Re: Gerard's gig

[Nick White <magichats@ya...co.uk>]

Just to add what else I learned from Gerard.  The new
album was finished about 6 weeks ago and is apparently
(even if he does say so himself) "better than Swagger
and Beatsongs".  He was going to tell me some of the
20 possible titles but then changed his mind because
I'd just go and tell everyone (which I probably
would).  Songs include "Raise the roof high" (they've
played it live a few times and it was one of my top
12), "Up in a down world" (a new, more aggressive
version than the vinyl-only release of a few years
ago) and "Beautiful is" (this song has been around for
years but never recorded).

It sounds like Gerard is hugely confident about the
new record and really wants to make sure it gets heard
by as many people as possible.  He doesn't want to put
it out and have it go unnoticed.  So he wants to tour
(not just a one-off gig in Bristol) and get the
distribution right, whilst still keeping the rights to
the album so that he doesn't get screwed again.  So
don't hold your breath, but it sounds like it'll be
worth waiting for.

Nick 


 --- Paul Vearncombe <vearn@wo...co.uk> wrote:
> What a fantastic night at the Cube for only six
> quid!  A couple of hours shooting the breeze in the
> bar with Ann Sheldon (Gerard's long time
> girlfriend), Steve Bush (an old pal of Gerard's who
> contributed vocals to 'Bop Art') and of course the
> great man himself.  So what's the news?  The
> long-awaited Aeroplanes album is finished but still
> untitled (Gerard has around twenty titles he's
> toying with) and unreleased (he doesn't want to give
> up the copyright to a record company so has to find
> a distribution deal somewhere).  Speaking of
> copyright, I managed to upset Gerard by remarking on
> the double-CD release of 'Tolerance' and 'Bop Art',
> of which he was unaware.  It seems that Gerard owns
> the copyright to the latter and has not granted any
> permissions to release it.  I sense a shitstorm
> coming!  This is kind of ironic considering the
> illegal nature of 'LIT' but the unsanctioned release
> of a whole published album can't really be compared
> with appropriating the odd bit of an artist's
> unreleased leftovers.  Not content with that I then
> upset Gerard further by asking him about the
> possibility of a re-release of 'Bagipe Music', to
> which he squirmed and made faces!  Oh well, I liked
> it!  Also, the planned re-release of 'Swagger' is
> still bubbling under, but EMI still want that grand.
> One day...
> 
> Gerard took the stage eventually and performed five
> poems with Paul Bradley.  I say 'performed' - you
> will know the man well enough to know that words
> like 'read' or 'recited' are horribly inadequate. 
> His delivery was typically Gerard, relishing every
> syllable, rolling the words around, repeating
> sections to fit the music, adding and taking away in
> his own style, while the music shifted around him. 
> Paul Bradley is a guitarist in the loosest sense,
> working with digital loops, delays, effects, and
> bringing in other instruments here and there.  I
> have never before seen anybody use a recorder to
> play the xylophone, or a harmonica as a guitar
> slide, and I hope that gives you some idea of what
> he was about.  A magician of the highest order.  It
> was a shame the two of them didn't perform more
> pieces together, but the main act had to start -
> Fuzz Against Junk - who are a bizarre six-piece band
> who sound like some sort of weird development of
> Krautrock.  Obviously accomplished musicians who
> were comfortable with improvising around the poetry.
>  An intoxicating blizzard of sound which formed a
> very different backdrop to Paul Bradley's.  And the
> words themselves - I'm no poetry scholar but Gerard
> obviously spent some time making his selections and
> putting the right sort of emphasis on each.  The
> whole affair was recorded, apparently, to form the
> basis of 'LIT Volume Two', when Gerard gets around
> to it.  If it's anything like the performance that
> night it should be a blast.
> 
> Ann was selling 'LIT' at the front desk, beautifully
> designed by Steve Giles, who was also DJ-ing at the
> gig.  I still can't decide whether buying number 3
> of 50 is sad and fannish or cool and exciting. 
> Anyway, the packaging alone makes it worth owning -
> a gatefold sleeve with photographs of all the poets,
> a booklet with the words, and all wrapped in a
> printed paper bag the likes of which I remember
> filling with penny sweets when I was a child.  It's
> glorious to behold, and obviously a labour of love
> for Steve Giles.  Listening to it now, my
> expectations have been far surpassed.  I anticipated
> something 'difficult' but it actually sits nicely
> alongside 'Record Player', in many ways. The first
> seven pieces are new performances by Gerard, against
> these stolen musical backdrops.  It all works
> amazingly well, and even rocks out at times - REM's
> backing on 'As Freedom Is A Breakfast Food', in
> particular.  The disappointment, if there is any,
> comes with the last five tracks which are
> Aeroplanes' treatments of poems, lifted straight
> from the records we all have.  Even having said
> that, to hear 'Police' and 'The Applicant' in this
> context puts a whole different spin on the thing and
> makes you listen more to the poem than to the music.
>  Nice to hear the beautiful acoustic arrangements on
> 'Autumn Journal XXIV' once again - never did
> understand why it didn't make FLP2.  Anyway, I'd
> urge you all to buy a copy of the CD while there are
> some still left.  Sorry to folks who wanted me to
> pick them up a copy - my email was down last week
> and I didn't get the messages.  The good news is
> that Ann was happy for me to share her email address
> with anyone who wants a copy.  Mail her on
> hapcat@wa...com and she'll fix you up.
> 
> Great to meet Nick White and his girlfriend in the
> bar afterwards too.  See you at the next gig, Nick.
> 
> PV2
> 
> 
> 
> 
>  

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