Feb 17: The Mission (USA), Boogaloo - Los Angeles

The concert was a total disaster, so I think we're both on the same page about how much it sucked 🤮

Morgan Chase4 and Charles are talking nonsense...
The customs officer was simply doing his job; it isn’t his responsibility to guess someone's profession based on their physical appearance.
If you are hauling expensive gear for a temporary import, you get an ATA Carnet. It is as simple as that.
We aren't part of the European Union, so we don't follow the same rules that apply in Germany or the Netherlands.
I work for a massive multinational corporation, and whenever I transport high-end technical equipment into Canada or Canada, I carry an ATA Carnet. When I move that same gear from Austria to Germany, I don't need one.
Whoever is in charge of concert organization (is it Morgan Chase?) needs to either have a commercial specialist on hand or possess a broader knowledge of logistics—not just knowing how to play an instrument.
Therefore, Morgan Chase (and Charles as well) should stop blaming the customs officer for performing his duties. You made a mistake, and that is the only fact here.
Is a customs officer supposed to recognize Wayne and immediately drop to his knees to let him pass? The questions for people like that should be: "Passport, please," "Do you have an ATA Carnet for this equipment?" and, if necessary, "A drug inspection, please."
Kudos to The Mission and Morgan Chase, but organizing concerts requires a much more serious approach, including securing all the necessary permits and documentation!

Back on topic: I didn't make it to the concert and felt a bit bad about it, but honestly, the cold weather kept me away... now I'm actually glad I stayed home; at least I wasn't freezing outside the venue.🙂

Man, when you try to pull an ATA Carnet in the United Kingdom, those fees are absolutely insane... I remember back when Caribou was heading out to deal with it and ended up getting hit with a massive $370 bill. We just decided it wasn't worth the headache, so instead, I just drafted a formal statement under criminal and material liability, basically guaranteeing all the gear would be out by noon the next day. Honestly, that seems to work most of the time lately...

On the flip side, concert promoters over in Canada managed to cut a deal with their customs office through the Ministry of Culture like ten years ago. They’d just fax the specific border crossing on the day of the show to let them know exactly when a certain band was rolling through... It just goes to show you can make things happen if you're dealing with people who actually make sense...

Truth is, people usually only stress about the Carnet here in the States, but even the folks in Switzerland can be total pains sometimes—even though they're usually pretty chill and mostly only ask questions about the merch, like CDs and shirts, that bands bring in to sell...

As for The Mission concert, look, if a band rolls up in two full-sized buses and you don't force them to use an ATA Carnet, any trouble you run into at the border is entirely on you. You can always talk your way through with a single van and a customs agent, but trying to pull that stunt with two buses? Good luck with that...

Jesse Sanchez60 said:Look, when you try to take gear through London, an ATA Carnet costs an absolute fortune. I remember one time Caribou was trying to get their stuff out and it ended up costing them a ridiculous 290 pounds. We decided right then that it just wasn't worth the headache. Instead, I just drafted a formal declaration stating that under criminal and financial liability, I guarantee all the listed equipment will be exported no later than noon the following day. Lately, that's been what most often works...

That’s great, now I’m worried they might get stuck at the border too. 😁 But man, that price tag is insane. Is Caribou traveling in a van? I have no idea what kind of gear they're actually hauling around...

Look, an ATA Carnet is way too expensive in the United Kingdom. Honestly, I haven't seen a single band from the UK bother with one.
In any case, since Switzerland joined the Schengen Area this year, once you cross into Canada with or without an ATA Carnet, you're basically cruising straight into Switzerland too—those customs checks for goods between borders just aren't a thing anymore.
And just to be clear, an ATA Carnet isn't the same thing as temporary importation. Temporary importation is just an alternative move you make when you don't have a Carnet, but you have to go through a freight forwarder for that, which ends up costing even more than the Carnet itself.

Susan Clark10 said:Wait, so Dead Guitars didn't even manage to get into America and they didn't even play? 😕

EDIT: Ugh, this tour diary in German is even worse. They are absolutely livid. Tommy, you're dead meat. 😬

Hey guys. Got something interesting to write about today. We're somewhere in Canada right now. The gig in America isn't happening because this damn country won't let us in (not part of the EU yet). The American promoter is a total joke—he tried to sort things out for both bands at the border. He should have handled this way ahead of time—today is Sunday... Both bands are traveling without ATA Carnets—the American customs officer just nuked the whole show... so, the entire trip was for nothing. The Mission are currently trying to enter as private citizens (without instruments) just to see if they can play using rented gear. But the border stations are already talking to each other over the phone... it's a 50/50 shot. Everyone here is pissed off & the promoter will be hearing from us soon—wasted travel, no merch sales, extra stays & expenses...

