Date: October 15, 2005

Author: Rob Chursinoff

Apparently some of you have been wondering why Rob is not behind the kit for Tegan and Sara anymore. I guess now is as good a time as any for the truth to be revealed.

I have been on tour, you just can't see me. Why? I've been crouching underneath the stage every night, in a special little compartment like the ones certain drugged out singers had had made for the stage in the high flying, late 80's Hair Metal scene. You see, these singers would get so messed on qualudes and rails (that's what drugs were called back then I think) that they wouldnt be able to sing all their songs properly and because they were racking up massive partying bills they had to keep performing no matter what. Hence the vocal-double guy squatting under the stage with a microphone singing along with wasted Jimmy. Ingenious isnt it?

So this is what I'm doing with Tegan and Sara nowadays, except Sara isnt ripped on "Angel Dust", she's just caught an unfortunate, and, as yet un-named throat virus. This virus enables her to talk kinda properly but when it comes time to sing, it sounds as if she's all of the sudden become a man! I know, it's crazy. And the wierd, little known fact is that I can sing like an angel, just like Ted can sing like an angel and just like Sara can, as you know, sing like an angel when she's not in virusy man-voice as if she were high on angel dust. You see the connection?

Basically what you're hearing every night is Tegan, myself (in angel voice mode) and a little sub-frequency from Sara. And since the crouching position pays better than drumming, an angel-voiced man-Sara I remain.

I write you this from a certain type of institution.

Just kidding. I'm not under the stage, I left to become a Primatolagist in Uganda. Except the new study direction in Primatology is for the apes to don the white lab coats in order to look professional whille studying us people. The apes set up cameras all around this remote island setting, divide us people into two "tribes" of ten, then make us play intelligence-testing games with pieces of rope, animal hide balls, bamboo poles and blindfolds in pits of mud while wearing shorts and bikinis. We bicker and cry because at the end of the whole experiment the best ape, I mean, the best human, wins a new life!

Okay, enough Tom-foolery.

Tegan, Sara, Ted, Chris, Craig, Emy (as well as the Mana-moms, Nick and Piers) and I have grown to love each other like family. And just like family sometimes you have to move out of the house for awhile inorder to start your own family or a new one altogether. That's not to say you dont still adore your original peeps, it just means that you need to find and create your very own adventures. Who knows, I may even come back for another road-trip sometime in the future. Because those tours and all the recording and preperation required to get us there over the past four years were some of the most fun and adventurous learning experiences of my life. I got to play great music all around the world, with my friends, all the while making new friends along the way. It's fantastic. It also takes a hell of alot of time and energy to be able to acheive and sustain that. So as much as I miss and love everyone involved in the Tegan and Sara project, this time away is what's required inorder for me to further accomplish the things I need. Maybe now I'll have the time to find my bride and make a family of little drummers and singers.

On that note, I have a hot date so I gotta run, but before I do I want to thank you, the Tegan and Sara fans, as well. You are getting a very good reputation as being some of the most attentive, loyal and attractive fans anywhere. Without your support none of my adventures with the girls would have happened. It was a pleasure to meet all of you. Keep up the good energy.

Love,

Rob