State of Rock Tour Blog #3

After the long stretch of highway between Christchurch and Dunedin, it ain’t no thang to hit the road for three hours up to Whangarei.  The obligatory pie stop is made at Wellsford, as is customary, and energy drinks are bought and consumed.  We have but one gig this week and everyone is pumped to pour everything we’ve got into it.

We arrive mid afternoon at the Red Eye, which is a smallish venue (capacity approx 250) within one of those grand old hotels that seem to have somehow withstood the devastation of progress and continue to stand proud in every town in NZ.  Our accommodation is rooms within said hotel, so we drop off our bags and set to work setting up drums and guitar amps.

Unfortunately the PA seems to be made up of various bits and pieces including some truly terrible monitor speakers which are inexplicably placed on either side of the stage and behind the lead vocalist, surely the worst possible place to put a monitor if avoiding feedback is part of your plan for the night ahead.  I’m not sure why, but no one suggests this is a bad idea and so eventually we soundcheck with this less than ideal arrangement.  It’s not perfect but will do the job.

It’s been made clear to the bands that the gig has sold out and so we all update our facebook pages letting fans know that this is the case, to avoid disappointment.  We have a few hours to kill before the gig so the BRD guys and I go for a wander around Whangarei city centre to get acquainted with the place.  We find a proper little music store selling CDs, band t-shirts and nothing else.  I’m stoked that this place is still somehow surviving, having seen similar shops all over Auckland disappear thanks to music piracy and the big chains selling music at a price the smaller stores can’t compete with.  We also visit the local guitar shop and after making friends with the sales staff I am handed a handmade 8 string guitar with strangely shaped frets.  Playing it makes me feel like I am in Gwar.

In spite of a small venue, the nominated green room is a vast lounge replete with blazing fireplace.  Great!  The very kind proprietor of the venue supplies us with a pile of pizzas six feet high, ensuring everyone is fully loaded for the gig. 

It becomes apparent that a mistake has been made and in fact, the gig is not sold out at all. We quickly get on the net and make hasty, capitalized status updates telling our fans that this is the case. Tour sponsors the Rock FM also broadcast the message.  It’s fairly late in the day but the message gets out enough that over 200 people show up for the gig. 

Local band The Fritts are opening the gig tonight and it’s a pleasure to take the stage after they’ve done a sterling job of warming up the crowd.  Still, the crowd is quite a bit more relaxed than the energetic, enthusiastic hordes of Christchurch and Dunedin, and it takes more effort to get heads nodding and feet moving.  After two or three songs, it feels good and we get down to business.  In spite of months of rehearsal, it’s the gigs that are really training us for how to put on a kick ass rock show, and in spite of a lukewarm start to the night, the band are digging deep and giving more and more of themselves each night.  Mike finishes one song with a massive fill and, seeing how well it’s received, I ask the crowd if they want a drum solo.  Yes, they do.  Mike tears it apart and from this point on, they are on our side.  We leave the stage drenched in sweat and satisfied with how the show has gone.

I Am Giant’s Ed struggles with a cold with which we will all become familiar in the coming weeks, but this is no obstacle for them doing what they do, and Luger Boa follow with a particularly strong set, Jimmy ending up standing on the bar at the opposite end of the room to the stage.  Brilliant.

Being the first band on means we’re also the first to really hit the rider and by the time Luger’s set finishes, we are all fairly affected by the well known but nevertheless lethal combination of vodka and red bull.  Things get a bit wild and little sleep is had.  Suffice to say upon my return to Auckland the next day, I am asleep at 4pm and sleep through til 9am the next day.