Blog
London, Shepherds Bush Empire
17th April 2008 | Jim
London. Go to gym, do lots of bike and treadmill, end up sweaty and knackered. Larry and I do an interview with Piotr from a Polish radio station. He is a huge fan and pleads with us to come to Poland and play. Soundcheck fine, no problems. Catering: mackerel with horseradish sauce. London can be a little tense as we feel under the media spotlight but we are playing so well everyone in good spirits and confident.
Gig starts well; solid and strong. The new songs stand up well. We begin to loosen up and do a blinding I Wanna Go Home and the set builds to a very un-London sing-a-long.
Have a couple of drinks afterwards but get tried very quickly and slink off back to hotel for a relatively early night.
London, Shepherds Bush Empire
17th April 2008 | Larry
Day off – London
16th April 2008 | Jim
Day off in London. I expected there would be loads of promo to do but there isn’t, so a proper day off. I wander round the shops, get some snacks from M&S and socks from Gap. Spend rest of day on phone, writing letters, and just plain taking it easy.
Sheffield, Academy
15th April 2008 | Jim
Sheffield. I have a phone interview with Radio Norfolk and a bit of a business meeting with Tim and Larry. Get to gig. Phone interview with Greek newspaper re: Ejekt Festival we are headlining in June. Soundcheck is hard. There are loads of boomy bass frequencies on stage messing the sound up. We have to hope it sorts itself out when the crowd is in. Catering – grilled trout and tiramisu. Have a lie down on the bus but don’t sleep.
Gig is a bit of a struggle; sound is difficult. We keep our heads down and work hard. Crowd wonderful again and our problems pale into insignificance as we get swept away by their joy and enthusiasm.
After show go and say hello to my guests. We leave on bus at midnight; have fairly heavy duty business meeting with band manager Peter Rudge ’til 2:30am. Get to London hotel 4am. I’m knackered but can’t get to sleep ’til 5:50. Ho hum!
Sheffield, Academy
15th April 2008 | Larry
Newcastle, Academy
14th April 2008 | Jim
Newcastle gig. Feel better today. Manage to get to gym. Other than that, a quiet day ’til soundcheck at 3pm. Somehow venue is colder than outside apart from our tiny dressing room which is like a sauna. Soundcheck fairly uneventful. Work on Fred Astaire for a possible outing somewhere on tour. Ravioli for dinner and a little apple crumble and custard.
Geordie audience, as usual, is up for a good time and very lively. We have a few things go wrong but take it all in good spirits. The best gig yet. All go home sweaty and happy.
Newcastle, Academy
14th April 2008 | Larry
Day off – Newcastle
13th April 2008 | Jim
Day off, Newcastle.
I’ve got a hangover.
Spend day feeling sorry for myself and living on Advil and Volvic.
Liverpool, University
12th April 2008 | Jim
Liverpool. Playing the University. Let’s face it, it’s a bit of a dump. Dressing room has been well hammered and the toilet smells. Fortunately our assistant tour manager Zeb has much needed scented candles and incense. Soundcheck okay. Catering for steak and Guinness Pie.
Just before we go on stage, band bud and keen fan Peter Kay turns up, as loud, cheery, and silly as ever. We ask him will he introduce us, which he does with some style, and stays up there for ten minutes and adds Lullaby to Tim’s setlist.
Gig is pretty damn amazing. Crowd listen to new stuff, go crazy during oldies. Show ends with a raucous sing-a-long.
Have a biggish night out and get pretty drunk but day off tomorrow so it’s okay.
Liverpool, University
12th April 2008 | Larry
