The Eastpak Antidote Tour

Eastpak Blog #35 - Helsinki

Hey!

Chris here reporting the last EAT09 blogg

Last night was awesome!

We started loading in at about 1pm, it was already getting dark and an hour later there was no more light. Even tho the sun was non-existent everyone was in a good mood there were kids’ cueing up outside the whole day. The venue was sold out so it was going to be a good one! Apart from walking up stairs for most part of the day we were all enjoying the last day of the tour, We hung out and traded stories, contact info and picture.

When Ghost of a Thousand started playing the crowd went nuts. The room was packed and they were dancing like it was the last day of their lives. Even tho they had some technical difficulties their set was amazing! At one point Neil and I stage dived, being as ugly as we are no one caught us. Boom! Straight to the floor. Four Year Strong rocked the house, the kids knew their songs and sang along that made it an awesome gig! Be sure to check out their new record coming out next year! Alexisonfire made this one count there were alot of inside jokes and strange things happening. Anti-Flag ended the night with a boom, Jordan and George from Alexis played on the old A-F song “You Do The Same”. During “Cities Burn” almost the whole tour was on stage. Chris#2 smashed a Low Tomb, Fact *Steele might be the first one ever to perform a “Stage Shave”. Ruben had a banana in his pants, hilarious .What an amazing night. After the show we had a big party in the stage area we drank beers and were really loud. After alot of shaking hands, we said our goodbyes and best wishes.

We’d like to thank everyone who was involved in the Eastpak Antidote Tour 2009! All the bands have been friggen awesome!

“Love of life, Love of Game!”

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #34 - Seinajoki

So we made it to Finland safe and sound. The party boat was a bit of a letdown, and there were loads of drunken idiots wanting to start fights

Seinajoki was a dark and isolated place. We woke up to a pitch darkness, there was two days left of the tour, and we all felt like this was going to be just one of those days, did I mention it rained the whole day? We got into the venue and the place was set up like the venue manager was drunk when he did it. Barricades were all over the floor to separate the drinking crowd from the non-drinking crowd. There were about 400 people there in total as Ghost of a Thousand started playing and it stayed that way til’ Anti-Flag hit their last chord. The kids that were there were great tho! And if the venue had been a pub I’m sure that it would have been one of the best gigs of the tour!

After the gig we hung out at the busses and had a few beers and played handball til’ 6 in the morning, someone has a great picture of that somewhere. Others watched documentaries about insects, needless to say there was not much sleeping after that.

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #33 - Stockholm

Hejsan

We are in Stockholm the capital of Sweden and the end of the tour is getting near. The “home stretch” if you will. The venue “Klubben” was pretty cool, it was definitely one of the smallest venues of the tour. As we got in they had made breakfast catering for all the bands, there were even cookies for the vegans. There wasn’t much to see in the immediate vicinity but some guys went into town to the Cheap Monday store to do some cloth shopping. When everyone got back we played some handball and later a nice cafeteria lady had made us some nice dinner. Thank you cafeteria lady!

The gig was packed by the time the first band started and once again I was surprised how many people were getting into it from the start. Ghost of a thousand wrapped it up with a few kind words of how they like Stockholm very much and what a blast they had recording their album there. Four year strong had an amazing gig and people really seemed to like them which is cool seeing as they’ve never played Sweden before this tour. Alot of people were already wearing Alexisonfire t-shirts when they hit the stage and they played an awesome set. Anti-Flag rounded the night up with a great live show, I even got to play some bass with them. It was awesome.

Next stop: Finland!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #32 - Göteborg

Hallå eller!

We are finally in Gothenburg. We spent the whole day before travelling; the ferry from Fredrikshavn to Gothenburg was loads of fun, we played fussball and had a blast. For some strange reason we didn’t wanna get of the ferry. When we arrived we got straight to a hotel and turned in for the night.

The next day we walked to the venue which was not that far. Had some nice Swedish breakfast, hell yeah. We basically hung around the venue the whole day. Some of my bandmates in Splitside showed up with my brother, a special thanks to Go Drowsy for bringing the merch for the bands. Ghost played a great show and the Swedish crowd which is normally very hard to please enjoyed themselves it was good to see. Four Year Strong got a good response aswell. It is their first time in Sweden! Alexisonfire blew everyone away with their performance. And Anti-Flag played an awesome gig! After the gig we hung out some of my Swedish friends and had a good time!

Cheers

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #31 - Hamburg

Hey!

Getting off the bus I recognised myself. We were in the heart of St Pauli, the home of the proudly anti-fascist football team. We got in to the best breakfast of the tour. The caterers were amazing. After load in we decided to walk around for a bit we saw the St Pauli stadium, but since it was a Sunday there was not much open. We got back to the venue and set up for the Emmaus Photo Booth and had some nice lunch.

St Pauli stadium

The gig in Hamburg was amazing, the place was packed and kids were stoked. All the bands played an amazing set. And I got to meet some friends I haven’t seen in a long while. After the show we hit a pub called “Die Kogge” with some kids from the show, Eastpak people and a bit of Anti-Flag. We played some table fussball in which Klaas is a master.

Ghost Anti-Flag in Hamburg Fussball

After the gig we got on the ferry and started the long drive towards Gothenborg. Sweden Baby!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #30 - Amsterdam

Hey Hey Hey

The Antidote Tour hit The Melkweg in Amsterdam. Getting off the bus many people including myself almost fell into the water which surrounds the Melkweg because the buses were parked so close, we're lucky no one did. We had an amazing breakfast at a pancake place around the corner, and walked around town for a bit and saw some really amazing street performers.

