Download 2023 - Day 4 - Sunday

This day was the hottest of all days, there was no breeze and next to no shade so it felt like we were all slowly cooking. I saw so many people suffering from heat stroke and there was people round them trying to help them. People were sitting anywhere they could that was shaded including in front of food vans, I just wish there had been more places that were shaded for people to just sit in out of the sun.

We got to the gates just before they opened and as soon as I got through, I was off to the second stage. There was no way I wasn't going to have front row for Blind Channel lol. Fran said she has never seen me move so quickly lol.

We found my friends Luna and Carman and we camped out in the front row. It was so hot that while we were waiting, Fran decided to go and find some shade instead of seeing Blind Channel but she did get to see Bloodywood instead so she still got to see a great band.

Blind Channel
As usually, my amazing Finnish lads were absolutely brilliant. They came out singing their newest song at the time, Happy Doomsday, which had been released a few weeks before the festival. Hearing the new song live was amazing!

Seeing them at a festival definitely has a different feel to a gig, I was further away from the stage for starters hahaha. There was a lot more people, it was great getting to see so many people coming to see them and everyone having a brilliant time. I loved every minute and felt like I was taking everything in as much as possible as I didn't have another gig booked to see them at all as I was waiting for dates.

We went in search of Fran but couldn't find her and it was hotter than the deepest, hottest corners of hell so we went into one of the marketplace bars that had a tent to sit in the shade. Fran found us and said she wanted to go home, the heat was getting too much for her, if there had been more shade then it would have been better for everyone. There was no wind either, at least a bit of wind would have cooled us down a little.

We chilled out in the bar for a little while as none of us had another band to watch for a while. We saw a few people being brought in with heat stroke and helped by everyone around them. One young girl got brought in near us so we helped as much as could. I think it's brilliant that everyone was helping each other, no one asked for help, people just stepped up and did their bit. Love it!

We went out to the walled walk through that runs from the day ticket entrance to the main stage, the walls provided a little bit of shade and there was less foot traffic so we laid down on the grass and had a little nap.

I Prevail
I'd seen these guys in March so it was nice to see them again on a much larger scale. They put on a brilliant show and everyone was really getting into them. They did their version of System Of A Down's Chop Suey which sounded awesome.

This is when things started to turn for the worst. I was feeling light headed, sick and really tired. Luna and Carmen went to watch a band so I found some shade to lay down in and kept passing out. I felt like I just closed my eyes but whenever I opened my eyes again and looked at my phone for the time, I'd find out that I had actually been out of it for a while. That's when I decided that I should head home before I pass out and don't wake up again until the end of the night. As much as it pained me to not get to see Slipknot, I knew that if I had stayed, I would have passed out in a corner and missed them anyway. Just like in 2003 when I was at Download and missed Iron Maiden because I passed out from heat stroke.

I messages Luna and Carmen to let them know, and Sean to come get me and then started walking out to the main road.

Download 2023 was an awesome festival with some of the most amazing bands. It's definitely changed since the first one in 2003, it has grown massively and that's all down to the hard work of the organisers and their teams, and the fantastic fans, both new and die-hard fans that return year after year. I can't wait to see what they do next.

***Originally posted on my music blog Suzy's Musical World

Download 2023 - Day 3 - Saturday

Today felt a little bit weird to be honest, normally today would be the last day of the festival as it's the third day but knowing that there was still one more day after this was, like I said, a bit weird.

As soon as got to Donington, we went straight to the Dogtooth stage as I really wanted to get front row for Antisaint and lucky enough, we walked right up to the front and got a good spot. Everyone else seemed to turn up about 10 minutes after us so we definitely timed that well haha.

Antisaint

These guys seriously blew the roof off of the Dogtooth Stage. From start to finish they had amazing energy and performed every song to perfection. I've never seen these guys live before but I have been listening to them for a little while so was looking forward to hearing them live. I wish they had had a longer set so I could of heard more.

Ice Nine Kills

Absolutely loved INK's set, countless theatrical deaths including the Download Dog but the best thing is that they performed Hip To Be Scared, the American Nightmare, the Shower Scene AND Welcome to Horrorwood. I loved every minute of this set. It amazes me how much effort the band put into their stage performance, each song is a different mood, a new scene and a slight costume change. There's not many bands that give their fans a top notch visual experience as well as a musical one.

Me and Fran had a few hours chill time so we walked around the stalls to see what there was and pitched up our chairs against one of the shaded walls to get out of the sun for a little while while Clutch were on stage. I'm not a fan of Clutch so didn't pay a huge amount of attention to them but they sounded really good and the crowd was really getting into them.

