Free gig, London, October 13th!

Travis are going to play a free gig at London’s Hard Rock Cafe for Q Radio on October 13th, to showcase Ode to J. Smith and play a few classics. From Q magazine:

Your favourite music magazine’s FREE! monthly live event, Q Music Club, has moved to London’s legendary music eatery Hard Rock Cafe and has yet another brace of essential events to serve up. Standing on Old Park Lane in the capital since 1971, Hard Rock Cafe is a fan of all things rock ‘n’ roll and has recently seen the esteemed likes of Aerosmith, Stevie Wonder, The Charlatans and Natasha Bedingfield take to its famous stage.

On Monday ,13 October, the nicest men in rock, Travis, will be doing the honours and showcasing new album Ode To J. Smith at this intimate venue.

The audience for the gig will be made up of the world’s most discerning music fans (ie, you) and – here’s the best bit – admission is absolutely free!

Everyone who applies for tickets to Q Music Club Live At Hard Rock Cafe will have their name put in a prize draw. Those drawn from the hat each win a pair of tickets. For more information and to apply for a ticket for either the Travis or The Fratellis performances, you are strongly advised to hot-foot it along to Qthemusic.com.

Winners will be notified by Friday, 3 October. The editor’s decision is final. New shows will also be announced first online. Doors open for all shows at 7pm and showtime is 7.30pm sharp.

ENTER HERE!

Feature: Chart position

Whilst the charts are not the primary target for Travis any longer, it must still be gratifying to know that the album is near the top. However, there are many bands and record companies aiming to grab the top spots for themselves, so what chance does an independent Travis stand? Let’s take a look at the other CDs out the same week:

Travis – Ode to J. Smith
Judging by the success of the past few albums, the general trend is downward, but with a rejuvenated sound and a rocking single, can they reverse the trend? Chart-predicting is a dangerous game, but I think they have a good chance assuming Something Anything gets the airplay it deserves. Another possibility is that Ode could take the slow-burning route as the word gradually spreads.

James Morrison – Songs For You, Truths for Me
After the success of his first effort, this album is certain to sell well however good it is. Also his gravelly tones are a permanent feature of most radio stations and new single You Make It Real is soaring up the playlists too. A big threat to the top spot.

Will Young – Let It Go
One of the first winners of a music reality TV show is also one of the only ones who have lodged themselves in the public’s interest. Whilst first single Changes is a nice enough song, it isn’t going to set the world on fire. However his mass appeal makes him likely to chart above Travis.

Trivium – Shogun
We’re now arriving at the album least likely to trouble the sharp end of the charts. Trivium eschew the mainstream appeal of the previous two artists, though do have an excellently named drummer.

 

Of course, there may be albums released the previous week still lounging around at the top. Here are the main albums from the week before:

McFly – Radio:ACTIVE: McFly do chart high but tend to drop off heavily in the second week. The free giveaway in the Daily Mail is unlikely to have helped this.
Kings of Leon – Only By The Night: After headline slots at Glastonbury, V and T in the Park this year and a number 1 album last year, they look likely to chart high.
U2 – Under A Blood Red Sky (remastered): Could a 25 year old U2 album really outsell Travis? Probably not, but it’s a good outside bet.

Lyrics

As you can see, a new lyrics page has appeared along the top, but it’s only got half the songs in at the moment. If you’ve listened to the album and want to contribute some more, send me an email by clicking the button on the right or sending it to jamesofthepiano[at]hotmail.co.uk

Something Anything on MySpace

Now you can listen to the whole of Something Anything online at Travis’ MySpace page. Also, 7Digital has previews of the two b-sides from Something Anything; Tail of the Tiger and Used to Belong (both written by Dougie).

Tail of the Tiger

Used to Belong

Tour information

I’ve just added a list of the upcoming Travis live shows here. I will keep this list updated, but for the most recent news, check the official website.

20 acoustic performance from V

Not satisfied with two performances in which to throw his wedding ring around, Fran Healy also played a few songs on his acoustic guitar by the Save the Children stand.  Here is a video of 20 from youtube:

Live at V Festival

Travis played a main slot at the V Festival 2008, but first they did an exclusive session for Virgin Radio, including an acoustic guitar rendition of the new song Long Way Down. You can watch the session here, download the 4 tracks here or hear the tracks in full below:

Side

Long Way Down

Sing

Turn

Interview with Ben

Interview with Monique

J. Smith EP

In between the February tour and the release of the album, Travis dusted off their old Red Telephone Box record label and used it to release a limited edition vinyl of J. Smith. Unfortunately, now the copies are all sold out but you can still download the songs, and they certainly deserve a listen or several – check the J. Smith page for more details!