Rock on the Wire – Green Day’s “Saviors” Tour Behind the Scenes – Pittsburgh, PA (9/1/24)

For the second Installment of our What it Takes – “Saviors” Tour edition, I wanted to get into the travel aspect of the show, and how everything (and everyone) gets from one city to another.

Pictured above, is the Monster Energy Tour bus – which some of the crew (Monster Energy) ride around in from City to City. While the band & It’s crew do take part from time to time in bus riding as well, they have had the added benefit of also taking a plane ride from cities that are further away (Like from Milwaukee, WI to Charlotte, NC) in a plane similar to the one pictured below (from their “Revolution Radio” Tour)

Similar to the Monster Energy crew, the stage (and a bunch of the gear) stays on the ground – specifically in about 12-20 semi trucks (the ballpark number I was given – Sadly I didn’t remember to count when I was out back). From what I understand, each part of the stage travels with specific counterparts in a bundle, and it’s packaged almost the same each time it’s torn down, but it may not necessarily be put on the same exact truck each time. For example – one of the trucks that had Indiscernible stage pieces in it when we arrived, was later being loaded with what looked like the trusses that hold some of the speakers.

Musical instruments and electronics are packed into custom steel cases. When the equipment arrives at the venue, it is set up in a predetermined order (stage set, lighting, audio/video etc.) The band’s equipment/instruments are usually the last thing to be brought in. after the show is over, everything is then packed back up in the reverse order it was unloaded in, into trucks with padded walls and cut out sections to protect the equipment that are used to carry all these more fragile pieces. When it comes to large stage tours like this, there’s also multiple different stages/set ups that exist, so they could be actively using one, while one is being set up in another city – especially when there’s shows on back-to-back nights, because these sets can take 12+ hours to set up sometimes.

Of course I had to add some pictures of the action during the show, including shots from the Linda Lindas, Rancid, The Smashing Pumpkins, as well as the dookie dogs!!

Thanks for tuning in, and we’ll see you for one last stop for our time on the “Saviors” Tour, in Detroit, MI on September 4th! We’ll be learning more about the touring crew to share for that show’s article! Oh, and go listen to our COTW Radio (Chewing on the Wire) Podcast Episode on the iHeart Radio app, or from the dropdown menu on the website you’re currently reading this on right now! Also remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel (@ChewingontheWire) for a full video documentary of our travels coming on 9/13/24!