What does the tour look like for you, and whats your role?
Meg Bashwiner:Were doing our fifth touring live show now.
I think that was a 55-day tour with over forty dates in a row.
That was my training ground for tour management.
That thing was huge.
We all took turns driving it.
I hated that thing.
Each tour we do has its own alchemy of transportation.
Weve also had to take ferries beforewe took a ferry from Vancouver to Victoria.
Jon Bernstein:I perform all of the background soundtrack music during the shows.
And Im also the production manager for the shows.
I also produce the podcasts in terms of again just purely audio production.
I do the scoring and sound tracking, and editing of all of the vocal work.
And I end up doing a lot of that work on the road as well.
Jeffrey Cranor:I show up, and I do my part.
But for the most part when the tour happens Im just a guest actor.
Whom do you travel with?
How do you plan and book your travel?
Bashwiner:I book all the travel.
I get everything plotted out: I have everyones information, frequent flier numbers, passport information.
When were planning the tours, Ill useSkyscannerto see where and when the flights are going.
Do you have any travel brand loyalties?
Bashwiner:We really love theHampton Inn; its a very solid budget hotel.
Theres a ton of them, theyre relatively clean, theres free breakfast and wifi and usually good parking.
And theyre all kind of the same.
Bernstein:Sometimes well stay in a fancier place as a treat.
Or just due to some weirdness happening in that city.
How do you pack for a tour?
Bashwiner:Everyones in charge of their own stuff and what they wear to the show.
Everyone gets one suitcase, a backpack, and maybe another bag.
Im never separated from anything.
[Ive got] a medium-size hardshell bag.
Hardshell because the bags sometimes end up in the rain.
But my hardshell bags were fine.
We dropship a lot of our merchandise, but we also carry merchandise with us.
And then we have Disparitions musical equipment.
Bernstein:I have anAbleton Live basssetup.
Everything runs through a laptop that I have on the stage.
I use Ableton Live as the program to kind of run everything.
I have a few cables and [other] components.
Then I have either a mandolin, or a mandola.
Im never separated from anything.
Cecil Baldwin:Ive got oneMuji hard-sided suitcase.
I love this thingin 10 years, I think Ive had to replace one.
I [also] carry a side bag, sort of the hippie quintessential carry-on bag.
And then I have what I call my show bag.
Which is another one that, man, Ive had this thing for ten years, it is perfect.
Its a garment bag [from Linea].
Every single show Ive ever done with Night Vale, it has accompanied me to the show.
Whats on your packing list?
Bashwiner:I have performance clothes, and then clothes clothes.
One side of my suitcase has my dresses and my makeup and my hair stuff and my shoes.
I believe in a place for everything.
Im packing and unpacking every day.
I have bags within bags.
I have a laundry bag, one fromBaggu, bags that go into a little zipper pocket.
I shove six Tide pods in that.
You know the bag that new bed sheets come in?
I use that for my shoes.
I have my makeup in a bag, and one of those roll-up hanging toiletry things that packs compactly.
I have bags within bags.
Baldwin:Things like train travel, youre gonna pack differently than if youre traveling on airplanes.
And youre going to pack extremely differently if youre traveling by car, you know?
Because you dont have to worry about checking stuff and separating liquids out and all that sort of stuff.
I use basically backpacks that are designed for DJs because they have compartments specifically for laptops.
They have a ton of pockets.
And they have a lot of padding in them.
The backpack is important to me.
And use them until they fall apart.
So, I just go to 99-cent stores to buy my big suitcase.
Im like, Thats great.
The bow tie distracts from the fact that Im wearing jeans.
Having an identifiable suitcase is really, really nice.
Its a nice orange.
When my suitcase pops out, I want to know its mine.
What snacks do you bring?
I always make a run at have in my purse assorted granola bars, sometimes fruit.
I like packets of almond butter.
I try not to eat or drink too much on planes; it grosses me out a bit.
I just take a stab at drink water and eat a granola bar.
Bernstein:We definitely have preferred band snacks.
A lot of us are big fans of jerky.
Weve gotten actually really good at crafting our hospitality riders so that we can basically eat dinner for free.
Cranor:We had Clif Bars for a long time as one of our backstage things.
Eventually, Meg has in her a kitchen a whole drawer of it.
How do you entertain yourself on the road?
Im just beside myself with how much Zelda Ive played.
Bashwiner:Im a podcast listener.
We listen to a lot of podcasts while were driving, I listen while working out and on planes.
I listen to the Bon Appetit food podcast, to Radio Cherry Bomb, My Favorite Murder.