After the normal routine of setting up we had a nice dinner at the restaurant in the same building. Ghost played an amazing set and people went crazy. During the Four Year Strong Anti-Flag set I witnessed some of the funniest stage diving I've ever seen. The kids were running up on stage jumping around for a bit all stoked and then made the smoothes and slowest stage dive. It was like they fell asleep midway and then crowed surfed away. One guy crowed surfed all the way to the soundboard from the stage and then back during the Anti-Flag set, it was hilarious. The bands changed up a bit so Alexisonfire headlined the show. What a show. Same there, kids all over the stage George picked some of them up and threw them back and they loved it.

After the show we had a bit of a party going on we hit some pubs and such. It was a good time! When we got back to the buses we had to move loads of bikes because they were blocking the street from which we came. It was quite the challenge, but our skilled drivers managed to get us out, through crowds of people, scooters, bikes and bottles. Good job guys.

Thanks for a nice night in Amsterdam

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #29 - Koln

Hey

What a great time we had in Koln. We got up bright and early and went to the Kölner Halle to play some ice hockey. Some lucky contest winners got to play hockey with Anti-Flag for the Emmaus charity. There were Anti-Flag jerseys and everything, It was so much fun, we meet some Koln pro players, skated around for a while, and played a fantastic game of hockey.

Hockey Team

After the hockey we hung around, and got a tour of the stadium. Then it was time to get back to the venue. We loaded in and set up, and before you knew it the show started. The Koln crowed was amazing and made the gig so great, thanks for coming out early and checking out all the bands and being such good sports! Thanks to everyone who was a part of the Emmaus Photo Session.
Photo Both

All the bands played very well. Ghost played an amazing set, Andy thrashed so hard he broke his guitar and Four Year Strong and Alexisonfire got quite the response from the crowed. Anti-Flag played the most amazing show, and interrupted the middle of their set to let their friends in Green Peace say some words.  What a great night!

Four Year StrongAlexisonfireAnti-Flag

Cheers

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #28 - Antwerp

Blah

Welcome to Antwerp! The home of Eastpak. We'd had an amazing day of in this lovely city the day before and there was amazing. We went into town and saw the Cathedral, The Castle, and The Town Hall. Where there was a statue of a hero throwing a giants hand. awesome. Read all about it here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antwerp we also went to see 2012 which turned out to be the greatest comedy ever made. After the move we just hung out at the hotel watching TV and having drinks.

The day after we moved our asses to the venue which was not that far away from the venue. It is a nice looking place, and the people there were really nice! They have us a good meal and let us play handball in the venue! Since we were on Eastpak soil there were lots of free giveaways and loads of Eastpak people there to party and have a good time. The hall was almost full when Ghost played a great set, and Four Year Strong played amazingly. Alexisonfire showed Belgium how it's done for the first time! And Anti-Flag had their first show in Antwerp with a warm welcome! All in all it was a fun an exciting night!

Town Hall, Handthrower

Thanks to everyone who came out!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #27 - Wiesbaden

Hey
   
Back in Germany! Wiesbaden was better than expected. During the day we went to the supermarket and bought new clothes and supplies which was nice. They served a nice breakfast/lunch buffet at the venue and they had the best shower ever.
   
Since it was one of the German dates Anti-Flag had a “Fun Photo Session” for Emmaus, which was all good fun. I saw five guys wearing the same Anti-Flag T-Shirt. Ghost played one of their best set of the tour. Four Year Strong had a good show and it's nice to see people enjoying them seeing as they have never been to mainland Europe before this tour. Alexisonfire had an amazing show as always. Anti-Flag had an great show as well. Afterwards, we hung out in Tim's Eastpak bus, saw a fight, played some tischfussball in the bar next door.
   
Ghost of a Thousand Five dudes in Anti-Flag T-Shirts Fun with the giant Eastpak bag

Good Times!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #26 - Paris

Bonjour!

What a day we had in Paris yesterday. Got up bright and early to walk around and check out the sites. Eiffel Tour, Notre Dame, Sacre Coeur. We went almost everywhere walking around for hours in this beautiful city. Spirits were high. We had loaded in the day before so we had loads of time til' the show. After eating lunch a couple of us, mostly Four Year Strong guys went out again to check out some more stuff. There is so much to see and one day is not nearly enough to explore a city like Paris. It did us good to get out from it all for a bit.

The show was in this venue called Elysee Monmarte which had been visitied by the Eastpak Antidote Tour the year before. And the show turned out great there were more kids there than excepted and they were enjoying themselves, all the bands had a enjoyable show. When the show was over we had a really early bus call because of the drive to Wiesbaden the next day. So did a quick pack of the buses and headed off!

Thanks Paris

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #25 - Bilbao

Hola Muchachos

We woke up to a lovely day in Bilbao, not. It was raining all day long and we had to do a cross load to the venue while it was pouring down. Fun! We got to the venue at about 4pm so after setting up almost everybody went to the Guggenheim Museum. Which was really great. Apart from that there is really not much more to do in Bilbao so we just hung out at the venue. Apparently it was an actual Cafe during the day so there was no real stage, there were some steps leading up to a higher plain and that was the stage.

