Life is a Highway

Alright...seriously...I have never had that much jager in my entire life.

We traveled to Houston this past weekend as VIP guests with Jager @ the Houston Rodeo. We get there, and there's a line out the a$$...I grab the first person that looks like they know what they're doing, only to find out he's drunker than Cooter Brown!

Finally I get someone that knows what they are doing, they take us down the side, and into the Tent and what do I see...but all the beer, brisket, and Jager a man can imagine. I had jager with root beer, Jager with Orange Pop, Jager with Sausage, Jager with cigarettes, Jager with Jager...and Jager with oxygen.

Needless to say it was a great trip, met some interesting people, and spread the SSP Charm.

There's a lot going in the SSP camp, somethings I can tell and some I have to wait until further developed...but I assure you this. You may not hear from me...you might think...that SSP band is just drinking jager at the rodeo...well yes we are :) but things are brewing.

I think the name Snake Skin Prison is very fitting for this band. Just as a snake sits...and patiently awaits it's unsuspecting prey...so does SSP. When the time is right...BAM!...the snake strikes and it's lights out! Unless of course the snake is drunk, then he will probably miss and chip a tooth or something, but you get my point!

I've scheduled us a lot of good shows, SSPxSW, Houston House of Blues, Tulsa OK, ... and many more to come :) .... Check out the Dates...:









I've also been writing new material, ready to unleash some new and improved tunage on your skulls!

This Friday SSP travels to D-Town...home of the High 5...home of the Dallas Cowgirls...Home of a cool place to eat called The Angry Dog...we play Reno's Chop Shop...if you're from Dallas, come check it out, if you're not...tell anyone you know from Dallas to come check out SSP.



Alright, well I'm busting outta this motel...keep your ears to the ground...it's coming...

MB

If I were King

Well, I noticed I haven't written a blog in bit, and it's definitely not from lack of things to write about. In the world of SSP there's always something to say!!

We had a killer show Saturday Night @ Dirty Dog, thanks to everyone that came out!! This weekend will prove to be one helluva weekend with back to back shows:



Then on Saturday Night SSP opens for Drowning Pool:





SSP loves both San Angelo and San Antonio...hell, we love everywhere we play. ALSO...I'm super pumped to announce our NON-SXSW show:




When I moved here, I had no idea about SXSW, and it took a while to wrap my head around it. I thought, "Man, this is a great idea!! A huge festival where ALL unsigned bands and gather and play in hopes of gaining the type of exposure one could only get from something of this magnitude..."

Then I actually learned about it LOL.

As with everything else in the world...SXSW has been polluted by $$...so I don't concern myself with SXSW, I'm concerned with SSPxSW :). We'll get all the spoils of SXSW with out the hindering of being an actual SXSW Showcase. I set the line-up, it's a free show and the goodies just keep coming in...it's only going to get better. So I do wanna thank SXSW for building the biggest festival in the world...right in my backyard :). And I won't even have to promote...

SSP played in San Antonio once, and the headlining band bailed at the last minute...the show was packed out, and SSP was moved into the headlining slot. I turned to Keith and said, "We're the last band you want to hand deliver your fans on a silver platter to..." Every show since then in San Antonio just keeps getting better. I view SXSW the same way...in the words of Bruce himself, "Bring your Daughter to the Slaughter..." SSP isn't racist...we'll take them all!!

So! That's the haps for now...currently I'm writing new material to throw into the SSP blender and see what comes out...I've been taking guitar lessons for over 5 months now...so let's see how the songs sound \m/

As always thank you all very much for your support and belief in Snake Skin Prison...

"Welcome to the Jungle said the Spider to the fly, 4 years and you're lucky you're alive; Oh no what are you gonna do, you're slitting your wrists in an alligator cess pool..."

MB

V is for Victory

Well if it isn't my favorite faithful reader! I hope your week is going as good as mine and your weekend was as rocking as well. Friday night the SSP posse gathered for some dirt, liquor, and cigarettes, a slap in the face, a shoulder shiver...and mass amounts of fun for Keith's Bday. Saturday was an excellent turn out for The Scoot Inn. I don't know about you guys (those that got to attend) but I dig that spot, I can definitely see an SSP show on that nice outdoor stage when the weather breaks!