I didn't know this beforehand but there were more barriers than usually to separate the crowd to prevent people from getting crushed. It looked brilliant and obviously worked a treat. At first, I thought the crowd section down the front was for VIPs or something like that so went up to have a chat to a security guard who said anyone can go in there but they aren't allowed to take chairs. This delighted me so I went through for a look around, it may not have been for VIPs but it felt like it haha.

Disturbed

Something happened during this set that I wasn't expecting, I was loving the set, every song sounded amazing, and then I heard the intro to Sound Of Silence. The crowd started to go quiet as we all realised what song it was. I got my phone out as soon as I realised so that I could film it, there was no way I wasn't going to film this song, and that's when it happened. As David Draiman started to sing, I started to cry. The words to the song seemed more powerful being performed live and hearing all of those thousands of people singing along was just unbelievable and really moving.

We weren't planning on sticking around for Metallica so we started walking out towards the road for my husband to pick us up. 

***Originally posted on my music blog Suzy's Musical World

Download 2023 - Day 2 - Friday

Woke up to find that I had some serious red and white tan marks from yesterday haha. Didn't realise it was that bad so made sure I put on plenty of sun cream and kept reapplying throughout the day so it didn't get worse.

We didn't really have many bands to see on this day but we decided to go in after lunch to chill out in the sun and see some bands that we didn't know.

We also decided that we were going to try and spend no money at all while we were in Download so we took sandwiches, crisps and my 1.6 litre plastic bottle to keep us going. It was weird not going to any of the food vans for something to eat or drink but we managed it and we were quite surprised that it was possible to actually spend nothing in a day at a festival.

Nova Twins
I will be honest, never heard anything these guys had gone before but they were brilliant! They're songs were quite catchy and they put on a good show. I wouldn't mind seeing them live again. I really liked their song "Taxi", it's quite catchy and got a good base line to it so it's good to dance to.

Hot Milk
I had heard some good things about this band but hadn't really listened to them before Download. I actually thought they were American and loved it so much when the singer, Hannah, said they were from Manchester and then called the crowd "Cheeky Fockers" haha. I loved them so much. They had such a good vibe to them, it was hard to not pay attention to them. I really really loved their song "Bad Influence", I really got into it and who doesn't like a song that says "fuck all your friends" haha. Really looking forward to seeing what these guys do next.

Pendulum
The vibe while Pendulum was on stage was amazing! Everyone was really getting into the songs and having a dance around from the second the band came out on stage and the crowd didn't stop moving until the end of the set. Hearing "Propane Nightmares" and "Blood Sugar" being performed live was just so mind blowing and the crowds reaction to "Blood Sugar" was like electricity going through everyone and powering us all. It was great to see Matthew Tuck from Bullet From My Valentine to perform Halo with them as well, I wasn't expecting that.

Within Temptation
It has been a very long time since I saw Within Temptation live and I am so happy to see that they are still putting on an amazing performance. We didn't get to see the whole of their set as we were watching Pendulum and then trying to walk round to Opus Stage took a little while as it seemed most people had the same idea.

Evanescence
My mind was 1000% blown away by Evanescence. I haven't seen them since they were last at Download in 2007 and I love that they are still mind blowing. Hearing Amy's beautiful voice captivated me and every person in the crowd, it's like she can hypnotise people with her voice. Hearing her sing My Immortal was quite emotional for me, I wasn't expecting that at all. I loved that the crowd sang Paul McCoy's parts in the song in "Bring Me To Life", everyone was singing at the top of their lungs and it was just amazing to be part of that.

***Originally posted on my music blog Suzy's Musical World

Download 2023 - Day 1 - Thursday

Today was definitely an experience, there was a lot of traffic going to Download again as there was still people turning up for camping. We got dropped off near the day ticket entrance, there was lots of people but it didn't take us long to get through once the gates opened. We got Fran's wristband and then did the short walk round to the arena.

I've never been at Download so early before so it was weird to see it so empty before everyone arrived. It was quite nice to pick out a nice spot to see the main stage as we had a while before there was a band we really wanted to see.

I'd selected to get the 20th anniversary packet with the program, lanyard and pin and seeing as I wanted to be able to check the set times without having to keep checking the app, I decided to get in the queue for click and collect. 2 hours later after trying to navigate the fact that there was 3 queues for click and collect, 2 members of staff serving people and my skin burning in the sun shine, I had my pack and I could go back to my poor sister who had been left on her own while I was in the queue.

