Keane fans feared the band would break up three years ago. They released a greatest hits album, The Best of Keane, and announced an indefinite hiatus.
This combination often leads to an eventual disbandment despite the insistence of all concerned that they are simply taking some time out to do other things as individuals.
Multi-instrumentalist Jesse Quin has always performed with other bands and continues to do so. Keyboardist/songwriter Tim Rice-Oxley and drummer Richard Hughes have been enjoying time with their families. Only singer/guitarist Tom Chaplin has worked on solo material. The songs were brought together on his debut album, The Wave, which hit number three on the UK chart.
“I’m really pleased with the response to my album,” smiled 37-year-old Tom. “I think perhaps our fans were more acceptable of my doing a solo album after we released a new Keane song in September.
“We’re not yet fully reuniting but we got together early this year to record Tear Up This Town as a one-off single for the soundtrack of JA Bayona’s new fantasy film, A Monster Calls. We worked with him on our video for Disconnected. We became friends and he asked us to create a song for the film.”
As happy as Keane were to record Tear Up This Town, the same cannot be said for Tom’s creation of The Wave. The album was eventually conceived as a therapy to save him from the lowest period of his life.
“I was a mess. I had a wonderful wife (Natalie) and daughter (Freya) and I came so close to losing everything. My problems, like many others in the music business, stemmed from drugs and alcohol. I don’t know how anybody put up with me. It just shows how strong the bonds of love and friendship can be.
“I first had a substance abuse meltdown ten years ago. I spent about six weeks having rehabilitation treatment at The Priory clinic in London and received further treatment on an outpatient basis.
“I told people I preferred playing golf or cricket than doing drugs or going on alcohol binges and this was true to a large extent. But I never got completely clean and my initial attempts to write songs for my album brought back many of the anxieties which had originally got me hooked on drugs.
“My first songs were okay but not really good enough for an album. I felt inadequate, but this was only part of the problem. Trying to write songs on a deep emotional level took me back to the unresolved problems from when I was young and I began binging again.
“The start of 2015 was my worst time. I went on an almighty bender and disappeared for days. Then, I was alone at a friend’s house and thought I was having a heart attack. I thought I was driving Nat away from me and I would die on my own. That terrible low point was when I realised things had to change.
“I sat at home with Nat and a guy from a local rehab centre. I just started crying. I desperately wanted to get well but didn’t think I could. The rehab guy didn’t suggest I do anything radical. He just said I should work in my home studio for an hour or so each day and see how things went. It was taking things one step at a time.
“This was when I really started writing the songs on my album. It was like a catharsis. The same process which had pushed me over the edge into bad substance abuse was now beginning to heal me. Many of the songs arose from what I’d been through and they were good.”
The tracks on Tom’s album reflect what he refers to as the before, during and after periods of his addictions.
“This wasn’t done deliberately. I just realised there was a definite pattern of dark to light in the songs.”
Perhaps the most poignant track is Worthless Words. It encompasses the memories and emotions of that time at his friend’s house when Tom thought he was dying.
“I think I had to go through that experience to realise I had to get my life back together. I can’t put into words how happy I am now. I love my wife and daughter so much. I also love spending time with my parents. I kept them at arm’s length during the worst times of my addictions.
“I feel my album sends a message of hope to anyone who is in similar circumstances to what I went through. You might be in a horrible place. Your life might be a mess. But don’t be afraid to cry and let out the emotions. That first step is so difficult but help is available if you ask for it. There is a way out.”


IN BRIEF
Itasca

Fans will hopefully enjoy the new sound from Los Angeles-based singer, guitarist and songwriter Kayla Cohen.
Performing under the stage name of Itasca, her musical output has always been of an acoustic nature. But her latest album, Open to Chance, is the first on which Kayla is backed by a full band.
“I felt it was a natural progression for my music. The new album is my fifth release. I’ve previously been able to play my songs in people’s houses exactly as they could be heard on record.
“I obviously can’t do that with the new songs which, in a way, is a pity because I really enjoy the intimacy of doing house shows. But my songs had to change if I was ever going to become a full-time musician.”
Kayla currently works freelance for a music company. She does graphic designs, layouts, proofreading and copy-editing. The critical acclaim for Open to Chance may help to render this work a thing of her past. See what you think by checking out a full posting of each album track at www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLGLGDT-9ZI4JEGzSGL3V2pYy-VlChgTZI
Some of her earlier work can be heard at (no www.) soundcloud.com/itasca and (no www.) itasca.bandcamp.com

Chain Wallet

Norwegian trio Chain Wallet have been described as the promising new voice of Scandinavian indie rock.
Their track, Stuck in the Fall, attracted critical acclaim two years ago. But only now have the Bergen-based band finally released their self-titled debut album. It has been showered with the kind of praise that suggests big things are in store for Frode Bakken, Christian Aanesen and Stian Iverson.
The album is not a typical disconnected collection of songs. The ten tracks chronicle the life of one fictional character.
“It’s about a troubled person’s self-indulgent pity, his gradual loss of touch with reality and his numerous insisting attempts on returning to normal life,” Christian explained. “We wanted to capture a feeling of acute distress, fragmented memories and unfulfilled ambitions.”
Videos for Stuck in the Fall, Muted Colours and Faded Fight are posted on YouTube. A few more songs can be heard at (no www.) soundcloud.com/chainwallet and www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLiGtgGsV9rNkwpq0UFTuwqeYl5HLd4Akp

Queen

Queen have just released a new live album, Queen On Air - The BBC Sessions.
The album compiles all six of the band’s live sessions recorded for BBC Radio 1 between 1973 and 86. These include their debut performance on John Peel’s show which was made before Queen had released any recordings or discovered what became their classic guitar and piano sound.
“We didn’t have a piano in our stage performances at that time,” explained guitarist Brian May. “But Freddie (Mercury) was able to use the piano available at the BBC studio. He was a virtually self-taught pianist and making great strides in those days. The John Peel session was the first time you could hear Freddie working at his full capacity as a singer and pianist.”
A lyric video for My Fairy King, a track taken from the Peel session, is posted at www.youtube.com/watch?v=sEIfjRpM1jI

Lotto Savage

Lotto Savage has been rapping for less than a year. He had never dropped a rhyme before guesting on Dirty K, a track from 21 Savage’s second mixtape, Slaughter King. But the industry response to his performance saw Lotto sign with Bases Loaded and then with the major label, Epic Records.
His debut mixtape, Don Slaughter, drew rave reviews. It can be heard and downloaded for free at www.datpiff.com/Lotto-Savage-Don-Slaughter-mixtape.782487.html
This has now been followed by his new mixtape, Lotto Kruger. It is also available to hear and download free of charge at www.datpiff.com/Lotto-Savage-Lotto-Kruger-mixtape.808403.html