MAIDA VALE ELECTRIC PROMS INTRODUCING 2009

Dermot O’Leary is playing one of my tracks but I am not sure which one (all songs written with David Baron) on BBC2 THIS Saturday which I recorded live with Mike Mason.  You can see it four songs streamed online here and behind the scenes.  Sadly I am unable to view them as I'm not in the UK but I'm putting one up in the hope it's a good one!:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/electricproms/2009/artists/lettie

TOUR UPDATE

I am sitting at the back of a venue outside Koln or Cologne. and looking back on the last three weeks.  Unfortunately I have left my very personal diary in a hotel room in Hamburg!  Sometimes we sleep in hotels but on the whole we sleep on the bus.  The bus has no time.  I have no time here I have no days or weeks.  I don’t worry about anything here.  I am looked after well!

(Kantine 22nd October 2009 pre gig)

(Kantine 22nd October 2009 pre gig)

So the tour has been great.  For one thing I get to watch Peter Murphy and his band every single night. Peter Murphy is astounding on stage and his voice really incredible.  I can’t stop moving and I can’t stop punching the air to Mark Gemini Thwait’s vicious guitar and Nick Lucero’s powerful kick ass drums.

I will skate through the highlights so far. I loved ....Italy.... and the promoter there who would slap his big tummy across the courtyard just to hear it echo. (He said touring makes him fat but I consoled him otherwise)  The food was fantastic and the venues like out of town discos with a distinctly retro vibe.  My favourite was the Velvet Rooms outside Rimini on a strange fishing lake and the Alpheus in Rome.

(The fishing lake outside Velvet Club)

(At night at Velvet fishing lake)

(Inside Velvet Club)

(Entrance Velvet)

(Velvet Interior)

(Velvet Ceiling)

(Velvet Walls)

(Velvet Merchandise stall)

After the dates in Italy I got a flight back to the UK.(or I thought I had but I hadn’t which was a real nightmare) and proceeded to spend the next few days kind of at home and kind of on the bus.  The first day I went straight up to Kilburn to see the drums being recorded on our new tracks I have written with Mike Mason and Oskar Silen.  The drummer Cameron Craig had suggested was none other than Seb Rochford.  I am a HUGE fan of his work and therefore was rather in awe to actually get to talk to him.  Here is a picture.  

Mike Mason then came to join me for the gigs that included Leamington Spa which had a wonderful old art deco building with Tammy Wynette's pink gypsy caravan, can you believe it, backstage!!  I met some of Peter’s family and the band Temporary Mind who also supported.

(Tammy Wynette's Caravan at the backstage area of Leamington Spa)

(Interior of Caravan)

O2 was amazing as my brothers and a few friends came and met Peter backstage. I got the impression Yusuf Islam was in the audience as his son’s band was supporting.

(Backstage at O2Indigo)

(In the bus with Nick, Matt and Ed)

Mike has followed the bus all round Germany but due to the economics of the euro and gas he has gone home for now and I hope he will return for Portugal.

(Mike backstage at Back Stage, Munich)

However, our sound we were creating is much more akin to how I imagine we will eventually perform.  We both have a very strong sense of wanting to create chaos!

(Mike's Jeep)

Contrary to what I thought, I do get quite a lot of time to look around and managed to find some fantastic second hand shops in Hamburg and Munich.

(Hats in Hamburg)

It’s been such an honour to support such a talented individual unique artist as Peter Murphy and if I never did it again I would just be happy I did it once.