I found my friends Luna and Carmen in time for us all to go and watch Punk Rock Factory. These girls are my Blind Channel sisters, we have been to a lot of gigs and always have the best time together.

Carmen had the best stood ever! It was a telescopic stool that collapses down into a nice little portable case that's easy to carry. I saw a few people with them, it's a lot easier to carry round with you than a camping chair but the only thing that would put me off is that it doesn't have a back to lean back on.

Punk Rock Factory

These guys were amazing! I haven't seen them before and they were so much fun, they started off singing the Power Rangers theme song and they ever had people dressed up as Power Rangers on the stage!! My favourites that they played were "Under The Sea", "You're Welcome", "Mamma Mia", "We Don't Talk About Bruno", "Spongbob" and "Pokemon". I loved the happy party vibe that everyone had for this set, everyone was just having such a good time dancing around and singing at the top of their lungs. One thing I love about this band is the Disney covers they do, even if you have never heard one of their songs, everyone knows the words because we have all seen the films.

Halestorm

I missed the beginning of the set because of seeing Punk Rock Factory and then needing to get something to eat but Halestorm sounded awesome on the main stage. I only know a few songs but they put on an awesome performance. I heard them play "Back From The Dead" and "The Steeple" which were amazing to hear live.

Alter Bridge

OMG Alter Bridge were amazing!!! I will admit that I didn't know all of the songs that they played as I'm not a die-hard fan but they played 2 of my favourites which are "Black Bird" and "Metalingus" and hearing them live was just out of this world. Myles said at one point that he has been at Download quite a few times now with different projects and he's now at the point that he feels so comfortable playing at the festival because it feels like we are all family. I just love this so much because it is true, everyone is just so lovely to each other, we are all there for the same reasons and that is to listen to our favourite bands. We don't feel the need to fight or be dicks to each other, we dance and sing together. Hearing Myles' golden voice ringing out over the crowd was just out of this world. His voice is one of a kind and

While we were waiting for Metallica to come, a guy goes to walk in front of us but stops, he has 4 pints in one of those cardboard trays and it looks like the tray was going to fall apart. I get up and agree to help him take his drinks to his friends as there was no way the poor lad was going to make it. He took 2 pints, I took 2 and we started making our way through the crowd. He couldn't find his friends so he phones his friend Lee only to find out that his friend had gone off to the toilets. So, to keep the story short, I ended up adopting this lad (his name is Gareth), who came with me to find Fran and Carmen as Metallica started and I ended up having Lee's pints. It was quite good cider so wasn't going to complain haha.

Ok, I'm going to admit something that some of you won't like....... I'm not a fan of Metallica. Yes, yes, how dare I and all that haha. I repect them as a band as there is no doubt that their contribution to the music industry hasn't been huge but I'm just not into them. I like some of their songs obvisiously, there's not a chance that there are many people who don't know the intro and words to "Master Of Puppets" or "Sad But True", "Nothing Else Matters", "For Whom The Bells Tolls" or even "Enter Sandman".

We stayed for about an hour and Metallica hadn't played anything that we knew so we decided to leave. This kicked us in the arse though because as I was getting changed to get into bed, I heard "Master Of Puppets" as clear as day haha. I couldn't believe how clear I could hear it and all from the comfort of my bed.

***Originally posted on my music blog Suzy's Musical World

Suzy's Festival Survival Guide

With festival season coming in hard and fast, I thought I would put together a little guide for anyone who was heading off to their first festival.

Read the festival rules.

Don't be that person standing at the front of the queue complaining because staff are taking something off of you that you shouldn't have. Most festivals don't allow you to take in any food or drink and they usually have a limit on the size of bag you can take in. Always check the festival website to check their rules.

Check the weather forecast.

The last thing you need is to wear the wrong type of clothes at a festival as there isn't anywhere for you to change unless you go back to your tent if you are camping. You don't want to end up missing your favourite band because you got heat stroke and end up in the medical unit like I did twice because I didn't learn the first time. I passed out 10 minutes before Iron Maiden came on stage at Download 2003 and then in 2007 when I was pulled out the crowd before Korn took to the stage because I felt really light headed and then passed out. Not done it again since though so I did finally learn from my mistakes haha.

Be prepared to spend a lot of money on food and drink.

