Yesterday was a recovery day after our best gig yet in Bucharest at control club. We met up for lunch with rupert Wolfe Murray at a Turkish restaurant. I had awoken early to take pictures of the local gypsies on the street. Then got chatting to eyvonne the hostel worker. Did a reading for her and showed hery rocks and clouds. She was a lovely soul but without much hope of getting out of Romania which was her dream. Then we went to a family party and met ruperts friends, who again were very hospitable.

Did a reading for her and showed her rocks and clouds. She was a lovely soul but without much hope of getting out of Romania which was her dream. Then we went to a family party and met ruperts friends, who again were very hospitable. We sang for them in the garden and a had cake and meatch sausages. Which everyone loved. The journey to the border at night was a difficult drive for Callum. Single track roads are not good on full beam. We then got pulled by the police, Callum did not have his licence on him and they wanted to fine us 200 euros. Which we didn't have. We bartered down to 50. It could have been worse!

We then gig to a small hotel casa andra. Bonny managed to get us three rooms for our last 50 euros.! I didn't sleep well on the hard beds but today's another day and we are heading through Serbia and onto Zagreb in Croatia today.
The country side after crossing the dam was stunning, we stopped at a castle ruin from 1480. There was also a massive face that had been carved in the rock. We had been making good time until we hit another car on the road that had pulled in to a garage at the wrong entrance.

It was a little scary. We got escorted back to the police station. Thankfully one of the girls spoke English. As it turned out it was a strange bit of serendipity as the policemen were really nice. I ended up reading palms for them and the girls. One is training to be a judge the other a physio for a top female tennis player. She also gave us contacts for a massive festival called exit. The policeman ended up bringing us three large bottles of his own brand of moonshine and supplying us with. Cigarettes and coffee.

Which makes me realise we are truly being looked after. We are shortly to face a judge who will probably have to give us a fine but who knows with a little luck we will be excused and forgiven.

Tanja. Alexandria. Our new friends.

As it turned out the judge was most apologetic and gave us a minimum fine of 100 euros.

The girls got a heavier fine . We left relieved and got back on the road after a dinner of crepes. I slept most of the way to the outskirts of Zagreb . Bonnys friends Gordona have a lovely big house and we all have beds for the night. 
We have already talked of spiritual things the couple have studied under sy baba in India and seem genuinely lovely people.

                                     

    

  They have given me tea and cheese sandwiches they also have two dogs, one which has three legs and very friendly the boys are already tucked up in bed and I am drinking tea on the veranda and watching the sunrise. God bless this day and the day ahead.:)

28th of April, Saturday: Romania

We set off from Budapest all a little fuzzy headed after an amazing gig at Corvinteto. James has nominated himself captain of the ship today.

The road to Romania is a long one, but also very picturesque indeed. The views along the way are some of the most beautiful we have ever seen.

The further we travel in to Romania the more intense the driving becomes for our captain. The roads become more like dirt tracks, the van takes a pounding and the local drivers seem to enjoy playing chicken with the tourists. This level of madness seems like something we will have to get used to over the next 4 days.

We eventually make it to a city called Cluj after a 7 hour mammoth drive, sweaty and a little delirious. Tonight we are playing a venue called Gambrinus Pub. We are welcomed by Raul the promoter who immediately brings a smile to our face in the form of a freezing cold beer. We set up, we soundcheck, we eat, we play, we go down extremely well, we make new fans and friends. 

Raul has also arranged an after party for us that apparently wont finish till the last man leaves. I am on first driving duties in the morning so manage to convince myself to have an early night. Craig (the last man standing) McMullen eventually makes it to bed at 6, the sign of a brilliant evening. 

Kai


29th of April: Sunday.

