Whatever's On Your Mind Out in June -

(A Note from Tom)

Hello dear friends! We're ready. You're ready. Damn this state of readiness is killing me. Let me tell you something.

Our unbelievably great new album, Whatever's On Your Mind, will be released in the UK (Eat Sleep) and Europe on June 6th, Australia (Shock) on June 10th, and in North America (ATO) and the rest of the world on June 21st. There'll be a flurry of information and treats coming your way in the months leading up to the release, from behind-the-scenes looks at the making of the album to exclusive deluxe pre-orders, videos, tour announcements and everything in between.

That was good, right? Read on.

It all starts now! Head immediately over to http://www.gomeztheband.com and download the first single, "Options" for free today in exchange for your email address (which we already have, as you are reading our newsletter). So don't stop there! Share it with friends and foes alike ...just click the "share" link visible in the widget and help us share the love.

Bring it on.

Summer Tour in the UK and Ireland

We will be kicking things off this summer with a tour in the United Kingdom and Ireland The two-week run will begin on June 9th at the O2 Academy in Bournemouth and wrap up with a big show at The Roundhouse in London on Tuesday, June 21st. We will be coming through Manchester, Newcastle, and Dublin along the way as well. Tickets for the tour are on sale now.

All ticket and show info can be found at http://www.gomeztheband.com.

Ben, Ian and Tom Performances in US Begin Saturday

Ben, Ian and Tom will be visiting select cities in the States beginning this Saturday, March 26th in Salisbury, MA, for a sold-out performance at the Blue Ocean Music Hall. The trio will also hit the Soiled Dove in Denver on March 30th and the Swedish American Hall in San Francisco on April 1st. Limited tickets for the Denver and San Fran shows are still available. Find all ticket and show info at the gigs page.

Fans in Atlanta can register to win a spot in the studio audience for an intimate appearance at the DAVE-FM Circle of Friends on Monday, March 28th. Folks in the Portland, OR area can log in to the KINK Community to attend the trio's visit to the KINK-FM Bing Lounge on Thursday, March 31st.

Ben takes Shapes & Shadows to the States and Australia

Ben has a sold-out show at Schubas in Chicago tonight and will be visiting the Bootleg Theater in Los Angeles on Saturday, April 2nd. Tickets are still available for the Los Angeles show, so don't miss your opportunity to catch a rare Stateside appearance by Ben.

He will then hop down to Australia on the heels of this quick run for a weeklong tour in promotion of his recently released solo album, Shapes & Shadows. All details relating to the album and shows can be found at BenOttewell.com

Upcoming Tourdates

March 25, 2011 • Chicago, IL • Schubas (Ben Solo) • Sold Out
March 26, 2011 • Salisbury, MA • Blue Ocean Music Hall (Ben, Ian & Tom) • Sold Out
March 30, 2011 • Denver, CO • The Soiled Dove (Ben, Ian & Tom)
April 1, 2011 • San Francisco, CA • Swedish American Hall (Ben, Ian & Tom)
April 2, 2011 • Los Angeles, CA • Bootleg Theater (Ben Solo)
April 6, 2011 • Sydney, AUS • Notes (Ben Solo)
April 7, 2011 • Sydney, AUS • The Basement (Ben Solo)
April 9, 2011 • Brisbane, AUS • The Zoo (Ben Solo)
April 10, 2011 • Melbourne, AUS • The Corner Hotel (Ben Solo)
April 12, 2011 • Ballarat, AUS • Karova Lounge (Ben Solo)
April 13, 2011 • Adelaide, AUS • The Wheatsheaf (Ben Solo)
April 14, 2011 • Fremantle, AUS • Mojo's (Ben Solo)
June 9, 2011 • Bournemouth, UK • O2 Academy
June 10, 2011 • Bristol, UK • O2 Academy • On Sale March 26th, 12pm GMT
June 11, 2011 • Leeds, UK • Metropolitan University
June 12, 2011 • Dumfries, Scotland • Eden Festival
June 14, 2011 • Manchester, UK • Academy 2
June 15, 2011 • Cambridge, UK • The Junction
June 16, 2011 • Newcastle, UK • O2 Academy
June 18, 2011 • Belfast, UK • Spring & Airbrake
June 19, 2011 • Dublin, Ireland • Olympia Theatre
June 20, 2011 • Birmingham, UK • HMV Institute
June 21, 2011 • London, UK • The Roundhouse