The sooner you realise that you are going to spend upwards of £6 a pint at a festival, the sooner you won't begrudge buying anything. Little bottles of fizzy or water are sometimes £3 or more and cans can up £2 or more. There is a huge range of food available at festivals but it can be expensive so take your time to have a look around before buying food. If you are going to Download, it is worth opening a Barcleys bank account to get the slightly cheaper prices. If you don't drink alcohol, look out for stalls that do deals on drinks, I've seen a Pepsi stall before that did £4 for a pint of Pepsi and then £3 if you went back with the same cup.

Take a fold up poncho

If it rains, you have something to keep you dry, if it doesn't rain, you have something to put on the ground so your backside doesn't get dirty. Win win

Don't automatically think you will get signal.

I have found that sometimes at festivals, I have had a brilliant signal and then others I have had nothing. Remember to tell people who may try to call you while you are there, it will be easier if they message you so you can call them back once you have signal.

Arrange Meeting Points

If you are going with a group of people and you know you aren't all going to see the same bands all day, arrange a meeting place for the bands you are going to see together so that you don't spend half your time trying to find each other. You could pick one of the food trucks, a bar, the sound desk for the stage you are going to, anywhere that you will all remember and make sure you set a time as well. This is great just in case you are at a festival with no or little signal.

Plan your day.

Make sure you know what time your favourite bands are on stage so that you don't miss them. Most festivals have an app where you can pick your favourite bands that are playing and it will tell you when they are going to be on stage. They also send you a notification when they are about to start their set.

Take a camping chair

If you are ok with getting up and down from the ground or standing around for ages then this doesn't apply to you but if you aren't ok with it, take a camping chair. It's so much more comfy to be able to sit in a camping chair, plus, they have drinks holders so you don't have to keep holding your drink. Another win win

Get a power bank

If you are like me and like taking lots of videos and photos, your battery is going to go down quickly, so invest in a power bank so that you can keep your phone topped up throughout the day and be able to capture your special and fun festival moments.

Take sun cream

As most festivals are in the summer months, there is a very good chance that it is going to be sunny and hot, make sure you have sun cream so you don't get sunburnt. I like getting the small bottles of sun cream spray as it fits nicely into my bag and I prefer spray as it's easier to apply.

Drink plenty of water

I'm not saying to just drink water, although that would be the healthy option, I'm saying that you need to drink some water to stay hydrated. Drinking alcohol is fine but every now and then have some water. No one wants sun stroke. To save some money, take an empty bottle that you can fill up with water at the water stations. There are some great collapsible bottles you can buy so they don't take up to much room in your bag when you don't have water in it.

Know how you are getting there

Seems like a simple one but not fully knowing has caught me out before. I got a weekend parking pass for Download in 2022 thinking the car park would be close but it wasn't. It took us an hour and a half to walk from the car to the arena, that was not fun and it was the last time we parked that weekend. The rest of the time, we got a taxi to and from the festival because the walk from the drop off point was only a half hour walk. There are separate car parks for camping and arena only so make sure you check the festival website to know which one you need to go to.

Take wet wipes

At festivals it can be dusty so having wet wipes can be quite refreshing. Plus, if like me you are a messy eater, it's good to have one to clean up haha. There are some great small wet wipe packs you can get for festivals that are super handy and are small enough that they don't take up too much room in your bag.

Check out the marketplace

I have found some serious bargains in the marketplace at festivals, like my alien and predator rings that I think you will agree are super frigging awesome!! There is some things that can be expensive but there is some seriously good stuff too. It always amazes me what you can buy in the marketplace so take your time to walk around and I am sure you will find some bargains.

Ask people that have been before

People that have been to the festival you want to go to are your best source of information. They will be able to tell you things that caught them out and if there is an alternative. Some festivals have a forum that you can join and you will be able to go through loads of threads of questions, tips and general festival chat.

Be yourself

A festival is the perfect time to be who you really are. I love going to Download and seeing everyone dressed to the extreme because they look so amazing! The outfits and make-up are outstanding and I am so jealous because I don't think I will ever have those make-up skills. Wear what you want, be as crazy as you want, just don't be a dick haha.

And last but not least.... Have an awesome time 😀

My Fan Diary Seeing Blind Channel In Portsmouth, Bristol and Birmingham - March 2023

 **Warning, my inner fangirl comes out a lot in this post, especially when the drummer Tommi is involved. Sorry, not sorry haha.

I got tickets to these gigs way back in April 2022 when it was just a rumour that Blind Channel would be supporting I Prevail on their tour. A lot of the gigs were either sold out or had a low ticket warning so me and Roxxi got what we could which was Portsmouth, Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester, Nottingham and London.

