26th July Blog update

My weeks don’t really get much wilder than during the Sliotar tours. I started the week with a long and sweaty trip from Italy to the Czech republic, where we have been playing shows all week. It has been a fantastic tour. Every show has been a success, and it feels bit surreal that Monday night I’ll be back home again. But that’s just how the life goes 🙂

It’s on these tours you see the months and sometimes even years of hard work paying off. And at the end of the day, it is the chance to play your music at these great shows that makes it all worth our while.

As I said last week, traveling really broadens your mind 😉 So this week I learned a lot:

1. One of the greatest lessons I learned was during our show in Prague. I learned that there is more juice in me than I thought. We played with the wonderful Hakka Muggies and also Skiltron were supposed to be there. But the road got the best of them, and they could not make it in the end. So when we started our set with Sliotar, I wanted to make sure the people will remember the night as a great night, not a night that one band canceled. I dug deep, and so did my band mates. It ended up being a sweaty and wild show I will not forget for a long time!

2. I once again learned to appreciate the importance of good vehicle when you are on tour. We made it to every gig, Skiltron didn’t… Need I say more? The thing is, what happened to them, could happen to anyone, and as a musician I know there is nothing worse than having to cancel a gig. But you are asking trouble if you travel all across Europe driving long hours in an old 1980’s transit van.

3. I realised this tour going little bit smoother than in the past, which made me look at myself and wonder how much of the little “issues” that got on to my nerves in the past tours might have been partly to do with my drinking.

4. I got reminded that I love touring. It is tiring, exhausting, missing home is a killer, but still I love the chance to play in front of hundreds, even thousands of people night after night. It is my passion.

5. Mornings on the road without hangover are much easier!

6. The good times at night, after show parties, drinks at the bar (even if it’s just fizzy water) are as much, if not even more fun when you are not drinking.

That’s just the big ones 🙂 Now on to this weeks posts:

This weeks song “Annie’s Lament” looks in to getting over the loss of a loved one, and the need for closure. Check it out here:

Annie’s lament

I have been completely blown away by the love we get from our audience during this tour. And it makes me feel humble. This got me thinking about the importance of respecting your audience. Read all about it here:

Respect the audience

It is extremely important to know who you are as an artist:

Quick tip 141 Who are you as an artist?

I continued Vlogging this week, and you guys seem to be liking these tour updates 🙂

Vlog 3. Heat wave in Italy

I see it too often, artist spending crazy amount on recording, when they have no idea how to make the money back:

 Quick tip 142 Work within your means

Here’s another Vlog. This is me walking around Bundan Celtic festival:

Vlog 4. Walking around Bundan

Remember when I talked about our show in Prague at the beginning of this blog post? This taught me, that you never know your limits until you really push your self:

Quick tip 143 Push yourself

Another tour update, this is from Plzen:

Vlog 5. Plzen

Never underestimate the importance of rehydrating your self while on tour. And water is your only friend:

Quick tip 144 Touring tips

Allowing time for every journey, venue load in, sound check or airport checking is extremely important while on tour:

Quick tip 145 Touring tips 2.

This tour really reminded me how much work we have put into building a successful relationships with Sliotar of the years with festival and venue organisers:

Relationships are the key to successful touring

So that wraps up another busy week. I must admit this week there were times when I was doubtful If I could get all of the blog post out in time. But once again I got reminded what we are capable if we only push our selves a little bit more. Thank you once again for sharing the journey with me 🙂 It’s been a great week. Talk to you more soon 🙂

J.P.

The author J.P. Kallio is a singer songwriter
To get EIGHT of his songs for free go HERE