Yes yes. Its been a while. I know. But the truth is. Its been a while. For us. Too.

Children of convenience!

A mastered, mastered, mastered album is complete. We had to master it a couple of times because the studio we were with lost some important tracks and although i hate saying the word 'unlucky' the septic situation did hold us back for many more months than we had anticipated (even though the record has been wrapped since April/May)

Its called Between Screens and its a collection of songs sparked and formed mostly as you (one) have little or big inconsequential thoughts or consequential ones, as you (one) flit between the various media screens we have become so attached to in the home: T.V's, ipod's, Internet (my personal favourite), Mobile phones etc... the list goes on...

....microwaves, pedometers, DVD display screens, oven display screens etc... the list goes on....screens on buses, billboard adverts, cinema screens etc....

These songs are the bastard children of the little distracted thoughts you have whilst spending time between these sorts of screens. They are about when you should be engaged with whatever it is your supposed to be engaged with, yet you cant help processing thoughts that ping in random directions. Does that help? Do you really care?

I really miss sex with my ex. What? oh yeah sorry. I have ADD when i have the TV on whilst typing band blogs on the net.

No. Wot. Eye. Meen.

Anyway we are giving away free copies of the album with artwork at future gigs so come on down if you can. More dates coming soon and it will hopefully be online in the new year. Some of you already have a copy so thanks for coming down the Borderline last night! We had a fantastic time supporting Sons of Albion and People in Planes who were both slick as slick back hair and tight as a tight pair of tight jeans. Its really nice when your a band at our gigging level that the promoters you deal with treat you like a distant cousin. There is professional 'space' but they show their gratitude that you made every effort to come to their birthday dinner eventough you havent seen them since you were kids. Thanks Emma. There have been distant cousins that have worried far too much about they way they looked at their party and how many friends turned up not giving two shits whether you are there or not. Eventhough you saw them with the family the previous week. Sewage Rats are they.

Kids i will be giving a preview of some of the other album tracks on our myspace page this week. Watch Out!

I love being in this band and i love the songs we have created together. Whatever happens, we achieved what we set out to achieve. Not a lot of people or bands can ever really say that. Thanks y'all.

Laters,

Jon

RED HOT PAGES!

Proxy have been featured in Red Hot's top 100 for 2008! Who'd have thought that 2007 would be the year of climate change, celebrity perfumes and Lewis Hamilton? Red Pages did. They also think it's the year for Proxy's Debut Album 'Between Screens'...

Last year's Red Pages: Hot 100 predicted the top 100 up-and-coming celebrities likely to hit headlines in 2007. From Burberry supermodel Agyness Deyn to Heroes IT girl Hayden Panettiere, to F1 hero Lewis Hamilton and music's The Enemy, Kate Nash and Mika â€" the Red Pages: Hot 100 report accurately identified some of this year's big headliners.

This year's Hot 100 2008 report predicts tomorrow's movers, shakers and newsmakers in the world of music, film, television, politics, sport, society, lifestyle and business, including the stars from US exports Gossip Girl, Pushing Daisies and Cashmere Mafia, sportsmen Danny Cipriani and Michael Johnson, artists Proxy and Adele and fashion's hot new designers and muses.

Check out the link here:

http://www.theredpages.co.uk/hot100.aspx

Hello all.

I usually dont do b.l.o.g.s cause i still find it hard to grapple with the idea that people will actually read them and since we've only had one poxy release on the mighty Island Records/Universal i wouldn't expect that much arousal but hey 3693 b.l.o.g views in total. Not bad. So apologies to those of you reading now for assuming you weren't or weren't going to read this.

Anyway i've taken it upon myself to explain in a bit more detail what has happened to us in the last few months. I think the general consensus is that we overstepped the 'process'. By signing and not gigging enough (no fault of ours booking agents are harder than contracts nowadays we were babies running for our lives before we could even eat, shit and sleep. But thats what happens when you have a catchy song and some lingering teenage ambitions about being huge. bbbbbahhhhhhhhhhhhh its what we wanted at the time. i suppose. The main thing that gets me is that the whole experience ground what was good about us to a virtual halt. I remember afternoons in the gym, sweating over whether we were gonna get a second single for about three months (that's constant drifting folks not good for an already brittle state of mind!).
.

Dec 2007 - Yessss! We got a second single!

Jan 2008 – oh shit we got dropped!

 

I remember the constant pressure to acquire a big fanbase as soon as possible with whatever means. (i shit you not these things were actually discussed and some limply implemented) - celebrity girlfriends, stylists, 'professional' photographers, endless discussions about what to wear to look congruous (a la Kooks or whatever was selling that month), poppier lyrics (my personal favourite), and more songs like Jet Lag which was our only release with complimentary lack of decent promotion or general enthusiasm for that matter. Oh and another one was:

A&R - "guys Island are looking to shift more pop acts like Those Attic Lights  in the future".
i.e. 'what the fuck are you guys gonna do about it?'

