is the beginning is the end is the beginning.
Thanks to the joys of Gmail, I can take myself all the way back to September of 06, when I first told Dave "As long as it isn't a blatant Nirvana clone, I'm interested." This was back when Dave still thought Mario was either 25, or maybe 19. It was a good idea, and one that clearly worked for us; find the right musicians to form a band, and then make friends with them.
I don't really know about the first time Dave and Mario played together, but I remember the first time I showed up at the practice space. They were both just happy I wasn't an aging hippy who wanted to play Phish covers. Then we played some songs and immediately clicked. There was nothing left to decide, this was the band (and if there was any questions left the lights on my amp convinced them).
Since then, we've practiced, played shows, promoted, and all the other things that bands do. Most importantly, through all of this we became great friends. The first thing people ask, when I tell them about how we are on a break, is always "Why don't you find someone to replace him?" There is no way to replace Dave, or Mario, or me. nixon was, and always will be, what is created when the three of us come together to make music. Mario and I have talked about continuing to play together while Dave is away, but it won't be nixon, because it can't be nixon.