I just got into Sold in America, Serial, Reply All.
Disparition is a great navigator, and he has a great musical selection.
If Im not driving, Ill download some Netflix or Amazon.
And then theres the horrible reality TV we watch when we get back to the hotel.
Baldwin:I am not a big podcast listener.
I like my Netflix, Ive got my Amazon Prime for TV shows.
Youre just like, sweet, its a Tuesday, you know what that means!
We get to watch this TV show after the show is over.
Bernstein:For some reason, I cant really do the whole e-reader thing.
So I still have to devote a section of my suitcase to a few paper books.
Cranor:I have anAmazon Fireso I can get Netflix on there and download some stuff.
On my most recent travels, I downloaded all of Haunting of Hill House and was watching that.
Sometimes Ill do that and then other times just read through whatever book I have going.
The[Nintendo] Switchis really nice if I know Im going to be out for a long time.
I bought that last year when Joseph and I did a book tour.
I played so much Zelda.
Im just beside myself with how much Zelda Ive played.
How do you find restaurants on the road?
My rule is no chain restaurants, and there has to be something healthy on the menu.
So I research that, and I attempt to mix it up.
Im a big fan of vegan and vegetarian restaurants, because theyre usually cool and fun and local.
Get some healthy food, get a cup of coffee.
(We do like certain truck stops:Lovestravel stops, andBuc-eesin Texas.)
The Night Vale tour has a bit of a wellness vibe to it; we eat healthy and exercise.
Were a little older to be touring!
Youve got to take care of your body when youre asking as much of it as we do.
Baldwin:Meg is really great about finding us plant-based, natural, healthy cuisine.
If you go that extra mile, you’re able to feel like youre a person.
Whats your arrival ritual?
If I stop for a second I will just totally lose my momentum.
Its hard to convince yourself to do it.
Wake up, take the hottest shower I can possible take.
Bernstein:I generally use the time to work out, or go for a swim.
And change, and thats about it.
But I find that really helpful.
Especially after being in a car all day.
Cranor:Once I get to the hotel I usually unpack.
Ill usually look up … a coffee place.
Im not much of a napper.
Whats the best meal youve had on a trip?
Baldwin:Ive probably had two of the best meals in Charleston, South Carolina.
Very fancy, but it was perfect.
I expend a lot of energy on stage.
So afterwards, Im like, I want protein and I want it now!
And I want it in massive quantities!
And this barbecue place was just amazing.
We really like to stop at their deli in Oneonta, New York.
They have really good chili and corned beef sandwiches.
And theyre kind of a religious sect that runs the place.
Its the oldest restaurant in Stockholmit was established in 1722, so its a terribly old restaurant.
Joseph and I bought dinner for everyone, and we had the most amazing meal.
People say Im always chasing that high.
When Im very stressed, Im like, Im going to go back to Den Gyldene Freden.
That place was amazing.
Oh my gosh, remember when I was on the other side of the planet?
What are your favorite travel apps/tech?
Bashwiner:We use a program and mobile app calledMaster Tour.
Baldwin:The thing that I love the most isSnapseed, a very comprehensive photo editing tool.
So youre not just throwing the same Instagram filter on things.
Bernstein:I use something called aLug Locwhich is a luggage tracking unit and service.
Its a Bluetooth equipment that also connects with cell networks.
And I just throw it in my bag.
And then I can look it up on my phone, and locate where my bag is.
Itll also give you a full history of that particular flight and how long it took every time.
You hit seats, and itll tell you, Dont sit in this seat.
The window next to it is missing.
What do you buy on the road?
Baldwin:I dated a guy for a while who works with the Japanese mission to the UN.
He taught me the importance ofomiyage.
I venture to do that and look for those things along the way, so its a fun activity.
Hes perfectly round, its just like this perfect little thing.
Every time I see it, its like, aw yeah!
The brilliance of Scandinavian design.
Nowadays Im really into stickersI put them all over my suitcases.
Its really hard to find stickers of things, so Im usually on a search for that.
Baldwin:I was in Norway and I found an art gallery that specialized in street art.
So each one is different.
Bernstein:I had kind of a week in between a tour and a family vacation.
So I booked myself a little solo kind of writing time trip to a small Dutch town.
And stayed in this hotel that was like a bunker that had been converted into a hotel.
And rented a bike.
I treated myself to basically a little mini writing, solo writing retreat.
And it was definitely worth it.
It felt worth it to me, but it was a thing where it sort of ruins you.
These interviews have been condensed and edited for clarity.
