Tears for Fears

[mellowscream]

Helping promote their current endeavors is the least I can do to repay them for all the pleasure their music has given me over the years.

despite of their age, they are still good!

[vonjunzt]

Indeed - Roland's voice is still powerful.

I do wish that they had retained Ian Stanley and Manny Elias (their keyboardist and drummer on Songs from the Big Chair) - two really superb musicians.



(Ian Stanley)



(Manny Elias)

[vonjunzt]

What they've done since The Big Chair: Manny Elias is a session player who has worked for Peter Gabriel and Julian Lennon, while Ian Stanley has eked out a career as a producer. He has produced albums by A-Ha, The Pretenders, Howard Jones, Natalie Imbruglia, The Human League, and Tori Amos.

[vonjunzt]

"Woman in Chains" (at Night of the Proms, 2006) -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vur84FiWAnc





It's a world gone crazy that keeps a woman in chains.

Roland Orzabal: "The song is also about how men traditionally play down the feminine side of their characters and how both men and women suffer for it.... I think men in a patriarchal society are sold down the river a bit - okay, maybe we're told that we're in control but there are also a hell of a lot of things that we miss out on, which women are allowed to be."

Phil Collins played drums on the original track.

[vonjunzt]

More photos from their 2009 tour:

[vonjunzt]

Drummer Nick D'Virgilio puts up another video blog:

Part 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V9lleY6J2w0

Part 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_Llw...eature=related

[vonjunzt]

The remastered edition of Raoul and the Kings of Spain is due out September 22, 2009. Can't wait to hear the acoustic version of "Break it Down Again"!

[vonjunzt]

More images from the 2009 Tour:

[vonjunzt]

Curt Smith on the (Musical) Value of Sharing

"I got my first record deal when I was 18 years old — next year that will be about 30 years ago, so I have been doing it for quite a while. The industry when I first started was very much one-sided in the sense that it favored the industry and not the musicians. We would sign deals when we were quite young that were pretty bad across the board: from record deals to publishing deals, even management deals and touring. You just didn’t make as high of a percentage as you would now. But of course that has changed over the years, especially in the last few years with the internet and sharing your music with people.

Technology has changed so much that now, people are quite capable of making records themselves. It used to be a very expensive process, but its not anymore. In the past, the industry controlled how your music got out there, so if you didn’t have a record deal it would never be on shelves; there was no Amazon, there was no iTunes. There was basically just radio, and the record companies controlled that as well. Now, with the freedom of the internet, people can go and discover your stuff.

The down side is that there is now so much music, some form of filtering tool is required. That’s starting to happen more with sites where people vote on music — you can breeze through a site, listen to different genres of music, and see which songs are being appreciated the most. But I think one of the big challenges is finding a good system of filtering so you can far more easily find music you may be interested in.

A bigger challenge, from the perspective of the artist, is how to get yourself seen. How do you stand out from X-million people on MySpace or however many there are now? Some of it you can get through hard work — live work, for example, is far more important than is has been in a long time, because that’s something you can’t replicate online. So building up a live following holds the value that it used to do, only now the word of mouth will spread more quickly due to the internet.

Artists have always created things with the goal of sharing them with people, and that idea goes way back. If you wrote music, you would go out and perform it on the street corner or you would perform it in a club; you wanted to be heard and share it with people. So I think the primary reason to make art is to share it with people. I don’t primarily make music just for me, I want it to be listened to by other people, I want people to take it apart, I want people to delve into it and get the different textures and different meanings of lyrics. That kind of stuff I find fascinating. I like to delve into music or any form of art; then I actually feel like I’m involved in it. The difficulty right now lies with how we monetize that. Without sounding completely cold, unless we find a consistent way of monetizing it, then we can’t do it any more. We love the stories of the starving artist, but there is only so long you can starve before you are actually going to have to go out and find a job. Those are the problems we have yet to completely solve."

