Riding Shotgun With Half-handed Cloud
In an industry filled to the brim with debauchery, to come across someone like John Ringhofer (AKA Half-handed Cloud) is like a breath of detoxing fresh air. Not only is he one of those rare artists to bring spirituality to his gently uplifting music, but he also cites his poisons not as booze or drugs, but fruit juice (sparkling apple) and chocolate (dark). Ringhofer is currently on an extended tour in support of Half-handed Cloud's fourth album. Hop on over to the Galaxy Hut on Easter Sunday for a little something sweet for your Easter basket ($5).
Touring is: good for getting to visit spread-out friends.
My first gig was: a little bit of a train wreck in Knoxville TN.
Favorite venue to play is: probably in a college town.
Hygiene on a tour: still takes a front seat. Got to have a daily shower.
Favorite thing about touring is: meeting people and traveling.
And the least favorite: is being away from Berkeley, CA.
The tour bus/van smells like: New Car Smell. Our rental car started with less than a thousand miles on it.
Laundry is: a) washed regularly, b) washed irregularly, c) we go shopping a lot: A. We're interested in seeking-out washers and dryers every few days.
What's the most unusual item on your rider? ha-ha. I don't think we've ever had a rider.
Who controls the music in the touring vehicle? And what are you listening to at the moment?
Justin Vollmar and I take turns. Sometimes it's the radio, sometimes it's silence or talking. Discs we've got along include REM's "Murmur", a collection of John Cale music, Thingy's first album, a Moondog mix, Biff Rose, and Maher Shalal Hash Baz's Blues Du Jour. I'll probably try to play Vollmar's new Okay album every other day if he'll let me.
Your new favorite watering hole after being on tour? And/or the best place to get greasy food?
In-N-Out Burger is a great fast food restaurant, but that's mostly just in California. They have secret menu items -- their grilled cheese is pretty good, and you can't beat those fries.
Most amusing memory from your current or most recent tour?
We toured with this band Liz Janes/Create(!) and the bassist, Orlando, laughed a lot. It was funny. The trick was to mention an old King James-sounding word (like "creepeth" or something) and he would just fall on the floor.
Favorite tour activity (other than the gigs themselves):
Normal things like shopping in book stores and record stores. Sometimes we bring a Nerf football to throw-around. I think we'll try to start a game of Darebase (tag game) somewhere this tour. And Justin is checking thrift stores for the perfect pair of blue shorts.
Are there any bands you've played with that you'd like to tour with again?
Wow, there's lots of bands that Half-handed Cloud has played with, and it would be great to do shows again with the vast majority of them. We've been really fortunate. Artists like Vollmar (of course), The Curtains, Joanna Newsom, Deerhoof, Why?, Danielson, Liz Janes/Create(!), Maher Shalal Hash Baz, Castanets, Red Pony Clock, The Music Tapes, Jai Agnish, Still Flyin', Pipas, Bunky, Anna Oxygen, Mt.Gigantic, Sufjan Stevens, Royal City, Parker Paul, Rapider than Horsepower, Hymie's Basement, The Campfire Kids, Of Montreal, Mantle, Nedelle, Denison Witmer, Soul-junk, Carol Cleveland Sings, The Singing Mechanic, Spinto Band, Lenny Smith, and Daniel Johnston come to mind. There are more too...
Please name the city you wouldn't ever play in again? Or, if not a particular city, which venue makes your skin crawl?
No particular town or venue comes to mind. I guess that we're mostly interested in playing All Ages venues when possible.
Apart from the obvious cd, what's the merch item of yours you think people should shell out for?
The Omnichord picks... and maybe they'd like the new tour cdep? It's named the Harp that's Hung-up in a Tree. We also have pretty normal items like t-shirts and buttons.
Have you been to the top of the Washington Monument?
It's likely. When I was a kid my family lived on Andrews Air Force Base there, and we visited a lot of the monuments and museums in Washington DC, but I was so young that it's hard to remember specific ones now.
You're playing a show almost every day for over a month. Do you enjoy that? Or would you prefer to have a few days off in between shows?
It's a really nice luxury to have a day off. I think we'd love to get to do that, but it doesn't always make sense financially since we're sort of living day-to-day on show money. We're able to take a couple days off here and there though.
What is most important to you about touring?
I think it's good to be able to play these songs in cities where people will welcome us. I mean, it's sort of what you do after making a record, right? Yeah, it's a normal part of the whole thing. It's pretty fun for me to be able to go to the shows of bands that I like, and it seems like there's some interest from other people in other cities to see Half-handed Cloud, so it's worth it to me just for that. Plus, I enjoy writing-out new arrangements for people to play in this "band version" of Half-h. There's just Justin and me on the current tour. So as long as touring is rewarding artistically, socially, I can find people that want to join the band, and it doesn't hurt too badly financially, I think I'll do it.
And finally, it's BigYawn's round. What's your poison? Oh, it's Sparkling Apple Juice. Dark Chocolate. I basically have a gigantic sweet-tooth.
For more on John and Half-handed Cloud, direct your attention to www.halfhandedcloud.com , or www.myspace.com/handycloud .