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Post by ryan on Oct 21, 2010 15:35:11 GMT
The Stewert Lee thing wasn't a direct comparison, it was just an anecdote leading into the point. Any numbers are his, obviously applied to a different situation. That said, a lot of what he talks about could be applied to music, although in a slightly different way. He's a sensible man.
Yeah, Scalas a touch bigger then Islington Ac. though isn't it? And like you say, it was free and off the back of promotion handled by a major label with a major label budget. And yes frankly.
Success wasn't the right word maybe. I meant it's not the be all and end all, it's not where everyone aspires to be. You're placing your image of success onto the band, assuming that your view of it is where they want to be. Kings of Leon and Muse aren't great examples, they both came up a different time. Plus Muse worked fucking hard to get where they are, it's not like the instant success of The xx.
I'd forgotten about the tweet thing, it wasn't what I meant. And that's because twitter isn't really a platform for that kind of thing, it's SO hard to use it to artificially create a buzz. It's a much mis-understood platform.
I don't wanna argue about it because the band have just released a blinding record and that is this threads focus, your just coming at this from a different place to me and neither of us have any idea of the bands stance. It's a moot point.
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Post by the dark fourth on Oct 21, 2010 15:46:26 GMT
They do sell out smaller venues. And Scala I'll bet you anything will be pretty full, and I wouldn't be surprised if it sells out too. I agree with ryan's points.
And I also distinctly remember sticky being pessimistic about even the release of album two. And then about the release of album three.
I appreciate you making these points, sticky, because like BA, I do agree that Jon must be tempted by solo projects beyond PRR, and the rest of the band become more irrelevant in the new electro sound.
I agree that there may not be another album, but I would estimate that there's about a 75% chance that there will be one. PRR have adapted well over their career, and while they haven't yet hit the jackpot, they certainly haven't declined in success. Their back catalogue is just about the strongest and most consistent in terms of quality of any band that there is. They have plenty of uber-loyal/obsessive fans, which is very important for the viability of modern bands.
And as BA said, while the non-Jon members are not so important beyond the live show, this has been the case for a while now and they still love their work - if anything more than they did in the past. Besides, we shouldn't see it as "just" important for the live shows - the live shows are a huge part of what PRR are, and what continues to make them viable.
Good discussion though, certainly worth having.
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Post by briggsy on Oct 21, 2010 16:34:27 GMT
They do sell out smaller venues. And Scala I'll bet you anything will be pretty full, and I wouldn't be surprised if it sells out too. I agree with ryan's points. I agree that there may not be another album, but I would estimate that there's about a 75% chance that there will be one. PRR have adapted well over their career, and while they haven't yet hit the jackpot, they certainly haven't declined in success. Their back catalogue is just about the strongest and most consistent in terms of quality of any band that there is. They have plenty of uber-loyal/obsessive fans, which is very important for the viability of modern bands. Besides, we shouldn't see it as "just" important for the live shows - the live shows are a huge part of what PRR are, and what continues to make them viable. . The live shows are more important these days than any other aspect of a band in that it is the only viable way to make any money and hence progress. It's pretty pointless bringing out an album and NOT touring the legs of the thing, as you won't pay off your advances on sales alone
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Post by blondeambassador on Oct 21, 2010 16:35:12 GMT
Good discussion though, certainly worth having. I'm not so sure. *Hands up, I know I helped start it into a discussion* But aren't we all just guessing at what 4 people are thinking, at the end of the day? You can't pre-empt what the plans are, we don't know sales figures, we don't know exactly what gigs are selling and even if we say how full it looked, we don't know what money goes to who. I like this forum, because there are lots of intelligent people who like to think and talk about almost everything but at the same time, I do think we all try and second guess things, when there's almost no point. I think we came to exactly the same conclusion in the 'are they making a living?' thread. And I think Ryan makes an excellent point- why are we arguing about the band's next record etce when we've got a brilliant brand new record to be discussing and hopefully, a tour soon but certainly a very exciting gig at Scala. 