So for me, this part of the tour started at 4:30pm on Thursday the 16th of March when I finished work. I got straight into my car and drove to Portsmouth as I just wanted to get there and chill out the day before the gig. Although I didn't do much chilling out because I got to the hotel and found out that Blind Channel were staying in the same hotel. Que a bit of fangirling which was me trying to look cool but freaking out on the inside. I went up to my room, got changed and heading down to the bar where I sat working on my website while waiting for one of them to go to the bar so I could buy them a drink (which didn't happen while I was there).

Friday the 17th of March - Portsmouth
The next day I got up and started ironing the t-shirt transfers that I had got printed for my vests for the gig, only to find out that they were complete and utter shite. I ironed them on 3 times, even timed myself to make sure I did it for the right amount of time and they still peeled off. This led to me calling round to every t-shirt printing shop in Portsmouth until I got through to Vintage Pig who saved the day. The shop was only a 10 minute drive away so I jumped in my car and went to have a chat with Chris who printed 2 vests with my Blind Channel designs and then put my logo on the back of my cardigan.

What also didn't help my anxiety levels was that I found out one of the other guests had their car broken into in the night and the staff member's response was "it happens every couple of days". This led me to re-parking my car where it could easily be seen from windows and my room.

I went back to the hotel and my fellow gig buddies turned up. We had had a little catch up, went to the venue (Portsmouth Guildhall), which was only a few minute walk away from the hotel, thank goodness.

We were the first ones to queue for the gig from about 12:30pm, at the surprise of the venue staff who wasn't expecting anyone for hours. We were a little confused at first as the Guildhall is a huge public building which has offices in it so we were unsure on where to queue. The gig security staff were soon there putting out the railings for the queue and they helped us out with where we needed to go. There was one guy called Paul who took me inside the venue to show me where I needed to go to get into the hall because I said I had never been there before. He was lovely, every venue needs a Paul.

Before we knew it, it was time for the doors to open. We got our tickets scanned, bags checked and then made our way (we ran) into the hall to get front row. The only place I wanted to be was in front of Tommi's drums so that is where I headed haha.

I was quite happy to hear the lead up set list still had some super classic songs like Linkin Park - One Step Closer, Slipknot - Before I Forget but two new ones, Neil Diamond - Sweet Caroline and the beginning of Ring Of Fire.

I must admit that I didn't quite realise how excited I was to see Blind Channel again, the last time I saw them was 6 months before this gig and I went a little bit crazy when they came out haha.

The set was amazing! It was a short 30 minutes that was over way too soon but I loved every minutes of it. This gig was the first time I heard their single "Flatline" that the lads had released shortly before this tour. They have this little (sort of) dance routine that they do to the song. It's basically thumping your chest to the beat and headbanging but straight after the 5th thump, you do a flatline with your arm across your chest. This video will explain better haha.

I had missed their gig energy, no matter how many gigs these lads do, they are still going crazy on stage, jumping and dancing around. It's infectious and you can feel it go through you like electricity. Believe me, the amount I move at their gig is no where near the amount I move around in real life in about 3 days haha.

What made it that bit extra special was that the bass player, Olli, was throwing his guitar picks out into the crowd at the end of the show and I got one! Well, it flew over Roxxi's head, bounced off the chest of the guy behind her, landed on the floor and got picked up by the girl next to Roxxi. Lucky enough, she was the girl we had got talking to and we had agreed to let her go in our places at the front when Blind Channel had finished their set so she gave the pick to me.

Blind Channel was one of the support bands and was on first so as soon as they left the stage, we pulled the girl who gave me Olli's pick and her friends in front of us and then made our way through the crowd. Joel, Blind Channel's singer, had said they were coming out to the merch stand so we went there and camped out in the lobby until Niko and Aleksi from Blind Channel came out towards the end of I Prevail's set.

I loved this as there wasn't many fans and we all got to have a nice chat and a picture with each of the lads.

I have a "Don't Fix Me" tattoo on my left arm and in order to get it finished, I decided that I was going to ask each member of the band to write a line from the song, sign it and then I would get those tattooed around the one I already have. I had all the lines printed out so that they just had to pick which line they wanted to write. Niko did "I don't need your medication, no" and Aleksi did "You can keep your love and roses".

Saturday the 18th of March - Otherwise Known As "Did That Just Happen Day" - Bristol
The craziness of this day still makes me stop and wonder if it actually happened sometimes. It started off as a normal gig day. Me and Roxxi got up, got dressed, went for a Wetherspoons breakfast with Flo and then we all got in my car to drive to Bristol.

