So, did you all have a good Christmas? Get any good presents? If you're anything like me, you'll have eaten more than your own body weight in chocolate while also scratching your head as to why one of your dear relatives thought a pair of socks with your name on them would be an ideal present. Maybe though, you had more of a homely, family Christmas... sitting around the roaring log-fire with the people you love, engaged in a to-the-death Scrabble battle, or a race-against-the-clock to identify the perpetrator in the classic "whodunnit" game, Cluedo. However the festive period played out for you (and whichever member of your family turned out to be a murderer), I hope you had a great time! With Christmas out of the way and the last of the turkey leftovers having been eaten, we're now in the final death throes of 2008 and every writer and web-site is compiling lists about the highs and lows that have happened over the course of the year. Never one to buck a trend, I shall therefore use my final blog of the year for exactly that purpose - what are my own personal highs and lows of 2008 in the Keane-related world?

Well, from my point of view, 2008 was a pretty spectacular year for all things Keane. There's the obvious stuff, of course - all the activity in the first half of the year for the recording sessions in Paris, Berlin and The Barn, complete with random video updates, quirky photos and drunken blogs. Then of course, the completion of the sessions took the excitement up a notch - firstly, the band released Spiralling as a free download, giving the public at large their first taste of the newer, more colourful and more fun Keane. Judging by the speed with which the free downloads flew off the virtual shelves, it was a taste which tickled the musical tastebuds of a quite a large number of people - 500,000 downloads in a week isn't a bad haul! The album that ultimately followed it continues to be the most divisive release from the band - lots of people who didn't like their previous material sat up and took notice, while many fans hankered after what they believed was the loss of their favourite band - but for my money, Perfect Symmetry is a damn fine album. It's not flawless and it may not have scaled the sales peaks of its predecessors - but it is important because it is creatively free-and-easy, not afraid of messing with the formula and taking risks with lots of great melodies and sonic touches, even if they don't always come off. This hopefully bodes well for the future!

One particular high-point of the year though was the introduction of Mr. Jesse Quin Esq. to the Keane populous. Despite the fears of many that bringing someone else into the creative process would destroy the delicate band dynamic, most people now realise that quite the opposite effect resulted. Jesse's input on bass to both the record and the live stage has been nothing short of a revelation - rather than detracting from the dynamic, it has actually helped to take it to a completely new level. Whether or not JQ will be there for the long-term (and whether Keane would then officially become a four-piece) remains to be seen, but for now I'm just delighted with his involvement. He's also a delightful chap, with a wicked sense of humour and charm by the bucketload - probably the reason why he's been able to fit into the Keane dynamic so easily. From my own perspective, Jesse has also been excessively generous with his time to keep me updated with all things bass in Keane-land - I salute you sir! A friend has also brought it to my attention that I owe Jesse an apology... after railing against both his and Tim's new shiny silver trainers on the messageboard a little while ago, I have to admit that JQ's Nike's have grown on me dramatically over the past couple of weeks! I still can't see myself ever wearing any like that (I'm just too conservative, with a small c!), but I do have to admit that they have style - therefore, in yet another spectacular u-turn, I shall swallow what little pride I have remaining and offer JQ my sincere apologies: you were right all along sir and I bow to your far-superior fashion sense! Tim - I've still not come round to yours yet, so you'll just have to keep trying, son... ;)

Of course, it's not been 100% plain-sailing on the good ship Keane this year. One particularly large iceberg that punctured a huge hole in the band's creative hull was, of course, that appearance on France's Star Academy T.V show. This has already been debated until the cows came home, so there's probably not too much more that needs to be said. As soon as it was mentioned in the P.R. schedule, alarm bells started ringing - with the show basically appearing to be a French version of X-Factor, was this type of fame-culture show not one of the underlying themes of the new album and exactly the type of show that the band had been casting a critical eye over in interviews with a furrowed brow? Clearly the subtlety of this was lost on the French label who presumably offered the appearance to the band, but I think the guys and their organisation also need to take responsibility for not doing their research into the type of show it was. The slings and arrows of hypocrisy and PR-at-any-cost were understandably thrown at the band from the moment the show ended and I'd agree with most of it. It cheapened the whole message of the album, and single-handedly managed to remove a lot of the good will and momentum that had been built-up during the preceding months. Having said all that though, I do think the reaction from some quarters of the fanbase was a bit melodramatic and OTT - it was clearly a mistake and a disappointing one at that, but in the grand scheme of things it isn't actually important. My only hope is that they'll weigh up their P.R. appearances a bit more carefully going forward - I'm pretty sure that it's not an experience anyone concerned enjoyed. Let's hope there's nothing that cringeworthy on the schedule for 2009, lads!

Getting back to something more positive, the Perfect Symmetry live show finally sees Keane moving towards a more spontaneous and fun approach of playing live. There's still a heck of a lot of technology in use, but they've got it to be much less rigid and containing than it was previously. Having JQ on-stage clearly goes a long way to this, as he can provide the bass and extra synth/samples where needed, but they've also trimmed back on the arrangements of some songs to make it "more organic" (10p into the music cliche swear box there!). There is now very little in the way of playback, as well as there just being much more interesting things on-stage - Tom playing electric guitar, Richard's excellent rhythmic synth work at the beginning and end of You Haven't Told Me Anything and his cajon playing, Tim doubling up on two synths simultaneously, Jesse playing everything from bass to acoustic guitar to concert bass drum... it's just making the whole thing more exciting and keeping it fresh. I still secretly hope that one of these days, they'll really randomly switch things around - get Tim playing the guitar and Tom on the piano or something - but we'll just need to see how far they're prepared to experiment. It should certainly be interesting to see what they've got planned for the forthcoming arena shows - hopefully they'll be able to build a show that takes everything up one more notch. Bring it on, I say!

But on a more personal note, 2008 is noteworthy because of this very website and some of the experiences it has brought with it. After a year of procrastination from when the idea for the site was first suggested to me on the old messageboard (thanks Steve, you're ultimately to blame!) to when I actually got up off my backside and got something online, I'm delighted with the reaction that the site has received. I'd be lying if I said it isn't nice to hear people tell you that they appreciate what you're doing (we all like a little bit of an ego massage after all!), so I do really love to hear from you guys out there - even if I'm fairly useless at actually replying! The band and their crew have also been excessively kind to me over the past year, for which I am extremely grateful - from spending a few hours with Tim back in the summer to discuss the then-unfinished album, synthesizers and guitars, through to a guided tour of the instruments and technology that come together to make the new live show courtesy of road crew legends Scott and Thom, it's been quite a ride - thank-you chaps! Of all those to thank though, the greatest thanks must go to Beth - despite her immense workload, she has suffered my incessant queries and requests with good grace and generosity... it is no exaggeration to say that without her, none of it would have happened. I owe you big-time - you have my total respect and thanks!

Of course though, this site would be nothing if no-one actually visited it... so, my thanks are also due to all of you for continuing to support the site and read all my inane drivel - hopefully it has managed to be both interesting and entertaining! Thank-you also for your patience while I fight with the software used to run the site in order to get the long-awaited (by Chris Flynn!) Gear section up-and-running. Once the internet is properly enabled at Backline HQ, I'll work night and day (well, maybe not... but I'll work hard!) to get the listings of the band's gear online. There'll also be lots more interesting stuff that will hopefully persuade you to keep stopping by the site! With your help, together we'll make 2009 the year of Backline!

In the meantime, all that remains is for me to wish you all a happy and safe new year - whatever you're doing at the bells, spread the love to those around you... in these troubled times, we all need it. Peace!

(Oh yeah, the Cluedo - apparently, it was the Rev. Green in the hall with the dagger. And him, a man of the cloth as well...)

Even a couple of years back, the signs of impending old-age were ominous. After all, you know things have gotten bad when the number of candles required is practically too many to fit on the top of the birthday cake. The surface of the (admittedly delicious) chocolate cake was a blanket of fire and it nearly burnt my face off as I tried to blow them out. Such a safety hazard will be completely untenable going forward, so I suspect the next step will be to simply have one candle for every ten years of life: if ever there was an admission of becoming an old duffer, that's surely it. It doesn't seem so long ago that I was a young, fresh-faced geek starting at university - yet, it was actually rather scarily over 13 years ago. Similarly, myself and my drinking partner-in-crime Tony spend a large proportion of practically every visit to the pub reminiscing about classic tales of hilarity from school - but when the laughter subsides, it then dawns on us that the events in question actually took place more than half a lifetime ago. It is no wonder that we have both been accused of "clinging to the wreckage of our youth"...

Fortunately, some kind souls out there among you have attempted to ease the pain of the passing years by telling me that I look younger than I actually am. In fact, on two recent occasions there was great surprise expressed that I had already passed thirty - there is apparently a common-held belief that I am only approaching my mid-twenties, like my friends and Beyond The Iron Sea cohorts, Chris and Andrew. In a further kind-hearted attempt to massage my bruised self-esteem, I am also constantly being told that thirty-one isn't old and, being realistic about it, this is probably quite true. I'm still a significant number of years away from my OAP Bus Pass and winter fuel allowance, and I'm still younger than both Tim and Richard (though sadly still older than those young whippersnappers, Tom and Jesse), and few amongst us would say that they are old men. Though, judging by some of his lyrics and interviews, Tim shares some of my worries about getting old - we only have to look at a song like Atlantic or his tongue-in-cheek answers to Tom's What Do You Think Of? questions to see that we are kindred spirits with a shared fear of waking up one morning to find that we're 70, doddery and lacking in bladder control (OK, he's not actually mentioned the bladder control fear, but I'm reading between the lines).

