Part One
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRE-wmwCH88
Part Two
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WKmnuVwTJxY
Blog posts
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Dec 07, 03:41 AMClub Delicacy Membership Exclusives
The following email containing exciting news was just sent out to all members of Club Delicacy, The official Darren Hayes Music Fan Club.
Not a member? You can purchase a subscription here:http://www.darrenhayes.com/dh/..index.php?option=com_phpshop&..page=shop.browse&category_id=..b906ead63f1ff3a680f600fda28ec9..a7&Itemid=230
Dear Delicacies
We're sending out a membership gift pack to all Delicacy members to say thank you for being a part of Darren Hayes' online community.
This membership pack will include the following goodies :
*Delicacy Volume 1 : An exclusive Members Only Audio CD featuring 6 rare live recordings
*A Members Only embroidered Patch never to be made available to anyone else but YOU.
*A previously unseen 5" x 7" photograph of Darren on archive quality photographic paper featuring a certified cheeky grin.
Why?
Because we truly appreciate your support and think you deserve it.
The member's gifts will change each year and it is our hope that they'll become collector's items you'll associate with being a part of our online family. To make sure you receive your gift in the mail, please take a moment to update our database with your most current mailing address. Make sure you are logged in and visit this page:http://www.darrenhayes.com/..dh/index.php?option=com_..content&task=view&id=1361&..Itemid=1361
There are many planned improvements to the fan club planned for 2010 including a complete overhaul of the website and its contents. You can expect an online community and archival database that we believe will be the most comprehensive on the net. You can look forward to never before seen images and previously rare or unheard streamable music, never before seen original handwritten lyrics and a photographic archive of some of Darren's most iconic stage outfits from his career.
To keep you busy whilst our little elves are behind the scenes building the new features we hope you enjoy your goodies!
Happy Holidays.
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Some answers to frequently asked questions.
When will I receive my membership pack?
Packs will be shipping from December 21. You should expect a wait time of up to 6 weeks due to increased levels of mail around the world during the holiday season.
Who qualifies for this gift?
Anyone who is or will be a paid member of Delicacy as of December 21 2009.
What if I am not a member but join after December 21 2010?
You will qualify for the 2010 member's gift which will be an entirely different pack and will ship in December 2010.
Can I buy a membership pack if I'm not a member?
No. We are only producing enough quantities to supply members and these items will never be made for sale to the general public -
Oct 16, 09:05 AMHomophobia Alive And Well In The Daily MailI'm disturbed greatly by the thinly veiled homophobic tone of this piece. It is as ignorant to suggest that all civil partnerships are open relationship as it would be to suggest all heterosexual couples are monogamous. A Civil Partnership is the legal recognition of two consenting adults and affords the same civil rights as a 'traditional' marriage. It has nothing to do with what goes on in the bedroom.Read the article in question here and please register and voice your concern if you agree the article uses hate language and is homphobic.You can email complaints@pcc.or.uk or visit www.pcc.org.ukThe article breaches 1, 3, 5 and 12 of the code of practices. -
Aug 17, 03:29 PMMaking The Album Vol 2.
Originally written on 05 June 2009 for member's of 'Delicacy' Darren's official fan club at www.darrenhayes.com
As I type this, it’s Thursday night and I’ve just had what I call ‘Happy Love Day’ which is my way of describing a ‘date day’ with my lovely. It was much needed because I’ve had 2 weeks straight of working hard on music and my brain is mush. Nothing like some McLovin’ to make things better. We love what we do and work so hard that it’s easy to take time together for granted. So I sort of insist on some one on one time out of the house just to make us feel like a couple.
Right – so it’s been a lot of hard work.
To go back to a couple of weeks ago, I did a charity performance for the songwriter Rick Nowels at Home House in London. It was for an organization, which raises money to allow children from economically, challenged backgrounds to have access to a basketball team with equipment, coaches and uniforms. I did it for Rick simply because he asked and it was a delightful night, the highlight being seeing Belinda Carlisle perform her laundry lists of hits. Loved it. But it left me rather exhausted.
What many people probably don’t realize about me is that I have a love hate relationship with singing. I love it for all the obvious reasons, but I’m always terribly nervous before I sing and then physically exhausted afterwards. Combine that with the fact that I don’t have the most robust voice – in spite of taking care of it. So I’m very susceptible to throat infections and general fatigue. Which means my life is often in slavery to singing – not drinking alcohol (or rarely) – not drinking caffeine and mostly not using my voice unnecessarily (not going out to loud restaurants or bars, even not laughing loudly or screaming with joy).
