Tuesday 30 September 2008
Interview on ClashMusic.com: Keane reveal their Perfect return
'Perfect Symmetry' is their most ambitious album yet.
While the hopes Sussex trio Keane spoke of on their debut album were realised swiftly – ‘Hopes And Fears’ topped the domestic albums chart upon its May 2004 release – the titular fears eventually took hold. Just as every bright light casts a shadow, soon after their tearaway success the band were dangerously close to falling off the rails. Corrective measures needed to be taken.
Vocalist Tom Chaplin became disillusioned with the touring lifestyle, with the slog of promoting the band’s second album, 2006’s ‘Under The Iron Sea’; come August he’d admitted himself into rehabilitation for problems relating to drinking and drugs. So far, so clichéd, but the difference is that Keane were never perceived as hedonistic sorts; their music was always safe, solid, dependable. Both albums were equally at home on the stereos of 12-year-old revolutionaries in waiting as they were those of 40something dockworkers and shift-sore nurses. Chaplin’s spell in rehab not only spawned amusing rumours of collaborations with fellow residents – namely Justin Hawkins and Pete Doherty – but also a sort of endearment amongst those who felt his band were impervious to wrong turns, to ill fortune whatever criticisms were levelled at them.
With perceptions permanently altered and Chaplin fighting fit, the band – completed by drummer Richard Hughes and pianist and key songwriter Tim Rice-Oxley – toured 2007 with mindsets altered: now they were battling against the industry machine and its many demands, rediscovering the joys of being in a band by focusing inwards. This spirit was fed into the making of album three, ‘Perfect Symmetry’, due for release on October 13.
"This was definitely the most enjoyable record to make"
Keane’s latest begins with a blind-sider, a lead track that showcases their renewed desire for forward movement and creative chance-taking. ‘Spiralling’ is a song you either love or hate; there is no middle ground opinion wise. It’s a perfect introduction to a parent record that follows suit, mixing relatively typical Keane arrangements with flourishes of their evident levels of enthusiasm and invigorated ambition.
Clash paid Chaplin and Hughes a visit to learn more about the gestation of ‘Perfect Symmetry’…
I guess the first thing to say about the new album is that it definitely captures a sense of momentum…
Richard Hughes: Nobody’s said that before, but it’s a cool way of looking at it.
What I mean, I suppose, is that it seems to exhibit a newly discovered inner confidence. Like you’ve laid the solid foundations with albums one and two, and now a greater creativity comes to the fore.
RH: Yeah, I think that’s right, and this album has certainly been the most collaborative one we’ve had so far. Everybody was chipping in ideas left, right and centre, whether it’s me doing vocals, backing vocals, or Tom coming up with ideas for drum parts – these things wouldn’t have happened on previous records as much. We produced most of it ourselves, too. We just had tonnes of ideas, and it definitely pushes into some new ground for Keane.
And the single, ‘Spiralling’, seems quite the statement of intent…
Tom Chaplin: I think a lot of the confidence, the sense of fun and purpose, has come from touring more than anything else. The last record feels like sort of a scary chapter in the Keane book, but I feel that chapter’s closed now. We’ve made touring fun again, and through that we have reconnected with enjoying music. That’s what you hear on this album, more than anything else: that spirit, and that sense of us having a laugh and perhaps not taking everything quite as seriously. Sonically, it’s a fun-sounding album.
RH: This was definitely the most enjoyable record to make. With the first we were basically playing what we’d been playing in pubs into microphones, and then it was released. Listening back now it sounds very naïve and polite, although we don’t remember it being like that. The first one bought us freedom to dictate what we do and when and where we do it, and nobody really tells us otherwise – they get to hear it when it’s done. So we’ve had a lot of freedom making this. Initially we thought we might have a lot of producers coming in on it, to almost give it a hip-hop feel…
Next thing you’ll be telling me is that you’ve guest rappers coming in…
RH: You might joke, but we have talked about it. There’s a song that didn’t end up on the record that has a gap left on it for a guest rapper, but we’ve not properly got into it yet. The weird thing is that we’ve established an attitude, while making this record, that nothing is too leftfield, or off limits. Nothing is too much of a left turn. There are elements of ‘Spiralling’ that we’d have said no to in the past, asking someone to take the sugar away from Tom, but I mean it genuinely when I say that this time there’s been no editing of ideas on principle. The only editing has come about after everything’s been tried, and certain things didn’t work.
TC: We’re still tied to our influences and instincts, and we’re restricted by our limitations as musicians, but it was nice to feel that there weren’t so many rules, and nor was there the establishment of a comfort zone. We approached the album without expectations. Well, we might have developed an expectation of what we should be, and other people have certainly got an expectation of what to expect from Keane and what Keane are, so it’s nice to have made an album that doesn’t fit with those ideas, that doesn’t fit into particular boxes. It’s an album that will jar with some people, but I kind of feel that’s a good thing. It’s good to make music that challenges you, otherwise you’re forever sat still. So many bands promise progress but stagnate, and that comes through a fear of doing it. Conquering that fear, and having the bravery to record a song like ‘Spiralling’, was the most exciting thing. When that song came together it did so very fast – it was very instinctive.
There weren’t so many difficulties, then?
TC: The second album was the difficult album.
RH: It feels strange saying that ‘Perfect Symmetry’ was an easy album to make, but comparatively it was. We had this notion at the start that we’d keep going ‘til we ran out of ideas, but we’ve still not run out of ideas. It was weird having to finish the record, and when we went back to the studio [in Berlin] afterwards for some promotional work all we wanted was for the journalists to leave so we could start recording again, so that we could start again and make another record. Rehearsing these songs for our tour has been fun, but I feel that we’re on a roll, and that’s a great way to be. This is the most fun we’ve had in this band, I think, and we’ve established this freedom and attitude of anything goes. We’ve now stamped down that touring has to be fun, not some long slog.
The slog aspect is something that comes with being a successful new band, though.
RH: It is, because you don’t want to turn anything down. We’re enjoying the process more this time.
"I’d get quite upset about what was written about us, and feel very insecure and paranoid"
TC: We’ve become more savvy, and more objective about the whole thing, and a lot of that enables us to enjoy it more. Thinking back, in the middle of 2006, I was not deriving any joy from playing songs and being on the road, and it’s amazing how that’s changed – through 2007 everything got better.
Are there any things you miss from way back when? I mean when you first started, around 1997… I often think the bigger a band gets, the more they lose a sort of camaraderie with peers, and with friends…
RH: I think that’s what we’ve recaptured, that gang mentality. On the first two records we went home after being at the studio every day, but for this one we stayed at the same hotel, and more often as not we’d go to this really cool bar nearby, that was open 24 hours. It was like when the three of us would drive to Middlesbrough for a gig, and come back through the night, getting to Sussex just as the sun was coming up… driving into this red ball and trying not to crash. Sitting on the train going to Berlin, it was an adventure. That’s what music should be like, and it’s great to be back like that.
A ‘Q’ magazine readers poll recently ranked your first two albums as among the 20 best UK albums of all time, alongside the Beatles and Radioheads of this world. How much of a headfuck was that?
RH: That was fucking cool, actually. You never know how these things happen. It’s fairly obvious we’ve never been critical darlings.
I’d say you split people…
TC: What was nicest about that poll is that is was voted for by members of the public, so it bypassed any critical filters. I’ve always thought… and this may sound contrived… that we’re a band of the people. We experience that every time we play live, as all sorts come: it can be some huge, balding Scouser crying his eyes out. There’s this incredible diversity of people who like our music and who come to our shows – perhaps the intensity and passion that they know about and we know about isn’t something sections of the media know about, or recognise. That connection with our audience is part of who we are, and something that keeps us motivated. There have been moments when it’s got us through periods of negativity.
And do you think these negatives make you stronger as a band, ultimately?
TC: I don’t know. I went through a stage where I’d get quite upset about what was written about us, and feel very insecure and paranoid. It can be quite insulting sometimes, actually.
Well, songwriting is a personal process…
TC: Exactly. Everything you do as a musician is laying yourself on the line, and I think the best music comes from that – it’s the most honest and heartfelt things that truly resonate. So you do put yourself out there, and as a result you leave yourself open to whatever people want to write, and that can hurt. One of the great things about the last year or so is that we’ve rediscovered the important things at the expense of the things that you can get caught up in. We’ve rediscovered the love of making music, and the love of being in a gang and travelling around together and kind of setting up camp and ignoring any external pressures. By rediscovering these things I now really don’t care what people think of us, which is a little ironic as I think this is the album that’ll attract us the most critical acclaim to date. But, that doesn’t really matter – we’ve reconnected with the vital things that make us tick, and the things we know and trust. We know and trust our music, each other and our families and friends; beyond those things, there’s no point in worrying about anything.
RH: You’re damned if you do, and you’re damned if you don’t: that’s the situation most bands find themselves in after a couple of albums. People will moan if you do what you’ve been successful for, while others will moan if you don’t. So you might as well disengage from that process – in the same way as I don’t smoke and I don’t watch 'Big Brother', I don’t think about what people are going to write about this record.
While the hopes Sussex trio Keane spoke of on their debut album were realised swiftly – ‘Hopes And Fears’ topped the domestic albums chart upon its May 2004 release – the titular fears eventually took hold. Just as every bright light casts a shadow, soon after their tearaway success the band were dangerously close to falling off the rails. Corrective measures needed to be taken.
Vocalist Tom Chaplin became disillusioned with the touring lifestyle, with the slog of promoting the band’s second album, 2006’s ‘Under The Iron Sea’; come August he’d admitted himself into rehabilitation for problems relating to drinking and drugs. So far, so clichéd, but the difference is that Keane were never perceived as hedonistic sorts; their music was always safe, solid, dependable. Both albums were equally at home on the stereos of 12-year-old revolutionaries in waiting as they were those of 40something dockworkers and shift-sore nurses. Chaplin’s spell in rehab not only spawned amusing rumours of collaborations with fellow residents – namely Justin Hawkins and Pete Doherty – but also a sort of endearment amongst those who felt his band were impervious to wrong turns, to ill fortune whatever criticisms were levelled at them.
With perceptions permanently altered and Chaplin fighting fit, the band – completed by drummer Richard Hughes and pianist and key songwriter Tim Rice-Oxley – toured 2007 with mindsets altered: now they were battling against the industry machine and its many demands, rediscovering the joys of being in a band by focusing inwards. This spirit was fed into the making of album three, ‘Perfect Symmetry’, due for release on October 13.
"This was definitely the most enjoyable record to make"
Keane’s latest begins with a blind-sider, a lead track that showcases their renewed desire for forward movement and creative chance-taking. ‘Spiralling’ is a song you either love or hate; there is no middle ground opinion wise. It’s a perfect introduction to a parent record that follows suit, mixing relatively typical Keane arrangements with flourishes of their evident levels of enthusiasm and invigorated ambition.
