Tour Record (6) - 16-NOV/2010

Edinburgh @ Forest Café (9pm) & Whistlebinkies (11pm) – both gigs with Ruth & Cat aka ‘Ex Librettes’

Setlist:
Forest Café – Dis&ReCharge / Daydreaming / For Us For Me / Teenage Eyes / There’s still Room For Love / I Am Home

Setlist:
Whistlebinkies – For Us For Me / Teenage Eyes / Dis&ReCharge / There’s Still Room For Love / I Am Home

No words this time.
Just Pics & videos

PICS:




VIDS:






I'M HERE!!! KILL ME!!!!

3LX

Tour Record (5) - 15-NOV/2010

Newcastle @ Blank Studio’s. Amazing Radio session (with Ruth & Cat)

2 years ago was the first time we came to Newcastle we played a gig. The guys doing the sound at the gig were Sam, Chris and John. We crashed at their house, listened to music, talked about the band and dreams. They told us they were trying to find a space to build a recording studio in Newcastle. Blank Studio’s was their name.

Yesterday we went to a built Blank Studios for a radio session for the digital station ‘Amazing Radio’.

I could write and write about how the session was yet another dream coming true, but what I was happiest with was how Sam, Chris and John’s idea had manifested itself. It is, without a doubt, much better to see them making a name for themselves and doing it in their own way than it is to have done the session.

Call me cliché, call me cheesy, but the world makes most sense to me when others are happy.

Picture time






Oh yeah, we literally recorded the whole EP again with Ruth and Cat and even the new track ‘Daydreaming’.
Mint.

5 (part 2) – Crookham @ Sandyford Farm Cottages aka Angus’ party pad

Familiar faces from the past tour.
The village of Crookham had its first ever Diwali celebration. 6 Rockets and sparklers and a massive group chants of ‘Di-Va-Li! Di-Va-Li! Di-Va-Li!’
A massive living room jam involving 10 party people – playing all sorts of instruments including a trianglur sheet of metal
A solo set (informal like) by Amit
Awesome jumpers and balaclava shenanigans
Mild mushroom tea
Red wine & whiskey
Talks of the ‘brown’ note and the ‘x’ note
Spaghetti Bolognaise
& the night sky and the stars – so many, so bright, so humbling

Angus booked this tour – we were really hoping we’d get to come back to the farm and see the Wu-Tang Ham again (Angus’ 3 pigs: Snoop Hog, Missy Piglet & Notorious P.I.G). One of the loveliest and funniest people we’ve had the pleasure of getting to know and we’re glad we work with him.

His hi-fives are deadly

Diwali! Diwali! Diwali!

3LX

Tour Record (4) - 14-NOV/2010

4 – Newcastle @ Head Of Steam (with Ruth Campbell & Cat Calton)

Setlist: For Us For Me / Teenage Eyes / (Dis&Re)charge / There’s Still Room For Love / I Am Home

As we drove past signs for Lancashire, Cumbria, Pennines & Newcastle a familiar feeling took over; our 3rd time to Newcastle in the last 2 years it almost felt like we were about to play a home territory.

4pm and nerves kick in as 2 people walk through a rehearsal room door; Cat (violin) & Ruth (cello) from Glasgow. Ruth recorded the cello parts on our ‘Cut(s)’ EP back in July. With an hour to go we run through the EP and I can’t help but smile as excited shivers dance up and down my spine…

SIDE NOTE: Sometimes, somewhere, somehow, dreams do come true. I remember talking to Kieran before Ex Libras was an even a set of words to pass through our lips about how we both wanted to write & play music accompanied by a live string section. If you look to the right hand side of this blog you can see (as soon as we started the band) that we were after ‘outside-the-box’ string players. Sometimes, somewhere, somehow, dreams do come true.

… 10pm and the few trickle into the twenties. And unlike the last two gigs everyone is respectful and attentive (for all of the bands). There is no loud talking, there are people closing their eyes and sitting in the sound, there are a few gently rocking side to side with confused smiles across their faces, there is a blonde girl in a scarf standing near the back and once we finish she turns to her friends as tears glide down her face ad she says “that was beautiful” – all of this we‘re told afterwards and I’m now ecstatically in disbelief as part of me wishes I didn’t know that.

