Here's the deal (#1)

So, a few months back we posted tracks from our new album 'Advantage' on Noisehead and got around 300 plays (for each track!) within a week or so. This is probably the biggest spike we've seen since joining the site. We went and re-uploaded mastered versions when they came back from SoundLAB (so they'd be the same quality all around).

Here's the deal: If you can help us reach 300 plays or over (on each track) by the end of June we'll giveaway a free covers track in July.

Deal?

We've got a head start today because Noisehead.com has made us featured artist for the day! We're right on the homepage!

Click here to visit the Velvet Ants on Noisehead...

Click here to just visit Noisehead

We'd like send our thanks to Todd at Noisehead for making this possible.

Let's go!

One hell of a weekend.

Congratulations to Roscoe and Jessica, they tied the knot and had a big old shindig this past weekend. The weather couldn't have been better and the air was full of bubbles. Later in the night we ran through some old songs in the pavilion. There was only 2 guitars laying around so we constructed a drum set out of tubs, used a couple of snapped branches for sticks and mic'd everything else. As the night went on, the DJ (who turned out to be an avid Doors fan) sang and Ian went to the drums. We played 'Love Me Two Times' & 'Roadhouse Blue' before going into a jam for the next 10 minutes. Good times, hope to have more of those. Maybe we'll record it next time. As for the covers album, our schedules (which are now almost completely opposite) haven't allowed much time for completion but most of what's left is done. I think (with fingers crossed) we'll have something finished by the end of the summer. Shows are being booked though so maybe things aren't so bad. Either way, here's to Jess & Roscoe and hope to see you soon. Next show is June 29th @ Axum Lounge in DC to RSVP visit http://facebook.com/events/319636841449889/

"One Stranger" Blog from 12-20-06

Interesting snippets from the past have recently turned up including this blog from December 2006 just before releasing Lunatic Frame:

"one stranger (title)

Before “LF” is released I want everybody to know that these new Velvet Ants recordings are in no way intended to be polished studio demos. We started with one thing in mind: to create a prototype for new song formats and a generally fresh sound, for us at least. 10 songs have narrowed down a bank of around 19 tracks that we were originally planning on. I don’t think this will hurt the idea of “LF” in any way. These songs are some of the greatest I’ve worked on, and I don’t even feel like it’s been a whole lot of work The instruments and song structures were laid down without much of a hassle at all. Even amidst the constraints of not having a great amount of time to work on anything, things have gone smoothly. Now it’s a matter of a week or two until a final mix. I say ‘final’ but any dedicated artist can relate to a piece that is never finished. This is why I wrote this. It may not be everyone’s experience but I could literally spend a lifetime honing in on all these little things that could improve the song, eventually ruining it. Taking away, replacing, overdubbing and so on. I’m so sick of hearing records that have been polished to a point where no real performance is evident. There’s a lot of slick sounding bands out there who lose a lot by releasing these over-glossed songs. Lacquered and buffed like some false hope in being the next great band or something. “LF” will be done soon, and out for scrutinizing, so it’s a little nerve racking. Like I said these sessions could last forever, but that wouldn’t produce anything but a ton of headaches. I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone so I’ll leave it at that, I just hope at least one stranger enjoys it. -Ian"

I guess you could say the same goes for Advantage.

Off to work on some covers!

Velvet Covers

Hello everyone! We're still alive and kickin'. Just wanted to give an update on what's going on. Weeee are in the midst of recording some covers and hopefully finishing some soon as well. They should all be finished by late July/early August. We plan to book some shows throughout the summer & we'll definitely post those dates and locations as soon as that happens. There is also a fan mail set up now for anyone that wants to keep up on show dates, when new material is released, or to tell us whatever is on your mind! Just send an e-mail to VelvetAntFans@live.com and we'll add you to the list. Don't forget we also have t-shirts and CD's for sale! -RT

"Out of all the things I have lost, I miss my mind the most." - Mark Twain

CHIT!

Workin on some Cars tunes

Going Nowhere

So much for all the stress! We've fixed the issues with the recording interface!!! And also figured out how to manage the files in better ways. (Was getting a bit crowded on the old hard drive with all the projects coming and going). Weren't sure whether we'd be able to finish anything at this point so this is all a bit of a relief. We've got a ton of stuff to work on (covers/b-sides...). I'll let the others update as we progress, but funny enough... everything that was holding us back is now back to working in our favor.

I'm afraid we'll be holed up for a while getting these takes laid out for their release but we'll try to keep you posted as we go.

-IAN

Malformations

Just wanted to write a quick line to let everyone know we're still here. In a bit of a different structure than before but here none the less. We've gone through a few changes lately and have been toggling through options like there's no tomorrow. Just a matter of finding out what will work for now and how we can sound our best while addressing the unfinished material we have. There are some b-sides and covers we're going to be working on as well as figuring out who or what might be playing bass. Auditions went well, but were not sure that to be the best direction at this place and time. We sort of stormed back into things, and it was fun... but we need to reconfigure and ready ourselves for the next round of performances and do it in a way that we're all satisfied with. Who knows what will come of the next sessions, or rehearsals but as long as we're progressing it's worth it. So for now, we center ourselves and possibly emerge on the other end with an even better version of ourselves. After all, Velvet Ants never had a predetermined 'anything' to begin with.

Here are some photos a friend took at the last show: