Miscellaneous Media Mentions

The media machine seems to be in full swing for this tour and album.

To begin with we have a bit from the Independent about how Mark and Sean Hughes first met as well as a short but favourable review. He contributes to a discussion on the art of writing love songs. There is a mention in the Guardian.

There are also some other reviews of the album out there and some reviews of the Bristol, Bristol and Dublin gigs.

The Musical

A year after I first reported it, Mark Eitzels musical gets a mention on Teletext today.

Exclusive: Eitzel musical
American Music Club singer Mark Eitzel is writing a musical, PS can reveal."Most musicals are s***, so I wanted to see if it was possible to write one that isn't," Eitzel told PS.Eitzel has co-written the musical, Marine Parade, with his playwright friend Simon Stephens. It will open "on a stage somewhere" in 2009. Eitzel said: "It's set in Brighton. I love Simon's writing, he's a genius."

It also got a brief mention at the end of this interview with Simon and here.

Galway Set List

The European tour is now under way and the first repors are coming in. The set list for the Galway show was ...

Johnny Mathis' Feet (Mark Acoustic/Vudi Electric)
Blue and Grey Shirt
Home
Who You Are
Sleeping Beauty
Windows of the world
The Revolving Door
Western Sky
I know that's not really you
Another Morning
Decibels and The Little Pills
Hello Amsterdam
Wish the world away
Jesus Hands (Mark + Vudi)

So that's a bunch of new songs, a couple from the last album and some old faves. No Patriots Heart or Firefly? More from San Fran than Mercury?

American Music Club Play Spanish Festival

Get your sun tan lotion out. As reported here in Uncut, the American Music Club will be playing the Benicassim festival in Spain this summer. It takes place 17th, 18th, 19st and 20nd of July and features amongst others My Bloody Valentine, Babyshamble, the National, the New Pornographers and Spiritualized.

New Tour CD

Not only do the American Music Club have a new Album out but if you see them on tour (or visit the record companies web site) you could pick up a copy of "Atwater Afternoon", a limited edition tour cd they have just put out.

To quote the web site
"This puppy was recorded at rehearsals leading up to the massive 60 cities in 80 countries AMC tour. It features some well know favorites, some new tracks taken from "The Golden Age" and a song sung by Vudi as well as Steven Didelot track sung by Mark. This released on the web and tour only NOT available in shops! It comes in a simple printed card sleeve. It also features three unreleased covers, the classic Sam & Dave track "I'm Your Puppet" plus two Ray Price covers. This is in an printed card sleeve and is not a cdr. The highly collectible cdr run was limited to 300, these are limited to 1500 worldwide and never again. Available for preorder now and shipping Feb 4th. Miss it now and pay £40 on Ebay next year."

1. City Lights - (Ray Price cover)
2.All My Love
3.For the Good Times (Ray Price/Kris Kristofferson cover)
4.I'm Your Puppet (Sam & Dave cover)
5.Long Long Walk (The Golden Age out-take)
6.Little Joy (Vudi penned and sung track)
7.One Step Ahead
8.Who You Are
9.All The Lost Souls
10.Insiders Guide To Life (Steve Didelot track sung by Mark)
11.Hello Amsterdam
12.Home
13.Western Sky

Thats 3 covers, a Vudi song, a Steve song and an unreleased track.

"For US/Canadian customers please wait until the Merge copies of Golden Age are available and the band has stock of "Atwater Afternoon" to sendout from the US. We will be reserving 600 cds for the US. Otherwise you will be paying twice as much for from the UK due to the insane exchange rates."

Happy Birthday Mark !!!

I am sure you will all join me in wishing Mark Eitzel a Happy Birthday today.

"It's your birthday baby

Here's a gift you should take it

It's your birthday baby

Here's a gift you should unwrap it

It's your birthday baby

Here's some luck you should grab it

It's your birthday baby

Here's a smile you should unwrap it"

US Tour Dates

The American Music Club will be playing the following delightful venues from April onwards

