Keeping Some Dark Secrets

Band Not On Wichita, WeLeftYouSleepingAndGoneNow To Be Remastered, Expanded

Jay — Fri, 27 Aug 2010 02:06:00 +0000

So it turns out everyone was right the other week, when we posted about a Tweet that suggested our heroes had signed with a new label. According to a quick comment from Lex right here, Johnny Foreigner has a new label that is NOT Wichita Recordings, which of course is a bit surprising, for reasons we note often. But the admission makes the selfish American in us concerned that the Birmingham, Engla-based noise-pop titans will sign with an outfit that doesn’t have proper U.S. distribution. Crossing fingers, not getting hopes up. Oh yeah, also, the band has a new practice space. Which makes us wonder if they no longer share with Calories, who are awesome, and who have a new record out early next month.

ALSO, THIS: According to this Formspring post, Johnny Foreigner’s “lost” first full-length WeLeftYouSleepingAndGoneNow– painstakingly dissected and analyzed by KeepingSomeDarkSecrets in the spring of 2009 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 — is being remastered and expanded for a planned digital release. Said release will also include “copious liner notes,” additional art and — and this is amazing — a comic book “about the whole thing.” We don’t really know how to interpret the comic book comment, but either way, that is flipping amazing.

“Things” Are “Heating Up” And Damn It Keeping Up With This Formspring Is A “Pain In The Assssss”

Jay — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 16:54:08 +0000

So for those of you keeping score at home (hat tip to Mr. Solomon, of course): now it appears that the near-term future Johnny Foreigner reality will be shaped thusly:

Item 1: 7-date U.K. tour this autumn, itinerary up for grabs.
Item 2: U.S. tour of some indeterminate duration, perhaps with Sky Larkin, who already have a lot of touring to do themselves through 23 Sept.
Item 3: The new EP (speculate, speculate, speculate) is completed and will be released “SeptyOctyish;” given how near that is and how long it took the 10″ Every Cloakroom Ever EP to get done, we are guessing this would have to be a digital-only release, at least for starters.
Item 4: Snuggle.

Footage From Leefest 2010: “I’llchoosemysideandshutup, Alright”

Jay — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 18:07:40 +0000

Thanks to YouTuber EskimoShreddies for posting this ace clip filmed last weekend.

Reader Spots Possible Songs For New EP

Jay — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 01:33:25 +0000

Alert reader Kevin D. got in touch to point us to a certain Last.fm account, which we’re not going to link to because, you know, people deserve to have a semi-private life (wasn’t that a terrible song in the ’90s on American FM radio?). Said Last.fm account belongs to a member of our favorite indie rock outfit, and said account notes what tracks said rocker has been listening to, and wouldn’t you know it: said rocker has apparently been listening to demos of unreleased songs. The demos are attributed to the collection 6 track EP demo’s, and the songs include some familiar to us from Mr. Cotton’s recent report on Johnny Foreigner‘s performance for the Wichiten thing. But anyway, the songs include the following: “Harmonics Track;” “Harriot” which is likely “Harriet By Proxy;” “Heavy One;” “The Wind And The Weather Vane;” and “Who Needs Comment Boxes.” Which, of course, is only five tracks. There are some other things listed, but they sound like they are just iterations or variations on the songs listed supra. But anyway, this is all very exciting. Who will be releasing the EP is still something of a mystery (*makes the suave thumb-and-pinky-to-ear-and-mouth “call me” motion*), a mystery that only intensified early this week after this Tweet. But we expect that we will all have some answers soon, because if the Birmingham, England-based indie giants actually get their fall U.S. tour off the ground, those dates are going to start showing up at venue web sites very soon. Keep your fingers crossed for your town, as we keep them crossed for ours.

Subba Cultcha Interview

Luke — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 13:57:22 +0000

An interview that Alexei did with Subba Cultcha a few weeks ago has surfaced online which covers all manner of topics, from South Africa to artwork. Perhaps most interestingly, a few more details about their upcoming EP and third album are included, with Alexei saying “we’ll hopefully be recording the album around October/November and get it out as soon as possible after that” and “I think the EP that’s coming out later in the year will consist of 3 pretty straight forward guitar songs and then 2 of these songs that started in bedrooms with acoustic guitars and keyboards and then a couple of Juniors fruity loops experiments that we’re basically going to try and make sound like Postal Service (laughs).”

You can read the full interview on the Subba Cultcha website.

From The Tantalizing, Unexplained Tweets Department

Jay — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 00:51:23 +0000

@lexkelandjun: we have a new home and its better than yours.
posted Tuesday at 4:32PM U.S. East Coast time.
link

Forthcoming EP “50% Done”

