Live On Music

New Forum Launched

As I previously explained, the old Forum has been unavailable for a while now. The company that used to host the forum decided that it was too big and had to be removed from the server. But I have now launched a brand new forum, this time on the same server as the rest of the Delirious.org.uk website. Thank you for all of your e-mails and comments regarding the forums. I know it’s been greatly missed while it has been unavailable, so I hope everyone enjoys the brand new forum.

The forum starts blank without all the old members and topics. My apologies for that, but unfortunately it was the only way to continue. So please register again to join the new forum.

Tags: site

Greenbelt

There has been a gaping hole in my experience of live Christian music up till now. Since the early 70s the Greenbelt Festival has established itself as THE event of the year when it comes to live Christian music in the UK. Deciding it was about time I witnessed this festival for myself, I headed towards Cheltenham to see Delirious? perform at the final day of Greenbelt. Whilst on route I received a call from Jon and we arranged to rendez vous at the Air Balloon Pub, about 20 minutes outside of Cheltenham where he and his friend Jamie were stopping for lunch. Once there Jon filled me in on the band’s recent tour to Asia, an eventful trip with numerous stories ranging from bomb-threats to police raids. A little while later (and several trips around Gloucestershire’s roundabouts) the three of us arrived in convoy at Cheltenham Racecourse.

Making our way through the festival site, we located ‘mainstage’ and the glamorous ‘backstage area’. Said place is a fenced off area immediately behind ‘mainstage’ where technical crews and artists ‘hang out’. Yep, this is the place to be. You’ll be needing your red ‘mainstage pass’ (see below) to get past the yellow-jacketed security personnel and into this exclusive, no doubt luxourius, part of the festival. Or so I thought. On arrival it appears that dressing rooms at Greenbelt are not quite what you may expect. In fact they’re just small portacabins with a couple of chairs and a table (see above). So disappointing.

Jon was particularly keen for me to take photographic evidence of the provisions that had been laid out for the band. Yes I think it’s fair to say that this band have some outlandish demands on their rider. A bowl of crisps - EACH, and a whole basket of fruit. Nothing but the best for these superstars. Anyway, enough about the backstage facilities.

Rumour had it that there was a ‘contributors patio’ which was reserved for holders of the ‘purple pass’ with provisions for contributors. I followed Jon and Jamie through the throng of people gathered by mainstage to watch Chas & Dave as we weaved our way towards this alleged nirvana, all the while feeling slightly guilty that I would be passing myself off as a ‘contributor’. It turns out that Jon is a pretty popular guy. We could barely walk a few steps without him passing somebody he knew and stopping for a chat. Eventually we arrived at our destination, which was also slightly less glamorous than it sounded but did have a very pleasant man offering tea and coffee. After most of Littlehampton had said hello to Jon, we departed on a walk to the far side of the site guided by Mr Andy Hutch (lights and video genius) to visit the tented village he was sharing with another group of people who all seemed to know Jon (he really is Mr Popular). Anyway, in the interest of not getting completely bogged down in irrelevant details (and before I start writing about festival toilets), I’ll just skip the next few hours of general browsing of the festival.

The remaining Delirious? band members had by now arrived, and they were due to do ‘press’ backstage, so I wondered off in search of some music. Before long I discovered a tent where Retrofect were playing. For those not in the know, there is a d: connection with this band, Jon’s brother Ben is the drummer and Martin’s nephew Tom plays guitar. I noted Mum & Dad Thatcher proudly watching their youngest, and Jon also had a quick listen. Anyway… some more time passed [skip to the interesting bit] and at last it was 9:30pm and time for Delirious? to go on stage. I stood at the back of the stage watching as the band walked on and rocked straight into new song ‘God Is Smiling’. The view from on stage was stunning. I could see endless faces stretching out into the darkness like a vast sea, all focused on the 5 guys on stage just a few meters away from me.

