I'm pleased to announce the first Fan Opinion article is now online! This will be an irregular series on the site, where I give a platform to someone who has something worthwhile to say about anything vaguely related to the more technical or musical side of things (so, thoughts on whether Richard should shave his beard off, or whether Tom's new spangly gold jacket is a fashion faux-pas, are off-limits hehe!). It can be difficult for people to make their opinions heard on places like the official messageboard, so I thought I'd do my bit and provide a virtual soapbox for anything I think is worthwhile being heard.

To kick things off, long-time fan Krystina Nellis gives her view on a subject close to her heart - music videos. Have Keane become guilty of allowing their videos to become nothing more than glossy wallpaper and lost sight of how to use them to further the cause of the song, album and the band? Click here to read Krystina's thoughts on this interesting subject!

If you think you've got something that you want to get off your chest relating to Keane, drop me an e-mail, giving me a brief idea of what you'd like to write about. If I think it's suitable and interesting, you could be up on the site in a future column!

You may already be aware, but a couple of months ago we announced the launch of the Keane Backline Shop with our own range of exclusive merchandise. Well, one range of merch in particular seems to be proving a hit (particularly with the ladies... hmmm), and that is our I HEART JQ range. But there's surely only one thing better than a JQ t-shirt - and that's a JQ t-shirt signed by the man himself, Tom, Tim and Richard!

Backline caught up with the lads after their recent Christmas gig in Glasgow and made sure they weren't allowed to leave the building before signing one of these iconic shirts - and rather than just keep it for ourselves, we're giving you the chance to win it by entering our exclusive competition. The question is a bit tricky, but you'll be pleased to know that the answer is to be found somewhere on this very site... you just have to find it!

UPDATE: the competition is now closed and the winners have been notified - thanks to everyone who entered!

Just a quick message to you all to wish you all a very happy Christmas - I hope Santa is good to you all (though given their size and weight, I doubt he'll be dishing out CP70's to many of you - poor Rudolph wouldn't be able to cope with pulling the sleigh, and lets not even get into how bulging Santa's sack would be...).

Apologies for the lack of updates or blogs - an ever-changing domestic situation means that Backline HQ has had to move and now there's no internet access until January! Fear not though, for I shall be updating via internet cafes and wi-fi hot-spots whenever I can - keep your eyes open for an in-depth look at the gear Keane are using for their Perfect Symmetry tours as well as a new blog entry (bet you can't wait!). I'll also be introducing a new Opinion section of the site, where I let a guest correspondent give their take on something in the world of Keane. More on that nearer the time...

And, best of all, look out for a competition launching on the site over the next few days or so where you'll be able to get the chance of winning an exclusive piece of Keane Backline merchandise signed by the band! Don't miss it!

With the first full live show of the new Keane album campaign getting underway tonight at The Forum in London (I'm currently in the airport now waiting to fly down), the time has come to see how different the new live set-up will be for the tours. In order to help me get a handle on what gear the band are now using (and for what!), I'll be on the lookout for what each of the guys is using on the different songs. But, I can't do it alone...

This is where you come in! If you're going along to any of the upcoming shows and are planning on taking a camera, I'm after your photos! If you can get close to the front and get some good, clear shots of the band and their new instruments and equipment, I'd love to host your photos here on the site. You'll still own them and I'll make sure you're fully credited, plus the photo I think is the best of the bunch will even earn its photographer an ultra-exclusive Keane Backline t-shirt! Sound good? Then get to a gig and get snapping!

If you do take some photos you'd like to send in, e-mail me links to them - the higher resolution you can get, the hetter! Thanks in advance, and enjoy the gigs!

We are pleased to announce the launch of a new section on Keane Backline - Q&A! This section of the site is your chance to ask all those techy/geeky Keane-related questions you've been wondering about. Simply send in your question and it could be published on the site, with an answer from Mart!

Go and check it out now - there's already a few questions up there to kick things off.

If you visited Keanemusic.com yesterday, you may well have noticed that they gave a rather large plug to this humble website and our exclusive interview with Tim. It was a very pleasant (and welcome!) surprise - and, judging by the server statistics, it brought a lot of traffic into the site and new subscribers to the mailing list. Thank God I'd fixed up the list set-up just hours before!

You can still look at the Backline piece in the Keanemusic.com Archive - thanks again guys!

Due to various technical problems with the previous mailing list set-up, we're in the process of changing the way the list works (i.e. actually making it work rather than not work). Unfortunately, this has meant that anyone who subscribed over the past couple of weeks will need to resubscribe again - please accept my sincere apologies for this! You'll also have to confirm your subscription via an e-mail that will be sent to you.

If you're unsure whether or not you need to resubscribe, just do it anyway - it won't do any harm as duplicates will be filtered out. To subscribe, visit the About page and submit your e-mail address.

Thanks for your patience while we iron out the teething troubles on the site!

Keane have launched a new online store, replacing the previous Rag And Bone set-up. First items on the store are pre-orders for the album itself, as well as special bundle deals with a new red Keane t-shirt. Be sure to pop over to the store and check it out for yourself!

In addition to offering the pre-order itself, the store also confirms the details of what will feature on the more expensive "deluxe" edition of the album. According to the deluxe edition pre-order, the CD+DVD package will consist of the following features:

1. Spiralling
2. The Lovers Are Losing
3. Better Than This
4. You Haven't Told Me Anything
5. Perfect Symmetry
6. You Don't See Me
7. Again And Again
8. Playing Along
9. Pretend That You're Alone
10. Black Burning Heart
11. Love Is The End

• Documentary of the making of Perfect Symmetry
• Experiments in Sound
• Track By Track Commentary

Sounds like a good value, exciting package!

As you may already be aware, the boys over at Beyond The Iron Sea have organised a special event in the run-up to the new album. An Evening With Beyond The Iron Sea will take place on Thursday 25th September at a secret location in central London and will feature the first complete play-through of the new album, weeks before its official release. Quite an exclusive, I'm sure you'll agree! There should also be some other stuff to keep everyone entertained.

Tickets for the event are free, but to be in with a chance of getting hold of a pair, you'll need to listen to Episode 17 of the podcast to hear the question, then complete the online form to submit your answer. All the details on the competition are given there - be sure to check out the terms and conditions before you enter!

Mart will be helping the lads out at this event, so if you do win tickets and come along, feel free to pop over and say hello. Good luck - hope to see you there!

Keanemusic.com has confirmed the final tracklisting for the forthcoming album, Perfect Symmetry. The track running order is as follows:

The article also confirms the release date for the first "proper" single The Lovers Are Losing as October 20th (again, UK presumably - other territories to be confirmed).