Page 51 - Black Velvet Magazine Issue 98

BV98 pg51 column_BV98 pg51 18/08/2018 02:01 Page 1

BlackVelvetMagazine.Com - 51

A (Musical) Note From...

Polly Phluid (The Idol Dead)

Sooooooo, last time in the piece that Shari The problem isn’t vegan outlets, my little The venue we played in Scotland had a
invited me to write I spoke about Pledge and group proves that. Yes I’ve been to some great vegan menu in the upstairs bar! Which is
crowdfunding – I was supposed to talk about vegan places from these recommendations great, and we are seeing more of that in ven-
Pledge and crowdfunding AND being a vegan but not while on tour…. because when you’re ues, but it was the last night of the tour so we
on tour … seems my word management is as on tour the thing you lack is time. ran out of time even for that – Jack Daniel’s is
good as my time management and I waffled When our guitarist, KC, told me he was fill- vegan, right?
on about our lovely fans chucking handfuls of ing his rucksack with Pot Noodles and Actually, we managed to hit Pizza Express
cash at us … this, of course, meant I ran out Sriracha sauce I scoffed at his recklessly un- on one date, can’t remember which one, but
of time to talk about promoters throwing hand- healthy ways – but they were a godsend in the it’s a good, quick place to eat, I love their
fuls of lentils at us. Which is good, because it end – so much so, TM Charlie had bought vegan pizza and it’s also got plenty on offer for
almost never happens! Sriracha keyrings so we could keep our sauce the non-vegans in the band – but bollocks to
See, I’m in an underground band, we fund with us at all times. them, they can eat anywhere.
our own shows and we rarely work with out- In our world we travel to the venue, un- Most cities have wicked places for us ve-
side promoters. When we do work with pro- load, set up, meet the other bands, sound- gans, finding them is a bit of an adventure but
moters they are generally on our wavelength check, then get up to the hotel, change and we loved it.
and working to a very tight budget so riders back before the first band hit the stage – it That said, being hungry on the road is a
tend to be a few beers and some snacks … makes for a tight schedule and leaves no time real pain; you’re grumpy, tired and not firing on
this is a welcome addition to the touring belly, for a sit-down meal. So, we became junk food all cylinders – and there are three of us in our
but they’re not going to sustain you in the long vegans and you find out some strange things touring party so we make sure we are pre-
term … I may look like a skinny drug-mule but about food, I can tell you. pared. We take a cooler full of snacks – pita
I do need to eat. What the hell even is milk powder and why bread, hummus, crisps, fruit, all that good stuff.
So, it was time to find great places to eat is it in salt and vinegar crisps?! ? We make sure that’s stocked at all times – plus
while out on the road. Before our last tour I Of course, I know the answer to that – it’s the aforementioned Pot Noodle with Sriracha
came up with the great idea of starting a group like MSG apparently, an ingredient used to is a great emergency feed.
on Facebook for vegan musicians and crew. It boost flavours in cheap food. It’s your enemy This will be us while we are DIY and pro-
filled up pretty fast. The banter, recommenda- for many reasons, health for a start, but it also viding our own food – bigger bands can have
tions and nommy food pictures were tumbling means we lose a load of stuff we can eat their catering trucks, we’ll be outside on the
in and everyone who joined up thought it was quickly – which is also a double-edged sword. street eating hummus and waiting for that
a welcome idea and I was feeling pretty smug We ended up turning to our cousins in the spicy Pot Noodle to be ready – we’ll be the
with myself … “Phluid, yer a genius! This is east for sustenance. Middle Eastern food skinny, sexy ones with clear consciences too.
going to revolutionise eating on the road for us lends itself to vegan dishes very well it seems Polly Phluid
‘fussy’ types!” – Lebanese in Sheffield, Iraqi in Manchester… Photo By Neil Vary
Well, some fussy types. Not, it would falafel, hummus, veggie kebabs, chips cooked
seem, me, or anyone in my little vegan touring in veg oil – bliss. Plus, actually healthier than In a band? Want to write a one-off column for
family. usual fast food so it’s all good. us? Email editor@blackvelvetmagazine.com for
more info.
THE IDOL DEAD