[ Friday 26-06-09 ]
Well, our UK tour was a mixed bag. It was a good experience to play 11 gigs in 13 days, just to prove it wouldn't physically kill us to do so many high energy shows back to back! We met some great people and played with some great bands, but on the down side a lot of the shows were disticntly under-attended. A lot of the venues hadn't promoted the nights very well (or at all), but everyone I spoke to said that turnouts have been consistently low for months anyway... my suspicions that live music at a grass roots level in England is dying a slow death were pretty much confirmed.
Is it to do with the recession? Perhaps it is partly, but more worryingly I have been aware for some time that a culture has emerged of people only heading out to gigs if it's a friend's band playing, or someone they've heard of on telly. When we go over to countries like Belgium and Italy we have always had a great time and played to relatively big crowds, full of people who have clearly come along just for the experience - you get a real sense of an underlying community spirit, fuelled by likeminded people who come out regularly just to enjoy the spectacle of music played live.
These days it's becoming easier and easier to get hold of music and 'see' concerts due to the internet - yet something essential, tangible and human is being lost. Rock music in particular is best experienced live and loud, raw and in-your-face, not sat on your sofa or at your computer desk! Perhaps it is part of a wider malaise - the digital revolution has brought so many benefits, particularly in terms of ease of global communication, but simultaneously it seems people are less inclined to go and experience things out in the 'real world'.
Every show we play we put in 100% effort, often ending up bleeding, bruised and exhausted... when you're giving your all, it gets disheartening when there aren't many people to experience it with you! That's what live music is about for me - a communal experience that depends on the crowd as much as the band, a mutually beneficial relationship in which everyone should end up feeling fulfilled... when it goes to plan, it's a feeling you simply don't get if you only ever listen to CDs or MP3s at home... it's great when there is an appreciative crowd there to experience it with you, less so when it's only 5 people.
Still, everyone who DID come along seemed to have a good time - we got a lot of really positive feedback after every gig - and it won't dilute our determination to keep making music and giving it our all at shows!
In other news our 'home venue', The Hub, is very sadly closing down due to the building being sold by the breqwery. However, the Nine Black Alps show is still going on but at a different location. We will now be playing with them at Centre Spot, Old Tiverton Road, Exeter - doors are still at 8pm and the other supports for the evening are Airship and Veil Cassini.
Tickets are available online still from www.ticketweb.co.uk or from Exeter Phoenix and Rooster Records.
Teddy
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[ Monday 01-06-09 ]
Next Monday we'll be kicking off a tour of the UK which will see us venture all over the country - the dates are below, we're especially looking forward to heading up to Newcastle as my family are from up there and haven't been there in years!
Here is the poster, which has all the dates. If you visit our website, you'll see a list of the dates with links to all the venues' websites in case you need directions etc.
Teddy
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[ Friday 22-05-09 ]
We're heading over to Exeter to be interviewed on PhonicFM tonight - we'll be discussing our new album and playing some tracks off it, as well as a few other bands we've chosen. Please tune in! I believe it is streamed on the station's main site, so anyone who isn't local can still listen in!
Teddy
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[ Wednesday 13-05-09 ]
Some exciting news - we have just been asked to play at The Hub, Exeter on 30th June with NINE BLACK ALPS. They're a great band and I'm sure it'll be a fantastic night! Book now if you're interested, as tickets are apparently selling fast and it's likely the show will be sold out!
Teddy
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[ Saturday 09-05-09 ]
We are now officially taking orders for our new album, POSTCARDS FROM THE DARK HIGHWAY - we will have it with us on the 12th May, so only a few days away now! Any orders placed over the next few days will be dispatched immediately on the 12th, and we'll throw in some stickers and badges to say thank you! The album costs 8.99GBP, with 2.00GBP postage to anywhere in the world - that is a flat postage cost, so if you also order t-shirts or anything else it will stay the same.
