Gig Day, Cheat Day

Gig day = cheat day, at least that's what we tell ourselves. In The Tricks we like to think healthily, we spend gig breaks and times between recording talking about the best way to cook broccoli, new exercise techniques and podcasts we've listened to discussing meditation and healthy living. It's not that any of us have the figure of Michael Phelps or the mind of the Dalai Lama (we are musicians after all, and have to maintain a fair share of the rock and roll lifestyle!) but we try to look after ourselves. The cold hard fact of the matter though; is that gigging is not a healthy lifestyle.

You have a good stretch in the morning, to try to alleviate some of those knots and tensions that bearing 5kg of weight across one shoulder for several decades inevitably create, only to slump into a stuffy car for miles and counties and spend the next 2 hours consuming the usual iced coffee and service station bites. Later on you indulge in the glory of hog roasts / wedding buffets / lasagne before washing it down with a quick beer before jumping on stage to stand and play/sing your heart out for a few more hours. Once you’re done its pack down time, the process of casing and lifting a ton of gear back into the van (often with a staircase thrown in for good measure). You’re knackered and its just in time to get back on the road, ready for another 3am bedtime… quick stop for a petrol garage pick me up?

When you’re gigging as a function band it’s hard to be healthy. It's hard to say no to late night scooby snacks from less then desirable service station, you never know what or when you might eat and good nights sleep are hard to come by.

But we love it, we embrace the traffic, the bad backs and the not-so-nutritious diet. Because we get to earn living by helping people have fun on their wedding day, we make a living by hanging out with our mates and playing music; it feels like we're cheating. And that's why gig day should always be cheat day.

Alex Karban

Bassist for The Tricks

www.thetrickslive.com