I believe travel to be an essential part of life’s mystic journey, and it’s something I’ve always felt a deep connection and passion for in whatever form it takes. Before this particular journey began I had no idea what to expect on such a trip. Two weeks on the road in America was new territory and a far cry from our usual European destinations. Not to take anything away from these types of holidays and breaks, they are necessary in their own right, but compared to what we experienced on the other side of the world, there was a noticeable gulf in stature.

I knew one day I would be able to live out these dreams that had plagued my mind for years, and I’d be able to put down on paper my own travel story, and maybe influence and inspire others the same way I’ve been influenced in the past, to take a similar journey and live life at its fullest potential. I just never thought our journey would happen so quickly between proposition and departure date, and in such enthralling circumstances.

It all came about in a pub in Stockport in early December when Mia, the captivating vocalist from Mohawk Radio, told me the big news she’d been promising to reveal to me all day. “We are touring America and you are coming with us!” Those few words meant life was about to get a whole lot more electrifying. This wasn’t just an exciting travel adventure we were invited on, but it included the opportunity to accomplish top of the Bucket List - to travel around America with a rock band! Does it get any more thrilling? Words cannot express my gratitude to Mohawk Radio for asking us to come along on a trip that held huge importance for themselves. To be part of their debut US tour is too humbling for words.

The logistics of the tour meant we couldn’t be with the band for the full three weeks, but to just play some part in their voyage was consolation enough. Looking back, I think being forced into planning our own route separately from the band was something we needed to accomplish away from their schedule. Planning our own adventure led us down the path of doing the whole trip by car, and tackling a proper road trip. It was a decision that gave us an experience that wouldn’t have been felt if we’d taken buses, trains or planes between destinations, which is how we initially planned it after my initial fear of driving in America…..how important that fear was overcome.

Living this once in a lifetime experience gave us the bizarre feeling that we had found a state of mind we could call home. Most of the time we felt like Manchester was a distant memory of our collective pasts. There was no job, house, responsibilities, or possessions to go back to anymore. Home had become the road and our lives revolved around travelling from one place to another in a state of complete freedom. There was a feeling of fulfilling some sort of destiny, and it felt so natural for us to be doing this. It was as if our fate lay here somehow and we had found some sort of peace and understanding of life. Inhibitions and defences were lowered and there was an ease of overcoming fears and unlocking restrictions in our minds. I can only assume that the connection we had with this lifestyle was how life is meant to be lived. Perhaps I’d finally found a good enough solution to answer one of man’s most sought after questions, ‘What is the meaning of life?’

Sue echoed my sentiments when thinking about her own journey, where she fulfilled parts of her own Bucket List by finally visiting Arizona and California. Being a spiritual person, this trip was one she thrived on, and her own thoughts on the matter are that, “It heightened every sense….physically and spiritually, and some of the experiences were what I would expect ethereal to feel like.” She could be referring to any number of chapters on the trip, but mainly, seeing Grand Canyon has to be the pinnacle for her…..a place that brought a tear to her eye when feasting her eyes on this gargantuan landmark for the very first time. I can’t argue with its staggering, unearthly presence and the way it makes you feel….especially when you’re stood at the edge with a mile drop a couple of yards either side of you. Pictures and video clips of The Grand Canyon can be seen from a variety of sources to give you a taster for what it’s like, but until you’re stood on the edge looking deep into its eyes, you can’t possibly know what it’s like to be in the presence of such awesome, natural greatness. It’s like a CGI enhanced image from another planet that has no reason being on Earth.

Personally, I can’t really pinpoint what the best part of the trip was because there was so much to choose from. There was a connection with every aspect of it. Being back in Las Vegas six years after my debut was a bit trippy, especially since it’s been in my thoughts almost every day since returning due to it being the scene of my debut novel, ‘Lost in Manchester, Found in Vegas’. It was surreal to walk in the shadows of my younger self down the strip and weave in and out of the hotels that drove us to excess. On this occasion, it was enjoyable to be able to relax in Vegas, despite its ever present temptation.

Being in Arizona and seeing the desert and landscape was unbelievable. Most of all, it was our hosts, Mickey and Noomie, who made our time in Tucson what it was. What a privilege to have stayed with them and be subject to their hospitality and tales of the past. The day spent with them in their garden eating traditional Vietnamese cuisine is a memory I’ll never forget.

Our day in Sedona was another highlight, where we spent the day with the band at Slide Rock and in the Wild West type town centre itself. What a beautiful place Sedona is. Definitely somewhere I have to spend a couple of days in at some point in the future. The Red Rock Canyons that form the landscape in Sedona are just too striking for the eyes to realise, and trying to take it all in whilst driving on windy roads was a little bit dangerous.

Palm Springs was the biggest surprise of the trip. I saw it as a stopping off point between Flagstaff and Los Angeles, not anticipating the heavy night of drinking that followed. I hear Palm Springs being mentioned in a joking capacity as being a place to retire too. Well if that’s the case, sign me now to retire there. Being in the town centre, soaking up the party atmosphere Spring Break and St. Patrick’s Day brought to the place was one of the best and most surprising nights I’ve ever had.

