What Is It With Denmark?
Sunday, December 6th, 2009So, it started when we left the beautiful, strange winter wonderland that is Norway, en route for Denmark. Denmark, that nemesis of a place that very nearly sapped our lust for life during the recording of our last album. A place with so many memories it’s a shame they’re mostly horrible. You could say that […]
Read More »Happily Lost In Translation (Japan Day 1)
Wednesday, October 7th, 2009The breaks between visits to Japan always seem longer than in reality. Actually, this kind of warp in time makes sense when faced with the futuristic setting that Tokyo continues to impress upon returning gai-jin (foreigners). Apart from New York City there isn’t a place in the world I miss more than Japan.
Read More »Same Old Newcastle (Day 11)
Tuesday, September 29th, 2009Family present? Tick.
Friends all lined up to see you stand or fall? Tick.
Audience about to stand in almost respectful silence? Tick.
Funny thing about playing Newcastle is that it still feels like you’re paying your dues.
Read More »Leeds And Glasgow (Day 9 & 10)
Monday, September 28th, 2009Wow, what a couple of days. Leeds Cockpit was, quite possibly, the best show of the tour. The audience were incredible and the band played a stormer. The resulting high followed everyone back to the bus where we proceeded to party like we were the Rolling Stones or something.
Come morning I woke up with the kind of hangover that more resembles still being drunk.
Read More »Stoke Memoirs And 3D Spex (Day 8)
Saturday, September 26th, 2009Who knows why some gigs you absolutely love and some you just can’t get into?
The band all loved the show in Stoke, the audience were amazing, the hecklers heckled in good spirits (albeit during an announcement that our friend Tim Smith has severe health problems- I guess bad manners don’t wait for appropriate moments to spring forth, huh? Nice one mate.
Read More »Birmingham, My Birmingham (Day 7)
Friday, September 25th, 2009We’ve always enjoyed good times in the Midlands and tonight was no exception.
Apparently there’s some kind of divide between Wolverhampton and Birmingham that forbids people from the former going to see bands playing the latter. We have sold precisely half the amount of tickets that we usually sell when we play Wolves Civic, adding weight to this theory. Still, come showtime the modest little room in the O2 Academy is literally jam packed.
Read More »Hallelujah! (Day Off)
Thursday, September 24th, 2009Hallelujah! 5 days rehearsing and six gigs straight and I’m well and truly ready for a day off. Just a couple of hours on the train and I’m back home in the company of my amazing kids and my beautiful wife. The day is over far too soon and before I know it it’s stupid o’clock in the morning and I’m being dragged from my blissful slumber, not by the over enthusiastic driving of our good man Russ, or the smell coming from Dunk’s bunk.
Read More »Etiquette Exeter Style (Day 6)
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009After a wonderful walk around Exeter we remarked how chilled out this place is and how few arseholes there seems to be in Exeter.
Sure enough, come showtime, they all crawled from beneath their rocks to attend our gig.
Don’t get me wrong, there were a LOT of awesome people there too, presumably, also, having their evening ruined by meat heads.
Read More »The Bunk Back Blues (Day 6)
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009Well, it’s day 6 and the last day before the first day off.
The tour has been going fucking amazing, but ohhh am I looking forward to getting off the bus tomorrow and spending the day hidden in my hotel room.
Read More »Portsmouth Is Love (Day 5)
Tuesday, September 22nd, 2009Who’d have thunk it? The best show of the tour, so far, I think, took place in Portsmouth, last night.
The audience were welcoming, warm and responsive, the band played a faultless set, the Black Spiders rocked big time (and later joined us on the bus for drinks) and me ‘n Gav decided to keep growing our beards until the end of the tour. They’re itching like hell but a deal is a deal.
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