U.S.A. Tour Diary – Double Bill!

Today you get not one, but two tour diaries for your reading pleasure. Myself (Nick) and Luke have both documented the events of the last few days in breathtaking detail so make yourselves a nice cup of tea and get comfortable. First up, Mr Luke Potashnick…

Denver and Lincoln and a day off in Omaha…

26 Feb 2015
Hey All,
How’s tricks?
Well, the Denver show was great – Colorado is a cool state and sort of a little out of place where its at geographically.  Grass is legal in this state and everyone is very open and proud about it.  Seems to work fine.
In fact, it has been fun playing with the front row honking every night so far – people are having a good time and reminds me of when people could smoke in venues in the UK.  A far sweeter smell than the B.O. thats floods Uk theatres now!
Anyway, we played a Fillmore venue that sounded just great from where we were standing.  Pictures of Bill Graham (the famous / infamous concert promoter) and other great acts to have played here crowd the walls.  And Chandeliers line the ceiling all the way back… Very similar in look to the Fillmore in San Fran.  Hopefully we’ll get to play there too sometime.
Load out was another freezing and snowy affair but we had an amazing and friendly local crew to help us.  People are really nice here.
The next morning we were taken out for a great brunch by our american label Concorde.  Brunch is taken seriously here.  This was a fancy Italian joint (listen to me!) with bottomless coffee, OJ and an awesome slightly over-zealous waiter who took us through the fine menu and his love of green.  It was a good chance to stock up on some quality food and celebrate our efforts so far.  Thanks Matt!
We then had a slow afternoon catching up on some sleep and reading – just enjoying being in one town for more than a few hours… Was still bitterly cold so there was little enthusiasm to search too far a-field.
A few hours later we were ready to eat again and were lucky enough to be taken out by our radio plugger here, who we’re already very fond of down to her brilliant work so far and moreover her wicked sense of humour.  She sure put us lot in our place.  Brilliant and terrifying in a good way.  Nice one Jill….
The meal was really good, Korean fried Chicken and Chinese Seaweed style Brussell Sprouts anyone?  It had been a good-food-day.
The next morning we got to perform in a studio full pelt for the Clear Channel radio network who are giving us so much support nationwide here (thank you!)…  We threw down some exciting versions of “Ain’t no telling”, “Only Friend” and “Take it Back”….  Fun interviews with Willy and Brad there too.
The drive to Lincoln was long (9hrs?) and dark for the most part – we had dinner at a roadside diner and got our first dose of the Nebraskan hospitality courtesy of Margot our waitress, and an sweet older couple on the neighbouring table.  Just really friendly and warm.  Though it was still bloody freezing outside.
Lincoln was one of the smaller places we’ve been too so far.  A slightly more rock’n’roll sounding room and the crowd were just gagging for it.  BMB, TTM and BBS all got a great reception – the place was charged.  A great gig and one of our first performances of “Modern Massacre” – a real smack in the chest.
We had a post gig evening of pizza slices, local ales and some friendly / semi-competitive table tennis in a great bar by the venue.  I’ve never seen our Tour manager Iain so alive.  Chinese style grip and everything… Misspent youth.
The next day we visited a music shop called Roots Music.  We hung there, Damon smacked snare drums in his endless search for downbeat utopia, Paul and I blasted various guitars and Phil played the theme from the Exorcist on some 80’s keyboard – every time round you could hear more detail.
I bought a little 70’s practice amp – it sounds great and will be the bane of every neighbouring motel room we stay in from now on.
Lastly, we had a day off in Omaha which was only an hour away.  Very cool place with a great Old Market part of town and some cool architecture – few beers, several old fashioned’s and a piece of “Cow” that they’re famous for here.  A truly great meal at the Boiler Room in case any of you end up here.  Oh and it was -16 with some wind chill on top.  Thought my ears were gonna drop off.  Aaaaabsolutely brutal.
Now driving towards our show tonight in Des Moins – can’t wait – we’re having too much fun up on stage at the moment!
Best to you all,
Luke
[line]
Lincoln and a day off in Omaha
Six road weary travellers rolled into Lincoln late on Monday night and crawled up to their rooms in the Downtown Hilton. Tuesday morning saw bright sunshine and temperatures that were almost springlike compared to the Siberian weather we’d been experiencing before. The morning off gave us a chance to take advantage of the hotel(s health facilities. Iain Graham and myself eagerly grabbed our swimming shorts and went to investigate the pool. Upon peering into the cloudy depths of the chlorine bath that confronted us, we decided the gym might be a better option. Spending countless hours in the van can take its toll on your energy levels and your posture so after 40 minutes of (frankly unimpressive) weight lifting we strode back to our room like a pair of self proclaimed gladiators. Our next stop was not a roman amphitheatre to fight lions, but local radio station KIBZ for a chat and a sing-song with a guy called Animal. I’m not sure if this was his actual name but he was a lovely guy and seemed genuinely enthusiastic about the band. It’s still blowing our minds that we’re over here doing gigs and getting played on the radio so thanks to Animal and all the other DJ’s who’ve been kind enough to invite us onto their shows.

