WINTER 2005

Wednesday, December 6th
The band met up in LA last week to rehearse some of the new material.  The new songs are sounding great live.  We worked up an acoustic set for some filming we are doing next week to possibly be released sometime next year.  While working on the music, we also came across what will most likely be the cover art for the CD.  Well, Pat actually gets the credit for finding the artist, but we were all drawn to the art as soon as we saw it.  Nothing is final yet of course, and I’ve most likely jinxed it all by mentioning it before it is finished.  But if all goes well, the artwork will be finished by the end of this week. 

After four days of rehearsal, we headed down to San Diego to play at Star 94.1’s Jingle Ball.  We played a short 30 minute set before we had to head straight back to LA to catch morning flights so we unfortunately didn’t get to hear much other music.  We played two new songs, Get Out and Cab both of which seemed to get a good response. 

The next day Pat, Jimmy and I headed to Deer Valley, Utah to perform an acoustic set on a CBS Sports fundraiser dinner for the US Olympic Ski Team. Cab seemed particularly appropriate with the snow falling on the mountain outside the windows behind us.  The following afternoon we were invited to join in a celebrity ski race.  Jimmy elected to stay at the bar in the lodge and watch some football, while Pat and I braved the near sub-zero temperatures to compete with various CBS television stars and former US Olympic skiers in a slalom race.  Even though we ended up on different teams, Pat and I didn’t get a chance to race head to head, so it is hard to say who is the better skier.  We both looked pretty damn good, or at least the CBS Sports producers assured us that by speeding up the tape and using some fancy computer trickery, we will end up looking pretty good on TV.  I will say, without giving too much away, that a certain Irish blooded man with a golden voice has a new medal to sit next to his Grammy on the mantle.  But you will have to tune in to CBS on the 18th of December to watch all the action.  The plan is for them to air the footage of our acoustic performance of Cab as well; that is unless they are so ashamed of my slalom skills that they edit us completely out of the show. 

Next week we will be in New York City filming the video for Cab and doing some promotional work.  Pat, Jimmy and I will be playing live on the WPLJ morning show broadcast from the Blythedale Children’s Hospital on December 22nd.  Then we finish off the year by returning to the House of Blues in Chicago on New Years Eve.

Brandon

Wednesday, October 26th
The band was back in Atlanta this past weekend recording three more songs to be included on international releases and such.  I actually have no idea where these songs will go.  They are not intended for the CD.  We are calling them B-sides, but that really implies that we are releasing little 45 singles with the little yellow disks.  Regardless, we converged again on the studio and between games of Halo found the time to make a little more music.  We spent some time in LA the previous week having our photos taken for the new CD.  I spent the entire day trying to position myself as close to Pat as possible to ensure I’m not cropped out of any pictures.  I also tried to think about things that depress me to minimize my naturally idiotic smile.  So when the photos come back and it looks like I’m leaning unnaturally towards Pat with a little tear in my eyes, that is all part of the plan.  Really. 

We are excited to announce that our new single “Cab” will be released to radio on November 14th.  Some stations have received advance copies and are already playing the song, so keep your ears tuned to the radio.  The official release date for the new CD is January 31st. We plan to be on the road to support the CD for most of ’06.  And while nothing is confirmed yet, a New Years Eve show is not out of the question... 

Brandon

Tuesday, September 13th
After six weeks in the studio, the new Train CD is all but finished. All that remains is to put the songs in some order, design the artwork and get it in stores. Well, it is a little more complicated than that, but I’ve been told it is best to stay out of all those crazy marketing meetings. The plans for the Get To Me video have been put on hold. While we were all excited about making a new video, the reality is that videos are expensive, and the priorities right now seem to be shifting to towards the new CD. Things change, and then change again. Change is the only constant in the music business, and we certainly won’t be surprised if the plans for the video surface again in the near future. In the mean time, I’ve asked Jimmy to set up a video camera at home and dance around in his leather pants with Get To Me playing on his stereo as a consolation to all the fans who are waiting so patiently.

On a more serious note, we watched the shocking images of the devastation from hurricane Katrina and the subsequent flooding of New Orleans from the studio. Like many people around the world, we felt the desire and duty to help the victims affected by this disaster. Although our schedule has prohibited us from participating immediately in the fundraising efforts led by the entertainment community, we are committed as a band and as individuals to reach out and offer whatever support we can to help the people affected by this tragedy. We urge you to do the same.