Palmas – PRESHOW RITUALS

In this Preshow Rituals segment, Matthew Young, of the indie rock band, Palmas, shares what they do before every show. You can check out their rituals, after the break.

I tend to get very anxious the day of a show. It’s not that I’m nervous about playing in front of people, it’s more so an excitement. I can’t wait to play and I don’t want to wait. I’ve read that joke where artists drive for hours, lug heavy gear, spend lots of time on a plane etc. just to play a short 35-minute set. It can be brutal waiting all day. However, it’s completely worth it and if you take a minute to relax, it can be some of the best times with your band mates. Palmas are still a young band with many shows ahead of us and we’re still learning about ourselves but we certainly have fun.

On the way to a show to pass time, we like to rag on each other quite a bit, in a brotherly way. We all know each other so it’s kind of hard not to; we all know each other’s dirt. This makes long drives fun unless you’re the current target. But we’re usually good sports. After arriving at the venue, unloading our van, setting up the merch table, etc., we settle in and can start to enjoy ourselves. We do our best to check out all the local spots wherever we are, whether it is a restaurant, coffee shop, bar… No Applebees in this band! In Pittsburgh, we stopped at this amazing sub shop in called Tooties Famous Italian Beef. They put mac & cheese on sandwiches; enough said.

After checking out the town, we’ll head back to the venue and start to prepare for the actual show and let loose. Me personally, I have a bit of tequila. Preferably Hornitos but really, I’ll drink it if it’s clear. The trick for me is having one about thirty minutes before we play and a second about two minutes before we play. Just enough to loosen up but not too far gone.

Every night at around T – 10 minutes, someone in the band will send a text to the group to meet backstage. This is your typical “are you ready?” conversation, maybe fixing up your outfit. But the most important part is the cheers. Here is where we break into a group sing-along. Many times it has been R. Kelly’s “Ignition (Remix)” or “Someday” by the Growlers. However, most recently it has been “Don’t Be a Bully” by Jonah Takalua (break dance with the B-Boy’s).

By now we’re ready to play; what we have waited for all day is here and worth the wait. I’m glad to share a bit of insight into what goes on before Palmas hits the stage with DTB. Hope to see you out at a show someday, cheers!

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(Photo credit: Sarah Kunst)