We are also having a sale on all our XL and XXL shirts - only 4.99GBP per shirt!
Check out the sale and buy the new album on our revamped shop page - CLICK HERE TO VISIT THE LCN SHOP
We look forward to your orders! We're very excited about the new album and hope you'll love it!
Teddy & Eileen
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[ Friday 08-05-09 ]
Went and saw a Bowen Therapy specialist today - it worked wonders on my back, I feel great now! I'm amazed, it seems to have really done the trick.
I've uploaded a bunch of new galleries to the photos section - including live shots from our tours of Belgium and France, as well as some promo shots for the new album.
Teddy
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[ Thursday 07-05-09 ]
I have finally completed a major overhaul of our website - hope you like the new look! On the downside, I seem to have seriously messed up my back - I'm in agony right now and can hardly move around, I feel like I'm a 90-year-old...
Still recovering from our great Belgium tour! We promise there will be some new photos and hopefully some videos online shortly, as well as some stuff from our tour in France!!
Teddy
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[ Tuesday 05-05-09 ]
Hello kitties!
We made back in one piece this afternoon! YAY! Although the M25 is a bit of beast and a rock cracked a bit of our van's windshield! :| Ted is completely zonked out on the couch, bless him. He did do a hell of a lot of driving over the past few days.
I just want to say thanks to everyone who we have met and played with during our week-long whirlwind tour of Belgium - you guys totally made it the best trip by far...I don't know how we'll be able to top that! I would start name dropping, but there are just so many people to list! (but you know who you are) x
Check out a kick-ass rock and roll band called Peter Pan SpeedRock - their on our top friends on Myspace, no excuses! I think they are probably the best band I have seen live in ages. Their music is so crunchy and dirty and LOUD, it's unreal. Never have I rocked so much. SERIOUS.
'Postcards' will officially be released on the 15th of May - only a week and half to go! I hope you lot can wait that long!!!
*sigh* Back to normality now, I suppose. Until mid-June, that is!
Off to do some laundry,
Eileen
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[ Monday 27-04-09 ]
It's been a while since we came to Belgium last, so we're really excited to be returning to one of our favourite countries for a short tour!
The dates are below - some good news, we just got added back on to the lineup at Rock Berchem where we will be playing just before Peter Pan Speedrock!
30/04/2009 @ jk ‘t Slot, Wortel - onstage 22:30
01/05/2009 @ Cafe Metro, Waarschoot - onstage 22:30
02/05/2009 @ Rock Berchem, Berchem - onstage 22:00
03/05/2009 @ Schransken, Evergem - onstage 18:00
04/05/2009 @ Café Video, Gent - onstage 21:30
Sadly, the new album won't be released until we return - however, we'll be offering a preorder system, please ask us at one of the gigs!
Teddy
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[ Tuesday 21-04-09 ]
We've uploaded Postcards From The Dark Highway on Last.FM for you to have a listen whilst we're waiting for the physical copies to arrive - please check out the album and let us know what you think! Check it out on the MUSIC section of the site.
We decided against putting the songs on our Myspace player for several reasons:
1) The album has a story that progresses through the course of the 14 tracks - the Myspace player only allows for 10 tracks.
2) Myspace lowers the bitrate for MP3s uploaded to only 96Kbps - Last.FM allows near-CD quality mp3s. We want people to hear the tracks in better quality!
3) It is very easy to download tracks from Myspace. We have no objection to people downloading our music per se, but as we haven't officially released the record yet we'd prefer if people didn't download and spread MP3s at this stage, particularly low quality Myspace ones!!
Teddy
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[ Monday 20-04-09 ]
I decided it was time to spruce up our MYSPACE PAGEa> in honour of the new album - hope you like it!
Our website will be down for renovation for a while, so Myspace will be our main way of keeping you up-to-date until it's back online.