Our next destination is Wave 84 in the city of Craiova. Another 8 hour trek lies in front of us, but it is yet another beautiful one. Our trusty Tom Tom decides he would like to take the scenic route instead of a more direct one. He leads us through the snowcapped Carpathian Mountains. It's like something straight out of Lord Of The Rings, absolutely stunning rivers and green valleys that almost don't look real. By the time we make it through the mountains we are famished. We struggle to find any food that doesn't consist of dried fish or pig's guts, we eventually settle for bread and sausage. 

Still with 2 hours to go we enter proper Romany Gypsy country. To say it is a world away from everyday city life is an understatement. The roads are a challenge, not only competing with cars, you also have to manouver around horse and cart, packs of dogs, crazy children and local characters. All the families sit out on the streets together soaking up the remainder of the evening's sun. It is a touching site and one not to be forgotten.

We are 3 hours late by the time we arrive at the venue. It is small but full of atmosphere. The bar owner sorts us out with beer and pizza for dinner, and we also have the luxury of a hotel tonight, amazing. By the time we finish our set the place is buzzing, the crowd demands we play Fuzzy Fuzzy as the encore, job done. 

Outside cooling down we meet a rather intense but interesting character, he has a huge motorbike and also a huge beard. He plies us with an endless amount of booze and crazy stories. The bar runs out of wine so we end up on all kinds of shots. Being drunk I find it a good idea to ask for a ride through the city on the back of his bike, but as his character is unveiled throughout the rest of the night I am slightly relieved when he does not turn up at our hotel the next day to take me on my promised bike ride. 

Kai

30th of April, Monday: Bucharest

The next morning we freshen up and pick up supplies (water and red bull) for a 4 hour jaunt to Bucharest to play a venue called Control. The drive begins a little tense and nervous due to very impatient and care free Romanian motorists, upon finding the motorway everyone is able to relax finally. 

Immediately we find Bucharest a beautiful, interesting city with a cool river running through its centre where people wash their clothes and old men go to shave. We reach our destination around 6 and on time, today the Tom Tom is on better form.

Our promoter for this evening is a very sweet girl by the name of Racula. She directs us to our hostel to drop off our belongings then takes us to the venue.

The venue is one of the coolest I have seen, its dark, covered in mental posters and art and also holds a very relaxed vibe. The methods in soundcheck are kind of different to that in Britain, but I prefer the way they do them here. 

After soundcheck we are taken next door for food and refreshments by the production manager, Vlad and the club owner Florian. They spoil us with a meal of our choice and make us feel at home. 

Just before we go on stage its quite evident that the club is absolutely packed to the rafters with people. We take to the stage excited and ready. At this point Terry realises there is a problem with his bass, we all panic inside and fear the worst. After ten minutes of anxiety the problem is fixed and we open up with a very fraught and rapid version of Maybe When I Get A Bit Older. We receive an amazing reaction, and continue to deliver each song with aplomb. The sound on and off stage is brilliant, the songs feel the tightest they have ever been, everything just feels right. We encore with a furious version of See Through Spiders and finally walk off stage buzzing. For the first time someone asks if they can have one of my drumsticks, but sadly I have to say no as I am only carrying two to my name, typical. This tour is aptly named The Shoe String Tour, for many reasons. At the bar a random guy buys us all shots and we even sign autographs which we all laugh about as it's something we are not really used to, but it's nice all the same. 

Personally it was the most enjoyable gig I have ever played and it will be hard to beat. I think the rest of the boys will agree. Also at this point I would like to thank Danny, Cally, Terry and Craigy for giving me one the best feelings I've ever experienced on stage. 

Kai

1st of May: Leaving Romania

The next morning we meet up with Bonny's cousin Rupert, a very interesting guy. I could listen to him talk all day long I may add. We eat lunch in a Turkish restaurant where Craig orders the largest glass of red wine I've ever seen. After, Rupert allows me a shot on his bike which I find hilarious as its been a while. 

