2010年2月Billboard报道:Keane五月搭上《Night Train》

Keane Boarding the ‘Night Train’ This May

http://www.billboard.com/news/keane-boarding-the-night-train-this-may-1004071403.story#/news/keane-boarding-the-night-train-this-may-1004071403.story

by Michael D. Ayers, N.Y. | Feb 26, 2010 11:28 EST

British rock act Keane is set to return this spring with its fourth album, “Night Train.” Due May 11 via Cherrytree/Interscope, the set contains only 8 songs, but features collaborations with rapper K’Naan, Japanese MC Tigarah and a rare lead vocal performance from Keane keyboard player Tim Rice-Oxley.

“Night Train’s” title and material was born out of Keane’s world tour for 2008′s “Perfect Symmetry,” of which the band’sfavorite method of travel became taking trains between gigs. “The idea was to chuck out a single, or at most an EP in October,” Keane vocalist Tom Chaplin tells Billboard.com. “But it turned into something more. I think we see it as a body of work that we made during touring. Just a document of different places and moods.”

Chaplin says that the tunes on “Night Train” were written out on the road during the “Perfect Symmetry” tour and recorded at various studios around the globe, depending on where they were at the moment. “I think most bands feel like this, but out on the road, it can be a desolate place at times. A sense of not being that creative. And this is a bit more spontaneous. We’ve always felt that everything must be just so. And you can drive yourself loopy if you dissect every part you’re doing.”

Alongside Coldplay and Radiohead, Keane has become one of Britain’s best exports over the last several years . According to Nielsen SoundScan, “Perfect Symmetry” sold 135,000. But those numbers pale in comparison to 2006′s “Under the Iron Sea,” which has sold 392,000, and the band’s 2004 debut, “Hopes and Fears,” which has sold 1,000,000.

“Maybe it was a step too far for some people as far as what they expect from Keane,” Chaplin says of “Perfect Symmetry’”s sales. “It doesn’t bother us too much. In a way, it makes us hungrier. You realize you only get one chance in a band. Using the same tricks is a boring idea. We really want to keep moving.”

Although nothing is on the books at the moment, Chaplin has high hopes that Keane will return stateside this summer for a tour.

Here is the track list for “Night Train”:

“House Lights”
“Back in Time”
“Stop For a Minute” (featuring K’Naan)
“Clear Skies”
“Ishin Dengshin (You’ve Got To Help Yourself)” (Featuring Tigarah)
“Your Love”
“Looking Back” (Featuring K’Naan)
“My Shadow”

Keane2006年官网的背景资料

We grew up and went to school together in and around a small town called ‘Battle’ in the south of England. There is not much to do in Battle, but in the late 1980s, during school holidays spent playing football, we discovered music, like most kids do, and pretty soon were swapping our favourite new albums and artists.

Tim had a few piano lessons at school, but quickly bored of the endless scales and classical music, so gave up trying, only to discover that he could play Buddy Holly tunes with what he had picked up. That was it, the start of years playing the songs he enjoyed listening to on a Casio keyboard, programming a pocket-sized sequencer, and trying to write his own songs to play to his friends.

As soon as Rich started out on the drums we started playing together, recruiting a guitarist; Dominic, and soon after, a singer; Tom.

Music was the only thing we all wanted to do. We had nobody to teach us aside from the tapes in our walkmans, and our Beatles’ songbooks, so it took a while to get the hang of playing and writing. By 1999, we moved to London to seek a record deal and conquer the world.

Two years on, without a record deal, and with one less member, the three of us fled back to the countryside, broke and downhearted, suffering the ill-effects of two years spent in dead-end jobs by day, and dank rehearsal rooms by night.

Salvation arrived, as ever, in the form of music; an opportunity to go to a dilapidated farmhouse in France and record some new demos. The guitar lines were forgotten, and a new sound gradually emerged. ­ Pianos and keyboard took over and Tom’s voice found the space it needed. We headed back home, eager to play our new songs to people.

