Lonely The Brave / Black Peaks Tour 2015
Tour Blog / Diary #2 – Guitarist Ross Smithwick
Wednesday November 11th
Hello again. Its been 5 days and 4 shows since the first entry of this diary. Seems like a lifetime. I guess we should start from where we left off, in Ireland… Both shows, in Dublin and Belfast were fantastic. A great first trip for us and a great way to start this tour. The fans in both cities were really welcoming, Belfast especially but i think thats mainly down to half of Mark’s family being there. Don’t think they heckled us too much. Probably not enough to be honest. In Dublin we met our support act for this tour, Black Peaks from Brighton who are an amazing new heavy band that we have been in to for a while, and as it turns out, are all incredibly lovely humans too which is always a relief. Got a feeling this tour is going to be mega fun with these lads with us.
We had to say goodbye to the Peaks for the Belfast show tho as it was a separate event from this headline run – a special show as part of D.I.Y Magazine and Dr Martins Stand For Something showcase tour which goes around different cities with a different line up each time, so its awesome to be a part of this. We also did an instore show at the Dr Martins store, So was a bit of a manic day but its great to do those little intimate instores and meet loads of new fans. And to get some new shoes of course.
The following morning we travelled to Glasgow to meet back up with Black Peaks and carry this party on. This meant another ferry crossing which we managed to catch this time. Success. We did however find that some of us definitely don’t have sea legs ( cough Mo, cough cough ) but to be fair it was pretty rough out on the high seas that day. That, crossed with a load of obnoxious piss heads sat next to us made for a lovely ride.
Once on dry land it was plain sailing to our hotel which was situated right over the road from the venue. No show this night so time to chill.
So, to the show itself. The Garage in Glasgow is a huge room for us, and a venue we have played before back when we supported Therapy? in April last year, so to be headlining here is really exciting. Glasgow has always been good to us, lots of shows played at King Tuts which we hold close to our hearts. And this show certainly doesn’t disappoint. The room is packed right to the back and as we play through the set, the crowd get more and more in to it, singing back at us to the tunes they know, and giving huge applause to the new songs which is real encouraging for us.
Thanks Glasgow, we do love your city and we’ll be back soon.
Next up was Manchester. What can I say about this show? Well, I think I can speak for the whole band and say that it’s up there with one of the best shows we have ever done. Its rare that we don’t enjoy a show, but some shows just have something extra that makes the place just go off. This was one of those nights. From start to finish, it was electric. The crowd were absolutely amazing throughout, giving back so much energy that we fed off and returned. A big moment was having the crowd sing along to ‘Science’ which is a special tune for me, and it was a first to hear a crowd do this. Was a bit emotional actually.
So, as I write this, we are all still buzzing from the Manchester show as we head to Birmingham for the next one, really feeling that this tour is getting better and better with each performance. We also now feel completely comfortable playing these new songs in the set and the reaction they are receiving is mind blowing. More when I have it. Over and Out.
LIVEDATA 27/11 Metropool, Hengelo 28/11 Melkweg, Amsterdam 29/11 W2, Den Bosch