We head to a very nice Romanian family's house for a BBQ in the ridiculously hot afternoon sun. We are spoiled with wine and sausages and friendliness. They demand that we play for them so we treat them to an impromptu acoustic gig. Terry sings Happy Birthday to the birthday girl and everyone applauds him. Unfortunately we have to leave so we say our goodbyes and return to the van all feeling a little emotional and overcome, but happy, very happy!!

That was really the short version,but don't have enough time to put it all in to words.




Next up Croatia, Peace




Kai xx

24^th April 2012, Tuesday, Budapest

We were met in Budapest by Luigi carrying a bottle of Polinka (the local home made toxic brew) and the keys to our apartment. Thank God at last clean sheets, soft beds, big bathroom and a washing machine!!! This was going to be our base for the next couple of weeks. Krisztina had sorted this out for us which was a big relief (Cheers.) The guys got a bit over excited by the size of the bath and of course Terry, Craig and Kai all jumped in it together! Looking back through some of the tour photos I think Plan B maybe to go down the homoerotic Calendar path, we may do a 2013 boys only Calendar (what do you think Plum, want to be the stylist?)

After we were all squeaky clean we all went to bed and had a great sleep…

Bonanza Xx

25^th April 2012, Wednesday, Budapest

            

The guys had a photo shoot with a Hungarian photographer Almos Eory Which was in an eerie old decrepit building, with beautiful old features and streams of light pouring through into an old courtyard at the back. It’s currently being turned into a studio space and some local artists had already moved in and were working on some pretty extraordinary sculptures.

Jazz, Daniel and my self went to see William Turner an opera singer do a private concert in Brody House. The three off us were really moved by how powerful William's voice was. Daniel got talking to him after the concert and he is coming to Scotland to give the band singing lessons and he's going to perform at the EP Launch which is at The Masonic Lodge on Hill Street on the 16th June, the theme is Mysterious Masquerade. William was there with his two very charming extremely talented French daughters and after the concert Daniel had a jam with them and we invited them all to The Stagger Rats gig tomorrow night.   

          

That night after the opera we hit the bright lights of Budapest and for any of you who have never been to Budapest I would highly recommend it. It’s a labyrinth of interesting spaces turned into bars and clubs with a relaxed atmosphere and little or no sign of the over cautious health and safety restrictions that seem to have crept into every nook and cranie at home. The other noticeable thing was that there are no bouncers, can you imagine the Cowgate on a Saturday night with no bouncers it would be absolute carnage?! We did find ourselves wondering what the difference was between the young drinkers of Hungary and those of Scotland, why do we have to have extensive security on every door of every club an bar in one country and not the other, what was so different about the drinking cultures? 

The first bar we went to was this tiny wee tequila bar in a curiosity shop. Loads of old trinkets hanging from the rafters and shelves stacked from the floor to the ceiling with all sorts from typewriters to manikins to old teddy bears and baker light phones. Jazz couldn’t resist purchasing a camel to join his Gloss Ark, his recent art project and Daniel a quaint wee emerald green clock for May (who was being very much missed from the tour.)  The next stop was Szimpla a big rustic warehouse where you have to walk through a doorway of plastic sheets (the sort you get at the back of a butchers shop) it had a big open-air court yard. The rest of the night was a bit hazy, the guys stayed out I went to bed and the rest is history.

Bonanza Xx    

26th April, Thursday, Budapest 

We had a big meeting in the afternoon with the Brody House team. Everyone one was feeling positive with the direction things are moving in and the feed back from the tour so far has been massively positive.

The gig was great and the venue was packed it was good to see everyone there especially Viktor who was the sound engineer who worked closely with the band and Owen Morris during the recording of their soon to be released album Scorpio Leisure. 

Bonanza Xx   

20/04/12

Day twelve of the tour: Berlin, Friday

This morning was a serious struggle, getting out of bed was the hardest get-up yet. We got back to the squat at about 5am this morning and Callum and I stayed up chatting with Haarlem Terry for quite a while before finally crashing. We had an early start as we had to be in Berlin for 7pm. Getting everyone out of bed we then had to locate Terry and Craig who had last been seen getting backies on some bikes; off two local Dutch Students (I think Terry’s blog yesterday just about pushes the boundaries of necessary information needed to be shared on ones blog!)

