The Tangent Tour Diary. April 2005.

Wednesday 20 April
The night before the tour. I am looking forward to it, but slightly apprehensive as I have not met most of the band before, have never played the music live before, and have only a day and a half rehearsal to get together over 2 hours of music. Going on tour is a serious change to one’s general life and routine, so that is also a factor. For 2 weeks I will be with a bunch of people day and night who I do not really know at all and there will be some long journeys and probably various stresses and strains. The music however, should be a blast. I love the 2 Tangent CDs and it will be great fun musically to do live. I played on the second Tangent CD, overdubbing my parts in Andy Tillison’s (band leader/ keyboards/vocals/composer) studio near Leeds (UK) last June. So - a takeaway meal from Oriental Sensation (a local ace Chinese/ Thai restaurant), and an episode or two of Curb your Enthusiasm on DVD (hilarious). Finished packing and off to bed. Slept quite well but dreamt of alarm clock not going off!

Thursday 21 April
Alarm clock did go off , annoyingly early - at 6.45 am. Got up and minicab arrived on cue at 7.30am. Airport check in (London Stanstead) went fine and no problems with taking sax as hand luggage or excess baggage (just a charge). These days, airport staff are more likely to stop you exceeding hand luggage size and weight limits - and I needed to take my tenor sax and flute on board as they are so fragile. So - all OK except first hitch of the tour - the driver - Adam Welsh and merchandise man Martin missed the plane as their bus did not turn up. I got on the plane and landed in Rodez, France not having a clue how I would get to the rehearsal room as it is in a village where Andy and Sam live in the mountains somewhere, and I was to go with Adam and Martin who were collecting a car from the airport. Bus? Train? Donkey? Walking?...The problem was averted, when much to my relief Sam appeared to take me there. How kind.... Straight to the rehearsal room where I met the others - Jonas Reingold (bass), Krister Jonsson (guitar) Jaime Salazar (drums). This is a new line up for the band. On the previous tour and both CDs Roine Stolt (guitar/vocals) and Zoltan Csorsz (drums) both of the band the Flower Kings had been invloved, but they were not now in the picture. The band had already been rehearsing for a day and a half and were on a roll. I set up and we went straight into playing 6 of the songs. All sounded great to me and felt promising. All the musicians are really top level and the band sounded very together - immediately! At 8 pm, we went into the local town to meet up with Adam and Martin who had flown somewhere else and driven for hours to get to us, and we all went out for a meal and drink - which was a good way to relax and meet everyone properly. It also happened to be Jonas’ birthday. Ahhh.

Fri 22 April
Main rehearsal day. We ran the songs we played yesterday again and others including Yoni on Mars, a track I wrote for Gong, and 21st Century Schizoid Man (King Crimson). I have been playing a version of that with my quartet for a couple of years (as an instrumental) - and which we recorded on the Earth to Ether CD, but this was a different animal altogether - a version more like the original with the vocals, screaming guitar, the famous opening bombastic riff and LOUDER. Very powerful! Jonas went for the John Wetton sound (circa 1973) which sounds like a Boeing 747 - and the whole band flew like a rocket. Much fun. I can’t wait to see what it is all like in front of an audience. Everyone a bit knackered from rehearsing, so chilled out in the evening after Andy cooked for everyone (excellent French burgers). Listened to CDs, and chatted. Lots for Andy to organise - sorting out travel including flights to the USA, maps, equipment etc. As I often am a bandleader, I really appreciate not being one at times like this and try not to add to the extra stresses that being bandleader invloves. It is great just to be able to concentrate on the music and not have to worry about being travel agent, tour manager, accomodation organiser, navigator, psychologist, social worker, crisis management consultant, problem solver, accountant as well as musical director and compere... Early bed as we have a 6 am start tomorrow. Arghh!