Just so you know, unless I absolutely have to, I will never drive in Bristol again. Just frigging no.

We got checked into our hotel and then went to the venue which on this day was O2 Bristol. We found our "Paul" for this venue who was a lovely lad called Mags. If you go to the O2 in Bristol, say hi to him, he is honestly amazing.

Our friends Luna and Carman were already there in the priority queue, well, they were the queue. We joined them and then they went to check into their hotel and get something to eat.

This was the first time I had been to an O2 venue and had to queue so wasn't 100% on the whole priority and general admission thing. When I went on the Sick And Dangerous Tour, I had VIP tickets for the gigs that were at O2 venues so was in a separate queue all together for those gigs. Carman and Flo are on O2 and can get 3 people each in with them so we were all covered to get in first and together.

Any hoooo. We are sitting outside the venue, Roxxi goes to the loo in the pub opposite and when she comes back, she says she saw Blind Channel in the pub near the ladies loos. After kicking myself for not being brave enough to buy them drinks in Portsmouth at the hotel, I decide I'm going to buy them some shots. So I pulled up my big girl pants, walked in the pub, find out exactly where they are sitting and then order tequila and sambuca shots at the bar. I couldn't quite see who was sat at the table so I got 10 shots, figured this would be enough and someone wasn't going to complain about having to have more than 1 shot haha. The barmaid put them all on a small tray thank goodness and I slowly walked round to their table. I'm going to be completely honest, I saw Niko and Aleksi as they were on my left as I put the tray down, I saw Tommi who looked me right in the eyes and I have absolutely no idea who else was at the table because I just kept looking at him. I did stay calm though, no idea how much I did. I said "I wanted to do this the other night in the hotel but didn't, these are for you guys, thank you so much for being awesome, love you guys". I blew them (Tommi) a big kiss, they said thank you, I walked away. Not going to lie, my legs felt like jelly and I flopped onto the floor as soon as I got back in the queue but felt proud of myself haha.

Ok, so that was thing 1 of "Did That Just Happen Day". Thing 2 was me and Roxxi needing the loo some time later, walking into the pub and the band were still there, still sat next to the ladies loos. This was never going to not look like us stalking them but we did genuinely want to go to the loo. In the queue for said loo, a girl came up behind us and said "can I go in front of you, I'm in the queue for the gig over the road". Which we replied, "so are we". She then said "but I'm in the priority queue", and can you guess our reply?...... "so are we". Never have I heard a gig queue being used as an excuse to cut into a toilet queue before. Just as we were going into the cubicles, this girl says "oh, my boyfriend just said they are letting people in". I have never gone for a wee so quick in my whole life!!! We rushed outside only to find out that the venue were just getting people to line up that needed disabled access as they go in before priority and general admission. So there was no need to rush afterall.

When we did get let into the venue, we were in the front row again and I was right in front of Tommi....again..

Thing 3 of "Did That Just Happen Day". Flo had been saying for ages that she wanted one of Olli's picks and she had even made a sign to hold up asking for one. She had been trying to get Olli to see her sign during the gig but he kept looking in the wrong direction. So (que Wonder Woman music), I grab her sign, wave at Olli to get him to look at me and he sees the sign. The cheeky sod grins at me but doesn't move so I do prayer hands at him, he walks to his mic stand, takes out one of his picks from the stand and throws it to me. Unfortunately it landed on the floor, but Olli tapped the security guy on the shoulder who was in front of him asking to pick it up and give it to me. The lovely security guy gives me the pick and I give it to Flo who was super duper happy.

Thing 4 of "Did That Just Happen Day". The lads didn't say they were going to come out to merch so we waited around a little and then saw some of them walking out to their bus. We thought they weren't coming out so we went to the pub, had a drink and a sing song before I turn round and see Niko, Olli and Aleksi walking back into the venue. We rushed out to go back in the venue, I was the first one there and I explained to the security guard that 3 members of my favourite band had just walked in and I wanted to meet them. At first he said no because you can't go back into a venue once you leave but then a supervisor came along and said that only I could go in. Only thing was, when I got back in and looked around at merch, the lads were nowhere to be seen. I waited and lucky enough, they appeared.

I talked to Olli about my "Don't Fix Me" tattoo and he picked the line "I thought f*ck it, it's just rock and roll".

Because my friends were all outside waiting for the lads, I told them that there was people outside waiting for them and they said they would stop on the way back to the bus to speak to them....and they did!

