T T N G

Made Of Chalk: Live Videos First of Three to come "Adventure, Stamina & Anger "

Wed, 15 May 2013 17:10:00 -0400

The Made of Chalk Sargent House Takeover continues! Here is the first of three videos to come from TTNG who just released their second full length album titled 13.0.0.0.0 earlier this year. The band is currently on tour with Tera Melos in support of this release. You can check out the remaining dates here! and see Tera Melos and Native videos in the take over HERE.

“TTNG, formerly known as This Town Needs Guns, was beyond...

Wed, 15 May 2013 17:00:57 -0400

“TTNG, formerly known as This Town Needs Guns, was beyond exciting for me to photograph even in a less than ideal lighting situation. TTNG had a great energy to them. They are a math rock band, which means their time signatures jump all over the place. The skill level of the individual band members was ridiculous. I definitely feel like you’ll be hearing more from this band in the next couple of years.”

Thanks to Audra May Photography for shooting the show - See all photos here - Shot at The Space in Hamden, CT on April 30, 2013

I'll Take The Minute Snake live from Oxford

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:30:00 -0400

TTNG live in Oxford “I’ll Take The Minute Snake” - cheers to GreenDore Films for sharing

Live Video Clip and Interview from Moscow

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 12:58:00 -0400

TTNG performing the song ‘Adventure, Stamina & Anger’ and Interview with our friends at Stop the Silence - shot on February 12, 2013 @ B2 Club in Moscow, Russia.

TTNG will be heading out on tour with Tera Melos in the USA & CANADA starting April 18th - SEE ALL DATES HERE

Dirty Impound Albums of the Week & Review of TTNG's 13.0.0.0.0

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 18:28:00 -0400

There is greatness here. The cumulative effect of TTNG’s 13.0.0.0.0 (released January 22) – a title that references the Mayan calendar’s counting sequence covering the beginning and end of creation – is mounting impressiveness. Weaving seamlessly between exposed delicacy and tough, technical musicianship with impactful oomph, the album charms and charms, and the more one revisits it the better it gets. There are some surface similarities to ursine alternative rock darlings Grizzly Bear, Bear In Heaven and Minus the Bear but Oxford, England’s TTNG are more robust instrumentalists capable of the kind of finger-knotting complexity within melodic frameworks worthy of Rush and Tortoise. Add in the curving, unexpectedly enticing voice of lead singer Henry Tremain, whose pipes and phrasing recall the wild bird flap of Smiths-era Morrissey and Bronski Beat’s Jimmy Somerville, and you’ve got a unique combination of primary elements. The captivating clawhammer picking of guitarist Tim Collis and controlled ferocity of drummer Chris Collis weave together so well with Tremain’s swooping vocals and whomp-heavy bass, and it’s only at the end of this set that one realizes the wide range of moods and subject matter that’s been covered. A humanist thread emerges early on opener Cat Fantastic, which notes, “You feel less satisfied the more you acquire…You’ll be happy when you’re willing to share.” But these aren’t tambourine whacking hippies by any stretch of the imagination. There is something big, bold and beautiful gestating in this trio, and 13.0.0.0.0 is the sound of that multitudinous thing kicking and squirming, ready to burst into the world. (Dennis Cook)

DON’T MISS TTNG ON TOUR SEE ALL SHOW INFO HERE

MM: Interview with Tim Collis

Mon, 11 Mar 2013 17:53:00 -0400

Ever-burned into our musical conscious through his affiliation with alternative heavy hitters TTNG (formally This Town Needs Guns), guitarist Tim Collis is renowned for his technical playing style and effortless, progressive technique. Having played in the Oxford-based band for countless years, with records released through Big Scary Monsters and Sargent House, we caught up with Tim off the back of an EU tour to talk about his playing style, his vintage Fender amp, and his inspirations as a musician…

What was it that made you want to start playing music?

Initially I went through the whole thing of music lessons at school, being introduced to playing the piano, drums and violin. For some reason none of these instruments really clicked for me until I got a guitar, I think it was for Christmas or a birthday. It was just like Noel Gallagher’s guitar and I was pumped! That was it really – I just started messing around on it and getting a few lessons to learn a few chords etc. At around the same time (about 10 years old), I remember beginning to go and see live bands more seriously. I saw the Spin Doctors and was just totally blown away by the energy that these guys had and the atmosphere of the place. From then on I became more interested in music and particularly watching music in a live setting. Probably the main thing that made me want to start playing music was watching my brother, Chris, play in his first band; ‘Consent’. They rented a hall in the town we grew up in, and loads of kids came down. It was totally insane. I think one of my fondest memories of any show might be from this night, when the singer decided to leap off stage hoping for a bit of crowd surfing. Sadly, the crowd had other ideas and simply moved out of the way and the poor guy went straight onto the floor. Good times!

What was the very first song you learnt to play?

I think it was something fairly typical like ‘Come as you are’ by Nirvana. Probably that or any/every Greenday song.

What is your current set up?

I recently bought a vintage Fender Dual Showman amp (from Tristan – Pennines). I found that for me, Fender Teles sounded great through this amp so I have two of those too. I also just blew most of my money on a beautiful acoustic guitar (Taylor 412ce-FLTD) which is probably the nicest guitar I’ve ever owned. In terms of pedals I’m kind of changing things a little. For the last few tours I’ve been just using a Boss EQ pedal as a boost and an old Boss DD3 delay pedal. We’re doing a little more for the live shows through laptops these days so I’m looking at running any effects through Ableton Live, using an AB switch to change channels so the guitar either goes through the amp directly, or out via the mac and back into the amp.

Which musicians over the course of your playing have influenced/inspired you the most and why?

In the early days I’d have to say John Frusciante, Mike Einziger, Jimi Hendrix, and Billy Corgan (the Pumpkins catalogue is still on heavy rotation on my iTunes). I just found that these guys were doing something a little different to many other bands in terms of playing and/or song writing. I still think ‘Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness’ is an absolute masterpiece.

