From The Road: Ricky Montgomery
TOURING IS A WHIRLWIND OF EMOTION AND ENERGY - a test of endurance that reveals who you are when the music stops. For our latest "From the Road" feature, we partnered with Lomography to send out a LomoApparat to offer a unique glimpse into the whirlwind life of musician Ricky Montgomery during his first major headlining tour.
Armed with a camera, Montgomery and team captured the essence of life on the road, giving fans an intimate look behind the scenes. Touring brings a host of adjustments, from maintaining health to handling the emotional toll of being away from home for extended periods.
Despite his strong connection with fans on social media, Montgomery finds that live interactions at shows bring a fresh, diverse audience, allowing him to learn and grow with each performance. Crafting setlists that balance old favorites and new material, he strives to keep the energy high and the experience exciting for both himself and his fans.
Montgomery recounts the spontaneous and sometimes chaotic crowd interactions that make each show unforgettable. From fans raising paper fish during "Black Fins" to animal noise antics in Fort Collins, these moments of raw, punk-inspired energy are highlights of his tour. As he continues to navigate the challenges of life on the road, Montgomery's reflections on this tour offer valuable insights and lessons for future endeavors. Learn more below and catch him on his upcoming tour.
LUNA: This was your first headlining tour on this scale. What are some of the biggest adjustments you've had to make from previous tours?
MONTGOMERY: My health. Not only are you guaranteed to get sick on a tour that goes on for more than 5 weeks, but the emotional toll of being on the road for such a long time doesn't hit you until you're there doing it. Suddenly there are 6 months of time where you haven't been at home. You miss birthdays, holidays and anniversaries. Your plants are all dying or dead. Your pets have new illnesses. You have a new neighbor you don't have time to get to know. It's different for everyone, but the constant between every person's situation is that things go on without you. It's not for everyone.
LUNA: What are some of the most surprising things you've learned about yourself while touring?
MONTGOMERY: How dependent I am on my ADHD meds. When you're on the road, you can't just refill your meds in other states. And unless you keep your doctor's notes on you, you can't even bring that stuff into other countries most of the time. In some countries, it's just straight up illegal to have the stuff I need to maintain the energy I need to function.
LUNA: You're known for connecting with fans on social media. How does that translate to interacting with crowds on tour?
MONTGOMERY: The most surprising thing for me has always been how little it translates. Sure, there are many fans who are super online and come up to me in VIP lines ready to recite "rickytwt" memes to me (their term for my fans' twitter sub community). Despite that, I would say most of them find out about the shows through Spotify emails or something else like that. It actually encourages me a lot because I get to meet new people with widely varying interests every single time I hit the road. I learn a lot.
LUNA: How do you go about crafting a setlist that caters to both new and old fans, while keeping it fresh for yourself?
MONTGOMERY: There are a certain number of songs that I've decided that I "need" to play every tour (most of which are obvious big songs) but it's actually more about the distribution of energy across the set than it is about playing any particular song. You can't please everyone, so I just try to keep it interesting for myself on the road and as fresh as I can from tour to tour. We're looking forward to bringing some newer songs to the stage for the first time this fall.
LUNA: Have there been any particularly memorable moments or unexpected occurrences during these recent shows you can share?
MONTGOMERY: Every tour, there's a new set of "crowd memes" that manifest themselves. Most recently, there's been a fan campaign to raise little paper fish during "Black Fins" which has been pretty special. There are also old favorites that show up in specific cities. You get a lot of barking. I'll never forget one show in Fort Collins where the crowd went from barking to meowing to other random animal noises. It was sounding like a damn rainforest in there toward the end of the night. As a lifelong punk fan, shows with chaotic energy like that have always been my favorites to play.
LUNA: Do you have any specific routines or rituals you follow to stay focused and energized before a show?
MONTGOMERY: We have our own top secret pre-show rituals which I have promised not to speak into the world (because of their dark magic potential), but mostly I just try to stay healthy. I've had a life of congestion issues, so I'm super prone to severe colds. If you see me in a mask in the VIP line, it's because I've been burned before by meeting too many fans on the road. And if I don't stop to meet fans after the show, it's because I'm trying like hell to not catch a cold. It's a permanent war between me and my immune system.
LUNA: Are there any cities you've played on this tour that have stood out as particular favorites?
They are all my favorites. Although I do have a soft spot for my respective hometowns of Los Angeles and St. Louis.
LUNA: What are some of the biggest lessons you've learned on this tour that you'll carry forward to future tours?
MONTGOMERY: Pack way less and sleep WAY more.