Thing 5 of "Did That Just Happen Day". We were all standing around in groups talking when Niko said to us "I'm going to go and get something to eat, you guys needs to work out what bar we are going to. I'll be back in 30 minutes". Me, Flo, Roxxi, Luna and Carman wasn't sure if he was joking or not but decided we would take him to a Wetherspoons, can't get more English than a Wetherspoons right? We are all standing there looking at Google Maps when Niko cames back off the bus about 10 minutes later and says "they had pizza on the bus, so where are we going?" This led to a night of shots, dancing to Abba, telling Niko how much we love him, Niko telling us how much he loves the Wetherspoons app, me telling Niko that his girlfriend is fit, everyone talking random shite and having the most amazing time haha. It was amazing. We managed to get him onto the tour bus 10 minutes before it left to drive to Birmingham, he wasn't in the best of conditions but we all had a great time so it was worth it.

Sunday 19th of March - Birmingham
Waking up and remembering the night before was so frigging weird. There was a lot of chatter in the car on the way to Birmingham haha.

I had booked us into an Ibis hotel that was less than a minute walk from the venue, which was another O2 venue. In fact, we could see the hotel if we stood on the pavement outside the venue, it was that close.

We got checked in and walked round to get into the queue which was 2 people. There wasn't any set queues for priority or general so we all just sat in 1 line until the staff came out and told us where we needed to queue. It was such a cold day that we all huddled together.

I was a little miffed at this venue as I had my camera with me, the same one that I have been taking to gigs for the last year with no issue, was taken off of me because the staff said it was a professional camera as it had a detachable lense. It is a Sony A6000 which is about the same size as a normal compact camera but has some nifty features and yes, a detachable lense but definitely not a professional camera. This annoyed me so much as I have always got some really good shots with that camera and other venues were more than happy to let me in with it. I got it back at the end of the gig but seriously annoyed me. The videos and pictures I got on my phone were great but they would have been better on my camera.

Just like the previous 2 gigs, I was in the front row, right in front of Tommi. I feel this is my permanent spot in a crowd at a Blind Channel gig now haha.

I was feeling a little emotional as this set of gigs was coming to end, I wasn't going to see the lads or my friends again for a week and had had such a great time that I didn't want it to end.

This was the first gig where I actually paid attention to Trash Boat and I Prevail and that was because the merch stall was in the big hall with the stage. Me, Roxxi and Flo were all sitting up by merch so got to see the rest of the gig. I was very impressed and have a lot of respect for how both bands put on a live show but they just wasn't my sort of bands. I found out that I knew 2 songs from I Prevail but have no idea how haha.

Joel, Olli and Joonas came out to see everyone at merch after this gig. We asked where Niko was and we got told he was locked away in a hotel because he had got so wasted the night before haha.

I told Joel and Joonas about my "Don't Fix Me" tattoo so they had a look at the lines that were left. Joel picked "I'm dead inside and it's alright", this shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who knows him haha. Joonas picked "Maybe I was born to be broken", he said that he picked that one because it nearly wasn't in the song.

We stood talking to Olli and Joonas for a little while, they were so lovely to talk to. Then the venue staff told us we had to get out so we had to leave.

We left on a high from the awesome gig as we had all had such a brilliant time but sad it was the last gig. We were so sad that me and Roxxi treated ourselves to pizza that turned out to be so spicy we couldn't feel our lips anymore haha.

***Originally posted on my music blog Suzy's Musical World

Driving 1300 Miles To Follow Blind Channel On Tour

Is your favourite band playing multiple gigs and you want to go to them all but you aren't sure if it will be worth it??

My advice is to do it because it will definitely be worth it! There is a lot of planning that you need to do to make sure it all runs smoothly but it just adds to the excitement.

I did 6 gigs in 6 days to see Blind Channel and Lost Society in the UK in September 2022 and had the best time. I was seriously tired but it was still amazing!!

Doing this tour was something I had to really think about because I didn't want to get too tired on the tour and end up wanting to go home so I had lots of awesome chats with my tour buddy Roxxi and we came up with an awesome plan so that everyone stayed happy.

So here is the breakdown of the miles I put together for the tour from Google Maps, which is from one city to the next.

Date	From	To	Miles	​
11.9.22	Kent	Bristol	150	​
12&13.9.22	Bristol	Glasgow	371	​
14.9.22	Glasgow	Manchester	214	​
15.9.22	Manchester	London	209	​
16.9.22	London	Nottingham	127	​
17.9.22	Nottingham	Birmingham	51	​
18.9.22	Birmingham	Kent	169	​
​	​	Total	1291	​

I know, crazy right?

