"dear all,
hello. i'm writing to you from lorraine's house. it's very nice. we have indeed released a limited edition single, participated in the making of a pretty unsavoury short film, played gigs, arranged other gigs, given up beef and finalised our plans for worldwide fame and fun (third variation). this is the way it looks from here:
first of all, the gigs. my mum used to say what a rotten band we were. she was kind enough to listen favourably to our records, but after coming to see us play (just after the first album), she predicted a complete alcoholic breakdown for each of us within a year, my total loss of the use of my voice due to all that "shouting", and that she would never be witness to such a debacle again. but i didn't care. we were a shambolic live band, that was true, but the gig offers kept coming in from unsuspecting promoters and we were able to play anywhere we wanted anytime we liked, and there seemed no need for a mother's touch around a smelly dressing room. but the records didn't sell all that well, and many of those who payed to hear the elegant melodies of the tcs canon in concert were left feeling cheated by the band's seemingly careless (but actually clueless) attitude to, well, being in tune and all that. this wasn't true for all the shows, but it was true for enough of them to scare timid, now grunge-craving, promoters off come the time to promote the second record. and for the gigs that they could get, had the five thirsty joes learnt their lesson? well no, they hadn't.
and so on our very merry and drunk way we went until we realise that we looked kinda daft. you get the idea, don't you? We had no bother getting gigs when we were usually incapable of lasting more than half an hour, but now that some work has been done in an attempt to sound somewhat better, it's hard to get the gigs. isn't it ironic? as alanis would say.
those we've played in the last year have been just downright fantastic in the main, including our last two which were very different occasions. in glasgow, it was loud, achingly heartbreaking stuff, but in a dark london city cafe with a suspiciously beatnik bent less than a week later, john, paul and i strummed acoustic, rustic guitars for the pleasure of an enraptured hundred or so folks. next on the list is a show on friday the 29th at london ULU (full band), then a tour supporting lloyd cole for a week around the twentieth of april. no comments about the commotions please - it's the best we could get until our records (and film) are released with a vengeance.
Which is soon. The idea behind releasing the main attraction in a limited format only was, as far as i see it, to enable us to gradually build up our profile once more. rather than release a poppier song with a big splash, and risking radio airplay being refused us only through the trashcan fatigue of those in control ("oh no, not those aztec camera soundalikes again! are they still going? don't bother me with that, pass over that grreat new cast single"), we thought we'd let them do that to a song that wasn't an obvious single choice for us. and they will do it. any big splash, go discs were sure, would splashdown in the bargain bins round the country. this may sound like feartiness on their part, but we decided to let them get on with it. this single has gotten us sporadic attention and will be follwed on april 20th by a properly distributed record, "twisted and bent". see you on top of the pops, says i.
anyway, that's as best as i can explain it. some days i think it's a decent enough plan (and a plan at least), other days i hold my head in my hands and cry at the state of affairs. other days, i don't give two hoots. whatever, i'm sure of the good intentions of the good folks at go, so you should be too.
i have to go now, as i've plainly rambled on and on and am keeping a friend from seeing the band drugstore, of whom i know little. only that they're on go discs too, and consist of a brazilian, an american and an englishman. they perhaps met at the olympics or something.
if anybody wants to post a question, or wants to abuse me for my flippant attitude to the ins and outs of the music biz, i'll look in again on friday or at the beginning of next week.
cheerio
francis xxx"
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