Armed with a camera and my red pass I walked round to where the pit between stage and crowd was located. The yellow-jackets had other ideas. Apparently it was fine for me to stand within spitting distance of Stew and his drum kit on stage, but going in front of the stage was a no-no even with a red pass. After some careful negotiation they reluctantly agreed to let me in, on the condition that I wore ear plugs “for health and safety reasons”. Their concern for my hearing was touching but it occurred to me that standing in front of a band with yellow and pink blobs of foam stuck in your ears was about as big an insult as you can pay any band. So I graciously accepted the ear plugs I was offered by the yellow-jacket, shoved them in my pocket and entered the pit to start taking photos. A tap on my shoulder and apparently yellow-jacket had noticed I wasn’t wearing my life-protecting ear devices and was non too pleased. Reluctantly I stuck them in my ears and hoped the band wouldn’t notice.

There were more photographers in the pit than I’ve ever seen at a Delirious? concert, but being a Christian festival there was no jostling or pushing. Just polite excuse-me-pleases and envious looks from me that everyone else had professional looking gear with lenses longer than your forearm. One yellow-jacket took one look at my less than impressive camera and whispered in my ear (well it was more of a shout to be heard through my ear plugs) “are you sure you’re meant to be here?”. I scowled and moved to the other side of the pit.

Before I knew it Delirious? were coming back on stage for their final song encore. I made my way round the back of the stage again and up the steps to watch from the side of stage as they received their applause and took their bow. It was an impressive sight. Back in the portacabin dressing room Tim was relieved they’d done ok without a sound check and everyone seemed happy. Now to negotiate the Gloucestershire countryside for the journey home.

Tags: Artists, form, music, Photos, site, Son, Video

NEC Arena Birmingham

The NEC Arena in Birmingham is one of the most well known music venues in the UK, frequently hosting the biggest bands in the world. So to see Delirious? play there was a real treat. On arrival I went to collect my pass from the box office where the very kind box office lady offered to personally escort me to the backstage area. How’s that for service! She led me passed several security guards, darkened corridors and closed doors before we arrived outside another door labelled “Delirious? Dressing Room”. Inside Stu, Stew, Tim and a few crew members were relaxing on the sofa with an impressive buffet lunch laid out on one side. Just then my phone rang. The display said “Jon Thatcher”. Simultaneously the dressing room door opened and Jon walked in, phone to his ear “Hi Dave, where are you?”. “I’m in your dressing room” I replied as we made eye contact.

Jon and I went off to find a quieter room to talk shop, and we discussed the new Delirious.co.uk website and a few of their plans for the new album. Without wanting to give too much a way, I can honestly say the band have some very exciting plans for the future, and a very fan-focused approach to their new website. Back in the dressing room Stu’s laptop was playing REM’s ‘Everybody Hurts’ - probably the reason that later in the evening Martin burst into the same song whilst performing Majesty on stage! The concert tonight was being broadcast live on God TV and having not played a show in 2 weeks, and with only a very limited opportunity to sound check first, the band were perhaps understandably a little wary. Lee the guitar tech delivered Stu and Jon’s guitars to the dressing room, and Stew’s drum sticks and practise pad, for a little pre-gig warm up. I sat and watched in quiet admiration as Stu and Jon sat on the sofa in front of me performing an impromptu acoustic and instrumental rendition of one of the new songs. It was just the sound of guitar strings, no amplification, and a bit of foot tapping, but it was a delight to witness. Stew asked me if I’d been told the album title yet. “No, I haven’t” I replied. Then silence. A few exchanged glances between them, a cough, then a change of subject. Hmmm, not ready to tell me yet I decided. It was time for the band to move from their dressing room to the wings of the stage. I stood on the side of the stage with Jon and Stew, next to Trevour’s monitor desk, and chatted as they waited for show time. Again Stew broached the subject, “We can tell Dave the title can’t we?” he said. “Yeah I think so” agreed Jon. “Ok,” continued Stew, “the new album is called…”

I remember a few years ago getting a phone call from Jon Brown, head of the band’s Fierce Distribution label. He was phoning me to tell me about the then forthcoming album, The Mission Bell. I was walking along a main road at the time, traffic thundering passed me, and I had to ask JB to repeat the album title three times before I could actually hear what he said over the noise of the traffic. “The Mission what??” I kept asking. It was an embarrassing moment, and the fear of the same thing happening again this time meant that I lent in close to Stew as he revealed the new album title to me as we stood on the NEC Arena stage. It’s still a secret at the moment, a point Jon reinforced to me by standing on my foot as Stew told me, but I think they’ll be announcing it on their new website in a few days. So stay tuned for that.

