dear redvinegar fans,

well, this is it. the last show. 8 years of making music, tons of shows, 3 records, posters, cdrs, t-shirts, flyers, and 7 drummers -- how can we forget the drummers? and let's not forget all of you who came to hear us play, who bought our records, who supported us. it has become a cliche because it's true: "we couldn't have done it without you."

but now it's come to the end of the road. aaron left the band to pursue other things, tim is a full-time seminary student, and peter is moving away to california this summer for grad school. that leaves redvinegar pretty much on hiatus for the forseeable future. it is bittersweet; good things are happening in people's lives, but at the same time it is very sad to see this band hanging up its hat. music will go on for all of us in one way or another, but nothing will be quite like this band. did i say band? I should have said family.

redvinegar has been incredibly blessed, especially over the last few years. there are a lot of bands that would kill to have had the opportunities we've had -- the shows, the friends, supportive parents and others, the connections that allowed us to do some of the things we've done. for the most part, we didn't do anything to deserve the breaks we got and we certainly didn't pay any dues. or if we did, we didn't notice.

I don't think we can thank Goose Island and our fans enough for the support they have given us. the shows there were transformed concretely into other shows at other venues, into our records; the truth is that practically everything the band was able to produce had it's start there. smitty, thanks for looking us up that cold january and asking us to come play. We also owe thanks to the other venues that have worked with us -- the hollywood, the lyon's den (r.i.p.), the beat kitchen, delisi's, the elbo room and the abbey -- we always had a great time -- something else a lot of bands aren't able to say.

eric swanson and sacred heart studio... we can't thank you enough for the time and energy you put into i don't know where here is... sacred heart is an incredible building, and that helps make it a great place to make a record, but a studio is only as good as the guy twiddling the knobs, and that's just the beginning of how you enter the euqation. thank you.

thanks to richard milne and 93 xrt for playing caribou rock on local anesthetic even though we only had two weeks to live. i know i didn't expect that to be the song you'd pick, but hearing this tune about faith, doubt, and friendship in the light of a band wrapping things up made me experience the loss and the song in a new way.

we are all so excited about the last show; we hope it does justice to the songs, to the memories, to your ears, and to the music and friendships made over these years and we hope to see you there. but regardless, redvinegar will continue in memory, on the web, and especially in every bit of music that every one of us makes or hears from now until that big final show in the sky.

thanks again,

redvinegar