Raport Rod'a Smallwood'a - DETROIT

[WICKER MAN]

Rod: Detroit/Chicago

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CHICAGO WED OCT 18 - 1pm

Good flight down to Detroit from Toronto yesterday. Really cool plane and the boys were very impressed with a lovely stewardess!! Arrived about 5 and cleared customs and immigration and took vans to the gig. Met with promoter and Dickie and stressed we wanted draught free environment for the show!!! . Due to the economy (or maybe Detroit has gone off us!!) tickets were a bit slow here from the start and we did some press and radio interviews to help it along. Ended up a bit under 6000 but the crowd enthusiasm more than made up for the relative lack of numbers. The hall was set well and you could tell straight away it was a really good audience. Bullet went down really well and had a great set.

Before we went on l met up with John Merikoski for the first time. John is a big fan and has attended over 100 of our shows starting with Belgium Brussels Foret Nationale in 1980 when we supported Kiss. Now l know this is not necessarily of interest to you but what is is that it is John who has put together Derek Rigg's new book of his art, Run for Cover, which features great new artwork as a cover which Derek is letting us use as a backdrop in the set for These Colours Dont Run. Looks great! And a good ad for his book. John met Derek many years ago and it was his idea and drive that got the thing together. Of course we allowed them to use all our art and l helped a bit with the history. This really is an excellent book and orders are being taken now in our shop or on Derek's website, the first 1500 are in beautifully bound hardback and signed by Derek so a great collectors item. John also hopes to have them all printed so we can make the paperback edition available to buy from the merch stands on the European leg to the tour. This was a labour of love from a real fan and John has done a terrific job so please check it out.

The gig went really well and the band loved it - funny how this happens with a gig you are a bit concerned about. On stage and out front sound was excellent, the show of course looked great (!!!) and, with such a good onstage sound the band were able to fully enjoy it and play really well. So thanks Detroit, one of our best audiences to date! Also the venue is terrific and the staff extremely helpful. All doors were closed and no AC so a great warm vibe in the room. The only occasional drafts came from fire doors opening and closing when people popped outside to smoke so we put a couple of stewards there to make sure they closed the door behind them. So if you are a smoker and go out for a fag during the set make sure you close the bloody door!!

After the show it was straight off stage in the vans and to the airport where the band had a quick shower and change of clothes. The sweaty stuff is sent back in the vans to get washed for the next gig. Just as well! About an hour in the air to Chicago and with time change we got to the hotel about 11.30. l went straight to my room and read some more of The Afghan - very rock and roll isnt it!! Cant hammer it every night!! Online here is very slow so l will go down to the gig soon to catch up on things at decent speed, should be a good show tonight and hope to see various Chicago Mutant friends there. So likely to be a beer or two on the desk tonight. Hope the audience are as good as last night in Detroit - certainly be more of them, 9000 or so, so they should be even louder. We will see. More later.