After the show we speak to as many people as we can. We are blown over by the responses we are getting. I guess thats the power of a string section.

And all night I quietly smile – hoping to get a drink in me, to give me enough courage to smile louder.

3LX

Tour Record (3) - 13-NOV/2010

Blackpool @ The Blue Room

Setlist: For Us For Me / Teenage Eyes / There’s Still Room For Love / I Am Home

Is the first offence the worst offence?
One-way systems and 100 mile an hour winds wrecking the town – though we only had to deal with one of the two directly.

Slightly more bruised after tonight – the Blue Room being the venue that Jimi Hendrix was once thrown out of for being too high.
For all our mistakes we still claimed a victory. For the half hour we wrestled with our music, as if trying to reign in a mad horse – sound erupted and gargled and wailed and screeched and buzzed (we’re doing acoustic shows?) - None of this in a positive sense, some gigs are just like this.

But…

…by the end we raised our bloodied fists and fractured loop pedals and voiced a dry scratchy throated sigh to a venue full of 2am license frequenters; a mixture of relief and gratitude to the listening police.

After an odd There’s Still Room For Love, the crowd whistled and whooped and I said (with a slight smile on my face) “Don’t clap, that was fucking awful…” because it was a shambles, BUT I guess what I meant to say was that I didn’t feel like we deserved an applause but words are seldom found when you need them most.

Phil – sound tech – was the best 'before, between and after band DJ'. EVER. Tune after tune after tune after tune after tune.

As Jo (Merch Girl) lovingly summed up; bad gig, great night.

I Am Home (from this very gig)



Love you, but not in love with you, but love you

3LX

Tour Record (2) – 12-NOV/2010

Liverpool @ Mello Mello

Setlist: For Us For Me / Teenage Eyes / There’s Still Room For Love / Daydreaming / I Am Home

The rain came down and washed our frowns away
Noodles in a box to fill our faces
Shithead between friends – with the merch girl (Jo) wiping the floor with us
Exotic Tea’s and curious soft drinks - truly

The students responded the most to our instrumental ambient pleas - Hanging on the notes, clapping and cheering, smiling and listening, speaking to us afterwards, telling us what they were studying. Nice students…

What was disheartening was another artist performing on the night. A seemingly lovely girl with a good voice – respect where respect due – but playing an out of tune guitar (not very well) with not many chords to choose from… But out of respect we listened, and applauded, because we’re like that. Sadly, the good will was not returned. Out of the people in the room she was screaming and shouting whilst we were playing and showed no respect to anyone in the room. We don’t mind (that much) - i mean, if its the public, thats part of the game, but when you're an artist yourself...
We’ll always play for the people who are listening or not, but when the people listening find it hard to hear… oh well.

But a minor speck on an otherwise pristine evening - oh, and a parking ticket.

We debuted a new ‘loopcoustic’ cut – ‘Daydreaming’






Photos by Jo R

I can call ya sweetheart can't I darling?

3LX

Tour Record (1) – 11-NOV/2010

Hackney Wick (w/ William Wells on Violin)

Setlist: For Us For Me / Teenage Eyes / I Am Home

Where are we? A converted studio, divided into rooms and creative spaces. Sitting at the back by the windows looking down the room at faces. Exposed and intimidated? Yes and yet no. This is a choice and sometimes I forget that. And if indeed it is a choice, then surely we make the ones that seem best. It doesn’t make sense to do the opposite.

Tomorrow we hit the road, and as we land we’ll either keep our feet or we’ll greet the tarmac and bruise our lips. For the next 10 days we have only ourselves as we exit one bubble and travel in another. A handful of songs with a couple of ways to play them; good or bad.

Tonight was good. Tonight was good. Well, tonight was tonight and tomorrow is a memory waiting to happen.

And Tobi is a beatboxer.

3LX

VideosoediV

Our video for our second single - UNDERACHIEVER - released 10-MAY/2010



enjoy x

We're heading North to promote the single with a series of dates in and around Scotland:

28-APR/2010 @ Electric Circus - Edinburgh
29-APR/2010 @ Canteen Media - Barrow-in-Furness
30-APR/2010 @ Head of Steam / Cluny 2 - Newcastle
01-MAY/2010 @ Barrels Alehouse - Berwick-upon-Tweed
02-MAY/2010 @ 13th Note - Glasgow
12-MAY/2010 @ Lexington - London



More to come, post-tour.
See you at a show?