When I became more interested in alternate tunings and playing styles I was very inspired by Victor Villarreal and Sam Zurick to name but a few. Of course there’s also a million other artists that inspire me, that perhaps haven’t directly impacted me as a guitar player but more as an overall musician – I’m a huge fan of Bjork and am pretty interested by some African musicians, particularly kora players such as Toumani Diabate and Ballake Sissoko.

Which best translates your musical ability/technique more accurately, a live or recorded performance?

Ha ha, well I guess my ability/technique is represented more ‘cleanly’ in a recordeed sense. By that I mean it’s easier to iron out any mistakes or flaws compared to a live setting – you get the chance to edit and redo if necessary. But to be honest I find you lose a lot of the energy and the personality of a band/musician when something’s recorded. Of course you can get it sounding ‘perfect’ whatever that may mean to the musician. Personally, I enjoy live music more – seeing those errors and differences to the recorded version and knowing that real live human beings are playing those instruments somehow makes it easier for the listener to connect to the music.

When song-writing in TTNG, what does your creative process involve?

Usually climbing into a bath of raspberry jam and just soaking for a few hours. Two litres of um bongo and 100 push ups later, I’m usually ready for business time. Sorry, too much coffee. In terms of a more serious approach, it’s really hard to describe. I think firstly I have to be in the right frame of mind – usually forcing myself to come up with a riff or idea doesn’t work too well or just leads to something I’m not too happy with. It’s sometimes really good to just put down the instrument and do something else. If I can somehow get emotionally invested in an idea whether it’s something really technical or super simple, that’s when it becomes a ‘keeper’. Using a riff/idea when the band is together is then about finding a balance between being overly precious and not really caring what happens to it

And finally, with your progression as a guitarist, is there still a drive to push yourself as a musician? Do you still find yourself learning new techniques or skills?

I do sometimes find it hard to push myself as sometimes I probably get lazy in terms of working on technique which is an area all musicians can and maybe should be constantly working on. I definitely don’t practise enough that’s for sure. A new skill I recently learned is how to open bottles of beer with a lighter or knife or random object – that’s kind of embarrassing how long it’s taken really but I’m still proud of myself.

Quick-fire questions – Favorite band at the moment? Favorite Chord or tuning? Favorite Song to Play?

I’m really enjoying the album ‘This Wilderlessness’ by the Swedish band ‘Yamon Yamon’ at the moment…very nice and chilled out. Favourite tuning right now is DJB5$A – it’s wild! Favourite song is any TTNG song, man those guys are great.

Cheers Andy!

Subba Cultcha Interview with TTNG

Fri, 08 Mar 2013 16:28:28 -0500

TTNG spent last year re-imagining themselves as a band, pushing on to tour with an altered line-up. Where other bands would fall by the way-side, they’ve evolved enough to be firmly looking forward to a great future, and their recently released new album is the perfect hard evidence for it. James Fox had a chat with guitarist Tim Collis on where they’re at, and what’s in store next.

You’ve got a lot ahead of you it seems this year. But yesterday you had your new album out, 13.0.0.0.0, your first one as a three piece after Stu and Jamie left. How was the creative process this time?

It was pretty different, as you might expect with both Stu and Jamie leaving. Jamie was around for the writing of that album actually, and some of the basic ideas and riffs we started with had actually been around for a couple of years. So it was a bit funny – we had little bits from up to 2 or 3 years ago, some bits that were more recent to when the album was recorded, and quite a lot of parts that were just experimentation in the studio at the time. It was a weird process that combined all three ways, compared to the previous record where we just wrote a bunch of songs together, tried to grab what time we could, and recorded them pretty much as they were in rehearsal. It was a bit freer this time and it was more intense and definitely more serious. We’d flown producer Ed Rose over from the states so we knew it was a bit more serious and things had stepped up for us in some ways. It was a good process though.

The instrumentation on the record seems a little bit more adventurous?

Yeah, definifetly. We had a bit more time and a little bit more budget which is great because you can then obviously do things that are a bit more experimental. You’ve got the time and the ability risk it, and you’ve even got in a better a studio the means to do that with better equipment or different equipment. There are a few different flavours on there, some different instruments we tried out. There’s some really random stuff like wine glasses with liquid in them and making all sorts of noises with those. There are a few more effects. With the previous record it was pretty clean and it was just vocals, drums, bass, guitar and that was it. It was nice to try some new stuff out this time for sure.

The title, 13.0.0.0.0. refers to the Mayan calendar, the end of it and it’s rebirth?

That’s right, yeah.

It seems like a quite an apt title, figuring it’s quite a good time for you guys as a rebirth for the band.

Yeah, it’s exactly that really. A lot of people have the misconception that the last date of that cycle is supposed to be a destructive one with a lot of people talking about the end of the world. But it is just a change in the cycle and so I guess it was quite fitting. We had Henry coming into the band, things had changed quite a lot with the new album and a new stretch of time for the band. We just thought it was pretty apt really and went with that for a theme for the artwork.

Henry has a couple of guitars live and it can sometimes be a bit of a juggling act. Is it a bass or a baritone guitar he mainly uses, or a hybrid?

It’s great. It’s something he made himself and it’s kind of a hybrid between a bass and a baritone, based more along the lines of a fender bass 6. It’s a good in-between for some for the songs. There are still a few issues we’re working on with some of the new tracks, which might involve him getting his brain making yet another new instrument. It’s working really so far to be honest. He’s one of those guys who you can just keep giving tasks, and somehow he manages to compartmentalise it and pull off a number of different things at once. He’s pretty good, so we’ll see how much we can give him and see what sort of a juggling act he can continue to do.

As a band, no longer This Town Needs Guns, but TTNG officially. Was that something that’s been in your head for a while? Or a fairly quick decision to come to?