Source: http://www.good.is/post/curt-smith-o...ue-of-sharing/

[vonjunzt]

Tears for Fears performing Radiohead's "Creep":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSNSkN-Y4YQ

[vonjunzt]

The Remastered version of Raoul and the Kings of Spain is out (though it won't be available on Amazon until Sept. 22). Besides the bonus tracks noted above, it also features track by track comments from Roland and excellent liner notes, where the album is dubbed Roland's "finest hour". Maybe not - personally, I'd bestow that honour on Elemental - but this one certainly offers up some of the best material he's written.

Oh, and belated happy birthday to Mr. Orzabal, who's recently turned 48.

[vonjunzt]

Tears for Fears: Live in Manila??

The Philippine Daily Inquirer reported yesterday that Tears for Fears was going to perform in Manila on February 28, 2010:

"GOOD news for local fans of Tears For Fears: Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith — the band’s principal members — are working together again and due to perform here on Feb. 28 next year. The venue would be “most likely the Araneta Coliseum,” said Rhiza Pascua of the US based Music Management International. The group’s 1983 debut album The Hurting, which contained tracks like "Pale Shelter" and "Mad World", went to No. 1 in the UK. A second album, Songs from the Big Chair, elevated the group to worldwide fame in ’85 with such hits as "Shout", "Everybody Wants To Rule the World" and "Head Over Heels". -- Pocholo Concepcion

Source: http://www.libre.com.ph/showbuzz/sho...ars-in-rp-soon


It turns out the promoter jumped the gun. Curt Smith issued the following statement:

"The truth is that we're "looking into" dates in that part of the world in late Feb/March (including Australia). As always I will let you know if and when dates are confirmed, so far that is not the case. The Manila rumor was caused by a promoter who was asked to put in an offer and then decided to tell the press. Nothing is confirmed but if it makes sense and we're available then you'll hear it here first."


Hopefully, the promoter follows through with an attractive offer. It's now or never, the boys aren't getting any younger.

[vonjunzt]

It's official! Tears for Fears will be performing in Manila next year - May 10, 2010, at the Araneta Coliseum!!!


From Curt Smith's website:

I am told that the following dates are confirmed as TFF headline shows after the Spandau Ballet dates:

May 2nd Manila Araneta Coliseum, Philippines

May 4th Singapore Fort Canning

May 6th Hong Kong Star Hall

May 8th Taipei Tai-Da Gym, Taiwan


I currently don't know the for sale or announcement dates.

Source: http://www.curtsmithofficial.com/blog/tff-tour-update

[emteki]

Yes it's official, Tears for Fears live in Manila - May 2 2010 at the Araneta Coliseum!

http://www.curtsmithofficial.com/eve...um-philippines

Check this out for ticket info:
http://www.ovationproductionsmanila....on.php?which=1

[emteki]

Philippine Star Article:

http://www.sulit.com.ph/index.php/li...cobmachineries

Ovation Productions:
http://www.ovationproductionsmanila....on.php?which=1

Ovation Productions contact number:
http://www.ovationproductionsmanila....on.php?which=7

I've just called them up, ticket prices are:

VIP - 7,500
Patron - 5,500
Lower Box - 4,500... See More
Upper Box A - 2,500
Upper Box B - 1,000
General Admission - 500

Kita-kits!

[vonjunzt]

WOOHOO! Thanks for the info!

[vonjunzt]

The Ovation Productions ad for the concert:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TP_SBpsb4EM

[andirodd]

I already bought my tickets. I wouldn't let this pass, I've been waiting for more than 20 years for this to happen, oh Finally! I know, my age is showing. I was a member of the Official Tears for Fears Fan Club during my teens Looking forward to seeing Roland and Curt. They have one of the best voices out there, LIVE. Too bad, Manny and Ian aren't with them anymore. I hope they get to play all their CLASSIC songs.

[vonjunzt]

^ I'll be a happy camper if they perform "Working Hour" and "Woman in Chains".

You're only as old as you feel, and can be as timeless as great music.

[vonjunzt]

The video for "God's Mistake", from Raoul and the Kings of Spain:

http://www.mtv.com/videos/tears-for-...l#artist=17468