Clash paid Chaplin and Hughes a visit to learn more about the gestation of ‘Perfect Symmetry’…
I guess the first thing to say about the new album is that it definitely captures a sense of momentum…
Richard Hughes: Nobody’s said that before, but it’s a cool way of looking at it.
What I mean, I suppose, is that it seems to exhibit a newly discovered inner confidence. Like you’ve laid the solid foundations with albums one and two, and now a greater creativity comes to the fore.
RH: Yeah, I think that’s right, and this album has certainly been the most collaborative one we’ve had so far. Everybody was chipping in ideas left, right and centre, whether it’s me doing vocals, backing vocals, or Tom coming up with ideas for drum parts – these things wouldn’t have happened on previous records as much. We produced most of it ourselves, too. We just had tonnes of ideas, and it definitely pushes into some new ground for Keane.
And the single, ‘Spiralling’, seems quite the statement of intent…
Tom Chaplin: I think a lot of the confidence, the sense of fun and purpose, has come from touring more than anything else. The last record feels like sort of a scary chapter in the Keane book, but I feel that chapter’s closed now. We’ve made touring fun again, and through that we have reconnected with enjoying music. That’s what you hear on this album, more than anything else: that spirit, and that sense of us having a laugh and perhaps not taking everything quite as seriously. Sonically, it’s a fun-sounding album.
RH: This was definitely the most enjoyable record to make. With the first we were basically playing what we’d been playing in pubs into microphones, and then it was released. Listening back now it sounds very naïve and polite, although we don’t remember it being like that. The first one bought us freedom to dictate what we do and when and where we do it, and nobody really tells us otherwise – they get to hear it when it’s done. So we’ve had a lot of freedom making this. Initially we thought we might have a lot of producers coming in on it, to almost give it a hip-hop feel…
Next thing you’ll be telling me is that you’ve guest rappers coming in…
RH: You might joke, but we have talked about it. There’s a song that didn’t end up on the record that has a gap left on it for a guest rapper, but we’ve not properly got into it yet. The weird thing is that we’ve established an attitude, while making this record, that nothing is too leftfield, or off limits. Nothing is too much of a left turn. There are elements of ‘Spiralling’ that we’d have said no to in the past, asking someone to take the sugar away from Tom, but I mean it genuinely when I say that this time there’s been no editing of ideas on principle. The only editing has come about after everything’s been tried, and certain things didn’t work.
TC: We’re still tied to our influences and instincts, and we’re restricted by our limitations as musicians, but it was nice to feel that there weren’t so many rules, and nor was there the establishment of a comfort zone. We approached the album without expectations. Well, we might have developed an expectation of what we should be, and other people have certainly got an expectation of what to expect from Keane and what Keane are, so it’s nice to have made an album that doesn’t fit with those ideas, that doesn’t fit into particular boxes. It’s an album that will jar with some people, but I kind of feel that’s a good thing. It’s good to make music that challenges you, otherwise you’re forever sat still. So many bands promise progress but stagnate, and that comes through a fear of doing it. Conquering that fear, and having the bravery to record a song like ‘Spiralling’, was the most exciting thing. When that song came together it did so very fast – it was very instinctive.
There weren’t so many difficulties, then?
TC: The second album was the difficult album.
RH: It feels strange saying that ‘Perfect Symmetry’ was an easy album to make, but comparatively it was. We had this notion at the start that we’d keep going ‘til we ran out of ideas, but we’ve still not run out of ideas. It was weird having to finish the record, and when we went back to the studio [in Berlin] afterwards for some promotional work all we wanted was for the journalists to leave so we could start recording again, so that we could start again and make another record. Rehearsing these songs for our tour has been fun, but I feel that we’re on a roll, and that’s a great way to be. This is the most fun we’ve had in this band, I think, and we’ve established this freedom and attitude of anything goes. We’ve now stamped down that touring has to be fun, not some long slog.
The slog aspect is something that comes with being a successful new band, though.
RH: It is, because you don’t want to turn anything down. We’re enjoying the process more this time.
"I’d get quite upset about what was written about us, and feel very insecure and paranoid"
TC: We’ve become more savvy, and more objective about the whole thing, and a lot of that enables us to enjoy it more. Thinking back, in the middle of 2006, I was not deriving any joy from playing songs and being on the road, and it’s amazing how that’s changed – through 2007 everything got better.
Are there any things you miss from way back when? I mean when you first started, around 1997… I often think the bigger a band gets, the more they lose a sort of camaraderie with peers, and with friends…
RH: I think that’s what we’ve recaptured, that gang mentality. On the first two records we went home after being at the studio every day, but for this one we stayed at the same hotel, and more often as not we’d go to this really cool bar nearby, that was open 24 hours. It was like when the three of us would drive to Middlesbrough for a gig, and come back through the night, getting to Sussex just as the sun was coming up… driving into this red ball and trying not to crash. Sitting on the train going to Berlin, it was an adventure. That’s what music should be like, and it’s great to be back like that.
A ‘Q’ magazine readers poll recently ranked your first two albums as among the 20 best UK albums of all time, alongside the Beatles and Radioheads of this world. How much of a headfuck was that?
RH: That was fucking cool, actually. You never know how these things happen. It’s fairly obvious we’ve never been critical darlings.
I’d say you split people…
TC: What was nicest about that poll is that is was voted for by members of the public, so it bypassed any critical filters. I’ve always thought… and this may sound contrived… that we’re a band of the people. We experience that every time we play live, as all sorts come: it can be some huge, balding Scouser crying his eyes out. There’s this incredible diversity of people who like our music and who come to our shows – perhaps the intensity and passion that they know about and we know about isn’t something sections of the media know about, or recognise. That connection with our audience is part of who we are, and something that keeps us motivated. There have been moments when it’s got us through periods of negativity.
And do you think these negatives make you stronger as a band, ultimately?
TC: I don’t know. I went through a stage where I’d get quite upset about what was written about us, and feel very insecure and paranoid. It can be quite insulting sometimes, actually.
Well, songwriting is a personal process…
TC: Exactly. Everything you do as a musician is laying yourself on the line, and I think the best music comes from that – it’s the most honest and heartfelt things that truly resonate. So you do put yourself out there, and as a result you leave yourself open to whatever people want to write, and that can hurt. One of the great things about the last year or so is that we’ve rediscovered the important things at the expense of the things that you can get caught up in. We’ve rediscovered the love of making music, and the love of being in a gang and travelling around together and kind of setting up camp and ignoring any external pressures. By rediscovering these things I now really don’t care what people think of us, which is a little ironic as I think this is the album that’ll attract us the most critical acclaim to date. But, that doesn’t really matter – we’ve reconnected with the vital things that make us tick, and the things we know and trust. We know and trust our music, each other and our families and friends; beyond those things, there’s no point in worrying about anything.
RH: You’re damned if you do, and you’re damned if you don’t: that’s the situation most bands find themselves in after a couple of albums. People will moan if you do what you’ve been successful for, while others will moan if you don’t. So you might as well disengage from that process – in the same way as I don’t smoke and I don’t watch 'Big Brother', I don’t think about what people are going to write about this record.
Interview in today's Indepedent: Back from the brink = Success came at a price for Keane·
Fame and drugs nearly tore them apart. But Keane's third album marks a confident, triumphant return. Alexia Loundras joins them in rehearsals.
Chaplin rocks Live Earth in 2007: "The same thing that makes me a front man makes me a self-saboteur"
Fifteen minutes into Keane's rehearsal and their front man, Tom Chaplin, suddenly walks off stage. The band have run through just two tracks from their third album, Perfect Symmetry, when, mid-way through their third number, the singer pulls out his in-ear monitor, climbs off the stage and walks purposefully towards the doors of the sound-proofed room. But, if you're among Keane's loyal army of fans, fear not. Chaplin's band came close to splitting in 2006 after he quit the Japanese leg of the world tour for their second album, Under the Iron Sea, and went into rehab. Today, though, there's a rather less dramatic reason for his exit. When the singer gets to the back of the studio, he turns and watches his bandmates, keyboard player Tim Rice-Oxley and drummer Richard Hughes. As the instrumental break from their 2004 hit, "Everybody's Changing", blasts from the room's industrial-strength speakers, Chaplin grins. Then, clearly satisfied with what he's hearing, he gallops back to the stage to belt out the chorus.
Four years ago, the release of this song by the indie label Fierce Panda helped catapult the piano-led trio from Battle, Sussex, out of dingy rock dives and on to arena stages around the globe. Their Mercury-nominated debut, Hopes And Fears, saturated the airwaves, selling six million copies worldwide and winning them a pair of Brit awards. Yet despite (or, indeed, because of) the success, the three polite, privately educated pals quickly became whipping boys in more credible circles. They were, it seemed, too posh, too tuneful, too good at making songs that sounded great on the radio. And, in Chaplin, they had that rarest of things: a front man who can really, really sing. Which, of course, isn't at all cool.
Not that you imagine Keane are thinking about any of that right now, as they rattle through their songs, clearly enjoying themselves. The band are in the south London rehearsal studio trying to work out how they're going to perform their barrelling, electro-ridden new songs. Determined to make laptop samples redundant, they're playing everything live. That has meant recruiting a bass player, their friend Jesse Quin. And, more significantly for a band who've become famous for their piano/drums/voice format, Chaplin is wielding an electric guitar.
The glossy appendage suits him. With his hair cut short and wearing black skinny jeans, Chaplin cuts a sleeker, more visceral and, indeed, sexier figure than he did when the band first appeared. He looks less like a cherubic choirboy out scrumping and more like, well, a proper rock star. In fact, all three members of Keane have a new air of confidence. At our meeting at a nearby gastropub before the rehearsal, they seem fresh-faced and rejuvenated. "I've not felt so excited since the first album came out," says Rice-Oxley.
Rice-Oxley is Keane's songwriter and linchpin. He isn't the boastful type, but the shy smile that surfaces when he talks about his band's new record is testament to his pride. Keane have every reason to feel pleased with themselves. Perfect Symmetry is an strikingly impressive record. Drawing obvious inspiration from David Bowie and Talking Heads, it's a rich morsel of confident and infectious Eighties-tinged pop, alive with hand claps and finger clicks, seared keyboards, vintage drum machines and, controversially, sinuous guitars.
All three are convinced that this is their best album yet. Of course, bands always say that, but the difference this time is that a) they're convincing and b) they're right. "Normally after mixing an album you've kind of had enough of hearing its songs," says Chaplin, "but I can't stop listening to this record, which I think is a good sign. We're getting a high from knowing we've just made an album that was potentially in us but could easily never have happened."
How bad did things get for Keane? As his bandmates laugh nervously, Hughes takes up the baton. "Well, I would say it was 'bad' with italics, possibly capitals, maybe even in bold." Keane's problems crept up on them. There were no tantrums or massive artistic fall-outs. Just a festering antipathy that grew like an acrid stench and threatened to corrode them from the inside out. Their August 2006 nadir found Chaplin in rehab for drink and drug abuse, a tour cancelled and the future of the band hanging in the balance. "The overall spirit of the band at the time was a little bleak," explains Rice-Oxley. "I just felt there was a general sense of us wanting to be somewhere else."
