For the purpose of my own curiosity I decided to dive into the archives and find out when Dutch-Danish rock band Subterranean Street Society and I started working together, and found out it was late February 2022 on their single ‘One And A Half Men Tent’. Two years and a few months later we finally met in person for the first time, ever. Somewhere over the course of our working relationship we’d started to talk about a UK tour, which just after Brexit seemed impossible. However, together, we made the impossible possible!
On Wednesday the 8th of May they arrived in the north east for two shows, after which they’d head to Manchester, Sheffield, London, and then Brighton for their last UK show of the tour. They started with a mesmerising completely unplugged set at Sofar Sounds Newcastle and headed to Mosaic Tap the next day for an amplified set supporting local outfit Earth Farm! Those two sets were at the same time a world of difference and exactly the same; captivating and more powerful then I’ve ever seen a band perform. It is their thunderous soundscapes and bloody honest, political lyricism that has made me stick by the band for the past few years.
The band headed to Manchester for a show at Lions Den supporting Origami Tsunami and toured on to Sheffield for an instore at Record Junkee. One of our least favourite shows not solely due to the administrative nightmare it was in the lead up to the event… A show had been booked in with Kevin at Our Sound Music, who’d joined the team at Record Junkee as in-house promoter. The initial idea was always to make this a free instore and for the band to get the opportunity to sell their physical albums. We’d received a request from Kevin to make this a four band line-up, ticketed evening event instead and had of course said that that would work perfectly for us. Up until now that has been the last we’ve heard of Kevin… Eventually we were able to get hold of Record Junkee and they confirmed to make this once again a free in-store, but when the band arrived the shop was empty and management had locked themselves in their office. So much for a show in Sheffield…
Luckily things were only able to get better from there, with two Sofar Sounds London shows on the books, a fantastic line-up at The Dublin Castle in Camden, and a ‘hometown’ headline at The Folklore Rooms in Brighton! Ahead of the band’s before-last show in London we all enjoyed a wonderful meal together at Italian restaurant Goodfare which I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone looking for a delicious Italian meal. We enjoyed The Dublin Castle with incredible bands Wakey Wakey Rise & Shine, Butterjunk, and Morning Tourist, and I fell head over heels in love with The Folklore Rooms and its aesthetically-pleasing venue and stage design. Local artists Soft Top and Arjun Nala supported the band which made for a night of incredible live music we won’t soon forget.
Booking live events, organising an international tour, and filling venues with familiar and yet unfamiliar faces is a full-time job. One born from passion when done by those with the right intentions, but costing so much time and energy. Even though I am already working on the next tour, it is still a thing I need to reflect on every time a tour ends; is this really worth it? Is it the best way to go for the artist I am working with? Even though an international adventure sounds like a dream, just booking the events isn’t achieving much just yet. Deciding if an international tour is right for you, is something only you can decide, and although advice from others can be helpful, it can also be damaging. You’ll have to keep in mind all individual tasks before you even get to play your show; your route, the cities you might be able to bring people in, the venues and or promoters you’re hoping to work with, the people you hope to attend your shows, the industry you’re looking to invite, the costs for travel, accommodation, and to feed yourself.
The first time myself and Subterranean Street Society spoke about a UK tour was around June last year, it took us nearly an entire year to organise, and even though I wouldn’t have it any other way and there are only so many things I would have done slightly differently, that’s something to keep in mind when looking to book your own tour. To reiterate; with a band as talented and with their hearts in the right place as Subterranean Street Society, I would book tours all year ’round if I could!
LLIVELY Music 