7 At the Show

“Leave rock-star attitudes at home and listen to the in-house engineers; it’s their job to help you. And don’t overplay.”

—Neil Campbell, promoter

Remember me telling you that I used to be in bands myself? Well, a couple of those bands did quite well, and one in particular had a great manager who got us onto some pretty impressive opening slots.

I will never forget the weeks of anticipation following the announcement that we had one of these fantastic opening shows. My band mates and I spent hours and hours re-recording our cassette backing tracks, discussing our stage moves, and posing in the rehearsal room. (Hey, it was the ’80s.) The sense of excitement and possibility filled my every waking hour: “We are opening up for [insert name of über-selling indie/alternative band here]. The crowd will love us, and we are going to get signed to MegaGlobal Records for a million quid.” All I could think about was a huge stage to perform on and a room full of people who were ready to be entertained and impressed.