Tour again again again

13. Cambridge at the Graduate was always going to be a home coming for me and it turned out to be a really special night. For one thing, the venue is an old bar fly and so the sound and stage were both excellent. To add to this, nearly everyone I have ever met in Cambridge seemed to have come down to watch, and as soon as the gig started everyone was chanting my name and or other embarrassing things. This got the whole crowd going, and despite technical problems, we played a really great set feeding off the affection. The shouting wasn’t hugely original, mind, the chant “keyboard, keyboard” (after I had played the keyboard) didn’t really show off the intellectual capabilities of the people in attendance to the full... but it really was amazing to have such good friends come down and support me doing what I do.

14. The next day, after a poor night’s sleep, we made the huge journey to Belfast. We had driven a couple of hours the night before (where I had had a chocolate donut and the others had had something a little stronger), but we still had to drive to Northern Scotland, get the ferry from there to Belfast, and then get to the gig for a sound check. It took hours, and I felt awful by the end of it, empty and asleep. I tried to conserve energy so as to be able to do justice to the intimacy of the venue, Auntie Annie’s. Our Irish gig’s are very much different to our English one’s - no one knows us here - and that makes for a more interesting event. Despite the trials of the day’s travel, all in all we played a quiet respectful set to a quiet respectful crowd. They laughed at the line in Wayne Rooney “The barman looks like George Best, many of them do” -that was nice.

15. Another long drive took us through the Irish wastelands - areas dotted only by the tracks of horses and the unsettling of wind - and on through to Galway. Feeling tired and slow we arrived at the venue with little time to spare and to a bit of a surprise. The Roisin Dubh, an incredible pub with dust falling from old books and the smell of a fire purveying, was also set to play host to a sold out Richard Hawley gig the very same night (with Vincent Vincent and the Villains in support). We were to play then in the small cove upstairs and, as we were on at the same time as the main act, the promoter had decided to make it free entry. With these constraints provided we decided to take the opportunity to make it a completely different gig experience. We stripped down the drums to a floor, kick and snare only, and played a really intimate almost acoustic set. There were about ten to fifteen people intently listening (including Vincent Vincent and the Villains) and our harmonies were really spot on and electrifying. All who were there really enjoyed it, I reckon, and certainly were really kind to us about it (Vincent Vincent and the boys being really complimentary). After the gig we relaxed into a few Guiness’ with the other band, caught a bit of Richard Hawley’s set and slept well till the morning.

16. Cork at The Cypress Avenue was a return to the norm with a big stage and a big sound. The audience once again modest, however, though the longer we played the more the place filled up. For the second time in a row another gig had been booked for the same venue. This time, The Dykenes - an impossibly loud Scottish haircut outfit - were booked to play the same stage as us at around 12ish. After finishing our set though we fucked off because we weren't too bothered about catching their set.. As for ours, well, it was a real tired performance, even if the people watching seemed to like it. Most notably that day was, in fact, the blessing of having a really excellent fact dinner before the gig, paid for by Sam’s dad (visiting for the day). Memorable for the wrong reasons was the fact that in the evening we stayed in a prison like dorm sleeping all 6 of us. None, of course, got any sleep. Thanks Beach.

17. Our final gig was in Dublin at the Crawdaddy and went well. To be honest we all got so drunk afterwards that I can’t really remember much of what happened. Here though are some highlights of the ensuing chaos: Chris got so drunk he poured a pint of Guinness all over Joe (Adam then poured some of his over Chris, to which Chris tried to retaliate by pouring another pint over Adam but once again hit Joe), Adam licked Joe’s face as he was trying to get it on with a girl (she then disappeared), Adam swallowed a key, Chris called every girl he could see a slag and pushed me into every girl he couldn’t see, Chris shouted “Edamame” and “Tin of Juice” so loudly in the club we were in that it actually hurt people, Johnny sloped off to a palatal environment with a friend, Sam and I nearly let an Irish rebel get in our taxi (the driver of which, Emmanual, told us that his name was also the name of “she of the first porno”), Chris went back to where Johnny was staying and so the next day we nearly missed the ferry, Chris mistakenly left one thousand pounds in cash in the hotel room (which we quite thankfully retrieved).

Final thoughts of the tour: Shiting hell fun, shitting hell tired.

Tour again again

11. Bristol at the Louisiana. The sweatiest gig I have ever played. I dripped tears of the stuff throughout the performance, but it was still great. Both Miriam and her friend Kate came down to watch and that made it special. More noticeable to the fans, however, was the presence of Big Jeff. Known throughout Bristol (http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2515831194 - for his facebook group), Jeff is a huge lion of a man with bigger hair. He goes to every gig in the area. He dances too much. He doesn't stop dancing. He'd dance at a funeral. He stands at the very front. During 'Sally', Jeff's efforts to conduct Johnny through the medium of arrhythmic mime caused him to forget the words entirely...Memorable...

12. After the hilarity of Bristol, it was all a bit more routine last night in Cardiff at the Club Ifor Bach (which apparently translates as 'little Ivor's club', but is dubbed 'the welsh club' by all the English local to the area). Cardiff is nice, we've been there before to a great reception and this was no different. The place was full to the brim and had a bigger capacity than most of the places we've played on this tour, meaning the reception to our stuff was amazing. Once again a lot of liquid poured from my brow. To be honest, the performance was not as tight as the night before, but we're all pretty tired and due our day off. Give us a break...