Finally it was time for Delirious? to start their set. I spent the first half of the show still stood by the monitors desk, getting a good view of the stage and Arena. God TV were doing an impressive job of covering the event. One cameraman spent his time moving between Jon and Stew on stage, poking his shoulder holstered camera through the cymbals or to within inches of Jon’s bass strings. Another camera operator did the same on the opposite side of the stage with Stu and Tim. In the ‘pit’ between stage and crowd, a camera whizzed from one side of the stage to the other, pushed along on a trolley at break neck speeds. Another camera soared above the heads of the crowd on a crane positioned in the pit. From where I was stood at the side of the stage I could just make out a further 2 cameras on tripods near the back of the arena by the sound desk, another at the very back on a trolley and a further one in the seating on one side of the crowd. Clearly every available angle was covered. It made for a few ‘interesting’ moments where Stu nearly sent a camera operator flying when he dared to get a little too close during a guitar solo, and another moment where a photographer nearly got flattened in the pit by the 100mph camera trolley operator.

Deciding it was time to get a different angle myself, I headed to the back of the venue to enjoy the view of the stage’s light show in full. As the final song of the main set ended, I met up with the band as they came off stage and chatted some more as we hung around behind the stage while the ‘talky bit’ happened. There was some debate involving tour manager Ian Cattle about how many songs they were coming back on stage to perform at the end. Originally they’d planned to end with God Is Smiling, but the event was running ahead of schedule, and with a live TV broadcast to fill Delirious? were given a 2 song ending slot instead. So Investigate was quickly chosen as the extra song, and before long the band were back on stage to perform the end of their set.

For the final two songs I watched from the other side of the stage, the side where Stu stands. Watching Stu play the Investigate guitar solo at close proximity was stunning. He was absolutely on fire, even Martin was stood there open mouthed watching Stu rocking away into his own little world. (Back in the dressing room later on Stu complained that his fingers were sore - can’t imagine why!) As Investigate ended the band linked arms and bowed, before leaving the stage. I joined them back in the dressing room where Jon pulled out his laptop and handed me a set of headphones and let me listen to the title track from the new album. Apparently it’s a good representation of the theme of the album. Needless to say I loved the track. It starts with a simple drum machine beat with a steady tempo, then two thirds of the way through the drums kick in and the song starts to soar. I politely declined the opportunity to join them for dinner, and instead said goodbye and left to try and find my car in the labyrinth that is the NEC car park.

Tags: Album, form, music, site, Son

The Future

So, the superb new Delirious.co.uk V3 website has gone live, and what a treat it is. Lovely new design, additional features, lots of interaction and perhaps most exciting of all, the Living Room and its Sofa - home to the band’s personal blogs. There are some additions still to be revealed which will continue to make it a superb resource for d: fans on the web.

Which brings me to the point of this post. Where does the future lie for Delirious.org.uk? Already people have started to ask that question on the forum, and I’ve avoided being too specific as there are a few things yet to be announced. However, I think it’s pretty clear that Delirious.org.uk needs to change. The goal of my site has always been to provide a source of up to date Delirious? information for fans, giving them things they couldn’t easily find elsewhere. The official site will always be the definitive source of information, but there tended to be a gap that I was able to fill with my site. That is until now. Now the excellent V3 is a lot more fluid, more up to date and more interactive. Time will tell how things work out, but early indications show that the band are more keen than ever to keep fans updated on what is going on.