Saturday 23 April
6 am up, 7 am leave. Windy mountainous roads to get to Saarlat, where we are playing at a festival. The Tangent are headlining, so we have the pleasure of soundchecking first - at 10.30 am, for a performance at...err...11 pm. We arrive in the town a tad late - at 11.15 am, and soundcheck around midday. The venue is big and the PA and technical support good. This is the first time we get to hear the band on stage which is quite exciting. Sounds good. Good vibe and I get the feeling the gig is going to be fun. Finish soundcheck 1.30 pm, lunch at the venue, then see town and rest for a bit. By 7 pm it is pouring with rain. Venue slowly fills up, mainly with local people I think. I saw some of the other two bands on the bill - Kafka and Knight Area. I preferred Kafka who are an instrumental band - very intense, and some good noises, though I felt the compositions could have been developed a little more. So at 11.45pm we finally go onstage. Because of the need to make space for the equipment of the other bands, Andy’s keyboard set up is at the side of the stage and I end up in the middle by the bass and guitar. Audience is small but very appreciative. We start with the Winning Game (one of my favourite tracks) - with its flutes and woodwind opening, leading into massive dark power chords. Great sound and all goes well. The band sounds huge, the vibe very good and the energy very positive. The rhythm section is fantastic. Jonas and Jaime played together for several years in the Flower Kings and they have a sound that is rocky and heavy when it needs to be but with the responsiveness of a jazz rhythm section and the bounce of dudes that can groove! Jonas is unusual in that he has great technical ability (like, say, John Patitucci), but often uses a sound similar to Chris Squire from the classic 1970’s Yes albums, or the thunderous roar of John Entwistle or John Wetton. It works really well. Jaime (pronounced Hi - mer) is rock solid and never slows down or speeds up - rare in a drummer! Krister, Andy and Sam all sound great too and everything sounds better than the rehearsal and also has the energy of being on a gig - lifting it. My tune Yoni on Mars got a good response and big applause as did the new track 'Forsaken Cathedrals'. We drop Skipping the distance, because of time (the set is still 2 hours 10 mins!). Encore was 21st Century Schizoid Man to dropping jaws and whoops of delight. We do a storming version. One of the promoters came up to me afterwards and said 'Wow...wow...wow...that is all I can say!' Some technical errors, but they do not matter in the overall scheme of things. A great start ot the tour.

Sun 24 April
850 km drive from Saarlat in the South of France to Lille near the Northern French border - on the way to Holland. There was a big van for the equipment and 3 people in the front, and another vehicle for the other 5 people. We were supposed to have a people carrier, but the hire company pulled a fast one and we got a Seat normal sized car - a bit squashed, but hey ho.... So - motorway and more motorway and that was about it for 12 hours. When we arrive (having lost the hotel details and then finding there are four hotels in Lille with the same name!) - we go for a meal at the local Buffalo Bill’s which was a good laugh. Then late hanging out with a couple of beers before bed. Long day - and I do prefer the days we play music! Roll on tomorrow.

Mon 25 April
3 hour drive through Belgium up to Holland to Zandam for a gig at De Kade. Small but appreciative audience - though not that demonstrative. Comments after the gig were very positive though. Cool and large dressing room too. Went for a good Turkish meal before the gig and was served by an attractive young waitress with ridiculous painted on eyebrows. Why on earth do women do that? Smaller stage than last time, so I am at the side between Andy’s keyboards and Sam’s. A more sensible stage layout, though possibly less fun for me as I can’t walk about with the guitarist and bass player. Monitor sound not great. It is so hard to play when you can’t hear well what you are doing. Actually technically it was probably a better gig than the first, but the vibe was less up, so it did not feel quite so good. I think it was OK though.