So in thinking about what I wanted to write about today, I was slapped in the face with something that truly gets under my skin...but yet is a necessary evil here in the good ol' music entertainment business.

So...let me quiz you...

-What was the name of the band that won the contest to open for Motley Crue on their tour??...don't Google it...remember Guitar Center was helping promote??...remember?? well...neither do I. So I'm wondering what good it was to relentless push and promote that contest...and in the words of my dad, "If a frog had wings he wouldn't bust his ass!"

So why do I bring that up you ask? Well this is a huge pisser to me, when companies, bands, whoever pitch these "contests" to the ever starving for anything musician/band. Tour with Motley, Open for Kiss, Record with Slash...by dangling these golden carrots in front of a determined individual/band, in return they promote the EF out of the company/band/contest...something like this, :

"Hey...help Joe and the Jack Offs open for Ozzy on the Moon...just vote everyday all day at CorporateAmericaSucks.com and make sure your friends do as well!"

Now, I myself also did the same thing, hounded, pounded and pestered the most cherished and important treasure we have as a band...YOU...and for what? To shove someone else's product down your throat in hopes of you voting for my band. After about 5 of these ridiculous outings I woke up and smelt the vasoline...no Longer will I be a Slave to the Grind and explode your inbox with requests to visit guitarcenter.com and vote!...

So if I or Snake Skin Prison ask you to vote for us, it's for something important, meaningful, and legit. Every year the Austin Chronicle holds it's Music Poll, and every year I'm amazed at the results. Regardless, I would feel like I'm doing SSP a disservice if I didn't try...so take a quick second, hit the link and vote for SSP :)

CLICK HERE




CLICK HERE



As always, thank you for your time...SSP is off this weekend, but getting geared up for next weekend @ The Dirty Dog!!

It's been real, and it's been fun...but it ain't been real fun!

Love Yas!

PS: that band was called The Last Vegas...I googled it :) \m/

Hillbilly Batteries

"Moonshine!! Now that shit'll make ya piss the bed!" -I will leave this person Nameless

I realized I haven't put up a blog since Dec 22!! That's way too long, for you see faithful reader, I just have gallons of information to dump on you ;).

Christmas was awesome, I spent it in Austin as I did New Years. I mean, where else would you want to go for New Years?? The moon maybe, that might be cool, if you could get enough friends to go...either way...I just recently got back from a trip to the Motherland.

Monroe County, West Virginia...God's Country. I remember when I was little, I asked my mom if Tornado's would come to Peterstown and she pointed out the window to the mountains and said, "Those mountains will protect you, they won't let anything bad in..."

I still get that feeling, when I drive down Main Street...home.

HOME!

It feels good, if you've never left your home, then you might not understand, but if you have left home...you know exactly what I'm talking about. I love going home, cause it reminds me who I am, where I'm from, and what I'm doing all this for.

See...you might come to a show and see the 100...200...and think...man SSP has a strong following they are doing really good. Well, I have an entire town backing me, and that my friend makes you feel good. Every time I go home it's like charging the batteries...my Hillbilly Batteries!!

Watching people smile as you tell them stories, hearing people play your music, seeing people wear your shirt...but not because they have to...but because they want to.

People ask me if I ever think I'll move back to Peterstown, West Virginia...and I respond: "As soon as they get a Red Eyed Fly!!" :)

I just did an interview with Lonestar Metal Magazine, and he asked me what my favorite experience with SSP was...and I could've told about Keef pee'ing in the ice machine...or Marc getting us back from a 4 hour destination in 2...or about me sticking a Viking Horn in my crotch and pokin girls in the rear...much to the disagreement of several suitors on hand :) ...

That's all fun...trust me...but it's about the music and about the people...the People in Monroe County...the People in Austin TX...the People EVERYWHERE...when we play a song and I see people in the crowd singing along...it truly warms my heart...as cliché as that sounds...it really does. No Matter how far I am from home...be it my Austin home or WV home.

I'm huge on Family and not just blood...but our SSP Family...and that's deeper than me and Keith and Marc. With out the people that support SSP we'd be playing our music to empty ears.