That is exactly what an official band site should be about. So, where does that leave Delirious.org.uk? Is there still space for an unofficial site alongside such a splendid official site? To be honest, that is a question I’ve been asking myself recently. It would be nice to hear your opinions too. At the very least I think it is time for Delirious.org.uk to have a little facelift. Under the shadow of V3 it suddenly feels very old fashioned and out dated. So, what should change? What would you like to see added or changed with Delirious.org.uk? Simply a new paint job, a whole new design, a complete rebuild? I’m open to suggestions. Or perhaps you feel that Delirious.org.uk is no longer needed. Perhaps V3 fills the gap that Delirious.org.uk once filled, and now as a fan you can get everything you need from V3.

This isn’t about my ego (honestly!). I’m not writing this to get a flood of comments saying how much you want me to keep my site. I’m not saying I’m going to act on every piece of feedback I get here. But it would be interesting to know what visitors to the site really think. Change or no change? Future or no future? Let me know. I can take it. I hope. (Well, be gentle with me otherwise I might get grumpy, ok?). Add your comments below.

Tags: form, site, Son

Omnisonic Tour - Horsham

So Delirious? are back on tour in the UK with their ‘Omnisonic Tour’ so on Friday night I headed over to Horsham. My first mistake was planning a route to Horsham based on the postcode for the venue as listed on PuraTickets. I followed the directions provided by the route planner and found myself in the middle of a housing estate. Hmm. I saw Delirious? at the same Horsham venue back in 2005 and I had a vague recollection of a warehouse style venue in the middle of an industrial estate. Somehow this groups of houses did not look familiar. Unfortunately it turns out that PuraTickets had listed the wrong postcode. Luckily for me it was only 5pm. But still, I spent the best part of the next hour driving around Horsham with no idea how to find the venue. As I neared desperation I drove past the ‘Smith & Western’ restaurant and had one of those light bulb moments where you think “that looks familiar!”. I was pretty certain I’d driven past that same distinctive eatery on my previous visit to Horsham. And as I passed it, sure enough there was Tim Jupp escorting his family inside for dinner. With a new sense of confidence I drove on and finally stumbled across the venue.

I was met at the door by Tim Green, assistant to tour manager Ian Cattle, who pointed me in the direction of the bands dressing room (aka ‘Catering’). I walked in to discover Jon and StuG deeply engrossed in their Mac laptops, Jon concentrating hard on a game of Facebook Scrabble. It turns out my arrival was perfectly timed, as Tim Green then arrived with an armful of Chinese take-away (yes, it would definitely have paid for someone’s drugs). After a very enjoyable meal I chatted with the guys for a while. For those of you who have commented on the Living Room Blogs, be assured that the band do read the comments. They were busily reading them, with some competitiveness regarding which band member was receiving the most comments (Martin currently in the lead). Oh and if you happened to have been on Delirious.co.uk at that exact time, you may have spotted me on their webcam for a few minutes. Fame at last.

The rest of the band turned up with a few family members and friends and before long it was time for Dave Payne (legendary d: roadie) to say the pre-gig prayer. Then out we marched to the stage. Despite the low ceiling and low stage, the venue looked impressive, tightly packed with an excitable crowd. I stood and watched from Tim’s side of stage for a while, before heading to the pit to take some stage photos. Then I move round to Jon’s side of stage where I spent most of the gig.

Lee, the d: tech, was kept pretty busy throughout. First of all he had to deal with a troublesome drum, removing it completely for a while to carry out some running repairs. I was amused to watch a drum stick flying backwards out of Stew’s hand during one highly energetic piece of drumming. Without missing a beat he immediately reached to his strategically positioned stick bag, pulled out a replacement stick and continued. You wouldn’t even have noticed from the front row. He caught my eye as I watched all this, and shrugged at me, pulled a face, then carried on grinning.

Later Jon’s bass suddenly went silent mid song, and he frantically tried a few adjustments on his rig before Lee came striding across the stage, ripped out the cable, swapped it with a different one, fiddled with a few buttons and solved the problem.

