What We Done In 2006
THE LOUNGS
2006 - A YEAR IN REVIEW
JANUARY 2006
After sifting through the many big money offers on the table to look after The Loungs we finally decided at the beginning of the year to sign up with Manchester's AKOUSTIK ANARKHY RECORDINGS and immediately began to make plans for our debut single release. Cigars and lager were the order of the day at the official signing at the now infamous Piccadilly Gardens Hotel and as the ink dried on our contracts we had our photographs taken in a lift and in a corridor.
The year of gigs started in a splendid fashion as we somehow managed to persuade the throng at WA1 in Warrington (still apparently nursing their Christmas and New Year hangovers) to get up and dance like nobody was watching and gigs with THE NOISETTES and GOOD SHOES followed.
FEBRUARY 2006
The release of I'M GONNA TAKE YOUR GIRL/SEEN MY BABY DANCING saw us perform official launch parties in Manchester, London (which culiminated in the sight of ex-ALFIE's LEE GORTON dressed as a Ghostbuster) and in our hometown of St.Helens. A limited edition of 500 vinyl copies, the single sold out within the first few days and had shown up on ebay by the end of the week. The reviews were (almost) all splendid and the NME called the song a 'rather lovely and tender thing' despite worrying over the nasty conotations contained within the song's title and we had a lovely full page spread and interview in the MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS which uncovered our shady covers band past. THE SUN also described us as a 'delight to the ears' as we beat WESTLIFE in that week's singles review section.
MARCH 2006
We had the call to come and support our old friend JIM NOIR at a low key gig in Wigan. Our set turned into a riot as we were joined onstage by JIM NOIR himself and his magnificent (ex) backing band, THE BEEP SEALS. The extra backing vocals turned that night's rendition of ALL YOUR LOVE into a sight to behold. More NME reviewage saw PTL get his cheeky face in the papers again as they described THE LOUNGS' latest Manchester gig as 'sublime'.
APRIL 2006
Off to London for our third time in the capital and more gigs. We were treated like kings at a packed Lock Tavern as a part of their ADVENTURES IN THE BEETROOT FIELD nights and followed it up at the marvellous BRIXTON WINDMILL the next day along with fellow Akoustik Anarkhy signing's AUTOKAT and ITS A BUFFALO.
MAY 2006
After heroically beating our way through thousands of applicants we found ourselves down to the last 14 bands for CHANNEL 4's THE ROAD TO V contest. Interviewed by the lovely and extremely handsome GEORGE LAMB in the daytime and treated to an extremely grand dressing room, we played a storming set later that evening at the CARLING ACADEMY in Liverpool. The whole event was filmed by CHANNEL 4 for broadcast later in 2006. An extremely busy month also saw us finally begin work on our debut album at the extremely welcoming CATALYST STUDIOS in St.Helens with SIR ANDY BOWES at the helm.
JUNE 2006
We were surprised and overjoyed as we were asked to join the line up for one of Wigan's most well respected days of music this month. Opening HAIGH HALL FESTIVAL was a great experience and not bad going at all for a bunch of chancers from St.Helens. Other sets that day included old friends MOCO and the sadly now defunct VCs. Other gigs this month included a support slot with DELTASONIC's THE BASEMENT and our first bash at THE CITADEL's brand new RUBBERNECK night.
June also saw THE LOUNGS appear amongst a bunch of semi-naked women in nudie-nudie lad mag NUTS as a part of the press campaign for THE ROAD TO V. Odd but not as odd as finally seeing our hairy faces on CHANNEL 4 and adopting a new catchprase courtesy of NTL. "YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO!"
JULY 2006
A beautiful sunny day heralded another wonderful gig at THE RAMPANT LION in Manchester alongside hotly-tipped THE ANSWERING MACHINE and WTL tore a huge hole in his leg whilst falling off stage during a soundcheck for a gig at JABEZ CLEGG with WAX PLANET. The scar remains.
AUGUST 2006
Our first trip to Scotland found us again treated like kings at the legendary KING TUTS WAH WAH HUT in Glasgow. Fed, watered and looked after we then set upon a handful of outdoor festival gigs including the brilliant and expansive D:PERCUSSION in Manchester and ending up at St.Helens' very own ECLECTICA FESTIVAL in the town centre. Featuring SPEARHEAD and IAN McNABB among other artists, the latter gig and the events that followed it on a seemingly calm and quiet Sunday afternoon have now passed into Loungs folklore.
SEPTEMBER 2006
An unfortunate chain of events led to us supporting THE BLOCKHEADS from a completely different venue in the town and by playing AFTER their set had ended as opposed to before the main act like most support acts would. Alls well that ended well as most of their audience flocked over to the neighbouring ZOO BAR to see a late night, tired and emotional set from THE LOUNGS.
