Hello.

I feel like we've been neglecting our website and myspace a little bit recently - so here's a blog to briefly compensate.

As you may have noticed if you've seen us play live in the past couple of months, we're no longer a trio and have added our good friend Nico Taylor into the equation to become a four piece.

You'll have most likely seen Nico around, he's been with us at pretty much every gig we've played over the past couple of years and when we decided that it might be good to give things a go with two guitarists, there was only ever going to be one man joining the ranks. If you're not sure if you've seen him before, here's a picture of him and his friend Meg:

It's gone really well since he's joined and we're looking forward to jamming some new stuff - hopefully around Christmas, if we get time - with the new line up.

Thanks to everybody who came to see us play in September (and at New Slang in Kingston last week), we had some crackin' gigs and played with some ace bands (Wintermute, Tubelord, Itch, Pennines, Headlights, Get Cape and Gullich spring to mind!)

Thanks also to everybody who's bought our latest release "The Sad History of the Village of Alnerique." It's quite different to some of our previous releases and is certainly nowhere near as instant... stick with it though, it's a grower ;)

We're taking a few months out from band stuff again now to concentrate on the real world. We will, however, be playing a Christmas gig - check the listings in a few days for the details of that - and hopefully next Easter we'll be doing a pretty extensive tour of Europe again. Fingers crossed.

Cheerio.

H

Hola.

On Monday 22nd September 2008, we are releasing a new eight track mini-album on Xtra Mile Recordings. It's called 'The Sad History of Alnerique' and to find out more about it and for more regular updates on all things surrounding the release, visit:

http://thesadhistoryofthevillageofalnerique.wordpress.com/

As a prelude to the release, Xtra Mile Recordings will be giving away a free download of a track from the CD - 'The End, Moving On' - on their myspace page for 24 hours on Monday 1st September. http://www.myspace.com/xtramilerecordings is the place to be for that.

To coincide with release, we are doing a short headline tour of the UK and it would be lovely to see you at a gig or two. We will be joined by some of our favourite new UK bands, such as Tubelord, Wintermute and Gullich, so make sure you check out all of the support bands.

Also, it's probably worth buying an advance ticket in advance - especially for London as it'll save you a couple of quid and also, our last few London gigs have sold out and we wouldn't want you to miss out!

Wednesday 17th September 2008 @ The GRV in Edinburgh.
Dartz + Cry Over Billionaires + Super Adventure Club.
8pm. 18+. Tickets £5 in advance from Ticketweb.

Thursday 18th September 2008 @ The White Rooms in Sunderland.
Dartz + Gullich + U-U.
8pm. 18+. Tickets £2 on the door.

Friday 19th September 2008 @ The Cockpit in Leeds.
Dartz + Wintermute + Itch.
7pm. 14+. Tickets £6 in advance from Lunatickets.

Saturday 20th September 2008 @ The Luminaire in London.
Dartz + Tubelord + Pennines + Targets.
7pm. 14+. Tickets £6 in advance from Banquet Records.

Sunday 21st September 2008 @ Chinnerys in Southend.
Dartz + Redtrack + Lions + super secret special guests.
Mikey Get Cape's birthday bash!
7pm. 16+. Tickets £5 in advance from Seetickets.

www.wearedartz.com

www.myspace.com/darts




'The Sad History Of The Village Of Alnerique' released Monday 22nd September 2008 on Xtra Mile Recordings.
'The End, Moving On' available as a free download for 24 hours only on Monday 1st September from the Xtra Mile Myspace.

Hullo.

I thought I’d post a few links up to some interviews/reviews/features about us that have appeared in recent months. They’re probably worth a read if you’ve got nothing better to do, and the fact that you’re reading this sentence is probably a reasonable enough indication that you haven’t got anything better to be doing.

ANYROAD.

A live review from NARC. Magazine:

"Visibly invigorated by their time away, they attack the set with glee, and clearly relish the return to the live arena, in which they are known to excel.

Wonderfully different to pretty much any other band out there right now, Dartz! present an intelligent, thoughtful take on the art-punk genre... a refreshed, reinvigorated live presence which gets pretty much everything right."

Read more at: http://www.narcmedia.com/dissection-live/dartz-the-small-screen-light-show-carling-academy-newcastle-15-03-08/

A live review from The Music Magazine:

"The atmosphere was charged. Since the last time TMM saw Dartz back in June - playing with I Was A Cub Scout in Leicester - the Boro band seem to have undergone somewhat of a popularity explosion and as a result the small venue was tightly packed with eager fans (some worryingly so).

All the more reason then that their decision to make a second album seems a very good one indeed... The set included a couple of songs off that new record, expected to be out in the late summer, the first of which felt like a chilled out post-punk circus and the second like riding on the back of a giant bird flying over rolling hills. Both were well received but not half as well as ’Fantastic Apparatus’ and ’Once, Twice, Again’ which followed, both of which caused the floor to bounce unnervingly as the crowd’s exuberance took over.

Closing with another new song called ’The End (Moving On)’ (a rough cut of which is up on their Myspace) before returning to the stage for one of those rare things, an encore that felt genuine - for which they played ’Prego Triangolos’ but not before Phil, the rock ’n’roll rebel that he is, had asked "Can we do one more? I’m just checking with the establishment. I don’t want to get in trouble" - Phil and Henry did their swapping instruments lark and the band, plus Simon from Gullich, sang "At night by fire light we sing don’t forget us"."

Read more at: http://www.themusicmagazine.co.uk/page.php?al=Dartz_Carling_Academy_2_Newcastle

A live review from Rock Sound Magazine:

"Saturday night at The Metro and Rock Sound decided to pop along to check out our favourite Middlesbrough trio Dartz! A packed venue saw the boys through a storming set taking in classics from debut long player ’This Is My Ship’ as well as a host of polished new material..."

