RiTcH Big Dream From the start, I really love this song. It's a good easy song to listen to with a great beat and RiTcH’s voice is quite hypnotic. It was like I had no control over my limbs as they were moving on their own from the first beat. I’d highly recommend this song as it is a song that pulls you in and makes you want more. I love the energy of the song as well, nice and bouncy you keep you moving. As RiTcH says in the song “you feel me”, I most definitely do feel you dude. The song is about an old girlfriend who sounds like a right gold digger because she comes back into RiTcH’s life once his music career start taking off, she wants in basically. But RiTcH isn’t a silly boy, he says “She come back for the Big Dream” making a point that he knows she is only there for what she can get. The video is pretty cool as well, it kind of reminds me of a scrap book with parts overlapping. It starts off him in his living room playing his guitar, singing on the underground and then shows the rise of his music career to where he is being interviewed on the radio and playing a huge stadium gig. I love how the video moves, it’s like one long shot going through a window, tv screen, a painting, a boat, a phone, etc each with him in the frame somewhere.

Culann Songs of Saints & Reivers The band are a 5 piece band from Irvine in Ayrshire Rovers This might sound weird but one of the main reasons I love this song is because it sounds very Scottish. The beginning sounds like bagpipes and then rolls into the guitars and drums so smoothly. When the guitars really kick in, I get images of people doing the a highland jig haha. If you didn't know already, the band is Scottish so it's very fitting haha It's a brilliant song, everything fits together so perfectly and it's been really well written. City Eternal I love the guitars on this song, the guys playing are extremely talented. It's quite a fun song to listen to, it's nice and bouncy so a good one to have a dance to. Saint Andrew This is my absolute favourite song on this EP, I love it so much!!! The guitars just melt your face, especially the guitar solo, OMG. It makes me want to scream the lyrics at the top of my lungs and I just want to jump around like a crazy person. LOVE LOVE LOVE!! Heart Of The Sea The most chilled out song on the EP, it's a very nice smooth song that is perfect to just put on an relax to. The whole EP is a great mix of rock with a bit of Scottish folk music thrown in. It's worth a listen if you are looking for something a bit different to listen to.

Gig review of Lost Society The Underworld, Camden, London 24th October 2023 Support - Seething Akira and North Atlas Click here to see my pictures I have lost count of the amount of time I have walked past the Underworld but I've never actually been to a gig in there, been in the pub, The Worlds End, enough times though haha. I got there at about 2pm and got to see some of my friends that I hadn't seen in months and got to have a great catch-up with them all. I love the friendly atmosphere in the queue, everyone so excited to see the band and sharing their stories of meeting their favourite band members. I saw Samy from Lost Society come back from shopping and I had to Seething Akira Ok, so to be completely honest, I hadn't listened to these guys before the show and I wish I had because I loved them! As soon as they came out on stage they jumping around with some serious energy that I was just not prepared for haha. I do also have to mention that outstanding dance moves from the singers, they kept me very entertained. They have a sort of Electric Callboy sort of vibe by mixing up dance tracks with metal guitars and making it work so well. I've had a listen through their spotify and found the song that I enjoyed the most, it's called "Punishment Instructions", everyone needs to check this out!! North Atlas I didn't massivly get into these guys but they did sound good and most of the audience really seemed to like them. They had a great stage presense, very tribal, and seemed to play their songs without any issues, well, I didn't see anyone in the band look at someone else in the band in a confused way haha. I loved their stage props which looked like fake ivy vines on stands and the whole band looked like they had rubbed each other down with mud before coming on stage haha. Lost Society OMG, Lost Society (as usual) did not disappoint. As soon as they came out on stage, all you could see was a sea of hair and hands in the audience. I haven't had the pleasure of seeing these guys live in almost a year and I was so glad to see that they still put on such an amazing show. This gig was the last of 8 UK dates on their "If The Sky Came Down" tour and from what I had heard, they have been performing with maximum energy levels every single night. They came out and did my favourite song "112" straight away, so I was completely over the moon as it completely set the energy for the whole night. I loved hearing Samy's little speaches about how far they come and how much they love all of their fans. They work so hard to be the best that they can and you can see it in their performance because it was all perfect, except the blue and red ligths, they are always a nightmare when you are trying to take pictures haha. Each member of the band was on top form all night, you can see by their performance that they take this all very seriously. Like I said before, I had never been to The Underworld before and I have to say, it's a brilliant venue considering how small it is. I had to move around to take pictures but I could hear the band perfectly where ever I stood and got a great view. No one was squashed in so everyone had plenty of room to dance around as much as they liked and the vibe from the band and the audience was amazing. Everyone was just having the best time. My favourite song of the night being performed was "Awake". I was up the back for this song and this felt like the song that got the most response from the crowd so I think it was a alot of people's favourite song. I could hear the people around me singing this one at the top of their lungs and I could see pure emotion on some people's faces while they were singing. It was quite emotional. Set list 112 Underneath Riot If the sky came down (We are the) braindead Awake Artificial What have I done Suffocation Hurt me Kill + NWL Creature Outbreak Eternity No absolution Stitches

