This is a recommendation for all of you, who visit every now and then this lonely island.
In search of new atmospheric & introspective sounds, looking for bands not related to The Chameleons, I came up with this fantastic group called NOSOUND who could be labelled somewhere between Pink Floyd & Sigur Ros.Their long and melancholic compositions are their highlights on their albums.
Spend some minutes of your life to let the music of this song called Constant Contrast, included on their album A Sense of Loss, transport your soul to other world
Last 15th of January Mark Burgess and friends arrived in Barcelona to play some Chameleons classics songs. The venue was Bikini and the name of the band: ChameleonsVOX. Caution! Not to be confused with Chameleons. Some might say "What difference does it make? Meanwhile the sound remains as close as possible to the original it doesn´t matter", but some others will think Chameleons songs are too good to be played by other people than the original members Fielding/Lever/Burgess/Smithies.
The truth is that The Chameleons are (and will be) no more, so the only real possibility of listening live those beloved songs again is without the original band. In fact, it is right now the singer Mark Burgess the only remaining original member. John Lever joined him for some months, but he is not anymore. This is the actual line-up of ChameleonsVOX:
Mark Burgess - Vox Justin Lomery - Guitar Stephen Foxcroft - Guitar Chris Oliver - Guitar Ray Bowles - Bass Dug McLeod - Drums
This is not the first time Mark Burgess plays Chameleons songs without the rest of the band (remember Mark Burgess & The Sons of God & Invincible), but we have to recognize this is the first time the guitars sound as close as possible to the original band. If you close your eyes you can almost pretend it´s Dave and Reg... almost, although you will notice three guitars are required to reproduce a similar atmosphere.
The venue was a bit small for the amount of fans who attended the show. Both the venue and band offered a fantastic sound quality. Mark´s voice was into shape, although I prefer it when he sings and plays bass at the same time. The rest of the musicians demostrated the love and respect they have for Chameleons songs. No one attending the show (knowing beforehand it was not the original Chameleons) would be upset. It´s always a pleasure to listen to these magnific tunes, when being recreated with professionalism and respect to the spirit of the original band.
Video of Tears
Video of Second Skin
The band of Mark Burgess focused on songs from Script of The Bridge and Strange Times albums, although a devoted audience was surprised with gems like Singing Rule Britannia or In Shreds. Second Skin, Monkeyland, Seriocity & In Answer were also some of the highlights of the show, which took almost two hours. Only a couple of songs, one of them Soul in Isolation sounded a bit strange and forced. The new millenium album Why Call it Anything? was ignored by the band, surely because it lacks the magic of the three classic albums.
Mark was very happy and warm during all the show, and he mentioned the possibility of coming back in summer. ChameleonsVOX will have for sure a successful european tour, because die-hard fans are always eager to listen to Chameleons songs. But one question remains in the air: Would it be the same if the name of the band was simply Mark Burgess & Friends? Surely not, because a product always needs good marketing to be sold, even in The Chameleons world. And one thing is for sure: the word "Chameleons" and references to Reg´s original art will always attract more people.
I won´t begin a discussion if it´s fair or not the usage of Chameleons imagery when the original band is not involved, but I have to confess I personally miss new material from Mr Burgess both live and in studio.
I know people always ask on his concerts for Chameleons songs, but I guess it has to be a bit frustrating for the artist to be recognized only for songs created a quarter century ago.
I really hope this look to the past is only temporal, although it is evident on the shows he enjoys a lot playing with his new band. I hope this period will help Mark embrace the future with renovated efforts. We still have for sure a lot of new songs from this fantastic artist to enjoy. Let´s hope people will encourage him to move one step forward, leaving behind once and for all the Chameleons era, which should not be necessary for sold-outs.
It´s about time all chameleons fans recognized Mark Burgess for what he is, not only for what he was.
Ever wondered which was the origin of the misterious words "In his autumn before the winter comes man´s last mad surge of youth" which appear in the Intro for Don´t Fall, the opener of Chameleon´s debut album Script of the Bridge?
Thanks to Yvo & GriefTourist, two Chameleons fans, the mistery is finally solved.
The words belong to musical comedy film Two Sisters from Boston, directed in 1946 by Henry Koster and starring Kathryn Grayson, June Allyson, Lauritz Melchior, Jimmy Durante and Peter Lawford.
The excerpt where the famous words appear has been uploaded in Youtube by both Chameleons fans, so that we can enjoy the finding:
It´s been a long time, since we haven´t talked in this blog about Andy Clegg & Andy Whitaker, founder members of MUSIC for ABORIGINES & The SUN & The MOON.
During last years both Andys, apart from resurrecting SUN & MOON Project for some live shows and performing the MIDLIFE DEMENTIA SHOW, have been collaborating with KIZILOK, another brilliant Manchester Musician, who is sadly totally underated.
The band is called KIZILOK& The Strange Times and is formed by: Kizilok - songwriter, guitars and vocals Andy Clegg - guitars, strange noises Mark Mills - bass, drum machines, synths and other instrumentation Andy Whitaker - guitars Suzy Mills - backing vocals, piano, glockenspiel, photos, video
The Chameleons are one of the many influences of this eclectic & alternative band, who is always exploring new ways of understanding and feeling the music.