So, onto the venue. By the time we’d loaded in, hung around for a while then soundchecked, i was suffering from a serious case of hanger. If you’ve not heard this expression before, it’s a combination of hunger and anger. The anger is just a symptom of not having eaten in a while and my slender body not having the reserves to maintain any kind of equilibrium. When i feel the symptoms (hunger, agitation, weakness and mild rage) begin to take hold, i have to find food as fast as possible for the safety of all those around me and any barrier encountered between me and food is met with snarling, disagreeable bad temperedness. It’s not a trait i’m proud of and i can empathise with Dr David Banner when he starts to feel a little moody, turns green and smashes up everything in sight. Thankfully, we found a Ramen restaurant two doors down and within seconds of the delicious hot noodle broth touching my lips i was restored back to my jovial, happy self and everyone could breathe a sigh of relief. Luckily, unlike Dr Banner, I don’t have to buy a new set of clothes after each hanger episode!
Paul and myself killed some time sampling tasty American ales next door before it was time to get our gear in place and make some noise. All our energies are focused into the forty minutes we have on stage and we truly unleashed the beast in Lincoln. Even if nobody had showed up, we would have had a great time. The fact there was a big room full of people sharing our enthusiasm made it pretty special.
Back in the bar next door and after a slice of Pizza we all got involved in a table tennis showdown. Luke Potashnick showed notable skill as did Paul Sayer but the surprise of the evening was Mr Iain Graham who dominated the table with his peculiar Glaswegian style of extreme combat ping-pong.
The next day was a day of leisure. We drove an hour to Omaha and pulled up outside a rather plush looking hotel. Surely there’d been a mistake. This didn’t look like the budget “Make your own waffles in the morning” kind of establishment we’d become accustomed to but Mr Iain Graham had performed some kind of tour manager voodoo to bag us a hotel that ordinarily would be outside our meagre budget. Nice one Mr G!
Myself and Mr G found a little Irish bar in a basement down the road where we drank Guinness, ate popcorn and chewed the fat before meeting the rest of the boys in a slightly trendier looking bar for a tasty “Old fashioned”, and from there, a restaurant that served us a fantastic Nebraska steak. It was a great evening.
Back in our room, Damon demonstrated his unique talent of watching cricket and a film at the same time on two laptops. I guess the left and right brain independence needed to play drums also enables him to concentrate on “American Sniper” and the Cricket World Cup simultaneously but my sleepy head struggled and I fell into glorious sleep.
What’s that I hear coming through the walls of Luke and Paul’s room in my semi-conscious state? It’s a guitar through a Fender Vibro Champ. Could it be..? No…surely not…Yes! that’s definitely “Sweet Child O’Mine”.
Luke’s had a good night then!
– Nick
2015-02-27T00:28:42+00:00February 27th, 2015|

