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| Handsome chap on the Thessalonian waterfront |
14th October 2024 – Love Not War
Tim picked me up on his 1200cc BMW bike from Bangor to Henryd — the journey was absolutely freezing! After I warmed up and slept it off, he repaid an old favour by giving me a lift to the airport in his van. Legend.
Flew out to Thessaloniki, which is where I am now. Just showed my passport and walked straight into blazing hot sun. Not got an itinerary today, so I’m quenching a few cool beers at Sherlock’s Bar on the waterfront.
Got my bearings pretty quickly and checked into Hotel Bastardos for €37 a night. Thessaloniki is 2 hours ahead of the UK, so I had time to crash for an hour, then headed back out to find the bars, catch some football on TV, and sink a few beers. A properly chilled day — didn’t want to waste it, even though I was a bit fooked. Made the most of it, especially with Vienna on the horizon tomorrow — currently sitting at a brisk 14°C!
15th October 2024 – Smoke, Noise & Candles: A Vienna Tuesday
I had a running battle last night between the heat, the mosquitoes, and myself — and to top it off, the hotel was on one of Thessaloniki’s busiest roads. Sleep wasn’t impossible, but definitely not restful.
After a shower and breakfast, I wandered the city one last time, then made my way to the airport for the next leg: Vienna. Currently reading The Ripple Effect by Alex Prud’homme — a fitting travel companion.
Landing in Vienna took a little recalibration — I got my bearings eventually and found my €37 room. Dropped my bag, freshened up, and headed out into the night. Destination: Club 1019.
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| Ross and Shane (The Mistakes) and me |
Tucked (not so quietly) behind a petrol station, Club 1019 is apparently a jazz venue… though tonight felt like anything but. “We’ve never played a venue with lit candles all over the bar,” guitarist Shane Creech of The Mistakes said, as we clinked bottles and caught up. The decor may say jazz, but tonight the crowd was pure punk — Vienna’s fringe dwellers turning out in force, demanding volume.
First up were the local Bunt Cunnies, firing off a mad mix of punk-reggae-pseudo-ska. Their song What’s Your Damage? launched with the screamed line:
“You suck! Cos you never shut up, you ignorant bastard, you selfish bitch,”
A disjointed, chaotic blend — almost jazz — fitting for the venue. Later they slid into Walking on Sunshine halfway through Skateboard, just for the fun of it. Bass-heavy, full of bounce, they kicked the night off with real intent.
Then came The Mistakes — five gigs into their eleven-date European tour and sounding tighter than ever. These boys from Poole have got the punk rock engine firing on all cylinders. Kip Drewson from Bournemouth grunge act PlasticGold is standing in on drums — 20 years old, full of energy, and he didn't miss a beat.
They play punk the way it should be played: loud, fast, angry, joyful, and absolutely infectious.
Ross rasps out:
“I’m not quitting, I’m not quitting, I’m not quitting…”
That’s I, Savage — stuck in my head since they finished. It’s an anthem. Everything they played felt like one.
Drink Up, Boys! sounds like a shouty Oi! drinking tune — but it’s more layered than that. The lads — Ross, Shane, Gould, Angus and Kip (in Lewis’ absence) — serve up the reality: we’re all dying, so drink up and live it while you can.
What a set. What a performance. The perfect length — left us wanting more.
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| The Mistakes in full flow |
And more we got, courtesy of Bloodstrings from Aachen, Germany. Blasting through tracks from their Heartache Radio album, their animated gruff vocals and wild double bassist turned the venue up another notch. Not quite psychobilly, not quite punkobilly — but definitely some kind of ‘obilly’! Brilliant energy and a fitting finale.
Apart from the eggs benedict back in Greece this morning, I hadn’t eaten all day — too much going on. Vienna was asleep as I walked back through empty streets, head buzzing. What a night.
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