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Post by blondeambassador on Oct 21, 2010 16:38:40 GMT
They do sell out smaller venues. And Scala I'll bet you anything will be pretty full, and I wouldn't be surprised if it sells out too. I agree with ryan's points. I agree that there may not be another album, but I would estimate that there's about a 75% chance that there will be one. PRR have adapted well over their career, and while they haven't yet hit the jackpot, they certainly haven't declined in success. Their back catalogue is just about the strongest and most consistent in terms of quality of any band that there is. They have plenty of uber-loyal/obsessive fans, which is very important for the viability of modern bands. Besides, we shouldn't see it as "just" important for the live shows - the live shows are a huge part of what PRR are, and what continues to make them viable. . The live shows are more important these days than any other aspect of a band in that it is the only viable way to make any money and hence progress. It's pretty pointless bringing out an album and NOT touring the legs of the thing, as you won't pay off your advances on sales alone This is very true. On a slightly separate note, was chuffed to find several copies, both digipack and normal in Ealing HMV today- they're usually absolutely appalling, for example when I went to look for the Losers album a few weeks back, absolutely no sign or clue. Wish I'd known- I wouldn't have waited 4 days for Play when I could have walked into the shop and paid the extra 3 quid to have it on Monday!
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Post by ryan on Oct 21, 2010 16:43:04 GMT
It's worth having in the general scheme of things (this kinda thing is all I seem to have talked about to anyone at the moment!), but trying to relate to a specific band is a non-starter. This certainly isn't the thread for it.
It's a fantastically consistent album, I can't point out a weak tune at all. The middle section has a few similar paced numbers but there's no weak song there, and they all have enough going for them to separate them from each other. I really like the lyrics as well.
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Post by blondeambassador on Oct 21, 2010 16:55:57 GMT
I really like the lyrics as well. Having just got the booklet today, I'm blown away by the lyrics to Valour. So complex. What a brilliant song. Can't say war has ever interested me and the idea of an album about it didn't exactly appeal but the lyrics of this album make it fascinating.
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Post by robfoot on Oct 21, 2010 17:05:37 GMT
Love the album, and the DVD for that matter, but I can't help but mourn the diminishing importance of guitars. While I love Blitzkrieg, I still think that their "epicness" strength is in guitar songs, take Twyncyn and Intention Craft as my examples. *sigh*
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Post by ryan on Oct 21, 2010 17:26:23 GMT
Guitar is still important live though. Big riffs. I really like the lyrics as well. Having just got the booklet today, I'm blown away by the lyrics to Valour. So complex. What a brilliant song. Can't say war has ever interested me and the idea of an album about it didn't exactly appeal but the lyrics of this album make it fascinating. It's not massively implicit which is nice.
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sossity
Ambassador in Training

Posts: 8
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Post by sossity on Oct 21, 2010 19:26:33 GMT
Got it today, and just played it. Sounds great on that first hearing.
I'll get back with more..... 
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Post by soundscapemn on Oct 21, 2010 22:54:23 GMT
will this cd be on the shelf in American retail stores? I hope so.
My thoughts: it's got some awesome work on it, but I definitely am of the feeling it's their weakest overall. 4 of the 5 tracks in the middle tend to blend together too much for my liking. The closing 3 tracks are great tho.
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Post by ryan on Oct 21, 2010 23:02:57 GMT
Yeah, on the 25th I think?
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Post by mrguy on Oct 22, 2010 3:21:12 GMT
Yes, it is the 25th. I might be interviewing PRR in a few days... Is it worth raising this discussion? I'm wondering if PRR might become a bit like Porcupine Tree, in the sense that Jon might start a whole host of other projects... PT are a massive band today, and they were by no means popular at their 3rd album... Love the album, and the DVD for that matterGood to finally hear some mention of the DVD...
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Post by ryan on Oct 22, 2010 7:12:24 GMT
Depends how you bring it up.
DVDs been chatted about elsewhere.
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Post by mrguy on Oct 22, 2010 7:54:10 GMT
It's a web-based interview, so once I sort something out with the PR(no, I don't intend an extra R here...) people, I assume it will be; I email the questions, they respond with their answers... I'd have to word it extremely carefully, so I don't come off a prick... It'd be interesting, but I doubt if they were dropping members, they'd openly talk about it, and it might not be worth the risk... hmm.
Yeah, in the other thread... but only once before today...
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