Completely forgot about this, but its out and streaming at http://www.pastemagazine.com/blogs/av/2 ... -mind.html

By Caitlin Peterkin

Over the course of their 15-year career, the guys from Gomez have continued to span genres from pop-rock to country to blues, earning them a strong fan-base and critical acclaim with their unique, versatile sound. Now, the English rockers are ready to release their seventh studio album, Whatever’s On Your Mind.

With band members spread over two continents, they took a rather unusual approach to writing new songs. Rather than working together in person, the group spent several months sharing ideas through technology, modifying each other’s uploaded demos to create the best sound. “We decided not to spend any time together at all,” Ian Ball (vocals, guitar) described. “We’d work at home, aiming for two to three ideas every month.”

This long-distance writing relationship resulted in approximately 80 songs and a new preferred way to record. “I enjoyed the way that it went down, it was really interesting and cool, and definitely my favorite way to record so far,” said Ball. “I think everyone enjoyed the way it worked out.” The online collaboration allowed each band member more creative freedom than previous recording methods. Rather than sit through hours in the studio figuring out chord progressions, this innovative process proved to be the most efficient for the band. “It gave you a lot of time to really formulate what you wanted to do,” he said. “When you’re on your own, you can explore things on your own time.”

After narrowing the song collection down to 10, the group headed to a studio in Virginia to begin a two-day recording process. Taking on a co-producing role was the band’s long-time friend Sam Farrar of Phantom Planet. “When you make a record, it’s always good to have one extra set of ears, one extra set of brains,” said Ball. “[Sam] was the obvious choice.” Farrar’s involvement as co-producer allowed him to take an editorial approach in helping the band create one of their best albums to date. Whatever’s On Your Mind maintains Gomez’s eclectic genre influences, while achieving a new level of spirit and introspection. Each song brings gritty vocals, beautiful harmonies, and intricate arrangements.

man, Ian just seems to get wussier on every album.

Granted the whole band has been headed toward adult contemporary on the last few albums but his lyircs are very cringeworthy.

this was a legitimate top 5 all time band for me up until post split the difference. Since then it's just not been the same . Though HWO did have some nice highlights.

Man, I remember pretending to like Gomez.

they have some incredible b-sides

I looooved their first record at the time it came out and just never kept up with them after that..even after seeing them open for Pj last summer..weird that

After one listen, its kind of like A New Tide, in that territory, where the songwriting just isn't that stellar compared to past albums, but not so bad that it won't grow on you over time. I hated A New Tide when it came out. After How We Operate, it felt like a letdown, but with time and not a whole lot of listening I've begun to like it a little more.

This one sounds completely different than everything else before. I know they've always been a band that comes up with some new quirky sound on practically every single track, but you can tell that they didn't record this together in the studio and that they just worked on each other's songs from different cities and spliced in their ideas. Definitely an interesting way to work and I expect to like this more with time, but nothing here sounds better than anything on their first three records. Diminishing returns.

Diminishing returns is OTM. Their songwriting peaked on albums 1-3 and now it just doesn't have that magical sheen.

I have tickets lined up for Tuesday's London gig. Haven't heard the new record yet.

Cool. I've always enjoyed seeing them live, and their records are good enough that they can put together a strong set. Have fun.

Selena??

agreed. all the songs usually translate pretty well live. Despite the diminishing returns of the albums, a headlining set is still pretty good shit from these guys

Fantastic set. Took a guy from India to his first gig that wasn't 20,000 plus people and he loved it.


http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/gomez/201 ... 30adc.html

Nice to see a show close with something other than Piccadilly. The only rare closer I've ever seen was Devil Will Ride about 5 years ago.

To be honest Get Miles isn't a great closer, it's a little anticlimactic as a song which is why it's a great opener. I thought they'd play something like Rhythm and Blues Alibi as a closer, but I was hoping for We Haven't Turned Around or California