And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead --> 
The Official Halfway MarkPosted 11/24/2006 by Merlin From CK:
It is time for me to write a little update for the news. Tour's been going well, despite my best efforts to sabotage it. I did manage to cancel our Houston show, but no matter how much I complained they have forced me to play every night, even the nights when my favorite soap opera is on. Just joking.
In all honesty we apologize to the people in Houston for our cancellation, it was necessary for us to take care of a few things in Austin before continuing the tour. Much of our equipment had gone the way of the buffalo, so rather than play a horrible show in Houston (which we always seem to manage, as if cursed there) we went straight "home" and had amps and guitars and spirits mended and wended.
So far the nicest thing about this tour has been becoming friends with the other bands - everyone is playing on each others sets and there is a strong feeling of unity. That, and the bikes, which somehow manage to raise spirits just by being there. We have three bikes on our bus and the BB's have one of their own. America needs to embrace the bike in the same way that Holland and China have. That would reverse our C02 emissions drastically. The only problem being that our suburbs have been designed for cars, and actually discourage bike riding and pedestrians. If we want people to think more environmentally, we need to redesign these vast, concrete sprawls that we have created and make them look like something people would want to bike through. Those grotesque wastelands surrounding outlying malls that we call parking-lots could, with some effort, be turned instead into parks. Parks for people, not for cars. These are my road ruminations.
One thing I get out of touring with other bands is learning from them. Mark of the Blood Brothers's drumming is stellar, and he makes me wish I hadn't stopped playing. Both them and the Celebration have these almost tribal rhythmic breakdowns that remind me of something from Pete Gabriel's Passion, which practically invite you to grab a tambourine and join in. Sean of Celebration is another one of those musical savants who doesn't just play more than one instrument, but plays them at once, managing guitar and keyboard and pedals simultaneously. A wise woman once told me that the best way to learn is by watching, so I have been trying to give myself a musical education in the way that other bands incorporate keyboard sounds into the music. It's funny, when we were growing up in Olympia if you had a keyboard in your band they'd hang you from a tree and stick a fork up your ass (sorry, I couldn't resist that tasteless reference).
We have reached the official half-way point of the tour and now we head West to the land of the setting sun. In the upcoming days I hope to a) improve our pathetic merchandise designs because they suck, b) get around to making more prints of my art, which I haven't done in ages, and c) find Gauntlet for the X-Box. Hope to see all you west-coasters out there.
Conrad Keely  Digg |  Del.icio.us |  Facebook | 
Thanksgiving News RoundupPosted 11/23/2006 by Merlin Anyone like remixes or remixing music? Ever wish you could remix Trail of Dead songs? Well, here's your shot:
The guys are making their music available for you to remix. Here's a chance for you the fans to show us your mad mixing skills. We have set up contest on ACIDplanet to see who can produce the best remix of "Wasted State of Mind" using the stems from the master recording. We'll all choose our favorite diddy with a reward bestowed upon the best remixers. Anyone can enter, anyone can listen. Contest information is available at your leisure here.
Elsewhere, Trail of Dead vs. the Blood Brothers 2006 still going strong! The east coast may have had their share, but the west is still yet to be won. Get the dates here.
In other news, our friend and unofficial band photographer Roger Kisby was at one of the recent Irving Plaza shows in New York to do his thing. Resulting photographic madness available here.
Speaking of photography, I've added a few more picture sets to the gallery page here. Yeah, I know, it's thin, there's more coming soon. If you have pictures send them in here.
Happy Thanksgiving everybody! Digg | Del.icio.us | Facebook | Album Credit Omission ApologyPosted 11/16/2006 by Merlin Hey Everyone,
We'd like to apologize for an inadvertent omission on the album credits for 'So Divided'. The song "The Goldheart Mountaintop Queen Directory" was written by Robert Pollard (www.robertpollard.net) and recorded originally by Guided By Voices (www.gbv.com) on their album Bee Thousand.
Sincerely,
Conrad, Jason, Kevin, Doni and Danny Digg | Del.icio.us | Facebook | The Long-Awaited RevivalPosted 11/14/2006 by Merlin Greetings longstanding fans, potential patrons, valued observers, mortal enemies, and everyone else!
You may or may not have noticed that a few things have changed around here. Well, I assure you they have. Conrad and I worked non-stop (more or less) over the weekend to bring this site to you in its newest incarnation. Hopefully you'll appreciate our work much more than that other brown thing we had up here before.
As you can probably tell, and as I regrettably admit, we didn't quite finish with all the work we had in our queue. Because of this the site is looking, at least partially, bareboned. Do not fear, Conrad and I will be working tirelessly over the next week to restore this website to the epitome of its once great glory.
Alas, have I forgotten something?
Oh! Yes. The boys' newest album "So Divided" is released today in North America (yesterday for our brethren across the pond and elsewhere). So, if you feel inclined, head over to your local independent music store, or your local multi-national chain store, whichever you prefer, and pick it up. I promise you that it will be well worth however much you pay for it.
Keep checking back here over the next few days and weeks to see the site progress. We know you'll enjoy what you see.
Cordially yours,
merlin
P.S. A full listing of tour dates can temporarily be found here.
Our own page will be up shortly. Digg | Del.icio.us | Facebook | Recent Conversations with ConradPosted 11/8/2006 by Merlin Pitchfork Media spoke to Conrad recently in Chicago and the resulting in depth interview can be read here.