Since there were steps leading up to the stage, you'd think they'd at least have security or some type of barricade. They didn't. Kids were everywhere, knocking mic stands into faces. Dallas(AOF) got a mean "micplant" straight in his mouth which sucks. Other than that it was a awesome show to watch. The crowed was really into all the bands straight from the start, having a good time. During the amazing Anti-Flag set the power cut out on stage, so the whole thing turned out to a samba dancing session with drums and clapping hands. Fiesta! The Spain dates have been really awesome!

Thanks for a good night!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #24 - Madrid

Hey.

Wow. Madrid was weird. First of all we woke up in a garage and when we made our way out we had been under a huge palace all along. We walked into town to get some breakfast; there were lots of street performers and artist everywhere. We had a really hard time finding the venue was it didn’t look like a place where they would have rock show. But the Joy Eslava is a really cool venue. It has this sort of Greek look to it, with white stone pillars and steps. All the security guards were dressed in suits. It was really fancy. When the show started we were surprised to see that there was no barricade in front of the stage and the place was packed. The guards (in suits) were standing between the huge speakers totally bombarded with kids. After a few songs into the Four Year Strong set the guards bailed and kids were flying of the stage during almost every song. It was still a great show for all the bands, what wasn’t so great was directly after the show the security wanted us to rush out of there as fast as humanly possible. They were having a club night straight after the show; it was a very hectic and stressful load-out. After the show a couple of us went out to a bar dedicated to the Ramones. It was a blast!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #23 - Barcelona

Hola

We are in Spain! And it’s great; spirits were high when everybody came back from walking around this beautiful city. Anti-Flag had a very good time at the Clash Cover Set which was held in a pub called Rock Sound. People were dancing and singing along, even the bartender! Good Times. Also meet Oriol and Louie from Eastpak Spain who are really nice guys! We got back for a quick and effective load-in. Unfortunately the Ghost/FYS bus didn’t make it to Barcelona it broke down outside of Marseille, which really sucked. But happy birthday ANDY! We had loaded some of the AOF gear on there the day before and we came to the conclusion that some of their gear is cursed. Luckily for AOF we found a support band that was nice enough to lend them their gear. Thanks to “Read My Lips”. Besides from GOAT/FYS not being there, the gig was great. Kids really enjoyed themselves and went nuts. The opening band kind of reminded me of Comeback Kid. AOF had a great set even tho they didn’t have their own gear. When they finished it was Anti-Flags turn to do their thing and they did. Crowed went nuts, there were circle pits, Steele stage dived, it was awesome. After the show we ate some pizza and packed up since there was this late night show afterwards. Amazing city, Amazing night!

Ciao!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #22 - Marseille

Bonjour!

EAT09 rocked around in Marseille and what a lovely day it was. Nice weather and so much to see! We walked around for hours just looking at the sites this town has to offer. When we got into town we were surprised to see that there was trash all around town. Apparently the workers of the city were on strike because they didn’t get paid for doing their jobs. Be sure to check out Marseille if you have the chance you won’t regret it!

We got to the venue and loaded in and only a few of them spoke English so it was really hard to explain some things. But we eventually found a translator to help us out. The venue was really cool and decorated as an old cinema. It was pretty small but in a good way! We had some really nice food at a place next door called: The Haunted House. There were 3 local bands that night which was pretty cool, they played on a smaller stage just next door and during the time between bands, so it was a music filled night! Which most of us thought was a great idea. It helps smaller bands play with the band they like! Nicely done! It was a great set for all the bands and the crowed were going at it from start to finish which is really nice to see.

Au revoir

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #21 - Milan

Hey

We stumbled in to a very bad day in Milan, Italy. It was such a laugh loading in during pouring rain and wind. And it kept on raining the entire day. Alexisonfire almost didn’t make it because of bus troubles (AGAIN!!!). However the venue people were really nice and the guy running the show was a great dude! Anti-Flag went to a signing in the Eastpak store in Milan, a couple of people showed up even tho it was pouring down, which was great. When we got back to the “Alcatraz” we played some handball again, which is turning into a favourite sport. Then we had some Italian pizza!

The gig started off really slow, kids were just standing around for the first two sets which was a real bummer. If you haven’t heard the bands before be sure to check ‘em out on myspace! It all changed when alexis got on stage tho, more people were there, and people were acting like they’d actually came to see a show. Anti-Flag had a great show and people went crazy. If the venue had been a little smaller or there had been more people there this could have been truly amazing.

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #20 - Vienna

Greets

Vienna was amazing! The place was called The Gasometer which is a huge complex made up of food courts, a mal, and fitness centre and underneath it all a venue! Crazy I know! We had an amazing time there. The venue part is huge and round complete with bars everywhere. The stage was like everything else in the venue, huge! This nice blond haired lady cooked us food. Anti-Flag had a Clash set at the Vienna SportZClub which went very well.

