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ECO NEWS // BLOG // UPDATES AND INFO
FRIDAY 5th June 2009
The Electric Label release of 3-D has landed. A special packaging UK release
now available to buy here
A very big thank you to Jude for his support and cleverness in making
this happen for us. Three cheers !!! Please visit the Electric
Label site for more info. Thanks :)
30th
4th 2009
We want to say a very big thank you to all those happening people that
have shelled out hard earned dosh for our record. Thank you very much,
we know it's easy to get the album as a free download at a number of illegal
torrent and file share sites so the fact that you have the foresight,
supportive mindset and judgement to actually buy a copy from us is very
much appreciated. Ta very much !! The record has been very well received
from a lot of different and varied peoples; we get a lot of messages from
all walks saying how much they love it, their fave tracks and just general
overwhelming support and encouragement. It really means a lot as we're
all beyond happy with the final results of our record.
MP3s and beyond
As
everyone within the music business knows the way people get their music
nowadays has been completely changed and turned inside out and on its
head due to the internet becoming the main source of getting anything
and everything we want, music being very much part of that. It has come
to our attention that our 3-D album has been downloaded completely free
via various illegal torrents / blogs file share, links n sites over 30
thousand times which is brilliant on one level but completely frustrating
on another. Needless to say any band functioning at our level would be
very grateful for a fraction of the funds that those downloads would generate
if the files were obtained legally. It would allow the band to develop,
plan and fund tours and even enjoy the odd assorted goodie bag here and
there, however this is not the case at all. So we are forced into a situation
where we have to offer the MP3 album virtually free in order to have any
chance of competing with the illegal file share links n illegal site downloads.
Obviously whenever possible we want to be the official main source of
downloads for many reasons. So, we are going to offer the entire original
album including bonus tracks as good quality MP3s on a donation fee basis,
meaning you pay what you can afford, as little or as much as you like.
This will allow us to get on with making music instead of chasing endless
illegal file share links. I'm still of the thinking that people should
pay for their music, films n art etc as old fashioned as that may sound,
so we're opting for the donation route. Those that have kindly and generously
already paid the full asking price for the MP3s are welcome to contact
us at themashheads@yahoo.co.uk if they are unhappy with our decision so
we can come to some kind of agreement/arrangement. Obviously we hope that
those people will understand and appreciate our position / decision and
will continue to support us in the future. We see it as a very necessary
and positive step forward.
Continuing on with those positive thoughts...
You may or may not know that we are very pleased to offer an actual hold
in your hand touchy feely SPC ECO 3-D CD via the NOISEPLUS store based
in the USA. Karin and Statik of Collide have generously and lovingly made
the CD available for all to enjoy. The Noiseplus release features a really
beautiful bonus track named SPOTLIGHT that Rose and I wrote and recorded
especially for the Noiseplus version. We have only pressed a limited number
so would urge you to get a copy ordered and sent while their stock lasts
and before you come across it at a number of nasty torrent sites. The
link to the album in all its glory is HERE
And another thing....
We are very excited and very pleased about the forthcoming release of
the CD album in Japan via Quince Records. It's a wish come true for us
all to know the record has been detected on the Quince radar and has been
scheduled for a proper full release. We all have a very strong connection
and feeling for Japan. Rose has been wanting to go there since I can remember,
for the culture, brilliant design and delicious food, Joey has spent a
lot of time there as a student and translator and who is now able to speak
and write the language fluently. It's amazing to hear him talk on the
phone to his friends and colleagues. I have been there 4 times before,
visiting all the major cities and have always had a brilliant time. The
memory of green tea on the bullet train with a fresh Bento Box looking
out of the window at the passing villages and people working the rice
fields and those beautiful mountain landscapes on the way to Nagoya is
something very firmly etched on my brain. That and the crazy energy of
the Japanese audiences is something that we all want to experience together.
