TCS 2000 in the USA
Keep up with TCS as they spend 5 weeks in the USA playing a few shows and recording their new album
What are 'they' saying about TCS
Time Out (New York) week of 3/25/00: "Now considered a missing link between the gentle Postcard pop of such early '80's combos as Aztec Camera and the Bluebells and the current wave of U.K. acoustic alt-pop combos spearheaded by Belle and Sebastian, Scotland's Trash Can Sinatras succintly laid out there agenda on their 1989 debut single, "Obscurity Knocks." Balancing fluffy harmonies and an irresistably bouyant melody with barbed lyrics invoking the spectre of failure and destitution, this ostensibly upbeat outfit evinced a bruised world-weariness that rang true despite the band member's tender ages.
The Trash Cans' 1990 debut album, Cake, was patchy yet compelling, but the band's haunting balance of fresh-faced innocence and fatalistic dread bloomed impressively on the startling 1993 second effort I've Seen Everything. That melancholy magnum opus offered an emotionally complex mix of wide-screen songcraft and brooding intimacy, with punning wordplay that was both as unsettling as it was amusing. Not surprisingly, no one seemed to know what to make of it. A Happy Pocket (1996) was similarly poignant, if less ambitious, but it didn't even get a U.S. release.
Although little has been heard from them in the years since, the Sinatras have maintained an active fan following via the Internet and recently resurfaced with the release of an ace four-song EP on Sony Japan. The band - a six piece with the addition of a keyboard player - has now found a sympathetic stateside home with the indie March Records, which plans to reissue the Japanese disc in the spring as Leave Me Alone. Their current East Coast dates coincide with the recording of a new album - in Hartford, Connecticut, no less - for March, and the buzz surrounding their New York area gigs is a pleasant surprise that attests to the band's subtle but enduring strengths." - Scott Schinder
Village Voice (3/23/00): "TRASH CAN SINATRAS: When I found out that these almost forgotten dreamy Scottish lads were returning to the states, I was beyond excited. They're known for layered harmonies, punny wordplay, and a pastiche writing style--TCS songs don't always contain discernible verses, choruses, and bridges. A cursory Web search reveals nothing about a new release, but who cares?! Knitting Factory, Main Space, at 8." (cursory web search for sure!)
Knitting Factory: "After a long absence from this side of the pond, Scotland's treasured godfathers of the melancholic movement, Trash Can Sinatras return! You may know them from 1990's hit album "Cake" and "I've Seen Everything" from 1993. Sadly, 1996's "A Happy Pocket," their finest recorded moment, wasn't released in the states. Amazingly, the lack of US touring and releases didn't slow down American fans, whose mass hysteria has been brewing on the internet and will certainly erupt at their first US show in nearly seven years."
TCS on the road
(watch for news, set lists, photos...)
The Knitting Factory, New York- 3/25/00
People
who spoke to the band before the show said they were nervous about how they
would sound (Paul was so nervous he had to sit!), but by all accounts the
show was great (since the webcast didn't happen, you'd never know if you weren't
there for the show). They played a mix of new and old, but only one song from
Cake, as expected. There are a few other songs they've rehearsed but
didn't play last night, so look for the set lists to change a little from
show to show. I'd also expect a couple of other new songs to be added once
they've had a little time to work on them in the studio. Frank is now playing
acoustic guitar again, he hadn't played since the shows in support of A
Happy Pocket. Afterwards, the band said they had a wonderful time and
were really taken aback by the thunderous applause. They also mentioned how
they were disappointed the webcast didn't work.
Anyhow, here is the set list:
The Sleeping Policeman / Leave Me Alone / How Can I Apply...? / I'm Immortal / In Capitals / Easy Read / Only Tongue Can Tell / The Country Song / Astronomy / The Main Attraction / Send For Henny / What Women Do To Men / The Hairy Years / Trouble Sleeping / I've Seen Everything / The Safecracker / Hayfever (encore) / Hammer Time (encore) / Usually (encore)
Today the band heads off to the studio where they'll spend most of the next 5 weeks recording their new album. They plan to record as much as possible 'live', as opposed to laying down instruments and vocals at different times. I hope to have updates from the studio and will let you know if anything comes up.
The Khyber, Philadelphia - 4/2/00
I think this is the set list from the show last night, thanks to Mike Rossi for the info. Also, I guess there were a lot of people snapping photos at the show, if you have any and can e-mail them to me, please do. Thanks.
The Sleeping Policeman / I'm Immortal / Leave Me Alone / How Can I Apply...? / In Capitals / Only Tongue Can Tell / Easy Read / The Country Song / The Main Attraction / Send For Henny / Astronomy / A Boy and A Girl / The Hairy Years / I've Seen Everything / The Safecracker / Usually (encore) / Hayfever (encore)
So they dropped 3 of the new song from the last show (What Women Do To Men, Hammer Time and Trouble Sleeping) and added A Boy and A Girl. They also don't play any of the new songs back to back and ended with Hayfever instead of one of the new, slower songs. If there is any complaint with the new songs, it's that they're all slow/mellow. TCS know what people have been saying so I wonder if this revised set list takes this into consideration.
