ON
THE ROAD DIARY
10.5.01+ 11.5.01 Berlin, ColumbiaHalle
26.5.01 Praha, Veletrzni palac
28.5.01+ 29.5.01 Paris, L’Olympia
10.5.01+ 11.5.01
Berlin, ColumbiaHalle
As far as I can see, Berlin gigs were the most cave-ish ones. It was maybe because
of that well-known historical background. There is a huge amount of goth fans-
faces painted white +eyes deep and sad as Marianne-Trench.
In Berlin, day #1, there was a young swedish couple, they had 70DM awhile the
single ticket was 60 and over a hundred at the sharky scalpers. But everyone
loves the dealer you know.
At the end they scored one tix for a regular price and the girl had to decide
if she alone were going to see the show or if turned to her bithday party. By
and by it seems she went to the party.
In Berlin we stumbled into guys who were trying to get in for free.
Succesfully.
26.5.01 Praha, Veletrzni palac
Prague gig was sad. Nick had cold and the venue looks like some railway station
hall. And the people found out and the people was cold and started enjoing the
show five minutes before it finished off.
In Prague there were brave girls who asked us politely to find someone who would
buy their extra tickets and we did find two souls and we were surprised badly
by the ‘merchandise skills’ of the girls.
In Prague there a Hungarian fan got the ticket from the crew's busdriver, in
Prague there we have shot a bunch of Russians who travelled a way from Moscow
just to see two of European gigs.
In Prague we found a guy who has seen all the gigs of the tour.
In Ljubljana he looked like I’d be stealing something from him.
28.5.01+
29.5.01 Paris, L’Olympia
Paris #1 gig was magnificient. The concert has ended and the crew started to
pack up but the audience kept applausing and applausing and clapping and crying
and it took over twenty minutes everyone on the same wave and noone leaving
and the band came once more, ready for the third encore.
Sadly but as expected the second gig’s audience wasn’t brought to this state
of trance. But there was a woman with dreadlocks, who esperately waited the
afternoon at the back-door, looking for Nick. She said she met him 15 years
ago and was hoping he’d remember her and give her a ticket.
By and by L’air parisien was great. There were roses thrown on to the stage
and bras and we found Nick’s school-mate in the crowd there.
1.6.01 Wien, StadtHalle
In Vienna we met a gang of women who have been to Berlin gigs previously and
actually on their way to see some Italian and Swiss gigs furhtermore. It was
rainy and great bunch of hard-core fans in the front row. Watching those shots
afterwards in the editing room I wish I was there.
In Vienna there was a tiny great backstage room and its a real pity we had no
allowance to shoot it. It was small and shadowy and Nick in dark suit sitting
on a barstool in the corner and talking and some people sitting around him in
armachairs and actually sitting UNDER him and listening... there was a myth
on the scene.
3.6.01 Ljubljana, Tivoli
Ljublana turned out to be the best gig we have been through. The grey skies
and a hockey hall venue was the background for the guitared serbian guys who
went on singing a lot of Nick’s and Tom Waits’ songs. Stoned and high at the
level of its mightiest madness they made the show unforgettable. Again there
were bras on the stage but now there simply was no energy for the third encore,
at the end of the last piece the audience made itself totally.
Simon Safranek