page NOW so we can determine how many people we're talking about and negotiate the best group rate possible for lodging.
This will be HUGE fun!
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January 24, 2020
Winter Tour kicked off in a stellar fashion in Austin and playing all over Texas. The beers were great, each brewery very unique from the others, and the food in Austin was just unreal! Back briefly for a few shows in Ohio, and then it's off for a couple of weeks of shows in Florida in February.
On February 27 I'll be leading a group of musicians from various bands for a one-night-only performance of Grateful Dead music, in celebration of Mardi Gras. We did this once before last Halloween, and it was so hot the venue asked us to do it again, so here we go. Keep your eye out for details, as it just may be webcast. Please subscribe to my new YouTube channel, as we'll be doing a long more of this kind of thing this year.
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January 2, 2020
Happy New Year!
2019 was fantastic, I can't wait to get 2020 rolling! Winter Tour will kick off in Austin, TX on January 10, the dates are posted above. The tour includes a few special events, including our 2nd Grateful Dead night at Little Miami Brewing, Mardi Gras Feb 27. where I'll be joined by musician friends (including members of Freak Mythology, Voodoo Loons, and others) as a full-band playing an entire night of Dead music. The next night, Feb 28, I'll be playing the 28th annual Bockfest at the brand new Northern Row Brewery in Cincinnati. Of course there will be all kinds of craziness on the rest of the tour, follow the blog for all the juicy details!
Finally, here's a video message to close out 2019.
Please subscribe to the new YouTube channel when you watch it!
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December 7, 2019
Please SUBSCRIBE to the new YouTube page.
It will be central to 2020 events... the new EP... all aspects of the tour... announcements, live streams of shows, funny little videos documenting the silly and sometimes bizarre stuff that happens on tour.
THANK YOU!!!
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2nd Annual Memorial Day Weekend Camping Caravan!
POSTPONED DUE TO COVID19. STAY TUNED FOR UPDATES SOON -
Just to make it offiicial, we have decided not to reschedule the annual Memorial Day Weekend Camping Caravan for this Labor Day Weekend. There are too many uncertainties around COVID remaining, and it takes a ton of work to organize the logistics for lodging, etc. only to have it be canceled last minute.
A very special "thank you" to UpCountry, Archetype, and Sierra Nevada breweries for their commitments and patience, and hopefully we can plan to do it Memorial Day Weekend 2021.
FALL TOUR + OTHER 2020 HAPPENINGS
Obviously COVID 19 has turned everything upside down, and my efforts here are no exception. I lost many of the blogs for Spring Tour, which documented what was going on while I was on the road down south as the shit was hitting the fan. So far have not been able to get tech support to retrieve the missing blogs... will keep trying. You also may have heard that we were developing a reality TV show about the tour. That's still alive, but nobody can really commit to anything until we know where we can play, etc... so I consider that on hold. Currently indications seem to be that 2021 will be similar to 2020. Hold on tight...
ABOUT DENNIS O'HAGAN
“There aren't many who can match the enticingly dark, edgy and wonderfully engaging musical storytelling of Dennis O'Hagan.”
~ NPR
Sharing A Love of Music, Great Beer, and Writing Across the U.S.
Dennis O'Hagan is an Irish/American songwriter and guitarist who has been active in the music scene for 30 years. Playing in various indie/alternative bands over the years, and also as a solo artist, he has shared the stage with artists as diverse as the Violent Femmes, the Church, Blue Oyster Cult, Bruce Hornsby, Afghan Whigs, as well as many others. His most recent band, the Voodoo Loons, hailed from both the US and Ireland, have released two critically acclaimed albums, and are in rotation on SiriusXM as well as other global streaming outlets. The Loons have also headlined epic St. Patricks' Day parties on Cincinnati's Fountain Square and the Historic Southgate House.
In 2018 Dennis embarked on his Great Brewery Tour, which has continued on through 2020 with him playing solo/acoustic shows at craft breweries throughout the U.S..... so far nearly 200 breweries in 25 states. After each show he blogs his thoughts on the brewery and the beers he sampled that night, and encourages others to chime in. The tour has so been so successful that it is rolling on into 2020, and at this point seems to be developing into a perpetual tour...
"Craft brewers are artists, and as such they and their patrons tend to be tuned in and have a deep appreciation not only for the art of making great beer, but also of music... so with me being a musician/songwriter and great appreciator of the brewer's art, there is this perfect mutual admiration that makes this whole experience very satisfying and FUN for everyone involved."
GET IN TOUCH
Want to recommend a brewery to add to the tour? Questions? Interested in advertising or a sponsorship? Wanna talk gear?
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Send a note and we'll get back to ya ASAP!
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