Jesus Jones Weblog

London Gig

Iain Baker — Sat, 06 Aug 2005 13:16:33 +0000

It’s a curious mix of low and high tech: Laptop running NI Kontakt (it’s on Move Mountains, if you’ve got a magnifying glass) all gaffa taped to a bar stool…It’s the laptop i’m on right now, you can almost see the photo of Lulu which is my desktop background..

I like this photo, Jez’s face seems to be showing confusion AND fear at the same time…

From Iains’ blog. http://www.westway.blogspot.com

Wednesday

Mike — Thu, 04 Aug 2005 00:25:27 +0000

Birmingham. We’re getting there - much happier with this show although in Fuhrer Mike’s harsh world the band need significant whipping into shape. I’d like not to be so surprised that some sections are played properly that I forget the words. All of which matters little as tonight’s crowd seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves and that is the only important thing. In the end however bad we or I think we played the only worthy judge is audience reaction. So I think we passed tonight.
And for those interested it was great to have my full voice back, even though it’s either age or lack of sleep which means I’m a note or two short at the very top end. Seemed to have relearned guitar, too. YAY !
Looking forward to sleeping in my own bed before an early start to wrangle the technology into workable action. Mmmm, sleep !

Manchester Sound Check

Administrator — Wed, 03 Aug 2005 10:21:58 +0000

Tuesday

Mike — Wed, 03 Aug 2005 09:32:35 +0000

Mad dash out the door and to the train station for a multi-stop train journey. Meet Alan on the platform at Birmingham and continue up to Manchester, him reading The Da Vinci Code, me reading Peak Performance sports science magazine, and listening to the Annie album, “Anniemal”. Rest of the band en route in the van.
Check in to the hotel and meet web supremo Elaine. Soundcheck.
It’s all gone too smoothly so far so things have to change. One of the sound producing units that the sequencer runs decides to keep its musical secrets to itself. No sound. We’ve done entire tours without sequencing but then we were expecting to do that and planned the set accordingly. Nothing else for it but to drop a couple of songs and do some others a in a slightly sparser manner.
The Jungle, main support band and friends of ours, overrun a little so we get to the stage late. New stage tech Pharma is still learning and so some last second checks are run through even as the intro music is playing.
We all loved the show. Not the slickest we’ve ever been and my voice has to be carefully guided through since sections of its range seem to be missing, but it looks like we give people what they came to hear.
A far better performance that Portugal so we’re moving in the right direction. But then a 3 date tour doesn’t give us many more occasions to become the lean, mean, rocking machine we know lurks within somewhere.

Monday

Mike — Wed, 03 Aug 2005 09:32:11 +0000

Long day of tour managing. My printer takes a beating as multiple tour itineraries are produced and the computer gets into a spread sheet frenzy. Rock ‘n’ roll !

Sunday

Mike — Sun, 31 Jul 2005 21:42:51 +0000

On paper a day off. Still sending Iain lots of files and advice, gradually heading towards the mother of all samplers. No tour managing today so that’s a version of a day off. Feeling utterly knackered, though.

Saturday

Mike — Sat, 30 Jul 2005 23:23:24 +0000

We’re leaving so the weather is at it’s best. Drive back to airport, mental Portuguese driving skills on display which the band decide is “like they’re being pursued whilst drunk”. Lots of wandering across lanes, inexplicable open-road braking, combined with either ridiculously fast or ludicrously slow.
Waiting - it’s what professional bands do most. Wait for the driver to arrive, wait for the band and crew to check out, wait for the plane to depart.
Half the crew have asked me for training and nutrition tips so I start in on the band by telling Jerry you can only see how bizarre British drinking habits are if you swapped a Mars Bar for every pint of beer drunk (they’re not dissimilar calorifically).
It’s Mars Bars at the airport and, when it finally ariives, Mars bars on the plane and once we arrive fresh from sunny Portugal to heavy UK rain, I presume it’ll be Mars bars again back in London.
Me, I drive 90 miles home through the rain and make mental lists of what needs to be done before we kick off again on Tuesday.

Friday

Mike — Sat, 30 Jul 2005 23:15:22 +0000

A slight sensation of “the day after…” for me, having got my celebrating in before we actually play the gig. I see this as another example of my efficiency. It’s not the mindset to be working through various sample problems with Iain in his hotel room but 2 hours of furious laptop wrangling and we’re now, finally, fairly confident about the sampling aspect of the show tonight. Simultaneously Tony’s been frantically revising his cues for the sequencer based songs.
Festival rarely grant bands a soundcheck (which is why most acts sound like crap for the first song and are dimly illuminated) but we get to set up and check everything in advance.
The site is fantastic, set in the eucalyptus covered mountains that rise from the Atlantic, a few kilometres from the Spanish border.
At 7pm there isn’t an audience and the first, local band get to play to the stall holders. Echo and the Bunnymen are very late as, we later hear, the airline gave away their tickets leaving them no choice but to hire a private jet. Because of this our set is cut down to the length we first asked to play for, and they do a fine greatest hits set to a burgeoning crowd.
By the time we start there’s a crowd of around 4 thousand. The opening song is the soundcheck and squalls of every sound but the ones I need to hear blast across the stage. Out front, apparently, it’s a snare drum solo.
At the end we reckon we get away with it. Horribly rough around the edges and even to the core but we go down far better than we deserve playing a bunch of old songs in a country where we never had a hit. And to a man we loved the show. It has, just about, all come together.
A long, stress free sleep, at last.

Thursday

Mike — Sat, 30 Jul 2005 23:14:56 +0000

Wake up without the alarm for the first time this week although my greeting the girlfriend’s parents first thing is spectacularly bleary.
Drive to Gatwick airport, refusing to be stressed when the road is blocked by a fallen tree and ensuing traffic chaos.
Everyone’s on time at the airport even though Alan and Tony are actually at a different airport - Alan’s ID details came through so late he had to be booked (with his accompanying responsible adult) on a separate flight.
At Porto we’re greeted by our festival driver and plenty of rain. A year long drought has just broken and is making up for lost time. Ticket sales for the festival have reacted correspondingly.
It’s over an hours drive to the town of Caminha and our hotel, with its alarmingly titled “Prozac” disco next door.
Our new agent and guardian angel responsible for this junket, Charlie, has come out well in advance and we meet up in the picturesque, historic town square for the evening. Day by day the stress is easing as we get closer to the tour dates.

WEDNESDAY

Mike — Sat, 30 Jul 2005 23:14:14 +0000

Funny how 4 hours sleep seems like a lie in after 2 the day before. A day of huge stress involving reprogramming of the sequencer, preparing and packing, sorting out final details and all the other intrusions - day to day and tour managing stuff - that drag me away from being just the singer and guitarist in the band.
Get to rehearsal 30 minutes late. Run through the most problematic songs. Attempt a run through of the set but get 5 songs from the end before we run out of time.
In order to be closer to the airport tomorrow morning I’m staying in Surrey which is about 30 minutes less drive. Get to bed after 2am.