TTM on MOJO Magazine “Physical Graffiti Redrawn”

Released TODAY to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Led Zeppelin’s Physical Graffiti, MOJO has produced a ‪#‎PhysicalGraffitiRedrawn‬ cover mount CD that includes our version of “Houses Of The Holy” amongst many other great covers from current tour buddies Blackberry Smoke, Laura Marling, Syd Arthur and many more. It comes free with the latest issue of the magazine and in addition, the very special Limited Vinyl Edition is also now available. Find out more at http://bit.do/mojoLZtemperancemovement

2015-02-24T16:28:29+00:00February 24th, 2015|

U.S.A. Tour Diary – Snow Globe

Up early and off to Denver we went. There didn’t seem to be an awful lot between Kansas City and Denver apart from vast expanses of Kansas farmland. An indication of how vast this country is – If you drove for 7 1/2 hours in the UK you’d end up at the other end of the country or in the sea. Over here, you can drive for the same amount of time without even seeing a bend in the road.  When we set off, it was a bright sunny day. An hour before we got to Denver we hit snow. One minute we’re cruising down the highway, admiring the view, and the next minute, it’s as though someone shook up a snow globe. As we rolled into Denver the snow was forming a nice white blanket over the city.
Thanks to the helpful and friendly local crew, we loaded into The Fillmore in record time and went across the road for a slice of pizza as the snow really started to come down hard. I get very excited when there’s heavy snow. This probably goes back to my school days when an inch of snow in the UK would inevitably mean the school would shut down along with the rest of the country and we could all go and through snowballs at each other or find a hill to fling ourselves down on a plastic sledge. This snow was a lot more impressive than the measly flurry we tend to get and thankfully, Denver seemed to take it all in its stride. Another cancelled show would have been heartbreaking.
We got a great response from the good people of Colorado. I won’t lie, this tour is proving itself to draw parallels between Robert Scott and his team crossing the Antarctic, but when we get onstage and feel the love from the crowd, it makes battling through the snow and ice worthwhile. Unfortunately for poor Scott, he wasn’t in a band and probably didn’t feel quite as appreciated. Thank you Denver.
After the show, we went back across the road for probably the third or forth slice of Pizza that day and celebrated our survival of the first run of shows.
The next day was a day off and was spent mainly eating, sleeping, reorganising suitcases and reflecting on how bonkers it is that we’re over here doing shows and getting played on the Radio. A popular music industry expression is that we’re “getting traction”. We got word today that we’re number 11 in the Mediabase Mainstream Rock chart. These are very exciting times!
As I write this, we’re travelling in the direction of Lincoln, Nebraska. We’re just done a live session for KBPI and KBCO radio, the sun is shining and we’re re-energised. All I need now is to find a postcard!
2015-02-24T05:39:52+00:00February 24th, 2015|

U.S.A. Tour Diary – Kansas Magic

After locating a decent coffee and a gourmet sandwich as big as my head for breakfast, we once again mounted our trusty steed and rode towards the horizon. This time in the direction of Kansas City, Missouri. The venue for last nights show was the “Uptown”, an old theatre with an Italian Renaissance styled interior. It reminded me of a slightly smaller and more colourful Brixton Academy (U.S. readers – the Brixton Academy is a famous venue in South London.)