Anyway moving swiftly on we made it to Berlin. We went straight to the Magnet Club and I have to say that the gig went down a storm. It was by far the tightest gig so far and the audience were captivated. The room filled up quickly and the feedback was hugely positive.

Bonanza Xx

21/04/12

Day thirteen of the tour: Berlin, Saturday

Today was pretty chilled out. We were all feeling a bit van lagged after the journey from the Dam.

I had a strange encounter the night before with an old friend from the states, John Wood. We hadn’t seen each other since going to Mardi Gras about 4 years ago and bumped into each other in the club below the gig. It’s a bloody small world! I was supposed to go watch a football game with him today but didn’t get my shizzle together in time.

We ended up taking our time getting back to last night’s Magnet Club to pick-up the van and equipment, taking in some sites on the way. Most noteworthy was perhaps the ‘beautiful contrast’ between the TV tower and the old church

or perhaps the contortionist ballet

or perhaps the creepy puppeteer outside the station

Saturday night we went to this club called ‘Picnic’ (or something like that). It was good but no one really had there dancing shoes on.

Callum

22/04/12

Day fourteen of the tour: Berlin, Sunday

Today Terry, Bonanza and I went to the flea market at Mauerpark.

Definitely my best outing of the trip so far. It made me realise why Berlin is such a cool place. There were all sorts of different people spending there Sunday together; tourists, locals, grannies, hobos, fun for all the family.

What perhaps summed up the nature of the day was the Karaoke in the Park next to the flea market. There were at least 600 people seated on the hill and in and around the stone plaza where the karaoke was situated. First up we saw a middle aged women who reminded me of a school teacher do the ‘Time Warp’ followed up by a long tall blonde with a voice like grit sing ‘Born to be Wild”. However, my favourite performance was that of a hunched over older gentleman who took to the plaza carrying his cloth handbag. He straightened up to perform a rendition of ‘My Way’ in his native German tongue. He wasn’t the greatest of singers but he had intensity and a charm as he circled to address the whole crowd as he sang. The performance was magic and he received applause at each chorus with the climax of the performance receiving a standing ovation.

Later in the park we watched two guys play hand made instruments. It was like a cross between cagon, violin, sitar and harp. I can’t remember the name of them just now but I’ll look them up. They sounded amazing. 1500 euro if you wanted the guy to make one. I’ll find the name and website and post it later.

Callum 

16/04/12

Day eight of the tour: Amsterdam/Haarlem, Monday.

After dodging a police chase on the motorway we arrived in central Amsterdam. We were about to go to a hostel in an extremely touristy area when we got a call from our home boy Terry Hosmos who asked if we would like to ‘jam with some gypsies’ and spend a couple of nights with him at his home; a squat in Haarlem. We drove straight there. Not really knowing what to expect we were more than pleasantly surprised. Terry had created a haven, he had just finished sectioning off his part of the building and had built a living room, bedroom, a beautifully serene garden and had just laid the floorboards to the kitchen (bathroom was a working progress.) Terry H took us upstairs to introduce us to his friend Pascal who kindly invited us to crash between his and Terry’s. Up this very, very steep stairway through a wee dark corridor we entered Pascal’s main room. It was, warm, inviting, full of relics from his past, art left behind by fellow squatters, surf boards on the ceiling, plants draped in the corner, his carpentry tools, instruments, a black and white cat Chubby and loads of comfy sofas with a big table and a tidy crate of beer…perfect!