Read more at: http://www.rocksound.tv/officeblog/?p=55

An interview with Philip about "balancing fame with Uni" (ha ha!) in The Times newspaper:

"Teeside post-punks Dartz have taken the opposite path to Los Campesinos! After releasing their superb debut album ’This Is My Ship’ last year, the band decided to re-organise their touring schedule around academic semester dates so that two of their number could enrol at university.

Philip Maughan, Dartz’s singing, and occasionally guitar-playing, drummer, started his course in English Literature at Oxford last September. After revising for his A Levels on tour, he has no doubt that putting the band on hold this time, even at such a crucial time in their career, was the right thing to do.

"People often seem unable to believe it, but I got sick of touring," he explains. "Living the same day every day, being broke, tired, spending your days in a van and evenings in rooms that resemble dank caves. Playing live every night I could never get tired of, but it’s not obligatory to want to do it forever. By the time it came to go to university, I was definitely ready for something new."

Does he think that students in bands are becoming more aware of the dangers of placing all their faith in a notoriously fickle industry?

"I’d like to hope people are getting smarter, but I’m not sure," he says. "It’s so easy to get excited over phantom record deals, tough talking managers and vague promises, but often very little of what might happen does. It’s best to focus on the situation as it stands - the music industry is a world with no guarantees. Any success you have can disappear in an instant, " continues Maughan."

Read more at: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/education/student/student_life/article3226732.ece

A live review from Rock Midgets:

"Boasting a sterling collection of fairy lights and tinsel, even the fact that drummer Phil Maughan’s kit falls apart seconds into their first song and his microphone continually collapses throughout, absolutely nothing can stop a superb Dartz! tonight. Although they’ve been off the road for some time the trio are still brilliantly at ease in front of the packed audience, and a triumphant set is brought to a fitting end by a fantastic run through of ’Once Twice Again’, with a bouncing front row joyously take care of the track’s ingenious handclaps."

Read more at: http://www.rockmidgets.com/live.php?artist_id=1436&page=2&id=341

A live review from Manchester Music:

"Dartz! Are a band with a couple of years under their belts (we first saw them a few years ago at In The City as fresh faced school kids). They also have a catalogue of some substance in the form of a series of singles and their debut album "This Is My Ship". But instead of blistering through a replay of their long player, Dartz! Take time to chat to the audience. It’s almost like an interview, but one that they’re hosting themselves... It’s bloody good fun and every tasty morsel of music is soaked up by the audience between main courses of tracks like "Latin And Greek" and previous single "St Petersberg". The band have certainly changed, with a broader, heavier weight range and plenty of opposing styles, from their plucky math rock to crawling mature mini-epics. This could have been a flash / bang disappointment in anyone else’s hands but Dartz! dazzled with their real audience connection and this masterful, sparkling, greatest hits set list. A band on resurgent form."

Read more at: http://www.music-dash.co.uk/live/archivelive.asp?item=1441

For those of you who can speak languages other than English (I AM JEALOUS), then check these out:

An interview (in German) on Hififi & Stereo:

http://www.hififi.de/php/include.php?path=content/articles.php&contentid=501

A live review (in German) again on Hififi & Stereo:

http://www.hififi.de/php/include.php?path=content/articles.php&contentid=502&PHPKITSID=4a4fa08d4b564a853e42349e1cec961c

A live review (in Dutch) on 22 Grand Blog:

http://22grandblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/dartz-are-pleasure-concert-recensie.html

An interview (in Dutch) on 22 Grand Blog:

http://22grandblog.blogspot.com/2008/03/words-of-love-and-words-so-leisured.html

An interview (in French) in Presto Magazine:

http://www.presto.presse.fr/entretien_groupe.php?id_groupe=45&id_entretien=24

If anybody knows of any other reviews from our recent European tour, let us know - we’d love to see ’em! Especially ones from Bremen, Wurzburg, Luxembourg, London and Newcastle...

Cheers.

Feel free to spread the word...

14.03.08 Hartlepool (UK), Escobar (SOLD OUT!)
15.03.08 Newcastle (UK), Academy 2
17.03.08 Paris (F), La Fleche D'Or
18.03.08 Lille (F), The Yeti
19.03.08 Amsterdam (NL), Paradiso (upstairs)
20.03.08 Berlin (D), Magnet
21.03.08 Day Off
22.03.08 Bremen (D), Lagerhaus
23.03.08 Münster (D), Amp
24.03.08 Offenbach (D), Hafen 2
25.03.08 Heidelberg (D), Zum Teufel
26.03.08 München (D), Sunny Red @ Feierwerk
27.03.08 Würzburg (D), Cairo
28.03.08 Luxembourg (LUX), D:Qliq
29.03.08 London (UK), The Metro

Tickets for the Newcastle gig can be purchased for £5 in advance from Ticketweb.
Tickets for the London gig can be purchased for £5 in advance from Banquet Records.

We are very excited about making our French, Dutch and German debuts ... hopefully see a few of you there!

Au revoir.

Dartz - Once, twice, again!

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Dartz - Fantastic Apparatus

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Dartz - Cold Holidays

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DARTZ! - St. Petersburg

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This video may also be of interest; it features the likes of Dave House, Tellison, Get Cape Wear Cape Fly and Dartz lending a helping hand to Banquet Records/New Slang's cover of Pink Squares by I Was Cub Scout... good times:


The videos for Once, twice, again! and St. Petersburg were directed by Marcus Diamond and James Harris, the video for Fantastic Apparatus was directed by Marcus Diamond and the video for Cold Holidays was directed by Rob Taylor.