🎒 The Tour Survival Kit, Pt. 1

Hana Piranha
May 5
5 min read

Updated: Jul 15

Dispatch from Bologna, pyjama edition.

Right now, I’m recording this in black satin pyjamas from a campsite in Bologna, Italy. Glamorous, no? The crew have been rinsing me for bringing “the luxury,” which feels almost comedic considering we’re five days into van life with Combichrist. It’s been a classic tour mix so far—some absolute highs, a few emotional wipeouts, and the odd “What the hell am I doing?” moment.

Touring doesn’t get easier. You just get better at handling it.

This blog (and the accompanying podcast) is for anyone in the trenches—whether you're DIY-ing it with a handful of merch and a border to cross, or shadowing a bigger band with a growing crew. Maybe you're a massive rockstar who has stumbled upon this! Either way, this is for you.

We’ve done the DIY years. Now we’re somewhere in the middle: a growing team, a solid sound engineer, a driver (hallelujah), and a van that mostly works. The chaos hasn’t gone away—but we’ve found some ways to stay upright. Here are our top tour survival tips (Pt. 1 of many).

🎯 Tip #1: Be Your Own Taskmaster

Tour gives you long stretches of nothing, broken up by brief bursts of chaos. Fill the void with structure.

Break your time into chunks—10 minutes, 30 minutes, an hour—and give each one a purpose. Ten minutes? Quick arm workout or Duolingo. Half an hour? Walk, yoga, clean the van. An hour? Go for a run. Especially if you’re sober or trying to stay grounded, having go-to activities helps when the cravings creep in.

Mish has a list of ten go-to self-care tasks on her phone, ready for when that itchy, empty tour feeling hits. Tour is basically one long episode of “Hurry up and wait,” so be ready to fill the gaps.

🎯 Tip #2: Have Goals Outside the Band

Your whole life leads up to the tour… then you’re on tour, and the structure vanishes. No time to practice. No headspace to write. Suddenly, you’re drifting.

That’s where goals come in.

I’m training for a half marathon. Mish is studying to be a breathwork coach. These things give us focus when music isn't enough to anchor us. You need something beyond the stage—because the “I need to be a rockstar” mindset is a fast track to burnout.

🎯 Tip #3: Rob the Rider

We call this rider goblin energy. Embrace it.

Tour riders are full of stuff you won't eat before the show—but it's yours. Take the leftovers. Own it. Save it for breakfast. You’ll thank yourself in the morning when you’re halfway to the next venue with no café in sight. Being frugal on the road isn’t about sacrifice—it’s about being clever.

🎯 Tip #4: Move Your Body

Tour will wreck your body if you let it—crap sleep, heavy lifting, endless sitting, unpredictable food.

So: move.

Yoga, running, push-ups in a car park, plank-offs with the band, walks around the venue—whatever keeps you from going full goblin mode. I travel with cute pink hand weights to motivate myself into working out. It always helps. Always.

Bonus: when you move, you tend to eat better too. Win-win.

🎯 Tip #5: Let the Routine Go

You will miss workouts. You will eat chips. You will doomscroll at 1am.

Forgive yourself.

Tour isn’t real life—it runs on its own rhythm. You have to flow with it. Be adaptable. If you're burnt out, rest. If you’re spiralling, reset. Your only actual job is to bring the best possible performance. Everything else is bonus points.

🎯 Tip #6: Track Your Cycle

We’ve got three menstruators in our band. When we sync up, the van can get spicy. Tracking helps us clock what’s hormones and what’s just tour rage. Also: access to toilets is not guaranteed. Be prepared.

We’re open about this stuff in our crew—it helps a lot. (Check out Stardust if you want a solid app.)

🎯 Tip #7: Respect the Tour Hierarchy

If you’re not the headliner, know your place.

They built the tour. They brought the fans. Don’t hog the rider. Don’t take over the green room. Don’t be a dick. Support bands have to earn respect, not demand it. That said…

🎯 Tip #8: Don’t Take Shit

Respect isn’t the same as being walked on.

If someone on tour is repeatedly undermining you, speak up. Back your bandmates. Advocate for yourself. It’s fine to be disliked if it means you’re treated like a professional.

There's a balance—don’t sweat the small stuff, but don’t let disrespect slide. You deserve to be there.

🎯 Tip #9: Delegate Like a Pro

Touring is teamwork. Don’t do everything yourself. Assign jobs. Stick to them.

One person handles merch. One person loads the van. One handles press. Keep it consistent. The smoother your band runs, the better everyone’s experience is—including the other bands, crew, and promoters.

You can’t control the chaos of tour—but you can make your corner of it run like a machine.

🎯 Tip #10: Don’t Scrimp Where It Matters

Tour is expensive. But some things are worth every penny.

A good driver. A reliable sound engineer. Proper sleep. A decent coffee mid-drive. These are not luxuries—they’re how you keep your sanity. Poor sound = poor shows = poor merch = fewer fans. Don’t cut corners where it counts.

Even if you're DIY-ing it, make the experience as human as you can.

❓ Question of the Week:

What are the essential five things you’d bring on tour?

Mish: Running shoes, a yoga mat, my laptop, earplugs, and one item of luxury (for me it’s Dirtea powder at the moment).

Hana: Huel powder, running shoes, my eye mask (for me it’s that touch of luxury!), my earbuds, and my Kindle.

😤 Weekly Whinge:

Mish:Tour chaos. I’m very particular about where things go—ADHD doesn’t love unpredictability. My whinge? I can’t be in two places at once. If I’m at merch and someone packs my stuff the wrong way, it’s a nightmare. Things go missing, I can’t find anything, and it makes me really shitty. I get that everyone’s doing their best, but I find this hard to manage. Also—venues who kick off a club night immediately after a gig? Give us an hour to load out. Please.

Hana:Weird people at the merch desk. Or more specifically: creepy people at the merch desk. Most of the time it’s great—we never get tired of being told we're amazing and beautiful. But then there are the others: the mansplainers, the ones who want a signature but don’t buy anything, the drunk lechers. And to the guys who wrap their hands around our waists for a photo—don’t. We just played a show. That doesn’t give you a pass to touch us up.