Maxwell's, Hoboken - 4/7/00
I finally made it to one of the shows. Here's what they played on Friday (they broke out "Earlies" which was the last song they had practiced):
The Sleeping Policeman / Leave Me Alone / How Can I Apply...? / The Hairy Years / Only Tongue Can Tell / Usually / I'm Immortal / The Country Song / Send For Henny / In Capitals / Easy Read / What Women Do To Men / The Main Attraction / Trouble Sleeping / The Safecracker / I've Seen Everything / Earlies (encore) / Hayfever (encore)
I thought the show was great (but really, what would you expect me to say?). I had heard some of these new songs before when they played in Dublin last year, but they're a lot better now. Yes, these new songs are mellow, but I really like them. The crowd was very enthusiastic and everything went over well, but most people there were probably fanatics so it's going to be more of a test when they get these songs in front of a neutral audience. It's hard to compare songs, but I'll try anyway. I'll assume you know Leave Me Alone. If not, you need to pick up the "Snow" CD single or go to the audio page at trashcansinatras.com to download a live MP3. Usually is one of the best songs I've heard from them. John and Frank used to sing together and I'd say it was kind of plodding. Now Frank sings the whole song and they've changed it around a bit, but it has a soaring chorus that really sounds fantastic. The Country Song is my other favorite. It sounds like it would have fit perfectly on ISE. Maybe something along the lines of The Hairy Years, I'm not quite sure though. The reason they call this The Country Song (a working title) is because it has a sort of twangy/slide guitar sound to it. In Capitals is sung by John and it has very sparse instrumentation, it builds a bit when Frank sings the chorus, but I'm having trouble getting into this song, to be honest with you. If I had to compare What Women Do To Men to something, it would be Orange Fell. They don't necessarily sound the same, but they have a similar feel of starting out very quiet and mellow and then building up to something much louder and emotional, I guess. Hmm...how would I describe Trouble Sleeping. I'm not sure about that one, I'll have to think about it.
The band sounded great and Frank's voice was perfect. The stage presence was a lot better than when I saw them in Dublin, but I think a lot of that has to do with Frank, who was much more animated and had some funny stage banter with the crowd. The end of the set has highlighted by Frank tearing his guitar off and throwing it over his shoulder.
If you hung around after the show, you probably had a chance to meet the band, as they hung out in the club until around 3:00 am chatting with anyone still around.
I do have some pictures, I need to go through them and will post something soon.
Maxwell's, Hoboken - 4/8/00
This show was fantastic, definitely better than the night before. They played every song they had practiced except for Trouble Sleeping:
The Main Attraction / I'm Immortal / Usually / How Can I Apply...? / The Hairy Years / The Country Song / The Sleeping Policeman / Leave Me Alone / In Capitals / Send For Henny / Easy Read / A Boy and A Girl / What Women Do To Men / Only Tongue Can Tell / Astronomy / The Safecracker / Hayfever / Hammer Time (encore) / Earlies (encore) / I've Seen Everything (encore).
Astronomy is also sung by John, I'm not having much luck describing these songs or comparing them to something else, but I like it, if that means anything.
The whole night was similar to Friday, everyone was getting kiced out around 3:00 am and there were still quite a few people there chatting away. I had a chance to meet a lot of you at the shows and it was nice to put a face to a name. Also, it's amazing how many people travelled to these shows. I met people who came from Japan, Canada, Texas, California, Michigan, Washington, DC, Ohio and who knows where else. The enthusiasm and dedication of the fans is impressive, and this isn't lost on the band.
I know this is kind of lame, but it has been a long weekend. I'll post some pictures soon. If you have any questions about the shows, let me know.
The Knitting Factory, New York- 4/21/00
coming soon
TCS in the studio
TCS have worked on "Leave Me Alone" and "Usually" so far this week. See trashcansinatras.com for more details about this past week (3/26-3/30). For some of the initial "Leave Me Alone" takes, Frank was playing the Hammond organ while Stevie played keyboards, but not on the final take, so this will need to be added later. As TCS are not recording any of the vocals right now, Frank spends most of his time in the control room with producer Mike Demming.
TCS drew up a list of potential songs to record and there are currently 17 songs on the list ("Snow" isn't one of them). A few still don't have titles, "The Country Song" which they played at the Knitting Factory, is actually just a working title. There is some debate about whether "Duty Free" and "Co-Stars" will be re-recorded, the band is split about whether to keep these songs. Overall, it seems that they're pretty sure about 10 of the songs they'll record, the others on the list are all question marks.
Here are a few pictures of TCS in the studio, I'll post more information as available.
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Stephen Douglas in the studio
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John Douglas and Grant Wilson in the studio
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After listening to a recent take, TCS discuss whether
to keep the take, or keep trying
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Producer Mike Demming saves the final "Leave
Me Alone" rhythm track reel
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Here is a rundown of what TCS have been up to:
3/21: arrived in the New York
3/23: rehearsal for Knitting Factory show
3/24: Knitting Factory show
3/26: travel to the recording studio
3/27-3/28: set up in the studio
3/29: recorded rhythm track for Leave Me Alone
3/30: recorded rhythm track for Usually
3/31-4/3: travel to/from Philadephia for Khyber show on 4/2
4/3: recorded rhythm track for Astronomy
4/4: recorded rhythm track for In Capitals
4/5: recorded rhythm track for "The Country Song" (working title)
4/6: recorded rhythm track for "The Dirge" (working title) - this song will be sung by Paul Livingston and was described by him as sounding like Pink Floyd, whatever that means
4/7-4/9: travel to/from Hoboken for Maxwell's shows on 4/7 and 4/8
4/10: recorded rhythm track for What Women Do To Men
If you have any questions, comments, etc, e-mail me at jdimaria@gis.net
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