The cracks in the band had started to show before they'd finished touring their first album. "We played in Bangkok, and I remember feeling exhausted and jet-lagged," says Chaplin. "We'd completely lost the spirit, the fun and the enthusiasm for making music and being on the road." In retrospect, all agree that what the band needed most was some time off to adjust to, and recover from, the success of Hopes And Fears. But anxious to prove their songwriting mettle, the increasingly dysfunctional band went from two years of worldwide touring straight into the pressure-cooker confines of a recording studio. "We had just two days off," sighs Hughes, "and the only reason there was any delay at all was because our equipment couldn't get to the studio quick enough."
Why the hurry? The answer appears to be that beneath Rice-Oxley's affable self-assurance lies a defiant, competitive edge. Despite their legions of adoring fans, he admits he found the media criticism hard to take. In the States, the twice-Grammy-nominated band had been championed by Gwen Stefani and Kanye West, but in the UK they were dismissed by many critics as little more than a second-rate Coldplay. "We were really lucky to have had so much success with Hopes And Fears," says Rice-Oxley. "But then you become defined by it and you get fed up with people asking about Coldplay and dismissing you as 'Keane the piano-pop band' or whatever. It's almost inevitable that you have an knee-jerk reaction and say, 'Right, we're going to tear all that down and do something else instead.'"
Keane's second album, Under the Iron Sea, was that "something else". Its dark, claustrophobic songs are a testament to the dissolving relationships and simmering tensions around the time it was made. "We were very good at not talking about what was irking us," says Hughes. "Instead, Tim was left alone in the studio fighting not to make Hopes And Fears again. Most days in the afternoon I'd get in my car and go for a drive, just to get out of the studio – I just wanted to be on my own. And Tom was definitely the same."
Feeling isolated from his bandmates, Chaplin pushed himself still further away, struggling with his debilitating addiction to adulation and the illicit. "After Hopes And Fears came out we had all the trappings of success – fame and money – and personally I felt all those became negatives for me and they changed the dynamic between us," he says. "And I think the same thing that makes me want to be a front man probably makes me want to be a self-saboteur sometimes. There's a little part of me – actually, a huge part of me! – that's strangely extrovert, and somehow being up on stage is what makes me tick.
"But on the flip side, when you come off the road, you don't have that buzz and that praise and all those dangerous things. And so maybe you find solace in other dangerous things..." Chaplin shrugs. "There were certainly situations where I thought: 'Oh God, I don't even want to go back into the context of the band because everyone is going to hate me for what I've just done,' whatever it was." He laughs self-consciously. "At those times, I'd feel like the best policy was always to run away."
Which is exactly what he did in the midst of the band's Japanese tour. Soon after, he checked in to the Priory. Chaplin says he doesn't feel he gained much from his stint in rehab, but the band's enforced hiatus certainly gave the trio much-needed time for reflection.
"I think seeing Tom descending into this living hell brought home the fact that ultimately we care about each other hugely," says Hughes. "We didn't want to see each other unhappy."
With the avenues of communication reopened, Keane agreed to give the band another go and resumed their tour towards the end of 2006. "At that point, it still felt like it could all be over next month," recalls Chaplin.
Keane's turning point came in the summer of 2007, while recording a cover of Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure" for Radio 1 while on tour in Philadelphia. "There was just so much exuberance on that song," says Chaplin, "all the unison singing, hand claps and finger-clicking. We really enjoyed its funkiness, its flamboyance and carefree spirit. We took an enormous amount of inspiration from that."
There in a small studio, without a producer, Keane had stumbled on the blueprint for their next album. They'd also found that they could enjoy recording, together, for the first time since making Hopes And Fears. "It was a pretty good feeling," grins Chaplin.
It was one that continued into the recording of the new album, which they made in Paris, Berlin and Kent. "Our only rule for making the music this time was that we should be creating something that the three of us were absolutely in love with," says Rice-Oxley. After days spent tinkering in the studio, they even spent their evenings together. "We'd go out for dinner and actually work on our relationships," says Chaplin, "and not pretend that just because we've been friends all our lives that's enough to carry us through."
The results speak for themselves, with Perfect Symmetry already garnering the kind of critical acclaim that has often eluded the band.
Not that they seem overly bothered. "I think it's very easy to worry about whether you're considered to be cool," says Rice-Oxley. "I think the thing we've learnt from touring is that there are a lot of people all over the world who love our music. But the most important thing of all, which has informed the making of this record, is that you really shouldn't care about what everybody else thinks."
"The rest," nods Chaplin, with a twinkle in his eye, "is just extraneous bollocks."
Chaplin rocks Live Earth in 2007: "The same thing that makes me a front man makes me a self-saboteur"
Fifteen minutes into Keane's rehearsal and their front man, Tom Chaplin, suddenly walks off stage. The band have run through just two tracks from their third album, Perfect Symmetry, when, mid-way through their third number, the singer pulls out his in-ear monitor, climbs off the stage and walks purposefully towards the doors of the sound-proofed room. But, if you're among Keane's loyal army of fans, fear not. Chaplin's band came close to splitting in 2006 after he quit the Japanese leg of the world tour for their second album, Under the Iron Sea, and went into rehab. Today, though, there's a rather less dramatic reason for his exit. When the singer gets to the back of the studio, he turns and watches his bandmates, keyboard player Tim Rice-Oxley and drummer Richard Hughes. As the instrumental break from their 2004 hit, "Everybody's Changing", blasts from the room's industrial-strength speakers, Chaplin grins. Then, clearly satisfied with what he's hearing, he gallops back to the stage to belt out the chorus.
Four years ago, the release of this song by the indie label Fierce Panda helped catapult the piano-led trio from Battle, Sussex, out of dingy rock dives and on to arena stages around the globe. Their Mercury-nominated debut, Hopes And Fears, saturated the airwaves, selling six million copies worldwide and winning them a pair of Brit awards. Yet despite (or, indeed, because of) the success, the three polite, privately educated pals quickly became whipping boys in more credible circles. They were, it seemed, too posh, too tuneful, too good at making songs that sounded great on the radio. And, in Chaplin, they had that rarest of things: a front man who can really, really sing. Which, of course, isn't at all cool.
Not that you imagine Keane are thinking about any of that right now, as they rattle through their songs, clearly enjoying themselves. The band are in the south London rehearsal studio trying to work out how they're going to perform their barrelling, electro-ridden new songs. Determined to make laptop samples redundant, they're playing everything live. That has meant recruiting a bass player, their friend Jesse Quin. And, more significantly for a band who've become famous for their piano/drums/voice format, Chaplin is wielding an electric guitar.
The glossy appendage suits him. With his hair cut short and wearing black skinny jeans, Chaplin cuts a sleeker, more visceral and, indeed, sexier figure than he did when the band first appeared. He looks less like a cherubic choirboy out scrumping and more like, well, a proper rock star. In fact, all three members of Keane have a new air of confidence. At our meeting at a nearby gastropub before the rehearsal, they seem fresh-faced and rejuvenated. "I've not felt so excited since the first album came out," says Rice-Oxley.
Rice-Oxley is Keane's songwriter and linchpin. He isn't the boastful type, but the shy smile that surfaces when he talks about his band's new record is testament to his pride. Keane have every reason to feel pleased with themselves. Perfect Symmetry is an strikingly impressive record. Drawing obvious inspiration from David Bowie and Talking Heads, it's a rich morsel of confident and infectious Eighties-tinged pop, alive with hand claps and finger clicks, seared keyboards, vintage drum machines and, controversially, sinuous guitars.
All three are convinced that this is their best album yet. Of course, bands always say that, but the difference this time is that a) they're convincing and b) they're right. "Normally after mixing an album you've kind of had enough of hearing its songs," says Chaplin, "but I can't stop listening to this record, which I think is a good sign. We're getting a high from knowing we've just made an album that was potentially in us but could easily never have happened."
How bad did things get for Keane? As his bandmates laugh nervously, Hughes takes up the baton. "Well, I would say it was 'bad' with italics, possibly capitals, maybe even in bold." Keane's problems crept up on them. There were no tantrums or massive artistic fall-outs. Just a festering antipathy that grew like an acrid stench and threatened to corrode them from the inside out. Their August 2006 nadir found Chaplin in rehab for drink and drug abuse, a tour cancelled and the future of the band hanging in the balance. "The overall spirit of the band at the time was a little bleak," explains Rice-Oxley. "I just felt there was a general sense of us wanting to be somewhere else."
The cracks in the band had started to show before they'd finished touring their first album. "We played in Bangkok, and I remember feeling exhausted and jet-lagged," says Chaplin. "We'd completely lost the spirit, the fun and the enthusiasm for making music and being on the road." In retrospect, all agree that what the band needed most was some time off to adjust to, and recover from, the success of Hopes And Fears. But anxious to prove their songwriting mettle, the increasingly dysfunctional band went from two years of worldwide touring straight into the pressure-cooker confines of a recording studio. "We had just two days off," sighs Hughes, "and the only reason there was any delay at all was because our equipment couldn't get to the studio quick enough."
Why the hurry? The answer appears to be that beneath Rice-Oxley's affable self-assurance lies a defiant, competitive edge. Despite their legions of adoring fans, he admits he found the media criticism hard to take. In the States, the twice-Grammy-nominated band had been championed by Gwen Stefani and Kanye West, but in the UK they were dismissed by many critics as little more than a second-rate Coldplay. "We were really lucky to have had so much success with Hopes And Fears," says Rice-Oxley. "But then you become defined by it and you get fed up with people asking about Coldplay and dismissing you as 'Keane the piano-pop band' or whatever. It's almost inevitable that you have an knee-jerk reaction and say, 'Right, we're going to tear all that down and do something else instead.'"
Keane's second album, Under the Iron Sea, was that "something else". Its dark, claustrophobic songs are a testament to the dissolving relationships and simmering tensions around the time it was made. "We were very good at not talking about what was irking us," says Hughes. "Instead, Tim was left alone in the studio fighting not to make Hopes And Fears again. Most days in the afternoon I'd get in my car and go for a drive, just to get out of the studio – I just wanted to be on my own. And Tom was definitely the same."
Feeling isolated from his bandmates, Chaplin pushed himself still further away, struggling with his debilitating addiction to adulation and the illicit. "After Hopes And Fears came out we had all the trappings of success – fame and money – and personally I felt all those became negatives for me and they changed the dynamic between us," he says. "And I think the same thing that makes me want to be a front man probably makes me want to be a self-saboteur sometimes. There's a little part of me – actually, a huge part of me! – that's strangely extrovert, and somehow being up on stage is what makes me tick.
"But on the flip side, when you come off the road, you don't have that buzz and that praise and all those dangerous things. And so maybe you find solace in other dangerous things..." Chaplin shrugs. "There were certainly situations where I thought: 'Oh God, I don't even want to go back into the context of the band because everyone is going to hate me for what I've just done,' whatever it was." He laughs self-consciously. "At those times, I'd feel like the best policy was always to run away."