There's strength in numbers. Period. We stick together and everything will work out fine, it's when you are all alone you are the most vulnerable.

So...I thank you for your support...without you, I don't even want to know where I would be...

So...with my Hillbilly Batteries charged, come out and help me Celebrate Keef's 23rd Bday!! We have some tricks up our sleeve for this show...I doubt any of you have seen before. SSP takes the stage @ 11p-1145p then it's drinky poo time!!



If you're not in ATX this weekend...then don't you fret...




SSP is getting geared up to rip through Texas like a Twister through a Trailer Park.

I told ya that to tell ya this....

In closing, 2010 was definitely the year of The Snake. I said that this time last year and I also said, "If the Good Lord blesses us as good in 2010...as He did in 2009...I can't wait to see the outcome!" And thus the outcome is this:

-New Music Video
-New Album
-Played w/Hell Yeah @ the Uproar show (among others, but shared the stage with Hell Yeah, Airborne, etc)
-Damn near sold out the Parish and had an extremely successful release
-Blew my Email List # (1500) out of the water (1800+...and growing like a weed)
-Made a lot of good friends
-Made some better enemies
-Drank a lot of cold free beer
......
Now I'm just rambling...the list can go on and on.

I'm anxious to see what 2011 brings...

The thing about this band is, at any time, any moment my phone can ring and our entire life can change. It's like the lottery except, I have a better idea of what numbers to pick (if that makes sense). It's very exciting and sometimes about half nerve-racking! But, just like everything else, you play hard you make your own luck. I truly believe that if you just flat out refuse to quit...you will not lose. Just as a rock over time will give way to a steady drip...I like to think of SSP as more of a Niagara Drip...if you're picking up what I'm laying down.

Next SSP show isn't until Jan 28 2011 @ Dirty Dog on Dirty 6th!!




Thank you all for all your support...hold on cause we got a long way to go and we ain't going home!!

I'll leave you in some of the words of the infamous Joe Walsh:

"Spent the last year Austin Texas Way...couldn't get much higher!!"

Feliz Navidad!!






Mucho El Amor!!

Fight for Freedom

Well here we are, 2010 is almost dead and gone. It's definitely been a great year for the Snake! We finish it off with a killer show @ Emo's outdoor stage w/our good friends from Powderburn this Friday (12/17). If you're in Austin and need one more Face Plaster...then come get your fix!! SSP @ midnight.



After this show, SSP will take a well deserved break, since the dawn of 2010 we have played: close to 78 shows this year. To put that into perspective, there are 52 weekends in a year, if you played every Friday and Saturday, you would play 104. Don't tell me this band isn't road ready.

If I had to pick my favorite show of 2010...hmmm...Corpus w/Hell Yeah was pretty sweet, however, I really don't think you can top our Album Release. That show was so crucial for this band, and not only was it a success, I feel like SSP knocked that bitch outta the park. SSP proved we're more than just your bullshit garage band. We are ready for the next level...now it's my job to figure out how to put us in front of the right people. See you thought it was just hookers, sluts, and hockey pucks...there is actually a business side to this massive monster.

Speaking of Road Ready, we were just talking at rehearsal last night about going out on tour, so that is definitely in the melting pot!! I'm thinking a tour across the South, up to WV, show my peeps back home what I've been doing for 4 years, and back to Austin. That would be a very interesting journey I'm sure.

I know that Thanksgiving has come and gone, however I personally am always thankful. I get to go home soon and am thankful for that. I'm also very thankful for you, the person that supports Snake Skin Prison. I try to say it as much as I can on stage, but truly if you have the numbers you cannot be ignored. It's not rocket science, and thanks to the people, Snake Skin Prison is getting the numbers. Drastically fast!!

I can promise you this, I don't know how; but I will repay everyone that has helped support SSP...be it a free guitar pick or a huge show with an open bar; one day...some way...I will thank you for your support in one way or another.

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a safe New Year!!

Keep your eyes wide open and your ears peeled back...cause we're coming like a heart attack...We've got a long way to go Mama we ain't looking back!!

\m/

Alcohol of Shame!

WHEW!!....(tires screeching...heavy breathing...panty stealing <-added that last part for style points...)


