When I first got into this music lark, way back in the day, I was in little punk band called Douglas. We booked our own shows, got in the van and tried our best to get round the country to play to as many people as possible. Money was never considered, booking agents, managers and record labels didn't come into it. It wasn't really a consideration. It was just something we had to do (for some nuts reason!). I look back on those days as some of the best times of my life. I visited towns that I never thought I'd play in,got to meet and play shows with incredible and like minded bands and meet people that have become lifelong friends.
Just after my band got back from our first US tour we were booked to play a show in Clwb Ifor Bach in Cardiff, a homecoming if you like.Firstly because bands like us never went to the states, and secondly because we'd find any excuse to have a party. On that bill was our friends Goober Patrol and this other band, Capdown. Shit changed that night.
Capdown absolutely blew me away, the kind of band you feel stupid going on after. How in hell were you meant to follow that. They went on to become the most influential and hardest working band of our generation. You find me another band that was playing over 250 shows a year and doing everything themselves...and absolutely killing it everynight without fail.
Over the years that followed, we played so many shows with that band and shared so many good times.They've become brothers to me and I love them all to pieces. So it was great news to hear this year that they'd be playing shows again, and I was lucky enough to go out to a few of them with them. It was like they'd never left (although I'm pretty sure they were feeling it in the mornings a little more than they used to!). From what I heard they tore up Reading and Leeds festivals this last weekend and they're heading out in October for another bunch of dates, you can find them here. Go watch, you wont regret it.