Woke up to find that I had some serious red and white tan marks from yesterday haha. Didn't realise it was that bad so made sure I put on plenty of sun cream and kept reapplying throughout the day so it didn't get worse. We didn't really have many bands to see on this day but we decided to go in after lunch to chill out in the sun and see some bands that we didn't know. We also decided that we were going to try and spend no money at all while we were in Download so we took sandwiches, crisps and my 1.6 litre plastic bottle to keep us going. It was weird not going to any of the food vans for something to eat or drink but we managed it and we were quite surprised that it was possible to actually spend nothing in a day at a festival. Nova Twins I will be honest, never heard anything these guys had gone before but they were brilliant! They're songs were quite catchy and they put on a good show. I wouldn't mind seeing them live again. I really liked their song "Taxi", it's quite catchy and got a good base line to it so it's good to dance to. Hot Milk I had heard some good things about this band but hadn't really listened to them before Download. I actually thought they were American and loved it so much when the singer, Hannah, said they were from Manchester and then called the crowd "Cheeky Fockers" haha. I loved them so much. They had such a good vibe to them, it was hard to not pay attention to them. I really really loved their song "Bad Influence", I really got into it and who doesn't like a song that says "fuck all your friends" haha. Really looking forward to seeing what these guys do next. Pendulum The vibe while Pendulum was on stage was amazing! Everyone was really getting into the songs and having a dance around from the second the band came out on stage and the crowd didn't stop moving until the end of the set. Hearing "Propane Nightmares" and "Blood Sugar" being performed live was just so mind blowing and the crowds reaction to "Blood Sugar" was like electricity going through everyone and powering us all. It was great to see Matthew Tuck from Bullet From My Valentine to perform Halo with them as well, I wasn't expecting that. Within Temptation It has been a very long time since I saw Within Temptation live and I am so happy to see that they are still putting on an amazing performance. We didn't get to see the whole of their set as we were watching Pendulum and then trying to walk round to Opus Stage took a little while as it seemed most people had the same idea. Evanescence My mind was 1000% blown away by Evanescence. I haven't seen them since they were last at Download in 2007 and I love that they are still mind blowing. Hearing Amy's beautiful voice captivated me and every person in the crowd, it's like she can hypnotise people with her voice. Hearing her sing My Immortal was quite emotional for me, I wasn't expecting that at all. I loved that the crowd sang Paul McCoy's parts in the song in "Bring Me To Life", everyone was singing at the top of their lungs and it was just amazing to be part of that.

Today felt a little bit weird to be honest, normally today would be the last day of the festival as it's the third day but knowing that there was still one more day after this was, like I said, a bit weird. As soon as got to Donington, we went straight to the Dogtooth stage as I really wanted to get front row for Antisaint and lucky enough, we walked right up to the front and got a good spot. Everyone else seemed to turn up about 10 minutes after us so we definitely timed that well haha. Antisaint These guys seriously blew the roof off of the Dogtooth Stage. From start to finish they had amazing energy and performed every song to perfection. I've never seen these guys live before but I have been listening to them for a little while so was looking forward to hearing them live. I wish they had had a longer set so I could of heard more. Ice Nine Kills Absolutely loved INK's set, countless theatrical deaths including the Download Dog but the best thing is that they performed Hip To Be Scared, the American Nightmare, the Shower Scene AND Welcome to Horrorwood. I loved every minute of this set. It amazes me how much effort the band put into their stage performance, each song is a different mood, a new scene and a slight costume change. There's not many bands that give their fans a top notch visual experience as well as a musical one. Me and Fran had a few hours chill time so we walked around the stalls to see what there was and pitched up our chairs against one of the shaded walls to get out of the sun for a little while while Clutch were on stage. I'm not a fan of Clutch so didn't pay a huge amount of attention to them but they sounded really good and the crowd was really getting into them. I didn't know this beforehand but there were more barriers than usually to separate the crowd to prevent people from getting crushed. It looked brilliant and obviously worked a treat. At first, I thought the crowd section down the front was for VIPs or something like that so went up to have a chat to a security guard who said anyone can go in there but they aren't allowed to take chairs. This delighted me so I went through for a look around, it may not have been for VIPs but it felt like it haha. Disturbed Something happened during this set that I wasn't expecting, I was loving the set, every song sounded amazing, and then I heard the intro to Sound Of Silence. The crowd started to go quiet as we all realised what song it was. I got my phone out as soon as I realised so that I could film it, there was no way I wasn't going to film this song, and that's when it happened. As David Draiman started to sing, I started to cry. The words to the song seemed more powerful being performed live and hearing all of those thousands of people singing along was just unbelievable and really moving. We weren't planning on sticking around for Metallica so we started walking out towards the road for my husband to pick us up. It was quite nice leaving while it was still light, could actually see the cars properly haha.

