EP Launch...

Beatbullyz support slot behind us, I have now turned my full attention towards my Major Project, the Jeanie in the Radiator EP Launch.

Over the last few weeks things have started to develop a lot quicker.  I have booked the venue, Nexus Art Cafe, and have got to give in my deposit in the next few weeks.  It is a great space with a relaxed atmosphere, lots of comfy chairs and a nice cafe service with a decent stage which will be perfect for a JITR acoustic set.

As far as the event itself is concerned, I was originally planning a 'Jeanie in the Radiator showcase'.  I would have an acoustic performance by the band as well as an extended play of the record, small photography exhibition and video installation to tie in with the band's music.  However, it has changed slightly with the news that Swansea Love Story have had to cancel their March EP Launch as their venue cancelled the event.  I have used this to my advantage and offered them to play with us and share our EP Launch so that now I will be presenting two pieces of work I have produced to an audience at the event.

The running order will be something like:

•  Swansea Love Story 30 minute set
•  Break to give people time to enjoy cafe and photography exhibit. 
•  Video installation along with playing of the Jeanie in the Radiator EP.
•  Jeanie in the Radiator 30 minute acoustic set.

We are also getting custom USB wristbands made for the event with our logo on them.  I'll load our EP on to the wristbands and have planned it so that we will give a free USB wristband to the first 40 people at the door and after that, we will be selling them for about £3.  It is costing us quite a lot for the USBs but hopefully people will see them as a bit of a one off limited item, as well as getting the music they will be getting a souvenir of the event; and we will make our money back.  

I'm meeting with the photographer who will be putting together a small display for the Launch in the next few days to organise a photoshoot.  But so far all is going well, if a little slowly.  I am confident everything will get done, it is just going to be a bit of a rush and push towards the end....as these things always are.

Supporting Beatbullyz @ Sound Control...

Never have I played a gig with so many ups and downs.  The day didn't begin brilliantly with our lead singer turning up an hour late to the venue, however she was just in time for the soundcheck which went extremely well.  We came away from the soundcheck feeling confident, it was about the best sound system we have played through and it all seemed to be leveled so well.

Inevitably, the sound was the major issue that let us down when it came to the actual gig.  Not only was the sound leveled so poorly on stage that our singer couldn't hear the other instruments, but the word from the audience after the gig was that the first half of our gig was dominated by the bass and drums to the point where vocals, guitar and keys were hardly audible.  Not to mention a lack of concentration causing a big slip up in the vocals; despite most of us playing pretty solidly and competently the numerous issues really ruined for us.

It is frustrating when a gig you have practiced so hard for is let down by poor sound on the night.  Admittedly, many of the vocal errors were also down to inexperience on the part of our singer.  It isn't her fault that she hasn't been singing for a long time.  It just meant that while the sound issues affected us all, they affected her in particular and singing issues are always more noticeable.  Luckily, I think it was pretty obvious to most there that the sound was horrible on the night and that we played our best under the circumstances.  We sweep it under the rug, and live to play another day.  We're looking forward to redemption at the EP launch and aim to make it a much more enjoyable gig.

BBC Radio Manchester Introducing...

Yesterday I emailed the producer of BBC Radio Manchester Introducing (a contact I had gained through a promoter friend we have gigged for a lot in the past).  Today we found ourselves being interviewed on the BBC Introducing show.

In the email I had mentioned the Beatbullyz gig we have coming up, and the online marketing we were doing by the way of youtube videos of the Soapworks sessions.  I explained how we were planning to release one video every week for four weeks in the run up to the gig, promoting it on facebook and twitter. The producer really liked the idea and so invited us in to talk about it.

Interviews aren't my favourite, but Behnam, Hollie and I did our best and managed to give the audience a feel for what we were about and plugged our youtube promo campaign.  We mentioned coming back on to the show to the host, Sam Walker, and she seemed enthusiastic about the idea.  I also spoke to the producer and told him that I would email him any updates and new songs etc.

We gained some good experience in radio interviews, having personally never done one before.  It is up to us now to use the extra exposure to our advantage and really promote these weekly youtube videos.

*Update:  The finished videos from the Soapworks shoot are below.  Mike has been finishing them each week in time to upload a new one every Monday before the gig.  We're all really pleased with the results, especially so with the sound provided by Paul Allen.  I had gone round to his studio a few weeks ago to help him mix the tracks and they sound great.  We did the right thing buy going the extra mile and paying a bit more money for higher production values and have come out with something we're all really proud of.