It’s been something we’ve thought about for a long time. We’ve been known as TTNG as well forever really, in the UK especially. It’s kind of a new time for the band and almost a new band in some ways. None of us are that into this band name, almost as a suggestion for inviting weapons into a town. We thought about it for a while and we just wanted to show a bit more sensitivity to some of the issues that are currently going on that people are obviously aware of, and have a bit more respect that this might be something that will cause offence to people. People are going to have different views and a lot of people will just think it’s stupid, but at the end of the day we just did what we felt was right. I think people don’t have to necessarily walk around with a t-shirt on that says ‘This Town Needs Guns’ and get grief about it, which has happened in the past. We don’t want to be seen to be supporting the way that statement can be made negatively.

In America, you’ve been signed to Sargent House for quite a while. Has that helped you to get you out there?

Yeah, of course in many ways. They’re a great label – the people that work there are incredibly hard working and brilliant in every way, so it’s definitely helped us out. With the genre of our music, or however you want to label it, I think there’s a chance in America it’s listened to a lot more people. Of course there’s a lot more people living there but also our sound takes particular influence from the early 90s Chicago indie scene. I think a lot of people perhaps got into the band with having links to other music and bands in America, so I think we’ll always be a little more popular over there than elsewhere, which it’s kind of turning out to be the case.

You’ve been there to tour before haven’t you?

Yeah, back in 2010 I think.

You’re going to be heading out there again soon with Tera Melos?

Yeah that’s right. We’ve got a tour with Tera Melos in April and May.

Excited to see them? Have you seen them before?

Yeah, definitely. We managed to play one show with them before in Vienna, which was pretty random. They were really good so it was great. We’re fans of the music so really excited to be out and get the chance to see them every night. It’s going to be awesome.

Are there any other bands on the live touring circuit that have really wowed you? Any new bands?

I’m not sure how new some of these bands are, but bands I guess I’ve seen that have completely wowed me, bands I knew I would be wowed by, would be particularly the Japanese band Toe who we had the chance to play with at the end of last year which was great. Also LITE who are fantastic, so two Japanese bands that we’re all into and all really like. There’s a couple of good bands we played with for our launch show the other night called Among Brothers, and Suffer Like G Did. I guess the list could go on forever. There’s a lot of good stuff we’re lucky enough to see when we’re out touring.

You’ve toured in a lot of places: America, Europe, Japan and Australia. Is there anywhere you haven’t been that you’d like to get out to?

There’s a few places we’d love to go and I don’t know how we’d make it happen, but it’d be nice to play a few shows in South America. There seems to be a very tiny Math Rock scene in Chile for example. We’re looking to sort something out one day so we’ll see if anything materialises. Besides that probably more places in Asia would be great. I think it’d be fantastic to head back to Japan if possible. Any chance we get to go away is always really exciting, but I think South America is top of the list. If we could do some shows there it’d be pretty awesome.

Lastly, will we see any more official TTNG guitar tabs published?

Yes, there will be. We’re currently still working on another tab book. We’ve had a really good response to the first one which is really nice. It’s good to know people are interested. We’ll be doing a second one for most of the tracks, if not all of them, from the new album and maybe a few other bits as well.

Words by James Fox

Big thanks to Rachel Silver

www.thistownneedsguns.com/

Written by: Rob Sayce on 02/21/2013.

TTNG Are coming to America & Canada for tour with Tera Melos

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 15:07:03 -0500

TTNG are happy to announce their upcoming USA & Canadian tour dates with Sargent House label mates Tera Melos.

SEE ALL SHOW DETAILS HERE

TERA MELOS & TTNG TOUR 2013
Apr 18, 2013 - Portland, OR @ Doug Fir Lounge
Apr 19, 2013 - Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile
Apr 20, 2013 - Vancouver, BC @ The Media Club
Apr 23, 2013 - Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium
Apr 24, 2013 - Minneapolis, MN @ First Avenue 7th Street Entry
Apr 25, 2013 - Appleton, WI @ Lawrence University
Apr 26, 2013 - Chicago, IL @ Subterranean
Apr 27, 2013 - Detroit, MI @ Majestic Theater/The Magic Stick
Apr 28, 2013 - Toronto, ON @ The Garrison
Apr 29, 2013 - Montreal, QC @ Il Motore
Apr 30, 2013 - Hamden, CT @ The Space
May 1, 2013 - Allston, MA @ Brighton Music Hall
May 2, 2013 - Brooklyn, NY @ Knitting Factory
May 3, 2013 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Fire - (early show) SOLD OUT
May 3, 2013 - Philadelphia, PA @ The Fire - (late show) SOLD OUT
May 4, 2013 - Washington, DC @ DC9
May 5, 2013 - Raleigh, NC @ Kings Barcade
May 7, 2013 - Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade
May 8, 2013 - Jacksonville, FL @ Jack Rabbits
May 9, 2013 - Miami, FL @ Bardot
May 10, 2013 - Ybor City, FL @ Crowbar
May 11, 2013 - Orlando, FL @ Will’s Pub
May 13, 2013 - Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
May 15, 2013 - Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon
May 16, 2013 - Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s
May 17, 2013 - Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
May 18, 2013 - Austin, TX @ Red 7
May 19, 2013 - San Antonio, TX @ The Korova
May 20, 2013 - El Paso, TX @ Low Brow
May 21, 2013 - Scottsdale, AZ @ Pub Rock
May 22, 2013 - San Diego, CA @ The Casbah
May 23, 2013 - Los Angeles, CA @ The Echo
May 24, 2013 - Santa Ana, CA @ The Constellation Room
May 25, 2013 - San Francisco, CA @ The Bottom of the Hill
May 26, 2013 - Fresno, CA @ Star Palace Ballroom

A Bearded Gentleman asks 13 Questions, TTNG answers them

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 15:39:00 -0500

TTNG (formally known as This Town Needs Guns) Have had quite the year. TTNG found out that their lead singer and guitar player Stuart Smith would be leaving the band to start a family and the band recruited singer Henry Tremain. However, soon after beginning work on their new record the band was faced with loosing bass player Jamie Cooper as well. As Cooper exited the band Tremain took it upon himself to take up the bass duties and transformed the band into a trio leaving brothers Chris Collis on percussion and Tim Collis on guitar.

13.0.0.0.0 by This Town Needs Guns

Throughout the major shifts in the line up TTNG managed to write and release one of my favorite albums of the year thus far. 13.0.0.0.0 was released in the first part of January 2013 and quickly started garnering major attention. I was able to send some questions to the band and after a short stint of touring in the UK, TTNG’s Chris was able to get back to us with some responses.

Note: At the original time the interview was sent TTNG had not yet changed their name.

I would like to start of by mentioning that I have been enjoying listening to the stream of the new album 13.0.0.0.0 over the last couple of days. It has been raking in tons of great reviews. How would you sum up 13.0.0.0.0 in relation to your past releases?

Thanks very much for taking a listen, glad you like it! It’s a very different record to start with. As you may know, we’ve had a change in line up with Henry joining us – he’s added a huge amount to the band and this record in particular. It was a much more interesting and exciting record to make in some ways as we had the luxury of a longer timescale to work with as well as more of a budget. We were very grateful to be in that position and to not have the pressure of having to hurry ourselves. We were also lucky enough to work with a producer (Ed Rose) who brought a ton of good ideas and years of experience with him. He was integral to the strength of the drum sound on this album in my opinion (Tim). It was also the first album that Jamie recorded with us and the bass-lines are definitely a testament to his wizardry as a musician.

I think 13.0.0.0.0 has more mature tracks in a way; we were much more aware of leaving space in this record and allowing tracks to breath a bit instead of having frantic instrumentation all the way through. This is still a prominent feature in parts of the record but we were more controlled and thoughtful in our approach, I think we had much more of an awareness of the song as a whole rather than simply thinking about our own instrument or part.

You guys have had to make big some adjustments with the changes in the band’s line up over the past year, how did this affect the writing process for the new album?
It wasn’t actually too traumatic (not for me anyway!) apart from his massively distracting eyebrows and his love of shellfish. But seriously, Henry settled in pretty quick and although he was a little pushed for time getting all the vocals ready, we made it.

I read recently that the new record’s name, artwork and concept refers to the 13th Bak’tun of the Mayan Calendar and the end of it’s current cycle as well as the beginning of the new. It obviously relates closely to start of a new cycle for the band itself. Was this concept for 13.0.0.0.0 from the beginning?

No it wasn’t something we considered form the outset actually. We were pretty late with coming up with artwork as all of our choices kept ending up with seagulls wearing waistcoats but Sargent House weren’t into this idea (mainly because the waistcoats were last season’s fashion).

I honestly cannot stop listening to the track “+3 Awesomeness Repels Water” Any personal favorite tracks from the new record? Or that you love to play live?

+3 Awesomeness Repels Water by This Town Needs Guns

It’s also one of my favourites I think – we’re in the middle of working out how to play it as three and we’ve got a few ‘interesting’ ideas on doing this. It’s going to be a lot of fun to play live and a bit different to what we’re used to (miming).

You guy’s have sold guitar tab books for your song’s in the past. Any plans to release one for the 13.0.0.0.0?

Yes we’re currently working on another one but it’s mainly Gentle Giant songs tabbed out so it will be in 12 volumes. Yes, there is a real one on the way too.

Were there ever any talks over the course of all the line-up changes about changing the band’s name or sound?

Nope we’d never want to change the name, wait a minute…The sound hasn’t changed all that much in our opinion and we&rlsquo;l still be playing a few old songs.

In a recent interview you have said that you wanted to move forward focusing on being a three-piece band and on the new material. What are some older songs that you feel are essential to remain in your live rotation?

We’ll still be playing a few that have gone down well in past gigs so a few tracks off Animals and the self titled album such as “Chinchilla”, “Baboon”, “26…”, “If I sit still..”, etc.

Chinchilla by This Town Needs Guns

What songs have been the the most difficult to play live as a trio rather than as a four-piece?

The songs with 4 people playing things at the same time. We’ve taken a
while over a few tracks such as ”+3…”, but the challenge has been fun. We’ve also developed new ways of playing them and hopefully this’ll add more variety to the live show.

This Town Needs Guns have been with the label Sargent House for a few years now. How has your experience with them been?

It’s been great! Totally sweet dudes with great haircuts who like to rock out to some good jams. They’ve been very helpful and supportive with the release of the new album and we enjoy being in their care.

What were some of your favorite albums of 2012?

Mermonte – Mermonte, Antibodies – Birthmark

Are there any guilty pleasure bands or songs that we would be surprised to find you listened to?

That William Shatner album – Shatner’s Bassoon

The early works of the Piano Dentist

Will I’m not

PJ and Declan

I saw an update today announcing a US and Canadian tour. Are there any City’s that you guys are particularly looking forward to?

We’re not sure which ones we’re going to yet but I’d have to say……Moscow.

Any chance we will get to see you in Salt Lake City?

Probably/possibly (maybe)

Unpossible (98% chance of rain)

Lastly, now that you are getting settled in with the new line-up and setting out to tour for the new record, are there any ideas on where you guys see the band a year down the road?

Hopefully doing the same thing we are now but a bit further down the road.

Zero Core Feature

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 12:34:53 -0500

TTNG in Zero Core click here to read full frame on page 27 of the Issu.

TTNG & BIRTHMARK Tour starts on January 31st

Fri, 01 Feb 2013 13:04:29 -0500

TTNG’S headline tour with Nate Kinsella’s solo project Birthmark joining on all shows starts in Paris on January 31st! Both bands are touring in support of their latest releases.

THIS TOWN NEEDS GUNS / BIRTHMARK TOUR - 2013
Jan 31, 2013 - Paris, France @ Les Combustibles
Feb 1, 2013 - Bielefeld, Germany @ AJZ
Feb 2, 2013 - Dortmund, Germany @ FZW
Feb 3, 2013 - Hamburg, Germany @ Astra Stube
Feb 5, 2013 - Denmark, Copenhangen @ Basement Show
Feb 6, 2013 - Stockholm, Sweden @ Kulturhuset Lava
Feb 7, 2013 - Oslo, Norway @ Kampen Bistro
Feb 8, 2013 - Kristiansand, Norway @ Pir 6
Feb 9, 2013 - Copenhagen, Denmark @ BETA
Feb 10, 2013 - Prague, Czech Republic @ Klub 007
Feb 11, 2013 - Giessen, Germany @ Muk Gießen
Feb 13, 2013 - Berlin, Germany @ Magnet also w/ Maps & Atlases
Feb 14, 2013 - Leipzig, Germany @ Werk II
Feb 15, 2013 - Aachen, Germany @ Musikbunker
Feb 16, 2013 - Enschede, Holland @ The Loch
Feb 17, 2013 - Leuven, Belgium @ Room 66

SEE ALL SHOW DETAILS AND UPDATES HERE

An open letter from Henry regarding the name change to TTNG

Wed, 23 Jan 2013 17:51:00 -0500

All of us at Sargent House love and support this statement and the reasons for why the band wanted to change their moniker 100%.

Statement made by Henry Tremain below

“Seems a few people are lacking our reasoning behind the name change and jumping to speculation. I’ve just popped our statement about the change up on the main page of our website

Hopefully this will give you a little more context behind the change.

I’d also like you to know that my personal want to move away from the full name is completely abstract from any current events or social pressures of political correctness. When the boys asked me if I would consider joining the band, the name made it very difficult for me. I eventually got perspective and realised that the opportunity to work with such amazing musicians was way more important than my dislike of a silly band name. It wasn’t until in the band that the gravity of the name became more obvious, and that it wasn’t just a silly band name. With stories of people being on the receiving end of abuse for wearing the band’s t-shirts, the importance of context on the name was clear - without the knowledge that it was the name of a band, the statement ‘this town needs guns’ is left to be taken literally. As we continue promoting the bands music, the name is going to find itself in more and more places without this qualifying context to excuse it.

I am an adamant pacifist and the idea of guns and indeed any form of violence turns my stomach. The idea of attaching myself to such a statement, that can so readily be taken out of context, and irony overlooked, has felt like a real compromise on my integrity.

Anyways, we are not violent people, we don’t make violent music, why should we have a violent name? I often wonder how many people have been put off listening to the band assuming that the music is really heavy.

So why not change to a completely new name all together? Because we’re still the same band. We still play old songs and want to continue doing so. Sure the band’s evolved since the last release, but TTNG has always been in a state of flux throughout the bands history. In fact, on the album ‘Animals’, for which the band is most known, Stu was the only original member. So that’s it, we’re still the same band, we’re just moving forwards. Changing the name all together would sever the link between the old material and the new and remove it from being seen as the progression that it is as a whole body of work.

Having just read this back I realise that it might seem to some that the name change has been my idea, I assure you that this is not the case. It is a decision that we have come to together with the help, love and support of our amazing record label Sargent House.

I’m going to pop back here to see if anyone has any questions and I’ll do my best to answer them.”

High-fives and goodtimes,

Hank

Extraneous Terrain: Interview with TTNG

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 15:24:17 -0500

Conversations: This Town Needs Guns

I went to a cocktail bar in Shoreditch to talk to the delightful members of TTNG prior to the launch show of their newest full-length, 13.0.0.0.0. Whilst professionally sipping over glasses of Coke, they had the following to say…

It’s great to see you guys back in London. Was there any reason in choosing to have the album launch at the Old Blue Last?

Henry Tremain: Well we decided we wanted to do a launch show pretty late in the day, and we got in contact with our friend Haruna who is a wonderful promoter. We asked her if she was up for putting a show on, and I think it was her suggestion to do the Old Blue. But personally, having been a Londoner, I really appreciate the Old Blue just for the fact that they have cheap and often free shows on, which in London is pretty rare.

Seeing as the new album comes out tomorrow, it makes sense to talk about that. I was wondering if you could outline when and how the new material started coming about?

Tim Collis: It’s been quite a long process in some ways. The ideas for some of the songs, and certain sections of songs came up to about three years ago. But we do have some stuff that was written more recently, like last year just before recording the album, and some of it during recording the album. We’d be experimenting and playing with stuff as we were in the studio.

Henry: That was the most fun really, most of the inbetween tracks on the album were quite often an idea Tim would have, that was no more than some chords or a riff, and we built it up in the studio together and that collaborative process with Ed Rose (Producer) was thoroughly enjoyable. I think that’s when he enjoyed the session the most as well, getting to be creative himself rather than simply managing the mechanical process of recording pre-written songs.

Having listened to it through a few times, do you think it’s fair to say that it’s perhaps more varied and eclectic than previous works?

Chris Collis: Yeah I think we tried to do that, because some of the criticism for Animals was that it all sounded like the same kind of song. So we wanted to make it an album that went on a… not a journey, that sounds really cheesy…

Henry: It took you on a musical trip to another dimension!

Chris: But actually did something, so we’d hope that people listened to it in the order that it’s in.

Tim: Yeah we released a flock of herons live in the studio.

Henry: Yes, it’s very difficult to pick up, but if your ears are trained enough you can just about hear the flapping!

Well I was going to ask, if you did anything radically different this time round?

Chris: With Animals we did the whole thing over about four weekends, where as with this we had a full block of three weeks. I also think we had a much better idea of what we were trying to achieve, and we understood what our sound was a lot better than we did when recording Animals.

Tim: I think with Animals we actually had very clear ideas because the songs were somehow simpler, in regards to instrumentation anyway. So we had songs that were written and rehearsed, ‘let’s just go record them like this’ kind of thing. So what was different this time round was going in and with some of the stuff, as Henry was saying, just having a riff or one idea that we developed while we were there. Henry’s done a lot of recording in different bands before that, so I don’t how he found it…

Henry: It was incredibly different; apart from anything else, it was a lot more serious than anything I’d done in the past. We were flying Ed Rose out from America and he’s one of my production heroes, so I had soiled my pants well and truly before going into the studio. Which was awkward… They are really cranking the tunes in here tonight!