There was and still is a big protest going on for and by the students of Austria. The reason being the students are fed up with the lack of resources, money and politicians failing to meet their demands! So we followed Justin and Pat from Anti-Flag to a University where a big protest was being held. They gave a great speech and played a song, people seemed to really enjoy it and it was a great thing to experience. Knowledge is power! We got back just in time to watch Alexisonfire play a couple of songs which was great. After that Anti-Flag played an amazing set, the spokesman for the Student Union was there to give a little speech and Anti-Flag got help from local heroes from Go Gets and Red Lights Flash during “Die for your Government”. Thanks for a fantastic night!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #19 - Pratteln

Gutten Tag, Ciao, Bonjour

After a long night of riding on the bus we arrived in Pratteln, Switzerland without any problems with the border crossing which was nice! We loaded into a cramped backstage which was more or less tunnels and stairs. Z7 is located in an industrial area so there was not much to do there so we ate some nice food and played some handball. Good Times! A local act joined us that night called Confuzed. Ghost of a Thousand turned those clapping hands in to snapping fingers. A new hip thing. Four Year Strong announced that their coming out with a new album. Eyes peeled! Alexisonfire had a great show and Steven the lighting guys did an amazing job! If you see him around don’t forget to give him a thumps up! Anti-Flag had a good show even tho there were some technical difficulties. And in other news Alexisonfire are now rolling in the dreaded Jumbo Cruiser again. Hope it stays rolling this time! Thats all for now!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #18 - Munich

Tag!

Last night we were in Munich and it was great! Waking up in the morning we couldn’t find our way in because our bus was parked in what looked like a garden, which was really nice. We walked around the Backstage Werk for a couple of minutes and then finally a door opened. We got to load in, and the Backstage Werk is a really cool venue. There were step like seats going up the walls and a “pit” where people could go crazy, so you could see the bands from almost anywhere in the venue! The only problem was that there was no Internet in the venue, which sucked. But as always; the food was amazing!

The night started off with a “Fun Photo Session” and kids were really stoked and in a good mood. Alot of people showed up and everything went well and smooth. I meet some Swedish friends of mine which was really cool. Ghost of a thousand and Four Year Strong got a pretty decent welcome by the crowed which was nice to see! Be sure to come out early to not miss any of the opening bands! Alexisonfire were great as always, and Anti-Flag keep playing a better show everynight! We had to leave early because of crossing the Swiss border. Which can be a problem some times?

See ya in Switzerland

Eastpak Blog #17 - Stuttgart

Bis Morgen,

Last night we were in Stuttgart, A place called Longhorn. It was a pretty cool venue in the middle of nowhere; there were posters and stickers of many of my favourite bands. We had a good time setting up and hanging out. The Canadians came with the great idea of playing “Handball” which is some sort of primitive sport were you throw a ball into a wall and repeat nonetheless it was great fun. There was a lot of emotion, sweat, blood and tears but Juice turned out to be the handball champion. After an intense handball tournament we had dinner and then doors opened.

In regular fashion A-F had a “Fun Photo Session” for the charity Emmaus. Ghost of a Thousand had a nice show, Four Year Strong delivered as always, Alexisonfire did well, and Anti-Flag had an amazing show, Stuttgart was the best German date so far!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #16 - Leipzig

Hallo,

We are in Leipzig and have been for a day and a half now, there’s not much to do in Leipzig, appart from having the biggest war monument in the whole of Europe. We had some great pasta dishes at a place called VaPiano. Other than that it was just a rainy day. We got to Werk 2 after staying at a hotel for our day off, it was some kind of old factory, and the sound in there was all over the place. As it was a Leipzig Klaas from Eastpak was there, and we had a “Fun Photo Session” with Anti-Flag which turned out great. All the bands had an ok show, there were some technical difficulties and the crowed just wasn’t feeling it. They were like they’d rather be at home watching TV. We had a late buscall so afterwards some of us went to Werk 3 which was a bar right across the street, the booze was cheap, and everyone got drinks for free.

Good Times

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #15 - Prague

Hey

We hit Prague and meet up the missing Ghost of a Thousand and Four Year Strong, nice to see those guys again and that they made it. We got some nice breakfast, the food at the venue was amazing and never ending, it was like the two chefs were having a cook-off. Afterwards a couple of us went walking around town. There is so much to see, but the funniest was by far when a couple of the AOF guys went to the Sex museum. There are some great pictures on a computer somewhere.

The show was OK, some things were a bit unorganized and everywhere you looked people were smoking the whole room was just mist, the bar staff was smoking, the old monitor guy, the guards, the kids: It was crazy. All the bands played great sets, and there was no barricade so kids ran up and down the stage like crazy. After the show we got onto the bus and drove to Leipzig for our day off. Some guys stayed at in Prague to have their day of there and then take the train!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #14 - Berlin

Gutentag,

Welcome to Berlin! So as you might have heard Ghost of a Thousand and Four Year Strong had some bus troubles and couldn’t make it to Berlin. Their ignition broke so they had to cancel. Which is a shame, it just wasn’t the same without ‘em. They will however still be playing the rest of the tour tho! Apologies go out to everyone that came out to see them.

Nevertheless Berlin was still fun, there was amazing food and people at The Postbanhof were really nice. Anti-Flag played another Clash Cover set at the Berlin Ramones Museum, which was a really cool place. They have this collection of old Ramones memorabilia! So the Clash Cover Set was amazing, there were so many people jammed into that little place that I couldn’t get any good photos, all I have is a picture of Pat sitting in what looks like an edict.