We also met once again with Sheffield wonders THE HARRISONS and talked about Scott Walker until the early hours of the morning at an all day music seminar in STOCKTON-ON-TEES. Later that night we were nearly thrown out of a hotel. This was not the last time this would happen this year.
A defective keyboard saw THE LOUNGS phone JIM NOIR, THE BEEP SEALS and PIERRE HALL desperately for a replacement. One was never found.
OCTOBER 2006
Our second time at CENTRAL STATION in WREXHAM turned into quite a night. 2 rooms hosted a fine bill of bands including our old friends and favourites GINTIS and the mighty ZABRINSKI among others. The night ended with WTL losing a keyboard stand that did'nt even belong to him ("I DON'T GIVE A SHIT!") and resulted in possibly the most raucous and drunken Loungs late night drive home yet. Wonderful stuff.
This month we also had our second foray into vinyl released with ALL YOUR LOVE's inclusion on LUPINE RECORDS' compilation TALES FROM THE LUX alongside DIRTY CIRCUS, MOCO, GERARD STARKEY and many more as we played our second of 2 nights at this year's IN THE CITY conference in Manchester.
NOVEMBER 2006
A trip to Glossop to play at LATITUDE, the night run by MY DAD RECORDINGS with our friends ITS A BUFFALO went well as did a support slot with VINNY PECULIAR in St.Helens during which we found out that CRAIG GANNON and MIKE JOYCE of THE SMITHS are actually very nice people and that you should'nt believe everything that MORRISSEY tells you. We also helped along the baggy revival with local heroes THE CLONE ROSES at the LIVERPOOL ACADEMY where we met an over excited security guard and baggy hero CLINT BOON of THE INSPIRAL CARPETS. BOOOOON ARRRRRMY!!!
DECEMBER 2006
The brilliant Cardiff based music magazine KRUGER hosted a marvellous night of music at THE BUFFALO BAR in the centre of Cardiff. AUTOKAT and ourselves played a jam packed night that featured djs and live music until the early hours of the morning. We were also as proud as punch to meet GUTO, DAF and KRIS from SUPER FURRY ANIMALS and THE PETH and the early hours of the next morning featured yet another close call at the hands of hotel security. It was a looooong journey home.
Our 50th and last gig of the year was a fitting blast of a set at AKOUSTIK ANARKHY's Christmas Do. Along with our labelmates we saw the year out with a smile and a dance.
2006 - A YEAR IN REVIEW
JANUARY 2006
After sifting through the many big money offers on the table to look after The Loungs we finally decided at the beginning of the year to sign up with Manchester's AKOUSTIK ANARKHY RECORDINGS and immediately began to make plans for our debut single release. Cigars and lager were the order of the day at the official signing at the now infamous Piccadilly Gardens Hotel and as the ink dried on our contracts we had our photographs taken in a lift and in a corridor.
The year of gigs started in a splendid fashion as we somehow managed to persuade the throng at WA1 in Warrington (still apparently nursing their Christmas and New Year hangovers) to get up and dance like nobody was watching and gigs with THE NOISETTES and GOOD SHOES followed.
FEBRUARY 2006
The release of I'M GONNA TAKE YOUR GIRL/SEEN MY BABY DANCING saw us perform official launch parties in Manchester, London (which culiminated in the sight of ex-ALFIE's LEE GORTON dressed as a Ghostbuster) and in our hometown of St.Helens. A limited edition of 500 vinyl copies, the single sold out within the first few days and had shown up on ebay by the end of the week. The reviews were (almost) all splendid and the NME called the song a 'rather lovely and tender thing' despite worrying over the nasty conotations contained within the song's title and we had a lovely full page spread and interview in the MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS which uncovered our shady covers band past. THE SUN also described us as a 'delight to the ears' as we beat WESTLIFE in that week's singles review section.
MARCH 2006
We had the call to come and support our old friend JIM NOIR at a low key gig in Wigan. Our set turned into a riot as we were joined onstage by JIM NOIR himself and his magnificent (ex) backing band, THE BEEP SEALS. The extra backing vocals turned that night's rendition of ALL YOUR LOVE into a sight to behold. More NME reviewage saw PTL get his cheeky face in the papers again as they described THE LOUNGS' latest Manchester gig as 'sublime'.
APRIL 2006
Off to London for our third time in the capital and more gigs. We were treated like kings at a packed Lock Tavern as a part of their ADVENTURES IN THE BEETROOT FIELD nights and followed it up at the marvellous BRIXTON WINDMILL the next day along with fellow Akoustik Anarkhy signing's AUTOKAT and ITS A BUFFALO.