Link to Motorcycle This song is quite different to the music I usually listen to but I find this song very calming, perfect to listen to when you have nothing to do and just want to sit back and chill out. I had to listen to the words a few times to get them, at first I thought it was just about 2 friends who want 2 different things in life. One wants a baby and the other wants to go on adventures but then the words say that the adventurous one doesn't want to die and will leave her instruments to the friend. And the end is her promising she won't die out on the road. After listening to it a few times, it still sounds like the 2 friends who want different things but the adventurous one is promising that she will be ok when she goes off on her adventures because she is dying inside from not doing what she wants to. That's how I interpreted it anyway. It is a very good song, definetly worth a listen. Surprise Baby is from LA, this song appears on their upcoming EP so if you like it, make sure that you are following on all social media platforms to stay up-to-date!

**Warning, my inner fangirl comes out a lot in this post, especially when the drummer Tommi is involved. Sorry, not sorry haha. I got tickets to these gigs way back in April 2022 when it was just a rumour that Blind Channel would be supporting I Prevail on their tour. A lot of the gigs were either sold out or had a low ticket warning so me and Roxxi got what we could which was Portsmouth, Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Nottingham and London. So for me, this part of the tour started at 4:30pm on Thursday the 16th of March when I finished work. I got straight into my car and drove to Portsmouth as I just wanted to get there and chill out the day before the gig. Although I didn't do much chilling out because I got to the hotel and found out that Blind Channel were staying in the same hotel. Que a bit of fangirling which was me trying to look cool but freaking out on the inside. I went up to my room, got changed and heading down to the bar where I sat working on my website while waiting for one of them to go to the bar so I could buy them a drink (which didn't happen while I was there). Friday the 17th of March - Portsmouth The next day I got up and started ironing the t-shirt transfers that I had got printed for my vests for the gig, only to find out that they were complete and utter shite. I ironed them on 3 times, even timed myself to make sure I did it for the right amount of time and they still peeled off. This led to me calling round to every t-shirt printing shop in Portsmouth until I got through to Vintage Pig who saved the day. The shop was only a 10 minute drive away so I jumped in my car and went to have a chat with Chris who printed 2 vests with my Blind Channel designs and then put my logo on the back of my cardigan. What also didn't help my anxiety levels was that I found out one of the other guests had their car broken into in the night and the staff member's response was "it happens every couple of days". This led me to re-parking my car where it could easily be seen from windows and my room. I went back to the hotel and my fellow gig buddies turned up. We had had a little catch up, went to the venue (Portsmouth Guildhall), which was only a few minute walk away from the hotel, thank goodness. We were the first ones to queue for the gig from about 12:30pm, at the surprise of the venue staff who wasn't expecting anyone for hours. We were a little confused at first as the Guildhall is a huge public building which has offices in it so we were unsure on where to queue. The gig security staff were soon there putting out the railings for the queue and they helped us out with where we needed to go. There was one guy called Paul who took me inside the venue to show me where I needed to go to get into the hall because I said I had never been there before. He was lovely, every venue needs a Paul. Before we knew it, it was time for the doors to open. We got our tickets scanned, bags checked and then made our way (we ran) into the hall to get front row. The only place I wanted to be was in front of Tommi's drums so that is where I headed haha. I was quite happy to hear the lead up set list still had some super classic songs like Linkin Park - One Step Closer, Slipknot - Before I Forget but two new ones, Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline and the beginning of Ring Of Fire. I must admit that I didn't quite realise how excited I was to see Blind Channel again, the last time I saw them was 6 months before this gig and I went a little bit crazy when they came out haha. The set was amazing! It was a short 30 minutes that was over way too soon but I loved every minutes of it. This gig was the first time I heard their single "Flatline" that the lads had released shortly before this tour. They have this little (sort of) dance routine that they do to the song. It's basically thumping your chest to the beat and headbanging but straight after the 5th thump, you do a flatline with your arm across your chest. This video will explain better haha. I had missed their gig energy, no matter how many gigs these lads do, they are still going crazy on stage, jumping and dancing around. It's infectious and you can feel it go through you like electricity. Believe me, the amount I move at their gig is no where near the amount I move around in real life in about 3 days haha. What made it that bit extra special was that the bass player, Olli, was throwing his guitar picks out into