3LX

European Tour 2010 18-27FEB/2010

18-FEB/2010 @ Fighting Cocks, Kingston

The T-shirts arrived. The Brighton gig fell through on the weekend. The Cologne gig fell through mid week. Still, spirits were high. Probably the safest way to start the tour - among friends in a venue we know inside out. Big love to the starting team.




SETLIST:

Leap Of Faith & BTDTGTD
Sum Numbers
Radar
Underachiever
This Ship Is Sinking


22-FEB/2010 @ La Campine, Antwerp

An 8am start from London, allowing us enough time to get to Antwerp, have a sound-check and a leg stretch before we play... Was a great idea in theory... except the Van didn't turn up until 1pm, meaning that we arrived at Cafe La Campine around 10:30pm - meaning we had to throw our gear on-stage and hammer through a short set racing against their closing time policy (which they kindly extended just for us). After, they fed us some lovely spaghetti Bolognese and gave us drink tokens before taking us to a cool little underground bar in a youth centre where they played Radiohead out loud and the beers were a quid... seriously... were we dreaming it all?







SETLIST:

Radar
Sum Numbers
Underachiever


23-FEB/2010 @ The Glocksee, Hannover

Learn from your mistakes and you'll go far. We arrived in good time, and the venue had laid out a cold spread for us, of various cheese's, Meat's and bread's. As we started tucking in, one of the staff came over and told us not to overkill, because there was a ht meal coming at 7! Roast Chicken and Vegetables with the BEST red-wine sauce/gravy. We had a backstage area too.. sofa's and graffiti of penis's (the best one done by Lyyke Li *sigh*) with a fridge FULL of drink - alcoholic & non-alcoholic. We were told that we could take what we wanted if we wanted to go somewhere else to party and if we ran out... we could just come and ask for more... again... are we dreaming. Gin Panic destroyed the crowd!








SETLIST:

Issue
Underachiever
Phat Knickers
Radar
Audio Video Disco
Sum Numbers


24-FEB/2010 & 25-FEB/2010 - Ex Libras' days off...

Following the Glocksee we stayed at an apartment round the corner. It belonged to a legend called Ralf Neumann. He uses his apartment as a place for bands to stay when the come and play in Germany. He opens up his house, and is THE nicest man person we met all tour. Vielen Dank Ralf!
The following day we drove to Brussels and Gin Panic played a set at Cafe De Walvis (there was only the licence for one band). Another great show. Dave destroyed the Kick Drum. Many drinks were had and fussball games of EPIC proportions










26-FEB/2010 @ Zaal 100, Amsterdam

I love this city. I truly do. Twice i have been here and both times i have wished i never had to leave. Maybe one day i'll move here. If there was ever a date on this tour that we were supposed to play, it was this. The Zaal 100 is a venue/theatre/cafe/bar/youth centre. The food here was amazing - nice, healthy, home cooked and just what we needed.
Through the smoky haze of a crowded room, our music came alive and people danced and cheered. After 2 days of not playing, this is what we needed to feel like a band again.







SETLIST:

Audio Video Disco
Radar
Sum Numbers
Phat Knickers
Underachiever


27-FEB/2010 @ The Twist, Colchester

a 7am start to make sure we made it back to Colchester in time for the final show. Landing back in rainy Britain with mixed feelings. Glad to be home, sad it was the last gig. Before we headed to the venue we were invited to Babz house. Babz is another lovely perrson we've met through being a band. She came to see us at the Lexington (in November), bought our album, came to see our Proud Galleries show, and has since been really kind to us and for us! She made the BEST turkey soup and a spanish tortilla dish and offered us 3 different types of cheesecake as dessert! And here we though that the UK had nothing to offer on the hospitality of the Europeans... Babz represent!

Sandwiched in between a 5 band bill, we gave it everything we had left and played as best as we could. Kieran and Ross joined Gin Panic on stage with percussion and it was the best way to end what has been the best time in our musical career so far.