By January 2003 we’d been given the chance to release a record on tiny-but-legendary indie label, Fierce Panda, whose head honcho had seen us play at the 12 Bar Club in London. We went back to Battle and recorded ‘Everybody’s Changing’. The song was made ‘Single of the Week’ by influential Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq, and gradually picked up by others. All 500 copies sold, and we could barely believe it. We took toured the UK for the first time, playing to packed houses and empty rooms. We paid for the fuel and food with what we had earned the night before, ­the money safely stored in a plastic food container.

The lure of a real band that was getting played on the radio and touring the UK was too much to resist, and pretty much all of the big labels had got their chequebooks out. We signed a deal that offered us total creative control over our music, and went to a small local studio called Helioscentric to record and co-produce (with Andy Green) our debut album ‘Hopes and Fears’ in late 2003, and headed back out on the road.

We released ‘Hopes and Fears’ in May 2004.

The continuing tour we embarked upon led us around the world for another eighteen months. In 2004 we played four UK tours, and by October 2005 had played 5 American tours which included playing alongside U2 at Madison Square Gardens, visited Mexico, Japan, Australia, toured Europe, played festivals all over the world, and played at the London ‘Live 8′ show.

‘Hopes and Fears’ sold over 5 million copies worldwide. We won two Brit Awards in 2005 (British Breakthrough Act and Best Album); Q Magazine’s Best Album award; and were nominated in the Best New Act category at The Grammys, but the touring was taking its toll – we needed to get back into the studio, and back to our homes. During every break we could find since 2004, we had been recording bits and pieces, and in October 2005 we headed straight back into the studio for the new sessions with Andy Green, finishing off in December.

The new album, ‘Under The Iron Sea’ was recorded at The Magic Shop in Soho, New York, and back at Helioscentric Studios, near Battle.

In making this record we tried to confront all our worst fears, to ruthlessly scrutinise ourselves, our relationship with each other, with other people, and with the world at large, and to make a journey into the darkest places we could find.

It made for an incredibly intense atmosphere during the writing and recording of the album, and the resultant songs and sounds very much reflect that. In the songs we created a kind of sinister fairytale-world-gone-wrong, a feeling of confusion and numbness represented by a dark place under an impenetrable iron sea. To express all this we created entirely new sounds by putting an old electric piano and various analogue synths through many different combinations of vintage guitar effects pedals, creating soundscapes that range from the percussive to vast oppressive walls of distortion.

We were writing, singing and performing with a drive, intensity and fury that is almost unrecognisable from our previous music.

It was important that this album had a strong visual presence too, and the start of that was the collaboration with Irvine Welsh on ‘Atlantic’ offered somebody who both inspired us, and found his own inspiration in our music.

His resulting film echoes the importance of that visual identity we strove for.

We wrote Under The Iron Sea because we needed a record that was going to make us feel alive again.

Keane2006年官网的背景资料

我们在英国南部的一座叫”Battle”的小镇里一起长大和上学。在Battle里没有什么东西好做的，但在20世纪八十年代末，我们在学校假期踢足球时像许多小孩子一样发现了音乐，而且很快就开始搜罗我们最喜欢的专辑和歌手。

Tim在学校里上了几节钢琴课，却很快就对没完没了的音阶和古典音乐感到无聊了。于是他放弃了上课，却发现他能把听到的Buddy Holly的音调弹出来。于是他开始在一台Casio钢琴上弹奏自己喜欢的歌，在一台口袋大小的音序器上编程，并努力去写自己的歌曲来表演给他的朋友听。

当Rich一开始打鼓，我们就立刻一起组队，招募了吉他手Dominic，然后不久，主唱Tom。

我们唯一想做的就是音乐。没有人教，我们就自己从walkman的录音带和Beatles的乐谱里学。因此过了一段时间我们才懂得演奏和 创作。到了1999年，我们前往伦敦去寻找一个唱片合约，然后要征服世界。

两年过去了，我们不但没有唱片约，还少了一个队员，我们三个逃回乡下，信心尽失，被这两年日要做没有前途的工作，夜要在阴暗潮湿的房间里排练的生活所留下的阴影折磨着。

像从来的一样，拯救以音乐的形式到来了。这次我们有机会去一个坍坯的法国农房里去录制一些新的样本。吉他的谱子被忘记了，而新的声音逐渐产生了。钢琴和键盘取代其位，Tom的嗓音也找到其所。我们于是回家，渴望着向人们演奏我们的新歌。

我们在2004年五月发行了Hopes And Fears。

我们之后展开的持续的巡回演出让我们又用了18个月周游世界。在2004年我们演出了四个英国巡回，而到了2005年十月我们又完成五个美国巡演，其中包括在Madison Square Gardens（纽约麦迪逊广场花园）与U2的同台演出。我们访问了墨西哥、日本、澳大利亚，巡演了欧洲，在世界各地的音乐节上表演，还有在伦敦Live 8的表演。

Hopes And Fears在全球销售超过了五百万张。在2005年 我们赢得了两项Brit Awards（全英音乐奖）奖项（英国最佳突破奖和最佳专辑奖）和Q Magazine的最佳专辑奖，并获得了Grammys(格莱美)最佳新人的提名。但是巡演总有它的代价－－我们需要回到录音室，回到家里。自从2004 年起，我们就在能拥有的每个间隙录制了一些零零碎碎的东西。在2005年十月，我们径直回到录音室与Andy Green展开新的工作，并在十二月份结束。

新专辑Under The Iron Sea先是在纽约Soho的The Magic Shop里录制，然后回到Battle附近的Helioscentric Studios完成。

在制作这张专辑时，我们努力地去面对我们所有的巨大的恐惧，去无情地审视自己，审视我们之间、我们与他人、以至我们与外在 世界的关系，去我们能找到的最黑暗的地方探索。

这在创作和录制过程中产生了难以置信的紧张气氛，而由此生成的歌曲和声音很好地反映了这一点。在歌曲里我们制造出了一种童话世界要出错的不祥征兆，一种由一个不可到达的铁海下的黑暗地方象征的迷惑和麻木。为了表达这一切，我们用电子钢琴和各种模拟合成音穿插于各种不同的有浓厚吉他效果的踏板钢琴声来创造出全新的声音，从而制造出从打击到沉重的分裂巨墙的声音意境。

我们带着驱动力、力量和愤怒写着，唱着，表演着。而这些驱动力、力量和愤怒在我们以前的音乐里几乎不能被感受得到。

同样重要的还有这张专辑有强烈的视觉现实感。而启动这种现 实感的是与Irvine Welsh在Atlantic上的合作。他们两者启发了我们，而他也在我们的音乐里获得启发。

他制作出来的影片又再次强调了我 们追求的视觉特有的效果。

我们创作了Under The Iron Sea，因为我们需要一张能让我们感觉重获生机的专辑。

2006年六月

2008年1月Keane官网:Tom回答歌迷提问(第七轮)

TOM ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS
18.01.08 | 10.56.am
Mr Chaplin faces your Ask Keane queries

Yes, as promised earlier in the week, we’ve asked Tom, Tim and Richard to answer some more of the questions which you folks have very kindly been sending in via the Ask Keane area of Ezine. Tom was quickest to reply to our email (gold star to Mr Chaplin!) so we’re posting his responses first. Answers from Tim and Richard will follow in the next few days.

“Dear Tom. My question is, how you do always have your voice so tuned?”
Romina
Tom replies: Practice and luck.

“Hi Tom! I wonder if you are related to Charlie Chaplin?”
Siri
Tom replies: So do I! Recently, I’ve become obsessed by a British TV series called “Who Do You Think You Are?” in which various famous people are helped by a genealogist to find out about their ancestors and the social history that surrounds them. It’s often a very moving experience and something I’ve even considered doing on a private basis! Chaplin is quite an unusual name and although Charlie Chaplin spent a large portion of his life in America, he was born in England. Anyway, I’d be very interested to find out.

“Hi Tom, what is your favourite colour?”
Lauren
Tom replies: All of them. Kaleidoscopes make my brain go funny. Does that count?

“Tom – What is your favourite Keane song?”
Miri
Tom replies: There’s a new song called ‘Perfect Symmetry’, which is the best song that Tim has ever written. A true classic and also a song for our times. I can’t wait to start singing it to you lot out there. You won’t be disappointed.

“Tom, is it true that you had (or have) a rabbit called ‘Biffo’?
Ana Catarina
Tom replies: No. I have two ducks called Hannah and Wayne that potter around on my pond. There were originally five of them but I reckon my builders ate them when they were working on my house. My girlfriend has a miniature poodle (and no it doesn’t have a stupid haircut) that I’ve grown to love. They’re actually reckoned to be one of the most intelligent dogs of them all, although this unfortunately also makes him one of the most defiant, spoilt and arrogant dogs I’ve ever encountered. Those traits seem to have come to the forefront since I’ve known him. Every dog is like its owner etc… Somehow he seems to get away with it, though. Is that me or the dog? Who knows?

“Tom, what’s the most important thing in your life?”
Esmeralda Duenas
Tom replies: It flits between cricket and golf. Followed by the wonderful people I have in my life. As you can tell, my priorities are as confused as I am.

“Tom, can you hold a note for 20.2 seconds (like Morten Harket does in ‘Summer Moved On’)?
Danielle
Tom replies: I met Morten Harket once and he’s the healthiest looking man I’ve ever encountered. He probably has lungs like hot air balloons. How can I compete with that?

“Tom, I’d like to know how do you take care of your voice? I’m asking because I intend to be a vocalist someday and my biggest fear is to wake up without my voice in the day of a performance! Have it ever happened to you?”
Maria Isabel
Tom replies: My voice only really goes when I get a throat infection or a bad cold. Then there was the War Child gig in Manchester where I had a terrible stomach bug – voice was fine but the rest of my body was a mess. Normally though I’m very lucky that my voice seems to be pretty robust. I do a lot of warming up and I look after my body very well on tour these days…which really helps.

“Tom, what is your favourite football team?”
George Papadakis
Tom replies: Ipswich Town. Wouldn’t die for them though. Mainly because they’re a bit shit.

“Tom, I am from Costa Rica and I think you guys are amazing. I just wanna know, what do you do when you feel alone?”
Tiffany
Tom replies: Wow, that comes across as an extremely philosophical question. I feel that living in these times we have more distractions and more opportunities to communicate; and yet it seems like there’s more loneliness and unhappiness than ever before. Solitude is fine so long as that’s what you really want. I like spending time on my own but I don’t like being stuck on my own with a lot of bottled up anxieties. My answer, for what it’s worth, is to try to talk to someone if you feel alone, however hard that might seem. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the old cliché of “a problem shared is a problem halved” is very helpful. Whenever I feel alone, it’s because I’m stuck with problems and parts of my personality that I don’t particularly like. I’ve spent a fair amount of time over the last year or two trying to articulate those feelings to other people, especially the people closest to me. Anyway, before I start sounding like some awful pseudo-psychiatrist, I’ll be on my way. Lots of love to you all. Goodbye. Tom

2008年1月Keane官网:Tom回答歌迷提问(第七轮)

Tom Chaplin回答歌迷提问
2008-1-18

正如我们这个礼拜初承诺的，我们让Tom、Tim和Richard再回答一些你们通过Ezine的Ask Keane版块发过来的问题。Tom是最快回复我们的Email的（奖给Chaplin先生一颗金星！）所以，我们率先奉上他的回答。Tim和Richard的回答会在未来的几天内奉上。