Then there’s the constant water need. Over 2 litres a day. Preferably 3 or 4! So it is an ordeal to say the least lol.
And I’m always knackered after a gig, as I was the day after this one and the day that Robert Conley arrived from Australia to work with me on writing and recording songs for my album. But I guess it put me in a cool headspace.
At first we were both quite nervous. We hadn’t written a thing together since writing ‘How to Build a Time Machine’ really. And in that time Robert had seriously developed as a major songwriter in Australia being signed to Sony/ATV publishing and co writing the most played song on Australian radio of this year (Axle Whitehead’s ‘I don’t do surprises’). He’d become more accomplished and the dynamic has definitely changed. But for the better I would say.
He’s got a great sense of what is and what is not appropriate at radio which although is never my consideration, it’s nice to hear someone’s take on whether or not something is necessary or not. And I like that aspect to the songwriting at the moment. It balances out my desire to just go off on a zillion tangents. But the tangents are still there. I can’t help it!
The first song we worked on was a track I’ll call ‘N’. It is a turbulent song about, well I won’t tell you what yet. But I will say the entire album is about relationships and it’s very much first person and not metaphorical in the way my last album was. So that song was written and recorded (in sort of 60% quality) in 2 days.
The next song we started to work on I’ll call ‘S’ and we had a basic production and melody sorted out and then something bizarre happened. Our session was harpooned by an urgent request by a publisher and Syco, the Simon Cowell label, for me to attend a song writing camp to write tracks for the big 3 records they have coming out this year. As I’ve probably explained, I’ve been doing work for this label a bit this year – and it’s a fun opportunity and one that doesn’t come along often so I had to do it. But it was strange ripping myself out of ‘album’ mode and back into someone else’s. But I’m sort of used to that on this record and in fact it’s what I’ve liked about it because I’m slowing building the house and I get to go off and garner new perspectives and bring back bits and pieces I like to the table.
Anyhoo – there were some amazing writers there. Each day I worked for at least 16 hours and it was truly exhausting. By the 3rd day I was ruined and came back to work with Rob and could hardly sing.
So for the next few days I was writing my melodies by whistling instead of singing, and then eventually playing them note-by-note on the piano which I rarely do.
But once again, really nice happy accident because the guitar sessions that Steve Young did, only really had simple melodies to bounce off and it made for a really lean and tight use of arrangement. You could clearly hear what did and what did not support the melody.
Anyway to regress, the song ‘S’ is the song about messing things up in a major way. It is dramatic and sweeping and I can imagine the album opening with it. I’ll never over explain these songs as I always want your own interpretations – but there are many layers to these songs. Sometimes I think people might listen and think ‘oh my god Darren’s relationship is breaking down’. Because many of the songs discuss friction and yearning and loss. But that’s obviously not the case at all. I’m using the songs to vent about everyone and everything but using love songs as the medium. I think songs about relationships and love are what define me – and the language through which most of my therapy is done. So on this record, I’d day that’s what I mean about ‘return to form’ or ‘pop’. It’s about universal themes.
On to the subject of ‘Pop with a capital P’ I want to stop saying that about this record because you might be expecting me to make a sugary pop record and it couldn’t be further from that. It’s more ‘Bat For Lashes’ than it is ‘Lady Ga Ga’. It’s pop in terms of melody and accessibility but it’s definitely deep and layered and interesting.
Right, on to the 3rd song. It’s a song I started writing with Steve Young when he played me a chord progression he’d written. I had tears in my eyes when I first heard it over 6 months ago and I’ve been promising him ever since that I’d write a song to it. Robert and I took Steve’s chords and turned them into verses, then he and I wrote a chorus progression and added that to the song. The result is probably the album title track (but honestly you never know – with at least a year away from release and more songwriting planned I have no idea what will and wont’ make the final cut). But I can say it’s exactly how I hoped it would be – and is full of e-bow guitar. Just gorgeous.
Right now I’m taking a week off from everything and next week am doing some writing for more ‘other people’. I won’t be working on my album again until Shave gets here in July. So I’ll update more about the progress when he touches down.
There are 11 finished songs in the can now – with another 3 planned to be finished in July and then more writing planned after. The goal is still 20 songs so choose a definitive album from. Wish me luck!
xxD -
Jul 28, 04:06 PMMaking Of The Album Vol1.
Originally written on 28 May 2009 for member's of 'Delicacy' Darren's official fan club at www.darrenhayes.com
I guess I have started working on my album. If you don't want to know any of the details then avoid blogs titled 'making of the album' like this one. And read no further.
