Tuesday, January 8, 2008

Happy 2008! A Long Overdue Update…

Feliz 2008 from all your friends at Liam and Me, Inc.! We’re frighteningly close to the end of the decade, when we’ll certainly have to endure VH1’s “I Love the Aughties” and pretend it doesn’t sound very strange.

We hope everyone’s 2007 was stellar and memorable. Rest assured, 2008 will definitely be either significantly better or significantly worse. I’ll give you all a quick update on what’s going on in our world, and then recap how the end of the year played out for us.

The end of 2007 was a little rocky for the band. We had a dispute with our label over some critical points in our contract and the way that some business was handled. The process of sorting this out was expensive and time consuming, holding up progress with the record and life in general. In addition, on the last day of a great tour with Shiny Toy Guns, we were robbed in Montreal. Only 20 minutes after loading in our gear, opportunistic scumbags smashed our window, reached inside, and got away with three laptop bags. We felt violated, careless, and shitty. Granted it could have been worse, but losing 8k in hardware and some invaluable information was a big hit. We filed our police report, and had no choice but to keep smiling and take the stage only a short time after. A room full of beautiful Montreal denizens certainly put us in a better mood. The 7 hour drive across the frozen tundra with cardboard over the window dampened it.

HOWEVER, it’s a new year and things are back on track. We’re very close to resolving our issues with the label, and soon we should be able to provide you with a proper release date and some fully mixed preview tracks! In the meantime, the band is taking a little break to write, record, and get prepared for a serious onslaught.

Also – as our Christmas present to the world, Liam and Me is starting its own advice column! Its high time we start applying our wisdom to telling other people what to do. Feel free to write us with any type of problem you may have. Please be concise, informative, and interesting in your questions. Its 100% anonymous, so please include your code name of choice (i.e., Sleepless in Seattle, Jilted in Jakarta, Belittled in Buffalo). For seriously heavy shit, we may recommend you seek professional help.

Blog hosted at: liamandmeadvice.tumblr.com
Write to: liamandmeadvice@gmail.com

Quick recap on our recent adventures:

9/17 – 9/19 – CA TOUR WITH THE SOUNDS, UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF GIANTS

Liam and Me returned to California for a quick run of shows with two of our favorite bands. The Sounds sold out all three shows in Santa Monica, Santa Ana, and San Francisco. The Sounds have an ass kicking and energetic live show every single night, and we got a really positive response from their fans. We were very happy to be reunited with Under the Influence of Giants, and I highly recommend that everyone checks them out. Tour highlights – a spectacular show and experience at the legendary San Francisco Fillmore, where our dressing room came complete with balcony DJ, and foxy dancing girls. Also this one bar in Huntington that’s staffed almost completely by naked girls.

9/25 – 10/13 – EAST COAST TOUR WITH NEW ATLANTIC, HOLIDAY PARADE, BETWEEN THE TREES

New Atlantic, some of our favorite dudes on the planet, invited us to come on the road again and reminded us why we love them so. It was a very pop tour, and we filled out the dance rhythms component. Tour highlights - our return to Philly, the ATL, our many, many drunken nights at various highway motels (ask Jon what happened), and this one show in Naples Florida where no one came but we all rocked and had the best night ever.

10/19 – CMJ AT VIPER ROOM NYC, FONTANA’S BAR

A delicious rock and roll party with free drinks and shoes. Sex, drugs, rock and roll, guest lists. That’s how we do.

10/30 – HALLOWEEN SHOW IN NJ

We dressed as bicycle cops. We were told our legs looked great.

11/27 – 12/9 – EAST COAST and CANADA DATES with SHINY TOY GUNS

We’re very grateful to the Grammy nominated Shiny Toy Guns for taking us out. It all came together last minute, and we loved it except for the night when our window was broken and bitches stole our shit. Tour highlights – an awesome show in North Carolina with a fake French band. Getting everything on our rider at Walter Johnson in MD. Dancing at a proper club in Quebec City. Freezing our asses off in Drummondville, QC on the coldest night ever. Picking up Brian Migliore, now our very good friend, on a whim in New Jersey and taking him on the whole adventure.

12/16 – 12/21 NORTHEAST TOUR WITH ACTION ACTION, THE HIGH COURT, KISS KISS

Our last tour before Christmas was a pretty wild time. The bands were different and great, the venues beautiful, and the weather atrocious. We drove ¾ of the way to Cleveland in a Blizzard, only to have the show cancelled. The drive back was so perilous and icy that we had to call it quits and wait till the road was ploughed. Note: A two wheel drive van and trailer is not the ideal winter transport. Tour highlights: Getting pushed out of a parking lot by a snowplough. Getting down and working the lights in Lancaster, PA. Watching The High Court work it in different area codes. Woo!

There you have it. New photos up soon, more info to come, and watch for that advice column!!!

Happy New Year to all. Here’s to everything working out for everyone.

Matt