Danko Jones - Turnéblogg

We've played here before back in 2001 with The Backyard Babies and The (International) Noise Conspiracy. It was a gig where both bands' tours criss-crossed and ended up on the same bill. We ended up playing on it too. It was great to meet up with Dennis and the guys back then. They've always been cool and at our first ever show we played in Europe in 2001 Inge, Dennis and Ludwig were 3 of about 15 people who came out to see us that day. I'll never forget them for that.

Today it's a good room and the sound is good in here too. Should be cool.

We've been knocking on France's door for almost 7 years never giving up and finally we're starting to see things turn around for us. Paris has always been good but it's regional France shows like tonight that have always been hard. Tonight went over great. The crowd packed the room. The show was great although being that this is the 8th show in a row after 5.5 weeks of touring it was very tiring. We're all starting to feel fatigued and tomorrow's day off will be well savoured by everyone.

Bon Soir.

Ok, we've played this venue about 5 times over the years and it's kinda of fun to trace the band's rise. When we first came here it was back in 2002 and we played the small room with The Sahara Hotnights. Then we came back 2 years later and played half of the big room with The Bronx. Then we came back with Brant Bjork and Quit Your Dayjob playing the full room, then again with Gogol Bordello but to only half the audience. Today it's pretty much sold out, shy of 10 or 20 tickets and it's great. The room is boomy and sometimes I don't know if what I'm saying is getting across to the audience but we plough ahead nonetheless. I think the show goes over well. By now, after 5 plus weeks of straight playing we're pretty fucking tight.

Still, I can't help but wonder why people who pay to go see you play insist on giving you the finger when you're on stage. It's supposed to be a sign of comraderie but I don't get it. I would never give a band that I liked the finger. It's just another silly Rock 'n' Roll/ Punk Rock cliche that is about 30 years out of date. It's about as cool as feather earrings and Sid Vicious hairdos. You wanna tell someone to fuck off? Don't raise your middle finger to them in a darkened room hidden in a mass of people, grow some balls, walk right up to them and say "Go Fuck Yourself". But I bet I'll beat you to it. Go Fuck Yourself.

Anyway, JC has an uncle who lives in Weisbaden and he always comes out to see us play. Last time we were here he got onstage and said "hello" to everyone. The crowd loves him but the ladies love him even more.

We say bye to our opening band in Germany, Moorange. Good band.

This show was tacked on after the whole tour was booked. It's a last minute add on in a very small club we played nearly 7 years ago. It was packed with people and for a Sunday night that was pretty respectable. I remember this club because this is where we met Angus Young's nephew and he told us Angus taught him how to play "Sound Of Love", which sort of made the tour for me back in 2002.

The show went over great. We had a great time and my voice was in particular good form despite the rigid response.

We've played here a few times before and it's always been a good show. The last time we were here was back in '06 with Brant Bjork and that was a good show too. It's sold out tonight so it's gonna be banging. I like the balcony in this place, should make for some good sightlines from our POV.

The show was great and the audience perked up after about 5 songs or so. The only shitty thing was the Dutch flag with the Danko Lion logo apparently got snatched at the end of the show. It's a flag that the Dutch Danko Army made and they bring it to every show in the Netherlands and we've signed every time we've seen them - for maybe 5 years now? Sucks that someone who shouldn't have now owns it but maybe it was time for a new one anyways?

Today's show is sort of a bitch since we have to shuttled back and forth from the bus to the venue due to the narrow streets in town. I am still a little more exhausted than usual, probably because of yesterday's stellar show. We get back to the bus and everyone is hungry. Luckily we're parked near a train station and Burger King is open to 4am. Ha ha. Good night.

This place is sold the fuck out. Tonight there will be 1400 people. We just saw the room and how they intend on fitting 1400 people in it is beyond me. I guess we gotta get the crowbars out tonight.

What a fucking great show. Holy shit!!!! The show fucking rocked. Easily one of the best shows of the tour. The crowd were very into it, a real good participatory crowd. There was a lot of banter on my part because there were a lot of things to talk about. Great crowd. Great show. I fucked up "King Of Magazines" twice but besides that it rocked hard as fuck.

We've never played a show in Ghent but tonight it's sold the fuck out! Belgium is a small country so I'm sure there will be people from Brussels and maybe even Holland out to the show. 1000 people tonight. Nice restaurant - good dinner.

The show went great. It was very loose and fancy free. When the crowd is into it and wants to just have fun that really prompts us to just have a good fun time too. A lot of fucking around and joking and that makes us rock out that much harder. The girls were very cute at this show too. Ha ha.

We're playing at La Trabendo today. This will be our third time playing this club. The last time we played here was back in 2006 with Gogol Bordello and their ridiculous Borat-like singer. We were just a stone's throw away from the Zenith, the big arena we played back in November with Motorhead so hopefully some people will come to the show from that show.

The show was great. Easily the best of the three times we've played here. The crowd was wild. The girls who came were very freaking hot and we all had a good show. Real good pizza after the show too!!! It's not wise to eat so late but tonight - fuck it, give me a slice!

This place is pretty big and so far there's only 600 tickets sold. 600 tickets is great and respectable but in a huge place like the Longhorn it might look pretty dismal. Who cares it's gonna rock regardless.

Whoa!!!! This show was wild!!! 600? Try more like 1100 Fuck yeah!!! The crowd was definitely the wildest crowd of the tour. People were fighting and yelling and doing just about anything to be rowdy. I don't care but when you start fucking with me while I'm trying to sing that's when I get pissed and there was 2 guys in the crowd who tried to fuck with me. It took me about 6 songs to find out one of them and when I did I just went off on this guy. Too bad I can't punch him in the face 'cause I don't want to go to jail but at least we got that motherfucker kicked out of the show. Fuck that guy. I noticed his buddy stopped fucking with me after his buddy got thrown out. Coward. Hey guys, if you're reading this - eat a fat dick.