the crowd at the end of the show and I got one! Well, it flew over Roxxi's head, bounced off the chest of the guy behind her, landed on the floor and got picked up by the girl next to Roxxi. Lucky enough, she was the girl we had got talking to and we had agreed to let her go in our places at the front when Blind Channel had finished their set so she gave the pick to me. Blind Channel was one of the support bands and was on first so as soon as they left the stage, we pulled the girl who gave me Olli's pick and her friends in front of us and then made our way through the crowd. Joel, Blind Channel's singer, had said they were coming out to the merch stand so we went there and camped out in the lobby until Niko and Aleksi from Blind Channel came out towards the end of I Prevail's set. I loved this as there wasn't many fans and we all got to have a nice chat and a picture with each of the lads. I have a "Don't Fix Me" tattoo on my left arm and in order to get it finished, I decided that I was going to ask each member of the band to write a line from the song, sign it and then I would get those tattooed around the one I already have. I had all the lines printed out so that they just had to pick which line they wanted to write. Niko did "I don't need your medication, no" and Aleksi did "You can keep your love and roses". Saturday the 18th of March - Otherwise Known As "Did That Just Happen Day" - Bristol The craziness of this day still makes me stop and wonder if it actually happened sometimes. It started off as a normal gig day. Me and Roxxi got up, got dressed, went for a Wetherspoons breakfast with Flo and then we all got in my car to drive to Bristol. Just so you know, unless I absolutely have to, I will never drive in Bristol again. Just frigging no. We got checked into our hotel and then went to the venue which on this day was O2 Bristol. We found our "Paul" for this venue who was a lovely lad called Mags. If you go to the O2 in Bristol, say hi to him, he is honestly amazing. Our friends Luna and Carman were already there in the priority queue, well, they were the queue. We joined them and then they went to check into their hotel and get something to eat. This was the first time I had been to an O2 venue and had to queue so wasn't 100% on the whole priority and general admission thing. When I went on the Sick And Dangerous Tour, I had VIP tickets for the gigs that were at O2 venues so was in a separate queue all together for those gigs. Carman and Flo are on O2 and can get 3 people each in with them so we were all covered to get in first and together. Any hoooo. We are sitting outside the venue, Roxxi goes to the loo in the pub opposite and when she comes back, she says she saw Blind Channel in the pub near the ladies loos. After kicking myself for not being brave enough to buy them drinks in Portsmouth at the hotel, I decide I'm going to buy them some shots. So I pulled up my big girl pants, walked in the pub, find out exactly where they are sitting and then order tequila and sambuca shots at the bar. I couldn't quite see who was sat at the table so I got 10 shots, figured this would be enough and someone wasn't going to complain about having to have more than 1 shot haha. The barmaid put them all on a small tray thank goodness and I slowly walked round to their table. I'm going to be completely honest, I saw Niko and Aleksi as they were on my left as I put the tray down, I saw Tommi who looked me right in the eyes and I have absolutely no idea who else was at the table because I just kept looking at him. I did stay calm though, no idea how much I did. I said "I wanted to do this the other night in the hotel but didn't, these are for you guys, thank you so much for being awesome, love you guys". I blew them (Tommi) a big kiss, they said thank you, I walked away. Not going to lie, my legs felt like jelly and I flopped onto the floor as soon as I got back in the queue but felt proud of myself haha. Ok, so that was thing 1 of "Did That Just Happen Day". Thing 2 was me and Roxxi needing the loo some time later, walking into the pub and the band were still there, still sat next to the ladies loos. This was never going to not look like us stalking them but we did genuinely want to go to the loo. In the queue for said loo, a girl came up behind us and said "can I go in front of you, I'm in the queue for the gig over the road". Which we replied, "so are we". She then said "but I'm in the priority queue", and can you guess our reply?...... "so are we". Never have I heard a gig queue being used as an excuse to cut into a toilet queue before. Just as we were going into the cubicles, this girl says "oh, my boyfriend just said they are letting people in". I have never gone for a wee so quick in my whole life!!! We rushed outside only to find out that the venue were just getting people to line up that needed disabled access as they go in before priority and general admission. So there was no need to rush afterall. When we did get let into the venue, we were in the front row again and I was right in front of Tommi....again.. Thing 3 of "Did That Just Happen Day". Flo had been saying for ages that she wanted one of Olli's picks and she had even made a sign to hold up asking for one. She had been trying to get Olli to see her sign during the gig but he kept looking in the wrong direction. So (que Wonder Woman music), I grab her sign, wave at Olli to get him to look at me and he sees the sign. The cheeky sod grins at me but doesn't move so I do prayer hands at him, he walks