Evan Dando in Argentina: Stop my hand

One thing I’m learning about Evan Dando is that you just don’t contact him. He contacts you, and this can usually happen through the most unusual ways, such as his girlfriend Antonia’s social networks. What is really curious (and contradictory) is that despite this apparent sloppiness with his means of communication, this does not prevent him from being a guy whose word you can normally trust.

And so it was that at six in the morning Antonia, or rather Evan Dando, woke me up with a flood of materials that began with an enigmatic home video of “Take it Easy” in a version, according to Evan, pretty much like “Suicide from 70’s NYC”. After shaking off sleep and trying to understand why the hell Antonia was sending me that video so early in the morning, I remembered that Evan had promised me a complete report of his trip to Buenos Aires.

So, in the end he was only fulfilling his promise, with the perks of sending, also, some random stuff that included a screensaver of Antonia’s face, a luxury car, his grunt of pain as he had his torn hand examined by a surgeon, his new dwarf and even some new album recording footage (which I will keep off the record as requested, sorry, I’m not a paparazzi).

Evan has a new friend

About the show

Before we talk about the unique show in Buenos Aires, it must be said that Argentineans can be proud of. Even with a doctor’s recommendation to rest for 3 weeks to heal his hand, Evan was keen to keep the thursday show going (see this, Travis Barker?). Armed with a cast on his left hand and medication to alleviate the pain, Evan faced a super excited audience, although not so numerous. The bar, which would have held 120 people, appeared to be half full.

For the musician and videomaker Fernando Blanco, who was at Evan Dando’s three concerts in the country (2 with the Lemonheads), the presentation was better than he imagined. “He didn’t use his thumb and play great without it. Great covers by New York dolls, Gram Parsons, Ramones, Husker du, Victoria Williams, Big Star”. Blanco also got the impression that the performance was much more “serious” than the last ones in Brazil. “I think it was more sober…. he drink only cynar I think because of the medicine for the hand“, he believes. As it couldn’t be otherwise, Evan took part of the set list out of the concert venue, where he presented one of the most beautiful covers ever recorded, “Ballad of El Goodo”, which is on the cult track “Empire Records”.

About the accident

Anyone who frequented Antonia’s or the Lemonheads’ networks this Thursday was startled by the bloodbath shown in close-up by some photos. And I think the defining thing when you’ve gone from being a fan to becoming a friend of your idol is the fact that I was so worried that I immediately turned to Susan, who explained to me better all that “blood bath”. After recording a few songs in the One RPM studio (SP), including a beautiful version of “Solitude” by Billie Holiday, Evan cut himself on a glass table. They rushed to the hospital outside the studio and managed to sew up the wound.

And they hardly knew that in the next few hours they would also rush to the airport straight to Buenos Aires, as Evan would never give up that show. Like I say: a man with words.

Stop my hand……