Tues 26 April
Groggy start then 3 hour drive to Essen in Germany. When we arrived at the venue it had an ominous feel to it - very industrial with a large chimney, lots of big metal pipes and black brick walls. The atmosphere of menace receded as we entered the dressing room to find French cheeses, smoked salmon, fresh coffee, pate and chocolates. Ahh yes. This is what we like. It is amazing what a difference these touches make to a tour. After a photo shoot using the atmospheric props of derelict wooden huts, industrcal sculptures and graffti covered walls, we got stuck into the important matter of a picnic. Then soundchecked. The gig went surprisingly well. Best yet. Smallish but appreciative crowd (have I said that before). I played the game of 'count the women in the audience' - which doesn’t usually take long at a progressive rock gig. I got up to about 6 (and one 'not sure'..) on this gig. In the soundcheck we had rehearsed the track 'Skipping the distance' that Andy said he was not sure if it was working yet. It is a great track and under the threat of the guillotine it triumphed on the gig and was probably the best we have played it. Change in set order so first track now 'the World that we drive through' rather than 'the Winning Game'. It is more of a track that seduces the audience and draws them in rather than one that hits them over the head. I like both and think they both work well as openers in different ways - so glad I dont have to make the decision. Oh yes, before the first number there was some technical hitch so Krister, being a bit of a comedian strikes up with a hammy version on his guitar of Cavatina the classic cheesy tune from the Deerhunter film. Jonas (also a bit of a comedian), joins in singing the melody in his off key comedy trombone voice - so I couldn’t help myself but to join in too (on vocal trombone of course - anything else would be entirely inappropriate!) It was one of those beautiful trombone comedy duet moments - entirely ridicuous, but very amusing and it certainly broke the ice with the audience. Who says the Germans have no sense of humor?! I was annoyed with myself for a couple of technical slips but overall I think there was the best vibe on a gig so far and it was the best played gig yet. Andy seemed happy with the gig too, which was great. The hotel that night was a little surreal. The front entrance was locked and shuttered and we had been told the door at the back would be left open. However there was no door at the back, just some private flats. It was indeed the hotel with no door. We eventually found some side entrance that seemed unconnected and that led to a staircase that led to another door with a small sign saying 'hotel' leading to a corridor leading to ...... the hotel.. Once inside it reminded me of Norman Bates’ place in the film Psycho. Old wooden panels, dusty corridors, no soap, few lights and one bathroom for a whole long corridor. I almost expected to find a corpse in the wardrobe, or at least some stuffed owls...Had a bit of a late mini party then off to bed. Good gig. Good day.

Weds 27 April
3 hour drive to Verviers in Belgium. Venue called the 'Spirit of 66' - after Route 66, not the year 1966. I have played there twice before with Gong, and it is a good gig run by an enthusiastic promoter who is keen on progressive rock music. I first played there in 1999 with Gong (Sunday 2nd May 1999 to be precise). It was my first ever gig with Gong and one of the two gigs we did on that tour with the drummer Pierre Moerlin, before he walked off the tour (a most mysterious and unannounced disappearing act...but that is another story). Now looking back, those days and 2 gigs with Pierre have extra poignancy as Pierre Moerlin died this week unexpectedly in his sleep. He was only 52. Very sad. Where was I? Oh yes. Belgium. Jonas has apparently played at this venue 5 times in the last 9 months - and he lives in Sweden! A friend and Gong fan Luc Pilmeyer came to the gig and it was good to see him. He took some nice photos too. Small but appreciative audience (yawn...) and mainly blokes again - but very keen music fans and a good vibe. Same set list as previous night. After Jonas’ tune 'When Earth meets the Sky' (incidentally a great track from his Karmakanic CD Wheel of Life), we go into an ambient improv - just flute loops and Andy on keys and synths. It is great fun and a very atmospheric moment in the set, but tonight there was some annoying feedback that kept appearing during this - which sounded curiously like a loud out of tune flute. Quite disconcerting. We got it sorted after the track finished and thankfully the rest of the show was feedback free. Yoni on Mars went well The arrangement and the improvisations all really coming together. Tonight I tried something different at the end of the piece when it all fades away. Instead of setting up some cascading harmonies with soprano sax loops, I worked out what might sound interesting backwards - recorded some loops (played forwards) and then reversed them. The microphone also picked up some drums and other instruments so when the loops were reversed, you could hear all sorts of things backwards too. The band gets quieter and quieter at the end so the track then dissolved into this strange sonic goo. I thought it worked well. I wonder if the recording of the gig came out OK? Andy sounded on top form as indeed was everyone. The band is really beginning to take off. Powerful and exciting stuff with some great textures, riffs and beautifully orchestrated passages in the songs too. The new song 'Forsaken Cathedrals' really grooves big time. In the choruses of that track there are four members of the band singing backing vocals including Sam at the top of the harmony. It is a glorious sound. Encore was 21st C Schizoid Man which went down a storm. Unfortuneately it sounded like a bit of a hurricane onstage, so I couldn’t hear what I was playing at all. I think I got away with it though... A second encore was demanded by the crowd so we did 'Uphill from Here' which is a fast track with a sort of new wave energy. It feels quite different from the rest of the set, and I really like it. Andy T was (is?) a big fan of punk and new wave so I guess it all makes sense that some comes out in hiw writing. We stayed in a curious hotel/tennis club (!?) which was very comfortable and well appointed. A welcome contrast to last night’s stay in Norman Bates’ German Twin Peaks Fawlty Towers.