Potential Manager?

The rest of the band and I met with Sharon yesterday, the woman who was proposing to be our manager.  The meeting went well; Sharon had got a few things lined up for us including a potential slot at Friends of Mine festival, that much was the good news.  The bad news was that Shaun Ryder had agreed to have us support him on two dates he was playing in Manchester and London, but the dates clashed with our prearranged gig supporting Beatbullyz; encouraging nonetheless.

She seemed really nice and enthusiastic, but at this stage we struggled to see exactly what she could bring to the band other than getting us gigs, which we have never had trouble doing ourselves in the past.  I contacted her afterwards to suggest that she prove herself to us over the next few weeks so we can decide whether she would truly be an asset to the band.  She replied back to say she's fine with doing that, so only time will tell now.

In the meantime I'm starting recording sessions again now for the EP I will be launching as part of my Major Project in April.  I'm also visiting a potential venue next week: Nexus Art Cafe.  The more I can get done now, the better as I imagine things are going to get more and more busy as we get closer to the end of the year.

Some New Year's Press...

I got notified of this nice article through Facebook, which praises both Jeanie in the Radiator and my old, currently on the back-burner, band League Liege.  A good way to start a busy year:

http://designermagazine.tripod.com/NewBandsFor2011.htm

It's good to get some positive press when sometimes you can feel like noone is recognising your efforts.  Though I am pleased to be in the article with Jeanie, I am actually more pleasantly surprised at the mention of my old band.  I think we will go back to it one day soon and try out some new ideas.  It's always good to keep as many things going to as high a standard as possible I think.  Here's to a year of new opportunities and bigger steps in better directions...

Swansea Love Story - Finishing what we started...

Having been concentrating on university work most of this month I thought, with the Christmas holiday getting closer, I would try and get the Swansea Love Story EP finished and mixed before the break.  We agreed to get together for two days on 21st and 22nd to complete the recording process so I could get the tracks mixed for them before the new year.

All pretty much went to plan and we have come out with 5 tracks:

'Ariel', 'Neon X', 'Neon Aftermath', 'Lights' and 'Labyrinth'.

They're really happy with the results, and so am I.  Although it felt like it took a long time to complete from the initial recordings back in May 2010, to now; I think that we worked well together to really develop the songs to make them what they are today.  I spent a lot of time mixing them, and the break between May and starting recording again in October and then again in December gave us time to listen to the songs and hone their direction.  It also gave us all ample time to decide how the sound of the songs on the EP were working together.  Now I feel we have come out with a consistent, carefully and intuitively produced piece of work which I am very happy to have worked on.

I'm looking forward to hearing the fully mastered tracks and attending their planned EP Launch in March.

Support slot on Beatbullyz tour...

I just got done on the phone to Bozo of Swindon band 'Beatbullyz' and have managed to secure a slot for Jeanie in the Radiator to play at the Manchester night of their 'Mino-tour' which is taking place in late February.  His band will be going on tour with JLS in December and they will be performing at the M.E.N arena twice as part of that tour.  The hope is that this will considerably raise their profile in Manchester and we can expect a big crowd at the gig we will be playing with them in February.

I also made some enquiries in to getting a photographer to collaborate with for the Jeanie in the Radiator EP Launch I'm planning to organise for my Major Project.  I have gotten in touch with Stephen Campbell, who was taking photos at our gig the other week and who is a friend of a friend, via facebook.  He has taken photos of lots of Manchester bands over the years including Oasis, and has offered to do a free shoot for us as he likes our sound.  I'll be meeting with him soon to suggest he do something with the photos we take at the EP launch to make it a bit of a multimedia experience with the hope of getting more attention from it and drawing a bigger audience.

Another thing that has transpired in the last few weeks is the possibility of getting a band manager on board.  We don't know much about her as of yet, but a woman called Sharon who is a friend of our lead singer's mum has offered to talk to us about it.  Apparently she has worked in the music promotions business for a long time and has been looking for an opportunity to manage a decent band.  I think it's right to hold reservations about managers from what I've heard from other bands about the potential pitfalls; however, we'll hold a meeting and see what she has to offer.