29/07/98 - Emerson Theatre. Indianapolis, IN.

When I wake up in the afternoon I discover that the bandage has slipped off my arm and onto the bus floor. My duvet is by my feet and the tape tape that was holding the bandage to my arm has managed to attach itself to my penis. What the hell do I do in my sleep? Don't answer that. There's a trickle of green cream cheese running from my arm. The burn has gone septic. Yummy. I clean it up and head for the gig. 'Cold' who have recently joined the tour can't play tonight. Not because of 'Injury Day' or anything, they seem immune to all that. They can't play because they lost the drummer. I don't how they lost him, something to do with a truck stop, but they lost him all the same. Very odd. We've been playing together for nine years and we've never lost each other. We lost our soundman once but never the band, etiquette forbids. The show itself is good (sick of hearing that yet?). The crowd seem to like Pitchshifter and all is well. We've sold a few records here and it's nice to know that people are prepared to support the music live too. I stick a bandage on my arm to keep it clean while we play. The damn thing burns like hell all the way through. It's the sweat. It keeps running into it. Apparently 'chics dig scars' and so I'm going to be OK from now on. Dinner dates coming out of my ears and a full dance card. Better cancel my computer dating membership tomorrow.

After the show I meet a very large doctor. At first I thought she was a transvestite. Not because she's overtly ugly or anything, but because she's taller than me and she looks harder than me. She is in fact a woman, and a doctor at that. Doc Morrison takes a look at my burnt arm. She tells me it's a second degree burn and I should take care to keep it clean.

"Tell me straight Doc, how long have I got?"
"You'll live."
(I had to ask her, it was bigger than me, I just want to say the words once before I die.)

The picture? It's a picture of myself and the Butler boys: James and Biff. They're really nice lads and they both dig Pitchshifter. Their Mum is a very nice lady and their Dad is one of the Lords of Heavy Rock. Functional Heavy Metal family - I like it!