to his mic stand, takes out one of his picks from the stand and throws it to me. Unfortunately it landed on the floor, but Olli tapped the security guy on the shoulder who was in front of him asking to pick it up and give it to me. The lovely security guy gives me the pick and I give it to Flo who was super duper happy. Thing 4 of "Did That Just Happen Day". The lads didn't say they were going to come out to merch so we waited around a little and then saw some of them walking out to their bus. We thought they weren't coming out so we went to the pub, had a drink and a sing song before I turn round and see Niko, Olli and Aleksi walking back into the venue. We rushed out to go back in the venue, I was the first one there and I explained to the security guard that 3 members of my favourite band had just walked in and I wanted to meet them. At first he said no because you can't go back into a venue once you leave but then a supervisor came along and said that only I could go in. Only thing was, when I got back in and looked around at merch, the lads were nowhere to be seen. I waited and lucky enough, they appeared. I talked to Olli about my "Don't Fix Me" tattoo and he picked the line "I thought f*ck it, it's just rock and roll". Because my friends were all outside waiting for the lads, I told them that there was people outside waiting for them and they said they would stop on the way back to the bus to speak to them....and they did! Thing 5 of "Did That Just Happen Day". We were all standing around in groups talking when Niko said to us "I'm going to go and get something to eat, you guys needs to work out what bar we are going to. I'll be back in 30 minutes". Me, Flo, Roxxi, Luna and Carman wasn't sure if he was joking or not but decided we would take him to a Wetherspoons, can't get more English than a Wetherspoons right? We are all standing there looking at Google Maps when Niko cames back off the bus about 10 minutes later and says "they had pizza on the bus, so where are we going?" This led to a night of shots, dancing to Abba, telling Niko how much we love him, Niko telling us how much he loves the Wetherspoons app, me telling Niko that his girlfriend is fit, everyone talking random shite and having the most amazing time haha. It was amazing. We managed to get him onto the tour bus 10 minutes before it left to drive to Birmingham, he wasn't in the best of conditions but we all had a great time so it was worth it. Sunday 19th of March - Birmingham Waking up and remembering the night before was so frigging weird. There was a lot of chatter in the car on the way to Birmingham haha. I had booked us into an Ibis hotel that was less than a minute walk from the venue, which was another O2 venue. In fact, we could see the hotel if we stood on the pavement outside the venue, it was that close. We got checked in and walked round to get into the queue which was 2 people. There wasn't any set queues for priority or general so we all just sat in 1 line until the staff came out and told us where we needed to queue. It was such a cold day that we all huddled together. I was a little miffed at this venue as I had my camera with me, the same one that I have been taking to gigs for the last year with no issue, was taken off of me because the staff said it was a professional camera as it had a detachable lense. It is a Sony A6000 which is about the same size as a normal compact camera but has some nifty features and yes, a detachable lense but definitely not a professional camera. This annoyed me so much as I have always got some really good shots with that camera and other venues were more than happy to let me in with it. I got it back at the end of the gig but seriously annoyed me. The videos and pictures I got on my phone were great but they would have been better on my camera. Just like the previous 2 gigs, I was in the front row, right in front of Tommi. I feel this is my permanent spot in a crowd at a Blind Channel gig now haha. I was feeling a little emotional as this set of gigs was coming to end, I wasn't going to see the lads or my friends again for a week and had had such a great time that I didn't want it to end. This was the first gig where I actually paid attention to Trash Boat and I Prevail and that was because the merch stall was in the big hall with the stage. Me, Roxxi and Flo were all sitting up by merch so got to see the rest of the gig. I was very impressed and have a lot of respect for how both bands put on a live show but they just wasn't my sort of bands. I found out that I knew 2 songs from I Prevail but have no idea how haha. Joel, Olli and Joonas came out to see everyone at merch after this gig. We asked where Niko was and we got told he was locked away in a hotel because he had got so wasted the night before haha. I told Joel and Joonas about my "Don't Fix Me" tattoo so they had a look at the lines that were left. Joel picked "I'm dead inside and it's alright", this shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who knows him haha. Joonas picked "Maybe I was born to be broken", he said that he picked that one because it nearly wasn't in the song. We stood talking to Olli and Joonas for a little while, they were so lovely to talk to. Then the venue staff told us we had to get out so we had to leave. We left on a high from the awesome gig as we had all had such a brilliant time but sad it was the last gig. We were so sad that me and Roxxi treated ourselves to pizza that turned out to be so spicy we couldn't feel our lips anymore haha.

