Broken Records

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Blog - New Recordings

By Broken Records on July 9, 2010 12:49 PM | 2 Comments | No TrackBacks

It has been a bit quiet on here of late, as we have been either locked away in the studio in Glasgow or frantically trying to work out how to play the new tracks live (we're now calling Dave "Davey Four-Hands Rick Wakeman Smith"...). We took delivery of a bunch of fully ready-to-go mastered tracks the other day which was very exciting. Despite the fact that they bring back painful memories of six hours playing the same beat over and over again (apparently they say drummers are fitter than footballers, it must be true as it was on the BBC website, but for those of you that know me I am what may be called the exception to prove the rule), they have been on repeat on the stereo for the last day, if only just to remember the various changes. Don't tell the guys I said that...

We were recording with Tony Doogan in his studio in Glasgow which involved commuting, something you never thought would be a part of being in a band, and of course eating innumerable takeaways, Thai curries and Tesco microwave meals, washed down with endless cups of strong Columbian black (that's coffee by the way. Rock and roll...).

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Diary - First Day in Austin

By Broken Records on April 7, 2010 5:20 PM | Be the 1st to comment | No TrackBacks

Tuesday saw us with our first day proper in Austin. We got up sharpish in the morning (having been up for about 24 hours the previous day everyone slept pretty soundly...), and those of us staying with our host Sue were particularly chipper due to the liberal use of her espresso maker. We headed in to the convention centre in the middle of town to get our wristbands, with only minor confusion as to whether we were Broken records or the representatives from "Broken Wreckords", whoever they may be. This left us with a whole day free, so Sue took us to "Juan in a Million" for breakfast, insisting that we hit the "Don Juan Breakfast Tacos" which left everyone a bit subdued afterwards by their sheer scale...

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SXSW Diary - Part 1

By Broken Records on April 3, 2010 7:24 PM | Be the 1st to comment | No TrackBacks

As one of these Luddites who doesn't have an iPhone or any sort of international roaming wifi machine, all the SxSW blogs have been stored in my head and will spew forth in the next few days. I will begin at the most natural place to start, the beginning...

I woke on Sunday morning with a hint of a hangover from the previous day's Six Nations draw with England, with no idea why my alarm was barking at me, until the penny dropped and I leapt out of bed. Of course, we were heading towards SxSW today. The seven o'clock start wasn't hugely appreciated but the drive to London was aided by Gill's "nostalgia beats" on the stereo. We were staying at the flat at the 4ad offices in Wandsworth so met Roger in the neighbouring pub for a beer and a crack at the pub quiz, while Rog dished out some useful advice on how to stay alive in Austin - "Don't smoke roll ups, they'll think you're smoking pot and they will shoot you; don't drink in the street, they will shoot you; don't smoke indoors, they will shoot you," etc.

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Festival Diary - Part 3

By Broken Records on August 28, 2009 11:36 AM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

There are probably few feelings worse in life than standing in a confined, stinking plastic box, attempting to answer the call of nature whilst simultaneously trying to avoid dysentry, when the sound of an MC saying "Ladies and gentleman, please welcome to the stage...Broken Records!" floats from the stage, some hundred yards away, to your ears. You are then faced with a dilemma - to arrest mid-act and risk having to carry a pair of piss-stained jeans to Germany and back, or to take the extra minute to finish up, which will necessitate a sprint to the stage doing up your trousers, to the amusement of the backstage crew, as Ian and Rory play the loop at the start of Nearly Home over and over again on an otherwise empty stage. I opt for the latter.

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Festival Diary - Part 2

By Broken Records on July 29, 2009 1:01 PM | 1 Comment | No TrackBacks

The last couple of weeks has seen us playing at Latitude Festival and Truck, playing two different ends of the spectrum in terms of stages, the first being the main stage at Latitude which was quite an experience. One of the few times where we have felt there was almost too much space on the stage! We arrived there later than we expected on Friday due to the storm that seemed to follow us all the way down the M1, but an advance party had set off the day before and when we got there at around nine in the evening they had already set up all the tents which saved a load of hassle, thanks guys!

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Festival Diary - Part 1

By Broken Records on July 15, 2009 1:08 PM | Be the 1st to comment | No TrackBacks

The festival season well and truly kicked off for us two weeks ago with two sets at Glastonbury, followed by an appearance at the Metropolis Festival in Rotterdam last weekend. (I will cover all these festivals in a bit more detail later, this is just a brief one as the bed I was sitting on to type has just collapsed...)

This weekend just gone saw us at T in the Park, scene of our first festival appearance two years ago at the T Break Stage. It was good to be back, albeit for a flying visit, playing on the new BBC Introducing stage. There is a video of it on the BBC website or those of you who like that sort of thing.

There will also be a song on BBC Three (telly, not radio) on Wednesday night, they are doing an acoustic special from the BBC's "Intimate Stage" in the backstage area. It is quite an unusual stage set up and looked pretty cool from where I was standing at the bar (as drums were deemed, in this instance, a little too much!).

We didn't hang around too late, despite the free beer, as we had a five o'clock start on Sunday to head to Dublin for the Oxegen Festival. I had forgotten that it was the 12th of July and the ferry from Stranraer to Belfast was something of an experience to say the least... We had a great time at Punchestown Racecourse though, thanks to all who braved the (extreme!) elements, although we were in a tent so maybe it was the people who didn't want to brave the elements, hmmm...

Anyways, there should be bits and bobs of interviews etc. on Vic Galloways T in the Park specials over the next few nights so stay tuned, and again BBC Three tomorrow night at seven o'clock for some acoustic action.

Tour Diary - Revolution & Mayhem

By Broken Records on June 8, 2009 11:13 PM | 1 Comment

Last night was the O2 Academy 2 in Newcastle, which is the wee diddy room upstairs at the O2 Academy. The sign above the door curiously read "BROKEN RECORDS THEN REVOLUTION AND MAYHEM", which actually referred to the club night which was on afterwards. Got everything up to the third floor via four trips in the wee lift, then sandwiches and coffee.

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