Zhain Down Under - Auckland, New Zealand (1/2) By Tony

(1/2), (2/2).

Well, after the knock out show in Glasgow ( read the review here ) I decided to bite the bullet and tag along with Zhain on their shows Down Under. I have family in New Zealand so I combined the trip with visiting them.

I could only catch the show at The Dogs Bollix in Auckland, I dare not risk getting lynched by the family if I did not visit them, and what a show it was.

Boy the flight to N.Z is an adventure in itself, just short of 13 hours to Singapore and then close to 11 hours from Singapore to Auckland. The few hours spent in Singapore waiting for the connecting flight was a story in itself.

Rocky and Dr John certainly know how to party. Where do they get the energy from? They systematically tried to drink all the vodka and cognac onboard the airplane on the flight from London to Singapore.

Once they found a comfortable space to relax at Changi, duty free bottles of Stoli and Courvoisier magically appeared and were consumed without delay by Rocky and the Good Doctor. God knows how much they actually drank but outwardly they still seemed perfectly sober. Sober enough for Rocky to blag an upgrade to first class and actual beds for the flight to Auckland. This is definitely the way to travel! Just before landing in Auckland Rob discovered he'd lost his passport. He'd drunk very little yet managed to lose his passport, mad panic among the crew trying to find it while Rocky and Dr John just wanted another cocktail before landing.

The nice people at immigration in Auckland eventually decided to allow Rob entry but warned he could not leave without a passport.

Everyone was a bit spaced out with time zones, we'd lost a whole day, and just wanted to get the rental car and find the hotel. It is quite amazing to watch a rock'n'roll band checking into a hotel, chaos just does not describe it. Everything is eventually resolved and keys handed out but now we've lost Rocky and Dr John. The obvious place to look is the bar and sure enough we find them there drinking beer and eating massive pizzas. Are these guys human? It was decided to clean up and rest, reconvening in the bar in four hours to go for dinner.

The rest of the day went fairly smoothly even if vast amounts of red wine were consumed with dinner. I'm not looking forward to a hangover and jet lag combined the next day.

I pull the blinds the next morning to see Rocky and Dr John sat by the pool eating enormous breakfasts. I later find out it is not just orange juice but Bucks Fizz they are drinking. They assure me it sets you up for the day. I feel pretty rough and these guys are laughing, joking and inevitably drinking. The day passes with movies, drinking and a little sight seeing. The first gig is tonight and the amps and drums, rented in for the tour, have to be checked out at sound check. The guys don't seem worried about using strange equipment, at least Dr John has his own amp rack with him and obviously they are using their own guitars.

Continued..... Next Page (2/2).

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