Ever wondered what it’s like on Gig day for KPB?

It’s Saturday 7th February and it’s 10:00am. The alarm goes and I hit snooze. I’m not good in the mornings. The second alarm kicks in at 10:15am. By 10:30 I managed to drag myself out of bed. It’s gig day and we’re off to Cloppenburg in the north of Germany to play our first gig at “Briefkasten”. I shower, long and hot whilst listening to the radio and think about the day ahead. I have breakfast (Banana, Nutella Croissant and a cup of Tea) and check my overnight bag is packed. I then lay on the sofa and watch an episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm (American TV series) and wait for Warren to pick me up.

At 12:45 Warren swings by and we head to the practice room to load up the cars. Elmar is already there and is packing his drum set. We greet each other and chat a bit and then we load up the 2 cars. Normally for gigs far away we’ll hire a van and drive together, but this weekend Warren needs to head back out to Stomp in Lisbon and has to catch an early Sunday flight, so will be travelling back immediately after the gig. We leave Düsseldorf at 13:30. I drive up with Warren, listening to a bit of George Benson and Aynsley Lister. It’s chucking it down with rain. It’s grey and misty. I wonder if any one will bother coming out to see us tonight? I always worry that no one will come…

Following a quick Sandwich stop along the way we arrive bang on time just before 5pm at Briefkasten, just as Peter Blasé, the owner, is opening up. We look around the place and I immediately feel at home here. It’s a nice place, lots of dark wood, a nice stage area, lots of blues memorabilia on the walls. I’ve got a good feeling about tonight!

We unload the equipment and then Elmar and I head to the hotel to check in and dump our overnight bag. We head back to Briefkasten and we set up the equipment for the sound check. Today I think I’m going to use my Strat with my Tele as backup. At the last gig I used my Gibson Les Paul but today feels like a Strat day! I’m like that, like to mix it up a bit so that all my guitars get an equal chance! Sound check is a chore. Repeating parts of songs over and over again, tweaking with the Amp settings, pedal settings and Soundboard settings to ensure everything sounds ok. Once everything seems ok we play a couple of songs through “Stop Playing Games” and “Would It Make A Difference?” and it’s all ok. What to do now for 3 hours?

It’s 7pm and we’re hungry so Peter orders us food. I’m a creature of habbit and always take a safe option before a gig – a Pizza Hawaii for me! Elmar orders some meat dish and Warren wants a sea food pizza. We chat, laugh, tell stories and discuss the next CD we want to record. It’s now 8pm and we’ve still got 2 hours until the gig. I hate the waiting around. I can never fully relax. I always think “what if my equipment has problems?” or “what if no one comes?” or “what if I forget my lyrics?” Elmar and I head to the hotel to shower and get ready for the gig. Warren heads backstage to have a sleep. In the hotel I call my brother in England to check on the Liverpool score (3-2 vs Portsmouth) and have a quick chat.

At 9pm we head back to Briefkasten. It’s empty. I’m nervous thinking that no one will come. Peter reassures us that tickets have been bought and people will come! We head backstage where Warren is sleeping like a little baby! I send a few SMS to people, read a magazine and chat with the boys. At 9:30pm I head upstairs to switch on my amp and grab a guitar to warm up on. There are only a handful of people. I get that sinking feeling. 9:50pm. 10 Minutes to go. I’m not that nervous but the anticipation is growing. The excitement level is rising…. I feel the buzz!

10pm. “Let’s do it” I say, we group hug and head upstairs. There’s a crowd and people queuing up outside to get in! “Oh yes” I think! We hit the stage and we’re ready to rock. The CD that is playing over the PA stops. Silence. People are watching us. I scan the crowd looking at the faces. I can see them thinking “wonder what they are like?”. Elmar starts playing the drum intro to “Feel The Same” and we launch into the song. We’re rocking, the crowd is rocking, heads nodding in unison with the beat. I’m well up for this gig. We end the song and I immediately start “Stop Playing Games” to keep the momentum going. The crowd are warming up nicely. The first 2 songs have flown by. It’s always good to get them under the belt and calm the nerves. I introduce us and the next song “Got To Be The Blues”. I then realise that for some reason I’m using my Tele and I wanted to use my Strat so I change guitars. I’m funny like that! I’m happy with the sound and we’re rocking through our early numbers. The crowd seem to like us. It’s always weird playing a new location for the first time. You never know what the crowd will be like or what they are used to. We’re by no means a typical blues band. We’re quite heavy, direct and very raw. The first set is more rock than blues. We end the first half of the gig after 1 hour with “Won’t Be Back No More”.

We have a 20 minute break and we go round talking to the public. I personally thank the people for coming out to see us. I tell them about the band and ask them what they think. The feedback is amazing and makes me feel good! People are having fun. Some people have travelled about 100KM to come and see us! Hearing things like that always make me feel special. It’s a Saturday night, cold, rainy and there’s football on TV and yet people make the effort to come and see us, an unsigned blues rock band! I love these people and I mean it.

We start the 2nd set with “Would It Make A Difference?” People down the front are starting to dance and sing along with the songs, which I encourage “I wanna see you dance!”. The girls have got all the groove! And I make more and more eye contact with the crowd, pulling faces and making jokes. I’m loving it and feel fantastic.

One of my favourite parts of any KPB gig is stepping back to watch Elmar and Warren during their solo slots. These guys are the real deal. They are at one with their instruments. The reception they get during “Don’t Say I Didn’t Try” is loud and well deserved! These guys are amazing.

The gig is flying by. We get the crowd to sing along with “Let Me Love You Darlin’” and they belt out the chorus! That always makes me feel good hearing the crowd sing back to me! I check my watch. Good timing. It’s 12:15am. I announce “Fallin’ Down” as our last song and thank the crowd for coming out to see us and Peter for the invitation. “Fallin’ Down” is our mamouth jam song. It’s the song during which I like to go walk abouts and head into the crowd. I end up dancing with the ladies and then for some reason in my best Buddy Guy manner head outside into the rain and cold where people are smoking and quite rightly are rather surprised that I am outside with them playing guitar! Party tricks over we close the song to rapturous applause. It’s only now I realise how full the place is. “Zugabe, Zugabe”. The crowd want an Encore and we’re going to deliver!

We play 3 more songs including Jeff Healey’s “See The Light”, “One Chance” from our forthcoming CD and finally “Movin’ Down The Line” from our first CD. We still have 5 mins left and we’re allowed to play one more song. What to play? I ask the crowd what they want and they say “something heavy”. We play another new song “You Don’t Know Me” and blast them away! It’s funny thinking that we’re too heavy for them and then hearing the crowd demanding a heavy song! I think we’ve won them over to our style of heavy blues!

The gig is over. I’m hot, tired but buzzing like mad. I could have played all night.

We meet and greet our new fans, shake lots of hands, sign some CDs and have a quick beer before starting to pack our kit away. A long day is drawing to a close but it’s been well worth it. This is what I love most…. I’m so lucky to be able to do this with Elmar and Warren….

Thanks to all of you at Briefkasten! It was a brilliant evening!
Love from Kris.