After the Clash Set, We got back to the venue and set up for the “Fun Photo Session” which will be happening on all the German dates of the tour. Basically anyone who donates 1 euro to the homeless charity Emmaus gets to take a funny photo with Anti-Flag. There are different masks and costumes on spot! So come on out early! It’s for charity!  Because Ghost of a Thousand and Four Year Strong couldn’t make it, we found this nice local Berlin band called Radio Havana to fill in on such short notice. (Thanks for playing guys!) Alexisonfire and Anti-Flag both played great sets, but were bummed out that their companions couldn’t be there!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #13 - Luxembourg

Bonjour

The Eastpak Antidote Tour has landed on the mainland! Luxembourg baby! Alexisonfire has had alot of problems with their bus breaking down! It’s just been hell for them. When they drove to get on the ferry their bus broke down again! (That’s got to be some kind of record right?) So they had to take a minibus. When they arrived they finally kicked their former buscompany out the door and got a new one! Alexisonfire are now rolling in style, which works. The people at The Atelier gave us such a warm welcome. They had prepared a meal for us just as we got in and actually helped us load in (some crew people in the UK were just like "meh"). We had some amazing vegan soup, compliments to the chef! Also: Happy Birthday tour manager Neltie!

So the show was a little different; people are drinking outside and smoking inside, the merch area was like something out of “Stars in their eyes”. The kids seemed to be enjoying The Ghost of a Thousand who played their first show in Luxembourg! Four Year Strong who have never played mainland Europe had a really good set and people seemed to like them alot! Since we are out of the UK Anti-Flag are now headlining! Which means Alexisonfire took the stage after FYS. Nonetheless their performance wasn’t affected, their set was truly great. The place was so packed by the time A-F were about to play you couldn’t move around, old hits came up like “Underground Network”. It was a great show to start of the European leg of the tour!

As we were about to leave for Berlin you wouldn’t believe what happened. A bus broke down. This time it was Ghost of a Thousand and Four Year Strong to feel the wrath of the busgods, Their ignition broke! And their bus driver Les had gotten really sick and had to leave the tour. Just another day on the Eastpak Anti-bus Tour

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #12 - Portsmouth

Hi
So, The Eastpak Antidote Tour 09 did its last gig on UK soil. The UK has been great and all the gigs have been going well. Portsmouth was awesome, It’s such a nice city, most of us got to walk around and see The castle and D-Day museum if you get a chance you should really check it out!, the venue was right by the water. It was this pyramid shaped building conveniently called The Pyramid.

The gig was amazing. The kids were really into it and making it quite the show. During Ghosts set I saw a couple of kids attempting to make a human pyramid in the middle of the pit, which was probably their signature move, it looked hilarious. Alexisonfire gave a shout out to Paige from Eastpak who dropped of the tour, which was really nice of them, I love when bands do things like that. Thanks for being with us Paige!

Take care

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #11 - Birmingham

Hey and Welcome to Birmingham. We had trouble finding the Academy since they moved it from where it used to be. After a while we found the place. Everyone was stoked for this once since it is the biggest venue on the tour. After loading in we found that the place was a maze! There were doors everywhere; people were wandering around looking lost.

The gig started off slow. The venue was half full when Ghost hit it off, but towards the middle of their set people started showing up which was great. Kids where enjoying themselves! All the bands played a great set, and during the Alexisonfire encore the crowed was in for a surprise. Faces were falling off when Cancer Bats (who were in town) came out and ripped “Hail Destroyer” before letting their colleges in AOF finish up. After the show we hung out at the venue talking to the Cancer Bats, it was great people were trading tour stories, some of us hid in the dressing room to catch the NHL game which was on: Pittsburgh vs St. Louis.

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #10 - Manchester

Oi

We are in Football-mecka Manchester: also known for its museums and bands like: The Smiths, Oasis, Stone Roses, Happy Mondays and Joy Division. The day started off with trouble parking. Some bus was in our spot and it almost turned into a fight. Luckily A-F busdriver Richard looks really intimidating they moved. A few went out walking into town to get stuff to eat and check out the museums all over town. Setting up for the show had a lot of fun with a cherry picker. All in all

Manchester is a great city and the kids at the show were great to. All the bands played well, Josh from Four Year Strong got to film for the first time in his life, Paul AOF drumtech fell through the stage not knowing there was a little gap between the wall and the stage. He’s alright tho, thankfully he only hurt his pride. Alexisonfire made a kid magically appear during their set and everyone was as chocked as the band.

The day after we had a day off so we stayed in Manchester. Some went to a movie others stayed in the hotel and relaxed and had some nice food. Thats all for now.

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #9 - Leeds

Tally-Ho

After quite the night in Glasgow We found ourselves at Leeds University. Going into the hall where the gig was going to take place, it was extremely loud. Nothing like waking up to 130 dBs of Metallica! As like every morning we got in and set everything up. A-F had a signing at a pretty cool store called Ace, check it out.

Apart from the dressing rooms being so small that being two people there at once felt claustrophobic. The Leeds gig was one of the best ones so far, The Ghost of a Thousand keep getting better every time I see them and Four Year Strong always get the crowed going. The Anti-Flag set was amazing, it was angry and intense and Justin gave a very moving speech towards the end of the set which made the whole venue applaud. The Canadians in Alexisonfire ended the night in a spectacular performance; the crowed was going nuts for them and singing along.  All in all Leeds was amazing. Afterwards a couple of us went to “O’Neils” for a beer or two, everybody in town were wearing costumes I guess there was some student thing going on. One guy gave us the “Drunk Dead Face” it was hilarious.

Chris, Eastpak09

Blog...

The EASTPAK Antidote Tour is starting to get right in to the thick and gooey depths of this 6 week tour. All of the bands and crew are fusing into the machine that makes it all happen. I can't believe that we are almost two weeks in now and about to head over to the mainland!
So who else has been rocking out at the gigs? We were in Glasgow on Friday with a huge and fired up crowd! They were there in their Glaswegian masses out to have a great night. The O2 Academy there is huge but you cats filled the room no problem!