Wed 4/2/08 Independent San Francisco CA
Thu 4/3/08 Harlows Sacramento CA
Fri 4/4/08 Doug Fir Lounge Portland OR
Sat 4/5/08 Triple Door Seattle WA
Sun 4/6/08 Richards on Richards Vancouver BC
Mon 4/7/08 off
Tue 4/8/08 off
Wed 4/9/08 Aquarium Fargo ND
Thu 4/10/08 Turf Club St Paul MN
Fri 4/11/08 High Noon Saloon Madison WI
Sat 4/12/08 Schubas Tavern Chicago IL
Sun 4/13/08 Pike Room Pontiac MI
Mon 4/14/08 Cafe Bourbon Street Columbus OH
Tue 4/15/08 The Andy Warhol Museum Pittsburgh PA
Wed 4/16/08 Mohawk Place Buffalo NY
Thu 4/17/08 LEE’S PALACE TORONTO ON
Fri 4/18/08 Divan Orange Montreal Qc
Sat 4/19/08 off
Sun 4/20/08 off
Mon 4/21/08 SPACE Gallery Portland ME
Tue 4/22/08 Harper’s Ferry Allston MA
Wed 4/23/08 Iron Horse Muisic Hall Northampton MA
Thu 4/24/08 Cafe Nine New Haven CT
Fri 4/25/08 Johnny Brendas Philadelphia PA
Sat 4/26/08 Williamsburg Music Hall Brooklyn NY
Sun 4/27/08 Mercury Lounge New York NY
Mon 4/28/08 off
Tue 4/29/08 Iota Cafe Arlington VA
Wed 4/30/08 The Arts Center Carrboro NC
Thu 5/1/08 E.A.R.L. Atlanta GA
Fri 5/2/08 The End Nashville TN
Sat 5/3/08 Hi Tone Memphis TN
Sun 5/4/08 Randy Bacon Gallery Springfield MO
Mon 5/5/08 Record Bar Kansas City MO
Tue 5/6/08 Vaudeville Mews Des Moines IA
Wed 5/7/08 Waiting Room Omaha NE
Thu 5/8/08 offFri 5/9/08 Larimer Lounge Denver CO
Sat 5/10/08 Urban Lounge Salt Lake City UT
Sun 5/11/08 off
Mon 5/12/08 Rhythm Room Phoenix AZ
Tue 5/13/08 Plush Tucson AZ

The Golden Age - Microsite Live

There is a new microsite promoting the forthcoming album on line now.

"There is a few free downloads on here plus video interviews and three acoustic tracks. The tracks were recorded from Mark's home away fromhome at the world famous Columbia Hotel right here in the big smoke latelast year.

Check back on it in a few weeks as we will have more videos as they come in."

Each album track seems to have a video interview explaining the story behind it and there are even a couple of acoustic songs on there as well. Very professional looking.

First US Dates Appearing

The first dates of the US tour are starting to appear. So far we have

pm on April 12th - Chicago, Schubas

April 25th - Philadelphia, PA, Johnny Brenda's

Do you know of any more? If so, leave a comment.

Warm Up Show - Yesterday

The American Music Club played a warm up show for their European tour last night at the Tiax 321 Lounge in Los Angeles. No news of any reviews yet. If you went, drop us a comment.

Promo Video On-Line + iTunes Single

There is a short video interview with Mark Eitzel on-line here. It's called "All My Love" but features him talking about writing "All The Lost Souls" while playing "The Dance" in the background.

You can also get the single "Decibels and Little Pills" on line at iTunes. Just one track with no b-sides or anything.

The Golden Age - Review II

A few of the tracks on The Golden Age deserve a bit more of a detailed look than I gave them in my main review, so in the next couple of posts I intend to put that right.

The Dance
If ever there was a song that deserved a Tarrantino directed video then it is this one. A woman (possibly a hooker) meets a cop and it is love at first sight. They start dancing around the room together, the cop holding her in one hand and his gun in the other. All is lovely, "he is pulling out all his best moves, he is cool like Wonderbread" until his finger slips and "paints her face all red". The final verse implies that he manages to save his career. I don't know if this is based on any true stories?

All The Lost Souls ...
If you ask me, this should have been the first single. It is upbeat, catchy and all those things you want from a pop song. Alright, they are not a band renowned for upbeatbut it wouldn't hurt once in a while. Lyrically its one of those songs about San Francisco and its residents, "the lost souls". The town it seems that was "built on fire trucks" and "saints who are only holy when they sin" and "people are humming a Love Supreme". Marty who supposedly owns several of the bars on 22nd St (including the Make Out Room) is called upon to cheer him up and keep him happy. He spends his time at a bar "trying to keep the good times rolling, as they are almost gone".

The Decibels and Little Pills
Some people would call that a good night out, taking some drugs and going to "the big rock show", and I guess that is what this song is about. While in the past Mark would have been in the centre trying to lose himself, now he is writing about it from a distance. "He was sweet and so was she, and you needed love to fill the dark" describes his old partying mood but hilights the reason now. He admits that wearing a cowboy hat means that "you are tonights casualty" and sees the crowds of people whose eyes say "I don't want to know". The chorus goes "No one here is gonna save you" as if to say everyone else is here for the same reason as you, so don't go looking to them for answers.

Uncut Review The Golden Age

It seems that Uncut magazine has made the new album their album of the with a 4 star review There is a scan of the review here. According to the bands management

"There was supposed to be a 3 page feature in the same issue which explains why it was not covered in the review. It has now moved back to the next issue, it features interviews with Mark and Vudi.

Decibels and the Little Pills was "single of the week" this week on Shaun Keaveny's breakfast show for BBC6, Eitzel was briefly interviewed this morning on it which you can listen to here
http://www.bbc.co.uk/6music/shows/shaun_keaveny."

The Golden Age - Review

My copy of the new album turned up in the post this morning. Played it a few times during the day and Like it. The cover is the picture of the band in a boat (vudi is in the liferaft) and period costume. Due to the layout of the pic, Sean is on the front cover while the rest of the band is on the back. What is it with singers always hiding in group shots?

