I woke up with a sore throat and a runny nose but some juice and coffee went a long way to making me feel human again. The ride to Prague was a continuation of a conversation I had with Jason the night before. This morning Josip joined in the discussion about the tribulations of being in a band. This tour has been fun, but as far as a smart “business” decision goes, it’s been a disaster. We are losing money and show attendance is slim at best. No one knows who we are or gives a shit. How long do you go on paying your dues before you just say enough is enough? I mean, we feel like we have forward momentum with our music and our playing and our recordings, but there never really seems to be an upward curve to people knowing about us. Unsane played to 80 people in Zagreb recently. If a band of that notoriety and stature limps along like that, what chance in hell do we ever have to be heard? Despite what Bruno keeps saying from the back seat, life’s NOT all about bitches and money. I don’t want to be famous or to be rich. I just want to be able to be known and respected enough to roll into a town and know that some people are looking forward to it and will come to the show. You can’t become known if you don’t tour and it’s almost impossible to tour if you’re not known.
The show at 007 Strahov did a bit to restore some self confidence for both bands. There were probably 30-40 people there and they were there specifically for this show (advertised as “old-school noise-rock”). There were kids up front singing along to our songs. WTF?!?! There were a few mistakes during the show, but it didn’t matter. In fact, it almost seemed to add to the show — to increase the visceral impact. Having people right up to the lip of the stage, savagely banging their heads, fueled our performance and Bill and I hurtled across the stage at and away from each other, always in danger of banging our heads on the extremely low ceiling. Bruno was besieged at the merch table afterwards. Quoth he: ” they were attacking me.” The promoter, Petr was super cool. He gave us a great spinach and potato curry for dinner and was really enthusiastic about the show and our performances. He even arranged a secure parking spot for our van and an awesome clean hostel. All in all, a great night. Too bad the whole tour wasn’t this great.
Wow. From all I’ve heard, touring is always an adventure;) United Sons of Toil is a spectacular band and I hope regional college radio (?) is getting the word out. If not, music lovers over there are missing out. Well, onward!