Teddy
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[ Saturday 18-04-09 ]
Well, it's been a long time coming but we're proud to announce that our third studio album, Postcards From The Dark Highway, is ready to go to press! The album has 14 tracks. We decided to try as hard as possible to capture our live sound on record this time, we think it has a really great raw feel to it.
Thematically, it's a kind of concept album following the story of a guy and a girl who go on the run after she kills her husband and he dodges conscription into the army.
If you're interested in buying the album when it comes out, please send us an e-mail to postcards@lechatnoir.org.uk - we'll drop you a message as soon as we have the album in our hands!
In the next few days we'll add the album to Last.FM so you can hear it in its entirety, so keep checking our Myspace and website for more details!
Teddy
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[ Friday 17-04-09 ]
Hey howdy hi, kitties! Been a while since I've tried to write a blog, but I'll give it a go anyway!
France was AMAZING - we had loads of fun...very much at the expense of our equipment! *I have no more crash cymbals left and Ted's wireless pack has crapped out* Ted was very happy - Brittany is home to the crepe. You can imagine all we ate whilst we were out there. As the tour progressed, the gigs got pretty wild. In Vannes, the PA system got knocked over, someone got smashed through a window (they weren't hurt, thank god!), I managed to hit myself in the face with a drumstick...just to name a few things that happened!
The band we had our little tour with, Lyse, were also very cool. Check 'em out on our top friends and be prepared to have your face rocked off by some serious heavy & chunky riffage. We are planning an other tour with them in the autumn here in the UK, so keep your eyes peeled!
We're both a bit wired from lack of rest from the tour. We have a two week stint in Belgium and Germany coming up in the end of the month...and some shows still have to be added!! So we have some serious prepping to do! This means some cardio workout...guh.
But most importantly, the new album is on it's way to being complete. I seriously mean complete!! Just a few tweaks here and there and it's off to the pressing place! WHOO! It's been a journey recording the new album - we were a bit more methodical about how we did things. We re-arranged quite a few of the songs, added new ones at the last minute. But we are very proud of this one - I personally like it. The stuff we wrote would totally be something I'd listen to!
Right...enough from me then.
Eileen
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[ Thursday 25-03-09 ]
We are very excited to be playing a run of shows in Western France over the coming 2 weeks with Lyse (www.myspace.com/lyseonline), who very kindly invited us to play with them - we're really looking forward to our first ever French dates! We hope to meet some fans and make some new ones along the way!
In other, slightly frustrating, news - the new album is *nearly* finished! 7 of the 14 tracks are totally finished and ready to press, the others only need vocals recorded. We will crack on with this as soon as we return, so expect the album to be out in mid April!
Teddy
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[ Thursday 19-02-09 ]
It is now confirmed that we will be performing on 7th August at this year's Bulldog Bash, one of the biggest bike festivals in Europe! We're very excited! For more info, visit the festival WEBSITE.
Teddy
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[ Friday 06-02-09 ]
Well, we were meant to be leaving at 8AM this morning to head over to the Eurotunnel - but instead, we've woken up to about a foot of snow outside!
The area we live in is the worst hit in England - with even the major motorway, the M5, being closed in places.
We're meant to be playing in Belgium tomorrow evening, but it looks like it's going to be impossible. There's no way this snow will be gone by then, and gritting lorries don't come near where we are.
Here is the view from our window - and our car, which has all our equipment in it ready to leave!! Eileen's been brushing snow off the smaller trees around the house, as a few have snapped off under the weight of the snow on them!
Teddy
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We're a bit annoyed as we were really looking forward to playing in Belgium again and we really hate letting people down, especially at the last minute - but right now, there is literally nothing we can do to change the situation!
Teddy
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[ Monday 02-02-09 ]
In anticipation of the release of our 3rd album, Postcards From The Dark Highway, we have some new merchandise for sale - two new limited edition t-shirt designs and a new vinyl sticker, featuring exclusive artwork by Daniel Fruelund. Please visit the Le Chat Noir Webshop to purchase these items!
