The "Spirit of the Season" Holiday Tour is here and while Shaun and the gang are enjoying each stop along the way, they find themselves in the middle of a daunting artic road trip. Their Midwestern journey has inspired the following five travel essentials for a band on the road.
1) Tea
Drinking tea in moderation can be a vocalist's best practice. Hot or warm tea loosens the phlegm on a singer's vocal chords and has an overall soothing effect. For a sore throat, try a "throat coat" tea mixed with a small dose of honey. If caffeine intake is a concern, try green tea as an alternative. It's also important to remember that while tea can be a great tool, always stay hydrated with water.
2) An Opposite Genre
Your band will likely eat, sleep, and breath the same set of songs and same genre of music for the duration of the tour. While this should be a good thing (hopefully you are performing music that you are passionate about), it can be helpful to have a completely different genre to listen to for recreation. For example, according to this article, the opposite genre of big band music is "aggrotech" music.
3) Social Media
Whether you are riding in a top of the line tour bus or something your dad lent you, a road trip is a unique opportunity to build your band's brand on social media. Facebook and Twitter pages are standard platforms, but sites such as Instagram, Pinterest, and even Snapchat are also effective ways to share pictures, video, and anything else that happened during your travels.
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| What's the inside of your ride look like? |
The smartphone world provides an ever-growing selection of travel apps that can take the stress out of any road trip. This app tracks gas mileage and this one provides a professional yet inexpensive way to film your band's most memorable encounters. There are also plenty of apps like Urbanspoon to help you find the perfect restaurant in an unfamiliar town.
5) Extra Gear
Packing back-up equipment might seem like an extra burden (and less leg room), but when someone drops a microphone on concrete, breaks a guitar string, or forgets a mic-stand, whoever packed an "extra" will be deemed a hero. In addition to packing back-up equipment, be sure to double and triple-check that you have all the equipment you need.
shaun johnson Big Band Experience
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