The Tour Is Officially a Go!!!

… as we were only a few hours before cancellation

It’s been a serious Air Canada strike scare this time around, one that left us only hours away from being forced to cancel the entire tour for lack of suitable alternatives to get us to Europe on time, especially that we had already pushed the whole trip back a few days by rescheduling our flights. We actually came so close to cancellation that not only our announcement texts and videos were ready, but Oli had his bags packed and was about to head back to his place… We were even entertaining all sorts of ideas to connect with you in order to make the best out of such a frustrating context, from organizing a few digital live shows to reshaping our November itinerary, and on, and on. It felt like reliving the nightmare of the COVID period all over again. Everyone was stressed and anxious.

The hardest part in such moments isn’t even the disappointment related to the potentially calling off concerts in itself, it’s the weight of knowing what it meant for our technical team members, who’ve managed their workflow for months in advance to make this tour happen… And also for those of you who have made all sorts of travel plans, booked flights, and reserved hotels to commune with me and the band… These elements are always at the top of my mind whenever I’m faced with these impossible situations. Because at the end of the day, the call is mine to make, and I have to live with tremendous consequences for people I love and care about. That’s when I’d honestly rather just be the guy playing the “electric noise triangle of chaos” in the band. So to speak…!

That being said, you can imagine how deeply grateful I am to find myself with the band at the Montreal International Air Canada lounge this afternoon. It’s always humbling for me to look at these unexpected circumstances with a thankful perspective. It makes me realize how easily it is to take different life elements for granted, but also that we are never truly in control of our environment, no matter how much we’d like to believe otherwise. It’s how we maneuver through these distressing events that defines our true character, I suppose.

Deeply grateful to be at the airport with the band

If I’ve been an ardent supporter of the flight attendants’ demands to be fairly treated within the current market conditions, it’s not because I had the privilege to become friends with many of them over decades of domestic and international travel, but mainly because I’ve witnessed them serving people in all kinds of impossible situations with rare benevolence and kindness. They are the undeniable reason I’ve flown almost exclusively with Air Canada through the years. Consequently, I’m relieved this has been sorted out in everyone’s best interest, my negligible and modest situation included. I would have been profoundly disappointed to cancel what, for me, is such a significant part of my current transitional journey, one that intrinsically involves all of you.

In fact, as I contemplated the possibility of canceling the tour, I couldn’t help but think of how privileged I am to follow what my heart vibrates for… To do it with people who are precious to me… To do it independently, based on my humanitarian values and my fierce “do it yourself” vision. While it’s not always as “sexy” a lifestyle as it might seem from a distance, it’s nonetheless nothing short of a benediction for me to embrace both the good and the not-so-good realities of this fulfilling existence, a life I’ve chosen to build, for myself and for so many others around me, an existence where I have the utmost freedom to experience life every single day, with for only limits those I impose on my willingness to keep on growing and exploring.

It’s a rich and generous voyage I’m evolving in, and its richness and generosity reside in its communal nature, in its gathering essence. Without that, it simply wouldn’t make sense, nor would it hold any true value for me.

That’s why, seated in our usual remote section of the lounge — you know me, I’m a real creature of habit and tradition — it's wonderful to see the band members' pure excitement. There’s always a profound sense of febrility when we are preparing our heart and spirit through the music before hitting the road. We’ve been talking about what we envision, how impatient we are to see you all… The dynamic changed entirely since Oli joined me. It’s more serene, more relationally “it”. So are the conversation topics and the level of personal engagement involved in them. It’s a lot more fulfilling… All that while they keep pressing me to know about the upcoming concerts’ set lists!

To which my answer is, “Guys, stop asking me, you’re only hurting yourselves, you know how it goes… I’ll feel it before the concerts, then I’ll tell you. Exciting, right?!” Of course it must be the most unsettling type of answer they could receive from me hours before taking off… But hey, if truth sets us free, I’d rather make sure they fully understand what this tour is about… what it means for me. Which is clearly not about security or comfort, nor repetition and reproduction either. It’s about intimate transformation and collective elevation. The rest is just the rest.

That’s why I’m so resolutely living in the “now” and embracing the blessings of being completely immersed in the present moment.

Once again, thank you, my dear friends and family, for defining this journey of life, art, humanity, and community with me. It is incredibly precious to my heart… And I can’t wait to see you, as the tour has been pretty much underway for quite some time within me already.

Life creates life.
Your friend and brother,
Alex

PS: For those of you who requested specific songs, the set lists will evolve from one evening to another. What will actually determine the selection and sequence is the intangible spirit I’m always seeking. That way, each of our rendezvous will be something soulfully unique and purposeful.