MASSIVE WAGONS TEAM UP WITH ANDY’S MAN CLUB FOR UK TOUR

17th September 2024 0 By Jon Deaux

Lancastrian rock squad Massive Wagons got serious on their last single “Night Skies“, tackling the very important subject of mental health… albeit still with a bit of their trademark panache.

The track was taken from their forthcoming seventh studio album Earth To Grace – set for release on November 8 via Earache Records – and prompted an outpouring of stories online under the #ItsOkayToTalk hashtag. The song also quickly became Planet Rock’s #1 Most Played track that week.

Now the band are going one step further, taking charity Andy’s Man Club on the road with them for their UK headline tour in November. Andy’s Man Club are a men’s suicide prevention charity, offering free-to-attend peer-to-peer support groups, for men over 18 going through storms in their lives, with approximately 225 clubs meeting weekly across the UK and online. Clubs are free to attend with no registration required. Andrew Roberts, for whom the club is named, was only 23 years old when he took his own life. On average one man every two hours takes his life in the UK.

The charity will have a stall in the foyer of each venue, with 4-6 facilitators from local Andy’s Man Clubs at each UK tour date, roaming as welcoming “sweepers” amongst attendees, handing out wristbands, and sharing details of their local club meetings for more support. There will also be on-stage talks during band changeovers and an interactive installation posing the five questions each meeting is structured around, for gig goers to answer.

Guitarist Adam Thistlethwaite states, “We couldn’t be more onboard with what Andy’s Man Club stand for and their message. Their team are lovely people and it’s a real bonus for us to spread their word along with our music. It can be hard for anyone to admit they are having a difficult time, but focusing on breaking down the social and mental blocks that make it especially difficult for some men to come forward, that has been sorely needed and is highly commendable. I just hope that our involvement with Andy’s Man Club further spreads this message and encourages more people to take that first step, and speaking from personal experience it really does help.”

Frontman Baz Mills adds, “I really never expected the reaction we got from people for ‘Night Skies’, I mean there is the reaction about the song, which was great!!!…. but then there is the reaction to the message, which was proper overwhelming! The inbox messages we have had, while on one hand are a tough read, on the other hand are people talking, which is the goal isn’t it, to open up, people are opening up, and that really warms my heart, knowing the song and its message have potentially contributed to people’s decision to talk about personal issues that are harming their mental health.

While we were pushing all of the mental health lifelines out there, the ones who cater for specific ages, genders, or sexualities, we have had the biggest reaction for the song from men. We have had a lot of personal messages from fellas who are really starting to shake the stigma attached to men speaking about mental health, and that’s why we have teamed up with Andy’s Man Club to take their show on the road with us!

There seems to be a real movement in men’s mental health at the moment, and Andy’s Man Club are one of those at the very centre, extremely well organised and motivated to help blokes who just don’t seem to feel like they have anyone to turn to. Please, if you are reading this, or any of the associated press or have seen the video to ‘Night Skies’ and you are feeling mentally overwhelmed, whether you are a bloke, a woman, a child, teenager, OAP, a veteran, or LGBTQ, and feeling under pressure from your mind and are struggling – please reach out to someone, mental health has no agenda or label discrimination, it doesn’t attack people based on age or gender, everyone is susceptible. Don’t suffer in silence… #itsokaytotalk Big love!”

Luke, the charity’s North West Area Lead, comments, “Myself and everyone here at ANDYSMANCLUB would like to thank Massive Wagons for collaborating with us and are kind enough to invite us on their UK tour, helping us raise awareness and spread the message that #ITSOKAYTOTALK. We can’t wait to meet you all on all 7 of the UK tour dates. Please make sure you stop by our stall for a chat.”

The dates include:

UK DATES – including Andy’s Man Club, with special guests Florence Black:

22 Nov – Rock City, Nottingham

23 Nov – SWX, Bristol

24 Nov – Engine Rooms, Southampton

26 Nov – O2 Institute, Birmingham

27 Nov – SWG3, Glasgow

29 Nov – O2 Ritz, Manchester

30 Nov – O2 Shepherds Bush Empire, London

The group also have two shows lined up in Dublin and Belfast in December:

6 Dec – Grand Social, Dublin

7 Dec – Limelight 2, Belfast

To see all dates and get tickets, visit massivewagons.com/live.

To find out more about Andy’s Man Club, email info@andysmanclub.co.uk or head to www.andysmanclub.co.uk.

Here is a small list of some more resources which might be helpful if you’re looking for someone to talk to:

MIND: 0300 102 1234

SAMARITANS: 116 123

SANEline: 0300 304 7000

NATIONAL SUICIDE PREVENTION HELPLINE: 0800 689652

CALM: 0800 58 58 58

NHS MENTAL HEALTH: 111

CHILDLINE: 0800 11 11

WWW.SANE.ORG.UK

WWW.ANDYSMANCLUB.CO.UK

WWW.WOMENSMENTALHEALTHNETWORK.COM

WWW.TONICMUSIC.CO.UK

WWW.YOUNGMINDS.ORG.UK

WWW.MINDOUT.ORG.UK (specifically for the LGBTQ community)

UK.MOVEMBER.COM

Upcoming album Earth To Grace brings the anthemic muscle and punked-up gusto that Massive Wagons have made their name with, while adding a pinch of stardust that shoots the band into the stratosphere as master songcrafters. Earth To Grace found diverse inspiration in the sad passing of Sinéad O’Connor, the unsettling movie Sound Of Freedom, the “brutal” TikTok algorithm, and themes to ’80s TV shows like Jayce and the Wheeled Warriors and Cities Of Gold.

Pre-order the album now on coloured vinyl, black vinyl, signed bonus edition CD and more at earache.com/massivewagons.

Earth To Grace smacks the bullseye every time when it comes to Wagons’ ability to create memorable anthems. From the gleaming slow dancer “Night Skies”, to the match-striking dynamism of “The Good Die Young” (featuring Hundred Reasons’ vocalist Colin Doran) and the landsliding force of Adam ‘Bowzer’ Bouskill’s bass and Alex Thistlethwaite’s drumming on album opener “Sleep Forever”, every track is a head-turner in its own right. The album also sees the welcome return of the direct sincerity of Mills’ lyricism, as well as Adam Thistlethwaite and Stevie Holl’s twin guitars, which, entwine to create a hulking double helix of guitar brawn

Earth To Grace Track List: