February 21, 2005

Dear gang,

After five albums (plus a 7" and a few comp. tracks), a similar number of national tours, and a mailing list and press kit that we're very proud of, the hurricane lamps have decided to pack it in. Greg is currently traveling all over Europe, which makes attending practice kinda hard for him. Given Greg's itinerary, Jason decided now would be a good time to start developing the songs he's quietly been writing and editing over the years.

That left me with a batch of songs I was really excited about, and no one to play with. So I formed a new band, the Jet Age (www.thejetage.net); we'll be making our debut on May 1 at the Black Cat (here in DC), opening for my old friends David Gedge, Simon Cleave, and Terry de Castro, who will be on tour with a drummer I don't know as the motherfucking WEDDING PRESENT. Look for MP3s on the Jet Age site in April.

Meanwhile, stay tuned for more word on Jason's solo stuff. You can also catch him on stage playing bass with Carol Bui.

As for Greg, you can probably find him single-handedly restoring America's dignity in bars all across Scandinavia, one well-considered conversation at a time.

When we hit the road for our last tour, we all thought we could see the end coming, and decided to tape the shows. Sadly, technical difficulties marred most of the recordings (guitar problems in Seattle, no vocals recorded in Portland, horrible singing in Oklahoma City, etc.), but the last show of the tour, Chicago, seemed okay. We plan on making that available on the site soon, so come back and visit (or send us an email and ask us to let you know when it's available).

As I was checking the tapes from the tour, I was really gratified by how much progress we'd made as a band. Each of Jason's performances was stunning and virtually flawless, and Greg's fabulous bass lines--always delivered with aplomb--consistently validated our decision to continue as a three piece. A lot of you expressed the same sentiments after the shows, and we really appreciated it.

To those of you who came out to see us, bought our records and t-shirts, and put us up, you made driving back and forth across the country in two weeks seem like a REALLY good idea. Every time. Thank you, 'cause we couldn't have done it without you.

Love -Eric"

No more shows for now...
 

October 21, 2004

Hey Gang,

The new record, "More, More, More" has been out for a few weeks. Reviews are starting to come in & radio play is picking up. Thanks to everyone who has picked up a copy so far. We'll be heading out on tour in the next few days as well. When we're not pretending to be indie rock stars, we're usually working in our normal day jobs, which sometimes makes it hard to get out on the road, but we're dedicated, if anything, to bring the rock to you. Highlights include an appearance on KEXP in Seattle, Halloween benefit show for ORLO in Portland, and a visit with our good friends down in Austin. Lest we forget, the chocolately filling surrounding those dates aren't exactly chopped liver either. (mmm...chocolate and liver). Anyway, we're excited to get out there and see everyone again.

Be sure check out the tour diary link below for updated entiries during the tour. -J.

August 19, 2004

Dear gang,
 
The record's back and we think it looks and sounds great. You can buy it from us now, or it'll be in stores and on-line on 9/7. For those of you who don't care about sound qualilty, artwork, or lyrics, you'll be able to buy from the likes of iTunes and Napster. You can hear samples here.
 
We should be roaming the countryside later this fall, so keep visiting or sign up for our (regional!) mailing lists. Thanks, and let us know what you think when you hear the new stuff. -E

July 2, 2004

The recording and mixing are complete and the master should be coming back any day now. I'm pretty psyched for this record, moreso than I have been for our other records and I think that's a good thing. Eric really kicked it up a few notches on the vocal and guitar overdubs and I'm pleasantly surprised with new sounds every time I listen to the mixes. In other news, Eric was interviewed in the latest edition of 'Dagger'.
- J.

May 28, 2004

Dear gang,

Well, it's almost June and "More, More, More" is almost finished and all three of us love it. I mean LOVE it. Even Jason is really happy, and Jason complains constantly. Look for some sound clips in July (I'm thinking realAudio because I feel like MP3s are killing albums), and then the actual release in mid-to-late Sept., then a tour in Oct.-Nov. How's that? Hope you're all well. Love -E

P.S. Remember, Wellspring, the benefit comp. for Bread for the City, is still available at www.sonicboomerangrecords.com, and features tracks from Cinerama, the Mendoza Line, Bettie Serveert, Barbara Manning, us, and plenty of others. All of the money goes to a good cause (Bread for the City, which you can read up on at www.breadforthecity.org).

April 22, 2004

Dear Gang,

We've finished the basic tracks for "More, More, More" (our fifth album! When does the madness end?). I'm working on vocals now, then guitar solos, then keyboard bits, then percussion, then I'll mix it, then Greg and Jason will listen and tell me they wished the mixes were tweaked a bit, then I'll tweak them and we'll be done. Yeeha! Who says making a record isn't sexy? Jason was really on fire during the sessions, and we managed to get most tunes done in three takes, which was nice. I hope to have some audio up in early May, so check back. Love -E