Which is exactly what he did in the midst of the band's Japanese tour. Soon after, he checked in to the Priory. Chaplin says he doesn't feel he gained much from his stint in rehab, but the band's enforced hiatus certainly gave the trio much-needed time for reflection.
"I think seeing Tom descending into this living hell brought home the fact that ultimately we care about each other hugely," says Hughes. "We didn't want to see each other unhappy."
With the avenues of communication reopened, Keane agreed to give the band another go and resumed their tour towards the end of 2006. "At that point, it still felt like it could all be over next month," recalls Chaplin.
Keane's turning point came in the summer of 2007, while recording a cover of Queen and David Bowie's "Under Pressure" for Radio 1 while on tour in Philadelphia. "There was just so much exuberance on that song," says Chaplin, "all the unison singing, hand claps and finger-clicking. We really enjoyed its funkiness, its flamboyance and carefree spirit. We took an enormous amount of inspiration from that."
There in a small studio, without a producer, Keane had stumbled on the blueprint for their next album. They'd also found that they could enjoy recording, together, for the first time since making Hopes And Fears. "It was a pretty good feeling," grins Chaplin.
It was one that continued into the recording of the new album, which they made in Paris, Berlin and Kent. "Our only rule for making the music this time was that we should be creating something that the three of us were absolutely in love with," says Rice-Oxley. After days spent tinkering in the studio, they even spent their evenings together. "We'd go out for dinner and actually work on our relationships," says Chaplin, "and not pretend that just because we've been friends all our lives that's enough to carry us through."
The results speak for themselves, with Perfect Symmetry already garnering the kind of critical acclaim that has often eluded the band.
Not that they seem overly bothered. "I think it's very easy to worry about whether you're considered to be cool," says Rice-Oxley. "I think the thing we've learnt from touring is that there are a lot of people all over the world who love our music. But the most important thing of all, which has informed the making of this record, is that you really shouldn't care about what everybody else thinks."
"The rest," nods Chaplin, with a twinkle in his eye, "is just extraneous bollocks."
Interview in Saturday's Times: The return of Keane
After singer Tom Chaplin’s battle with drink and drugs, Keane are back with a soaring new album. They talk rock, rifts and rehab.
To the Royal Opera House in London’s paparazzi-strewn Covent Garden for the GQ Man of the Year Awards. It’s a celebrity menagerie: Boris Johnson, Gordon Ramsay and Josh Brolin, James Nesbitt and Kirsty Gallagher, the three surviving members of Led Zeppelin, two of the standing members of Primal Scream, a cloud of comedians (Steve Coogan, the Mighty Boosh, the actor-writers of Gavin and Stacey), a wobble of models (Elle Macpherson, Daisy Lowe). There’s Lily Allen, one of the award ceremony’s hosts. There’s Elton John, the other one. Oh, who will drink whom under the table? (Probably Lily Allen. As usual.)
Sitting near the back are Keane. They’re the only performers tonight, opening proceedings with a bash through their recent free single Spiralling (half a million copies were downloaded during the week-long promotion). A few minutes before the festivities commence, the three bandmates are nervously tapping feet, fingers and crockery, and fending off the blandishments of waves of waiting staff. Drummer Richard Hughes, 32, forgoes the proffered dinner; he doesn’t like to play on a full stomach. Pianist and songwriter Tim Rice-Oxley, 32, hovers sideways in his seat, ready for action. Singer Tom Chaplin, 29, seems especially jittery; no, he won’t have a nerve-steadying drink, thanks very much.
It’s a big night for Keane, in more ways than one. It marks the first public performance of a song from their imminent third album, Perfect Symmetry – an album that, for a while, looked like it might not get made. And it marks the return – the revival if you like – of Chaplin. He was supposed to attend this awards ceremony two years ago, to collect the trophy for Band of the Year: the trio of public-school pals from Sussex were riding high on the eight million sales of their 2004 debut, Hopes and Fears, and 2006’s follow-up, Under the Iron Sea. But in September 2006, Tom Chaplin was in rehab at the Priory, being treated for addiction to alcohol and cocaine. Rice-Oxley and Hughes had to pick up the hefty glass bauble without him.
If you ask Chaplin about 2006 and when he realised his partying was getting out of control, his normal bluff heartiness stutters to a halt. “Phewwwww,” he says, exhaling heavily. “I don’t know. It started with isolated things. It’d get better for a while, then other things would come along and I’d make mistakes. We’re not talking an Amy Winehouse/Pete Doherty scale of not turning up to stuff, but there were certainly things I missed.”
Keane had become very big very quickly. Early singles Somewhere Only We Know and Everybody’s Changing were huge hits. Like their friends and peers Coldplay, Keane knew their way round a piano ballad that touched a universal chord: sensitive, uplifting, singalong. Hopes and Fears entered the album charts at No 1 and won the band two Brit Awards. In the UK in 2004, only Scissor Sisters sold more albums than Keane.
The rest of the world was almost as enamoured of the three polite young men from Sussex. Second album Under the Iron Sea followed hard on the heels of a world tour. The mood was darker but the songs – Is It Any Wonder?, A Bad Dream – were just as catchy.
In large part, this was down to the ringing voice and personable appeal of Chaplin. Here was a chubby, cherub-faced chap who seemed barely out of short trousers. An unlikely pop star, but an appealing one. A safe one, even.
It was, therefore, something of a shock when Chaplin was revealed as a boozehound and cocaine addict. He was the unlikeliest rock’n’roll party animal. But his problems were very real indeed.
“What really was a wake-up call for me was that I just wasn’t very happy. I felt very, very miserable. I’m a manic person. But that element of being wired up all wrong, it’s part of what makes you want to be the frontman of a band.” This is why, he reasons, a lot of singers end up in “that situation” of drug abuse, breakdown and, if they’re lucky/strong/supported, recovery.
The day before the GQ event I meet Tim Rice-Oxley for breakfast in a pub near his home in Bermondsey, South London. Our appointment is at the very proper-job time of 9am, and he has the muesli with fruit. The pre-interview talk is of kitchen knives, foodie paradise Borough Market and his attempts to make sashimi.
Rice-Oxley is not like most young, multimillion-selling rock stars. He’s polite, friendly, but also upper-middle-class clenched, talking passionately but somehow drily about the nuances of the new record. The son of two doctors, he’s well-spoken – like Chaplin and Hughes, he attended Vinehall prep school in Sussex and boarded at Tonbridge in Kent. He read Classics at University College London, and admits that Ovid’s poem Pygmalion influenced the lyrics of Spiralling. He writes all of Keane’s songs but has no interest in singing them. Indeed, he visibly shudders at the very thought. Chaplin, whom he’s known almost his entire life (their mums are very good friends), is much better at that job. And nor is it simply a case of the singer being a mouthpiece for the songwriter. “Tom’s brilliant at adding little flourishes. It’s those little things that lift a song into something much more beautiful.
“The relationship between the two of us and the song is unique,” Rice-Oxley continues, citing their “20 years of making music together… I don’t imagine that any other band of our age would have that.”
Certainly, Keane have reason to be enjoying a buoyant, chemical-free buzz in autumn 2008. Perfect Symmetry is a glorious album. Rice-Oxley’s solid-gold songwriting skills are shinier still. The first single proper, The Lovers Are Losing, is a soaring, singalong triumph. The title track is a rafter-rattling anthem worthy of U2. The band, whose USP was that – gasp – they didn’t use guitars, are now knocking out meaty six-string riffs all over the shop. More broadly, an Eighties pop-influenced exuberance has replaced the piano-ballad melancholy that suffused Keane’s earlier work, when the pressure of fame and workload bore down on the old friends.
The tensions within Keane were evident in the songs that Rice-Oxley wrote for Under the Iron Sea. Some were indirect attacks on the rock star that Chaplin had become; others were direct. “Fool, I wonder if you know yourself at all?” was a lyric in Hamburg Song. Was Chaplin happy singing songs that were being rude about him?
“Eh… I don’t know,” says Rice-Oxley, falteringly. “I don’t think it was a particularly pleasant process for him. It wasn’t a very pleasant process for any of us, really. My main memory of making Under the Iron Sea was that Tom wasn’t particularly engaged.”
Chaplin wasn’t “engaged” because he was increasingly more interested in drinking and taking drugs. “That was part of the problem,” says Rice-Oxley. “But I think that stemmed from the fact that he wanted to get away from being in the band. Just to have a break from it. We hadn’t stopped at all. We were just burnt out; we should have had a bit of a holiday, really.” But instead, Keane kept working. Or trying to. When Chaplin didn’t show for a Times interview in 2006, his bandmates covered for him, saying he had a stomach bug. “Well, that stuff was happening a lot, all the time. It was definitely…” Rice-Oxley is talking in staccato grunts now. “I dunno – what else can you do? We wanted to protect him, I suppose.
“It’s a cliché you always see in films, someone saying it’s the lying that hurts. But it is really. Trust is so important.”
For Chaplin, the healing began in a Tokyo hotel room in August 2006. Under the Iron Sea had been out for barely two months, but already the singer had had enough. He was miles from home, alone and desperate. “I felt appalling,” he admits. “It had been brewing that whole tour; I just knew it was coming.”
The afternoon before the GQ performance, I meet Chaplin in a deserted room in the Royal Opera House. The singer forswears a coffee (“I had one earlier on”) and, with some prompting, recalls how he checked himself out of that Tokyo hotel and, without telling anyone, booked himself an immediate flight home. “I was the only person in first class. I just sat there on my own thinking, ‘Well, this is it, the band is finished. And that’s a good thing.’”
He talks, without resorting too much to therapy-speak, about how, since he was a teenager, he’s been prone to wild mood swings. “I’m either absurdly optimistic or depressingly pessimistic in very short bursts. And I know when it’s coming – I get more and more manic. More and more annoying!” he laughs forcefully. “Louder and louder, and then suddenly – whoosh. It’s a bit like a sugar crash.”
This, he reflects, is another example of how public school “has not really had a positive or supportive impact on me. I think I was far too sensitive for where I was.” And Chaplin says this as someone steeped in the world of private education: his dad was the headmaster of Vinehall, his mum a teacher there, too.
He’s said previously that he was taking cocaine around the time of Keane’s first single, Call Me What You Like, in 2000, but now admits, “I started doing those things when lots of people my age were doing them. And I often think, if it hadn’t been for the band, it would have made such a mess.” How did he perform on cocaine?
“I never did. I never did,” he repeats. “But there were certainly times when I hadn’t had any sleep. And was probably still steaming from the night before when we were doing things. And gigs suffered.”
Finally, in Japan, after Keane had motored straight from one hit album into the making and promoting of another, Chaplin hit the wall. He flew home, spoke to his dad, and checked himself into the Priory. Within two months he was clean, sober and back on the road. Initially Keane had a “no booze on the rider” rule, and Chaplin still won’t drink on tour, although it seems a social drink or two is allowed. There’s certainly no hint of holier-than-thou reformed addict about him. Just the calm demeanour of a clever, well brought-up young man in a band with his two best mates; someone who realised how close he’d come to throwing it all away.