But worry not, my friends: although the fear of ending up frail, withered and in need of incontinence pants is a lingering concern, on the plus side I have also discovered that with age comes wisdom. Well, maybe not wisdom in my case, but at least I'm a little more rounded and level than I used to be (though I have a long way to go before reaching the true Zen level of my fellow Scot and TMTTS, Colin Davies). My younger self would have felt the need to rail against anyone casting doubt on Keane's sincerity (take that, Alexis Petridis!), or would become embroiled in pointless arguments with people looking to stir up trouble on the message-board by trolling and flaming. But now (for the most part), I let it wash over me like water off a large, overweight ginger duck's back. A typical example of this is that I rarely ever allow myself to be fully dragged into the frequent debates that rear their ugly head every now and again, foretelling the death of Keane. Whereas a band like Coldplay have to rely on Chris Martin himself to make an annual proclamation about the band coming to an end, Keane can merely get on with the process of making music and playing gigs, leaving it up to their fans to provide their own scare stories to wile away the long winter nights. Off the top of my head, the following were just some of the events predicted to spell the end of Keane:

• The Under The Iron Sea era (the loss of the clean piano-driven sound)
• The Perfect Symmetry era (the loss of the distorted piano-driven sound)
• The use of guitars (the loss of the "band who don't use guitars" pigeonhole)
• Tom's smoking (the loss of the angelic falsetto vocals)
• Jesse Quin's involvement (the loss of the T-T-R dynamic)
• Jesse Quin's possible lack of future involvement (the loss of the new T-T-R-J dynamic)

Scary, huh? For a band that's apparently been on the verge of collapse with every release they put out and move they make (or don't make), they've managed to last quite well and seem to be happier than ever. But never fear, for I have now seen that the latest definitive indication of the band's imminent demise is concerning the sales figures (or lack, thereof) for the new album and its first single The Lovers Are Losing.

I have to say that I've never been one to care about the sales figures (even during the Hopes And Fears days when it seemed that literally everyone in the UK must have bought a copy or two, given how long it stayed in the charts) and to be honest, I still couldn't give two hoots. I've maintained all along that the most important thing should be that the band be true to themselves and follow their instincts when it comes to making music. Whilst it may be the case that the figures don't seem particularly great when stacked against Under The Iron Sea and (to a much greater extent) Hopes And Fears, I just can't see how this album can viewed as the band's swansong. After all, in the current climate of chart positioning, they seem to have done not too badly when stacked alongside some of their contemporaries - new releases from the likes of Kaiser Chiefs, Razorlight and Snow Patrol have also charted highly on release but dropped quickly compared to their previous releases. But I don't believe (and certainly hope) that Keane will be the type to think that they should throw in the towel because of one release that didn't scale huge sales heights, or that they'll go running back to the security blanket of rehashing a previous album next time round in an attempt to claw back sales.

Don't get me wrong - I'd love it if the album and single were to be shifting more units than Hopes And Fears and Under The Iron Sea combined, but ultimately it just isn't important to me. The fact that the band have delivered an album that I absolutely adore, combined with a much-improved live dynamic, is what matters. Of course, there is always a potentially serious side to poor sales, which is that in these fiscally-challenged times, record companies are feeling the pinch and may not want to invest in the band's touring or future recording to the same degree if sales haven't met expectations. Clearly, if that were to come to pass, it would be a bit of a blow to the band's creative aspirations - but again, it's all hypothesising and none of us can truly know what will happen on that front over the next year or two. My basic premise on the whole thing is let's just enjoy the music and gigs now, rather than worrying about what might or might not happen in the future - life is too short. And trust me, when you get to my age, you'll agree with me!

OK - now that I've put the world to rights (it's another perogative that you get once you're passed 30), I'll return to some minor birthday celebrations. I look forward to seeing what presents I'll be given this year - though if it's a pair of incontinence pants and a walking stick, I won't be amused! And to finish off this entry, thanks to Mary Ann for her kind words about my stab at A Bad Dream in the last entry - the Keane gig phone-call still hasn't come through yet (patience truly is a virtue), so I'll make it even sweeter for them with some live stylophone action:

I thank you!

I realise that this reads more like the beginning of an article in a science journal and you're probably now thinking "What does this have to do with Keane?", but bear with me on this. One of the most interesting aspects of the whole area of the subconscious mind and the sleeping-dreaming state is trying to figure out what the purpose of our dreams actually is. Are they completely superfluous, being nothing more than the random expulsions of our stressed-out minds? Or are they in fact something much more fundamental to our well-being, helping us to manage and cope with the multitude of chaos and drama thrown at us in our normal, everyday lives? Clearly, the latter viewpoint becomes slightly less watertight when you consider the sheer ludicrousness that our dreams can take. After all, very few of us (as the well-rounded, intelligent, sophisticated adults that we are) can have ever faced the situation where we might suddenly find ourselves back at school, only to then notice that we aren't wearing any trousers (or is it only me that has had that recurring dream?). Maybe it does serve a purpose though: after all, I can now safely say that I have never once ventured beyond the front door of my flat without checking that I have all the essentials:

• Wallet: check.
• Keys: check.
• Mobile Phone: check.
• Trousers: check.

Perhaps the dream was my mind's way of preparing me for that eventuality and making sure I was never going to fall foul of a public indecency offence? We may never know for sure, but perhaps a third option concerns another great unknown about the workings of our minds: namely, that wonderfully vague and speculative "sixth sense", commonly referred to as extrasensory perception (or ESP, in these buzzword-conscious times). Although I don't believe that it's ever been proven, there is certainly some degree of mileage in the investigation of the relationship between dreams and "deja-vu" - could our dreams be giving us a glimpse into a potential future? In the case of the forgotten trousers, I certainly hope not... but there was a truly momentous dream that I had the other evening that, if ESP were to play a part, would make for a truly epic event in my otherwise dull existence.

This is where Keane come in (thank-you for sticking with me this far!). It had been a relatively ordinary day, followed by the usual quiet evening of television, music and web-surfing. In preparation for another day of hard work at the coalface of building performance analysis software development (that's the rock'n'roll lifestyle, my friends), I retired to bed for an early night and quickly slipped into a sound sleep. The scene rapidly shifts to me standing at the side of stage in Hall 4 of the SECC in Glasgow, with Tom, Tim, Richard and Big JQ on-stage finishing a storming rendition of Perfect Symmetry. In a blur of lights, introductions and noise, I bound on-stage to take my seat at the trusty CP70 while Tim switches over to to the CP60 piano beside JQ. The click-track begins in my in-ear monitors and I gently start the intro notes to A Bad Dream and we're off. Tim plays the middle-eight string parts from the CP60, before playing the chords (leaving Tom free to concentrate on singing) while I batter hell out of the CP70 for the big distorted piano finale. With the song completed, there's only time for a quick handshake from Tom and a backslap from Tim before I'm off, leaving the band to kick into a triumphant Somewhere Only We Know.

I woke up with my mind buzzing from the dream - it was extremely vivid and realistic and I'm pleased to report that at no point during the "performance" did I glance downwards and discover that I had forgotten to put any jeans on (of course, this worryingly could still mean that I had forgotten, but merely hadn't noticed). The dream gave me such a delirious high, in fact, that I can only deduce that this was my mind's way of preparing me for an event that is now clearly destined to happen. After all, the band will be Glasgow-bound in a little over two months from now, so it seems only right that my subconscious would want to give me an early warning and sufficient practice time. As I write, I still haven't had the official word from the band to say that they'd love for me to take to the stage with them on their sole Scottish date of the forthcoming UK arena tour, but I'm sure that offer will be made soon enough - only a matter of biding my time.

Of course, dreaming that I can play the song successfully and convincingly is one thing: doing it for real is an altogether different and more challenging task! So, I decided that it would be prudent to sit down at my old CP70, rig up a distortion effect for the solo sections and give it a good crack of the whip, in order to see just how close or far removed the dream Mart was from the reality. I'd be lying if I said it went totally smoothly (listen out for a Les Dawson-esque clanger during the middle-eight when I forget what chord I'm changing to, then laugh as I consistently mess up the effects changes) but on the whole, it wasn't as bad as I'd feared. Given that the gig isn't until the end of January, that gives me plenty of time to get my act together. You can now judge for yourself exactly how steep (or gradual!) this particular mountain will be to climb, because I helpfully recorded it for your delectation (if you can't get it to play, try installing the latest Flash Player - oh, and don't put the volume up too loud on the distorted sections, or you may risk hearing loss!):

Apart from the mistakes, you could almost believe it was Tim himself! Well, not really... but it could've been a lot worse, I hope you'll agree. Like I say, once I've got the official nod, I'll practice it religiously every evening until I can practically play it in my sleep - in which case, the dream really will have come full-circle! Hell, I'll even have a go at singing the backing vocals with Tim, Richard and JQ... bring it on! After all, I've sung (badly) on-stage before - admittedly, that was only to about 100 folk in a tiny venue in Edinburgh, so singing to nearly 10,000 people while trying to play piano with one of the country's best-loved bands will require me to up my game by just a tad. But I'm ready and raring to go - I can almost taste the aftershow beers and pizza now!