As I stood a few feet off stage level with Jon, I suddenly noticed Jon’s wife Kristen and his Dad, stood next to me. Later on a group of d:’s children, led by Stu’s daughter Eden, strolled onto stage to dance during Paint The Town Red. Definitively a family night, not surprising since Horsham is only a short hop from their Littlehampton homes.

There was some concern among the stewards (for some reason they’re never called ’security’ at a Christian venue!) when Martin climbed over the crowd barrier with his red megaphone and proceeded to trample onto the shoulders of the crowd - well beyond the safety of the stewards out stretched arms. Somehow he made it back safely, but I feel sure that one day he’s going to be swallowed up by a large crowd and not manage to get back on stage in time for the chorus!

The concert ended with a blistering piece of guitar work from Stu G during Investigate. I watched with amazement as he broke practically every single string in his guitar by the time the song finished. Back in the dressing room I was asked which of the new songs I liked the most. ‘My Soul Sings’ I said, which prompted Jon to say “You’re getting old Dave”. Hmm.

Tags: Photos, Son

Those suits

So the UK leg of The Mission Bell Tour has now come to an end, and the band head out to mainland Europe to continue the tour. It has been a quite extraordinary tour, notable for it’s stunning visuals (you’ve got to love that History Maker video), superb theatricals (the dramatic ‘curtain drop’ and comedy Happy Song routine), excellent music (just how good is Take Off My Shoes) and… of course… THOSE white suits! I took the above photo in the band’s dressing room, about 2 minutes before they went on stage for the very first night of the tour in Southampton. They’d just got changed into the suits and wanted a photo taken for their scrap books, so Martin handed me his camera and asked me if I could take a photo of them. I obliged, and then rather cheekily and sneakily, quickly pulled out my own camera and with a sheepish grin asked if they’d mind me taking a photo of my own. They agreed, but imposed one condition on me. The photo was not to appear on my website until after the UK tour finished. They didn’t want the surprise to be spoilt for anyone who might be going to one of the tour dates. (They’d made a similar request back on the World Service Tour in 2004 when I took a photo of them in their matching pin-striped suits, and held the photo back until after the tour ended).

So anyway, now the tour is over, here’s the photo. You can see the matching white suits in all their glory. Each one is individually tailored with it’s only little quirks. I love the poses they’re pulling for this photo. Martin looking as casual as anything, Stu in his own little world, Jon without a neck and Stew and Tim standing to attention with heads held high, chins up. Sorry about the annoying flash reflection in the dressing room mirror - I only had time for one snap so didn’t get a chance to adjust my angle. There has been quite a debate about the suits and I think for many, the jury is still out. They’re certainly a bold statement by the band. Personally I love the quirkiness of them, and the fun side of the band that they show. What ever you think about ‘those suits’, the guys wearing them certainly know how to put on a show.

Tags: music, site, Son, Video

Reuben

Delirious.org.uk is being a little neglected at the moment and I thought I should probably explain why. The photo above is the reason. On 11th November my wife gave birth to our second child, Reuben James Wood. Those very nice Delirious? boys even gave us a special mention on their official site announcing the news - thanks guys.

Normal service on Delirious.org.uk will resume shortly!

Tags: News, site, Son

The Christmas Show 2006

The Delirious? Christmas Show is always one of the highlights of the year, and this year was no exception. I’d been told before arriving that my pass from the recent UK tour would be valid for the Christmas show, so I arrived at about 4:15pm and knocked on the stage door around the back of the Shepherds Bush Empire. When the security guy opened the door I waved my pass at him, only to hear the words “That pass isn’t valid any more”. Good start. Thankfully he was one of the few helpful security guards that exist, and I was escorted inside to the security desk where he asked my name and checked me against his list. “You’re not on the list”. Things were going well. Half expecting to find myself back outside on the street with a sore backside, I was surprised when instead he picked up his phone and called tour manager Ian. “I’ve got a Dave Wood at stage door” he said, before listening to the response for a few seconds and hanging up. Good news or bad? I wondered. Sigh of relief as he reached for a bright red pass marked ‘AAA’ and handed it to me.