Is your favourite band playing multiple gigs and you want to go to them all but you aren't sure if it will be worth it?? My advice is to do it because it will definitely be worth it! There is a lot of planning that you need to do to make sure it all runs smoothly but it just adds to the excitement. I did 6 gigs in 6 days to see Blind Channel and Lost Society in the UK in September 2022 and had the best time. I was seriously tired but it was still amazing!! Doing this tour was something I had to really think about because I didn't want to get too tired on the tour and end up wanting to go home so I had lots of awesome chats with my tour buddy Roxxi and we came up with an awesome plan so that everyone stayed happy. So here is the breakdown of the miles I put together for the tour from Google Maps, which is from one city to the next. I know, crazy right? According to my Google Maps, it tracked 1304 miles when I had it on but I think it was actually a bit more than that in the end due to diversions which is when we turned it off because it was completely useless haha. The first gig was in Bristol on the 12th so I decided to drive to Bristol the day before and have a really good nights sleep in a hotel. I picked up Roxxi from Bristol train station and then due to the main bridge being cut off for construction, we spent a good half an hour trying to work out the roads in Bristol to find our hotel. Google Maps seemed to think that we could fly as it kept telling us to park and then fly over the river lol. Seeing as Bristol to Glasgow was themost miles out of the whole tour, we decided that the best thing to do was to hit the road straight after the gig to try and do as many miles as possible before I felt sleepy. I knew that if we had done the trip in one go on the day of the Glasgow gig, I would be too tired and end up seriously moody. Plus, driving at that time of time meant that there was going to be less traffic, in fact, we barely saw any other cars and just a few lorries. We ended up driving until 4:30am but this was mainly because there were diversions on the motorway that had us going in circles for an hour and then we couldn't find a hotel with any rooms available for another hour. This meant that we only managed to get When we finally did find a hotel at a roadside services, we just got in the room and fell straight to sleep. But this was the only time that we drove after a gig as the rest of the gigs were shorter driving distances. We had a couple of hours left to drive to Glasgow and didn't need to check into the hostel until 2pm so we took our time on that drive, we even stopped once so I could lay down on the back seat of the car and have a half hour nap. It's so important to make sure you are well rested when driving because nodding off, even for a second, could end up getting you and everyone in the car killed. This is why I'm quite glad we took breaks and I had naps. (Yes, I know this is making me sound old lol) I loved that it was mainly driving on motorways as I hate driving in towns that I haven't driven in before, it sets off my anxiety so bad thinking I will get lost. Thank goodness for Google Maps. Something to keep in mind is where you are going to park your car for the gig and overnight. When I was looking at hotels, I was looking for ones really close to the venue and had parking so I only had to park the car once and not worry about having to park somewhere for the gig. We only had one gig where we drove to the gig and that was the Nottingham gig, the hotels with parking near the venue were just too expensive so we decided to stay just outside of the city and drive in for the gig. It just worked out cheaper that way. For hotels, I mainly use Booking.com as you can compare so many awesome hotels, the venues come up in the search so when you are looking for the nearest hotel, it's not going from the wrong end of the street. There aren't just hotels on there either, there are holidays homes, b&bs and hostels so you get a good selection. They also have the option on some hotels to pay in advance or pay when you check-in. Paying on check-in is usually a bit more expensive so pay in advance where you can. My thoughts on hotels for gigs is basically just a base to get sleep, get ready and eat before moving on so I don't like paying too much, the cheapest I have paid for a hotel is £37 for a double room. It was quite nice as well so felt quite lucky. We had to be careful with petrol prices, it was when prices were quite high, I think the most I paid was £1.99 a litre when we got caught low and had to top up at a motorway petrol station. I just put £20 worth in the car to get us to the next venue and then topped up somewhere cheap the next day. DO NOT GET CAUGHT OUT! Haha One top thing you need for driving a lot is a good front passenger buddy. I had Roxxi for most of the journeys, I had my friend Joules for 2 journeys and only 2 journeys to do on my own which were fine because they were during the day and wasn't far but the rest of the time I am glad I had someone with me. They made sure I stayed awake, looked after me opening food and drinks, helped with navigation, was the car DJ and kept me entertained. I think I would of hated all the driving if I had done it all on my own. I must admit that I was a bit naughty, I eat a lot more fast food than I should have. I am gluten and lactose intolerant which can be a pain sometimes but seeing as Subway now do gluten free bread, I eat more Subways than any other fast food haha. We were mainly getting food for motorway services because we would wake up, get ready and drive to the next city so we didn't really think ahead about where we were going to get food from. If we were hungry after a gig, we would order food off of Just Eat so that was never healthy haha. I did buy fruit to eat but only had half of it, the rest of it died in the car. I was good at drinking lots of water which I think helped me lose 8lbs in that week! The jumping around in a sweaty venue helped as well but the water definitely helped haha. The most important thing though is to look after each other, make sure everyone is eating properly, drinking plenty of water, resting and having an amazing time every day. At the time of publishing this article, I am preparing to do another 6 gigs following Blind Channel around the UK but I have 3 gigs, a weeks break and then another 3 so not as intense lol.