Right, with the scene now set for what can only be a resounding triumph of a gig, I'm off to get back to the CP70 for more practice. In the meantime... Tom, Tim, Richard, Jesse: you've got my number, I'll be waiting on your call - you know it makes sense! This time next year, we could all be millionaires... ;-)

Regular readers of this blog will be aware that I've been a strong supporter of Keane's journey into new musical territories over the past few years. Even back on the eve of Under The Iron Sea, I was full of praise for the boldness of the band's experimentation with distorted pianos and altogether sonic darker landscapes. Likewise with the Perfect Symmetry sessions, where it became apparent that they were really pushing the boat out with bizarre instrumentation, crazed vocal approaches and even a new member in the shape of this blog's favourite average-height, multi-talented musical maestro, Jesse Quin. For me, it's all been a tremendously exciting ride and we've got an album and live show out of it that really takes things forward to a new level and keeps it fresh. While others lamented the lack of a return to Hopes And Fears styled piano anthems, I embraced all the quirky synths, chorus vocals and spiky guitars parts that take centre-stage in the new world order. It's all good - nay, it's all great.

It may therefore surprise you to find out that as we enter this new and exciting chapter in the band's existence, there is one aspect of the Keane we've come to know that even I am lamenting the loss of. It is not, as some people seem to believe, the loss of Tom's angelic vocals into what is being described as some sort of cod-rock impressionist cliche (I'd dispute that vehemently anyway!), nor is it the departure from the purity of the piano-driven sound the band originally became (in)famous for (again, I'm a firm believer of change or die when it comes to music). Given my geekish ways, you might even be imagining that it is the fact that the trusty old Yamaha CP70B piano now has to compete with lots of expensive synthesizers for Tim's attention, or even a lament that the band have moved away from the massive distorted piano effects they pioneered on Under The Iron Sea and that sent my desire for piano experimentation into overdrive... but on both of these cases, you would also be incorrect. After all, the more instruments the better, as far as I'm concerned... all the more to identify and get excited about, providing more content for this site (yes, yes - the Gear section of this site will appear sometime before the turn of the next millennium). In fact, I'm mourning the passing of something much more subtle: something much more at the heart of everything, something that had become like an old friend... something that almost defined the band from 2004 through to the present. I refer, of course, to the sad loss of Tim's Dunlop Green Flash trainers.

Some things naturally go together: fish and chips, tea and biscuits, politicians and scandals, The Moomins and Moominvalley... such was the association between Tim and his Green Flash. Even back when I first got into the band, the guys each had their identifiable footwear styles - Tom always elected for his tan-coloured, pointy dress shoes (I believe he even referred to them as his lucky shoes, salvaging them for as long as possible by covering up the holes in the soles with gaffa tape), Richard elected for the tried-and-trusted indie route of Converse All-Stars while our resident piano man went for his beloved Green Flash. Despite the odd foray into Converse, it was the Flash that would win out and become Tim's "on-duty" footwear of choice. Back in those halcyon days, I suspect that he only ever had a single pair at any one time and would wear them until they were basically falling apart before buying more. Some probably bought the dust quicker than others... for example, I presume that the pair he wore for the band's outstanding debut at Glastonbury in 2004 had to go straight into the bin afterwards, given they aren't exactly cut out for use in a mudbath!

As the band became bigger and moved into the dark-and-smart "white belt" era of stage gear, Tom and Richard moved onto slightly different shoe styles, but Tim stuck with the tried-and-tested Dunlops. However, wearing a pair of roughed-up Green Flash while playing some of the classiest and most reknowned venues in the world simply wouldn't do... so it seems that Tim would travel with multiple pairs of them, allowing the wear to be spread evenly and giving him an almost pristine pair for every gig. Various aspects of the band's image and persona changed for Under The Iron Sea but the Green Flash remained a constant: a security blanket to which we could all cling. In fact, given that he wore them at practically every gig and appearance the band made over the past few years, he's been the best advertisement for the brand ever. Lesser individuals like Johnny Borrell may have also been sporting Flash on occasion, but Tim made them become an integral part of the whole band image right across the globe.

But now, in the new era, it would seem that the Green Flash have been consigned to the history books - a sad day indeed! Interestingly, Tim was wearing them in various publicity shots from Berlin, but by the time the band had properly broke cover and started gigging, they were conspicuous by their absence. Tim may think nothing of ditching the shoes in favour of some newer, trendier numbers (though his silver shoes from the Later... performance a couple of weeks ago are a step too far!), but I don't think he realises quite how profound an effect this will have. Given the fact that the Keane organisation must have purchased literally dozens of pairs over the past few years, combined with the numerous sales to fans who also want to pretend to be their idol (let's draw a discreet veil of the exact number of pairs I've been through over the past four years), we can only presume that their will be a sizable drop in sales as a result of the move. Dunlop (or whoever it is that actually makes them under that brand nowadays) will no doubt announce a profits warning any day now, jobs will be lost and an iconic brand will be lost forever. In fact, it makes me wonder if Tim has truly considered the ramifications of abandoning the nation's favourite tennis shoe...

I actually quite like Tim's new trainers (excluding the aforementioned silver efforts), but they'll never surpass the mighty Flash. In terms of the other guys, it's been business as usual for Tom (immensely pointy, super-shiny black shoes), while Richard has been sporting some dark rainbow-styled trainers. Only ladies-favourite Jesse has been the wildcard in the pack, varying his footwear for practically each appearance in the short period that touring has been underway: he's been spotted in canvas plimsoles, stylish tan brogues and Converse All-stars, to name but a few. Perhaps JQ could be persuaded to adopt a pair of Green Flash and follow in Tim's (oversized) footsteps? Probably not... as great as Jesse is (and I hope everyone on the front row of future gigs will show him how much you care by purchasing one of these fetching t-shirts), it just wouldn't be the same. Alas, I fear that we may have reached the end of the line for the humble Dunlops within Camp Keane... it's a sad day, but we'll always have the memories!

Fear not though, loyal readers... Tim may have moved on from his Green Flash, but I am much more of a creature of habit. So you can rest assured that I will be wearing them (and buying more pairs as necessary) over the coming months, especially whenever I sit down at my CP70 or attend any Keane-related events - keep the faith! I trust you all to do the same - wear them with pride, remain steadfast and resolute in the face of accusations of being an obsessed fanboy or fangirl - your Green Flash need you, now more than ever!

RECORD CRISIS: One stock market trader rues the decision not to buy the deluxe edition of Perfect Symmetry.

Photo: The Digerati Life

Unless you've been living in a bubble over the past few months, you'll be aware that the world financial system is in a state of disarray - tumbling stock markets, banks on the brink of collapse, the descent into global recession, rising inflation, rising unemployment... everyday seems to bring a new apparent catastrophe. Indeed, the way the media picture is being painted, give it another few months and the house of cards will have collapsed entirely, western civilization as we know it will have ceased to exist and we'll all be back to living in mud-huts, scavenging the overgrown streets looking for vermin to feast upon. Now, I must confess that my knowledge of economics is lacking (non-existant is probably the most accurate phrase), but I find it all a bit hard to believe that a lot of it isn't just scaremongering by the media. There's no denying that we're clearly in the midst of a difficult situation, whereby the greed of the large multinational banks has come back to bite them and we are in some quite remarkable circumstances - but will it really affect society at large going forward to the ground-shifting degree that keeps being predicted? It all seems like a pudding that has been rather over-judiciously egged. However, I must hold my hand-up to the fact that my knowledge of economic theory is a little lacking (some might say non-existant), so the scaremongers might just turn out to be right. So, with society staring into the abyss and the descent into chaos already underway, I think we'd better make the most of today and enjoy some music and gigging. How fortunate then, that after months of waiting, we at last have a new Keane album and some live shows to enjoy before everything goes tits-up!

There's a review of the new album elsewhere on this very site, so head on over to there to read my full, no-holds-barred thoughts. But suffice to say, we're now entering the most fun period of Keane's existence so far - and what an apt time to be injecting some fun into the mix! Not only do we have an album that manages to mix Keane's traditional songwriting strengths with an altogether funkier musical backdrop, but the band have even rewarded a lucky few with some unique, intimate gigs to celebrate its release. If you've been keeping track of the latest news on the official site (and haven't wanted to tear your own eyes out in horror at the 90's animated page backgrounds), you'll know that the band decided that the best place to come to launch this new technicolour extravaganza of an album was, of course, Scotland. As you can imagine, there was no way I'd be missing out on seeing the band up-close on my home turf, so I took a midnight spin down to Glasgow's Buchanan Street branch of Zavvi on Sunday night for the acoustic in-store and album launch, followed up by a trek through to Edinburgh for Monday night for the first of the three club gigs at The Voodoo Rooms. Two nights with insufficient sleep, all in the name of Keane: it's a hard life, but someone's got to do it. I was prepared to take the hit, just so I could report back to you, dear readers - the things I do for you all!.