With the potential crisis averted, I became aware of the unmistakable sound of a Delirious? sound check in progress. Heading through the doors, down the steps, and through a few more doors I arrived onto side of stage, behind Trevor’s mixing desk (monitor engineer). In front of me, in the semi-darkness (stage lights not yet in use) I could see Delirious? and a large choir assembled on stage. The choir leader/conductor was stood in front of the choir talking to them. “If you don’t know the words just sing ‘Rhubarb’ or something. Whatever you do, don’t turn around and look at the words on the screen or I’ll shoot you” she said to them sternly. The band and choir rehearsed the moment when the choir will walk on during ‘Majesty’ and join in for the chorus. Next up, Delirious? practice a very rock and roll version of ‘Hark The Herald’, and then the sound check is finished. The band come to greet me and I wonder off upstairs to the dressing room with Jon. On the way we pass Matt Redman arriving through the stage door (unlike me, his name is on ‘the list’).

One thing that always impresses me about Delirious? is that they surround themselves with top professionals, especially when it comes to their crew. Tonight they have Neil on lights, who has just returned from shooting a TV series. Matt their sound man has just rushed back from doing the sound for Jarvis Cocker on this afternoon’s recording of tonight’s Jonathan Ross TV show. Another crew members has spent the day working with Natasha Bedingfield, also shooting a TV show. These aren’t just guys the band found hanging around a street corner, they’re all recognised experts in their field of work who actively choose to fit Delirious? into their busy schedules, packed full of big name mainstream artists. It says something about the level of professionalism that goes into a Delirious? show. Anyway, a little while later it’s time to head to a restaurant for dinner. Once inside, the band are pounced on by an extremely enthusiastic fan who has come all the way from Italy just for tonight’s gig. Despite the slightly unexpected intrusion, they pose for photographs without complaint before we all take up seats for dinner. Sat either side of me are Jon and Stew, across the table are Neil (lights) and Jamie (a journalist friend of Jon, who I’m told has plenty of dirt on him - so I happily take his business card when it’s offered to me!). Over pasta and pizza we chat about various things. It amuses me to hear that Jon has just had his adapted suit (complete with bat wings) back from the dry cleaners (I bet the dry cleaner got a bit of a surprise when they cleaned the outfit).

Back at the venue everyone gathers in the large room behind the stage for a pre-gig prayer meeting. The room is rather over crowded as the 30+ members of the choir, 5 members of Delirious?, Matt Redman and band, plus hangers on (like me!) gather together. Stu G says a few words, thanking everyone for coming to perform tonight and then looks over at Martin and says “So, what do we do now?”. There’s general laughter as people joke that Stu doesn’t know how to pray. Stu responds with a story about the first band he was part of, many years ago, where he was the only non-Christian in the band and quickly had to learn how to talk like a Christian. Matt Redman quips that he must be talking about a band called “Cutting Edge” and more laughter fills the room. When things quieten down, Stu, Martin, Matt and a few others say prayers and then we file out of the room. On the way back to Delirious’ dressing room, we again pass the stage door where Carrie and David Grant are just arriving. I see another familiar face behind them, who I’m fairly sure is athlete Jamie Baulch.

As we head upstairs to the dressing room, I pass Tom (tour manager Ian’s right-hand mand) who stops me and says “Dave, would you like to fire a cannon tonight?”. I ignore the pictures flashing through my mind of large black cannon balls flying off the side of a pirate ship, and focus instead on the confetti cannons that get fired to shower the crowd with millions of tiny pieces of paper, creating a fake indoor snowstorm. I happily agree, and arrange to meet Tom during the encore. In the dressing room the band start to ready themselves for the show. Setlists are looked over, Jon practices with his Bass and Stew hits his drumsticks against a practice pad on his knee. I’m amazed to find that Stew is an almost entirely self-taught drummer, having only had 2 lessons in his entire life “and they were a couple of years ago” he explains. I leave the band in the dressing room and head onto the side of the stage to watch the end of Matt Redman’s support set. He’s doing well and the crowd are very receptive.