Thurs 28 April
Substage venue in Karlsruhe, Germany. Memories came back of the first ever Gong gig with Chris Taylor which was here (5 May 1999 - in case you were there!). After Pierre disappeared on that tour, the guitarist Mark Hewins called his friend Chris to say 'Are you free for 2 weeks and fancy a tour with Gong? Don’t worry about the music, we’ll teach it to you on the stage!' Amazingly Chris said OK, bought a Gong CD on the way to the airport, learnt it on the plane and was picked up and taken straight to the gig. Mike Howlett (bass) frantically nodded and jumped up and down to show him where drums stopped, started changed time signature and had exposed moments and incredibly we got through the gig. In fact I remember it being a really good gig. It was one of those occasions when everyone’s senses were so heightened and everyone was so wired and totally alert that great things were pulled out of the air from nowhere. This venue is run by a team of four people , 2 of whom we met tonight. They were really wonderful people, helpful, fun, kind and warm. In fact all 8 of us stayed in one of their appartments that night. Most hospitable. Appreciative crowd (yes, yes, there could have been a few more...) who again demanded 2 encores. My onstage monitors were very good tonight so I could really hear what I was playing. It makes such a difference! Joint mini moog, synths/ flute loops track went much better tonight. There was a funny moment at the beginning of Yoni on Mars. Krister starts the track with a very atmospheric echoing guitar texture (cue the seagulls!). He has recently taken to creeping up behind me during my solo on 21C Schizoid Man and saying Boo! very loudly, or putting his head over my shoulder to surprise me. It does make me laugh. Anyway, I decided to get my own back tonight so in this solo intro spot I walked over to him and put my head over the neck of his guitar taking a close look at the fretboard. Not only did he laugh, but he handed me his metal slide (to play slide guitar) and said 'Here you go!' while he carried on playing with his right hand... So I did - even though I have no idea how to play slide guitar. What fun. Actually it made me think what a cool guy Krister is. Many musicians given a solo spot would be very precious about it (and it is fair enough really - you spend your whole life honing your craft and then get a few moments to show what you can do...) and few would be so relaxed and have such a fun attitude to playing in such a circumstance. Great guy - and a seriously good guitar player. He can really rock but has great jazz chops and is adventurous sonically too. The two encores tore the roof off - another fantastic gig. I hope this one got recorded too.

Friday 29 April
Up at 8 am, out by 9 am. Frankfurt airport for noon and 2.30 pm plane to Heathrow, London (2 hours) then another plane to Philadelphia, USA (7 hours). Usual concerns about whether musical instruments will be allowed as hand luggage or not. A couple of close calls, but we all got through OK. Finally arrived in Philadelphia at about midnight (7 pm local time), to be met by ....yes....ahem...a stretched limousine. The glamour! The glamour! However the limo did not have enough luggage room for the suitcases and instruments - groan. So the driver called another taxi and we put cases and instruments in that. Given the choice of travelling in a stretched limo or bog standard cab, we all wanted the limo, so the cab driver was told simply to follow the limo to the hotel. So far so good....However, 20 mins later the limo stopped and the driver mentioned that the cab - with the cases and instruments - was no longer behind us. Was any of us in the cab? - no. Did we have his mobile number ?- no. Did we note his licence number or plate? - no. Did we know his name? - no. Did he know where to go? - we didn’t know. Name of cab company? Andy thought he might remember it.....Arghhh! All our gear - lost forever. We had been sooooo stupid. In hindsight of course one of us should have gone in the cab - but ,well...we hadn’t. And we’d come all this way - to possibly lose everything. Oh my god! A cold chill quickly swept over all of us. Jovial banter ceased as we plunged into the abyss of gloom. The limo driver made some calls but no joy. We got to the hotel and tried to think what to do. The limo driver said he’d sort it and drove off into Philadelphia. For 2 hours no news. Then we decided to call the police who came pretty quickly. At roughly the same time the limo driver called to say he’d found the guy, got the gear and was bringing it back to us. Thank heavens. Big big relief all round. So we went to the bar to celebrate. Finally about 2 am local time (so about 8 am in our body clocks), we crashed out. Nice hotel by the way. Tomorrow is a day off. Hurrah!