MAY 2006
After heroically beating our way through thousands of applicants we found ourselves down to the last 14 bands for CHANNEL 4's THE ROAD TO V contest. Interviewed by the lovely and extremely handsome GEORGE LAMB in the daytime and treated to an extremely grand dressing room, we played a storming set later that evening at the CARLING ACADEMY in Liverpool. The whole event was filmed by CHANNEL 4 for broadcast later in 2006. An extremely busy month also saw us finally begin work on our debut album at the extremely welcoming CATALYST STUDIOS in St.Helens with SIR ANDY BOWES at the helm.
JUNE 2006
We were surprised and overjoyed as we were asked to join the line up for one of Wigan's most well respected days of music this month. Opening HAIGH HALL FESTIVAL was a great experience and not bad going at all for a bunch of chancers from St.Helens. Other sets that day included old friends MOCO and the sadly now defunct VCs. Other gigs this month included a support slot with DELTASONIC's THE BASEMENT and our first bash at THE CITADEL's brand new RUBBERNECK night.
June also saw THE LOUNGS appear amongst a bunch of semi-naked women in nudie-nudie lad mag NUTS as a part of the press campaign for THE ROAD TO V. Odd but not as odd as finally seeing our hairy faces on CHANNEL 4 and adopting a new catchprase courtesy of NTL. "YOU KNOW WHAT TO DO!"
JULY 2006
A beautiful sunny day heralded another wonderful gig at THE RAMPANT LION in Manchester alongside hotly-tipped THE ANSWERING MACHINE and WTL tore a huge hole in his leg whilst falling off stage during a soundcheck for a gig at JABEZ CLEGG with WAX PLANET. The scar remains.
AUGUST 2006
Our first trip to Scotland found us again treated like kings at the legendary KING TUTS WAH WAH HUT in Glasgow. Fed, watered and looked after we then set upon a handful of outdoor festival gigs including the brilliant and expansive D:PERCUSSION in Manchester and ending up at St.Helens' very own ECLECTICA FESTIVAL in the town centre. Featuring SPEARHEAD and IAN McNABB among other artists, the latter gig and the events that followed it on a seemingly calm and quiet Sunday afternoon have now passed into Loungs folklore.
SEPTEMBER 2006
An unfortunate chain of events led to us supporting THE BLOCKHEADS from a completely different venue in the town and by playing AFTER their set had ended as opposed to before the main act like most support acts would. Alls well that ended well as most of their audience flocked over to the neighbouring ZOO BAR to see a late night, tired and emotional set from THE LOUNGS.
We also met once again with Sheffield wonders THE HARRISONS and talked about Scott Walker until the early hours of the morning at an all day music seminar in STOCKTON-ON-TEES. Later that night we were nearly thrown out of a hotel. This was not the last time this would happen this year.
A defective keyboard saw THE LOUNGS phone JIM NOIR, THE BEEP SEALS and PIERRE HALL desperately for a replacement. One was never found.
OCTOBER 2006
Our second time at CENTRAL STATION in WREXHAM turned into quite a night. 2 rooms hosted a fine bill of bands including our old friends and favourites GINTIS and the mighty ZABRINSKI among others. The night ended with WTL losing a keyboard stand that did'nt even belong to him ("I DON'T GIVE A SHIT!") and resulted in possibly the most raucous and drunken Loungs late night drive home yet. Wonderful stuff.
This month we also had our second foray into vinyl released with ALL YOUR LOVE's inclusion on LUPINE RECORDS' compilation TALES FROM THE LUX alongside DIRTY CIRCUS, MOCO, GERARD STARKEY and many more as we played our second of 2 nights at this year's IN THE CITY conference in Manchester.
NOVEMBER 2006
A trip to Glossop to play at LATITUDE, the night run by MY DAD RECORDINGS with our friends ITS A BUFFALO went well as did a support slot with VINNY PECULIAR in St.Helens during which we found out that CRAIG GANNON and MIKE JOYCE of THE SMITHS are actually very nice people and that you should'nt believe everything that MORRISSEY tells you. We also helped along the baggy revival with local heroes THE CLONE ROSES at the LIVERPOOL ACADEMY where we met an over excited security guard and baggy hero CLINT BOON of THE INSPIRAL CARPETS. BOOOOON ARRRRRMY!!!
DECEMBER 2006
The brilliant Cardiff based music magazine KRUGER hosted a marvellous night of music at THE BUFFALO BAR in the centre of Cardiff. AUTOKAT and ourselves played a jam packed night that featured djs and live music until the early hours of the morning. We were also as proud as punch to meet GUTO, DAF and KRIS from SUPER FURRY ANIMALS and THE PETH and the early hours of the next morning featured yet another close call at the hands of hotel security. It was a looooong journey home.
Our 50th and last gig of the year was a fitting blast of a set at AKOUSTIK ANARKHY's Christmas Do. Along with our labelmates we saw the year out with a smile and a dance.
posted by the loungs at 3:30 PM
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