Do you think that your music’s principally optimistic?

Tim: It depends who you are really, you can listen to a sad song with sad lyrics that is most definitely sad and yet find yourself feeling strangely uplifted by it. In this album there’s certainly some moodier bits of instrumentation, perhaps darker than the poppy-ness of Animals, but for me at least they’re not negative or linked to an upsetting experience.

Chris: People will always relate differently to the same song, which is kind of what we want I think.

Tim: Also, if a band has a sad song and it’s a song everyone can relate to, that experience in itself can be optimistic and uplifting.

Chris: We’ve had people write to us in the past and tell us that our music’s helped them through some really difficult times, and to know that is incredible.

Henry: It’s interesting because when you’re writing music you’re not really thinking about the function of it, you’re just interested in the artistic nature of it, so to hear afterwards how people have been influenced by it is wonderful.

Tim: I know I’ve felt quite pessimistic listening to chart music that is definitely supposed to be clearly uplifting party music.

Stu left in 2011, and you brought Henry in, and then Jamie left soon after then, both to fulfil other life commitments. Looking back over that, have you yourselves at points found it difficult to continually make the sacrifices you have to make?

Tim: Actually they were both physically removed from the band, bad guys. No not really, the sacrifices go with the territory really. If one person in a band doesn’t really want to do it anymore, it is going to effect the other people, but it shouldn’t necessarily stop them from carrying on. I think that’s how we felt when Jamie was leaving, it never felt ‘how are we going to do this anymore?’ it was just ‘okay, how are we going to carrying on doing this, because we want to do it’.

You guys have had quite a lot of success in far flung places like Australia and Asia. Do you think there’s a reason for that?

Henry: In the nineties they discovered this thing called the internets! Without the internet, no one would have really heard of us. Well there are always these really interesting small scenes where really obscure bands from different places get known, but only in small cliques. But with the internet, it’s kind of expanded those cliques.

But it seems that you guys have been particularly successful elsewhere, more than a lot of other British bands…

Chris: It might just be word of mouth, we’ve relied on that really heavily.

Henry: The main principle that we think about when it comes to musical promotion, is that it’s not important to the band, and what the band should do is focus on writing good music, so that the quality of the art will help it spread naturally. Hopefully the reason we’ve been so lucky as a band is because people have enjoyed the music, not because we’ve shoved it in their faces.

Plans for the rest of the year?

Henry: Sit back, relax and watch the money roll in! No, we’re off to do a little tour quite soon, our good friend Guillame’s booked us a tour round Germany and parts of Scandinavia as well. After that we hope to spend some time doing some writing, and then we go to America to do a tour with our label mates Tera Melos, who are incredible so we’re stoked about that… Then after that we’re breaking the band up yeah?

Tim: Yep, time to get some new guys in!

This Town Needs Guns also blog here.

COS: This Town Needs Guns alter their name and will go forward as simply TTNG

Tue, 22 Jan 2013 14:23:00 -0500

On the eve of their new album’s release, This Town Needs Guns have announced a name change — they’re cutting out all those pesky words and calling themselves simply TTNG. The album title, 13.0.0.0.0, is a reference to the rebirth signaled at the end of the Mayan calendar (we’re still here, aren’t we?!), and it’s their first album with a new three-man lineup. So in a way, it’s fitting that 2013 also sees the band rebranding themselves.

In a statement announcing the name change, the band said the following:

“Over the years, many of you have asked where the band name comes from. As a band originating in Oxford, UK, ‘This Town Needs Guns’ was simply a name chosen by a group of friends wanting to make music together. At the time, this name was not considerd particularly offensive and indeed was an ironic statement given the setting of such a historic and cultural city as Oxford.

Context plays a big part in the way a band name such as ‘This Town Needs Guns’ may be perceived. In the UK, guns are not present. Ordinarily, our police force do not even carry guns. Within this context, an idea such as a town needing guns seems too absurd to be taken seriously.

However, eight years on, things have changed. With our music now finding new cultures, the irony of the name is no longer implicit. Also, in light of the controversy over gun ownership in the US as well as tragic shootings there and elsewhere in the world, we want to distance ourselves from a band name which we are now uncomfortable with.

We hope this change of name doesn’t disappoint anyone. It is the music that is important, not the name. As Shakespeare’s Juliet said “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.’”

Honestly, anyone walking by a television screen or newsstand in the last month probably saw this coming. However, as the band’s label stresses, the name change won’t be altered for the album artwork, or listings on iTunes, Amazon, etc. “The band is altering its name to the shorter TTNG for all of their purposes moving forward, but that won’t affect their web site URL, Facebook page, retail items, etc.”

Below is the Japanese version of the new Album’s Art, the first item to put into play the revision to their name.

13.0.0.0.0 hit retailers on January 22nd, through Sargent House. Below, take a listen to the album cut “I”ll Take The Minute Snake”.

Shout 4 Music (UK) Album Review: TTNG 13.0.0.0.0

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 12:51:09 -0500

Though it’s been quite a while in coming, there’s no doubting that the new This Town Needs Guns record is worth the increased wait. The band could very easily have called it quits after the departure of Stuart Smith and Jamie Cooper in 2011, but they’re still here, albeit as a slimmed-down three-piece. There’s nothing slimmed-down about the sound of ‘13.0.0.0.0’, though - it’s as full-on as anything else the band have produced up til now, and as usual it tends to veer in rather unexpected directions, focusing on acoustic beauty with ‘2 Birds, 1 Stone and an Empty Stomach’ and ‘Nice Riff, Clichard’ (the latter of which throws some glitchy rhythms into the mix), and seeing the band let their hair down with the extended outro to ‘I’ll Take the Minute Snake’. Their technical mastery remains undiminished, even if their second album is, on the whole, less frenetic than 2008 debut ‘Animals’, and the band veer into pop-like territory more often than before (especially on the brilliantly-titled ‘+3 Awesomeness Repels Water’). We don’t want to resort to cliché and call this a ‘maturation’ of the TTNG sound, but the more accessible approach taken on the album works wonders, and should bring them a whole ton of new admirers.