In November 2022 I finally made it to Finland, but it wasn’t for a holiday or a long weekend to explore Helsinki, it was to go to a Lost Society gig. Me and my gig buddy Roxxi had been talking about going to Finland for a gig for ages but the gigs were always on days when one of us couldn’t get a day off work or we didn’t have the money. Well, the planets finally aligned for us and gave us a gig to go to. We arrived on the Friday night as the gig was on the Saturday, we didn’t want to rush around on the day of the gig. We thought there would be loads of people queuing early at the venue so we got there for 9:30am and ………. We were the only ones there for 2 hours until another person came along lol. We had extra layers on but it was still freezing cold so we did laps walking around the stairs going up to the venue doors and a few times around the venue to keep warm because I kept getting cramps in my thighs. The staff in the restaurant directly opposite, Peloton Cycling Eatery, were happy for us to go in and use their toilets and buy coffees to warm up so they were life savers throughout the day. We did a numbers system in the queue so Roxxi was number 1 and I was number 2, and when the doors opened, Roxxi was in the venue in a heartbeat to get us a great place to stand at the front lol. I seriously think that her spirit animal is a whippet lol. Before Lost Society came on stage, we heard a lot of angry shouting behind us and it turned out that there were some people who had had a few too many drinks and were fighting with each other. It looked like security had sorted it but just after Lost Society’s intro music started, it was turned off because there was fighting again. A lady that worked at the venue came out on stage to show security where the fight was and they removed the people fighting from the venue. She started speaking in Finnish so I asked the lady next to me what she said and it was something along the lines of “music is about love not hate”. Quite possibly the best saying ever! Unfortunately, what we didn’t realise was that our new friends from the queue had problems with drunk people crushing them into the barrier later on in the gig. I feel bad that I didn’t notice or realise what was going on as I would have tried to help. It is a shame they had to deal with people like that. Lost Society was absolutely amazing!! The vibe from the band was just so energised that it felt like they were charging the whole room. They played a lot of the songs from the new album as it hadn't long been released. My favourite song of the evening was Stitches. It’s been my favourite Lost Society song since I saw them supporting Blind Channel back in September. I just frigging love how it gets everyone moving and because Samy doesn’t need to play the guitar on that song, he comes down to the front to sing with the fans and has a bit of a climb on anything he can lol. We especially got a treat when he climbed up on the bar that was keeping the barrier a set distance from the stage and the bar moved so Samy ended up holding on to Roxxi for support lol. She didn’t complain at all, in fact she had the biggest grin on her face. Hearing Suffocating live was such a moving experience. It was just Samy on stage and you could feel the pain in his voice and see it on his face while he was singing that this song was written straight from his soul. I looked around and saw loads of people crying. I think it’s amazing that a song can move people so much that it brings them to tears. The words mean that much to them knowing that they aren’t alone in how they feel and Samy is a brilliant example of how getting help can work because he brought himself out of the darkness that had taken over him and he has become a better and stronger person. Nonbeliever was one that I didn’t think they were going to play but I am so glad that they did, I absolutely love this song as it was brilliant live. They have the best lyrics ever! ‘Nonbeliever, I can see you. You think you are above us all. Nonbeliever, I forgive you. But I can’t win this war before you fall’. I have had so many people who didn’t believe in me and I have proven them wrong so this is sort of an anthem for me. Samy had problems with his guitar during this song but he gave it to Middy to sort out so he wasn’t without his guitar for too long. The legend that is Middy soon had Samy’s white guitar set up to be used while he took care of the other guitar. Hurt Me was a real crowd pleaser, I think that there were more people singing and getting into this song than any other song that was played. And with lyrics that are ‘hurt me, I wanna feel pain. Hurt me, I wanna feel your shame. Hurt me, I wanna feel pain. I’m crazy but you’re insane’, Are you surprised haha? This is a fantastic song live, the album version is brilliant but hearing it live is a million times better as you can feel the vibration of the instruments coming through the speakers and it just makes you want to move your whole body. Like all amazing gigs, it was over way too quickly and it was time to leave. As we had both had such a brilliant time, we wanted to stick around to see the guys and thank them for putting on a great show. It was cold and raining when we came out of the venue but the Peloton had an outdoor smoking area with a wooden roof that at least kept the rain off of us while we waited. It wasn’t long before we were the only ones left outside, everyone else obviously didn’t like the rain haha. Arrtu was the first to pack up and leave, we think he was driving home which is understandable seeing as they have had so many gigs this year, I bet he loves being able to go home to be with his family. Samy came out to put his stuff in the van and then came over to us to say hello. He was so lovely and stood talking to us for a little while. Then Taz came over to chat to us and then he went and got Mirko. I love that they took the time to come out and talk to us so we could tell them what an awesome gig it was. It meant a lot to us that they were that considerate. Even getting drenched by the heavy rain and a car driving through a big puddle completely soaking us didn't bring us down, we were on a massive gig high. I don't know what time Roxxi went to sleep but I passed out at about 2:30am after eating some food and going through all my pictures from the gig, I took over 800 pictures and some videos, thank goodness for sport mode on my camera lol. I had so much fun in Helsinki that I can't wait to go back again for another gig, I might stay an extra day next time though so I can do some proper exploring.

