We recently put a contest together on our Facebook page to win this ass kicking poster that we all signed and are pleased to announce that a winner has been selected!
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| UPDATE: Just wanted to let you all in on the most recent haps with TRANSFER. It's been a moment so here's the latest in our world. We had been road testing some new songs on our last adventure with The Kaiser Chiefs and since have been spending the summer at home in San Diego laying down the sounds at Lost Ark Studio.  The location of the studio's engine room is right on the beach so with the distraction of the ocean and sunshine, it has been somewhat of a challenge to summon the evil necessary to melt your face. But with the help of Mike Butler's production skill, some weird ideas, and a constant supply of snacks…we're pleased to report that we are in full swing and will have some extremely thirst quenching sounds for you at a later moment. Not sure when quite yet but when we do…it will be extreme. And when I say extreme, I'm talking about a Mountain Dew level of extreme. maybe even a "More Than Words" Extreme. Like a "Jesus H Christ in a chicken basket…we have landed on the fucking moon" level of extreme. There have been quite a few moments we've been able to capture on camera as well so keep posted for a video breakdown of some of the ins and outs of the standard operating procedure. It's very complex and sometimes needs a little Ridley analysis…or as he coined the term, Ridnalysis™ VIDEO: We will be posting photos and little scraps of goodness throughout this process so keep up with us here: You can also follow LOST ARK on FACEBOOK to get a glimpse of the spot where it's all going down. AND, amazingly enough, for every "Like" on their page they are donating $1 to Sweet Relief Musician's Fund. An incredible gesture for an amazing charity organization that helps musicians facing illness, disability, financial or age-related problems. You can help by clicking "Like" on their page...it's that easy. Lost Ark posts their perspective of the recording process along with killer photography of their arsenal. It's pretty astounding from a gear head's perspective so go check it out. |
Here we are on the back half of our US tour with the Kaiser Chiefs and we are still somewhat reeling from the extreme spectacle/cluster-fuck that is SXSW. Great times but every time we leave Austin I feel like i've take another few years off my life. Oh well…all in the name of Rock n Roll. Before I go tits up, here's a little bit of a Texas recap:
Dallas and Houston were great shows. We wound up running into The Silent Comedy and had a great time post show hitting a nearby bar for drinks. Low and behold another San Diego band Italian Japanese happened to just finish playing so, being surrounded by all the familiar faces made it feel like a satellite home for a bit.
Houston happened to be a day off and I got to catch a Jesus and Mary Chain show the night before we played at The House of Blues. We had the opportunity to hang out after the show and found out it was their first performance in 3 years. Despite the moments of out of control feedback between songs, stopping and starting a few times at the guitar player's frantic hand wave and looks of confusion painting the picture of a hot mess, they pulled songs together and delivered an impressive set.
On to SXSW - our first show was an acoustic performance for Slacker Radio at the Gibson Showroom in Austin. We got to play three tunes for the segment so we chose something old, something off of Future Selves and a new song we've been playing. I'll post some footage from that performance very soon. Thanks again to Slacker Radio and Gibson for the hospitality. Turned out to be a great time!
We went out that night and caught sets by fellow San Diego bands The Silent Comedy and Little Hurricane. Saw a band called POND that I loved through beer goggles. Confirmed after listening to their album on the ride home. After a little more research I found that the band is comprised of members of Tame Impala. I then realized why it was impressive. Love that shit.
The next day was Saturday and our double show day. First being the Sea Now! Showcase. If you're unfamiliar, check out who was involved www.seanow.org. Pretty cool. We were glad to take part and were paid by a surprise visit from our tour mates, Tribes. It was great to catch up with those lads and we made some plans to go deep sea shark caging while they are in LA in the fall. Wicked!
Also got turned on by a four-piece from Montreal called Plants and Animals that blew me back. Great sound and a killer live show.
