Sam Shinazzi

Tour Diary

Brisbane tour diary July 2005
Tuesday 12th July 2005

I was invited to play a show with Texan troubadour Micah P Hinson up in Brisbane which was great because not only was I going to be playing with an awesome songwriter but I would be performing in Brisbane which has been rare up until now. I was taking my old friend and new guitarist Adam ‘T-Bone’ Taylor with me for electric guitar duties and we both actually ended up tour managing Micah which was also a rewarding experience.

T-Bone and I actually had an early rehearsal at my place on the morning of the show, and as strange as it was singing and playing at such an early hour of 10:30am, we joked that the show should have been then ‘cause we sounded pretty decent given the hour. We hop into his old car (I think it’s a Holden … it is rusty but reliable whatever it is) and head to the airport which is only a twenty minute drive. We check in and then check out the import music magazines at the newsagents. I flick through Uncut and there is a full page review / interview with Micah P Hinson. I figure this is a good omen.

Our plane is delayed. We people watch. I tell T-Bone quite stupidly but accurately, that as much as I hate to fly, I am starting to rack up some distance. We notice how striking Richard Branson’s female staff are, and discuss the job interview process. I wonder what he tells the ‘average’ ones? We also notice you can buy his autobiography onboard. I catch a few moments of sleep.

It actually is raining and cold when we land. Rainy and cold in Queensland. Strange eh? We meet Micah P Hinson at the baggage as he was on a corresponding flight. I had met him days before in Sydney. We took him to the Cronulla vs Souths match which we sadly, and wrongly, lost. He seemed to enjoy it. We then had dinner and I watched him play before Holly Throsby. We grab our three guitars and he tells us how Qantas absolutely trashed his new acoustic guitar, then offered him some ridiculously small amount of compensation. I double check my Maton after he tells us this.

We hire a small white flashy car. T-Bone is driving as a) he loves to drive and b) he navigates like a genius! He tells me he pretty much can drive anywhere in the world with some degree of direction. I sit back in awe. We goss with Micah as we make our way through Brisbane streets. He is a sweet, chatty guy. It doesn’t take us too long to work out he is a chain smoker. I am talking breaking records here. He is fairly respectful of others though which is refreshing. We head straight to the hotel which is located in Kangaroo Point. Infact, the hotel is called The Point. It was pretty fancy too. In the lobby whilst checking in, I laugh at all the bands and artists who have their promotional photographs up on the wall in frames. Amongst the old timers and one hit wonders, I see the likes of You Am I. I ask T-Bone if he thinks that the bands get a discount for having their snaps up there? I can’t remember what he answered though. We enter the main doors of the room and find we are actually in two separate rooms. And they are big rooms at that. We have a large lounge area (with Fox Sports) and a kitchen and a big bathroom with laundry facilities. Then there is the main bedroom and a balcony. We have views of the Storey Bridge!

T-Bone and I head out again to hire an amp, then head back to the hotel to relax before sound check. Micah comes in to hang out and I show him my Maton whilst T-Bone goes about fixing Micah’s new guitar. We watch television. We chat about touring Europe and Micah gives us some tips as he is doing really well there right now.

The show tonight is at the Troubadour in Fortitude Valley. I have long been told how incredible this venue is, but to experience it myself was a true pleasure. We park in the mall itself, and lug all our gear in one trip. T-Bone’s amp has wheels which is way lucky. We meet Jamie and the crew from the Troubadour. It just might be the nicest venue and the coolest staff I have encountered. We are offered beers straight away and Micah sound checks pretty quick, as do we.

We walk around to find somewhere to eat, but struggle a little. Most places seem shut which is kind of weird. We end up in what must have been a part of Chinatown, and decide upon a small little place where T-Bone and I share some dishes. Micah initiates the chopstick action and it is only correct that we follow him. I await T-Bone’s story about how the Chinese really use cutlery more than chopsticks but I think he realizes that he cannot prove such a bold statement which he has thrown around in the past.

