On Hell Week

Schenectady Pipe Band members affectionately refer to this week as Hell Week. A brief explanation seems in order. These days the term Hell Week is actually something of a misnomer, as the band's gig schedule has relaxed a bit. Things are significantly less hellish ("not like when I was a kid!" grumble grumble). But there was a once a time, during the week leading up to Memorial Day, when it probably made more sense to put the kilt on Monday morning and just leave it on for the rest of the week. The band had practice on Tuesday, played the Scotia parade on Wednesday, Albany Medical College on Thursday, the Stillwater parade on Friday, FMCC commencement on Saturday, had a break on Sunday and played the Gloversville parade on Memorial Day. Actually, I might not have that completely correct. A free CD goes out to the first band member who remembers the old Hell Week schedule. Post it in the Comments section, along with any Hell Week stories you want to share.

During Hell Week, kilts and hose can get a bit rank. Back seats of cars become a sea of miscellaneous uniform parts. The constant hum of drones in your ear starts to seem normal and you unconsciously march everywhere, even when you're off the parade route. Everybody has a kilt-tan (nicely tanned knees and pale white calves) and a permanent line imprinted across their foreheads from the feather bonnet.

The culmination of Hell Week is the Gloversville Memorial Day Parade, which is a classic job. Following the parade, which is always very well-attended, the band tailgates and performs in a few of the local VFW halls in town. After Gloversville, the band heads back to the Weir's house for a picnic. Fun ensues and finally, after a long week, the kilts can come off.

In recent years, Matt has put together a soundtrack to accompany this epic string of gigs, compiling a Here's To Hell Week cd. Order your copy today!