Teddy
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[ Monday 02-02-09 ]
The view from my studio window looks like a real picture postcard winter landscape fright now!
Snow makes me happy, I find it very calming. Some fans may have noticed snow features in several of our songs, it's something I've always had a special affection for.
Here are the lyrics to Gibbet Hill, a new song we've been playing live recently that will appear on our new album:
The snow is falling all around, everything is quiet and still
And the footprints lead the way up to Gibbet Hill
I can feel you here with me sitting by the hanging tree
How I long for just one kiss from your frozen lips
They bound your feet upon a horse so everyone could see
Kicked him out from under, left you swinging from the tree
Nobody can save you now, the bell has tolled
That night the Reaper came to take your soul
White roses scattered on the ground in the faded photograph
Where the red roses once lay on this lonely path
Frozen in your innocence, moonlight dancing on your face
How I long to be held now in your cold embrace
I look into your timeless eyes, they leave me feeling cold
I glance at my reflection, wonder how I got so old
Nobody can turn back time, the bell has tolled
That night the Reaper came to take your soul
On the lonely nights like this, I come up to Gibbet Hill
And I dream that you and I are together still
Won't you come and dance with me out upon the frozen lake?
Pirouette over the ice, pray for it to break
And as I sink into the depths I dream you're here with me
You come and hold me in your arms, we sink down peacefully
We can be together now, the bell has tolled
Tonight the Reaper's here to take my soul
Hope the weather is good wherever you are!
Teddy
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[ Saturday 24-01-09 ]
After a quiet January and a couple of canceled shows due to injury and illness, we're raring to get back in to some live mayhem!
First up is the 29th @ The Perfect 5th, Taunton. It's a brand new live music venue that sounds really cool, check it out online at www.theperfect5th.co.uk - the address is 61 High Street, Taunton, Taunton, Southwest TA1 3PG. Hope to see some Taunton folk there!
Next is our long-awaited return to the capital - the 30th at The Gutter Club in London. This night sounds pretty special, it's held at Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes in the basement of the Tavistock Hotel, Bedford Way - the postcode is WC1H 9EU.
Finally, the 31st sees us return once again to The Hub in Exeter for an Umbrella Factory night - should be a good one!
Teddy
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[ Monday 19-01-09 ]
This petition has been forwarded to us by a few people - we urge you to sign it too, for the good of live music. We once played at a venue with a noise limiter like this and Eileen hitting the drums hard was enough to send it over the limit :(
NOISE LIMITERS
It has been brought to our attention that new noise legislation is about to be introduced that is likely to virtually destroy live music in the UK.
The government wish to consider it a legal requirement in the new tax year to introduce laws insisting anyone applying or re-applying for an entertainment licence must have a noise control device fitted to the venue.
This will be the final nail in the coffin for pretty much ALL entertainment in the UK as the level at which these devices cut the power off is ridiculously low. In our experience any venue that has one in use cannot have any electric music as the power is constantly being cut mid-song - and even loud applause at the end of a song can cut it. Venues are suffering enough as it is without being forced to go to the expense of fitting one of these damned things. Noise limiters are a menace to live music, and we expect this is the bright idea of some unelected suit in Brussels that's never been to a gig in their life.
Teddy
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[ Thursday 15-01-09 ]
I'm currently doing some forestry work and today I managed to crush my hand against a stake with a hammer whilst trying to hammer it into the ground! My thumb is very painful - totally immobile and really swollen, I'm typing this one handed!
I'm really pissed off but I think we're going to have to pull out of tomorrow's gig in Plymouth as there's no way it's going to be better by then. We really hate to let 7th Circle Promotions down as we hardly ever back out of gigs, but unfortunately it's out of my hands now, so to speak... it's annoying, as I know a bunch of fans of ours in Plymouth were really up for the show!
I'm angry at myself for being so clumsy!
Teddy
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