In a strange sense, Sunday night's in-store event was almost a pleasant trip down memory lane for me, as the first time I ever met the band and saw them play was at an instore at Fopp in Glasgow to celebrate the release of Somewhere Only We Know. Fast forward four-and-a-half years and there was still the same sense of excitement and trepidation about it all - the band did an all-too-short acoustic set before decamping downstairs to do a signing. All good - nice to say hello to them (though sadly no JQ at the signing - apparently he had elected to do the decent thing when in Glasgow and go out drinking) and Richard gave Keane Backline his seal of approval, in much the same way as they gave my god-awful cover of Everybody's Changing some kind words back in the day. After that short bit of mutual back-slapping, it was then back out into the cold night for me while the band had a trawl round the 3 for £20 offers in the store (see, the credit crunch is so bad, even rock stars are having to bargain hunt). All-in-all then, a perfect warm-up for the main event, which was the following evening's Edinburgh gig...

And wow... what a gig it was. I think that its safe to say that it was the smallest Keane gig I've been to since the my first at King Tut's and the atmosphere was heightened by the fact that I'd let loose my inner fanboy and bagged my first ever barrier spot at a Keane gig. Well, I say barrier spot... there wasn't actually a barrier, just the stage. I took up a spot between Jesse and Tom, whereby I could keep an eye on what The Mighty Quin was doing with his bass, pedals (again, literally inches away from me - it took all my strength to resist half-inching his pedalboard), synth and claves, while still getting the chance to observe Tom's guitar action up-close. What a difference it all made compared to a "normal" larger gig - the band were playing out of their skins right from the first notes of The Lovers Are Losing, through to the final moments of Bedshaped - it was truly rocking. I was particularly impressed by the vigour with which Tom attacks his guitar during tracks like The Lovers Are Losing and Again And Again - he really thrashes out the chords, giving it the same kind of passion as his singing. Richard and Tim both gave it their all (as always!), while Jesse looked like he'd always been a part of things and played a blinder. Top marks all round!

The most amusing aspect of the gig was that the lack of barrier and closeness to the the band made it almost a dangerous place to be - I had to lean back a few times to avoid being elbowed in the head by Tom as he used what little stage area was available to engage the crowd, while the less said about nearly getting his crotch in my face, the better! Early on in the set, Jesse's claves nearly caused injury when the shaking and vibration on-stage caused them to fall off the top of his Minimoog Voyager - being that close to a Keane stage really can be a health hazard! Any more mishaps and I'd have been expecting the gig to be shutdown by Health And Safety officers in high-visibility vests. Seriously though, it was a joy to behold - watching Tim's grimacing when he hit some duff notes again during Perfect Symmetry, Richard's laughter when he randomly hit one of his drums during the break in Somewhere Only We Know after quickly snapping some photos mid-song, Jesse returning my thumbs-up at the end of Is It Any Wonder? and then giving me his plectrum at the end of the gig - priceless stuff. I also nabbed Tom's discarded plectrum and had a quick chat with Thom, the wonder tech guy who has the unenviable task of making sure Tim's massive keyboard and piano set-up works as it should. Combine all that with the chance for a closer look at some of the effects units on the stage (good research for this site!) and it could well be the best Keane-related gigging experience yet!

But now it's all over, it's all back to the grim reality of impending rack and ruin waiting for us all. So, before we all end up out of work, broke and being evicted from our homes, be sure to make the most of any Keane gig you'll be attending soon and keep playing Perfect Symmetry until you wear out the CD or your iPod - because, with Armageddon approaching, such enjoyable and funky pleasures may be hard to come by in future!

As you may recall, a few weeks ago I bought myself a rather rough-around-the-edges Yamaha CP70 piano. Even though it had been lying gathering dust down at a studio in Yorkshire for a while (and had to endure a sit-com worthy attempt at moving to Renfrew, courtesy of McDonald and Quigley Transport), it actually sounded pretty good when I started playing it (in my usual ham-fisted manner). However, it was obvious that it would benefit from some tuning to get it sounding top-notch across the keyboard, as well as needing some attention for a dropped C# key in the middle. So, after a quick web perusal, I enlisted the services of my local, friendly piano tuner Jamie McLaren to give it what I'd thought would be a quick tinker.

Of course though, in the world of Backline, things never actually run that smoothly and this was no different. So, when Jamie arrived with his tuning fork, handle and bag of goodies in hand, what we'd both thought would be a 1 hour job ended up taking the best part of 3 hours, with my poor CP70's list of woes and ailments growing with each passing minute. The diagnosis was grim: the piano had spent a lot of its time sitting somewhere damp and hadn't been given the attentions of a tuner for some considerable time, many of its felt parts (of which, it turns out, pianos have many) had been providing ample sustenance for moths over the years resulting in many of them crumbling away to nothing, there was corrosion on some of the strings, its front panel fitting had been well-and-truly bodged, as well as just the general wear-and-tear on the hammer coverings and dampers that you'd expect from a vintage instrument. I could almost hear a shriek of terror echo from my bank account as each further problem became apparent.

Fortunately though, Jamie believed that once we'd got it tuned up a bit better and bodged the balance felt issue for the dropped key, it would be able to survive for a while without needing to address the bulk of those problems. Trusting the expert's judgement (he's tuned Sigur Ros' CP70 before when they've toured), I left him to get on with it and marvelled at his ability to tune perfectly by ear, pleased that my beloved piano was in good hands. He was also a very amiable chap, even being polite enough to say that the mug of coffee I'd made him was good, rather than spitting it all over the keyboard and pillioring me for my ineptitude with the Gold Blend. A few hours later, once everything was all fixed up enough to let him get on to his next job (by which time he was running quite late), he left me to reassemble the last couple of bits of the piano and have a play around with it. A quick stab at A Bad Dream indicated that he was as good as his word, with both the sticky key now working sufficiently and the tuning sounding pretty much spot-on across the board - a job well done.

Now, if I were the sensible type, I'd just have left it at that and sat happily playing the thing until it next needed tuned, a string broke or one of the felts gave up the ghost. But, this is me we're talking about... even as a boy, I always had an overpowering desire to take things apart and see what made them tick. Model trains, transistor radios, computers... over the years, they've all succumbed to my inquisitive desires. Being the type of guy that I am, this inexplicable need to ignore the old adage of "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" in favour of "if it ain't broke, give it your best shot" is probably not entirely surprising - indeed, I suspect many of the womenfolk reading this may also be nodding their head, recognising that their own husband or boyfriend suffers from the same affliction. In my case though, the difference is that my lack of manual dexterity and skill tends to mean that although I am an expert at taking things apart, putting them back together (and then ensuring that they still work) is a bit trickier. "No matter though," I said to myself... after all, I'd watched as Jamie managed to get down to the keys with relative ease, so I was feeling confident. In much the same way as I'd experienced prior to the journey to actually pick up the piano and move it, once again the voice of Jeremy Clarkson popped into my head: "How hard can it be?"...

By this point, you're probably expecting me to tell you that the piano is still lying in pieces on the floor, while I await Jamie's return to try to ressurect it from the Frankenstein job I performed on it. But, I'm pleased to report that for once, you would be wrong. I hesitate to say it, but the disassembly and reassembly almost went like clockwork, with barely a hitch along the way. Having ordered a set of new balance felts from my not-so-local piano spares company and with a copy of the Yamaha CP70/80 Service Manual to hand (the equivalent of those Haynes strip-down-and-rebuild car manuals that fascinated my 10-year old self), I dusted off the screwdriver set and set to work. At this point, it is probably worth acknowledging that the relative smoothness of the operation is more down the sheer brilliance of the piano's design rather than any sudden development of skill from myself. Yamaha's Japanese designers and engineers really did produce a marvel when they made these beasts, managing to pack what effectively amounts to a baby grand piano (complete with all the strings, hammers and proper action) into such a compact casing - and that's even before you consider that it can then split into two separate parts to allow it to be easily "transportable" (I am of course using the word "easily" in the loosest possible sense). An amazing piece of engineering... however, I was not prepared for what I uncovered when I'd actually taken advantage of this relative simplicity and had removed all the keys.

The first thing that left me taken aback was the mind-blowing amount of dust, fluff and grime that had gathered beneath the keys. I'd expected it to be a bit dusty - after all, its over twenty years old and probably hasn't been stripped down particularly often... plus, if you've ever looked at the top of the wardrobe in your bedroom, you'll no doubt have discovered that dust manages to gather remarkably quickly. However, considering the area under the keys is mostly enclosed unless you start to strip the whole thing down, the sheer volume of dirt that had accumulated was truly staggering. There's less debris left behind when a 20-storey tower block is demolished than had gathered under the keys... it was so bad that even my vacuum cleaner recoiled slightly when presented with it. Some significant time later, as the worst of the dirt had been sucked away, a small black scrap of paper emerged from underneath the layer of filth, along with a used match (perhaps the latter was left after a failed attempt to set fire to the instrument at the end of a gig, Hendrix-style). "Bit odd," I thought to myself... however, it got even stranger when I picked up the scrap and turned it over. It contained 3 words, scrawled in quite child-like handwriting: "Leed are sad". Yep, your guess is as good as mine...