Micah tells us about his home in Texas, and also about his past indiscretions which have been well documented elsewhere. When we make the walk back to the venue, Micah mentions that there is a significant amount of difference in the numbers of police appearing in the streets in Australia compared with Texas. Almost as soon as he says this we say two paddy wagons, and he is amazed that they actually throw baddies into the back of the wagons.

At 8:30pm we enter the venue again, and the crowd has built up nicely. People are sitting near the front and awaiting the entertainment. T-Bone and I hang in the pool table area located at the back of the stage. I start to get a little bit nervous but it’s a good nervous more than anything. We walk onstage just after nine and play to a really cool crowd. Pretty quiet and respectful for the most part, and sitting nice and close which is how I like it to be.

The set is:
Breakdown
Night For Remembrance
Goofy
Until Sunrise
747
Scotty Come Home
Wyoming
Out of the Question
House Near Bridge
Boys Don’t Cry (Cure cover).
The sound onstage was seriously great, and playing in such a sweet venue was even better. It’s a long rectangular shape of a venue, but has these cool lamps and gives it a real homely feel to it.

As soon as we finish Adam Trewin says hello. Adam is Graeme Trewin’s older brother, and has been living in Brisbane for about three years now. I haven’t seen him since he left actually. He was actually standing right by me but because I shut my eyes a lot when I sing I didn’t really notice him. Before long the talk turns to our main passion, the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks. He went to the Brisbane game the week before where we played the most amazing attacking game only to lose the game.

I pack my gear and speak to some well-wishers before hanging with Adam. I introduce him to Micah, and they discuss Texas because Adam has some cousins who he stayed with over there a while back. Micah’s set was seriously one of the best solo sets I've seen by an artist. I had seen him four nights earlier but he was troubled with guitar problems and we were all standing up whereas tonight T-Bone had fixed his guitar and we all sat down to enjoy it. Micah was also a lot more chatty onstage, and a really funny fella too. His voice sounded awesome and I think he got drunker as the set went on. The crowd absolutely adored him and it was easy to see why. He reminded me of a young, musically-straighter Tom Waits which can only be a good thing.

After the show T-Bone and I hung out whilst Micah socialized. We were tour managing him so we gave him all the time he needed. We ended up taking our gear back to the car and then came back to get Micah. We were amazed to see the soundman set up the stage again, as if someone was going to play another set. Turns out Jamie who runs the venue, and his band were going to rehearse all night long!

We got back to the hotel at about 1am, and Micah calls it a night. T-Bone and I were hungry, so we went searching for some food. After driving around for ten minutes we realised the best we could do was a petrol station. The great thing about where were staying was that we must have driven over the Storey Bridge ten times whilst we were there. I cannot complain about that. We watched the end of Garden State before hitting the hay. I volunteered to take the bunk bed and let T-Bone have the rather large double and private room. It seemed only fair. I slept ok but it took a while to nod off.

Wednesday 13th July 2005

We were supposed to check out at 10am but Micah requested they put it back to 11am; got to love that eh. I was up first and had an awesome shower. Long and hot. We have some coffee and watch Bert Newton before Micah comes in and we head off downstairs. We fix up the bill and T-Bone heads off to return the amp whilst Micah and I hang out in the dining area. We talk a lot. He is a great guy, really friendly. As T-Bone comes back to collect us, Micah tells us how he met Robert Smith. We swoon.

It’s onto 11:30am now and we head off to the airport pretty much. We listen to the Arcade Fire and Roxy Music. We return the car and check in. We hang with Micah a bit more and then say our goodbyes, as he is off to Melbourne.

We pretty much board our plane straight away. We haven’t eaten yet which is a little disturbing but we haven’t had time really. We get home around 3pm and get the airport bus to where the car is park. T-Bone kindly drops me home and he heads back to inner west straight away.

I had a great time playing in Brisbane. Micah was an awesome guy and a great performer. It was a blast traveling with T-Bone obviously too. He is such a good friend and a talented musician I enjoy playing with. We go back so far and have been through so much, it makes it really easy to travel and be around each other. Infact, I would go to his place later that night to watch the series 2 finale of the OC.

Sam 2005