I write this post with a heavy heart. I write this entry into this crazy Steemit blog knowing that this will be the last time I'm able to write and say that I'm playing a gig at the Nix en Meer. A club and place that has shaped me as a human being almost more than any other in my entire life. This is my Nix en Meer story

The Nix

Memories

Above all I feel lucky and thankful I've had so many memories at this place. I'm going write about as many as I can in this post and take you through my journey of playing at this fantastic club. It doesn't officially shut down until May but for me this will be my last performance.

The Beginning

I met my wife at this club. It was the second gig on my first tour of Europe. She opened the door and I saw the most beautiful woman in the world. I fell so much in love with her so quickly to think about it now is actually pretty scary. 3 Years later we are married and have never been closer. It's all thanks to this club that we met, that I moved to Holland and that my life is here in the Netherlands.

Quick Return

The first gig was so successful for us and the club that we were asked to do another show on the same tour. We did our best to play another show differently and to entertain the crowd and I think everyone was happy. I know I was. I got to spend more time with my wife, play a great a club and get to know her family a little better. I remember eating Watermelon on top of the roof of the club, at a giant table next to my future wife thinking life sure is great.

Euro Tour #2 Drum Clinic #1

After the first tour, I returned back to Australia and we continued our never ending tour of that great big beautiful country. It wasn't until late November, early December that I would return to Holland and play the club again. This time I would perform a drum clinic for everyone prior to the show to drum up some business for the upcoming show. It was always my dream to give people a drum clinic, they meant so much to me when I was learning drums that I felt like if I could give back 1/10 of that, it would mean something.

The clinic went well and the show went even better. The band was in top form as it was near the end of our European tour and we had time to iron out all the little discrepancies that drive musicians crazy! Was a great gig, was a great time and was something I will never forget.

The Move

It wasn't long after that I decided to move from Australia to Holland. I would lie low for a while and get used to the country before jumping on another tour with Mason Rack and performing at the Nix once more. This was a special gig as now I knew and bonded with many audience members before playing. You are no longer a mysterious musician, you are that guy people know and talk to. Fun show, fun tour and it was good to see the band again!

2nd clinic and jamming

Around this time, I started performing at the monthly jam of the Nix. I would play with anyone provided there was no other drummer available. I felt like I had played drums enough and if there was someone who wanted to play, they should get first crack at the kit. It was fun hanging out with my Wife and new family, as well as passing the torch to the new generation of musicians at the jam. It's really cool to play with some 14 year old's and guide them through a jam on stage. I had many older musicians do it for me and for it to come full circle is surreal and beautiful.

I played my second clinic with my good friend Stef Paglia. We did a double clinic together of guitar and drums then jammed at the end. This would eventually evolve into the now amazing and powerful Stef Paglia Trio. I'm forever grateful to Stef for his good vibes, his positive attitude, his work ethic, his talent and his belief in me to be his drummer. We make beautiful music together and it's more than fitting my last show at the club will be with him.

Local Bands and Stef

I played the club with a few local bands to finish out my Nix story. Bluespam was one of them, Jenn B of course and a few others. I remember having a great jam with the guitar player and bassist of the then Sean Webster lineup. Finishing my local bands was the Jenn B band and now the last band will be Stef. It took me a while to find photos of all of this but it's always nice to travel down memory lane, especially these memories.

Goodbye

It's going to be emotional on Friday. I'm going to say a few words and the probability of tears is high. This club gave me a wife, a career and a life. This is a place I will hold in my heart forever. I'm a firm believer in letting things pass and not trying to hold on to something, but this one is really tough. The club will be down scaling to another place with maybe 4 or 5 gigs a year. It will be great of course, but it won't be THE club that started it all for me.

Who knows it might even be better, but the great thing is I have these memories, I have my life and I was there. That will never change, even as my memories fade. I was at the Nix en Meer.

Thanks for reading

-Joel