The Alexisonfire bus broke down once again on our way to Glasgow, so when we all returned from partying in town with you lot, we got back to cruiser #3!!! Fingers crossed that we don't have to have anymore M6 parties.... well.... one more could be fun! hehe
When I woke up in Leeds on Saturday, desperately looking for somewhere to get some greasy brekkie (Glasgow knows how to party!) I was a little confused with the venue. We were in a large hall that is actually the uni cafeteria! But by the time brekkie was had the local crew had snapped their fingers and as if by magic, there was a huge stage and rig set up ready to blow your minds! Bring on the music!
Anti-Flag came down to Ace to meet their fans in the afternoon. Thanks to the store and to all of you that came down to say hi! Congrats to Ash who won the Antidote Tour Padded Pak'r in the raffle! Four Year Strong are out to meet their fans this afternoon at the O2 Academy in Birmingham from 5pm. Come down to meet these great guys! There will be another lucky winner of a bag today!!!
So to all of you lucky peeps that are heading down to Birmingham O2 Academy tonight, I can't wait to see you! All of the bands are really getting in to the tour now and are having such a great time up on stage! So you are gonna love it! Or, I'll see you in Portsmouth tomorrow for my last night of the tour!!! What am I going to do without the Antidote Tour in my life?!

xx paige
Luckiest girl in the UK!

Eastpak Blog #8 - Glasgow

Good day

The Eastpak Antidote Tour ventured into the city of Glasgow. A dark and cold place. The venue was like London also an old theatre. All the bands had played in Glasgow at some point before so everyone was in a good mood. A few went out to take a look around but most of us stayed in and just hung out. Like the day before kids started lining up outside way before doors, it’s good to see that kind of dedication.

The Ghosts shot the night off as always; their show was fast and intense. Shame there was a big gap in the audience. Don’t forget to come out early so you don't not miss the amazing Ghost of a Thousand! FYS had a good set, Josh was running all over the place until he was eventually swallowed by the crowed. Anti-Flag played their best set so far and the crowed were really into it. Alexisonfire didn’t have to do much singing because the crowed did it for them. It was a great gig

After the show a couple of us went to an afterparty which was at a place called The Cathouse, it was this punk/rock nightclub. The music was so loud in there that after a while of screaming at each other Wade and me decided to leave. On the way home some we stumbled across a very drunk guy who gave Wade a silver cowboy hat. Hey that’s what happens when you are in a rockband.

Sorry for not having any pictures up for the last few days. the net has been really slow

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #7 - London/Clash gig

Hello,

Welcome to London, capital city. Wednesdays gig was amazing it was at The Forum a really cool venue which is basically and old theatre with a huge balcony, so the sound and acoustics in there were great. There was much to do so we stayed at the venue pretty much the whole day.

Kids had been cueing up all day outside so and when it was time to open the doors the cue stretched all the way to the back alleys. I heard a few people going “ah man, let’s go back to the pub and come back later”. Meet some people from Eastpak HQ nice seeing Femke, Mieke, Claire. Tim from Eastpak was there to film. When “Ghost” started playing it was like watching raging bulls fighting, they were all over the stage. Four Year Strong had a pleasant surprise for their drummer Jake who’s birthday they celebrated on stage with cake and all, he was stoked. Anti-Flag played a great set! Alexisonfire were amazing as always, Chris Steele did a barrel roll while playing bass which was pretty cool! All in all we had an amazing time in London!

Yesterday Anti-Flag recorded 4 songs for their BBC session the rest of us just hung out at the Underground Tesco’s buss parking all day, We watched Extras, it was great. At about 6pm we went to The Eastpak Store on Carnaby Street to set up for the Anti-Flag Clash Cover set. Everybody was in a good mood, checking out the store and meeting the staff and hanging out. At about 8.30 the gig started. George from AOF was there for a guest appearance with A-F unfortunately Wade(AOF) couldn’t be there as he was laying sick in is bunk on the bus. They show turned out great tho, the store was full and because of it having all glass walls there were people standing outside looking in. They played about 9 songs and rounded it up with “Should I Stay or Should I Go”.

Thanks to everyone that came and the people who set it up!

Tonight we are in Glasgow. Alexisonfire had some trouble with their bus (AGAIN!) and nearly didn’t make it to the gig, but more on this in tomorrow’s blog  

Chris, Eastpak

Eastpak Blog #6 - Brighton

Hey,

Apart from being The Ghost of a Thousand’s homebase Brighton is a lovely city. When we stepped of the bus the day before yesterday the weather was all sunny and nice! We had a day off so we decided to take a walk around town, the pier and just relaxed.

On the day of the show (tues) we hung out at the venue and at the nearby “beach”. The show was at a smaller venue called “Concorde 2” this really nice place right down by the water. When evening came around a couple of us had some pizzas down by the now dubbed “rock-beach”, just as the sun set, it was bromantic.

