This has been a great tour, not only for the punters that have shown up to watch the bands, but for the bands themselves on many levels.

AFS are a very new band and only started gigging in March 2005, so for us this has been an amazing way to meet other bands and get our music (political rants to silly digs at society) over to many more people.

Kind of being aware of touring from my past in the 1980’s I knew how difficult it is to plan and execute a tour, but what Dave (Fungal Punk) and Andy (Noize Anoize) had in mind was insane, approximately 15 main bands and several special guests was a mammoth task to say the least.

But as I have always said “If it is worth doing it is worth over-doing”, and SAS 2006 was just that, over-doing it in a big way.

Yes - the tour will have glitches and hiccups that’s half the fun in many ways, but once the tour kicked off most of the issues were ironed out and to 99% of people things ran very smoothly indeed.  Most people were not privy to a few frantic phone calls about who was supplying drum kits, what time we were on or why are we are stuck on a closed F**king B****d motorway in the middle of an massive C***ing thunder storm!.

From what I saw some of the bands didn’t realise how hard touring is.  This might have been mostly weekend gigs, but weekend after weekend is still very hard work and given the fact that a few of the guys are in several bands, have other gigs for record labels (that will be me then) and have family and work commitments this was a real test. I gained the title of being Mr. Grumpy. But saying that once I or anyone else got on stage all issues are forgotten and on with the show, because the show has to go on (unless your in the aforementioned thunder storm, then you just shout abuse).

This tour was about the bands and showing many people that punk isn’t a venue or a crowd, it is still about attitude.   2006 punk is fuck the system like it was, that’s all been done and got punk firmly in the history books, and it isn’t about becoming a smack head and overdosing either, also over-done!. 2006 is about showing off the fact that punk is a wide variety of styles and directions that can work really well on a billing, ska, 77 old skool, oi, hardcore, and up to-date US style is all relative and shouldn’t be ignored. SAS 2006 was all about embracing all the facets and instead of using known venues, it was more about taking the tour to new places and showing punters that the bands of all styles have a place in punk today and punk is very much alive and kicking back at the doubters and haters.

SAS 2006 a truly amazing vision and long may it live.

by Carl J Arnfield