It set my mind wondering... what did it mean? Who wrote it? How long had it been there? Why put it there? Is it a message from beyond the grave? It was clearly ot just a random event, given that all the keys would have had to be stripped from the instrument to get it there. After a bit of head-scratching as to its meaning, I was hoping that a Google search would throw up an answer - after all, the Internet is the ultimate repository of randomness - but even that drew a blank. It really is a conundrum that even Carol Vorderman would struggle to unravel. Perhaps it is a rather extravagant form of "message in a bottle", where a child somehow wanted to leave a message from the past and, not having a bottle or an ocean to hand, decided to use their parent's piano. Or perhaps not. I did buy the piano from near Leeds, so maybe it was nothing more than a misspelled childish diss to the city or its football team... but given the amount of fluff and dust it lay in, the message looks like it had been there for some period of time, and the guy I bought it from had only owned it for a year or two (it had been in Wales before that). It is the definition of the word "odd".

But then, it came to me... maybe it is part of a larger message. Maybe it comes from the original engineers of the CP70 and they put a separate part of the message into each one they built... only once all owners open up and strip down their pianos to uncover their section of the message, will we be able to piece it together and reveal the truth. Given that Keane have been slowly accumulating all of the world's supply of surviving CP70's over the past few years, I think Tim seems like the ideal candidate to start the check for other messages in his CP70s... after all, each one could be holding its own secret that is just waiting to be uncovered. What if it transpires that the message is of global importance? A warning of an impending apocalypse, or perhaps even greater - the answer to life, the universe and everything? What if 42 was just a ruse, and those humble geniuses at Yamaha actually had the spiritual insight that we lack and they were using the humble CP70 as the vehicle to spread the message? Undoubtedly, many of these vintage instruments will have perished over the years, so parts of the puzzle may already have been lost. For this reason, Mr. Rice-Oxley, it is vital that you personally strip down each of your CP70s immediately to find any hidden messages that lie within them and report your findings back to me... don't worry about the fact that you'll be needing one for the first live show next week - the potential future of the human race could be at stake (and besides, if I can manage to reassemble one successfully you'll have no worries). If we work together, we can crack this thing - it'll be like the real-life X-Files, as we fight to uncover the truth (though admittedly, neither of us will really be able to pull off a convincing impression of the foxy Gillian Anderson).

Or that might all be rubbish. Makes you think though, doesn't it...

CAN YOU TELL WHAT IT IS YET?: It's a CP70, Jim, but not as we know it... The stripped and cleaned CP70 awaits its new balance felts.

"Not a chance!", I hear the youngsters amongst you scoff. "I'll never turn out like them - I'll be open-minded, footloose and fancy-free forever." We've all been there and denounced the idea, brushing it aside with an "it won't happen to me" attitude. This is understandable - after all, no-one I know has every consciously decided that they want to ape their elders. The whole foundation of teenage rebellion is based on doing precisely the opposite of what your parents would want, or liking what they like. And even though they wouldn't admit it, even your parents would find it odd if this were to be different. Imagine how strange it would be for them if you were to proclaim one evening, "Aww dad, I've had enough of this Jay-Z rubbish... put some Genesis on and let's get some quality music going!". It would just be wrong. However, as the years go by, the slow morph from youthful hipster to boring old fart will begin to take hold - it'll be slow, so you probably won't even realise that its happening. One day though, you'll be listening to the radio and a song will come on - something that is popular with the youth of today and is riding high in the charts. And then it'll happen - you'll recoil in horror at the atrocity of the "music" you're hearing, before beating it down with a withering put-down... something along the lines of "What is this rubbish? Call that music? When I was younger, we had proper songs...". Only then, will you realise that you're already well-advanced towards being an old fogey with no hope of reversing the process.

As I approach the grand old age of 31, this incessant slide into middle-age means these types of reaction are becoming more and more common. Most of the time, I'll just accept my fate of living in the past (frequently harking back to the happy days of my own youth!) and get on with it, but sometimes a song will come along that really stokes the fire and sets me off in an rage. The latest incidence of this happened last week, while I was being driven to work*. A song came on the radio, which the DJ cheerfully announced was a request from the pupils at a secondary school somewhere in the Glasgow area... "and now, here's The Pussycat Dolls with When I Grow Up". It had the usual non-entity melody and annoying vocal parts that are the trademark of any commercially-aimed pop dross, but that wasn't what annoyed me. No... what really fuelled the grumpy old man within me was the lyrics.

Take these lines from what purported to be a chorus: "When I grow up, I wanna be famous, I wanna be a star, I wanna be in movies, When I grow up, I wanna see the world, Drive nice cars, I wanna have groupies, When I grow up, Be on TV, People know me, Be on magazines". God in heaven...

I mean, seriously - what kind of message are they trying to put across with this? Now, I know what some of you are thinking... "It's not aimed at the likes of you though, it's aimed at pre-pubescent girls" (although if its aimed at them, why do the PCG's dress as though they're going out for an evening's work in the local red light district?). I can understand that pop music is predominantly aimed at the young - indeed, its part of the nature of commercial pop... but if we accept that as being the case, surely the subject matter of these lyrics is actually even worse? Are they really encouraging young girls to think, "Well, I could work hard, go to University then get a job and contribute something worthwhile to society - but instead, I'll just try to become famous so that I can go to parties and appear in the newspapers."? I mean, am I missing some deep hidden irony in these lyrics? Of course, the PCG ladies didn't actually write it themselves, as is the way of things - but if they were prepared to record it and get it out there as a single, they must approve of the message to some degree... it's pathetic. And let's not even begin to delve into the notion of men in their thirties writing about what its like to be a young girl...

It's a classic example of piggybacking on the fact that society and the media (particularly here in the UK) seem obsessed by this whole notion of "celebrity" and of convincing people that in order to be successful and happy in life, they have to be famous and be seen at hip parties with the latest movie star or it-girl on their arm. Don't get me wrong - being famous is something that's always been desirable, but this type of rubbish seems to be suggesting fame for the sake of it is the be-all-and-end-all. Children have always want to be movie stars or pop stars, even back "when I were a lad"... but nobody simply said "when I grow up, I want to be famous", which seems to be the mantra of many of today's young people. Now, don't get me wrong - fame is not necessarily a bad thing (in fact, if someone is lucky enough to be in that position, they can be influential through their actions and opinions), but I've never liked the notion that people can become famous without actually having done anything worthwhile to earn that position. The true greats in their field (be they actors, musicians or artists) have always had to work their arses off to get where they ended up, even though they've had real talent - they've had to work at it, to build it up from nothing. Now, the society we've bred as a result of the whole Heat-X-Factor-OK-Big-Brother zeitgeist seems to promote the belief that fame is the important thing and that there's a quick fix way to get there without actually needing to do anything to earn or justify it - and that being famous is the root of all happiness. God, we're all doomed!

Once again, hearing such a degree of crass codswallop like that PCD song made me appreciate quite how pertinent the lyrics of Keane's new song Better Than This are. It really is refreshing to hear that a band is willing to try to tackle these types of issues that seem to have infected our society over the course of the 21st century. I'm not deluded enough to believe that it will change anything, of course... but I am glad that it's not just me that looks at the way things are today and the ideals that get put forward for people and thinks "Jeez, is this really the best we can do?".

It will be interesting to see how the celebrity culture we live in is dealt with in some of the other songs on the forthcoming album. I'm sure Tim has said that it was one of the two main threads that run through the songs (the other being the uncertain times we live in as a result of war), though I wouldn't be surprised if it is dealt with in a more oblique manner on other songs compared to the direct message of Better Than This. The band have always managed to do a good job of staying out of the trash mags and tabloids, save for the obvious exception of Tom's stint in rehab. Again, thinking back to that, its amazing how even a tragic personal situation like that is twisted into some more easy celebrity fodder - remember all that guff about the "rehab supergroup" with Tom, Pete Doherty and Justin Hawkins? Or the obligatory "Elton John helped me through my drugs hell" non-story that always gets trotted out whenever a young musician goes into rehab for drug addiction? It's all nonsense, and in a way we're all to blame - we buy this rubbish and fund it, we watch all the crap that comes on TV, giving the media free license just to keep doing more of the same. I'm sure the writers of When I Grow Up were well aware of this - they're tapping into the common mindset and they know it's an easy way to make a quick buck. They're exploiting the poor saps that readily buy into all that crap, but in that sense, who's more of the fool - the one that pedals it, or the one that believes and buys it? It's a really sad state of affairs!

It may just be another instance of getting old and looking at the past through rose-tinted spectacles, but I don't remember things seeming as grim when I was younger. Whether that is just because I was too young to properly appreciate the situation back then, I'm not sure... but wouldn't it be great if we could get back to appreciating the real values in life, rather than promoting all the superficial nonsense that seems to be the order of the day? Maybe that's unrealistic and things are too far-gone to be salvageable - a sad situation if ever there were one. We live in one of the wealthiest societies in the world, with so many opportunities - yet we seem to be disappearing into a vacuous, materialistic self-obsessed hole. We've lost touch with the real values of humanity and instead want to focus entirely on a fruitless quest for vanity and fame, when it's really just a dead-end street. Where did it all go wrong?

So, even if you believe that Better Than This is nothing more than Keane trying to be David Bowie, hopefully you'll agree that lyrically its at least got the sentiment we need to wake people up and make them think, even just a little bit. Take heart from the fact that they still believe in some positive values and still try to put across a worthwhile message with their songs. Quite a few dissenters in the ranks have also been critical of some of Tim's recent lyrics, but c'mon... weigh them up against most of what's getting passed off as meaningful pop and surely we can see the merit and value of Mr. R-O's prose?