The 11pm show at the Whiskey Room would be the last of our 2012 SXSW experience and it turned out to be a blinder. The sound was terrible and the stage was as hot as a hair dryer but we blasted it out and walked away feeling complete. A full house and great spirit in the audience made the last performance the best for us so thanks to Mario Escovedo and Requiemme for inviting us and BIG thanks to all who were there sweating it out.
After this, we got in the van and drove for 24hrs straight back to San Diego, stayed in our beds for ONE night, played the Belly Up and are now making our way to San Francisco to play THE FILLMORE. The second we start to peter out from the insane amount of miles on 2hrs sleep, wandering around LOVE'S Travel Stop like un-showered zombies, staring at the same candy isle, drinking shitty coffee, considering trucker tweak, sharing countless beat down hotel rooms…I think to myself, we're playing the fucking Fillmore…ALL GOOD!
A moment to introduce our crew:
Soundman Pete, my nephew, Matthew AKA SPARROW and young SPARROW (as a baby)
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
Morale is high...
We got up at 6AM on minimal sleep from the night before to make our 8AM load in time at Abbey Road Studios in London. We were to tape a live performance for the music documentary series Live From Abbey Road and set to record in Studio 2... The same room where The Beatles recorded pretty much everything. What an honor. Just being in the same space where the greatest songwriters created their most influential work was enough to put a surreal spin on the morning. Things seemed to be happening at light speed already...
We found our dressing room, set up shop and took the tour.
Tape machine The Beatles recorded with...the console Pink Floyd used. At this point of the tour I was pretty certain that everyone was on the same program as we were all smiling like we had new veneers and a nitrous buzz.
We met the film team and set up for soundcheck. After everyone got their positions and levels we went for it. Wound up recording 5 songs. What an experience...
We'll keep you posted as to the airdate. Here are a few shots from the day:
After the session was over we went across the hall to Studio 1 (room where Dark Side of the Moon was made...WTF!?) for the interview portion of the program.
I thought it too cliche to consider the hypothetical scenario..."what if Paul McCartney was hanging around?" When Andy told me he had just seen him in the cafeteria I didn't really consider it. Just as soon as we had taken our seats for the interview, the man himself, walked in the room and straight up to us. All quite stunned at his unexpected presence he met us and made the room easy by cracking some funnies about us looking shady, like we were in a police line up or something. Friendly guy...
The Sun posted BLURB about it the next day.
Anna managed to snap this photo. A little blurry and my head looks like a sparkler, which is funny because it was exactly how I felt.
Rounding off this tour's brushes with royalty to TWO. Twice in two weeks...what the hell happened?! Sir Paul McCartney at Abbey Road and Prince Harry at an outhouse in Hyde Park. All I can say is thank God we didn't have to choose between them...
HERE'S THE PERFORMANCE
I would tell you about how the Water Rats show was an epic time or KoKo or T in the Park for that matter, but I just can't seem to make sense of it. Nothing really matters anymore...
the ultimate has transpired...
over and out
www.transferband.comTRANSFER USA TOUR w/ Kaiser Chiefs -
Checking in from Shreveport, LA and phase one is complete: We drove 53 hrs to arrive @ Boston's Paradise Rock Club. Yeah, holy shit is right... re-link with The Kaiser Chiefs and get our America on. It had been a few months since we'd left these lads in EU so everyone was happy to reconnect and get back after it. It has been somewhat of a whirlwind since we began but all the venues have been fantastic and crowds have been amazing. This has been the route so far:
BOSTON - Paradise Rock Club
NEW YORK - Terminal 5
D.C. - 9:30 Club
ATLANTA - The Tabernacle
All the crowds and staff at these places have been legendary. Thanks for the goods so far and we look forward to our return!
NOW: We are on the edge of Texas means we are on the verge of migas tacos, legit BBQ and good times.
Been snapping some shots of our travels so make sure to visit our website for the photo stream and check in with us on FB and Twitter for up to the moment synapse firings. It's about to go down...
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