a 10 x 8 print for whoever can name the songs and/or lyrics that inspired the characters!

quick hint – lupen has at least 2

x

ps all comments on these photo’s much appreciated, thank you.

The band performing Teddy Fucker at the Eagle Tavern in Rochester last Thursday.

Because we are bitter and twisted. Finally after hours of interogation via immigration our lost and found murderbird has managed to make his way to the english shores, and whislt here, we have done what has needed to be done, and now, until next time , here he is, in all his fuck and fight glory . . . we love you mother fucker . . . x . . . ROCK.

A few of you have asked about this, so its great to be able to let those of you who are interested, that myself and the mrs are planning to exhibit our work at Nucleus Art Gallery in Chatham High Street from the 21st – 28th of August. Work will be on sale, and throughout the week myself and the mrs will be painting in the gallery,  plus no doubt I’ll feel the need to pick up the guitar every so often. The gallery will be open from 10am – 5pm. Entry is FREE.  This is an idea that only came to fruition this afternoon, so more details will follow. x Lupen

Many thanks Julia, I hope this little creature makes a good home with you. x

amidst MANY trains back and forth, newspapers, sneezes, coffees and clicks here is a little moment of magic from the studio where final touches are being put to the album.

i think its a track called dorothy deserves they are working on, anyway LOADs more to come when the mood takes me and the illness leaves me.

for those in the area, remember to come down to The Eagle Tavern in rochester this eve for more musical meanderings and magical merch,

Jh x

The Lost Belongings EP has been picking up some good reviews.  WhatsOn gives it four stars:

“… this is sincere. This is real.  Call it lo-fi-folk-punk-indie-dub-rockabilly or whatever it must be categorised as, the point is that it’s honest AND accessible, two words that very rarely get combined when discussing modern music.”

Teletext’s Planet Sound section follows suit, awarding eight out of ten:

“… a Too Rye Ay-era Dexys racket, full of brassy insouciance and a rickety piano like the best drunken night out. Huge skill behind the ramshackle charm.”

For the sake of balance, here’s a less than enthusiastic two-star review of the EP from The Skinny:

“Their coupling of London estuary indie with violins and mandolins is an obvious ploy to attain an air of authenticity, but Crook’s voice is too one-dimensional, too limited to deliver any tenderness when it’s called for.”

That’s fine, not everyone’s going to like it.  A factual correction to that one: the band left its former record label – a local indie rather than a major – by choice.

I’ve been kicking these strange odds / stray sods, around the place for a while now. Today seemed a good time to give them over, so feel free to let me know what you think. Also, I would appreciate it if those people who bought paintings at Camden Barfly could send images to me, obviously no rush, but I would like to have copies. Many Thanks. Lupen Crook.

Oh yeah, click on these thumbnails to see full image. x

“Lily In The Woods” – Mixed Media on Canvas

“Portrait Of A HeARTiST” – Oil on Wood

“Broken Home / Crooked House” – Mixed Media on Canvas

“Fantasist In March” – Mixed Media on Canvas

“Night Of The Senseless” – Mixed Media on Canvas

It’s the fourth of July – American Independence Day.  Though the band is based in Britain, this seemed like a fitting day to release The Lost Belongings EP into the world.  Partly in honour of Craig Murderbird’s return to British shores and partly because the band is currently about as independent as it’s possible to be.

So… visit the website Shop to order your copy of the EP.  It’s available via download on Amazon and RawRip so far.  iTunes is coming soon, though iPod users don’t need to feel left out.  MP3s from both Amazon and RawRip will work on your iPod and the Amazon MP3 Downloader can automatically add the EP to your iTunes library.

You can order physical CDs by post.  There’s been a lot of interest in the limited edition version with the hand-painted canvas sleeves.  Mr Crook has indeed suffered for that particular piece of art – becoming Mr Croak in the process – and will hopefully be wearing a face-mask the next time he picks up a can of spray paint.

We’re aiming to despatch all pre-ordered CDs in a couple of days.  You’ll get an e-mail confirmation the moment we’ve stuck the stamps on the jiffy bags.  Londoners can also buy copies of the EP at the two Rough Trade stores and we believe that it will also be available from Rough Trade via mail order.

Thanks to everyone who showed their support in Camden on Thursday.  Hope you enjoyed it as much as the band did, despite various unforeseen hassles.  The thieving bastards who nicked part of Bob’s drum kit should hope that he never catches up with them; the beak of a pissed-off Murderbird rips flesh like candy-floss.

Does anyone have any pictures or video from Thursday night?  We’d love to hear from you, either by e-mail or in the comments.  Also, any other thoughts or questions are welcome.  Whether you’ve heard the new material online, at the gig, on the CD or via download, what do you reckon?

A few brief words on the items of band merchandise planned for the gig at the Barfly in Camden tomorrow night, plus Maidstone and Rochester in a few days’ time.

There will obviously be copies of the new EP, The Lost Belongings, in both its limited and standard edition versions.  A fresh batch of the hand-made Old Books, Broken Bands & Other Little Treasures CDs has been created, for anyone who didn’t manage to get one when it first came out towards the end of last year.

For those whose walls need plastering with crooked images, there will be some of the new EP launch posters that Tom mentioned a couple of weeks ago.  Also, the band’s friend and collaborator The Mrs will be offering a range of striking and highly collectable postcards featuring his “self-documentation” series of paintings.

There will be t-shirts.  Here I have to be a little vague as to details, partly to enhance the mysterious allure of the product and partly because I won’t actually see them until tomorrow.  Maybe some of the newer ones shown in the Shop, maybe some of the older Kill Cat designs.  Maybe even some other puzzling adornments.

Depending on the success of sales at the Barfly – and please remember that the band is entirely self-funded at the moment, so your support means a great deal – a similar range will be available at Maidstone and Rochester.  However, there are only small quantities of certain items (e.g. posters), so no specific promises.

For those who can’t make the gigs, once the pre-orders for the new EPs have been posted (imminently…) the Shop page of the website will be receiving a little tender loving care.  We’re aiming to get t-shirt ordering sorted out properly, plus making Old Books available by post.  EP downloads are also due very shortly.

That’s about it.  Buy early to avoid disappointment, exact change appreciated, etc.  To everyone going to the Barfly, see you tomorrow…

Update, Thursday morning: I can be more specific about the “puzzling adornments” now.  These are hand-made, puzzle-piece shaped silver charms (5.5g sterling silver), individually numbered (101 in total), with jump hoop attached for use on necklace, keyring, etc.  Also there will be some Matthew’s Magpie 7″s.