Hunter and The Bear – PRESHOW RITUALS

In this Preshow Rituals segment, the rock band, Hunter and The Bear, share what they do before every show. You can check out their rituals, after the break.

The time between sound check and walking on stage is always a strange one. It’s kind of dead space. There’re all kinds of nervous energy flying around, but the most important thing is that you’re ready to rock when the time comes. As a band, we play with a lot of energy and always try to leave everything on the stage (including lots of sweat) no matter what show we’re playing. A good pre-show ritual is key to get us in the right mindset.

Many of our songs have big harmonies and that means that each of us needs to be warmed up vocally before we get up and go for it. There’s nothing worse than a flat harmony! We go through a rigorous (some may say ridiculous) set of vocal exercises that make our dressing room sound like it’s full of Chewbacca wannabes. We’ve often been caught in the act and been given some odd looks from a promoter or someone from another band. We’re used to that now. Once we’ve got that out of the way, we always sing a few songs to get in the mood. As cliché as it is, we normally sing a Scottish drinking song by a guy called Adam Holmes. It’s perfect for a 4 part harmony!

Once the voices are warm, the only things left to do are a last minute pep talk and a manly group hug. I love the moment just before we walk on stage. It’s like being in a sports team. We’re all psyched up and know what we’ve got to go and do. They’re great moments. Some last words and a few fist pumps are exchanged before we head up the steps to meet our destiny!

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