Take a listen to this fantastic song called Say Goodbye at the Door, and dive into its melancholic atmosphere. The perfect song for a winter rainy day:
If you like it, join them in facebook to help them spread the word and if interested you can contact directly the artist to purchase their works.
We know this is old news, but as we missed this when it was released, we will comment it now.
On 2009, Mark Burgess collaborated with producer/mixer Richard Jankovich (aka POCKET) singing A Force of Nature, a single release by POCKET. Mark sings both on A-side and B-side, called Heaven.
Since last years, POCKET has been releasing many electro-pop "pocket mixes" featuring guest singers like Robyn Hitchcock, Craig Wedren (Shudder To Think), Steve Kilbey (The Church), Danny Seim (Menomena), Mark Burgess (The Chameleons).
More information about this project of Richard Jankovich, on his website.
The Acoustic Albums Strip and This Never Ending Now originally released in 2000 & 2002 will be soon compiled into one Remastered 2CD set + KEXP Radio Seattle Sessions as bonus tracks. This compilation will be simply called Acoustic Sessions.
The cover of this new Chameleons Album will be a variation of the original This Never Ending Now.
This is the Track List of this new 2CD set:
Disc One: This Never Ending Now (re-mastered)
1. The Fan and the Bellows 2. Tears 3. Intrigue in Tangiers 4. Is It Any Wonder? 5. Seriocity 6. Swamp Thing 7. All Around 8. Second Skin 9. Home is Where the Heart Is 10 Miracles and Wonders 11. View From A Hill 12. Moonage Daydream
Disc Two: Strip (re-mastered)
1. Less Than Human 2. Nathan’s Phase 3. Here Today 4. Soul in Isolation 5. Pleasure and Pain 6. Paradiso 7. Caution 8. On the Beach 9. Road to San Remo 10. Indian
Bonus Tracks
11. Nathan’s Phase (Live @ KEXP) 12. On the Beach (Live @ KEXP) 13. Tears (Live @ KEXP) 14. Miracles and Wonders (Live @ KEXP) The first 500 people to order the album direct from Blue Apple Music will also receive an exclusive Chameleons lanyard. The lanyard is printed in full colour and features the iconic WDAMB image. More information: Blue Apple Music
22.12.2011 UK - MIDDLETON (MANCHESTER), CARSONS 08.01.2011 UK - YORK, DUCHESS 14.01.2011 SP - MADRID, LA BOITE 15.01.2011 SP - BARCELONA, BIKINI 25.01.2011 DE - BIELEFELD, FORUM 26.01.2011 DE - BERLIN, MAGNET CLUB 27.01.2011 DE - HAGEN, WERKHOF 28.01.2011 NL-APELDOORN, GIGANT 29.01.2011 NL -HERLEEN, NIEUWE NOR 30.01.2011 NL -ROTTERDAM, BAROEG 12.02.2011 UK - LONDON, O2 ISLINGTON
Actual ChameleonsVOX Line-up: Mark Burgess - Vox John Lever - Drums Justin Lomery - Guitar Andru Aesthetik - Guitar Jessica Espeleta - Bass
Here is a link to a Youtube video of ChameleonsVOX playing Second Skin live.
Past Tour Dates (US Tour without John Lever, who was substituted by Glenn Maryansky): Aug 4 Home Sweet Home New York, NY Aug 7 Manhattan Room Philadelphia, PA Aug 11 The Ottobar Baltimore, MD Sep 4 The Troubadour West Hollywood, CA Sep 21 The Crocodile Seattle, Washington Sep 21 The Crocodile Seattle, WA Sep 24 The East End Portland, OR Sep 28 Cafe Du Nord San Francisco, CA Oct 11, Band on the Wall, Manchester, UK
More info about this Project from Mark and John in http://www.myspace.com/chameleonsvox. On this site you can also listen to new songs from ChameleonsVox. New songs in acoustic format, are also available. "Another You" is one of the highlights. Listen to them, you won´t be disappointed.
Seattle KEXP Radio has published on their Web Site a Live Session Mark Burgess, with full band under the name of ChameleonsVOX, performed last September, during the US Tour.
On this Live Session, the following classic Chameleons songs were played:
In Answer In Shreds Monkeyland Up The Down Escalator
ChameleonsVOX for US Tour Line-up: Mark Burgess - Vox Justin Lomery - Guitar Andru Aesthetik - Guitar Jessica Espeleta - Bass Glenn Maryansky - Drums
You can listen to the full performance on the following link:
If you haven´t bought the Chameleons Biography yet, you can do it now through ChameleonsBook Website.
The book is entitled "View from a Hill" and it is written by Mark Burgess. The available edition is a soft cover one, and it includes two signed guitar picks.
Visit the ChameleonsBook Website for more information about the book, all the available merchandising and the latest information from the latest projects of Mark Burgess.
I discovered this band in an Editors show. The Boxer Rebellion were the supporters, and they instantly moved me with their sharp guitars and their melancholic voice.
With a style similar to Interpol & Editors, The Boxer Rebellion have found their own place in the music business. They have released two albums from the time being, and we wish them the best on their musical career.
Here is a link to a video of the single Evacuate of their second album, called UNION.
This is a recommendation for all of you, who visit every now and then this lonely island.