SETLIST:

Phat Knickers
Radar
Sum Numbers
Underachiever


So for all bands thinking about making it... put that out of your head. Play shows, do gig swaps, get contact and play wherever you can. Europe is really friendly to bands. We were fed, we had places to sleep each night, we had drink given to us and where possible, we got paid. This doesn't happen in London, it hardly happens in England for unsigned bands. We do this because we love it, and it is really nice to know that there are places that provide opposrtunities for bands because they love it too!

Thank yous: Fighting Cocks / La Campine / Pooping Bird Promotions / Glocksee / Ralf Neumann (Legend)/ Isabell Mansius / Cafe De Walvis / Coco Delongueil / Amsterdam! / Zaal 100 / Thijs Pelperlamn / The Twist / Babara Stweart / Chalrie Vessey & last but not least: Gin Panic (love) / Esther Yoxall - Merch Girl! (big love) & Max Mistry TM, Engineer, Driver (Biggest love going around).







3LX

11-FEB/10 @ the Good Ship, Kilburn

Gigs are often troubled with mechanical malfunctions and this gig was no exception. It was strange. When we went at it full pelt, all we could hear were our own individual instruments- seriously. The monitors did not work too well either, so we were straining to hear what we were playing. It was a bizarre gig - most bizarre that hardly anyone could hear the guitar off-stage or even on-stage... but the volume was MAXED out!

seriously strange gig, but wonderful. There were a handful of people down. I feel bad for the 405 boys (promoters) who put on the gig, but they told me that they felt this venue has been cursed for them - the audience wasn't 250+ strong like Proud, hell it wasn't even 25+ strong, but those that were there joined us in a sort-of unified catharsis...

SETLIST:

Underachiever
Magical Mervyn's Psychic Sidekick
Radar
This Ship Is Sinking
Leap Of Faith & BTDTGTD

No pics this time. Cheers Pete (soundguy) who helped us out with the sound that night.

3LX

6&7-FEB/10 @ Proud Galleries & Luminaire

It's been a while since we smashed our instruments around to a room full of other people...
Boy does it feel good :)

So...

-- // Proud Galleries, Camden \\ --

Too cool & Trendy for us - Definitely.
But... such a nice place to play - really nice - Good sound system, BIG rooms, stables, photos on the walls, Gallery Space etc. etc.

Major downside: From a band point of view it's a logistical nightmare. Nowhere to park (locally everything is Max stay 2 hours until 11PM?!?!?), no convenient loading and/or unloading... We had to drag our equipment (Drums, Keyboards, Guitars, Amps and all) through a crowded club at MIDNIGHT ONLY, down the cobbled street, through and around barriers to our little van parked 5 minutes away. Hell, we don't mind too much - we're all still sore, but the bouncers made our life more difficult than it had to be... seriously. Our saving grace was the promoter 'Ilana'. Lovely lady who put us on and made sure we had the smoothest time we could whilst we were there. You rule!

SETLIST:

Underachiever
Magical Mervyn's Psychic Sidekick
Radar
Sum Numbers
Leap Of Faith & BTDTGTD





Photos: 06-FEB/10 by Jo - We're gonna miss you! Have fun & see you in May!


Video: 06-FEB/10 Underachiever (Live @ Proud) - Filmed by Barbara Stewart - thanks Babz!

-- // EyeSeeSound Session @ Luminaire, Kilburn \\ --

Having made a partial recovery from the previous night antics we jumped back into the van and headed to Kilburn for a live video session with
-->EyeSeeSound<-- CLICK
who are a lovely bunch of people who hire out the Luminaire in Kilburn once a month and get bands in that they love too play for them. They record these sessions and put them out online and make DVD's. They chose us for a session and we tried to give it as much as we could - that meant bum notes, a lot of sweat, and us trying not to pick holes in our performance. It'll be rouhg, but it'll be accurate - if you know what i mean. Kieran and Ross did an interview and we're told the session will go live in a couple months time!




Thankyou to ALL that came to Proud. Some people missed it and some people were treated ill by the staff. Not cool. I doubt we'll play there again, unless we can on our own terms. Next up we headline the 405 night at the Good Ship, Kilburn this THURS, then Europe.

3LX