We arrived at the Fleece in Bristol to a welcoming wait in the rain while the manager reaslised his key didn’t work on the front door anymore. After half an hour the door opened to one of the best looking venues I have seen in a long time.
Acey Slade had played there the week before and he told me that the sound was one of the best he had had on his tour. We set up and sound check was a joy. All was good with the world right up until the doors opened.
Once we realised no one was coming through the door, we went and hid in the dressing room hoping for at least one person to join us on the start of our first UK tour.
The first support band was a group of kids and as the local band they had said that they had fifty people coming to see them but of course youthful exuberance got the better of them as no one … and I mean no one came to watch them at all! They insisted on a kit share and proceeded to take all the lugs out of the bass drum and detune all our guitars which were resting on the side of the stage. So if anyone has a gig with a young band called the Hookers, walk away.
We took to the stage and by then our fans had turned up so we actually had a crowd. We went on after a band called the Big Num who were AC/DC Influenced but that didn’t stop them being good at what they do. Our first few songs were great and we were hot and then it all fell apart just like the drum kit! So we limped to the end of the gig and came off stage feeling deflated angry and not at all sure we wanted to be out on the road. Then we were told everyone in the place loved what we did and they hoped we would be back soon! The trouble with being on stage and you thinking it wasn’t good you have to remember to consider what the crowd thinks and they loved it!
Not the best of starts so we went back to Maverick Studios and had a few beers and talked it all through and realised we had done the best that we could and Swindon 12 Bar was the next gig and the place to regroup and start again.
We woke up this morning and packed everything up and went to the cafe we were told by Big Chris that the cafe up the road had a breakfast that even he couldn’t finish. That sounded like a challenge so we all went and all finished the food in front of us! See the pictures to believe the food levels we had.
The funniest thing is that when going anywhere never ever follow Andy Pointer or you will end up on magical mystery tour of the back roads of Swindon, with Hippy researching an Edgar Allen Poe Poem and getting a full understanding of the full meaning of his macabre outpourings. You get a better class of Hippy in Distorted Breed.
Now we are in Swindon where I will book into my Travelodge and write about tonight’s show. The thing for you, me and my band to remember is Tuesday and rock music may just not fit together.
Love, Respect and Dirty Rock n Roll
Jim Distortion
Distorted Breed