Proxy - "oh well that's a shame cause you signed us and we don't sound or have any intention to sound like pieces of shit. You don't want us to sound like pieces of shit do you? Nick drake didn't. Tom Waits didn't. Polly Jean doesn't. The Wailers didn't. Sorry why did you sign us again?"

i.e. 'stop bullying us and sounding the death knell in the distance. Your making us feel like crap for being who we are which begs us to question why you ever slept/signed with us in the first place'

What was great about being in this band were the songs we had recorded up until that point and the new ones we were writing everyday. Rehearsing them, playing them live and finally (the reason we signed with Island) the prospect of finally getting them released as a collection of songs, to a wider audience. Swimming to the Island only ceased our enthusiasm for this routine and made us fret and worry about the superfluous aspects of being in a 'signed' band. What went wrong i don't really know. We obviously weren't financially viable. i can understand that. But i can't understand how we were meant to be if we weren't really given the chance or investment to be. Also we were dropped via an e-mail with no follow up phone call to console or even explain the circumstances.

I tell no lie folks what happened after Island was one of the most testing periods a band can go through. Do we cancel the gig tomorrow night? Someone has had enough and wants to quit - oh dear lets have a series of serious chats to discuss the erosion of our dream and what the hell to do about it. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. we have all this music we have worked so hard on that there is no way we canNOT oversee its release no matter how quiet. We can owe it to ourselves can't we? We've just played the gigs of our lives. We must continue.

Our label A Records very kindly gave us 4 days last week in their studio in South Bromley. This allowed us to finish off two new tracks and mix the remainder of the still unheard album. One song is called 'Meloxicam Wonderland' and is about anti-inflammatory pills. The other is called 'The Infants' and is about a missed opportunity to compromise in a relationship. Certainly not poppy enough for Island's new and no doubt temporary roster, but its music and topics we are comfortable with. Funny thing is i have a sneaky feeling that we have been extremely lucky to have escaped by the skins of our teeth. Imagine if we were shelved for all eternity? Working on these songs has totally invigorated our enthusiasm for us and our sound. We are blessed to be alive! We are blessed to be free!

Jonny x

Hello Team.
Right. Blog. New Blog. Been so long I’ve forgotten how to type. Been too busy if such a thing is even possible anymore.
"What have we be up to you?" I hear you cry. Well, all very interesting... We’ve had illness galore first of all. Most recently Salmonella poisoning kept Rich out of last Saturday’s Cancer Research UK benefit at the Bull & Gate... Ended up with Jonny and yours truly doing a quiet set which went really well in the end... unrehearsed and still incredible.

Our Water Rats gigs last month were also both cancelled due to Jonny being ill too... Weird cause up until recently we’d prided ourselves as a "show must go on" type band... we still are but I suupose we’ve just had some bad luck with the old grimness recently. Bubonic plague next...

What else...? Oh- Abbey Rd! Yeah Team Proxy recorded a radio session for XM Radio in the States recently at Abbey Road. Tick! There’s one ambition off life’s little list. We did a wicked late night set after Teenage Fanclub and the like, which is cool enough in itself... did 6 tunes and it was wicked fun... we’ll try to get the session up on myspace pretty soon... will try to find photos too...

And the biggest news is that we’ve taken control of our own destiny again. We recommend it.

Love
Hankerchief

Word to my people.
Newstime... Proxy be playing the Camden Barfly this Friday 18th Jan... Flyer on our page...
It'll be special for many reasons. One... We'll be playing some new tunes that we've been working on over the festive season. No sleigh bells or kid's choirs, you'll be happy to hear. We're all v excited about them. So much so that we're considering re jigging the album just so we can fit them in...

Another reason to come is that the gig will be recorded... we may use some of the cuts for b-sides, album extras, etc... so if ya wanna be part of history (admittedly a relatively irrelevant part of history) then get your bottom down to Chalk Farm on Friday 18th...
More news on tour dates,etc. to come soon....
Next single out on Island in March- CLOWNS OF HELL.
Over.
Out.
W

Hello friends...

Just to announce that the album version of Jet Lag is out today, along with the Stubby Dials Remix of the song.  Good stuff. It can be bought digitally for the  bargain price of 79p from the following outlets...

iTunes store...(where you can also buy the video if you're very keen)

Island Records' Website (If you are outside the UK you'll need to use this one)

http://www.7digital.ie/artists/proxy

Keep checking the myspace page for more live dates around the UK....

Some more links for you to keep you interested....
our website...
www.proxyofficial.com

our label's site....
www.islandrecords.co.uk

Thanks for your support again! Hope to see you all at a show soon.
Best,
Will & The Proxy Boys

Nice words about us on FHM today...

Good day...
I trust this message finds y'all well.
Thanks to everyone who came down to see us with Afterhours on Monday at Dingwalls- seemed like half of Italy was present. Not a bad thing at all. Set was wicked bar a power cut early doors. We went on to slay. Got more dates coming up soon around London and we'll be hitting up the rest of the UK towards the end of the year... Announcements soon.

Cheers to everyone who bought Jetlag- and the fool with no taste who put it up on ebay the week after it was released...