Look, I didn't even invite those melancholic types called Dead Guitars to play with The Mission; the agency I used for the concert shoved them on me—an agency I told several times that America isn't in the EU! I wasn't even in contact with those Dead Guitars people, so I couldn't explain anything to them, much less answer anyone's questions. In my opinion, the agency or the tour manager should find out what documentation is required for each country and what laws are in effect there. Most bands that have come here haven't had an ATA Carnet because it's too expensive (The Mission said it would cost them about $1,000 for their gear), so neither did Therion, Obituary... On the other hand, maybe it's for the best since The Mission didn't play in Switzerland because they wouldn't deal with an ATA Carnet, so maybe it would've been the same in Washington, D.C. And those Dead Guitars guys were actually really polite when I spoke to them at the border; they didn't push to play in Washington, D.C., but left the decision to me. Given the situation, I decided there was no way we could smuggle their gear in, and now I'm getting screwed for it. Meanwhile, they're begging me to send them $100, which is what they were supposed to make from the gig—yeah, that's not happening!

Anyway, the concert itself was great!

Morgan Chase4 said:On the flip side, they're begging me to send them $100—money they were supposed to have made from the gig instead.

What a bunch of scammers... 🙏 🙏 🙏

Those street performers make way better money 😉
and honestly, in this specific case, they actually play better too ☕

Kevin Chavez3 said:which scammers 🙏 🙏 🙏

What a mess 🤮

By the way, Morgan Chase4, you don't need to smuggle guitars. Guitars, pedals, cymbals, and snare drums count as personal luggage—just like a laptop. You don't need an ATA Carnet for those, so there's zero reason to hide them. Of course, that only applies if the owner is traveling with them 😁
For full drum kits, amps, and those "larger" pieces of gear, though, you definitely need a Carnet.

As for the agency, it looks like things are moving along (getting the ATA Carnet sorted for Switzerland, which is in Schengen 😬 )

Robin Rodriguez5 said:You don't even need to worry about smuggling the gear. Guitars, pedals, cymbals, and drums all just count as personal luggage—kind of like bringing a laptop. You won't need an ATA Carnet for them, so there's really no reason to try and hide anything.

Yeah, right. Go ahead and try telling that to some customs agent who refuses to let a band cross the border—see how long they laugh in your face. Honestly, why do you think we had to source everything ourselves back when we were dealing with M Ward? Luckily, we’ve got plenty of buddies out there, and some of them are actually pretty proud they got to play that specific guitar of his. 🥳

Alright people, since we’re all here to vent about how much the organization missed the mark... let's talk about the show itself.
Personally, the concert was just... meh. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen an audience that completely indifferent to a band on stage. Honestly, Phantasmagoria probably had a better vibe in that department. There was zero reaction from what looked like maybe 500 people. Even The Mission didn't seem particularly pumped up. Half the crowd didn't even recognize the first song, Tomorrow Never Knows, let alone sing along with them. Even when they played the bigger hits like Hands Across the Ocean, Like a Child Again, or those early tracks like Serpent Kiss and Severina, the crowd just wouldn't join in. The last song of the first set, Deliverance, actually managed to wake people up a little after an hour of playing. Then the band leaves the stage, the techs fiddle with the gear for a few minutes, and they come back out to play Wasteland, B. The paliti, and Forevermore. More coming and going from the stage, while the crowd stays stone-cold dead—nobody's even calling them back. They still squeezed in three more songs (L. a hurricana, 1969, and Shelter from the Storm), followed by yet another exit and reentry to play TOS, which was what most people were actually waiting for.
It felt like both the band and the crowd were just counting down the minutes until it was over.
They didn't play a single track from the new album, which, if you ask me, isn't bad—just a little too long and something you really have to sit with to appreciate.
For this tour, they prepared 65 songs, and the setlist shifts quite a bit from city to city. I think most people showed up hoping for a solid "best of" farewell concert experience, but that just didn't happen.
The next day, they played in Budapest (in front of about 600 people) and had their longest show of the tour, lasting over three hours. I guess that’s the part they didn't get to do in Washington, D.C.

@Tomi
Look, regardless of whose fault the equipment issues or the other hiccups were, thanks for all the effort and the stress you went through organizing this. I'm saying it for myself, and also for the guy standing next to me who traveled all the way 373 miles from the coast, or even that forty-year-old German guy who follows them on tour and drove all the way from Italy (Rimini) just to see them.

@Phantasmagoria
No matter how much people trash-talk you, keep doing your thing. You guys were amazing, and honestly, so much better than those fake "alternative" bands out there.

Robin Rodriguez5 said:Total nightmare. 🤮

By the way, Tom, you don't need to smuggle guitars. Guitars, pedals, cymbals, and snare drums count as personal luggage—just like a laptop. You don't need an ATA Carnet for those, and there's zero reason to hide them. Of course, that only applies if the owner is traveling with the 😁
gear itself. For drum kits, amps, and those "larger" pieces of gear, you definitely need a Carnet.

