Closing Crystal Sands (02.28.09)

It was definitely a sad day for the whole SL music community as Crystal Sands was closing its doors. But like I announced during the show... better to go out with a bang than a whimper, and in true Crystal Sands fashion, they held an all-day rock show that was superb. I was glad to be able to participate.

For those of you who know a little of my background (Zakground?), I have a history with this live music venue. When I was first starting out playing live in SL, I'd get gigs here and there every so often. But I didn't really consider myself too committed to doing music in SL until I met Sandi Benelli in 2007. They had just opened Crystal Sands at the time, and came and saw me play a show at another venue on the recommendation of Grateful Stryker. I was doing more Neil Young covers than anything at that point; fortunately, Sandi was a Neil fanatic, so that went over fine.

Anyway, the result was that I ended up playing at Crystal Sands every Monday night at 5:00PM for more than a year. In late 2008, Sandi was forced to close down on Mondays due to her diminishing budget, and I hadn't played at Crystal Sands since then. When I heard a couple of weeks ago that Crystal Sands was having to close up entirely, I let Sandi know that I'd be honored to be included in the going away party. So, I did a half hour set today to say goodbye to Crystal Sands and to thank Sandi for all she's done. It turned out to be a great show, with a really packed audience and a good vibe despite the nature of the occasion.

Maestro, the set list please...
This Afternoon (Zak Claxton)
Thanks Anyway (Zak Claxton)
Old Man (Neil Young)
Always Tomorrow (Zak Claxton)
Falling Down (Zak Claxton)
You're Like a Cloud (Zak Claxton)

Thanks to everyone who's supported Crystal Sands over the years, and here's to those who supported my show today!
Cellandra Zon, Kat Claxton, Diana Renoir, Janell Bolissima, Triana Caldera, Ritter Magic, Kia Bomse, Fyrm Fouroux, Shannyn Fall, Leyah Renegade, TenneseeJed Freiman, and most of all Sandi Benelli and Blood Kotzel.