“My questions to myself these days are: ‘Have you got your priorities straight?’” says a sanguine Chaplin, readily admitting he prefers the quietude of the Sussex cottage he shares with his girlfriend to the hurly-burly of London life (although he still has a “bolt-hole” in Covent Garden). “‘What are you doing tomorrow or next week? What do you have to be sorted and ready and organised for?’ And I really feel that I do prioritise in my life now, which is great.”
At the GQ event that night, Keane are a hit. The first public outing for their colourful and excitable new direction is greeted by much jewellery-rattling from the gathered celebocracy. When he steps up to collect his award, two years late, Tom Chaplin is blushingly grateful. He thanks his band, and he means it sincerely. Richard Hughes and Tim Rice-Oxley applaud him right back. Having almost lost it, they had their band back. “If there’s a unifying lyrical theme,” says Rice-Oxley, “it’s that people could do better, be better.” Chaplin, meanwhile, is ready to take on the world again. “It’s so exciting. I feel like a small child with a Christmas present.”
Perfect Symmetry is out on October 13; the single The Lovers Are Losing follows on October 20. Further details: www.keanemusic.com
To the Royal Opera House in London’s paparazzi-strewn Covent Garden for the GQ Man of the Year Awards. It’s a celebrity menagerie: Boris Johnson, Gordon Ramsay and Josh Brolin, James Nesbitt and Kirsty Gallagher, the three surviving members of Led Zeppelin, two of the standing members of Primal Scream, a cloud of comedians (Steve Coogan, the Mighty Boosh, the actor-writers of Gavin and Stacey), a wobble of models (Elle Macpherson, Daisy Lowe). There’s Lily Allen, one of the award ceremony’s hosts. There’s Elton John, the other one. Oh, who will drink whom under the table? (Probably Lily Allen. As usual.)
Sitting near the back are Keane. They’re the only performers tonight, opening proceedings with a bash through their recent free single Spiralling (half a million copies were downloaded during the week-long promotion). A few minutes before the festivities commence, the three bandmates are nervously tapping feet, fingers and crockery, and fending off the blandishments of waves of waiting staff. Drummer Richard Hughes, 32, forgoes the proffered dinner; he doesn’t like to play on a full stomach. Pianist and songwriter Tim Rice-Oxley, 32, hovers sideways in his seat, ready for action. Singer Tom Chaplin, 29, seems especially jittery; no, he won’t have a nerve-steadying drink, thanks very much.
It’s a big night for Keane, in more ways than one. It marks the first public performance of a song from their imminent third album, Perfect Symmetry – an album that, for a while, looked like it might not get made. And it marks the return – the revival if you like – of Chaplin. He was supposed to attend this awards ceremony two years ago, to collect the trophy for Band of the Year: the trio of public-school pals from Sussex were riding high on the eight million sales of their 2004 debut, Hopes and Fears, and 2006’s follow-up, Under the Iron Sea. But in September 2006, Tom Chaplin was in rehab at the Priory, being treated for addiction to alcohol and cocaine. Rice-Oxley and Hughes had to pick up the hefty glass bauble without him.
If you ask Chaplin about 2006 and when he realised his partying was getting out of control, his normal bluff heartiness stutters to a halt. “Phewwwww,” he says, exhaling heavily. “I don’t know. It started with isolated things. It’d get better for a while, then other things would come along and I’d make mistakes. We’re not talking an Amy Winehouse/Pete Doherty scale of not turning up to stuff, but there were certainly things I missed.”
Keane had become very big very quickly. Early singles Somewhere Only We Know and Everybody’s Changing were huge hits. Like their friends and peers Coldplay, Keane knew their way round a piano ballad that touched a universal chord: sensitive, uplifting, singalong. Hopes and Fears entered the album charts at No 1 and won the band two Brit Awards. In the UK in 2004, only Scissor Sisters sold more albums than Keane.
The rest of the world was almost as enamoured of the three polite young men from Sussex. Second album Under the Iron Sea followed hard on the heels of a world tour. The mood was darker but the songs – Is It Any Wonder?, A Bad Dream – were just as catchy.
In large part, this was down to the ringing voice and personable appeal of Chaplin. Here was a chubby, cherub-faced chap who seemed barely out of short trousers. An unlikely pop star, but an appealing one. A safe one, even.
It was, therefore, something of a shock when Chaplin was revealed as a boozehound and cocaine addict. He was the unlikeliest rock’n’roll party animal. But his problems were very real indeed.
“What really was a wake-up call for me was that I just wasn’t very happy. I felt very, very miserable. I’m a manic person. But that element of being wired up all wrong, it’s part of what makes you want to be the frontman of a band.” This is why, he reasons, a lot of singers end up in “that situation” of drug abuse, breakdown and, if they’re lucky/strong/supported, recovery.
The day before the GQ event I meet Tim Rice-Oxley for breakfast in a pub near his home in Bermondsey, South London. Our appointment is at the very proper-job time of 9am, and he has the muesli with fruit. The pre-interview talk is of kitchen knives, foodie paradise Borough Market and his attempts to make sashimi.
Rice-Oxley is not like most young, multimillion-selling rock stars. He’s polite, friendly, but also upper-middle-class clenched, talking passionately but somehow drily about the nuances of the new record. The son of two doctors, he’s well-spoken – like Chaplin and Hughes, he attended Vinehall prep school in Sussex and boarded at Tonbridge in Kent. He read Classics at University College London, and admits that Ovid’s poem Pygmalion influenced the lyrics of Spiralling. He writes all of Keane’s songs but has no interest in singing them. Indeed, he visibly shudders at the very thought. Chaplin, whom he’s known almost his entire life (their mums are very good friends), is much better at that job. And nor is it simply a case of the singer being a mouthpiece for the songwriter. “Tom’s brilliant at adding little flourishes. It’s those little things that lift a song into something much more beautiful.
“The relationship between the two of us and the song is unique,” Rice-Oxley continues, citing their “20 years of making music together… I don’t imagine that any other band of our age would have that.”
Certainly, Keane have reason to be enjoying a buoyant, chemical-free buzz in autumn 2008. Perfect Symmetry is a glorious album. Rice-Oxley’s solid-gold songwriting skills are shinier still. The first single proper, The Lovers Are Losing, is a soaring, singalong triumph. The title track is a rafter-rattling anthem worthy of U2. The band, whose USP was that – gasp – they didn’t use guitars, are now knocking out meaty six-string riffs all over the shop. More broadly, an Eighties pop-influenced exuberance has replaced the piano-ballad melancholy that suffused Keane’s earlier work, when the pressure of fame and workload bore down on the old friends.
The tensions within Keane were evident in the songs that Rice-Oxley wrote for Under the Iron Sea. Some were indirect attacks on the rock star that Chaplin had become; others were direct. “Fool, I wonder if you know yourself at all?” was a lyric in Hamburg Song. Was Chaplin happy singing songs that were being rude about him?
“Eh… I don’t know,” says Rice-Oxley, falteringly. “I don’t think it was a particularly pleasant process for him. It wasn’t a very pleasant process for any of us, really. My main memory of making Under the Iron Sea was that Tom wasn’t particularly engaged.”
Chaplin wasn’t “engaged” because he was increasingly more interested in drinking and taking drugs. “That was part of the problem,” says Rice-Oxley. “But I think that stemmed from the fact that he wanted to get away from being in the band. Just to have a break from it. We hadn’t stopped at all. We were just burnt out; we should have had a bit of a holiday, really.” But instead, Keane kept working. Or trying to. When Chaplin didn’t show for a Times interview in 2006, his bandmates covered for him, saying he had a stomach bug. “Well, that stuff was happening a lot, all the time. It was definitely…” Rice-Oxley is talking in staccato grunts now. “I dunno – what else can you do? We wanted to protect him, I suppose.
“It’s a cliché you always see in films, someone saying it’s the lying that hurts. But it is really. Trust is so important.”
For Chaplin, the healing began in a Tokyo hotel room in August 2006. Under the Iron Sea had been out for barely two months, but already the singer had had enough. He was miles from home, alone and desperate. “I felt appalling,” he admits. “It had been brewing that whole tour; I just knew it was coming.”
The afternoon before the GQ performance, I meet Chaplin in a deserted room in the Royal Opera House. The singer forswears a coffee (“I had one earlier on”) and, with some prompting, recalls how he checked himself out of that Tokyo hotel and, without telling anyone, booked himself an immediate flight home. “I was the only person in first class. I just sat there on my own thinking, ‘Well, this is it, the band is finished. And that’s a good thing.’”
He talks, without resorting too much to therapy-speak, about how, since he was a teenager, he’s been prone to wild mood swings. “I’m either absurdly optimistic or depressingly pessimistic in very short bursts. And I know when it’s coming – I get more and more manic. More and more annoying!” he laughs forcefully. “Louder and louder, and then suddenly – whoosh. It’s a bit like a sugar crash.”
This, he reflects, is another example of how public school “has not really had a positive or supportive impact on me. I think I was far too sensitive for where I was.” And Chaplin says this as someone steeped in the world of private education: his dad was the headmaster of Vinehall, his mum a teacher there, too.
He’s said previously that he was taking cocaine around the time of Keane’s first single, Call Me What You Like, in 2000, but now admits, “I started doing those things when lots of people my age were doing them. And I often think, if it hadn’t been for the band, it would have made such a mess.” How did he perform on cocaine?
“I never did. I never did,” he repeats. “But there were certainly times when I hadn’t had any sleep. And was probably still steaming from the night before when we were doing things. And gigs suffered.”
Finally, in Japan, after Keane had motored straight from one hit album into the making and promoting of another, Chaplin hit the wall. He flew home, spoke to his dad, and checked himself into the Priory. Within two months he was clean, sober and back on the road. Initially Keane had a “no booze on the rider” rule, and Chaplin still won’t drink on tour, although it seems a social drink or two is allowed. There’s certainly no hint of holier-than-thou reformed addict about him. Just the calm demeanour of a clever, well brought-up young man in a band with his two best mates; someone who realised how close he’d come to throwing it all away.
“My questions to myself these days are: ‘Have you got your priorities straight?’” says a sanguine Chaplin, readily admitting he prefers the quietude of the Sussex cottage he shares with his girlfriend to the hurly-burly of London life (although he still has a “bolt-hole” in Covent Garden). “‘What are you doing tomorrow or next week? What do you have to be sorted and ready and organised for?’ And I really feel that I do prioritise in my life now, which is great.”
At the GQ event that night, Keane are a hit. The first public outing for their colourful and excitable new direction is greeted by much jewellery-rattling from the gathered celebocracy. When he steps up to collect his award, two years late, Tom Chaplin is blushingly grateful. He thanks his band, and he means it sincerely. Richard Hughes and Tim Rice-Oxley applaud him right back. Having almost lost it, they had their band back. “If there’s a unifying lyrical theme,” says Rice-Oxley, “it’s that people could do better, be better.” Chaplin, meanwhile, is ready to take on the world again. “It’s so exciting. I feel like a small child with a Christmas present.”