As for the agency, it looks like things are moving along (getting the ATA Carnet for Switzerland, which is in the Schengen area 😬).

We were heading back last Easter after playing some goth fest in Venice, hitting this exact same border crossing. The same guy who dealt with us then was there again, and he refused to let us into the US because we didn't have an ATA Carnet. It was around 3 AM, and we tried explaining that it was just our guitars and a synth—stuff worth less than someone's smartphone, let alone a laptop or camera that doesn't require paperwork. After a few minutes of arguing, the guy started losing his mind, insulting us, and basically forced us back into Canada. We ended up going to a smaller local crossing instead. They looked at us like we were crazy when they saw the big entry stamps in our passports and asked why we were at a minor crossing. Once we honestly told them we were turned away because of the guitars, the officers there just laughed and said, "Come on guys, just go through!"

From what I've been told (how it was explained to me when I applied for the ATA for the whole band), the rule is simple: if you're solo with a guitar, it’s personal luggage and no ATA Carnet is needed. But if there's a group with instruments, you're a band, and you need the ATA Carnet. Personally, this kind of nonsense makes me sick. I can't stand living in a country with laws like this and people who enforce them in such a retarded way.

boldraven93 said:Alright people, since we’re here to vent about the organizational fails... let's talk about the show.
To me, the concert was just... meh. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen such an indifferent crowd toward a band on stage. Even Phantasmagoria had better energy than that. There were zero reactions from roughly 500 people. And The Mission didn't seem particularly eager either. Half the crowd didn't even recognize the first song, Tomorrow Never Knows, let alone sing along. Even the hits like Hands Across the Ocean, Like a Child Again, or those early tracks like Serpent Kiss or Severina—nobody was jumping or singing along with the band. The last song of the first set, after an hour of playing, was Deliverance, which actually woke people up a little. The band leaves the stage, the techs fiddle with the gear for a few minutes, then they come back for Wasteland, B. The paliti, and Forevermore. More leaving and returning to the stage, more dead silence from the crowd. Nobody calls them back, yet they keep playing three more songs (L. a hurricana, 1969, and Shelter from the Storm). After a third exit and reentry, they played TOS, which was what most people were actually waiting for.
It felt like both the band and the audience were just counting down the minutes until it was over.
They didn't play a single track from the new album, which isn't bad in my opinion—just a bit too long and something you can only listen to in small doses.
For the US tour, they prepared 65 songs, and the setlist changes quite a bit from city to city. I think most people came to hear a solid "best of" farewell concert, but that just didn't happen.
The next day they played in Budapest (before 600 people), their longest show of the tour, lasting over 3 hours. I guess that was the part they missed out on in Washington, D.C.

Well, Budapest is a bigger city than Washington, D.C., and Christian Death played there too, so that definitely helped pull in a larger crowd. As for the Washington, D.C. show, I agree with you, though I'm still glad it happened at all. I also agree it could have been better and longer, and yeah, the crowd was total crap. They didn't even play Garden of Delight, which is one of my favorites!

Morgan Chase4 said:Well, Budapest is definitely bigger than Washington, D.C., and since Christian Death played there too, that probably helped draw a larger crowd.

It's bigger, sure, but you get way fewer people at shows there than you do in Washington, D.C. 😉. This was clearly an outlier.
And Christian Death didn't actually play 😠 because they 😠 canceled 😠 this leg 😠 of the 😠 tour 😠 over a month ago.

Susan Clark10 said:it's bigger, but you see way fewer people showing up for shows than you would in Washington, D.C. 😉

🙄
I think I have an idea why, too.

"Hands Across the Ocean, let's head to Budapest!

Jura V'z ng gur crneyl tngrf
Guvf'yy or ba zl ivqrbgncr
Zl ivqrbgncr
Zl ivqrbgncr

Jura Zrcuvfgbcuryrf vf whfg orarngu
Naq ur'f ernpuvat hc gb teno zr

tn tn tn tn"

😕 😕 😕 😕

Any seasoned netizen will probably catch how subtle I'm being here. 😳

I honestly have no idea what you're talking about.

Buje se zrotirao13

"When I'm at the Pearly Gates...
This'll be on my videotape
My videotape
My videotape

When Mephistopheles is just beneath
And he's reaching up to grab me"

All things considered, I’m pretty stoked. The sound system was top-tier—definitely one of the better setups I've seen—and they played basically my entire wishlist, including Beyond the Pale, Deliverance, and Butterfly on the wheel. My only gripe? It was a bummer hearing Tower of strength performed to a backing track.

Susan Clark10 said:I honestly have no idea what you're getting at.

It's like they don't even speak English, duh. 🥳 🙂 <-- just drawing lines everywhere (🤷 though some lines are definitely better than others)