Being in Los Angeles held huge importance for me. To be able to roam on Sunset Boulevard, Santa Monica Boulevard and Venice Beach, which are all huge parts of Doors history was a priceless experience. Setting foot inside the Whisky a Go Go and Rainbow Bar & Grill were huge steps into the cauldrons of rock n roll history. You could almost feel the JD seeping into you as you stepped into these places. Staying with music, it was an absolute blast to watch Electric Parlor in their hometown at a gig in Downtown LA, a band I connected with on twitter a year ago and had played on our Sonic Bandwagon show a few times before. Meeting Mucho, the enigmatic drummer of Warchief, perform to such a high level was also an honour and privilege to witness.

There’s just too much we saw and experienced to try and find a defining moment, but for all the moments named above, I felt a particularly strong kinship with the driving aspect of the trip. I’m not really a fan of driving, and I have very little interest in cars, but there was such a sense of liberation when I was driving on these roads for hours on end. From an early age I’d always envisioned myself driving through America with nothing but the music and the scenery for company, probably influenced by many songs, films and TV Shows I’ve seen over the years. The reality exceeded my expectation, and I wasn’t prepared for just how emancipating the feeling really is. I cannot fully explain what it felt like to be driving for miles upon miles in a never ending scenic landscape that was infinite in its splendour, while all the best music of eras now passed soundtracked the whole vision.

Sue asked me a number of times whether I’ve just passed over into my own movie whilst driving. I guess that’s one way of looking at it. I was the star of my own film, locked into a loop of the final scene where I’d just been freed from some sort of injustice, heading off into the sunset in these picturesque surroundings to parts unknown and never to be seen again! But the hours and miles we covered in the car (32 hrs and 1700miles give or take) in two weeks meant we were subjected to the greatest natural film epic of all, and it required no dialogue or characters.

As stated, the music more than played its part in the drive, probably as much as the scenery in many respects. I suppose both together were a force too great for words. Listening to music has always been an essential part of driving …on whatever journey taken. Somehow, out on the relentless desert and mountainous open roads with nothing around for miles on end, music is heightened and becomes your only friend. To listen to these songs that helped shaped my thinking from bands such as The Doors, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Led Zeppelin, Rolling Stones, Fleetwood Mac, America, Jefferson Airplane, Rival Sons, Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, (the list goes on and one) in these circumstances was an almost religious experience at times. The appreciation for Americana music suddenly sky rockets.

But it wasn’t just the bands that I’d loved for years that helped contour the soundtrack. Music from bands who are friends of Sonic Bandwagon and personal friends of mine were a huge feature. The best of the best were out there with me, and it was a pleasure to take them on the road. The Cornelius Crane, The Rubys, and Thunderous Jones are but a few to mention.

Most of all though, it was all about Mohawk Radio and their time to shine! What can I say about them? A journey that began three years to the day that this journey began was almost poetic in nature. Of all the tales of rock n roll touring in America throughout time, we can now add our names to that long and distinguished list. More than a band to us…. travelling soul mates now.

For everything that I’m trying to decipher about our own trip, I cannot stress the importance to Mohawk Radio was far greater than our own on a trip that could shape their entire futures. Being a rockin’ band with a certain Sunset Strip anthemic sound, I always felt their music was more fitting to the attitudes of America, and that has proved to be the case. That’s not to take away their UK fan base because there is a core following that adore them, and they will always sell tickets. But with their style, what sells underground venues in England could turn to stadium support slots and more in the US. They are that good and they can be that big! The reaction that I saw in Tucson, and heard about in North Carolina and Austin backs up that statement. But the biggie is Los Angeles. After only four days they have recognised the opportunity this great city holds for them judging from the response of their gig at The Mint and their connections out there. It just may be that LA comes calling a lot sooner than anticipated.

The importance of this trip from a personal perspective has been paramount. I fully expected it to be the single most meaningful thing I’d ever done in life, and I had a sneaky and fearful suspicion that life wouldn’t be the same again when I returned home. My mind has been expanded, horizons broadened, and I have been devoured by the travel bug. It’s affected me so much that my dreams have been consumed by parodies of Las Vegas, Arizona and California since we returned. Every night proves to be another variation and extension of the trip we boldly took on the road in America. The dust has settled and familiarity breeds once again during the day, but the night is different. It appears that America remains lurking somewhere in my subconscious, serving as a constant reminder to the enormity of what we’ve experienced.

Not only that, but philosophies and thoughts that have formed the mantra of mine and Sue’s personalities have suddenly been thrust to the forefront of thinking, as if we finally made connections with the statements we’d sworn by for years. We are not here to solely pay bills, exist and die. There’s a whole lot to be discovered in this world and there are many different ways of living rather than being stuck in one place and one routine. The goal in life should be to die with memories….not dreams. Experience is far more valuable than money ever will be, and you can always make money, you can’t always make memories. All these life rules we try to live by are suddenly much more identifiable and tangible. For life travelling on the road, there are no boundaries or restrictions and it’s one of the biggest senses of freedom you can experience. It’s because of that why I’m already looking out for the next adventure and the sequel to manifest itself. I do hope I’m in a position next year to bring another set of blogs on an even bigger tour. If that proves to be the case, I’m already signed up….just tell me the dates and we’re there. The ticket has been bought; the ride will be taken once again!