A Great Big Pile Of Leaves – TOUR TIPS

It’s Monday, the start of another work week. We want to help tide you over with some awesome, very information, Tour Tips from the band, A Great Big Pile Of Leaves! They really took the time to think these out, so we hope you take the time to read them after the break.

1. Try to cut down on late night drives – I used to want to drive through the night just to ensure we got to the next town and so there would be less traffic.  On our tour with The Appleseed Cast, they basically forced us to get hotels at night, and helped me realize how dumb I was being. Night drives just aren’t worth the fatigue the next day, and it’s dangerous driving when your tired and everyone else is passed out in the van, plus there are plenty of tired truck drivers and drunk drivers at night. It’s a hard thing to avoid if you’re following a bus tour, but try to cut back on it!
2. Eat well – Eating well is hard on tour, especially when you’re hungry after your 1am load out. Try to stick to fruits and veggies at night, or some of the healthier options at fast food joints. The better you eat, the better you’ll feel, and the better your performances will be. Also, the van full of dudes, won’t smell like a van full of farts. I only mention dudes, because ladies don’t fart.
3. Take care of your van – Be sure to keep up with normal maintenance on your mode of transportation. Change your oil when you’re supposed to, check the tire pressure and tread on all tires as often as possible. You don’t want a dangerous blow out on the road, and you don’t want to miss a show! Also, throw away your trash, that bottle full of mystery fluid shouldn’t sit there for too long.
4. Hang out, have fun and meet new people- Tour can be stressful, but it should be fun! Hopefully your driving around the country with your best friends, but in any situation, being in such close quarters can run you down and make emotions run high.  Just remember to respect each other and have a good time. Every tour should be like summer camp!
5. Sleep – Stay with friends if you can to cut down on costs, this gets easier as you tour more and grow relationships. We’re really awkward about asking people for a place to crash, but luckily we have groups of good friends throughout the country that always put us up. When you need to get a hotel, book ahead of time and use sites like Kayak.com or Priceline to save money.  You can usually talk the price down over the phone as well, most hotels have vacant rooms, and they want money.

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