Finally it’s time for Delirious? to perform. I crouch down in the security pit between stage and crowd and take as many photos as I can for the first few songs, before heading again to the side of stage to take some photos looking out from behind the band out onto the crowd. Then it’s up into balcony level 1 for some more photos. Later as I stand just off the side of the stage, I notice Matt Redman sitting on the floor, watching Delirious? and singing along to ‘Our God Reigns’. Before I know it, the band leave the stage for the encore break so I dash off to find Tom. He hands me a clear plastic tube, about a metre in length, stuffed full of tiny pieces of paper. He gives me a few instructions and then we head off, along with several other cannon wielders, up the back stairs to balcony levels 2 and 3. He sends each of us off to a different part of the balcony so that we are arranged all around the perimeter, and then we wait for our cue.

Delirious? come back on stage to sing All This Time followed by Stronger, and then their final Christmas number, Hark The Herald Angels Sing. Mid way through the song we all pull the release cord on our confetti cannons and a cheer goes up from the crowd as the confetti fills the venue and floats down on everyone from high up in the roof. I pull out my camera again quickly to take some photos of the scene, before the show comes to an end. With everything finished I catch up with the band again in the dressing room, and then follow Jon down to the after show party where friends, family and colleagues are gathered. It was a stunning night. My only regret was not being able to stay for longer at the after show party, but as it was I didn’t get to bed till 2am after the train journey home - and then got woken at 6am by my daughter, so I think it was just as well I left when I did!

Tags: Artists, form, News, Photos, Son

Catching Up

Ah yes, the Delirious.org.uk blog. I knew there was something I’d been forgetting. It’s been gathering dust since I posted about the Christmas Show back in December. Lately I’ve only been posting on the blog after going to a concert, and since there haven’t been any UK gigs since Christmas… well, you get the picture. But anyway, in the absence of any gig reports of my own I thought I’d write briefly about a couple of other things.

If you’re anywhere in the USA chances are that Delirious? have been somewhere close by in the past month. They’ve just finished the huge 24-date Worship Revolution US Tour with Rebecca St. James and Vicky Beeching. If you couldn’t make it to one of the shows fear not as a steady stream of concert photos from the tour has been pouring in to Delirious.org.uk lately. Feast your eyes on pics from:
Beaver Falls Pennsylvania, Camp Hill Pennsylvania, Portland Oregon, San Diego California, San Bernardino California, Santa Ana California, Oklahoma City Oklahoma, Gainesville Georgia

The other big news at the moment is that the new Delirious? book, cleverly titled I Could Sing Of Your Love Forever, is about to be released. Available shortly in the USA and from 5th May in the UK, this stunning new book sees Martin and StuG telling the stories that inspired them to write 20 of their best known songs. I say ’stunning’ because not only are the stories moving, emotional and intimate, but the visual appearance of the book is absolutely amazing. Each chapter of the book looks at a different song and is decorated with unique and beautiful artwork. My review is on the site now and you can pre-order the book at the FireceShop.

In the unlikely event that inspiration hits me soon I may post on this blog again (suggestions always welcome), but until then, enjoy the book.

Tags: Album, News, Photos, site, Son

Glorious Oak

So, Delirious? are in the studio at the moment working on their new album. Exciting times. What will it sound like? Well, I have a ‘Delirious.org.uk World Exclusive’ for you. Let me recount a conversation I just had with the bass-playing-extraordinaire that is Mr Jon ‘The Bass’ Thatcher. It went something like this…

Me: How are you?
Jon: Good. Just been putting down some bass
Me: How is it sounding?
Jon: The new stuff?
Me: Yeah
Jon: It’s the new sound
Me: Err, right…
Jon: If our last records were the roots then this record would be a glorious oak standing on top of the past

So there you have it. Don’t say I don’t keep you informed.

Tags: Album, form