In September of 2003, the Decibels spent 7 days doing a promo tour of Japan in support of the Bart Thurber Sessions CD that was released on the Japanese Egging Label.



The band had essentially broken up at the end of 2001, having completely run out of steam, exacerbated by frustrations from the music business and the pull of "normal" life and the surrounding responsibilities. So the interest in the Decibels music from the Japanese market forced the band to confront their recent past and gave them another chance to rewrite the end of their story.



In life there are unintended consequences, and on rare occasions an ending really can bring about new beginnings. None of the band knew what to expect, and two members had never left the U.S. before. What was originally going to just be another series of gigs ended up changing the course of the author's life.



This is the tour diary from that trip. No tales of debauchery, just Dean's story of expanded perspective, friendship both new and renewed, redemption, and accidentaly stumbling upon the tone and vibe he didn't realize he had craved for his entire life. Dean left the U.S. one person, and came back a changed person.



...and it was all set to a Decibels soundtrack.