Sat 30 April.
Woke up at not sure what time (in any of the 3 time zones my head was in). Went to breakfast - which was pleasingly open till 11.30 am (it makes me laugh when British B+Bs say breakfast is anytime you like and when you reply 'really' they say yes anytime from 7.30 to 8.15am...!) Great American breakfast - and enough food to last me till dinner time. Then went to the venue to see the band Kino. They are a new prog band with members of It Bites, Marillion and Arena in. They played a good set, but my favourite songs were the two It Bites songs they played - Plastic Dreamer and Kiss Like Judas. It Bites were one of my favourite bands of the 25 years (I can’t believe 1980 was 25 years ago!!) and it was cool to meet Bob Dalton the drummer too. Lovely chap. I met bassist Pete Trewavas too who is also a top bloke. The venue for the festival is called the Colonnial and it is in Phoenixville just outside Philadelphia.It is famous for being featured in the classic film 'The Blob' - and there is Blob memorabillia (!) around the place. They even have a 'Blobfest' there! Then helped Andy and Sam on the merchandise stall, which was fun as it meant meeting fans and other people involved in the festival, many who knew my work with the Tangent, with Gong, No Man, Porcupine Tree, Cipher etc. That evening caught the set by Magenta who were impressive. They are a new progressive band from South Wales fronted by a talented singer Christina who has a beautiful voice and charismatic stage presence. Some interesting material and a good guitarist too. They got a great reception - which was well deserved. There was a jam session in the hotel from 12 till 2 am which was an interesting prospect. I am used to jazz jam sessions where there is a common repertoire of jazz standards, but a jam at a prog rock festival?! Would people get up and shout 'OK Let’s do Close to the Edge in Bb, or the Lamb Lies down on Broadway in Ab??' I got up and did some things with Tangent people - A funky So What, a blues and more interestingly an unrehearsed duet version of Still Life by Van der Graaf Generator with Andy T (keys+vox/flute). It seemed to go down pretty well and I thought it was cool too. For me the best bit of the evening was when of the stage technicians got up and sang 'Behind Blue Eyes' (Gawd bless the ‘Ooo!) - which the entire room sang along to. Then Tom , one of the two festival organisers ran up to the drums just in time to reach the kit and play perfectly all the Keith Moon drum breaks in the track before the song returns to just voice and acoustic guitar. It was a stroke of genius and I take my hat off to the man. Chatted to punters and Christina from Magenta and late to bed again after a cool day.

Sun 1 May
Gig day.Woke up with a headache and knackered, so I thought the best plan for the day was to adopt zombie mode i.e. do nothing, rest, watch T.V. eat and save my energy for the gig - after all - that is what I was here for. So back to bed till lunchtime, then went out to sample the nearby Outback diner where the steak was the size of a large brick. Pretty good too. The dessert was even better - a sort of icecreamchocolatefudgecreamstrawberrynutexplosion...Phwoar!! The service was so cheery too. It is one of the big differences between the US and the UK. In the US waitresses come to your table with a big smile and seem so excited by the specials of the day and so keen to please. In the UK service often starts with that 'I really don’t want to be here'look, a grunt, and if you want to know what the specials are you get an irritated sigh and a nod towards some grotty blackboard in the corner with some scribble on it you can’t read. Went to the venue at 7 pm for the soundcheck which was a bit rushed but the stage technicians were very helpful. The gig went down a storm - the audience seemed to absolutely love it. We were keen for it to go well and all put a lot into it. We had to drop three numbers from the set as the show need to be 2 hours including encores. So out went When earth meets the sky, Yoni on Mars and Uphill from Here. Andy was very funny in his between song chat and announcements - hilarious in fact. Very self deprecating, down to earth and whatever the complete opposite of pompous is, that is how he was! The audience laughed a lot and I think it helped create a warm vibe between the band and audience. As hoped, when we did 21C Schizoid Man for the encore, the place erupted and everyone went crazy. We played it pretty well I think and it made a great ending to what has been a fantastic tour. After the show people congregated in the hotel bar and it was great to chat with musicians from other bands and members of the audience. Went to bed later than planned and tomorrow is the long haul back to Blighty. Everyone’s spirits are high and I think we are all looking forward to future gigs together and making a new Tangent album later this year. All in all it has been a really great tour. So...onwards and upwards!