Too bad 2 guys try to ruin it for the other 1098 people. Overall, the crowd was fucking stellar. Can't wait to come back to Stuttgart and rock the hell out of the place again.

We've never been here before but it should be a good show. I thought this might be the softest show of the tour and low and behold it'll be packed to almost capacity with 500 tickets sold.

There's nothing much to do around here so both us and The Backyard Babies gather round for a marathon of Bret Michaels Rock Of Love VH1 show. Everyone hates Bret but no one can stop watching the show.

The show was great. The crowd seemed stoned and very drunk but very receptive. It was definitely a weird night. There was a giant 7 foot man and a midget in the front row. All in all we had fun but now we're gonna take tomorrow off.

This show sold out so fast they moved it up to a bigger venue. Nice. That's always nice to hear. It'll be around 1100 people in there. It's still an early show because of the dance club event of the year that's starts at 11pm. Plus, the club can only be accessed by 3 elevators. Very cumbersome but everyone shows up on time and the club gets packed by The Backyard Babies' 2nd song of their set.

Zurich has become a city we love to return to over the years. In the past we've always come and played on a Tuesday which meant Karaoke From Hell at the Mascotte with Martin Ain from Celtic Frost. Over the years, after the show, which is usually verboten on tour, I've gotten up and sung a song with the house band. "Seek And Destroy", "South Of Heaven" and "United Forces" aren't easy to sing, especially after you've just sung your ass off for 70 minutes. The chance to hang with Martin Ain is always a thrill. He's always a great hang, full of stories and funny as hell. I love Celtic Frost and hearing Martin Ain introduce you on stage is a thrill that is hard to surpass.

We're playing the Flex club in Austria. It's a small ass club that should hold 400 people but they always manage to sell close to 1000 tickets here. How they get the people into the club is beyond me. They must use a crowbar. Either way the show is sold the fuck out tonight. Hopefully the next time we come we go back to playing the Arena, which is a nicer venue. Flex is a bit of a dump. The backstage is one small room and between us and the Backyard Babies it's a cramped piece of shit.

Both bands make the best of the situation swapping old tour stories from the 2001 tour we did together, which I'm starting to realize has become legendary for both bands. It was easily one of the greatest tours I've ever been on and I have the most memories from that tour more than any tour I've been on. I've never told any of the stories from that tour in public because quite frankly a lot of people would be in serious trouble.

The B. Babies have a stellar set. We hit the stage afterward and the crowd is definitely pumped and sweating. I make a comment about Pete Doherty not showing up to the Frequency Festival this past summer and call him a motherfucker. Some chick in the crowd has the nerve to hand me a note which says "Professional Bands Don't Talk Bad About Other Bands". What a bitch. Firstly, I am cursing out a person (Pete Doherty) who didn't have the decency to show up to YOUR country's gig. BUT WE DID SHOW UP. I think that's pretty fucking professional. Everyone's a critic. I bet she was the kind of girl in school that tattled on everyone in class to the teacher. Now she's all grown-up and stupid as fuck. Fuck her and fuck Pete Doherty.

We were told that the Backstage club in Munich had been renovated but actually they just moved the whole club across the streets. It's a club made up of different containers, much like circus tents and they just lifted them up and plopped them down. No actual upgrades but tonight we're playing the big room. It holds close to 1200 people and it should sell out by showtime. With 1200 people in this room it's gonna be pretty intimate - great sightlines.

The show is intense as fuck. Great crowd as usual in Munich. Afterwards, I meet up with the Frank Thiessies from Metal Hammer. Their new issue has an interview they did with me and Biff Byford of Saxon.

We've never played this venue before but it'll be packed with around 1000 people tonight. There's no real backstage so we're all using our bus as a backstage. No problem for me I kinda like it on the bus and in Germany we get internet for free, however slow it may be.

Stephan from the Wacken camp shows up and we chat and catch up before heading out for dinner. Stephan was tour managing Saxon on our recent Motorhead tour together. Alex Becker from Gibson shows up with a new Gibson Explorer and that makes my day. This one is a new black model. I need to mod it up to my preferences but I have a feeling this one is gonna be my main guitar soon enough.

The show goes over well although the crowd is a little subdued. It's a great reception but compared to the last string of shows you can tell that Berlin suffers from the big city syndrome like New York City, Toronto, and Los Angeles - everything at anytime has worn down excitement. Still, it's a great show. I manage to meet up with Goetz Kuehnemund, editor of Rock Hard Magazine, and he passes me some copies of the latest issue with my interview I did with Lemmy. I just submitted another interview story with Michel "Away" Langevin of Voivod that I did before this tour started.

Ok, here we go. We're playing the Gross Fahreit 36 and haven't been here in 5.5 years. Back then we were opening for Sepultura but today we're headlining this baby. Today the Backyard Babies are hoping on the tour with us. It was 8 years ago that they took us out on tour with them and we're happy to take them out on tour with us now. I remember back in 2001 the last show of our tour with them was in Hamburg so it's fitting that the first show today picks up where we both left off. Should be fun.

The Backyard Babies are our brothers in Rock. There isn't another band out there that we're bonded closer to. They are the nicest guys in the biz and the truest rockers. They a play a long set but they're just trying to work the kinks out. I think they went over pretty fucking spectacular with the audience.

We go out there and fucking burn. It's a great set and the crowd is great but we can all tell they are drenched with sweat and getting tired. We say our goodbyes and I head for bed. I know playing at the Gross Fahreit 36 is in the centre of the Reperbahn and that's where so many people like to hang, but not me. Goodnight.