Oxford Music Album Review: This Town Needs Guns

Fri, 18 Jan 2013 13:40:41 -0500

Call me a conspiracist, but I reckon it’s more than aesthetics behind that album title. 13.0.0.0.0. Day 1 in the renewed Mayan calendar (remember, the one that was supposed to spell the end of the world?). This Town Needs Guns; a band who have lost 5 members, 3 of them founders, in only 7 years, and yet have battled out to the other side triumphantly waving a beaut new album replete with beaut mayan-inspired artwork. This is a celebration album, a celebration of renewal, fresh starts, blank slates.

Yes, a possible crock of shit, and unlike JFK, TTNG are close on hand to raise the red flag. But whether or not they’re calling attention to it, this is a new band. Gone are the earnest wails and mad frantic drums; in their place are falsetto touches and jazz-tainted restraint. There are no ‘heavy bits’ anymore, just ‘louder bits’. To be honest the new sound has been very much a work in progress, and will seem a very logical progression to anyone who was a fan of the beautiful Big Scary Monsters-released Animals. If that album was building the ship, with this one, they’ve fully set sail, and if only three of em made it to the voyage, then so much the better – this is a tighter, better calibrated TTNG, a band with far less audible waste than before; In short, This Town Needs Guns have grown up.

It really is a stunning LP, executed by stunning musicians. ‘+3 Awesomeness Repels Water’ is a particularly choice cut, coming in near the end of the track and acting somewhat as a summing up of the lessons learnt throughout, a veritable crash course in harmony. The real comfort though is listening to the album as a whole – the flow is exceptional, oscillating carefully between straight polyrythmic drivers and softer drifters. It’s a feat rarely accomplished these days, and one that deserves maximum kudos.

When all’s said and done, This Town Needs Guns are an example of exactly the kind of band we need – a band with longevity and a vision, and with the will to carry that vision through. Here’s to seeing them explode, finally.

Released on 21st January 2012 by Sargent House

Mind Equals Blown: Gives This Town Needs Guns 13.0.0.0.0 a 9.0 Review

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 15:41:00 -0500

The sophomore LP can present any number of obstacles for even the most surefooted band. Throw in member changes and the equation gets even a bit more fuzzy. But when you’re talking about This Town Needs Guns, the expectations even considering all of that are still present, if not also a tad tremendous. Nevertheless, the U.K. quartet turned power trio has returned with LP #2 in the form of 13.0.0.0.0, a slightly less poppy but arguably more adventurous offering than their previous album Animals. And for what they’ve been through in the years since that release, it’s a more than pleasant surprise that this record not only lives up to such heightened expectations, but completely obliterates them in the process.

Right off the bat, “Cat Fantastic” enforces a high level of musicianship from all three members that is carried quite effortlessly through the rest of the 12 tracks on the disc. Whether it’s ethereal tapping (“Havoc in the Forum”), free-flowing meters of strange proportions (“Triptych”) or the gorgeous chemistry of all involved (“Left Aligned”), it is simply astonishing at times what This Town Needs Guns can do. The tempos here fall a bit on the less pushing side, as the slower, acoustic lushness of “2 Birds, 1 Stone and an Empty Stomach” or the mid-tempo pulsing of “+3 Awesomeness Repels Water” feel just as good to the ears as earlier TTNG cuts that invoked more dancing than an actual vibe.

As much as there is to say about the guitars though – they are arguably the most noticeable of the instruments in terms of such musicianship – the rhythm section ought not to be overlooked. “+3 Awesomeness Repels Water” in particular is a drumming clinic in itself at times, while the anchoring of such wavering guitar leads in “Left Aligned” can only be attributed to a strong presence of bass and off-kilter drumming to give it some kind of resemblance of a skeleton at times.

That isn’t to say this entire album is one giant jam-off. It would be naive to say such a thing, as the melodies, both vocal and instrumental, have a simply endearing quality in the overall texture and vibe of 13.0.0.0.0. Vocalist and bassist Henry Tremain’s often mid-range croon meshes smoothly with the strums and taps of songs like “Cat Fantastic” while his upper notes (“2 Birds, 1 Stone and an Empty Stomach”) aren’t quite as powerful but make up for it in restrained beauty. The interlude tracks make for an interesting addition to the album’s flow as well. I wouldn’t go as far as to suggest an overlying arc to things, save for the ending track being named “13.0.0.0.1,” but such placeholders give off a hint of the experimental without attempting to pin vocals on passages founded in electronics, bristled distortion or plucked acoustic guitars. They probably aren’t necessary to the progression of the album, but in certain cases (“Pygmy Polygamy”) they give a chance to settle things down in what can sometimes be an aurally overwhelming experience for the listener.

In all honesty, Animals was a strong first outing as far as a full-length is concerned. And for how they’ve progressed up to and past that album, 13.0.0.0.0 takes a rather bold step towards bridging technicality and tenaciously catchy tunes. As a whole, this record is arguably the best thing they’ve done to date, putting This Town Needs Guns’ second LP easily into the upper echelon of releases for 2013.

By Jason Gardner

The Aquarian Album Review: This Town Needs Guns 13.0.0.0.0

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 15:30:03 -0500

Oxford, UK native trio This Town Needs Guns have named their latest work 13.0.0.0.0. The indie rock compilation features an assortment of uniquely titled tracks, all with an air of melodic serenity battling frantic instruments. Beginning with “Cat Fantastic,” the clear notes of vocalist Henry Tremain ring out over the lighthearted, technical style of playing that pours out of these musicians. Everything about their sound is understated, including their whimsical lyrics that in “Cat Fantastic” repeat, “You’ll be happy when you’re willing to share.” The vocals are bordering on being poppy at moments, while the instrumental work is unexpected and pioneers new territory.

