now i'm a million miles from home: upset and white lung go to australia and new zealand
Day 1: LAX > SYD
Spent a million hours at LAX. Shared a roasted garlic, arugula, truffle pizza w/ Rachel and met a woman who was a physician and on her way to meet up with her daughter in Bali. The 14 hour flight went by quickly thanks to a potent dose of dramamine. We left LA on a Monday and arrived in Sydney on a Wednesday. It was a pleasant surprise when we were met at the airport by Matthew, who judging by his looks must moonlight as a supermodel. He took us to Sydney Harbor and Jenn and I did cartwheels in the grass trying to fight off the jet lag.
We took turns pairing off to share hotel rooms. Patty and I were together the first day. We managed to blow a fuse in our room and fry Patty's cell phone charger and somehow get a free breakfast out of it. I had to go buy an Australian Nintendo 3DS charger at a JB HiFi so I could pass the lonely times when there was no wifi to be found (which was often.)
Day 2: The Factory Theatre in Sydney
We were all nervous/excited about meeting up with White Lung for the first time. It's always strange to go into a tour with a band you don't really know, especially when you'll be traveling in the same vans and planes in a different country. You wonder what the dynamic will be, if your senses of humor will be compatible, if everyone will be on the same page with meals and letting loose. We couldn't have toured with a better band at a better time.
Patty, Mish and I went down to Rage TV in the morning. One of the guys there knew my friends in Power Violence, which made me feel both proud and at home. The further I am from home, the worse my anxiety is, so it's always a relief when there's an element of familiarity.
me and my boyfriend jonah
We took turns soundchecking and getting dinner down the street at a pub. Oasis - Talk Tonight was on. I made a mental note to wear my Oasis shirt before the end of tour, since I knew Mish and Anne Marie were fans. Our first show was nowhere near sold out, but it was a good time nonetheless. It was my first time seeing White Lung.
so much lazy oaf gear for two people
Day 3: Alhambra Lounge in Brisbane
We all flew to Brisbane together and learned everyone's traveling idiosyncrasies: mine involve heavy sedation whereas Kenny's involve sleeping with a jacket on his head. The show was kinda whack. We learned that Wet Pussy shots are very popular in Australia. Kenny, Anne Marie, Jenn, Hether and I got Mexican food together. It was surprisingly not that whack considering how far we were from Mexico.
matthew is a saint for wrangling all of us every day
Mish and her carryon luggage
soaking up free wifi at our gate
hether took this opportunity to paint her nails
sup to the babes behind me
watching Anthony Bourdain: LA and planning on dining together when we get home
the drummers are tuckered out
kenny requires complete darkness for optimum rest
Day 4: The Tote in Melbourne
Another flight to Melbourne. We walked around to check out shops and get dinner pre-show. We had no luck thanks to the Queen's birthday.
dando + descendents
hey, that's us!
We played the Tote and got completely accosted by a major punisher who would NOT stop talking. Tacocat calls these types "Time Pirates." Mish and I did shots of tequila and she fell down on Anne Marie's drum kit. I finally met Brodie Lancaster (hi Brodie!) and Sophie who interviewed me for our piece in Frankie mag, which is so so good. She gave me a copy and I went out and bought the June issue.
upset feature in the new issue of frankie
white lung feature in frankie
Day 5: Day off in Melbourne
We all went to breakfast together. I learned the "hard" way that ice coffee in Australia means coffee with ice cream. White Lung had a record release party where we all got to listen to the new album. It's got my favorite new song, Wrong Star. We hung in Mish's room with her and Anne Marie during the day. We just sat on their beds and watched music videos. We all went out for dinner together at a kick ass Japanese place in downtown Melbourne.
this dog was crying for his owner and it made us sad
someone had Patty sign her arm and got it tattooed
me n anne marie
kenny takes WAY too long to find the right ice cream
Day 6: Howler in Melbourne
I woke up early and went with Patty to a gay and lesbian morning radio show called 3JOY. I bought a myki card and took the train into the city by myself for some alone time and to buy a sweater cause it was way colder than what I packed for. The second show in Melbourne was a day party with a craft fair. There were vintage clothes and awesome embroidery rings of pop culture icons. Mish and I did high kicks backstage and played a really fun show. We all sat on the side of the stage for White Lung and I got my favorite shots of them from the tour. Afterwards we went to a restaurant with Tim Bull and I had poutine and fell asleep at the table.
<3 anjelica huston <3
Beavis + Butthead
someone made this ms paint photo of us
these little weasels stole my phone
Day 7: Melbourne > Christchurch
Planned to go pet kangaroos and koalas at the zoo before our flight to New Zealand, but the weather was shit so we just had breakfast. We said farewell to Matthew and headed to Christchurch. The weather was even shittier there and we had the entire day off. We got Japanese food and went bar hopping. We all got to stay in a 4 bedroom apartment together and play house.
my other boyfriend the haribo bear
jet bridge
mama mish drinking a slimy peen
(our own creation of vodka and L&P)
Rachel was vigilant about taking her birth control in a timely manner
Jenn and Anne Marie in her lounging footwear
"I love a lady in animal print"
Day 8: Churchill's in Christchurch
We had all morning to kill so we got breakfast, then Rachel and I rented movies to pass the time in this cold, desolate city. We decided on This is the End and Cheap Thrills (which we never got around to). We all hung out and laughed at This is the End until it was time for us to be picked up and brought to the venue. The show was alright, lots of enthusiastic kids, lots of weirdos. We ordered pizzas to the venue. They were blah. We thought Rachel had been kidnapped, but she was just smoking weed in someone's car.
Day 9: Bodega in Wellington
Wellington, yikes. Too many shots of tequila. Danced at a strip club and was subsequently kicked out.
Walked a long cold walk back to the hotel and threw up naked in a pitch black bathroom, or so I'm told. Not my finest moment.
get this seat for your heinous baby
Rachel got a cronut
wifi wifi wifi wifi wifi
we played on the moon
the airport in wellington was very middle earthy
i doodled
and mapped out marked men and radioactivity songs on the plane
where I would later spend the night puking and shivering
hindsight is truly 20/20
Day 10: Kings Arms Tavern in Auckland
Woke up feeling awful, showered the night before off of me and made it downstairs just in time for lobby call. We flew to Auckland for our last show; sunglasses, ibuprofen, and water in tow.
auckland airport
window seat
new zealand
We arrived in Auckland and the weather was finally beautiful. Patty, Rachel and I went thrifting and ate a delicious breakfast. Rachel and I walked through the creepy old graveyard near our hotel, chatting and taking pictures.
When it was show time we headed to the venue and found the promoter had gotten White Lung champagne and cake to celebrate their impending record release. We toasted the tour, ate some cake, and played our bittersweet last show of tour together. We hung out and said our goodbyes and hugged and tried to get some sleep before our 5am lobby call.
Day 11: Auckland > Sydney > Los Angeles
I got recognized from this blog at the Auckland airport. That was a first. Patty, Rachel and I were so deliriously tired and could not stop cracking ourselves up. So many spit takes and near pants wetting. The trip home felt like it lasted a year. I read an interview with St. Vincent in an issue of Frankie magazine on the plane, and I feel like this little excerpt perfectly summed up the tour.
I'm really excited about what's next for us as a band. I'm feeling more motivated and hopeful than ever. I have a feeling the new stuff we write is going to be pretty fuckin cool.
xo Ali
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