Frontman Fernando Ribeiro from Portuguese metallers MOONSPELL has checked in from DANZIG's Blackest Of The Black tour which also features DIMMU BORGIR, WINDS OF PLAGUE and SKELETONWITCH:

"Kicking back, hanging out, cooling. All these words, which I don't use or practise enough back in Europe, start making sense in the back lounge of the bus, a light smile calling up to the face, a warm breeze from the open window (yes, it's open and the AC is off!!! We don't care, we're from Europe, into the wild), outside the backdoor parking of Scout Club in San Antonio, Texas. It's a show day today, party was mildly wild last night though it feels we have rocked through it pace'till death. First it was the Foundation Room, the huge American shots, like alcohol artillery making tabula rasa of your insides, then the Danzig bus, then our bus to finally stumble around the oppressive lights of a jumbo Walmart and wake up the next day with pumpkin pie crumbles all over the couch and a hard pressed ultra mega Chips Ahoy! Pack under the pillow.

It's a past night that embodies well the spirit of this tour, that subtracted its little amount of back and forth (what would be a tour without it?), sees everyone hanging out together, delivering the goods on stage and basically at peace with a campaign which is fulfilling its ultimate goal: to pass on this good atmosphere to the crowds which we see pleasingly reacting and giving it all since SkeletonWitch, the first and great band, enters stage with its rabid thrash metal and their American beers; up to the 'Dirty Black Summer' just paints it all black and strong. I see people leaving exhausted but enthusiastic about everyone's shows, I see merchandisers working in every booth, I see that, because, many times I am there, in the crowd, banging heads, drinking beers that people buy me and thank me for drinking (!). Now I remember: last night party begun just left to the pit, and when Danzig was over there was like 4 empty cups, one inside the other, in my left hand. Yes I do the horn sign, right red handed.

On tour, I realize now we have been doing it since 1995, one of the trickiest things to do it's to measure time and then handle it properly. As for me I account with words and pics what's going on and without noticing it some hours are gone. What we don't have at home, time, we have plenty to spare on tour. That plenty can be an abyss or a rainbow, depends where are you going and how sensitive are you to the noble art of waiting. One of the things I learned is to try not to change your habits dramatically, when you switchblade between lives. Take today, for example, I woke up at touring hours, that is never before 1PM, washed my face, brushed my teeth, shaved in the bus (I have all the technique and my skin is smooth as a virgin's pale), made breakfast just like at home (at home I would have skipped the chips, though) and only a few minutes ago have I left the bus to check on the precincts and to take some pics, record some people and whatnot for the sake of a well kept tour diary. So, the secret lies in transferring the energies and habits from home to your mobile home. Hey, it's not that complicated and you go already through some much moments of strange on tour, that is cool to have this bubble inside the bubble.

Read more and view photos here.

Blackest Of The Black Tour dates

November

1 - The Fillmore Auditorium - Denver, CO
3 - Marquee Theatre – Tempe, AZ
4 - The Joint - Las Vegas, NV
5 - Gibson Amphitheater - Los Angeles, CA
7 - Roseland Theatre - Portland, OR
8 - Showbox - Seattle, WA
10 - The Warfield - San Francisco, CA