(Part 2) I'm a rockstar - Ask Me Anything

[SweetnSaltyPopcornPlease]

Hi there,

Some of you may remember when I started an AMA thread called 'I'm a rockstar on hiatus'. I have actually been OFF hiatus for quite a while and have been very busy.

I'm considering publishing my experience in the music industry. I'm making notes about what people want to know. So do you have any burning questions?

You sound so nice & normal and so interesting. ☺️

Id go as far as to say that the users of MN would happily sit and have a cuppa with you and listen to your stories.
You could do “an audience with…” easily.

Thanks for this bloody brilliant thread OP!

One more question if you don’t mind, have you ever done a “chat show?” Graham Norton or the like? If you have, how was that experience?

I read somewhere that playing a 90 minute rock set was equivalent of a 10K run - probably more for the drummer (or if you are Iggy Pop). And that's before the load-in, load-out if you aren't big enough to have crew.

Hi, thanks for the compliment. If there's enough interest or a really high number of questions on this thread then I may do a reveal.

Yes we have been on several shows to either do an interview or play one song live or one song recorded. These are 3 very different experiences. Without writing an essay -

You usually get told what questions you'll be asked on a talk show. EVERYBODY in the band gets makeup. People pretend they don't want it but I think they secretly love it plus everybody looks better with it on camera.

For playing it's usually mimed. A live recording for tv is actually quite complex and costly. Sometimes it's live to an audience. There will be a soundcheck but you only get one take so you better get it right!

(That's keeping it brief)

@LaerealSilverhand

Sounds about right. Feels about right.

At a festival in America, we were invited to a hotel. On one floor, each room was filled with free gifts from a particular brand. This was early in my career, so I took an insane amount of free stuff. Denim, sunglasses, microphones, stuff I didn't need and would never use. At home I created a gift cupboard where I hoarded everything. I'd raid that cupboard for Christmas and birthday gifts throughout the year. It was always filled with freebies.

How big are your audiences? Are you proper rock or pop rock?

That’s brilliant! Rock n Roll n Thrifty.

Neither, we're indie-rock. On tour our venues are about 1000 capacity and we mostly sell out. At festivals it could be tens of thousands of people in front of us depending on how big the festival is.

What's your favourite venue/city to play?

I adore Scottish and Irish fans. They really give their hearts at a performance. They have the best energy.

I also love playing in Japan. They are so culturally different and respond to music in their own way. And they go dead silent inbetween songs to hear you talk. They seem to really appreciate the artist.

With the adrenaline rush and the job in hand on stage, have you ever stood still and taken it in? Just absorbed the view in front of you, the sea of people?

Can you describe how that feels?

knowing that they have all traveled, paid and planned their time to be with you, how does that feel?

How do you deal with the initial situation of being at home again when you come off tour? I know that’s something that can really hit performers hard, a real downer after the high and buzz of a long tour.

I haven't, no. I think it would be overwhelming. But I am very aware and always very gracious, expressing that to the crowd.

We once played a show where the crowd were cheering so much that we couldn't hear ourselves play and I had to stop. It was incredibly loud. They continued to cheer.

When it comes to planning your tours do you agree to tour then receive an itinerary drawn up by management or do you get involved in the planning?

Also, how far ahead does planning for tours take place before the start of it?

Tour planning happens close to a year in advance. The venue needs to be booked, there needs to be time for promotion, organising staff, ticket sales, designing new merchandise. It needs to go into everyone's diaries. Visas need to be applied for. There's so much more that goes into it. I tend to ignore it all until I get a call telling me what time to be at the airport and how many days of clothes to bring.

Do you envy the ultra ultra rock stars or are you content where you sit on the scale so to speak?

I am lucky to not live my life under the microscope. I have more opportunity to meet authentic people. There are no expectations put on me except the ones I put on myself. I have room for growth. I haven't been chewed up by the music industry. Our fans are really lovely people, safe to be around and not obsessive. I remain grounded in daily life. Those are all reasons why I do not envy the 'ultra' rock stars.

Have been following both threads- thanks for the insight which has been fascinating 👌🏻
If we “guess who” do we get a prize 🤪😬🤣

I'm not sure if you're the singer or an instrumentalist. If you're the singer, ignore this question!

Do you have an emotional attachment to your instrument(s)? How many them do you have? Has it been a lifelong obsession?

Is there any songs written by other artists(not by you) that you wish had been written by yourself?

Also is there any artists that inspired you?

Does your main money come from gigging?

Do you trust the record companies are paying you correctly or do you get audited in some way?

Have you found your mechanicals are lower than usual? If so do you know why.

Without giving anything away, I'll answer on behalf of the entire band. No emotional attachments but one of our (many) guitars is vintage and priceless. But you'd never know it by how beaten-up it looks. It has decades of dried blood, sweat and spit on it. Yum.

A musician's wages are unpredictable. I get paid in 8 different ways at various times throughout the year. Everybody in the industry gets 'paid' at the same time because the music organisations that pay the various forms of royalties do accounts at particular times of the year. Touring related stuff is separate to that.

The newer the music and the newer the band, the more opportunity to make more money; to put it simply. We have been around for quite a while, so unless you've had a number 1 hit, those royalties will reduce over time. But they will always keep coming in.

Oh thank you.

I would also like to ask if you look after your hearing? If so what do you do? Is this an aspect of your job that you think about?

Great question. Members of the band have serious hearing issues in one ear. It's actually quite traumatic but has been dealt with courageously. Medical professionals have said it's not to do with the noise levels but nobody really knows. We ALL wear earplugs now.