Ships Have Sailed – PRESHOW RITUALS

In this Preshow Rituals segment, Will, from the alternative-duo, Ships Have Sailed, reveals what they do before taking the stage. You can check out the story, after the break.

I try to get a good night’s sleep before any show. On tour, this isn’t always possible, but I always do my best. I also have a lemon/ginger/ honey concoction that I drink to make sure my throat is feeling good – it’s an old recipe made from all raw ingredients that I learned from a super old-school gospel singer and choir director from the Philly area. Most of all on the day of a show I like to be as free from any stress as possible – of course, that can’t always be accomplished, but I try to take a zen approach to anything that does come up so that it doesn’t mess with my vibe. Logistical hurdles or whatnot can be dealt with tomorrow as long as they aren’t immediately related to the show.

When we get to the venue I always try to meet the stage manager and house engineer as soon as possible and get friendly with them if we haven’t already crossed paths…the show is more fun if everyone’s getting along and working together, and I try to get as much set up out of the way as early as possible so there’s less to be concerned with when the doors open. I make sure to eat something light but healthy to keep my energy up, drink lots of water, and I usually do some jumping jacks before our set just to get my blood moving and open up my lungs a little.

Art (my drummer) on the other hand, has a rule where he doesn’t eat within three hours of a show. If our set is really late, he’ll have something like a banana, but he will never eat a full meal until afterwards. He also has a pretty rigorous stretching and warm-up routine that he does backstage.

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