It's weird playing cloak and dagger about the details because unlike the last record, where I didn't know I was starting it until suddenly I had a bunch of songs and I set a definite time line and location. This one has been worked on in short sharp bursts at the moment. My plan is that by August I will have a short list of songs that I intend to go on the record - and then I'll make a decision about what extra works needs to be done recording and writing wise, and eventually set a date for mixing.
August deadline is more for business reasons than release ones. There are certain partners that I need to get on board to make sure this record sees the light of day - and I want to be able to present a very good demo version of the album by that stage. I would probably mix it either late this year or earlier next year but I don't imagine it would be released any time sooner than mid or late 2010. But you said you wanted to be in on the process so here it is!
There are about 7 songs that already sit on my ipod in a playlist that I call 'new album'. I don't know if they'll all end up on there but a good deal of them will. A couple of them came from meeting with other songwriters and working on songs for other artists. It's been a wonderful accident really because the subconscious mind thought I was not making my own album so I could 'do what I wanted to do' which ironically meant that I was in fact doing exactly what I wanted to do without the pressure of thinking that I had to deliver for me. As a result, whether it's because I put my own personal stamp on them too much or they just didn't fit the brief, many of the songs remained in my custody. There is one and potentially two songs that are being recorded by quite a big pop group - but it's never official until it happens so I'll let you know if it does. Anyway, back to my story - I started to realize that I was in fact writing songs for my new album, albeit with some new collaborators. Looking back (some of you can probably remember more than I can) I think most of my albums begin without me consciously saying 'I am now officially making an album'. I usually need some kind of diversion to get myself out of 'myself' to allow a new process to kick in. With 'Tension..' that was a 'side project' with Robert Conley. With 'Delicate..' it was writing songs for the Savage Garden 'Best of' and experimenting to find a new sound. In all of those examples, I most certainly was not making an album until I looked back and realized I had a lot of the songs.
Such has been the process this time. And in terms of the pop direction, this has been a really happy accident. I was first approached by a major pop label to write songs for their artists. They hooked me up with various people I'd never met before and my eyes were widened. The preconceptions I had about 'pop' were tumbling down like a house of cards because I was loving the songs and learning so much in the process of working with people who do it day in and day out. For me, as an artist, it's easy to just come up with material when I need it. But for some of these guys it's a high stakes profession where they are expected to come up with the goods. So their expertise and my fluidity has been a wonderful match. So there's a few names I've worked with that I'll mention later when it becomes more confirmed, but one is from Sweden, one is English but has had lots of U.S hits, one is American and an old friend and major hit maker. Of my old friends obviously one is Justin Shave and the other is Robert Conley. Who I am working with in the studio as we speak.
Robert is here for 2 weeks and then I am doing more work with other writers for a bit before Justin Shave comes over for a few weeks to do some stuff. After Justin I might end up going back to Sweden for a bit and possibly working with some more people. The goal is to have more material than I could possibly want.
My aim for this record is for it to be the best of what I do. I feel like an olympic athlete and I'm gearing up for the best competition of my life. I have something to prove to myself as well as all of you. I want to take some of the artistry and the emotion that I've been able to develop over the last two albums but pair that up with the most lean and melodically strong and unforgettable songs you've ever heard on the radio. So in some ways it follows that this record might be considered a 'return to form' (I hate that phrase) or a more accessible record. But I like to think of it as me reclaiming something that is mine. Sneaking my quirks and theatrics into the mainstream via the undeniable medium of melody. If that is what makes a good pop record (and when I say a good pop record I mean something like Madonna's 'Like a Prayer' album or The Killers 'Hot Fuss' - just wall to wall great songs) then that is what I'm trying to make. A classic album. Not the sound of those albums, but the strength if you know what I mean.
There's a pretty strong theme running through a lot of it - obviously it's not a concept album but honestly, aren't all albums (or shouldn't they) have some kind of unifying idea? This one stems from a lot of imagery I've collected over the past year, poems and lyrics I've been hiding away and observations, hopes and fears about life and love. Mostly it began from a memory of a painting that once hung in my parent's house and a story someone told me. It's a big metaphor for life and relationships and I can't wait until it becomes less foggy and more clear and presentable to you.
Let me try to tell you a story about some of the songs. Let me start with the Swedish ones. One of them, that I'll call 'B' is literally gobsmackingly awesome. It was initially written for someone huge but it made it to the final rounds and wasn't chosen. Thank you Jesus is all I can say because handing it over was like giving over a child to a stranger. When it was written I actually said 'that is the sound of my new album' so it's very serendipitous that it's still in my possession. Even if it doesn't end up on my album it deeply shaped the sound of it so either way it's a blessing. There's still some debate over whether another artist at the label might record it but we're holding pretty firm on the fact that I've now fallen in love with it and I can no longer bear to part ways. I'll keep you updated.