Rose will go bonkers if we ever manage to get out there and play some
shows, but I digress. The record is released sometime in June 2009 and
will get a great marketing campaign aimed at all the major influential
music shops/press n radio. One other thing to mention is the exclusive
bonus track that was requested by Masa which is the shimmering, cool and
slightly retro sounding track Silver Clouds that was named after the Andy
Warhol helium filled Silver Cloud balloon installation. The chorus of
the song sounds awesome to us, like a Wannadies song, sad yet joyful.
I was asked to write a description of all the songs on the album one by
one, this is what I wrote about the Silver Clouds track.
SILVER CLOUDS (Featuring Andy Bell)
This track was another revisited recording. I have known Andy Bell for
many years and we thought it was time to do some long discussed and overdue
recording. Sometime in 2008 I forget exactly when I recorded Andy playing
a very odd electronic sitar drone machine and an old custom Dulcimer made
by the same dude that made a similar one for Brian Jones back in the 60s,
in fact it might actually be the same one, anyway, It's a four stringed
instrument I noticed on Andy's wall when visiting him one time. I recorded
him making about 6 passes of the Dulcimer while he played along to a basic
beat (which we ended up using) of Monti playing a very old pig skinned
drum kit that Ian Dury had given him as a present which now lives with
me. When Andy left the studio I then cut up and arranged the passes into
something with more sections and melodic clarity. Adding a bass and a
few extra drones n tones. I then sent it to Andy to check (which he loved).
He then came back with a vocal idea, which we recorded and it was left
just like that. Many months later Quince Records in Japan requested an
exclusive bonus track for the album so I went back and investigated the
Andy track but with Rose singing instead. We completely reworked all the
vocals then added a very cool Joey noise guitar. It ended up being yet
another of my favourite tracks. It’s always the same with me when
making an album. You have a very inspired energy at the beginning of the
record swiftly followed by a down beat soul searching middle then a flurry
of creativity and energy at the end. This was one of those inspired connections
Rose and I touched upon which led us to believe that we were actually
very good at this shit. All those years of singing and messing about with
mad recordings when Rose was growing up all make for the combination and
connection we have now. Trust me, the track is just awesome. We just have
our fingers and toes crossed that the record is well received so we can
plan for a fun filled tour of the major cities and noodle bars of Japan!!
Furthermore....
We are in the final stages of the UK / EURO release of the record which
is being released by The Electric Label here in London. It's a unique
label whereby the CDs released are made to order. A press on demand system,
which uses state of the art CD manufacture, max print res album sleeves
and then mailed to you within 3 working days by a group of humans that
are known to me as The Fulfilment People. I love the idea of the label,
as it is a very cost effective and creative way to release CDs. It means
that the artist has a very broad scope as to what, when and how they compile
albums with complete freedom and minimal financial constraints. So expect
some pretty off the wall recordings in the nearby future as well as releases
that otherwise would not see the light of day. A very big pat on the back
and extra large goodie bag awarded to Jude for spending the time, research
and effort to make the whole thing possible. A step into the future. For
your info this release of 3-D is exactly the same as the previously release
MP3 version, there're no exclusive bonus tracks other than the 2 included
on the MP3 version. The main difference is the special packaging ( mini
DVD case with a CD that resembles an old school vinyl record) and the
quality of sound. You will be able to play the CD very loud as you drive
down the dusty long road in that open top car Hunter S Thompson attempted
to drive in Fear and Loathing with a very big smile on your face, just
beware of that adrenal gland potion in your hand.
That said there's not much else I can think of mentioning at this moment
other than to once again say a very big thank you to all those that have
sent well meaning messages of support and to those that have bought the
album. Hats off to you all and let's raise our glass and goodie bags to
the joy that is SPC ECO !!
JUST IN...
The SPC ECO interview for Delusions Of Adequacy
http://www.adequacy.net/2009/05/interview-with-spc-eco/
Cheers n everything else
SPC ECO
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