After load-in, I went off in search of postcards. There was a time, before the rule of the evil internet, when most newsagents, chemists (pharmacies), petrol stations and any shop peddling tourist tat would have a twisty wire rack proudly displaying scores of brightly coloured postcards with pictures of local landmarks. Not any more it seems. I decided before I came on this tour, I would send a postcard home from each city to my little girl who is approaching an age where postmen are heroes and a delivery addressed to them is like winning the national lottery. Anyway, searching for these antiquated relics of yesteryear is no easy task. Entering Walmart and asking where the postcards were was met with a bemused expression and the reply “Oh no, we haven’t sold those in while.” I did finally locate some in a dusty corner of a CVS pharmacy so the quaint old tradition of non-digital communication is not totally dead yet.
After my quest, I strolled over to a music shop called Big Dudes where I found Luke and Paul. Paul needed to get a power supply fixed. The guys in Big Dudes were amazingly hospitable and helpful. Not only did they fix Paul’s power supply for free but gave us a magic show whilst they did so. I kid you not. It was unbelievable. One of the staff had been into magic since a boy and had now reached an impressive level of card wizardry. At one point he burnt the card he was holding with a lighter. He then took the card Paul was holding to show us identical scorch marks….WTF! Our minds blown, and Paul’s power supply fixed, we went back for soundcheck.
“Anyone need an adjustment?” Asked a large gentleman with a beer in his hand. A local chiropractor had bought in his adjusting table and was offering to crack bones for free. Apparently, It was his way of getting into the show for free. A steady queue of willing participants, including Phil Campbell, began to form and the room was soon filled with the sound of loud grunts and popping vertebrae. I just watched and winced.
The gig was fantastic last night. The crowd were up for a good night and we were primed and ready for it. Phil threw shapes never before seen, probably due to his freshly adjusted bones and the venue ticked all the right boxes for sound and vibe. We loved it!
After the show it was time to pack-up, eat ribs, hop in the wagon and drive two and a half hours to a roadside motel to catch some sleep before the remaining 7 hour drive to a snowy Denver.
2015-02-22T03:01:10+00:00February 22nd, 2015|

U.S.A Tour Diary – St Louis

Last night we performed our first show in the United States of America. It was a momentous occasion for us and spirits in TTM camp are high. We’ve been made to feel very welcome by all the guys in the Blackberry Smoke camp and we look forward to spending time with them over the months ahead. It was a fair old drive from Nashville yesterday, although compared to some of the distances we’ll be covering during the tour, it was really just a short hop down the road. Still, the Gateway Arch beside the Mississippi river was a welcome sight as we approached the city of St Louis. Several years ago, I came to St Louis with another band. It was summer and birds were literally dropping dead out of the trees it was so hot. This time however there was no danger of that as their poor little feet were most likely frozen to the branches. Gear was loaded into the Pageant Theatre and set up on stage. I went chasing around St Louis looking for a 1 amp fuse, came back and blasted through a soundcheck. We we ready for our first show.
Being in this band never seems to get old. We’re out here promoting our first album which we’ve already been playing around the UK and Europe for well over a year but as we ripped into “Midnight Black” last night, it felt fresh as a daisy. I think we all had the same thought as we grinned at each other onstage last night. “Wow! We’ve done it boys…We’ve made it to America!”

2015-02-20T18:27:16+00:00February 20th, 2015|

U.S.A. Tour Diary – Penguins in Nashville

Yesterday was mainly spent shuffling around the Nashville ice caps like newly hatched penguins exploring their surroundings for the first time. It was a fine sunny day with a high of about -5º which actually felt tropical compared to the temperature it plummeted to once the sun went down. Our priority yesterday was to round up all the backline that had been delivered to various parts of the City. Drum Kits, Guitar Amps, Bass Amps, Pedalboards and Flightcases all had to be corralled into one place and loaded into our splitter van which also needed collecting. Full marks to Mr Iain Graham, our unstoppable tour manager for achieving the impossible whilst we sat around in a nice warm vintage guitar shop. In the afternoon, we had a radio session with the one and only Steve Gorman – drummer with The Black Crowes who hosts his own show in Nashville. We had a little sing-song and a chat with Steve before finding ourselves out in the tundra once again. As we didn’t have a show to go to due to the city being entirely frozen, the evening was spent at Soundcheck – a great rehearsal facility in East Nashville, running through some tunes and making sure all our gear was in order. It felt good to be in a room playing again and after the last few days of battling ice, snow and jetlag, we were fired up and ready to take on whatever this tour had to throw at us.
Bring it on America!