Tour again

7. Oxford at the Jericho. Well it was amazing to be back in the city - every street has a memory for me - and the gig went really well too. Fireworks Night, my old band, were in support and were excellent. It made me miss drumming for them a whole lot. For us, the sound on stage was pretty terrible but the crowd were so appreciative that you could have fallen over on your ass without feeling an idiot. After the gig was well and truly over, Tim (from Fireworks Night) and I drove to his house in Southampton (the site of the next gig) for a sleep in a real bed rather than a travel lodge one, and some excellent bacon butties.

8. Southampton at the Hamptons. Well what can I say.... The monitors didn't work, the cello mic exploded (Joe walking off stage before the last two songs), and the sound was abysmal. But the crowd loved it, and as much as I don't like the city the people in the audience that evening were hearty and kind.

9. Brighton (The Prince Albert). Wow. What a gig. I love Brighton and all who dwell there. After a peaceful day book buying, church visiting and beach strolling, we watched in awe as the support acts did their stuff in front of a packed upstairs at the Prince Albert pub. The local support - Melodica, Melody and Me - were really something. They play a sort of Folkstep (Folk crossed with Dubstep) and the crowd loved it. The guys had said to me that hearing my drumming in JFATSW had made them believe in their own style of music and the possible appreciation of it. This felt great. After them came Mechanical Bride - who I have seen before and loved - they were astonishing too. Lauren's voice is haunting and electric, and their cover of Rhianna's Umbrella (complete with home made Theremin accompaniment) was superb. Our set was rousing and tight - people danced and believed. A really great evening.

10. Back to London... Tired and happy we played the Luminaire. It was packed. It was fun. The crowd was happy (if laced with London calm/cynicism). Supports included the strange and forceful Nic Dawson Kelly, the stranger and less forceful Supertalented (Joe's friend Noa) and Mechanical Bride once more. Our set was tight and we felt like we had earned our day off.

The Tour So Far...

1. Glasgow's gig was at Nice N' Sleazy's, an intimate venue with appreciate polite crowd who perhaps thought they were in for something quieter. A nice drunk man came up afterwards and talked to me about my drum kit (a 60's Hayman in midnight blue). He had played a similar one thirty years back and mine brought him back memories. Later we went out and a girl called Lola told us that she was writing her autobiography (chapter 1. Catholic Guilt, chapter 2. Virginity, chapter 3. Catholic Guilt, and so on). My final recollection is of a friend of Johnny's, thoroughly nice when sober, becoming utterly pished, chucking irn bru over me by accident, and chanting 'Zubi, Zubi' at an indian man called Zubi.

2. Newcastle at the Cluny. A huge crowd with dancing and shouting to boot. The gig was followed by an over-expensive drink at an over-expensive bar. I called it a night soon after a girl had said to Joe that she and him were wearing the same shoes. Our polite support act, Jay Jay Pistolet, did not, and had quite a time of it at an ensuing house party, complaining to his gravel-voiced manager that "I can't go to sleep because people are in my room talking about taking Coke, and taking Coke."

3. In Birmingham we played the intimate Glee club, with seated audience. A girl cried at the intensity of Brown Trout Blues, which was gratifying (oddly). To us, however, the night was an intense comedy of errors, with missed cue's, wrong endings and equipment fuck-ups. Whiskey and songs in the tour van afterwards (accompanied by Joe's Chilean songstress) was fun.

4. Our best performance of the tour so far was at the Manchester's gig at the Ruby Lounge. Josephine O joined us as a new support, and was brilliant that night (see myspace.com/josephineoniyama for more). Our set was real tight too and really appreciated. Plus, a night in with bread and leftovers left us feeling half decent in the morning as well. And if that wasn't enough entertainment, Beach and I bumped into a gaggle of drunk fat girls at lunchtime who had been refused from the audience of the Jeremy Kyle show.

5. Leeds at the Adelphi. A heaven and hell gig this one. We effectively played to two rooms as the stage was sort of L shaped. The room to my right was quiet and respectful, but the bar area was noisy and annoying. The drummer from Kaiser Chiefs was there, and talked all the way through. What a guy... Once again we had great support though, with Jo O being joined by the amazing Laura Groves, who I've been a big fan of for a fair while now. Then it all got a bit weird. We went to the venue's adjoined club later on, Jo in tow, and were all having a good old time when I turned round to see a guy aim a huge punch at me. As I was sober I moved and he just clipped my chin, but he went for another and Johnny jumped in before it landed. After an ensuing tussle which I didn't see, it all got broken up. Johnny took one in the face for me, essentially. Pleasing. Later on we caught up with the guy outside the club and confronted him asking what the fuck he'd done that for. He started snivelling, almost crying - no joke - and said that he thought that one of us had spilt his drink on him but had realised after the scrap that he'd got it wrong. He started saying "Im such an twat, I'm such a twat" over and over again, blaming it on his upbringing and background, and forced us to take ten of his english pounds (the money kind)! A strange evening then, but as no real damage was done to anyone, it was pretty funny all in all.

6. Nottingham. A packed gig at the Bunker's Hill pub. A real stormer. Miriam came and it was brilliant to have her there. The set went well and the audience were perfect. Afterwards I sped home to Loughborough where I have been ever since. Oxford tomorrow.....

So far its been alright, a lot of laughs and some good gigs. Hopefully it will continue along the same lines.

Matt