The next song, was written with Justin Shave and I'll call it 'G'. It was a direct reaction to the sound of 'B' and is probably my favorite song so far. I'm not sure. It's massive. Theatrical. Celebratory. Gothic. Religious. Massive.
The next song I'll call 'D' was written with a super dooper massive song writer producer extraordinaire who I found intimidating at first and then lovely. It's what some people are saying could be a first single. Simple powerful song that explodes into something huge at the end. Love it.
Song 'T' is 'Up' and sad at the same time. Again written with the swede. Big vocals bloody high notes. I love it
Song 'L' was inspired by the film 'Let the right one in'. Very moody and cinematic. Again written with the Swede.
Song 'S' is possibly the title track. Written with the swede, almost a stream of consciousness melody in reaction to a poem I had written specifically for the song months beforehand. In many ways the whole point of the record. A real departure for me in terms of sound. Hard to describe. Tiny but panoramic.
The song I wrote with Robert (I'll call N) was finished just yesterday. It's a big joyful chorus and bittersweet sentiment juxtaposed.
The second one (I'll call 'S'), still needs lyrics but is already one of my favorites on the record. He and I have come up with a totally unique sound for the two of us. We've never done anything like these two songs before.
So that pretty much brings you up to date on where we are at.
Let's see where it takes us!
In the meantime -
Jun 25, 06:26 PMThe man with a child in his eyes
When I was a little boy, he was my hero.When I was a young man, he was my sanity.Taking me away from the pain in my life and filling my heart with joy and wonder.When I was 13 I saw him live in concert and from the second he arrived on stage I knew what I was going to do for the rest of my life. It was September 1987 and I have to this day never seen anything more extraordinary. To this day I've never seen a reaction from audience like the one he received. I've never seen magic and glitter fly through the air and witness that electricity start up hearts the way he did that night. And now I'm certain the world never again will. Thank you Michael Jackson. On behalf of dreamers the world over. The world is a duller place without you. I'm so privileged to have lived in the same lifetime to witness even a moment of your glory. -
Apr 29, 05:13 PMSupportive words from an unlikely sourceCouldn't have said it better myself.
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Apr 23, 03:42 PMThe Latest...First things first, I never use my blog to promote friends or other musicians for the sake of it, unless it's something I really believe in and could stand behind. I'm so thrilled that this week has seen the release of an album produced and co written by none other than my main man Justin Shave. Justin is important in my camp because as well as being my live musical director he co produced 'Delicate' and co wrote some of the best tracks on there. Well this week sees the release of the album he worked his magic on : 'Atigoneland' by Antigone. She has quite honestly one of the most technically breathtaking voices live I've ever heard - and in many ways puts other 'divas' to bed without any supper! If it's your thing, do have a listen to the brilliant 'Antigoneland' which you can find HERE.
In other news, we've sold 80% of the tickets to New Years Eve and it's only April. If you are planning to go I would think about getting your ticket now because honestly we've done no advertising or promo yet, so I don't expect there to be any tickets come next month.
On to musical things - I have indeed been writing songs for my next album. I've gone all Swedish and though it's early days yet I can tell you the word is POP. Don't expect it until 2010 but work has indeed begun on the writing process. It's been lovely being in Stockholm and I could easily live here.
Things I'm obsessed with at the moment include the new Calvin Harris single, the single 'Daniel' by Bat for Lashes and the insanely gorgeous duet with Robyn and Royksopp.
Ahhhh music is my mamma!
x
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Apr 20, 10:48 AMNew Years Eve Tickets on sale Tomorrow 9 am UK Time
We sold over half the tickets to my New Years Eve show in under 2 hours today - and that was just to fan club members in our presale!
Tomorrow, the remaining tickets go on sale to the general public ( April 21 9.00 am UK time) via www.ticketweb.co.uk
I hope those local or who plan to be in the UK can make it!
I'm excited and it's ages to go!
Love me (in Sweden again..)
x -
Apr 20, 06:04 AMTickets On Sale Tomorrow For Intimate New Years Eve ShowTickets will go on sale from 9am UK Time on 21st April for Darren's first show in nearly two years on New Years Eve in London.
He'll perform a fully live show with his band and then continue on to party playing his selection of his favorite club records until 3 am.
Those who attended the 2007 New Years show were treated to an intimate and unique show with a sense of being at a party rather than gig. This year's show will continue the tradition with a one off set list full of hits and surprises.
Tickets are exactly the same price as 2007 - £99 and go on sale on via WWW.TICKETWEB.CO.UK