Jay — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 14:32:23 +0000

Noise pop superheroes Johnny Foreigner are “50% finished” with a new EP, we were surprised to learn earlier this week via this blog post. We have no information about who will be releasing the EP, when it will be released, or what is on it. But here are some dots you can try to connect. First, there’s this quote from the blog: “We’re undecided if the lead-off single should be a standard yay happyclap pop song (for The Radio to pick up on and make us famous) or a depressing slow song (cos The Radio pretty much ignores us whateverr, and we’re all growd up and mature now).” The Birmingham, England-based trio recently (finally) shipped its Every Cloakroom Ever 10″, which the band self-released with the blessing of its label Best Before. We also know that Johnny Foreigner is planning a make-or-break U.S. tour, perhaps touring alongside notable Leeds-based indie trio Sky Larkin, which will release its stellar sophomore set Kaleide Aug. 9 as we noted here. And based on reporting by colleague Luke Cotton, we know the names of two more as-yet-unreleased new Johnny Foreigner tracks: “The Wind And The Weathervane;” “Harriet By Proxy.” And of course Johnny Foreigner earlier this summer released to the Internerds an amazing version of “With Who, Who And What I’ve Got,” which we would expect the band will properly record in non-8-bit version. So that’s three tracks, which could be most of an EP right there, yeah? An EP that might be sold on a fall tour, yeah? Anyway, watch this space for tour news, some unreleased video, and the like. Get excited people.

Live: Wichita’s 10th Birthday

Luke — Sun, 18 Jul 2010 14:59:37 +0000

Thursday night saw Johnny Foreigner join Frankie & The Heartstrings and Los Campesinos! at The Garage in Highbury, London to celebrate Wichita Recordings’ 10th Birthday. Johnny Foreigner were the only band who aren’t signed to Wichita playing at the Wichiten Celebrations, which spanned over 4 nights. But before you get carried away thinking the band has a new home, that isn’t necessarily a sign of things to come as the band’s manager, Gareth Dobson, also works for Wichita, which meant the band were able to join a superb bill. Blasting through 9 songs in a 30-minute set, the band opened with the so-far-unrecorded song “The Wind and The Weathervane,” a heavier song which so far I’ve been unable to decipher, in contrast to the other unavailable song played, “Harriet By Proxy,” which quickly repeats the title persona “Harriet” (real name Karen, a girl Alexei dated yet believed had a different name), reminiscent of a much less harsh version of the end of “Kingston Called, They Want Their Lost Youth Back.” Back onto heavier songs, it would shock if the full version of “With Who, Who and What I’ve Got“doesn’t become a fan favourite, encompassing all the best bits about the band, whilst the rest of the set was filled with well known songs. “Salt, Peppa and Spinderella” really got the crowd going before Gareth Campesinos! joined for a rendition of “Criminals“ (“This is 4 people on stage, singing a song about how much yr town sucks”) which can be seen below, and “The Coast Was Always Clear“ to close left the crowd wanting more.

All The Things We Didn’t Tell You Last Week, Like Johnny Foreigner Gives Away More Music, Is Coming To North America To Rinse Your ITunes And Rock Your Face

Jay — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 19:01:50 +0000

Our big weekend away last weekend got us so turned around that we encountered all the big Johnny Foreigner news that came to light in reverse order. So, while we told you about the brilliant new collaboration with South African producer-type person Peach, which is called “With Who, Who And What I’ve Got,” and we’ve unboxed a test pressing of the “Every Cloakroom Ever” 10″, we’re only now telling you the following: Johnny Foreigner is coming to North America for a tour, they totally mean it this time, and they hope to be transnavigating the continent in October or November with the esteemed Sky Larkin. In a missive posted to JohnnyForeignerBand here 30 May, our heroes suggest this will be a make or break tour, as far as Johnny Foreigner establishing a beachhead in North America (and, we suppose, sales credibility with a potential North American label partner? Nettwerk didn’t do a whole lot, did they?). To whit, “if we dont make this amazing on the first go and it turns into a giant fucking mess, it’s pretty unlikely we’ll be able to come back. This is the most important tour we’ll ever do.”

The band is going all in: will America step up and give the trio the support it needs? We certainly hope so. There are hints of something called GhostTeam. And then there is this: North Americans are being gifted in a little package called Nice People USA Download two free tracks, a previously unreleased and stirring cover of Pavement‘s “Grounded” and “Ohai Sentinels.” The latter cut was included in the 2009 tour promo Johnny Foreigner Is Aces. We think the download is geo-locked so it can only go to folks in North America, but maybe not: here is the link, give it a shot no matter where you are sitting reading this. Here’s the really cool thing — the more people who sign up for the North America list by submitting their email addresses in exchange for the two songs above, the more songs Johnny Foreigner will make available for free to people who give their addresses. So sign up people. Do it! If any of the stuff they have up their collective sleeve is as good as “With Who, Who And What I’ve Got,” there are some real treats to be had. That’s a lot of information to digest, but there is yet a little more. The 300 fans who pre-ordered the aforementioned “Every Cloakroom Ever” 10″ received a surprise in their email this week in the form of still one more exclusive tune available to purchasers only. The song is “Kelly Watches The Coast,” a stripped-down (to beats, tones and voice — mostly bassist Kelly Southern’s) remix of the Grace And The Bigger Picture album highlight “The Coast Was Always Clear.” It sounds a bit like Lali Puna circa Tridecoder, which is a high compliment. And it sounds wonderful played very loudly through headphones.

Unboxing A Test Pressing of the Every Cloakroom Ever 10″

Jay — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 01:19:16 +0000

Okay, not a lot to look at, yeh, what with the white label and all. The art you see in the third shot is a copy of the “Eyes Wide Terrified” single that mysteriously found its way into the package. But anyway, the “Every Cloakroom Ever” EP: it’s is coming to your house soon.