Right, now I've got all that off my chest, I'm away to watch some telly. Did I ever tell you about how TV programmes were so much better when I was younger?

But what of the song? Epic - a slow building anthem, in the best traditions of classic Keane such as On A Day Like Today. Except with guitars as well as piano and synth in the mix - and all the better for it. That boy Chaplin has really been on fire - vocals on this are massive. I get an interesting spiritual feel from the lyrics - probably just me though... Anyway, this is another track that should help ease the doubts of those who've felt ill-at-ease with the more out-there tracks like Spiralling and Better Than This.

But yeah - if I was feeling generous, I'd say that these leaks are part of a calculated, clever ploy by Universal to increase interest in the forthcoming album. I'm not though, so I'll just say it's a cock-up again. What a song though... bravo!

BOOZE, WOMEN AND ATTITUDE: Jesse demonstrates his rock credentials, showing the traits that got him recruited by Keane.

Photo: Jesse Quin

"Jess, we were just talking about you... Yeah, I was just listing the most legendary people I've ever met".

In the dim and distant past, I remember reading a quote by Bono that "rhythm is the sex of music". Now, before you immediately brush this off as yet another nonsensical soundbite from the man people love to hate, I'd say he's got a point. If we think about all the classic funk and soul records, the basslines and their interplay with the drums are what give the songs that sensual feeling. Not wanting to downplay the importance of a solid, pounding drum part (all due respect to you, Mr. Hughes), but the sexual aspect of the rhythm section is primarily coming from the bass. Think about the common words we (or at least, I) use to describe bass parts: deep, throbbing, sliding. With descriptions like that, the bassline for a song like Let's Get It On should really come with an 18-certificate. And that's before we even consider the phallic nature of the bass guitar itself, which is far larger, exaggerated and low-slung than its smaller 6-string electric sibling... in this case, it would seem that size really does matter. The swagger and sway of a typical bass player is very different to that of a guitarist - think of Dougie Payne at any Travis gig and you'll know exactly what I'm on about. Bass players tend to be more self-assured, moving suggestively to emphasize their bass part, exuding charisma and sex appeal.

Contrary to what that first paragraph may make you think, I'm not having some mid-life crisis or questioning my own sexual preferences - I think Dougie is a top bloke, but his swaying doesn't excite me in that way (I did once chase him down Union Street in Glasgow, but again - my reasons were honorable, if not sane). There is method to my sexualization of the bass and, since this is a Keane website, naturally it relates to Keane. Plenty of the band's female hoardes are all too willing to get carried away by their hormones at the sight of Tom gyrating in his (excessively) tight jeans, Tim's passionate facial expressions while rocking out on the piano, or Richard hitting six shades of purple out of his drumkit. However, I don't think any of us have ever seriously described any of Keane's songs as sounding sexy. Tim has always been one for coming up with some seriously cool bass parts, but I would struggle to class them as sexy - probably not actually because of the parts themselves, but because the general feel of the songs hasn't really had the necessary groove.

But maybe, just maybe, we are on the verge of getting a little more sexiness into Keane's music. If we believe what we've been told, there is much more of a groove in many of the new songs, leading to Tim himself saying to me that he thought the songs were sexier. If this is true, we need a bass player who is capable of not only simply playing the parts, but playing and performing in such a way that they make the sensual feel of the songs leap out to the front row and slap everyone across the face. In short, we need a man's man - all I can say is, thank God we've got Jesse on-board.

To most of us, Big JQ was a bit of an enigma... the most observant of folks might have spotted him being credited as "Production Assistant" on previous tours, but he first came on the radar for the Warchild and Union Chapel gigs. When it first became apparent that he was going to be playing on the album (and the band were being very open about his involvement), I was amazed that some people treated it as though the end of the world was nigh. "Give him a chance," I implored - "trust the band's judgement". Thankfully, most people did come round (probably because Keane is still officially Tom, Tim and Richard) and the first fruits of Jesse's involvement have certainly been great. He deserves an amazing shout out for the bass on Better Than This in particular - truly outstanding work. Combine that with all his backing vocal work (The Tim, Richard and Jesse male voice choir), handclaps, guitar and "award-winning humour" (his own words!) and we have the recipe for greatness - the legendary Mr. Quin has come among us!

Fear not though, because Jesse is in fact very much a down-to-earth kind of guy. When Tim told me that he was a "lovely chap" and talked about what he'd brought to the sessions, the genuine affection that the band hold him in was plain to see. He is a proper mate, a co-conspirator in the re-invention of Keane - not just some session musician who will turn up, play the show, then take the paycheck and go. That's why I have no qualms about his involvement in the album and the touring... if anything, he's strengthening Keane rather than diminishing it. Plus, he's also been full of kind words for this website, so again, bonus brownie points earned there!

Getting back to the nub of the matter though - if the new "sexier" Keane sound is to be followed through live, JQ is going to have a large burden to shoulder. I trust him to rise to the challenge - he's already proven to be a consummate musician with any number of instruments, as well as a great songwriter and singer (go and check out his songs with The Mets on MySpace if you haven't already done so). I'd particularly recommend their track Always Catching Up - it's a piece of brilliance, building from a gentle acoustic introduction through to a crescendo worthy of the likes of Arcade Fire and Doves. Combine that with the fact that Jesse has a voice reminiscent of Guy Garvey from Elbow (congrats to them on the Mercury Music Prize win, by the way!) and you've got yourself one hell of a package. All systems rock, so to speak.

The only issue is that in the past he has put on record his feelings about doing gigs - he just doesn't like it. In which case, this proves how much he really must have enjoyed the whole Keane experience - signing up to months of touring over the world for an established band in front of large audiences is not something that would ever by decided on the spur of the moment, let alone if you don't actually feel entirely comfortable on-stage. Fair play to him... I suspect it'll take the lad a bit of time to get into it, so we shouldn't judge him too harshly during the early gigs. Having confirmed with the man himself that he will indeed be going on tour (PopJustice caused a scare by the fact he wasn't shown in any of the rehearsal photos), it only remains to say "Good Luck JQ!" (I know he'll be avidly reading this eloquent prose I've written about him). We'll all be rooting for you!

However, for the avoidance of any doubt regarding my own preferences, I'll leave it to the ladies to take special note of any moves or hip-swaying that Jesse does - I'll be concentrating on his massive instrument. Oh, behave...

So, when you weigh it all up, you can imagine that I have what we might term "flab definition" rather than muscle definition. Rather than bulging biceps and a rippling six-pack, any bicep muscle is generally only from lifting a beer to my lips, with the six-pack more likely to be of the Grolsch or Heineken variety. But don't think I'm taking it all lying down - I have got a small set of personal training hand-weights that I try to use on a regular basis, in a fruitless attempt to prevent myself turning into a total couch potato and to build up some tone. I know it's not much, but its a start... however, it was never going to provide me with the strength to undertake the task I faced on Friday.

In a nutshell, I've bought a Yamaha CP70B electric piano. Yes, that piano - the same as used by our favourite band Keane, as well countless other legendary rock gods, such as U2, Led Zeppelin and, er, Phil Collins. A piano that I have lusted over (in a purely platonic, geek way of course) for an excessive period of time and have spent an inordinate amount of time studying and admiring from afar. I even went as far as getting an A1 sized framed poster of one of Alex Lake's photos of it made (gear porn - its the equivalent of a teenage boy putting pictures of Ferraris and Lamborghinis on his wall). "One day," I always said, "I shall have my own." Unfortunately though, the quest to buy my own was always hamstrung by a number of factors - lack of space, lack of cash and lack of playing ability to justify it being the main ones. In the end though, I decided to throw caution (and sanity) to the wind and buy one regardless of the practicalities (I am a man, after all). So, the deed was done, cash was exchanged through the medium of plastic and all that remained was to pick up the piano and bring it back to Backline HQ for many happy evenings of experimentation with effects pedals and annoying the neighbours.

Before we could get to that point though, there was the rather large (and as it would turn out, extremely heavy) issue of actually getting the piano from its current location - a recording studio near Leeds, about 200 miles away. Fortunately, I managed to cajole my good friend Tony into assisting me in this effort, by driving down in his car, loading up the piano and driving back home again. We measured up his Renault Megane to confirm that the CP70 would actually be able to fit in the first place, then satisfied with our work we headed south on the four hour drive, under the direction of Jane, our Tom-Tom satellite navigator. A simple jaunt down, pick up the piano, load it into the car, drive back home, get it up the lift and into my flat, then head out for some celebratory alcoholic beveridges - as they often say on Top Gear, "how hard can it be?"

Well, bloody hard actually. The journey down was uneventful (with the exception of my Grumpy Old Man outrage at an ATM wanting to charge me 2 pounds for the privilege of getting my own money), but once we'd actually arrived at the recording studio, it became apparent that what we had undertaken was a task more suited to the type of guys who wouldn't even break sweat at pulling a truck with their bare hands, rather than overweight wasters like myself and Tony who've never had to do a day's manual labour in our lives. Now don't get me wrong - it wasn't that I'd been completely stupid and hadn't realised that the two body parts of the CP70 would actually be quite heavy (I'd even read through the user manual, which is quite unlike me!) - but I had underestimated quite how heavy and awkward to move it would be. Cue much shuffling, groaning and gnashing of teeth as we tried to negotiate each bit out of the building and squeeze it through the Megane's now-annoyingly-small boot opening (or tailgate, if you're not on British shores). After a degree of flailing around, we managed to get it all in and sat in the car, dripping with sweat and congratulated ourselves on a job well done.