2015-02-19T18:00:33+00:00February 19th, 2015|

U.S.A Tour Diary – Ice Storm

“Welcome to Chicago. Any passengers connecting to Nashville, please make yourselves known to the airport officials waiting inside the terminal building as you disembark the aircraft.”…

We made ourselves known to the officials who informed us that an ice storm in Tennessee meant that our connecting flight was cancelled and, after accompanying us to customs and making a very thorough search of each and every piece of luggage, shuttled us off to an airport hotel to consider our options. Our options were the following : either wait until the next evening to catch a flight on a different airline which also ran a strong possibility of being cancelled – therefore risking missing the first show, or, find an alternative method of transport. The cruel irony was that our splitter bus for the tour had been driven from Chicago to Nashville the day before!
After much deliberation and some sleep, we took a taxi to a Hertz branch to collect not one but two Chrysler mini-vans in matching colours. We have quite an abundance of guitars and luggage with us and couldn’t find a rental company anywhere with a big enough vehicle to fit all of it and us in. We set off on the 500 mile trip, ignoring all news based travel advice and headed straight for the ice-storm.
Unfortunately, upon arriving in an extremely cold and slippery Nashville, we discovered that the show is to be postponed due to the aforementioned cold and slipperiness. It really is icy here. The only way to walk safely is to shuffle forward an inch at a time without taking your feet off the ice. Any sudden moves could spell disaster for your coccyx!
So, a slightly disappointing start to the tour. We’d loved to have played the historic Ryman Auditorium. We put up a good fight but Mother Nature proved to be the greater adversary this time. Still, our spirits have not been dampened and despite the set-back we’re eager to get to St Louis to play.
2015-02-19T18:00:02+00:00February 18th, 2015|

U.S.A. Tour Diary – Today we fly!

Air hostesses never live up to the hype. The adverts promise you 5 super-models of identical proportions walking through the airport in choreographed synchronicity. Instead you get a glorified dinner lady in a nice blazer. Well today was an exception – we were checked in by American Airlines finest ambassador who turned a blind eye to half of the 18 pieces of equipment we were checking in. This US tour is already off to a good start. Spirits are high in the TM today, despite saying our last goodbyes to the loved ones we won’t see enough of for the next 3 months. This trip has always been part of the dream for us, as I’m sure it always has and will be for any Rock and Roll band who have set themselves the task of taking their music to as many like minded souls as time (short and long term) will allow. First stop Nashville and a show at the legendary Ryman. No pressure then – but I know that my brothers and I will rise to the occasion as always seems to be the way. Our worries about being accepted by the fine folks across the Atlantic have already been settled slightly – our debut album was released in the US last week and seems to be doing well. Plus, we’ve been offered a free cowboy hat each as soon as we get to Nashville. We’re incredibly grateful for the positive reaction to the music but have politely declined the cowboy hats. I’m not sure if we could quite pull that look off, and anyway, we plan on giving the US a heavy dose of some British flavoured rock and roll, so it’s important that we embrace the culture we’re stepping into whilst staying true to our roots. Bowler Hats it is, although we did manage to convince Phil and Iain to leave the kilts behind.

2015-02-16T22:28:57+00:00February 16th, 2015|

Album release announcement!

Calling all fans in the U.S.of A. and Canada. Today we release our eponymous debut album in your fine land. 12 tracks of unabashed joy, tenderness and spirit which led Mojo Magazine to proclaim “A potent force in British rock music has arrived. ★★★★★ “.
Buy it now on iTunes and Amazon
We can’t wait to get over there and bring it to you live over the coming months. Check here for live dates near you.
Extra shows are still being added so why not sign up below and be the first to hear about them?

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2015-02-03T15:16:57+00:00February 3rd, 2015|

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