Early Saturday afternoon, I popped into the Harvester by the Coventry hotel, for some quick breakfast before setting off for Bristol. Alas musician breakfast time doesn't always align with normal job breakfast time, so instead I opted for nachos. When they landed on my table, the penny dropped.
My mind suddenly registered, for the first time ever, that I am a touring musician - a prospect my younger self would've been blown away by. I'm at a place far from home, in the midst of a string of shows all over the country and beyond, bringing sonic joy to ticketholders with some of the finest musicians and humans I'll ever know, and I'm having nachos for breakfast because I can.
Within the last week and a half, Nine Below Zero have successfully completed Birmingham, Cardiff, Lancaster, Shrewsbury, Cobham, Derby and Bristol. Next up is Shoreham, Stroud, Liverpool, Glasgow, Newcastle, Wimborne, Wigan, Chelmsford, London, Milton Keynes then Haslemere.
I'm back at The Iron Horse in Sidcup tonight to run the acoustic-ish open mic, bursting with local talent galore. And this Friday evening, I've got a GIG there! With Nexus Leap. My good friend Ryan Barquilla is fronting it, and I'll be in the embellishment team amongst Stephen Lake on bass and Cameron Spence on drums.
If the Railway Tavern was my school and the Pelton Arms was my university, The Iron Horse was my college - responsible for a vast majority of my social circle and serving as a vehicle for myself and many others to express and experiment and grow for almost a decade now.
I'll keep you up to date with my upcoming shows and ventures and adventures. In the meantime see you somewhere. And have nachos for breakfast because you can x
📸 Chris Hennis