1. All My Love
Starts off with a bit of picked guitar that sounds like "Jenny" off "California" before turning into a gentle love song.
2. The John Berchman Victory Choir
Comes on sounding a bit like "The Horseshoe Wreath In Bloom" and is a nice little up tempo number. Possibly something to do with the uplifting effects of choral music.
3. The Decibels and the Little Pills

This one has been getting played on the radio so possibly the first single?

4. The Sleeping Beauty

This was one of the hilights on "Candy Ass". Presumably repeated here so it gets the attention it deserves. Quite a slow tune. Less obvious keyboards here.

5. The Stars

Quite a moody number with lots of Vudi feedback on guitar. The central image is of finding someone you know dead in the road. Again it has the California vibe to it.

6. All the Lost Souls Welcome You to San Francisco

Probably the most upbeat of the numbers on the album. Another one of Marks songs about San Francisco and the places and people found there. Gorgeous sing along chorus. Love the bit of trumpet in the middle.

7. Who You Are

Another of the more uplifting songs. Sounds a bit like one of the poppy bits from "San Francisco".

8. The Windows of the World

Supposedly written about meeting someone at the top of the World Trade Centre and getting high. Sounds a bit like "Myopic Books". It is more of a story than a proper song.

9. One Step Ahead

Another good pop song. More of Vudi on guitar.

10. The Dance

I would say another love song but I think someone dies towards the end.

11. I know That's Not Really You

Is this the first use of accordion on a Music Club track? It seems to be in 3/4 time and has a whole host of instruments on it.

12. On My Way

Weird one this. Sounds a bit like the lyrics were written for another tune or something. Central theme seems to be a boat journey somewhere. Also has Vudi wigging out a bit at the end. Most experimental of the bunch.

13. The Grand Duchess of San Francisco

I would guess this is about one of Marks San Francisco chums. No drums on this one, just guitar and keyboards.

Five of the songs have been around for a while now, and they are the ones that immediately stick in the mind. That's not dissing the others, it just means I haven't heard them enough yet. There is a nice selection of happy songs and sad songs here and enough imagery to keep the fans pondering its meaning. Is there another Kathleen song on there? Who knows. Stylistically I would put it between California and San Francisco. Nothing as country as Everclear or noisy as Mercury. There are a few twangs and guitar picks that remind me of California while its as well produced as San Francisco was.

New Poll - Best Solo Album

Merry new year to you all. If you look a little to the left of this you will see that there is a new Poll running on the blog to find out which of Marks solo albums are your favourites? I have narrowed it down to the ones that got proper releases on proper labels and have left out all the various tour CDs.

European Supports Announced

The support bands for the American Music Clubs European tour have been announced. According to Chris from Undertow ...

"The support on all the UK & Dutch dates is Bee and Flower as advertised
nationally. Check them out www.beeandflower.com
www.myspace.com/beeandflower It was originally going to be Paula
Frazier who they often back but due to pressing matters she had to
withdraw. Lisa Papineau of Big Sur will be doing many of the European
gigs http://www.lisapapineau.com

Dana from Bee and Flower may be known to some trainspotters as being a member of AMC for one show back in '94. The band decided to tour the US with Danny on guitar but after the first show he decided he preferred the bass. Dana had quit her university place and job for that tour so now she is out for blood some 14 years later."

New Mini-Documentary

As mentioned in the comments of a previous post there is a great little video about one of Mark Eitzels trips to Ireland here. It was done by a company called Areaman and is a behind the scenes look at the making of one of the TV appearance that you used to be ble to find on YouTube. Note, you need the latest version of Quicktime to play it and I couldn't get it working in IE7.

Anyone know why Mark is so popular in Ireland? He has played a lot of shows there recently.

Parker Bros X mess Spectacular

On Sunday December 23, 2007 Mark Eitzel will be appearing at the MakeOut Room in San Francisco as part of the The Parker Bros. Xmas Spectacle. It is a charity do in aid of the SF Food Bank and features ...

The Parker Brothers and their guests Beth Lisick and Ralph Carney, Mark Eitzel, Kelley Stoltz, Chris Von Sneidern, Tippy Canoe, Phil Crumar, Chuck Prophet and Stephanie Finch, Tom Armstrong, Corey Alan Porter, Eric Moffat, Brian and Sandra Mello, Marc Capelle, Pete Simonelli, and Spiral Stairs. Plus the comedic stylings of Johnny Megget and Chris Portfolio.

$15 at the door or $10 with 2 cans of food. Proceeds to benefit SF Food Bank...

Caught In A Trap ... - Review

The War Against Silence has an old review of "Caught In A Trap" that makes an interesting read. Yes, it is nearly ten years old (which is reealllly ancient in Blog years) but it has a nice analysis of some of the lyrics.

Golden Age Charts at #1

Well, sort of. The January issue of Uncut magazine (the one with John Lennon on the cover) lists the new album as #1 on "The Office Stereo", their list of what they have been listening to in the office. It is up there above both the Happy Mondays and Led Zeppelin.