He also took the time to talk to Scottish-based Skinny Magazine, an interview which your eyes can grace online here.
Expect more from this site in the coming weeks. Digg | Del.icio.us | Facebook | From Conrad With LovePosted 10/22/2006 by Merlin Mr. Keely handles this news posting:
Hello to all of you fellow pirates, who have downloaded and stolen our latest album, who have listened with bleeding ears to what you should have never heard, who have taken what is rightfully ours, seized our precious things with rapacious, grubby hands, despoiled the sanctity of our hallowed artifacts and raped the sacred effigy of our trust. And hello to all of you other people, who didn't do these things.
Tour preparation continues along the docks of the Mob House, Austin, Texas, where supply ships have been arriving all morning with crates of limes and sacks of un-tarred bitumen, sardius and garnets from the Orient, myrrh and lavender from Africa, and oils and chalcedony from Macau. If nothing else, it promises to be a pungent and bejeweled foray into America's slave-infested past, where generals of old vied for native conscripts along old Chippewa hunting trails. Typical stuff.
People keep asking me "So, you're excited about the tour? You excited about the tour?" Do people just feel obligated to ask that question? It's some sort of social formality, isn't it? Well, I wish they wouldn't feel so inclined to observe it. Yes, I'm excited about playing on the stage for people, yes I'm excited about talking to fans and shaking hands with all the people who stole our record and liked it. And yes, I'm excited to see our many friends along the road, some who are convinced we're no longer friends because I no longer email. But no, I'm not excited about the pile of dirty laundry that amasses in my suitcase, wreaking of death. No, I'm not excited about calling a small six foot long, coffin-like bunk on a cramped bus my bedroom for seven weeks, no I'm not excited about the way my voice is going to feel after screaming every night, and what infections ensue as a result. No, I'm not excited about being excited to see a Taco Bell because it's the only thing edible for miles. And not to belabor the point but again, no, I'm not excited about not being able to paint for nearly two months. So for all you people dying to ask me, am I excited about tour, I give you three yes's and five no's.
So, aside from packing crates of precious China and yoking stables of oxen, what are we doing in preparation for the tour whilst brimming with eager anticipation? We have a new keyboard player, his name is Clay and he's from Norman, Oklahoma, and he is going to be making sure that our songs remain in tune while Jason and I battle to put them out of tune. We are trying out a new piece of equipment, it's a Roland SPDS, and for all you people who know what this is, I can already sense your eyes rolling with palpable horror. Don't worry, we're putting our own sounds on it.
But that's just musical stuff, which isn't actually important, as I've since learned. More importantly, I've made some new t-shirt designs, I've made a new tour poster, and right now I'm working my ass off trying to redesign our hideous website. "But I like your website", people have protested. Yeah? Well, good for you, because I think it sucks. So with no further argument, I'm changing the color scheme from orange to blue, in preparation for upcoming changes in the psychic weather pattern, as predicted by Rob Brezsney. In this pursuit Merlin has been adding his touch of coding wizardry, and with fortune smiling down on us the entire monstrosity should be up shortly.
And in closing, I'd like to thank all those people who stole the record and actually liked it, and to look forward to the Brothers and Sisters on the upcoming tour, because their vocals added greatly to the recording of these tracks and hopefully we'll have a chance to feature some of them live. And for those of you who downloaded the record and didn't like it, all I have to say is shame on you for stealing it, and remember: we're not writing songs for you anyway, we're writing them for the people who like what we do, so there.
Conrad Digg | Del.icio.us | Facebook | Insound.com/Acoustic InstoresPosted 10/19/2006 by Merlin Hate Amazon.com? If you do, you are now able to pre-order the album from our old friends at Insound.com instead. Do so and you'll receive a free (yes, costing you nothing) 7" single featuring "Wasted State of Mind" and "Eight Day Hell". Get all that jazz here.
I'm also thrilled to announce that the boys will once again be doing a slew of acoustic instore performances all across the nation. Pre-purchase "So Divided" at any of said instore gigs and you'll get a free CD booklet that the boys will sign for you! In addition to their priceless signatures, you'll also receive a limited edition red vinyl pressing of the "Wasted State of Mind" single.
Can't make it to the instore signings? No worries. You can buy the CD at any one of the shows and get the same 7" single (assuming there are still supplies available). How unbearably exciting!
Here are the instore dates and times:
November 4th -- Utica, MI - Rock a Billy's (3:00pm)
November 13th -- New York - Virgin Megastore Union Sq. (Midnight)
November 14th -- Baltimore, MD - Sound Garden (5:00pm)
November 16th -- Atlanta, GA - Criminal Records (6:00pm)
November 17th -- Orlando, FL - Park Ave Records (5:30pm)
November 27th -- Phoenix, AZ - Hoodlum's Music (12:30pm)
December 5th -- Berkeley, CA - Rasputin Music (12:30pm)
December 7th -- Seattle, WA - Sonic Boom (6:00pm)
See you all there. Digg | Del.icio.us | Facebook | Pre-order "So Divided" OnlinePosted 10/11/2006 by Merlin As of today, well, yesterday actually, anyone with internet savy will have the opportunity to pre-order "So Divided" from our favorite internet marketplace, Amazon.com. To do so, click the cover art:
In other ToD news, we finished 13th in the Digital Music Awards this year, which, astonishingly, is up nine places from last! Thank you to all who voted. View a listing of the crappy sites we lost to here. Digg | Del.icio.us | Facebook |
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