Last day before we start our British tour and we’re still struggling with the damn printer, haha. How can you go on tour if the printer is playing up? Setlists, lyrics, and, erm, erm, erm, other things. Ok, we’ll survive, three of us in a van, Boydie driving and tour managing and doing all those practical things, door, merch (with Olivia), loading in and out, although as Boydie recently fell out of a tree and my hands are less than helpful for picking things up, and Olivia can’t carry everything we might have to engage some local help to at least guard the open van door as we slowly do our best to unload – then there’s getting the equipment onto our hotel rooms in the early hours, we can’t leave gear in a van overnight in a city. Instruments, merch, bags have to come in with us, the reality of the practical side versus the creative side of the actual show.

I had an interview today with David White at BBC Radio Cornwall, easy casual chat about this and that but at one point I said the word ‘crap’ and apparently, that is not allowed on the radio. You’d think that there would be a better balance with the massive abuse problems that seemingly can’t be stopped, but saying ‘crap’ is a problem. Nothing to do with David, of course, he’s a cool guy, but company policy is another thing.

The last two packages arrived today, another tuner that I bought on eBay for the third 12-string that I’ve borrowed from Noel, and a dimmer switch for a lamp in Porto that I couldn’t seem to find easily in Portugal. So I think we’re ready, now all we need is an audience. So if you are thinking of coming to see us, get your tickets early, especially for the smaller towns, not because we’ll sell out in the smaller places but just to make those smaller venues a going concern, so they survive, so us musician types can go and play in Leek and Thornton Hough.

We booked our ticket back to Porto as the search for Ariel’s missing parts goes on. I’m taking my Hofner Senator bass back, Burns double six, and the Tak and Seagull 12 I’ll be using on the tour. It means I will have most of my guitars in Porto but it’s the amps that I really want, and we need Ariel for that or a big truck or two that brings everything.

Music today has been The Rain Parade‘s Emergency Third Rail Power Trip (1983). Guitarist Matt Piucci will be joining us on stage at The Slaughtered Lamb in London on Friday, March 17th, be there, be everywhere.

Music Of The Daze