Perfect Symmetry is out on October 13; the single The Lovers Are Losing follows on October 20. Further details: www.keanemusic.com
A PRESS UPDATE
Mornin' folks. There have been a few interviews with Keane appearing in the past few days, so we thought we'd give you a little round-up of the ones you can read online...
- Interview in Saturday's Times
- Interview in today's Indepedent
- Interview on ClashMusic.com
There's also a feature on the band in the new issue of Q magazine. And, don't forget that if you're in the UK you can still see the band's appearance on Jonathan Ross's TV show on the iPlayer here (until Friday).
So, who's going to email their best picture from last night's show to ontour@keanemusic.com? UPDATE: Thanks to Carole, for this...
Monday 29 September 2008
LITTLE NOISE SHOW ANNOUNCED
We're pleased to announce that Keane will (like last year) be playing one of Mencap’s Little Noise Sessions at the Union Chapel, in London later this year. The band will play acoustically on Saturday November 15th, headlining a bill which also includes The Script, Bryn Christopher and Red Light Company.
For your chance to buy tickets, log onto www.mencapmusic.org.uk and register between Wednesday 1st October and Thursday 16th October. Tickets will be priced at £40 each (not including booking fee) with all proceeds going to Mencap.
Friday 26 September 2008
THE VIDEO FROM SPIRALLING
Here's our new video, we love it. We think Andras Ketzer has perfectly represented the difference between the idealised dream and the dystopian reality of human existence, which is a theme that runs through the whole of our new album.
Tim
Thursday 25 September 2008
TOM TALKS TO KEANEMUSIC.COM
For the latest in our exclusive chats we called up Tom yesterday to talk about flaming guitars, interview questions, video shoots and funny coloured blood...
Hello Tom. What are you doing today?
I'm mostly doing international press interviews on the phone. And then I'm going to look at a new gaff in London tonight.
Do you know which countries you're speaking to today?
Germany and Ireland. And Spain. And Germany and New Zealand. And Finland and Spain and Brazil and Canada.
Blimey.
Yes, I'm speaking to quite a few.
Have you done hours of preparation for each one?
Er, no. I know when we're playing in various places, but otherwise I'll just wing it. It's the best way.
Have you done a lot of interviews in the past few weeks?
We have had about four days of international press interviews, which probably counts as quite a lot.
Is there one question that's cropping up a lot?
Do you know what, it's actually remained pretty fresh, which is quite surprising. Obviously with the first record it was "Where did you get your name from?" and "What are your hopes and what are your fears?" And then with Under The Iron Sea it tended to be "Why is it so dark?" and that sort of thing. But I suppose there's loads of diversity and freshness on this record and it seems like the questions reflect that.
Has there been one particularly great or unlikely question?
Um... whenever anyone asks that sort of thing I go completely blank. Like when anyone asks me what my favourite album this year is, my mind just turns into this black hole. There haven't been any particularly outrageous ones, that I can think of. They've all been very thoughtful and quite good.
What else have you been doing this week?
We've been rehearsing a lot. Everyone's quite nervous about the live shows, so we're just trying to get as much playing under our belts as we can.
The big difference for you is that obviously that you're playing electric guitar now.
I am, yes. Which is a challenge. Obviously there's lots of guitar on the record. Well, not obviously for most people cos they haven't heard it yet! But there is a lot of guitar on the record and we talked about how we were going to go about doing that on stage. There's a balance we want to strike between me being able to run around and do my thing and being tied to a guitar, which is kind of the reason I got rid of playing a guitar in the first place. But we've found that healthy balance and I'm really excited by it. The challenge has been quite tricky cos there's a lot of quite lead-y parts. Trying to play those and sing at the same time is not easy. But it's very rewarding once you get it sounding good. It adds a new dimension.
Richard suggested you may have been practicing your guitar poses in front of the mirror at home. Is this true?
Ha! No, not yet. I'm just practicing getting the notes right at the moment!
No Pete Townshend windmills planned?
No, I prefer the more understated method of playing. Trying to do windmills etc tends to lead to me not being able to hit the right notes!
Have you ever smashed a guitar in a rock 'n roll fashion?
Not deliberately, no. I did bang one on the edge of a table by mistake once. It was a brand new Martin acoustic guitar and the first thing I did with it was to accidentally put a dent in the side of it. Does that count?
It's a start. By the end of this tour you'll probably be setting fire to them on stage.
Um, I'm sure Colin our tour manager will be very pleased with me if I start doing that. And, of course, setting fire to them may well flout the smoking ban.
So, we hear you chaps recorded the video for The Lovers Are Losing last week.
That is correct, yes. It was a two day shoot. I'm not going to give too much away, but it involved me doing a lot of running around. And being shot.
Wow. Presumably not by a real bullet.
No. Although it did involve me having to be attached to fireworks, effectively. Which was quite exciting.
Was any blood shed?
Some fake black blood was shed, yes. I've got black blood apparently. But it was fun, although I was shattered by the end of it. We've seen the first cut of it and I think it's going to be great.
Obviously the other big news this week is the announcement of the UK tour.
Hooray!
There's a lot in the diary now, is that a nice feeling?
Yeah. it's great. At the moment we're treading water a bit, in the sense that the album's finished and we're waiting for it to come out. Frankly, I can't wait for Monday and the first gig and being in front of people again. So, yeah, the European tour and the UK arena tour will be great things. I'm very much looking forward to it.
And you've now got three albums' worth of songs to pick a setlist from.
Yeah, that's great actually. Certainly trying to spread the first album over an hour and a half was a struggle and even with two albums we always felt we were wanting for another song of a certain type. But now we've got this new record, we don't have to worry about those things and it's nice to be able to pick and choose as we desire.
How many new songs will you have rehearsed and ready to go?
I think we've got 9 or 10 of the new album ready to choose from. Plus we'll be wheeling out the golden oldies too.
Do you think you'll be nervous on Monday?
I'm sure we will be. It's a year since we've been out in front of anyone. But it'll be a pretty partisan crowd and I'm sure we'll have a great time. I really can't wait.
Wednesday 24 September 2008
JONATHAN ROSS TV APPEARANCE
We're pleased to confirm that Keane will be playing on Friday Night with Jonathan Ross on BBC1 in the UK this Friday night (Sept 26th) at 10.35pm. The band will perform a fully-live version of Spiralling. If you miss it, and you live in the UK, you'll be able to watch it again on the BBC iPlayer for 7 days. (No doubt YouTube will do the business for those of you living elsewhere...)
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20. Tickets are normally allocated at dispatch and therefore you will not be able to find out your seating allocation until receipt of your tickets
21. Tickets are limited to 6 per person, per purchase.
22. It is YOUR responsibility to check any age restrictions for shows and to take ID or ensure you are accompanied by an adult where necessary. Tickets will not be refunded if purchased in error.
Age Restrictions
Please contact venues for age restrictions.
Belfast, Odyssey Arena
http://www.odysseyarena.com/
Dublin, O2
http://www.theo2.ie/
Newcastle, Arena
http://www.metroradioarena.co.uk/
Glasgow, SECC Arena Hall 4
http://www.secctickets.com/SECViewVenue.aspx?EntaCode=A06
Manchester, MEN Arena
http://www.men-arena.com/index.php
Nottingham, Arena
http://www.nottingham-arena.com/
Bournemouth, Arena
http://www.bic.co.uk/
Cardiff, Arena
http://www.livenation.co.uk/venue/getVenue/venueId/16147/
Sheffield, Arena
http://www.sheffieldarena.co.uk/
Liverpool, Arena
http://www.accliverpool.com/
Plymouth, Pavillion
http://www.plymouthpavilions.com/
Brighton, Centre
http://www.brightoncentre.co.uk/scripts/i5.exe?book=bc022006
London, O2
http://www.theo2.co.uk/
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35. "THE PROMOTER" makes every effort to ensure that all prices and descriptions quoted on the Site are correct and accurate. However, the nature and speed of e-commerce data transfer and transaction processing makes it inevitable that mistakes will occasionally occur. In the case of a manifest error or omission, "THE PROMOTER" will be entitled to rescind the contract, not with standing that it has already accepted the Customer's order, and "THE PROMOTER" liability in that event will be limited to the return of any money the Customer has paid in respect of that order.
36. A 'manifest error', as the term is used in these Terms & Conditions means, in relation to an incorrect price, a price quoted in error by "THE PROMOTER" which is more than 10% less than the price that would have been quoted had the mistake not been made.
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED AT LAW, "THE PROMOTER" IS PROVIDING THIS WEB SITE AND ITS CONTENTS ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND MAKES NO (AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL) REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, WITH RESPECT TO THIS WEB SITE OR THE INFORMATION, CONTENT, MATERIALS OR PRODUCTS INCLUDED IN THIS SITE INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN ADDITION, "THE PROMOTER" DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE INFORMATION ACCESSIBLE VIA THIS WEB SITE IS ACCURATE, COMPLETE OR CURRENT. Price and availability information is subject to change without notice.
Terms and Conditions of the Venues
The relevant United Kingdom law will apply to these Terms and Conditions and the relevant courts of the United Kingdom will have exclusive jurisdiction in relation to the Terms and Conditions.
PLEASE READ THESE TERMS CAREFULLY BEFORE USING THIS WEBSITE
Orders for the Album placed within the UK are eligible for free postage via Royal Mail First class post. However this is at the customer's own risk and we cannot be held responsible for products becoming lost in the post. Royal Mail recorded delivery is also a delivery option - Please note: recorded delivery requires a signature on receipt.
Copyright All Web site design, text, graphics, the selection and arrangement thereof, and all software compilations, underlying source code, software (including applets) and all other material on this Web site are copyright KEANE, and its affiliates, or their content and technology providers. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
Permission is granted to electronically copy and to print in hard copy portions of this Web site for the sole purpose of placing an order with KEANE or using this Web site as a shopping resource. Any other use of materials on this Web site--including reproduction for purposes other than those noted above, modification, distribution, or republication--without the prior written permission of KEANE is strictly prohibited.
Trademarks KEANE and/or other KEANE services referenced on this Web site are either trademarks or registered trademarks of KEANE in the U.K. and/or other countries. Other product and company names mentioned on this Web site may be the trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.
Conditions Of Web site Use Governing Law and Contract Formation No contract will subsist between you and KEANE for the sale by it to you of any product unless and until KEANE accepts your order by email confirming that it has shipped your product. That acceptance will be deemed complete and will be deemed for all purposes to have been effectively communicated to you at the time KEANE sends the email to you (whether or not you receive that email). For the avoidance of doubt, any such contract will be deemed to have been concluded in the United Kingdom. Further, any such contract will be interpreted, construed and enforced in all respects in accordance with the laws of England, and you and KEANE irrevocably submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the English Courts. For the avoidance of doubt, no contracts are formed between consumers and KEANE via transactions conducted on this Web site or otherwise.
Disclaimer TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED AT LAW, KEANE IS PROVIDING THIS WEB SITE AND ITS CONTENTS ON AN "AS IS" BASIS AND MAKES NO (AND EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL) REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, WITH RESPECT TO THIS WEB SITE OR THE INFORMATION, CONTENT, MATERIALS OR PRODUCTS INCLUDED IN THIS SITE INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. IN ADDITION, KEANE DOES NOT REPRESENT OR WARRANT THAT THE INFORMATION ACCESSIBLE VIA THIS WEB SITE IS ACCURATE, COMPLETE OR CURRENT. Price and availability information is subject to change without notice.
Except as specifically stated on this Web site, to the fullest extent permitted at law, KEANE nor any of its affiliates, directors, employees or other representatives will be liable for damages arising out of or in connection with the use of this Web site or the information, content, materials or products included on this site. This is a comprehensive limitation of liability that applies to all damages of any kind, including (without limitation) compensatory, direct, indirect or consequential damages, loss of data, income or profit, loss of or damage to property and claims of third parties. For the avoidance of doubt, KEANE does not limit its liability for death or personal injury to the extent only that it arises as a result of the negligence of KEANE, its affiliates, directors, employees or other representatives.
Customers who access this web site from locations outside the United Kingdom do so at their own risk and on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws, to the extent that any local laws are applicable. All terms and conditions contained on this web site shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English law. By using this web site, you hereby submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales for the resolution of any dispute arising under or in connection with these Terms or your use of this web site. Nothing in these Terms shall in any way be deemed to restrict or affect your statutory rights under English law.
Trinity Street Operate Customer Services
Tel: 0844 5670688
Email: keanetickets@tsdshop.com
When contacting our Customer Care team calls may be recorded for training purposes.
UK TICKETS: FAQs
When will I receive my tickets?
Tickets will be sent to you approx 4 weeks before the event. However in some circumstances tickets will not be received until 7 days before the event, please do not contact us until 5-7 days before if you have not received your tickets.
If you choose secure delivery you will receive your ticket up until one week before the event. We strongly recommend you choose secure delivery, as tickets are fully traceable and insured. You will also be left a calling card to rearrange delivery should you be unavailable on first attempt; you are able to provide an alternative delivery address in this instance.
If you are outside of the UK Your item is delivered to its destination by the registered postal service of that country. A signature will be taken at the delivery address (please note this will not necessarily be the addressee), which means the item is not left unattended or posted through a letterbox. If no-one is available to sign for the item then it will be retained by the postal administration, for a subsequent delivery attempt or collection by the addressee. But please note that we cannot routinely provide a copy of this signature. In the case of loss of an item we will request proof of posting from the other postal administration but this cannot always be provided
For UK residents - With secure delivery you will receive your ticket up until one week before the event. Tickets are fully traceable and insured. All customers will receive an email when their tickets have been dispatched. UK Customers only: You will also be left a calling card to rearrange delivery should you be unavailable on first attempt; you are able to provide an alternative delivery address in this instance.
When will I receive my Tee Shirt?
If you have ordered a Tee shirt you will receive this with your ticket delivery.
How can I find out my seat numbers?
Tickets are General Admission Standing or Seated Tickets Allocated from the following blocks*
Manchester, Arena - Blocks 102,104, 106, 112, 113, 114, 115.
Click here for Manchester seating plan
Sheffield, Arena - Blocks 120,118, 117, 115, 111, 219, 217
Click here for Sheffield seating plan
Liverpool, ACC - Section 11, 14, 15, 16, Stand 4 and Stand 5
Nottingham, Arena - Blocks 4, 5, 6, 14, 15, 16
London, O2 - 103, 104, 106, 111, 112, 403, 406, 409, 411
Newcastle, Arena - Blocks 111, 112, 113, 218
Brighton, Centre - South Balcony 11, 12, 13, 14, 16
* Please note that seated tickets will be allocated in order sequence, this allocation will not take place until dispatch therefore you will not find out your seat numbers until you receive your tickets. For further information regarding ticket allocation please see the Terms and Conditions of Sale
What are the door opening times?
These are yet to be confirmed
Is there disabled acccess?
Please contact the venue directly
Are there any age restrictions?
Yes. You may be asked to produce valid photo I.D if you are unable to provide this you may not be allowed to enter the venue.
How do I find out about the venue?
Most the venues have websites so please see links below.
Belfast, Odyssey Arena
http://www.odysseyarena.com/
Dublin, O2
http://www.theo2.ie/
Newcastle, Arena
http://www.metroradioarena.co.uk/
Glasgow, SECC Arena Hall 4
http://www.secctickets.com/SECViewVenue.aspx?EntaCode=A06
Manchester, MEN Arena
http://www.men-arena.com/index.php
Nottingham, Arena
http://www.nottingham-arena.com/
Bournemouth, Arena
http://www.bic.co.uk/
Cardiff, Arena
http://www.livenation.co.uk/venue/getVenue/venueId/16147/
Sheffield, Arena
http://www.sheffieldarena.co.uk/
Liverpool, Arena
http://www.accliverpool.com/
Plymouth, Pavillion
http://www.plymouthpavilions.com/
Brighton, Centre
http://www.brightoncentre.co.uk/scripts/i5.exe?book=bc022006
London, O2
http://www.theo2.co.uk/
Is this site secure?
Yes, all your details are held securely on our systems. When processing payments, we use a SSL secure connection to the banks computers.
Your credit or debit card details are NOT retained by us.
What name will appear on my Credit Card or Bank Statement?
Keane payments will be handled by Trinity St's associate company; QED Commerce Ltd. QED Commerce will appear on your card statement.
Can I get a refund?
Tickets are sold as non-transferable and non-exchangeable. Refunds are strictly at the Managements discretion. Please apply in writing to Keane Customer Services, PO Box 4897, Warwick. CV34 9GT. UK
Trinity Street Operate Customer Services
Tel: 0844 5670688
Email: keanetickets@tsdshop.com
When contacting our Customer Care team calls may be recorded for training purposes
Tickets will be sent to you approx 4 weeks before the event. However in some circumstances tickets will not be received until 7 days before the event, please do not contact us until 5-7 days before if you have not received your tickets.
If you choose secure delivery you will receive your ticket up until one week before the event. We strongly recommend you choose secure delivery, as tickets are fully traceable and insured. You will also be left a calling card to rearrange delivery should you be unavailable on first attempt; you are able to provide an alternative delivery address in this instance.
If you are outside of the UK Your item is delivered to its destination by the registered postal service of that country. A signature will be taken at the delivery address (please note this will not necessarily be the addressee), which means the item is not left unattended or posted through a letterbox. If no-one is available to sign for the item then it will be retained by the postal administration, for a subsequent delivery attempt or collection by the addressee. But please note that we cannot routinely provide a copy of this signature. In the case of loss of an item we will request proof of posting from the other postal administration but this cannot always be provided
For UK residents - With secure delivery you will receive your ticket up until one week before the event. Tickets are fully traceable and insured. All customers will receive an email when their tickets have been dispatched. UK Customers only: You will also be left a calling card to rearrange delivery should you be unavailable on first attempt; you are able to provide an alternative delivery address in this instance.
When will I receive my Tee Shirt?
If you have ordered a Tee shirt you will receive this with your ticket delivery.
How can I find out my seat numbers?
Tickets are General Admission Standing or Seated Tickets Allocated from the following blocks*
Manchester, Arena - Blocks 102,104, 106, 112, 113, 114, 115.
Click here for Manchester seating plan
Sheffield, Arena - Blocks 120,118, 117, 115, 111, 219, 217
Click here for Sheffield seating plan
Liverpool, ACC - Section 11, 14, 15, 16, Stand 4 and Stand 5
Nottingham, Arena - Blocks 4, 5, 6, 14, 15, 16
London, O2 - 103, 104, 106, 111, 112, 403, 406, 409, 411
Newcastle, Arena - Blocks 111, 112, 113, 218
Brighton, Centre - South Balcony 11, 12, 13, 14, 16
* Please note that seated tickets will be allocated in order sequence, this allocation will not take place until dispatch therefore you will not find out your seat numbers until you receive your tickets. For further information regarding ticket allocation please see the Terms and Conditions of Sale
What are the door opening times?
These are yet to be confirmed
Is there disabled acccess?
Please contact the venue directly
Are there any age restrictions?
Yes. You may be asked to produce valid photo I.D if you are unable to provide this you may not be allowed to enter the venue.
How do I find out about the venue?
Most the venues have websites so please see links below.
Belfast, Odyssey Arena
http://www.odysseyarena.com/
Dublin, O2
http://www.theo2.ie/
Newcastle, Arena
http://www.metroradioarena.co.uk/
Glasgow, SECC Arena Hall 4
http://www.secctickets.com/SECViewVenue.aspx?EntaCode=A06
Manchester, MEN Arena
http://www.men-arena.com/index.php
Nottingham, Arena
http://www.nottingham-arena.com/
Bournemouth, Arena
http://www.bic.co.uk/
Cardiff, Arena
http://www.livenation.co.uk/venue/getVenue/venueId/16147/
Sheffield, Arena
http://www.sheffieldarena.co.uk/
Liverpool, Arena
http://www.accliverpool.com/
Plymouth, Pavillion
http://www.plymouthpavilions.com/
Brighton, Centre
http://www.brightoncentre.co.uk/scripts/i5.exe?book=bc022006
London, O2
http://www.theo2.co.uk/
Is this site secure?
Yes, all your details are held securely on our systems. When processing payments, we use a SSL secure connection to the banks computers.
Your credit or debit card details are NOT retained by us.
What name will appear on my Credit Card or Bank Statement?
Keane payments will be handled by Trinity St's associate company; QED Commerce Ltd. QED Commerce will appear on your card statement.
Can I get a refund?
Tickets are sold as non-transferable and non-exchangeable. Refunds are strictly at the Managements discretion. Please apply in writing to Keane Customer Services, PO Box 4897, Warwick. CV34 9GT. UK
Trinity Street Operate Customer Services
Tel: 0844 5670688
Email: keanetickets@tsdshop.com
When contacting our Customer Care team calls may be recorded for training purposes
UK TOUR TICKETS
YOU CAN NOW PURCHASE TICKETS FOR KEANE UK TOUR.
You can also add one or both of the below products to your basket.
Both products are exclusive to KeaneMusic.com
ADD THE LIVE ALBUM
This digital only release is only available at this discounted price when you buy a ticket for the tour on this site.
Keane will select their favourite 10 live tracks from the European tour, plus 2 bonus live tracks from the UK live tour to compile this album, mix and master as soon as the tour ends, and send you high quality MP3 audio as soon as it is ready!
KeaneMusic.com will notify you when album is ready for you to download.
ADD THE LIMITED EDITION KEANE TEE SHIRT *
To add this to your order simply tick the box below, you'll be able to choose your size on the next screen.