First things first…supplies. Terry took us to the local coffee shop to sample some Cheese. Then off to the super market. Everyone was craving meat so pasta bolognaises and salad was on the menu. Callum and I ended up cooking the dinner fortunately we managed to pull it off and fed about 15 people. Was a bit touch and go for a bit cooking in the dark on some gas hobs but with bellies full the session started. More and more people poured in and with 5 guitar players, the banjo the bucket bass and Kai on the Cajon it was a brilliant session that last late into the night. The crème de la crème was defiantly Marie who to our surprise brought out a Saw; she played it beautifully and we were all mesmerised by the sound it made and also by her incredibly angelic voice. We never thought we would hear ‘Sleeping off ecstasy’ accompanied by a girl playing the saw.   

Bonanza Xx

17/04/12

Day nine of the tour: Amsterdam/Haarlem, Tuesday.

Arrived at the studio, no one there. Found a pub where the bar lady told us the radio/TV station had closed down two years ago (Sh*t). Luckily Terry had popped out to the van and was spotted by two guys crossing the road they took one look at him and asked, “Are you the Scottish?” Thank god we were in the right place. They set up an acoustic set (with the Hammond too) in the studio which was in the basement of the town hall. Thanks to the team of volunteers at the radio station it was a great session and the guys played great. There may have been a wee bit of difficulty understanding some of the Scottish accents but all in all it was a success. You can follow the interview links on our facebook.

Back at Terry H’s we learnt a lot about the Squatters community and their rights. It turns out that Holland looks after it’s squatters and they have rights and are protected by certain legislations. It was great hanging out with Terry and I think he was really proud to have a bunch of Dunbar younger generation musicians to stay for a few days and hang out with him and his friends.  

Bonanza Xx

18/04/12

Day ten of the tour: Amsterdam/Haarlem, Wednesday

Today has been a strange day for the band and this morning tensions were running a wee bit high, nothing in particular just a mixture of tiredness, maybe not enough food and maybe too much drink. It’s intense being with the same 7 people in a van for a month (well I think we’re on day 8 of our tour.)

It’s amazing how quickly your mood can change Club 8 was one of the best gigs the boys have done on the tour shame it was practically empty. Gill and Lawrence turned up in Amsterdam today which was lovely always great to see them and thank God as for this gig they were the bulk of the audience.

Terry H spent the day making an awesome Stagger Rats stencil for the van, it also ended up on his kitchen floor... 

Cheers Terry, big love!! 

Bonanza Xx

19/04/12

Day eleven of the tour: Amsterdam/Haarlem, Thursday.

4 in the bed and the little one said, “Oi that’s ma hand Craig!!!”

 We all awoke to another marvellous “Bonny special” breakfast, yummy!  Went into Amsterdam around half 3/4ish to get some busking done.  Bonny, Jimmy Jazz an Callum went to a lecture at the ‘Dam Uni about the Slovenian music scene or something, during which we played outside for an hour or so while Terry (Haarlem Terry) handed out some flyers for the gig this eve.  Nearly made a girl fall off her bike with my dulcet tones.  After busking, Haarlem Terry took us to an amazing wee bar called Café Belgique (the smallest bar in the Dam) where the beer was good and the tunes were better.  The DJ/barman was spinning some tidy beats. We met a group of high flying American pilots, older guys, in they’re 50’s, who fly on commercial air lines they were having a drink and a smoke… so that’s what pilots get up to in they’re spare time J En route to the gig at Bourbon Street music club there was a slight navigational error and we ended up stuck on the tram tracks, with one tram behind us and one in front, my oh my.  Police sirens didn’t help! :)  After we regained our bearings we still had a struggle to get the van to a good location for unloading, but eventually we got it sorted out and we were ready to play.  It was definitely an interesting evening, what with us having to play four forty min sets and only having material to fill around 2 hours.  The fact that oor Craig was a wee bit topsy-turvey added to that too.  But, through God’s good grace we pulled through.  Some whiskeys later Craig and I ended up seeing some of the local colour… then sharing a bed!! Bang Tidy!!

Enjoyed Amsterdam a bit too much I think, although there were no red lights’a Rollin!!              

Terence the terrier……. T-Bo…… x