On “Havoc In The Forum,” the group accentuate complicated time signatures with drums that occur without rhyme or reason, but somehow marry the combating musical forces. Even with an uncommon structure, the song has a memorable quality to it, as does the following cut, “Left Aligned.” Here the guitar playing takes a progressive turn, as the pace slows and the bass grows in volume. This song rides along with complex chord progressions as its backbone. An instrumental number takes the disc in a moody, gloomier direction, blending the individual pieces together. The unorthodox manner in which This Town Needs Guns arrange their music does not sway the listener from continuing on in the journey that 13.0.0.0.0 becomes.

“I’ll Take The Minute Snake” is super harmonic at first with its riffs and then soon following with a chorus that mimics the lead line beautifully. Once again, the song heads in a progressive and erratic direction. The fingerprint of This Town Needs Guns is a one-of-a-kind distinction from any other band within the confines of contemporary indie rock. Their technical, methodic performing allows their music to shine, unparalleled on 13.0.0.0.0.

In A Word: Profound

—by Alessandra Donnelly, January 7, 2013

The Rock Club Interview with Tim Collis of This Town Needs Guns

Wed, 16 Jan 2013 15:23:00 -0500

Where did your band name come from and any regrets with that name in today’s climate?

Our previous singer Stu actually started the band when he was at uni and chose this name from a letter his friend once sent him. His friend had signed off the letter ‘This Town Needs Guns’ in reference to a bunch of scally-wags who had thrown a brick through a bus window at him.

Yes, we’re actually kind of regretful of the name at times but we hope that people realise it is just a band name and it doesn’t convey any of our views on guns or any other weapons for that matter. We’d hope people would take the time to listen to the music before basing their view of us just on a name.

How did you come to be in a band together and with what ambitions?

The band originally started like most bands - a bunch of friends just wanting to spend their time in a positive and fun way. We recently had a bit of a line-up change in that our singer left amicably to start a family and our bass player left to pursue a career in graphic design. Since Henry has joined us (undertaking both of these duties and more) we’ve still had the same outlook and just like at the beginning of the band, we’ve had no particular ambitions besides enjoying what we’re doing and taking what opportunities come our way.

How would you describe your sound for people yet to hear your music?

It’s always difficult to pigeon-hole your own sound but other people have described it as indie/math-rock. I thing people get too hung up on having to label music under a particular genre; it’s much easier to just check out the music.

Oxford is your home town. How is the music scene there and does your music draw any inspiration from your home City?

Actually none of us are from Oxford or live there now but the band did start up there. There was a pretty good music scene going back, with bands like Youthmovies, Jonquil and Hreda who we were lucky enough to play with in the past. It was a cool place to live though and we made some good friends there.

You have a new album (13.0.0.0.0) due out next week, what can we expect from that and are there any recording or major changes to the sound of your debut ‘Animals’ from 2009?

I think we’ve evolved a lot as a band and also with the recent line-up change I would say to expect something a little different. We were lucky enough to work with producer Ed Rose on this record and his involvement helped us become a little more experimental and try a few things out we’d not had the chance to before. In some ways the new record has a fuller sound in places; there’s new instruments and sounds featuring in places that haven’t before but at the same time we’ve also been into the idea of stepping back and not over-complicating sections, instead using space and simplicity more which is something we never really approached properly in the past.

I think we’re now much more aware of the ‘song’ as a whole and the process into making a song into it’s final format, rather than just having a few riffs written and trying to ‘glue’ them together. We’ve also tried to accomplish cohesion within the album as we’d like people to listen to it and enjoy it as a whole, as well as separate tracks.

Due to time and money constraints, ‘Animals’ was purely a bunch of songs that we’d written around the same time. We were still really proud of it and the work we put into it but I think 13.0.0.0.0 feels like we’ve had the opportunity to fulfil our potential a bit more even though it may be considered by some as if we’re heading in a different direction.

What is your advice to new bands out there - record label or do it yourself when it comes to getting your music heard and how did you find yourself on Sargent House Records?

100% you need to concentrate on your music, everything else can come later. You need people to support you and your music before anything else. Also you won’t find (at least what we’d consider) a great label unless they believe in the music your making either. Don’t concern yourself with getting your music out there, if the music has enough quality it will spread itself naturally through word of mouth. This will also be the purest and most genuine form of music promotion in our opinions.

We were very lucky to be approached by Cathy at Sargent House but I also like to think that we had something to offer them too. We worked hard at the band, getting out and about in the UK fairly early on started to establish a bit of a following. When Cathy approached us and was enthusiastic about what we were doing, we knew it’d be a good relationship and the guys at Sargent House have been doing a wonderful job for us ever since.

You use bandcamp, how do you find the format and what are the main benefits to you as a band?

The best thing about band camp is its simplicity; it’s an easy format for the listener to actually hear your music. For potential new fans this is what a band need; people don’t need to know anything else about the band at this stage apart from what their music actually sounds like.

When on tour who controls the Radio/CD player in the van and what were the most popular albums you listened to on the road last time out?

This is a democracy so we take it turns in a very sensible manner….or we put the a/c heat on full and the first one to wind down a window is out and so on until the last person is left. They get to choose….or everyone is unconscious and we just have some quiet time.

If you could tour with any band, which band or artist do you think you could learn the most from on tour?

Gentle Giant, check them out on you tube - there’s a lot to learn there especially dress sense and performance grimacing.

When on stage is it Jack Daniels, Beer or Water?

Yes we drink Jack Daniels’ beer-water always.

Full Album Stream of This Town Needs Guns' 13.0.0.0.0

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 13:45:00 -0500

A week before its release on January 22, 2013. Sargent House is hosting the full album stream of This Town Needs Guns 13.0.0.0.0. - Check it out

VINYL & CDS can be ordered in the USA HERE or if in EU you can order HERE

See This Town Needs Guns on TOUR - ALL DATES HERE