Except, of course, that the job was anything but done. In fact, the worst was yet to come - after the return drive, we arrived at Backline HQ and then faced the Herculean task of actually getting into the flat. I live on the third floor of the building, but at least there is a lift (if there hadn't been, I think we'd have admitted defeat and just set it up in the ground floor hallway). Not that it helped - it must have taken us at least 5 minutes to get both sections out of the car in the first place, then another 5 to get it past the main door (which helpfully can't be wedged open), then two trips trying to negotiate the lift. It would seem that OTIS (the company who built and maintain the lifts) believed that there would never been any need for the doors of the lift to stay open for longer than 10 seconds - not particularly helpful when you've got two struggling incompetents trying to maneuvre an extremely heavy piano into it. What then emerged was a cacophony of chaos - me trying to keep the doors from closing whilst we got the piano in, the lift made an ominous whining alarm noise and urged us to "remove the obstruction from the doors", whilst we groaned and swore loudly at it for making what was already a difficult task even harder (the sheer variety of profanities that can come from one's lips when under this type of pressure is truly staggering). This was then repeated again when we had to get off at my floor and actually had to get it back out of the lift. "Hell's Bloody Bells", as Tony said.

The task ended up so farcical that by the time we'd actually got it into my flat, we were both too knackered, shaky and in pain to actually even contemplate assembling it. So, it sat in the room forlornly until yesterday evening (by which time our aching backs and limbs had sufficiently recovered) when it was finally assembled into the magnificent beast we know and love. However, unlike most of Tim's inumerable number of CP70's, this one is clearly very battle-scarred and looks like it hasn't have been a stranger to the rigours of touring. Scratches, tears in the tolex, rusting fixtures a cigarette burn on one key and a crack on another, plus a slightly worrying bulge from the metal front of the harp section... yep, the old girl looks to have had a rough life (which will have prepared it well for the chaos of Messrs. McDonald and Quigley piano movers) but mechanically it all seems to be sound. It would benefit from some TLC at the hands of a piano tuner, but in that sense it actually reminds me of the old days when Keane had only one battered old CP70 that permanently seemed to be a little out-of-tune - it all adds to the charm! For all its flaws (and cosmetically, they are numerous!), it was still worth it in the end... to see it sitting there after all this time, getting to know its various sibling instruments would bring a tear to a glass eye.

It does amaze me though that those three boys used to move this beast around on their own for gigs at The Water Rats and the like - despite not looking like muscle-bound Sussex adonis (steady on, ladies), they clearly are made of stronger stuff than me! But, having done it all now and with the piano taking pride of place in the "music room", I can safely say that I now have an even greater amount of respect for Keane's roadies and crew who have to shift these behemoths around on a daily basis when touring is happening. And not even just one necessarily either - I think they take at least one spare harp section to each gig, in the event of a string breaking. The sheer weight of all Keane's gear must be truly staggering and I doff my cap to these unsung heroes who's dedication, commitment and earth-moving strength make sure that a Keane gig can happen at all. These are the real men, ladies - forget about what actually happens on-stage, give a shout out for the crew, who are the true supermen of the Keane set-up!

Oh, and if you ever decide you want a piano moved, please - don't call us!

THE NEW ARRIVAL: The Backline CP70B gets familiar with its new surroundings after the trauma of the journey to Scotland.

NOT AMUSED: Tom Chaplin on being told his backing vocals sound like a small battery-powered magnet.

Photo: Shamil Tanna

In my previous update, I confidently proclaimed the use of an ebow in the bridges of The Lovers Are Losing. Queue much confusion from my readers (I almost typed "my fanbase", but just managed to keep my ego in check!) - those familiar with the ebow were struggling to know where I was hearing it, while those who had no idea what an ebow is were struggling to know what I was actually on about in the first place. Well, basically the ebow is a little handheld device that you can use with a guitar (electric or acoustic, but its only particularly useful with an electric guitar) - it consists of an electro-magnet, a 9 volt battery and very little else and it causes a string on the guitar to vibrate when its held over it. Its name is short for Electronic Bow and it enables the sound of the guitar string to sustain indefinitely, which opens up all kinds of sonic possibilities - think of the droning lead sounds of U2's With Or Without You** or R.E.M's E-Bow The Letter (the Remington effect - they liked it so much they named the song after it). Anyway, its a very distinctive sound that's quite different to just plucking the string with a plectrum - you get a soft attack and smooth, virtually infinite sustain. When listening to The Lovers Are Losing, I was convinced that there's an ebow'd guitar sound in the bridges - roughly in the areas just before the choruses (if you listened to the Lamacq 6music playback, its in the right channel and is a three note ascending pattern). So confident was I, in fact, that I put it in writing: "And until I'm proved wrong, I'm going to maintain that there's ebow on there in the bridges".

However, a Mr. Tim Rice-Oxley from East Sussex has been in touch to say that there is in fact no ebow there at all - the sound to which I was referring (still probably a complete mystery to most of you!) is in fact a Tom Chaplin "oooooh" backing vocal. How embarrassing - the only saving grace for me is that Tim does acknowledge that Tom's BV part does sound a bit like an ebow. Of course, I knew that it was Tom all along and was merely congratulating him on managing to do such a convincing impression of the ebow... ahem. Seriously, no excuses though guv'nor, you've got me banged to rights - I was wrong in my proclamation of the ebow and I will send myself to bed without milk and cookies as punishment for my geek sense letting me down. Apologies to you Mr Chaplin, if you're reading... :)

Moving swiftly on, Tim also revealed that the Juno-6 features heavily through the track, providing filter sweeps and "pings" (his words, not mine!). Best of all though, he also says that the main "riff" sound is not from any fancy, expensive or rare vintage analog synthesizer but is in fact from that much maligned "instrument", a stylophone! Apparently, it was run through the Roland Chorus Echo box and then through a guitar amp - things don't get much more experimental than that! Who'd have thought that the stylophone would be one of the lead instruments on Keane's comeback single? I've got a Juno and a stylophone myself at Backline HQ, so I imagine I'll be experimenting some more if I can find some spare time!

To pick up on something else from the last update - the more I've listened to Better Than This, the more unfair it actually seems for some people to immediately write it off as nothing more than an Ashes To Ashes clone. Whilst I don't think there's much argument about the similarity in the sound of the chorused riff, the rest of the song is very different to the Bowie track - his influence is there, but when you listen to the track, its still definitely got that "Keane" touch and the whole mood of the music is very different. I suspect people have put the barriers up to it and don't really want to give it a fair hearing, which is a shame - its actually a really fun, catchy song. I wouldn't be surprised if people can get much more into it when its done live. I also forgot to give mention to the handclaps through it - can't help but smile at the thought of the four of them huddled around a mic when recording them!

Finally, thanks to all of you have taken the time to get in touch and let me know what you think of the site - I appreciate it! I do read all your comments, so don't think that I'm being rude if I don't respond. Its just laziness rather than ignorance... :) However, I'll keep growing the site over the next few months (yes, the gear listing section will appear soon!), so keep stopping by! I've already had a couple of suggestions about things to possibly include on the site (thanks for those, I'll see what I can do!), but if you've got a great idea for something geeky related to Keane, let me know!

In the meantime, here's my latest confident-proclamation-that-will-likely-be-completely-wrong - the riff in Better Than This is done with a Rhodes-style electric piano sound, rather an acoustic piano (as in Ashes To Ashes). Discuss. ;)

** Although to confuse things further, With Or Without You wasn't actually done with an ebow, but with a custom system built into a guitar but using a similar basic principle.]]> tag:keanebackline.info,2008:/site/blog//2.58 2008-08-25T21:50:00Z 2008-08-27T17:37:22Z

Photo: Shamil Tanna

Look at the photo. It tells you everything you need to know about Keane's new album... makeup, outrageous clothes, colour clashes - yes folks, these men were most definitely alive in the 80's and have been re-born as the musical love-children of an illicit threesome liaison between David Bowie, Steve Strange and Duran Duran! OK, I jest to some degree... however, the photo does tell you one thing that the new album won't be - its not Under The Iron Sea Mk II or Hopes And Fears Mk II. It's what they've been saying all along during the recording... in fact, it's what they've always said they want to do. So, as I sit here with an altogether different Keane playing through my headphones, I have to ask the question - why are so many people surprised and disappointed that it sounds different?

Don't get me wrong - I'm not trying to have a go at anyone for not liking the new material. After all, music (like all art) is subjective... there's no right or wrong answer, no golden rule that says something is great or is rotten to the core. Trying to argue that a particular song is great and completely disregard everyone else's opinion is like re-arranging the deckchairs on the Titanic... pointless. So, before anyone shouts, I'm not trying to stifle opinion or tell people what to like... what I'm interested in/baffled by, is why people seem to be mistaking their own dislike of something as a complete disaster for everyone and thinking that by actually trying to do something different, they've sold out and betrayed themselves/their fans/their mothers/piano manufacturers/the world. Its something that genuinely leaves me scratching my head, so what better place to yatter on about it (and give my own thoughts on the bands latest tracks) than here!