The Ghosts kicked it off just as we came back and you could tell they were on home soil they played a fantastic set. Four Year Strong played an awesome set, what was not so awesome was the guard was just watching kids faceplanting the floor during their set. Match makers Anti-Flag played a good set even tho there were some technical issues. I couldn’t even get to the stage when Alexisonfire started playing the small venue was so crowded. They kids really seemed to enjoy it! After the show an argument broke out between crew and security we didn’t like the way they had been handling the kids and doing their jobs, guards being guards. Especially this one guy who was being a complete asshole getting in everyones face and try to start a fight. Other than that we all had a nice night. If you haven’t been to Brighton be sure to check it out if you get the chance.

As always if you have photos, we’d love to have em! Be sure to state your name.

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #5 - Bristol

Good Day!

After the gig in Nottingham Alexisonfire and Anti-flag busses convoyed to Bristol.
As we were half way through Alexisonfires bus broke down on the side of the road. Everyone got out and we had a short and intense party by the road until Steve(AOF busdriver) got the bus going again. Everyone was cheering and we hit the road again! for 5 minutes...
It was hopeless. The bus was dead.
There was not much more to do so the Anti-Flag bus got a Go. AOF had to wait 5 hours for another bus to come, and then grab all their stuff and put it onto that one.

Waking up in Bristol it was already late in the day and it feelt like the whole day just passed by so quickly. "Ghost" had a signing at 5pm.The turn up was pretty good considering it being a sunday and all. The gig was all pretty much good and all the bands played a good set. The crowed was a little harder to please then coming from Nottingham the other day, Maybe it was because it was a early Sunday show? I dont know. Packing up we found out that some kid/kids had stolen an Eastpak banner, someone must really like backpacks!

Eastpak Blog #4 - Nottingham

Hey Everyone.

I’m just gonna jump right into it:

Last night we were in Nottingham at Rock City. We got in really early so a couple of us went to check out the city, buy new clothes and eat. We got back and started setting up for the show. There were kids cueing up all day so even tho it was an early show there were loads of people there when Ghost of a Thousand took the stage. They played a really great and tight set. Four Year Strong played their best set yet and the crowed were really into it. Anti-Flag hit the stage playing a great show and Wade from Alexisonfire made a guest appearance during “Great Depression”.  All you could hear was a giant cheer as Alexisonfire come out, the show was truly amazing! At one point the whole venue echoed the melody of “Accidents”. A big thank you goes out to all the people who showed up and made it such an amazing night.

As always if you have photos, be sure to send them in. Don’t forget to mention your name!

Chris, Eastpak09

Eastpak Blog #3 - Oxford

Hey.

The Eastpak Antidote Tour continues and we are in Nottingham at Rock City. They just opened the venue and let us in. Keep in mind that tonight is an early show! Doors at 5.30pm

Last night we were in Oxford, as I mentioned you in previous entries we had some trouble with parking. The grumpy parking police officer working that day got a great shot of GOAT/FYS and co posing with their ticket. There were also people parking right behind the Anti-Flag trailer so we couldn’t unload, but thanks to the massive strength and master mind of Mighty Max we finally sorted it out. Afterwards we had some great food at a place called: WAGAMAMA.

In a regular fashion Ghost of a Thousand got the crowd going. “We barely had to do any work as the kids went nuts without us even having to tell them, from the first song we knew it was going to be a great show, best one so far” – Tom, GOAT. Four Year Strong were great as always. Anti-Flag played their best set so far, there was basically a party on stage and with the new wireless drummics Pat got to drum in the crowed. Alexisonfire were absolutely amazing! It’s cool that so many people showed!

Eastpak Blog #2 - Norwich

Day #2

Good Morning

We are in Oxford right now, Todays gig is at the Academy! Right now we are just chilling out after having some problems with the police giving everybody parking tickets for parking outside the venue, which is rediculas. Also dont forget that there is a Ghost of a Thousand signing today at Tiger Lily in Oxford, Be there at 4.30pm! More Info Below

The Norwich gig was great yeasterday. Four Year Strong had a signing at 5pm and played some games with the people there, it was cool. After that we all went to get food which was horrible can’t you find any good place to eat in the UEA area? (feel free to write comment below). But the mood was still great because we finally got the internet working so people could contact their loved ones, family and friends.

Eventually the show started. The Ghost of a Thousand kicked it off and were amazing! singer Tom was out in the crowed running around like a madman. After that Four Year Strong played an amazing and fast paced show. Next up was Anti-Flag who really were one with the crowed, bringing up people on stage to play percussion. Alexisonfire started off with singer George making a huge leap into the crowed as the first song ”Heading for the Sun” started. All in all it was a great show and all the bands played well.

See you in Oxford Tonight!

Blog...

Hi folks....

Checking in from Oxford O2 Academy. We've just arrived, and we're setting up for what will be another rocking night!

The crowd at the UEA in Norwich last night were buzzing around like maniacs! Those guys looked like they were having a really good time! A bit earlier though, the boys from Four Year Strong came out to meet some of their fans. It was so fun! We ended up having a little ball throwing competition with them, well, it was actually a plastic bottle, but you get my jist..... Laura was the winner and is now the proud owner of an amazing EASTPAK Antidote Tour Padded Pak'r. Go Laura! I seen you in the front row all night too! You rock girl! We will be giving an Antidote Tour Padded Pak'R away at every signing, so come on down when we are in your city. You can find all the info you need for the UK signings on this site. Tonight The Ghost Of a Thousand will be going to see our friends at Tigerlily and to give their Oxford fans a chance to say hi! Ghost are the only UK band on the bill so make sure we see you there!

