Irvine – Ventura: Warped Tour 2012

Wow. Warped Tour is amazing! We spent the first 3 days working out what needs to be done. It’s busy. Each morning we wake up from our coffin like shelves, queue for breakfast and wait to find out what stage and set time we’re on. We opened up the main stage and got a great response for the first few shows – pulling in a pretty large audience. The sun, the palm trees and the blue skies are great, though the parking lots we play in are not so. Positive feedback is often received and far from getting booed off -(as feared) people are saying we make a refreshing change (phew)!

Lorna conducts

The other thing about Warped Tour is it’s a bit like a conference. Everyone has a tent selling their merchandise. As the gates open all the kids stampede into the arena and run to their favourite band’s tent to get hugs and photos and to buy signed stuff. We eventually sorted out our own tent fully Skinny Shopped up. Great stuff. Lots of great people coming for a chat, to buy our EP or just get a photo.

Yesterday we got our stage time – main stage 4.40pm (primetime in-between two well known bands). ARGGGHHHH! Why did I drink so much rum at the Barbecue the night before? We spend all day getting ready to play, sitting at our stall selling bric-a-brac as if it was a car boot sale. Time to head down to stage…Dan Gray and Max are missing after heading off downtown for what seemed like hours – this means I’m loading all the gear in pretty much by myself whilst Dan Hep is panicking as we don’t have a back-up guitar and he’s having to fix an old broken string – fortunately Dan Gray and Max appear and sort out another guitar so that’s one less stress.

I take a look at the crowd. F**k! Moshing, singing along, crowd surfing. It’s a massive crowd. How on earth is Skinny going to do this? Well we don’t do too bad. People do seem a little confused – who are these people playing? – no drum kit????? But they seem keen. They put fists in the air for Forty Pound Wedding and dance like crazy.

I get drunk with relief and head over to the stall. Sign stuff. Drink more. Sell stuff. We eventually decide to pack up. It’s windy in San Fransisco and when we unclip the tags holding us to the next door tent ours just flies off over some other stalls. Gone. Uh-oh…this could have done serious damage but when I run round to the next aisle there aren’t any dead people but there are a few on the floor clutching their chests. Thank God they’re understanding and accept a free CD off us. Hopefully we won’t be hearing about any legal case in the future!

Today has been the best yet. We’re in Ventura and the crowd seem totally up for it. After a rather heavy night on the rum again I’m feeling pretty tired and the thought of doing 2 gigs is a little scary. Day off required. The first gig is a small affair in the acoustic basement. Trying to play over the top of a heavy heavy metal band on main stage. A challenge but still fun. Second gig is again on the main stage a little earlier today. The crowd go mad for it – punching the air, then punching each other. It looks like a fight is breaking out…should I tell them to stop? Instinct says no and glad I didn’t because then there is an almighty circle pit happening. Whoop whoop! Looks amazing as half the crowd start leaping around in a circle. Fists are raised again for Party George’s Forty Pound Wedding and we’re well chuffed.

Hot and sweaty but happy. We carry ourselves back over to merchandise again then over to Music Saves Lives for our official signing. Oh and somewhere during that day we met with the record label, our booking agent, some other guys and had three photo shoots! Wow. I’m now resting in the bus on my own (bliss) except for Matt Toka’s 2 promotional sex dolls! The bus is vibrating from the bass but I don’t care. I’m going to lie in my coffin and have a snooze before tonight’s barbecue begins. A job well done…so far.

And we got a paragraph in Rolling Stone! Check it out!!!

Skinny in Rolling Stone