“亲爱的Tom。我的问题是，你是怎么使你的嗓音总是保持那么准的？” —— Romina
Tom：练习和运气。

“Tom，你好！我想知道你是否跟查理·卓别林（Charlie Chaplin）有关系？” —— Siri
Tom：我也想知道啊！最近我很迷一部叫《Who Do You Think You Are?》（《你以为你是谁？》）的英国电视剧。在里面，一些名人在遗传学家的帮助下查明他们的祖先和他们周围的社会历史。这是一个非常感人的经历，我甚至考虑过在私低下做这件事呢！卓别林是一个比较独特的名字。虽然查理·卓别林有大半辈子是在美国度过的，但他是在英国出生的。无论如何，我都很有兴趣来查证一下。

“Tom，你好，你最喜欢的颜色是什么？” —— Lauren
Tom：全部颜色。万花筒让我觉得很有趣。这算一种颜色吗？

“Tom —— 你最喜欢Keane哪首歌？” —— Miri
Tom：是一首新歌，叫《Perfect Symmetry》，这是Tim写的最棒的一首歌。一首真正的经典，同时也是见证我们的历史的一首歌。我已经等不及给你们唱出这首歌了。你们一定不会失望的。

“Tom，你有（或者曾经有）一只叫Biffo的兔子，是真的吗？” —— Ana Catarina
Tom：没有。我有两只叫Hannah和Wayne的鸭，就在我家的池塘边逛来逛去。本来是有五只的，但我想是那些建筑工人在我家里工作的时候吃掉了它们。我的女朋友有一只微型狮子狗（不，它没有理一个愚蠢的发型），我已经渐渐喜欢上了它。其实他们本来是被认为狗类中最聪明的一种，虽然这又不幸地使他成为我见到过的最不听话、最受宠和最高傲的狗。自从我认识它后，这些特点好像都特别明显。每只狗都像他的主人，等等…… 但，不知怎的，他好像总能免受责备。是说我还是说狗呢？谁知道？

“Tom，什么是你生命中最重要的东西？” —— Esmeralda Duenas
Tom：这徘徊在板球和高尔夫之间。然后就是生活中我认识的了不起的人们。可以看出，我自己都弄不清哪一个是首选。

“Tom，你能够唱一个20.2秒钟长的音吗（就像Morten Harket（译者注：挪威乐队a-ha的主唱）唱《Summer Moved On》那样）？” —— Danielle
Tom：我见过Morten Harket一次，他是我见过的最健康的人之一。他的肺可能像热气球一样。我怎么能跟他比呢？

“Tom，我想知道你是怎么保养你的嗓音的。” —— Maria Isabel
Tom：我的嗓音在喉咙感染或者感冒的时候真的会全没的。还有的情况就像在曼彻斯特的War Child表演上，我的胃很有问题——声音还可以，但我身体的其他部分感觉遭透了。但一般来说，我很幸运能有一副看上去挺强壮的嗓子。在巡演的时候，我会做很多热身，而且会很照顾自己的身体……这真的很有帮助。

“Tom，你最喜欢哪支足球队？” —— George Papadakis
Tom：伊普斯维奇城（Ipswich Town）。但不会为他们而死。主要是因为他们现在有些垃圾。

“Tom，我来自哥斯达黎加，我觉得你们太棒了。我只是想知道，你感到孤独的时候会做些什么？”—— Tiffany
Tom：Wow，这看上去是一个很哲学的问题啊。我觉得生活在这个时代，我们有更多的娱乐和沟通的机会；但同时好像也比以前有更多的孤独和苦恼。孤独是好的，只要你真正想要孤独。我喜欢自己一个人打发时间，但我不喜欢在憋着许多烦心事的时候还一个人呆着。对也好，错也好，我的答案是在你感到孤独的时候，尝试向另一个人倾诉，无论这有多么艰难。我认为，这句言语“分享的问题是减半了的问题”（a problem shared is a problem halved）无疑是非常有用的。每当我感到孤独，都是因为我遇到了问题和我个性中我不是特别喜欢的部分。在过去一两年里，我花了一定量的时间尝试把这些感觉诉说给其他人听，特别是给那些我最亲密的人。好吧，趁我听上去还没像一个很厉害的匿名精神病医生之前，我就此打住吧。很爱你们。再见。Tom。