Thank you very much if you came out to see me over the past month, on Franz Nicolay’s UK tour, or one of the shows I stuck around it. I’ve had a brilliant, exhausting time and finishing so close to Christmas has left me even more excited than usual about domestic things like seeing my family and getting time off.
An unusual tour for me: I learnt a ton about the DIY punk scene; in several towns we played in a different venue from any I’ve ever played before, with mostly brand new faces in the crowd, so it felt like being in a new world.
Anyway, you guys if you’re out there, were gorgeous.
I also love being support act – less responsibility, less pressure. Unlike other tours in recent years, I kicked off with no solid idea of what to sing – and it took ages to settle into any kind of set list, so each show had a contrasting feel. Plus throw in a couple of festivals, two Milne shows and even a short PowerPoint talk at Boring 2011 and you’ve got scarily refreshing levels of variety for a performer. All good of course.
My biggest mistake was not doing CDs of Disobedience, or any exclusive tour merchandise. Franz is brilliant at merch, has shitloads of it, all high quality and loads of tour exclusives. I’ve got few copies left of Capital and Love Is Not Rescue (after the PIAS fire) so I feel mixed about even selling them.
Seriously, thankyou Franz, for taking me on the road, being such excellent company and very funny (one of those dry wit guys) and also being inspiring night after night. Franz listens to brilliant American current affairs podcasts like Slate’s Political Gabfest that I’d never heard of – and they’re right up my alley, so we ended up piling through loads of them in the car.
Thankyou also Jon Curtis from The Cut Ups, who booked the tour. I’m regaining more and more self-confidence as a booker and it was great to score a load of new contacts off Jon and see the UK through his DIY punk scene eyes.
I’ll thank everyone privately but a bunch of kind people made this tour possible – more than usual because we stayed in a lot more private homes than I normally do. I’ve gotten too used to hotels! So if you were one of the supporters who made it possible, or one of the lovely people who came out to a show, thank you. xx
