Until The Ribbon Breaks – TOUR TIPS

In this Tour Tips segment, the alternative band, Until The Ribbon Breaks, give you their tips for being on tour. You can check out the feature, after the break.

There is a seminal moment in Cameron Crowe’s Misty eyed tour epic ‘Almost Famous’. Just when tensions have reached a critical mass and the show seemingly can no longer go on….A song plays over the tour bus stereo, immediately cutting through the chaos, mending broken relationships and making sense of the entire enterprise. The song is famously Elton John’s ‘A tiny dancer’ and the impact and feeling it evokes at just the perfect time is gut-wrenching and utterly life-affirming. Spoiler: Tour isn’t like that.

Actually, I take that back. There are moments of that. Lots in fact. Beautiful moments to be cherished and remembered. Our first tour was across America with Lorde, three best mates doing what we had always dreamed of, in the country that was built for it. The literal open road and the seemingly endless American Skyline.

This feeling is important to remember as one tour becomes two, becomes eight. It is important to remember that you are lucky to be doing what you do, with the people that you are doing it with….

1. Be in a band with your friends (you are not Radiohead)
You don’t have to be lifelong friends. We just happened to be, which makes hating each other on the road much easier, but it’s only important to fundamentally like each other, however deep down that feeling may sometimes seem.

When you are sharing a hotel room, luggage and a 1ft x 20ft tour bus corridor for weeks and months, it is inevitable that you will discover depths of irritation that you never even knew you had. If you are with your real friends, then this is fine. You can shout and scream and say sorry and laugh in the same sentence. You can avoid eye contact at Soundcheck, you can swear you’ll never do it again. You will and you should. Touring is awesome and that thing you do with the toothpaste is after all, a little annoying

2. Be present (you are not Radiohead)
Something I regret. I was so anxious to ‘succeed’ a few years back. So obsessed with the idea of failure, it eventually drove me to alcoholism and at times, it made tour hell for me and those around me. You can ask a thousand questions, why didn’t we sell out this 200 capacity brothel on the outskirts of an unpronounceable town in Alaska? Why aren’t we Radiohead? Why have I just drunk the entire rider at 3pm? None of it matters, there is no logical, rational pattern to follow. If there was, life would be as dull as dishwater. Playing to 4 people in El Paso is a fucking privilege. Be grateful, be humble. Be present.

3. (Socks) You could be Radiohead
I have seen so many of these ‘tour tip’ things that talk about socks. ‘Bring enough socks, no one ever tells you about socks etc etc. Fuck socks. This is supposed to be Rock and Roll. Let’s try and believe in that a little more. Snort your socks, eat them, do Anything you want with them. Just don’t talk about them, or worse, care.

4. Don’t bring all that cool stuff
You can take as many USB keyboards as you like, but you want music in the bus. Dave your Scottish Bassist will be spraying Cheetos like confetti around the bus, while Cassandra the moody singer in the back seat, loudly proclaims that she is the new even more

Misunderstood Tom Waits. Point is, you ain’t getting any work done, so just sit back, crack open yesterday’s hummus and enjoy the 19-hour ride to Rhode Island

5. Don’t bother giving up.
It’s not for the weak of heart, but you knew that. Watch Almost famous again, cry and go to band practice with Dave and Cassandra. Stop thinking you don’t need a real chorus and who knows You might just end up in a transit van, freezing your tits off in Traffic jams on the outskirts of Montreal. But if you have followed these tips, you will be with your best friends, having the time of your life with songs that you love and no socks.

Keep up with the band on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

(Photo credit: Koury Angelo)