| Tips for those new to touring | |
Halifaxlocals comes through with a amazingly on topic thread filled with great advice from many of the scene’s veterans [and not so veterans] on tackling touring.
- make a phone list with all your venues/ contact people. Leave one copy at home with someone you can call in an emergency, and then take another copy with you. Keep it in one place, and call your contacts about a day before your arrival to confirm your show and get any special instructions about where to go or when to arrive.
- Bring sleeping bags!
Unless you are making alot of money you’re gonna be sleeping at friends houses and the kind of people who have strangers in bands crash at their houses aren’t usually that clean but if you have your own sleeping bag you don’t have to worry about what you’re sleeping in. Also it makes the sharing a hotel bed with another dude thing less awkward. - Another thing no one has talked about is promoting on the road. Clubs and promoters usually don’t do shit to promote a show [more in the thread…]
- Pack light. You really don’t need to take a lot of clothes, because you’re probably gonna just end up wearing the same pair of pants and 2 or 3 shirts repeatedly anyway.
- Groceries over restaurants, as stated previously. Your body and budget will thank you. [My suggestion on this one - mini-table top BBQs]
- Don’t whine and don’t be the odd man out. If 4/5 of your posse want to eat at a restaurant with slim vegan pickings, suck it up and order fries. Avoid any activity that puts you at odds with the majority, as you’re basically volunteering to be the band whipping boy. No one wants to be that guy. Minimize the impact of your quirks/lifestyle choices/anal retentiveness/etc on your traveling companions.
- Have time to yourself OR Make sure everyone has some “alone” time so you don’t wind up killing each other. OR when you can get alone time, take it!!
Get the hint, this could keep your band going - RE: The above point - Be considerate. Be attentive to the moods of others. Remember that these people are your friends, and you should treat them as such. If someone is in a shitty mood, see if there’s anything you can do to help out. If someone wants peace and quiet, give them space.
- And there’s a point about making breakfast is supported and seems like it would be one of the best parts of touring [as it was noted] [and it’d be a nice way to thank people helping you out - also as it was noted].
Plenty more in the thread
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