Bus call was early last night, so back on the Jumbo cruiser and off to Oxford! With an interesting pit-stop at the services with nearly all of the bands and crew in there causing mayhem! Surely the attendant doesn't usually get that much excitement in the early hours of the morning! I think he was a bit startled!!!

So bring on day three of this tour! Can't wait to see you all tonight! Bring your dancin shoes cos these guys will make you move!!!

Eastpak Blog #1 - Cambridge

Day #1

Yesterday was the first day of the Eastpak Antidote Tour and The Junction in Cambridge was our first stop. I arrived at Stansted Airport only to find out they had lost my entire luggage. That’s what flying with Easyjet is like. Paige from Eastpak UK came and picked me up, and we were on our way.

We arrived at the venue in Cambridge at about 4pm. It was cool meeting everyone for the first time. So many new names and faces! After getting acquainted we started setting up for the Anti-Flag 5pm signing session. Altho it was raining alot of people showed up for the signing and it turned out great. The mood was really relaxed and everyone got to hang-out with the band and talk, get free stuff and information about Emmaus-International go check it out! : www.emmaus-international.org

When the show started the place was already packed. It kicked off with the Ghost of a Thousand delivering their rock’n’roll hardcore sound really getting the crowed going. After that Four Year Strong took the stage and played a great set including some old cover songs followed by Anti-Flag who killed it playing classics aswell as songs of the new album. Then for the big finale: Alexisonfire which was great way to round up the whole night, with amazing stage performance and guest apprentice by Chris #2 on one of the songs. After the show we all hung out and the nice people at The Junction let us stay there way past curfew and were really cool about it.

So the first day of the Eastpak Antidote Tour is done! Hope to see you all at UEA in Norwich tonight at 6:30, and don’t forget there is a Four Year Strong signing today at 5pm at the venue!

If you have any photos of the show we would love to have them! Don’t forget to mention your name!

Thanks

Chris, Eastpak09

The wait is finally over ladies and gentleman.... The EASTPAK Antidote Tour has begun!

All of you who were at The Junction in Cambridge last night would agree that it was an amazing kick off to the tour! And it's only going to get better from here!

The night started with smiles all round when the Anti-Flag fans of Cambridge came in to meet the band before the gig started. The guys had to be woken up from their slumber after their long journeys but were happy to meet everyone that came along.  All the bands are doing signings throughout the tour, including every night, yes folks, every night in the UK!! Make sure you check out the signings in the city near you for your chance to meet Alexisonfire, Anti-Flag, Four Year Strong or The Ghost of a Thousand.  Oooh it's so exciting! Tonight you can meet Four Year Strong at the UEA in Norwich! 5pm! Be there!

The night started with the Brits - The Ghost of A Thousand totally getting the crowd psyched for the rest of the night. They came off the stage leaving everyone buzzing!  Everyone played amazing considering this is the very first night! There was even some stage diving from George from Alexisonfire and to mix it up a bit, we had No.2 from Anti-Flag jump on the mic while AOF were playing coz he just couldn't resist...

So good vibes are being felt for this tour... Such amazing people all working together to bring us what will be a rocking EASTPAK Antidote Tour 2009!

Until tomorrow rockers...

Want to meet the bands at the UK dates? Read on...

Cambridge The Junction
Wed 07/10/09

Want to meet the amazing Anti-Flag? Get to the venue between from 5pm on October 7th and you'll be able to meet the band!

Norwich UEA
Thu 08/10/09

Want to meet the amazing Four Year Strong? Get to the venue and you'll be able to meet the band at 5pm!


Oxford Academy
Fri 09/10/09

Want to win tickets or meet The Ghost of a Thousand? Check out Tiger Lily, the official EASTPAK Antidote Tour store in Oxford for more details:

Tiger Lily, 11c New Road, Oxford OX1 1LT
Tel 01865 882 716

Come and meet the band, Ghost of a Thousand will be at Tiger Lily on Friday 9th October for a signing session, between 4:30pm and 5pm.

Nottingham Rock City
Sat 10/10/09

Want to win tickets and and meet Alexisonfire? Check out Non Stop, the Official EASTPAK Antidote Tour Store in Nottingham for more details.

Non Stop, 14 St Jame's Street, Nottingham, NG1 6FG
Tel. 0115 953 1002

Come and meet the headline band, Alexisonfire will be at Non Stop on Saturday 10th October for a signing, between 5pm and 5:30pm.

Bristol Anson Rooms
Sun 11/10/09

Want to meet the amazing Ghost of a Thousand? Get to the venue and you'll be able to meet the band, at 5pm.

EAT09! And so it begins!

EAT09! And so it begins!
Current mood:  adventurous

Ghost Of A Thousand at home...

Spread the word!

We pop in to see The Ghost Of A Thousand

Four Year Strong on The EASTPAK Antidote Tour

Anti-Flag and Alexisonfire say Hi...

The EASTPAK Antidote Tour is on!

It's a fast growing fall tradition; the EASTPAK Antidote Tour is gearing up to rock Europe "built-to-resist" style in October and November of this year. With a line up of four of todayís top ranking punk rock bands, EASTPAK, one of the worldís most popular street fashion brands, famed for their tough backpacks and luggage, announces the latest edition of its innovative music tour.

This year's tour will be exceptionally loud, spearheaded by Pittsburghís punk rock band Anti-Flag and Ontarioís rocking Alexisonfire. The 2009 line up will also feature two great new bands: Four Year Strong and The Ghost of A Thousand.
Read More