We've already covered Spiralling and it came as no surprise that some people found it a bit difficult to swallow, at least initially. So let's look at the next batch of new tracks that have had a public airing over the past couple of days - namely upcoming single The Lovers Are Losing, plus Better Than This and Love Is The End. I've been listening to these tracks quite a bit now and my own opinions have been cooking away nicely. Will these reassure people that want Keane-as-we-know-them, or will it be the nail-in-the-coffin? Probably somewhere in-between...

Let It Slide + Thin Air = The Lovers Are Losing?

Let's look at The Lovers Are Losing first. If you bear in mind Tim's comment to me that the songs on the album ranged from quite Keane-esque to completely different to anything they've done previously, I'd say it's a safe bet that this one of Keane-esque ones. Melodically, this definitely has shades of UTIS era tracks, although it ploughs a synth furrow rather than going for distorted or effected piano. Its got a feel reminiscent of Thin Air and a sonic approach reminiscent of Let It Slide, though I'd say its probably stronger than either - which you'd hope, considering they were only B-sides! It seems to be a divisive one lyrically - some people seem to feel it's a bit sub-standard (putting it politely), though I don't actually agree with that at all. I've not yet got into fully dissecting the meaning of it, but I think its got some great imagery in it. The wall-of-sound approach is also a bit much for some people, who fear that the production is in danger of drowning out Tom's vocals... though I'll need to wait for a proper recording to make a proper judgement on whether the line has been crossed. And until I'm proved wrong, I'm going to maintain that there's ebow on there in the bridges... the ebow is very underrated as a guitar accessory, so I'm pleased as punch.

The disappointment on this for me is probably the fact that its came after Spiralling, actually. Its a strong song with a good melody that will get under your skin, but its not got the punch or immediacy of it's predecessor. The question therefore is whether its actually strong enough to be the first single... time will tell. Of course, given the fact that the single is coming out the week after the album (your guess is as good as mine, really!), maybe they're not focusing on it so much. Food for thought!

Ashes To Ashes, Keane Go Funky...

But from something at the Keane-esque end of the song scale, let's jump on the night train to somewhere completely different - Better Than This is Keane as you've never heard them before. First off, if you don't like to hear a generous sprinkling of Bowie influence, be prepared to be baffled/annoyed/saddened/all of the above. Kicking off in a mirror of Ashes To Ashes and its heavily chorused piano riff, this is even more different to what you'd expect Keane to do than Spiralling was, though in a different way. The vocal melody in the verses is wacky and there's lots of quirky little synth and guitar parts adding to the jaunty feel. Once the choruses come in though, the song comes alive - great backing vocals and a truly excellent piece of bass playing by Big JQ. This could be a brilliant one live... I've read a few comments were people are slating it, but give it a chance. Lyrics have a nice message behind them (reflecting on the obsession that society seems to have with the cult of celebrity and fame) and although the music is quirky, once you get into it, its actually quite a cool track! Not my favourite of the newbies, but a good one nonetheless...

Get Your Lighters Out

To finish off then, we're left with Love Is The End. The album closer has always been a key track for me when it comes to the atmosphere of a record and I'm pleased to report that the lads have come out with a slice of gold in this one. It smoulders away gently in a waltzing melody with sparce piano and electronic drums with a classic emotive vocal from Tom, before being joined by mournful violin and deep throbbing bass. It then gradually builds in emotional intensity, with musical saw and strings to elevate Tom's singing... once it hits the middle-eight then it really takes off, with the saw and strings combining to give a soaring, almost orchestral sound. This song is epic - no other word for it. I'd even go as far as saying this ranks up there with the best tracks Keane have done... in common with songs like She Has No Time and Atlantic, it has a melody that is almost heartbreakingly beautiful. The interplay between the different elements in the arrangement is sublime - wonderfully understated piano, swirling strings and the eerily beautiful sound of the musical saw. For me, this song really is a triumph and I'd defy anyone who thinks the new album will be a failure to dismiss this one. Its probably just me, but there's shades of other great songs in there such as Life Is For Living by Coldplay, Eve, The Apple Of My Eye by Bell X1 and even the wistful melancholy of a-ha during their most recent years. Expect to see couples slow-dancing to this one at gigs, folks... this is up there with the best of them for those slow, emotional moments. Amazing.

So, we pick up back were I started - given that we've heard a mix of styles already (and there's still seven more album tracks to go!), it still amazes me that some people seem to believe that Keane aren't being true to themselves and that they actually want the band play it safe and to come out with the same type of stuff that they've already done. In some ways, I can understand it - most people tend to have a natural fear of change, they don't like being taken out of the comfort zone. I can appreciate a reticence to the new directions in that sense - what I can't understand is the notion of it not being Keane... the "what happened to the band I loved?" syndrome. They moved on, they wanted to try new things... they've made a record they are genuinely enthused about, one which they've all had a very active part in shaping - one that let them actually enjoy being a band again and reinvigorated their love for each other and what they do.

In that sense, this is more of a Keane album than either of its predecessors. We should celebrate the difference, rather than bemoan the loss of a particular sound. I've not even heard the full album yet, but I titled my Tim interview as Expect The Unexpected for a reason - this was going to be a very different beast. Instrumentally, sonically, melodically - out with the old, in with the new. People need to try to approach this new album with a clear head, free of expectations on sounds or subject matter - leave your preconceptions and expectations at the door. Only then will you be able to have a chance to truly appreciate this new direction, rather than trying to compare it solely on how close or distant it is to their previous work.

Give it a chance - you might find the songs will reward you for it!

]]>

But don't think I mean that in a bad way... quite the opposite in fact! Since getting hold of the track early this afternoon, I must've listened to it repeatedly about 25 times (hey, I never said I wasn't obsessed!) but I can honestly say it wasn't because I needed it to grow on me over repeated listening. Right from the off, it had me hooked... a great guitar riff through it, with a lovely piano counter-riff in the verses... plus the "Woooo!" multi-tracked vocals. For me, this is a bold new direction to push in, but a very good one... I'm waiting with interest to see what the general feeling will be on it. Its going to be divisive for sure - probably even more so than Under The Iron Sea was for some people. Interesting times ahead!

The spectre of the 80's looms large in the track (and I suspect, the album as a whole), but fortunately they have managed to pull it off without it just becoming a piece of throwaway nonsense. There's a lot of Bowie and Talking Heads influence there, but there's still that special something that is distinctively Keane. Tom's vocals are an obvious factor (I particularly enjoyed the speaking section, even if its not a rant as I would think of it!) and he gives a good performance on this song. Some excellent drumming and percussion work from Richard there too. I've waffled on about it a little on the forthcoming episode of Beyond The Iron Sea, but I'm wondering whether its Tim that is playing the lead guitar riff... guess we'll just need to wait to find out!

I was pleased to hear that when chopped into small bits and EQ'd, the old VCS3 ear-bleeder synth can actually produce the goods (It does the little screechy bits at the start of the verses after the piano riff starts, as well as during the speaking section)! Why not re-acquaint yourself with that wondrous moment from Berlin, when they were trying to tame it into producing something vaguely musical over the song:

Phew - at least something good came from that piece of torture!

The final thing to say about it though is that, to my ears, it really has a sense of fun, of not taking itself too seriously. It manages that old trick of marrying serious lyrics to a cheesy, bouncy music and it works brilliantly (for me, at least!). It made me realise that a lot of what Tim had said to me during our lengthy chat a few weeks back is definitely the case - you can really hear the fun and enjoyment of actually making the song coming through, its not uptight and angst-ridden... its free and easy and all the better for it!

If the rest of the album can impart a similar level of fun and feeling, then I think we're in for a real treat. Basically, as soon as the track starts and that big riff kicks in, I can't help but smile - and that can only be a good thing!

Of course, those observant people among you (and I've discovered there's quite a lot of you being very observant!) will have realised that this launch didn't quite go as planned, after the exclusive Backline interview with Tim managed to find its way onto the official messageboard. Not quite the way I'd planned to get things out there, but hey... I'm glad that people seemed to enjoy the interview and that my work on it was appreciated. Hopefully, you'll all now repeat that with glowing adoration of the Backline site itself, now its up and running... if you've not already done so, please sign up to the mailing list so that I can keep you updated with the latest site news. You can also subscribe to the News section using RSS, so you'll be able to see all the latest updates at a glance and you can even subscribe to this blog, if you're my biggest fan and enjoy reading my waffle!

This site is clearly going to be an evolving entity, so you can expect me to keep updating it as the campaign for Album 3 gets into full-swing... the gear section will be launching soon (once I've sorted out the teething problems with it!) and it will obviously expand over time to cover new and weird instruments that the band are using, but I'll also add more interesting articles (and hopefully interviews) as we go forward. If you've got any suggestions of things you'd like me to try to cover on the site, or if you have something that you'd personally like to contribute, drop me a message and let me know!

So, in the meantime, thanks for stopping by the site - have a nice wander around it, tell me what you like about it (and what you don't!) and until next time... Keep it locked! (Blatant KWN rip-off completely intended!)