Man o Man have I/SSP been busy. I know I've been doing nothing but spraying ALBUM RELEASE...ALBUM RELEASE...all over you for the past 5 months, however, there is something to be said for consistency.

Since then we jammed Red Eyed Fly with Dangerous Toys this past Saturday night, thank you all that came out! I had a blast (which I think was obvious!).



We've got 2 Killer shows this weekend in San Antonio and San Angelo, then the following weekend (12/17) we headline Emo's outdoor stage...so things are pumping!!

I'm very excited about our new vid for Alcohol of Fame:




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WbW2MkFSIs


I have had several people ask me what that song was about, so I thought I would blog on the lyrics, and what was the meaning behind them.

Now before we get started, I wrote this song based upon a true story...I wrote this song from the eyes of a musician/person that is battling daily with the struggles and demons of an addiction. In this story, it's Alcohol, but in life there are many addictions. Do I personally think that I'm an Alcoholic?? Of course not, cause step one would be admitting you have a problem :) ... however can I put myself in those shoes...you bet your sweet ass I could...and probably if you look deep enough, you could too. So here we go:

Sometimes sunshine, and sometimes rain
Sometimes a little bit of nothing can drive a man insane
A whole lot of trouble and a whole lot of pain
A whole lot of bloodline brings the alcohol of fame

Verse 1 speaks about the extreme ups and downs with addiction, some days are very good...you have fun...enjoy what you're doing; where some days you'd just as well crawl back into bed, cause you are NOT going to win and the smallest thing can push you over the edge. It also speaks about how hard it is, even when you're not trying to make it hard...the monster makes it hard before even getting out of the gate; and that monster could be in you from birth...that addictive personality that you never ever even asked for.

Should I be happy or should I be ashamed
Rather or not you even know my name
If I could would I or feed it all the same
Guess that’s the price you pick in the alcohol of fame

Verse 2: as an aspiring musician, should 'said musician' be sad that he is still unrecognized?? Or is it truly a blessing in disguise, for with fame and money comes more problems...and normally the problems an addictive personality should steer clear of. When faced with these temptations will the wise decisions be made or will our weary traveler fail the test so many before him have...be it as it may...that's the path that has been chosen.


I don’t know if I’m right or wrong, life feels empty so I sing my songs
In the end it’s all the same living life in the alcohol of fame

The chorus I feel is pretty self explanatory...LOL...after so much contemplation and speculation, one often grows tired of it, and falls back to routine...just living life in the Alcohol of Fame (if you will)

The nights are lonely and the mornings are so hard
Sometimes my only friend is this beat up ol guitar
The wheels are humming against that ol’ highway
So much time to think but nothing, nothing much to say

The final verse is truly from the eyes of a traveling musician, and how at the end of the night when everyone else has gone to bed, the "normal" person that works during the day and sleeps at night, as compared to the lifestyle of sleeping all day and working all night...how that can be very lonely. With so much time alone you have so much time to think...but you really don't have nothing much to say...


I don’t know if I’m right or wrong, life feels empty so I sing my songs
In the end it’s all the same living life in the alcohol of fame

You bear that cross for the kings and queens, you gotta bear that cross for the heroin fiends
Bear that cross for your family and friends you gotta bear that cross till the bitter end
bear that Cross…come on bear that cross…bear that cross…come on bear that cross

Bridge: This is probably my favorite part of the song. I wrote this with the attitude that despite the issues and problems you carry, you can still be successful and have a prospering life. With "said musician" being successful he proves to others...that the cross you bear...the burden of your life, doesn't have to slow you down. You shall bear the cross of addiction, or greed, or lack of trust...or whatever it is that is deep inside you that could possibly destroy you as an individual...bear it and not let it break you. And everyone is human...everyone has their faults...from kings to heroin fiends to your family...we all have our faults.

We all have our crosses to bear.

This is why when we play this song live directly following this part, I scream, "Come With Me!!" ... we shall bear our burdens together...

And hopefully stop for a high life along the way \m/...



Sometimes sunshine, and sometimes rain….sometimes a little bit of nothing brings the alcohol of fame

We might have never asked for it...but we got it...so we make the best of it...

Til the Bitter End
\m/
MB