Every band has down time. The band arrives at the venue, sets up and sits around. Then after the gig they wait until their next show, which, coincidentally, is at the Maintenance Shop tonight.

Sounds pretty boring, but bo bud greene takes full advantage of this quiet time; they hang out in their hotel room.

“We’re in a hotel room in South Carolina,” said Tim Dittmar, drummer, in a recent interview. “We just sit in the hotel and watch things and do interviews.

“We don’t get to do a lot of sight seeing; we just hang out and relax.”

Relaxing alongside of Dittmar is bassist Marc Fort, guitarist Sean Mullens and voice/guitarist Andy Bracht.

Although, when they come to Ames, and the Maintenance Shop, they tend to go out on the town.

“We saw a couple of movies [last time in Ames],” said Bracht.

This Friday don’t be surprised if you see the band walking down the street and looking for something to do. They’re just killing time until their show at the Shop Friday night, with special guests Critical Gopher.

There are times when the band does venture out of their hotel rooms to do some aerobic activity, like skateboarding. “Me and Tim have boards,” Bracht said.

“I broke my skateboard in half in Nashville. I was olleying and came down [and it snapped.]”

The reason for these activities, or lack of, is their new CD, whatever, released on Scottie Bros. Records. The band is touring all over the country to support it.

“I feel pretty proud of it,” Bracht said.

“We’re just trying to do our own thing; being honest with ourself and hoping people like it too,” Tim said. “We just want to offer something that’s not commercial.”

Well, commercial or not, bo bud is looking forward to returning to the Midwest, and Ames.

“It’s one of our favorite places to play because people are more receptive,” Dittmar said. “They don’t have to worry about the “scene” thing. In Ames people just want to go out.”

The M-Shop should fit perfectly into bo bud’s dream venue. “My favorite crowd is in a small place,” Bracht said. “Where there’s not a lot of people and they seem to be having fun.”

The show starts at 9 p.m. with Critical Gopher opening up. Tickets are $5 and $4 for students with a current fee card. And, as always, the show is all ages.