According to my Google Maps, it tracked 1304 miles when I had it on but I think it was actually a bit more than that in the end due to diversions which is when we turned it off because it was completely useless haha.

The first gig was in Bristol on the 12th so I decided to drive to Bristol the day before and have a really good nights sleep in a hotel. I picked up Roxxi from Bristol train station and then due to the main bridge being cut off for construction, we spent a good half an hour trying to work out the roads in Bristol to find our hotel. Google Maps seemed to think that we could fly as it kept telling us to park and then fly over the river lol.

Seeing as Bristol to Glasgow was the most miles out of the whole tour, we decided that the best thing to do was to hit the road straight after the gig to try and do as many miles as possible before I felt sleepy. I knew that if we had done the trip in one go on the day of the Glasgow gig, I would be too tired and end up seriously moody. Plus, driving at that time of time meant that there was going to be less traffic, in fact, we barely saw any other cars and just a few lorries.

We ended up driving until 4:30am but this was mainly because there were diversions on the motorway that had us going in circles for an hour and then we couldn't find a hotel with any rooms available for another hour. This meant that we only managed to get When we finally did find a hotel at a roadside services, we just got in the room and fell straight to sleep. But this was the only time that we drove after a gig as the rest of the gigs were shorter driving distances.

We had a couple of hours left to drive to Glasgow and didn't need to check into the hostel until 2pm so we took our time on that drive, we even stopped once so I could lay down on the back seat of the car and have a half hour nap. It's so important to make sure you are well rested when driving because nodding off, even for a second, could end up getting you and everyone in the car killed. This is why I'm quite glad we took breaks and I had naps. (Yes, I know this is making me sound old lol)

I loved that it was mainly driving on motorways as I hate driving in towns that I haven't driven in before, it sets off my anxiety so bad thinking I will get lost. Thank goodness for Google Maps.

Something to keep in mind is where you are going to park your car for the gig and overnight. When I was looking at hotels, I was looking for ones really close to the venue and had parking so I only had to park the car once and not worry about having to park somewhere for the gig. We only had one gig where we drove to the gig and that was the Nottingham gig, the hotels with parking near the venue were just too expensive so we decided to stay just outside of the city and drive in for the gig. It just worked out cheaper that way.

For hotels, I mainly use Booking.com as you can compare so many awesome hotels, the venues come up in the search so when you are looking for the nearest hotel, it's not going from the wrong end of the street. There aren't just hotels on there either, there are holidays homes, b&bs and hostels so you get a good selection. They also have the option on some hotels to pay in advance or pay when you check-in. Paying on check-in is usually a bit more expensive so pay in advance where you can. My thoughts on hotels for gigs is basically just a base to get sleep, get ready and eat before moving on so I don't like paying too much, the cheapest I have paid for a hotel is £37 for a double room. It was quite nice as well so felt quite lucky.

We had to be careful with petrol prices, it was when prices were quite high, I think the most I paid was £1.99 a litre when we got caught low and had to top up at a motorway petrol station. I just put £20 worth in the car to get us to the next venue and then topped up somewhere cheap the next day. DO NOT GET CAUGHT OUT! Haha

One top thing you need for driving a lot is a good front passenger buddy. I had Roxxi for most of the journeys, I had my friend Joules for 2 journeys and only 2 journeys to do on my own which were fine because they were during the day and wasn't far but the rest of the time I am glad I had someone with me. They made sure I stayed awake, looked after me opening food and drinks, helped with navigation, was the car DJ and kept me entertained. I think I would of hated all the driving if I had done it all on my own.

I must admit that I was a bit naughty, I eat a lot more fast food than I should have. I am gluten and lactose intolerant which can be a pain sometimes but seeing as Subway now do gluten free bread, I eat more Subways than any other fast food haha. We were mainly getting food for motorway services because we would wake up, get ready and drive to the next city so we didn't really think ahead about where we were going to get food from. If we were hungry after a gig, we would order food off of Just Eat so that was never healthy haha. I did buy fruit to eat but only had half of it, the rest of it died in the car. I was good at drinking lots of water which I think helped me lose 8lbs in that week! The jumping around in a sweaty venue helped as well but the water definitely helped haha.

The most important thing though is to look after each other, make sure everyone is eating properly, drinking plenty of water, resting and having an amazing time every day.

At the time of publishing this article, I am preparing to do another 6 gigs following Blind Channel around the UK but I have 3 gigs, a weeks break and then another 3 so not as intense lol.

***Originally posted on my music blog Suzy's Musical World