It has been a while since I got to see Bowling For Soup at a gig, either I was already doing something on the dates they had or I didn't have the money but last year when I saw they were going to be touring, I booked tickets straight away. A few days before the gig, Gary, the drummer, was experiencing some really bad health issues. They had taken him to a doctor over here but they couldn't find what was wrong with him so while we were all in the Winter Gardens rocking out with the rest of the band, Gary was on a flight back to the states to see his own doctor. It was sad that he wasn't there but his health comes first and I would rather he take care of himself to gig again another day, than push himself too much and end up worse. Jaret, the singer, got emotional during one part of the show speaking about Gary and I teared up myself. They are all so close, they are like brothers, and to see Jaret show that sort of emotion to a room full of fans really pulled on my heart strings. I can't tell you how much joy took over me as I saw Jaret walk out on stage with Rob at the start of the show. The start of the show is always the best bit for me, the excitement of waiting for the lights to dim down, the cheer from the crowd as the band comes out on stage. It always makes my heart flutter. I was worried that the band would play more of their newer stuff than the old classic stuff but they did not disappoint. They played some of my all time favourite Bowling For Soup songs like Trucker Hat, Girl All The Bad Guys Want, Home Town, Punk Rock 101 and The Bitch Song. All the golden oldies lol. Hearing Trucker Hat live always brings back awesome memories for me, in year 200(cough cough) I went to see BFS in London for my birthday. I brought myself a BFS tucker hat because it was my favourite song and got it signed by the whole band. Best birthday ever. Jaret and Rob did an acoustic set to start the show off and then Chris joined them on stage. To fill in for Gary, they all took it in turns to play the drums. Members of the support bands either played the drums or guitar so that Rob and Jaret could also take a turn playing the drums. I had no idea whatsoever that Jaret could play the drums so I loved this so much. I get issues with my feet if I stand for too long without something to lean or sit on so I was lucky enough to find a seat free in the seated section at the back of the room. I had a fantastic view from my seat so that I could enjoy the show in comfort until the urge to jump around like a loon took over haha. I grabbed my friend Roxxi and we weaved our way as close to the front as possible. There was such an amazing atmosphere all evening, everyone dancing together, singing and having an amazing time. This is what I have really missed since Covid took over the world. The feeling of being around people all in a venue for the same reason, to listen to amazing music.

Link to Fighting Demons I will admit, I have a soft spot for these guys, I have been listening to them for nearly 2 years and I absolutely love them. Their songs are brilliant and this new song "Fighting Demons" is no different. I think Florian's voice has a fantastic range and it's perfect as the lead voice in this song. You can really feel the emotion in his voice. I interviewed Simon and Florian earlier this year and they said that the songs they write come from their real personal eperiences. This is why I think there is so much emotion in Florian's voice, there is truth behind the words. The part that I love the most about this song is when the bassist, Andre, starts screaming. It breaks up the song perfectly and its quite dramatic, it feels a bit like a slap in the face, but in a good way. The first time I heard it, I was really taken aback for a moment. Listen to the song and tell me that you can believe that the screaming voice comes out of the guy to the right. And if you want proof that voice comes from Andre, check out the music video for the song, it really is him lol. The finally piece in this awesome band is the drummer, Simon. He might be up the back banging away on the drums but he's got the important job of keeping everyone in time and driving the beat of this amazing song. If you want a new band to follow, these guys should be first on your list to check out.

Gig review of Jack J Hutchinson The Half Moon in Putney 27th September 2023 Support - James Ives of Ramblin' Preachers I had the absoulte pleasure of going to see the amazing Jack J Hutchinson last night at his gig at The Half Moon in Putney. I've never been to The Half Moon before and if you are planning to go, make time for finding somewhere to park as it took me 20 minutes. Most of the roads around the pub are pay-to-park and run by Ringo so make sure you have the app but some of them are free after 6pm so make sure you read the parking signs. I loved how big it was with huge high ceilings and a very welcoming feel to it. Once inside you go through a set of double doors to go into the gig room. The support was James Ives who did a great accoustic set of his own songs. He is in a band called the Ramblin' Preachers, you definitely need to check them out. Jack and his band had a brilliant set, I didn't know the songs but there was such a great good-feel vibe from the band and audience that it didn't matter. Everyone was just so happy to be there and rock out to the music, it was the perfect gig atmosphere. The set list was a mix of old songs, new songs, his last single "Constellations" and his next upcoming single "Days Are Gone" which comes out today. My personal favourites were "Don't Let The Fuckers" and "Rapture", totally loved the vibe from those songs. I love that Jack has a little chat with the audience between songs, especially when he shared with us that his new jeans had split in the crouch lol but it's ok because he was wearing underwear lol. He was so funny and it just added to the good vibes, it felt like a room of friends coming together to have a good time. Set list - Don't Let The Fuckers The Hammer Falls Call Of The Wild Constellations Running On Empty Oh Well Gunslinger Hip Slickin' Written In Stone Rature Down By The River Rock N Roll Damnation Deal With The Devil Days Are Gone