The Crew Down Under

Australia is rather unique in that it is a country as well as a continent. it is also rather unique in the touring world in that the crew is never on busses over here, you fly to each city and stay in nice hotels. Now this may sound quite appealing on paper , however what happens is the rare sighting of the roadie in the wild without a sheltered habitat to call home at the venues. On a typical touring show day after soundcheck many roadies would partake in the sacred event known as the "pre show nap." I myself am a firm believer and subscriber in this technique and look forward to it throughout the day. So , take away the busses, and you take away the instinctual nesting place of the touring roadie. Therefore you start to notice the effect known as "roadies in the venue". Basically a spinoff of Gorillas in the midst. You may see a lighting girl lying in a hallway on her laptop. You could spot the ever elusive rigger sitting on some steps staring at his watch waiting for the show and subsequent load out to start. Perhaps the audio crew can be found in the corner of the venue taking up every square inch of bandwidth that is available.

It is quite the sight to see I must say, all these roadies sprawled out in odd places throughout the venue. Some of the smarter roadies who are able to adapt ever so quickly will be reverting to their marsupial instincts and will string a hammock up in a quiet resting place. Others will be lost and will wander the halls aimlessly, thinking one more cup of coffee should do the trick. However that will no doubt make it worse.

If you get a chance to see the roadie without his natural habitat of a touring bus parked close by, please always approach with caution. They can be quite dangerous should they be tired or grumpy. Its always a good idea to have a cigarette near by to use as bait of sorts. I wish you luck should you cross paths with one of these creatures, but remember for the most part they are very friendly and warm hearted. It is just the adjustment phase that can be rough!

Show number two tonight in Brisbane followed by a flight to Sydney tomorrow for a weeks worth of shows.
stay tuned!