This is a special offer to fans buying tickets only, and is available at the discounted price of £10 when bought with tickets from KeaneMusic.com
* Whilst stocks last
Date:
23 Jan 2009
25 Jan 2009
27 Jan 2009
29 Jan 2009
31 Jan 2009
01 Feb 2009
03 Feb 2009
04 Feb 2009
06 Feb 2009
07 Feb 2009
09 Feb 2009
10 Feb 2009
12 Feb 2009
Location:
Belfast - Odessey Arena
Dublin - O2
Newcastle - Arena
Glasgow - SECC Hall 4
Manchester - MEN Arena
Nottingham - Arena
Bournemouth - BIC
Cardiff - Arena
Sheffield - Arena
Liverpool - ACC
Plymouth - Pavillion
Brighton - Centre
London - O2 Arena
Ticket Type
General Admission - Under 14's accompained by an adult
General Admission - Under 16's accompained by an adult
General Admission - Under 14's must be accompained by an adult
Seated - Under 14's must be accompanied by an adult
General Admission - Over 14's only
General Admission - Over 14's only
Seated - Under 14's must be accompanied by an adult
General Admission - Under 14's must be accompained by an adult
Seated - Under 14's must be accompanied by an adult
General Admission - Over 14's only
General Admission - Under 14's must be accompained by an adult
General Admission - Over 14's only
Seated - Under 14's must be accompanied by an adult
General Admission - Over 14's only
Seated - Under 14's must be accompanied by an adult
General Admission - Under 14's must be accompained by an adult
General Admission - Under 14's must be accompained by an adult
Seated - Under 14's must be accompanied by an adult
General Admission - Under 14's must be accompained by an adult
Seated - Under 14's must be accompanied by an adult
Price:
£27.50
£27.70
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£27.50
£30.00
£30.00
Booking Fee:
£2.75
£2.77
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£2.75
£3.00
£3.00
UK TOUR ANNOUNCED: Pre-sale has now begun - Click for tickets link
We're very pleased to announce that Keane will be playing live across the UK (and Ireland) at the beginning of next year. The dates are as follows:
JANUARY
23 - Belfast Odyssey
25 - Dublin The O2
27 - Newcastle Arena
29 - Glasgow SECC
31 - Manchester MEN Arena
FEBRUARY
1 - Nottingham Arena
3 - Bournemouth BIC
4 - Cardiff Arena
6 - Sheffield Arena
7 - Liverpool Echo Arena
9 - Plymouth Pavilions
10 - Brighton Centre
12 - London 02 Arena
Once again, we've sorted out an exclusive pre-sale with a limited selection of the best tickets via keanemusic.com.
**** The pre-sale is now live, via the site shop. Click to buy your tickets ****
UK fans will also be eligible for a bundle discount saving them over a third on the price of the live digital album which will be released following Keane's European dates later this year. Anyone buying tickets will be able to pre-order the album for just £5 - plus, they will be given two further live bonus tracks after the UK tour. What's more, ticket purchasers will also be able to buy a lovely Keane clouds T-shirt for just £10 (while stocks last).
Tuesday 23 September 2008
New Biography 2008
Keane are back. After over 8 million sales of Hopes And Fears (2004) and Under The Iron Sea (2006) combined, sold-out arena tours, awards spanning Ivor Novellos to BRITs, plus an undeniable collection of hits including Is It Any Wonder?, Everybody’s Changing, Crystal Ball and Somewhere Only We Know, one of Britain’s best-loved bands are about to surprise and thrill all over again.
Avowed believers in never retreading old ground, Tom Chaplin, Tim Rice-Oxley and Richard Hughes return with Perfect Symmetry, a Technicolor explosion of stellar pop songs and pure, unashamed energy; the joy in which is audible in every finger-click and life-affirming chorus. As different as piano-helmed classic debut Hopes And Fears was from its darker cousin Under The Iron Sea, Perfect Symmetry finds Keane at the height of their powers. Confirming Rice-Oxley’s position as one of the finest British songwriters to emerge this decade, the 11-song set sees Keane throwing any last vestiges of caution to the wind and simply letting the music take them where it will. The result is a thrillingly bold album that’s as pleasurable to listen to as it was to make.
While millions of paid-up Keane fans will immediately recognise Perfect Symmetry as a body of work that could have come from no other group, others are likely to be knocked sideways by their various leaps into uncharted territory. Indeed, after hearing download-record-breaking first taste Spiralling, it’s possible you might not have even recognised it the work of “the Somewhere Only We Know band”. Certainly, Perfect Symmetry is the first Keane album to feature musical saw, saxophone, vocals recorded through a drum; studio sessions in Berlin, Paris and London; their first self produced album, with input from esteemed producers Jon Brion (Rufus Wainwright; Kanye West) and Stuart Price (Madonna; Les Rhythmes Digitales) and the sound of three men yelping a delighted ‘Oooh!’ as virtually the first thing you hear.
“We’ve always said we want to challenge ourselves,” says Hughes. “Most bands, when they release an album, always say they’ve pushed themselves. But we’re all music lovers and we sit there and read these things and think ‘Great, can’t wait to hear it!’ and then you put it on and you think ‘Oh. Hang on a minute…’”
“There’s nothing that our record company would have loved more than for us to have delivered Hopes And Fears three times,” he continues. “But we’ve already done one, and one’s enough.”
“I think by a million miles it’s the best thing we’ve put together,” says Chaplin. “I can’t wait for people to hear it.”
***
Keane wound up the Under The Iron Sea tour on August 5, 2007. A couple of charity gigs aside, they then took time out for family, friends and a well-earned breather, not reconvening again until mid-January 2008. It was to prove the right decision. “With the second record we went straight off the road into the studio when we really needed a break and that sowed the seeds for a lot of problems which have been quite well-documented. We learned from that this time.” says Hughes.
Pooling the first batch of ideas in their ‘Barn’ studio in southern England (somewhere that’s provided a bolthole for the last few years) Keane then decamped to Paris in mid-February, having booked a couple of days recording time with Jon Brion, the maverick producer as regarded for his soundtrack work as that with US pop acts. Though Perfect Symmetry would end up being almost entirely self-produced, Brion’s input in that short time proved revelatory. “We looked at hip-hop records where they have multiple producers and you never get that with pop or rock records,” says Hughes. “That was part of the thinking there, so Jon came to Paris to work with us for three days before setting off to work on the soundtrack for the new Charlie Kaufman movie.”
“Jon coming onboard was a massive influence,” says Rice-Oxley. “We were in a good place already but he gave us the confidence of not thinking; of not self-editing. We were saying that the records we love are the records that, as a musician, you think ‘God, it must have been amazing to be at that session; it must have been really fun’ and his theory was you only get that by just going for it. Not worrying what people are going to think, or even what you’re going to think! Let’s face it: the worst that can happen is that it’s an idea that doesn’t work.” Consequently, Brion and Keane soon found themselves rooting around in the back of the studio for obtuse percussion instruments and recording vocals in all manner of peculiar ways. You can hear the results on the stellar You Haven’t Told Me Anything, one of the most musically ‘out there’ tracks the band have produced to date.
From then it was back to the UK for a couple of weeks before decamping to Teldex Studios in Berlin. It’s a lengthy journey… if you undertake it by train. “We all got on the overnight train and that journey becomes part of the experience,” says Hughes. “You get to go to the bar and just hang out. It was really, really enjoyable, fun and different. We’re desperate to make sure we get out there again as soon as we can, by train.”
The city that had previously inspired them so much on tour – not to say produced such landmark albums in Keane’s formative years as U2’s Achtung Baby and Bowie’s Low – provided another vital cog in the process. Teldex, a massive former ballroom, would help root Perfect Symmetry with its sense of tragic grandeur. It was during this initial visit that Rice-Oxley wrote standout first single proper The Lovers Are Losing and Stuart Price lent his deft production hands for three days, most audibly on Again And Again. A very different worker to Brion, Price proved equally inspirational in underlining that when it comes to experimenting in the studio, basically, there are no wrong answers.
Further songs fell into place between The Barn, Berlin and London’s Olympic Studios over the next few months, with ideas coming so thick and fast that the song Pretend That You’re Alone was being written and recorded in one studio while other album tracks were being mixed in the next.
The result is a huge record made up of songs in the tradition of happy-sad classic British bands from The Beatles onwards. Or, as Hughes has it, “songs that are not that happy but that sound happy.” Pop music that’s anything but throwaway.
Some have already detected an Eighties influence on parts of Perfect Symmetry. If that’s the case, Keane say, it’s in the spirit of adventure, boldness and Big Pop of those times, rather than any attempt at retro pastiche.
“The boldness of that time is something that’s really frowned upon today,” notes Rice-Oxley. “We’re living in a time when it’s cool to be ‘Eighties’ in a retro way, but I don’t think that spirit and unashamed energy of great 1980s pop is particularly prevalent today. If this record sounds like that, it’s probably because I associate some of those songs – Pet Shop Boys, Salt N’ Peppa, Mel & Kim – with a fun, innocent time. I absolutely do not care what is considered to be fashionable or cool or tasteful – it’s much more about following our own instincts.”
***
Great hooks, big choruses and massive middle eights come as a factory setting with Keane, of course, something that’s meant that, previously, Rice-Oxley’s lyrics have sometimes perhaps not been given the attention they deserve. That’s unlikely to prove the case with Perfect Symmetry, which features his most direct, unambiguous and, yes, best words to date. Whether on train-of-thought, Pygmalion-inspired Spiralling, broadside on fame-for-fame’s-sake Better Than This or the title track Perfect Symmetry which brilliantly takes as its theme the futile distractions of the human race (“I think it might be the best song I’ve ever written” says Rice-Oxley, here Big Ideas are never sacrificed on the altar of great tunes.
“I love Better Than This,” agrees Chaplin. “Sonically it’s a big departure, but lyrically, being about the state of ‘celebrity culture’… people see it as such an important thing and pin so much hope on it. Certainly, in my opinion, the fame and celebrity side of things is something I find hard to reconcile. I’d much rather it was just about the music; the reason we got into the band in the first place. It wasn’t to get rich or become famous or to get girls – it was to be out there singing. That magic connection between you and a crowd of people who have turned up to pour everything out, like you have… that coming together is the biggest buzz in my life.”
***
So that’s Keane in 2008: the big gigs, big chart success and big awards we know about; now here’s the album of their career. A big, bold, shiny pop monster that’s as likely to appeal to hearts and minds as it is to feet.
“Because we nearly lost it all, we nearly lost the band and we could have gone our separate ways,” says Chaplin, “we had this reinvention as people. You know, ‘We might not have this, so we might as well enjoy it’. That affected everything that we did with this album.”
No wonder it starts with an ‘Oooh!’
KEANE are:
Tom Chaplin – vocals, etc.
Richard Hughes – drums, etc.
Tim Rice-Oxley – piano, etc.
------
Photo credits:
Left shot: Alex Lake
Middle and right shots: Søren Solkær Starbird
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