TIM ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS - PART THREE

Yes, it's time for the third and final batch of Tim's answers to your questions. Huge thanks again to the hundreds of you who sent in questions, sorry we couldn't ask all of them. And thanks, too, to Tim for the answers.

Do you like and practise any other Art like painting, sculpture....? LN

Tim replies: I would love to, but I rarely get round to it. I’m not great at drawing or painting, although I do enjoy both. I’d really like to get into screenprinting. I might go on a course once this touring cycle is over.

Where did you met Jesse? Sharon Müller:) from Mexico

Tim replies: He was on the crew for one of our arena tours, helping out Colin and Ant.

Keane recently worked with the Canadian-Somaili rapper K'naan. Given the diversity of your backgrounds, did you experience any problems communicating your ideas, or is music truly the "universal language?" Elizabeth from Seattle, USA

Tim replies: In my experience good musicians tend to have a mutual respect for each others' ways of working. With K’Naan it felt form the start that we were all excited to be in a room together and there was a great sense of possibilities. It’s certainly true that some (though not all) of his history and cultural background is wildly different from ours, but it’s funny how people from all over the world and all kind of different backgrounds tend to feel passionately about the same things. The songs we worked on were about quite basic aspects of the so-called "human condition" – time, fear, love, regret. He’s a cool guy and very easy-going, but also very observant and incisive in his lyrics.

Hi Tim. I really liked your cover of 'These days'. It's fantastic. Are thinking of doing another? Katia from Peru (yay!)

Tim replies: Thanks! Maybe I’ll do another...I have a couple in mind. But there never seems to be enough time...

Hello tim. you write such amazing words, i wondered if family & friends expect something poetic on their birthday cards other than "from tim" thanks always donna x

Tim replies: Probably! Unfortunately I’m always terrible at soundbites and saying the right thing generally. That’s probably why I started writing songs. If I had my way I would probably only communicate in songs. I could be like Julie Andrews or something, breaking into song whenever I have something significant to say. (Julie Andrews-related trivia factette – our first album was nearly called A Spoonful Of Sugar – Tom’s idea.)

Is there any Bside song that you really think it should have been put on the album? so you kinda regret it that that particular song was "only" a Bside song and you like "oh! i should`ve put this one instead of this one"?? coz all Keane's Bside songs are also wonderful!! Have a spectacular Day!! Feya from Indonesia

Tim replies: Well, there are a few B-sides that we all really love. Snowed Under is one of those. Fly To Me is one of my favourite Keane songs. I’ve always liked Thin Air too. But I wouldn’t necessarily put them on an album. I think it’s good to have a few gems that are hidden away and a bit harder to discover.

Have you ever been driving down the road and had to pull over because of an inspiration to write? Maggie USA

Tim replies: Yes, often. I normally call my own phone and leave a message.

Have you ever Googled yourself? (shit! I'd redie if he found this blog) Brenda from Buenos Aires

Tim replies: When I read your question I thought I’d give it a try. There’s a lot of nonsense of the internet! My Wikipedia page looks like it’s pretty hit-and-miss. People tend to conflate different events and stories to make one neat story, and it all gets a bit confused.

Hello Mr. Rice-Oxley! What is your favorite game? (I mean anything like a board game, card game, mind game, etc.) Mia (Portland, Oregon)

Tim replies: MarioKart Wii is pretty brilliant....I could lose days playing that. I’ve never been very into board games or cards, although I used to play vingt-et-un (pontoon) with my Dad when I was a kid. He had this great old set of chips, and it felt like we were playing in some smokey club in India in the 1930s.

My question is simple~Do you have a favorite book that you read over and over again? Ellie~Charlotte, NC

Tim replies: Two books I read over and over again are Revolution In The Head by Ian MacDonald and U2 At The End Of The World by Bill Flanagan. They’re both utterly brilliant. Another is Any Human Heart by William Boyd, but I find that one so emotional that I have to have a long break between readings! I’ve read Asterix In Belgium quite a few times too.

Gotta love this man! I'm satifisfied with this Tim's Q&As even though my question wasn't chosen. Maybe next time. Have a nice weekend!

Isaxx

TIM ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS - PART TWO

We're back with the second batch of Tim's answers to the questions which you very kindly sent in. Check back tomorrow for the final ten.

You have so many freaky T-shirts ( for example the one with the zebra on it), well, where do you get these shirts? Jana

Tim replies: I recommend a company called to-orist, and another one called graniph.

Heey! Why do you guys always finish the shows with Bedshaped? Beatriz Russano from São Paulo, Brazil.

Tim replies: It’s such a gargantuan song, with so much passion and soul-searching, that nothing else can follow it. We’ve tried, but it’s so final that it has to be at the end of something. Some songs are just like that. Atlantic always feels like it should start a section, for example.

Hi Tim, I was just wondering what you remember as being the best gig Keane has ever played at? Katie from San Francisco

Tim replies: There have been some great ones lately. The two Sydney gigs were pretty phenomenal. The second O2 show in February was very special to us because we were really in danger of having to cancel. Tom was really sick and his voice was already going by halfway through the previous night at the same venue. He got a shot of steroids the next day but it didn’t seem to make any difference. Then about ten minutes before we went onstage the drugs kicked in! Tom was still really ill but we all gave it everything we had and it turned out to be a really great show. It felt like a real victory for us.

What color is your toothbrush? Ellen Y, Seattle

Tim replies: Green and white. I need to get a new one actually, thanks for reminding me.

Do you ever read the fan comments on km.com, and if so, what sort of feelings do they generally stir? Mandy

Tim replies: Yes, quite often (I might die). I like to know whether people are leaving shows feeling happy or unsatisfied. Generally people say amazing things on km.com, and that’s very encouraging for us. I feel very proud of our fans. It’s a great community of people all over the world, and the website and forum are both intelligent, positive places still, unlike many such forums that descend into weirdness and negativity very quickly. We genuinely feel grateful for all the love and support we get on the website and elsewhere – Keane fans are incredibly loyal and very generous, and I’m glad to be a part of that.

Which is the place or country that you want to visit and you haven't? Alejandro Arriola from Guatemala

Tim replies: Oh, there are plenty. Guatemala, obviously! Peru (ok, I died). New Zealand. India. China. It’s a big world and it feels like we’ve barely got started.

Who is saying what at the end of The Lovers Are Losing? I've always wanted to know! Thanks, Grace

Tim replies: That was me saying to Tom, “We should get some Under Pressure-style finger-clicks on here”. Jake (who engineered the album) chopped it up and slowed it down, so it just says “Get some Under Pressure style” in a weird voice.

What makes a great show “great”? With so many gigs in so many cities and countries to call upon, what makes a certain gig really stand out from the rest? Greg USA

Tim replies: The first thing is feeling that we’ve given everything and played the best we possibly could. The rest is kind of down to luck and a good atmosphere in the crowd. Sometimes you just get a magical vibe on stage and in the crowd, and everything just feels exciting. You never know what it’s going to be like when you hit the stage, which I guess it what makes playing live endlessly exciting.

Do you ever get a sore neck after a gig? From, TomMelbourne, Australia

Tim replies: Yes! It aches the whole time. Sometimes I feel like my brain’s going to come out of my ears, and occasionally I get really dizzy (especially after Is It Any Wonder? and Again And Again) and can hardly stand up straight on stage! Probably not that good for me in the long run, but you just get caught up in the moment.

One of my favourite Keane songs is The Happy Soldier but I read somewhere that you won't re-release it as your views have changed. If this is true, I was wondering what the song is about? and how have your views changed? From Imyy, UK

Tim replies: That’s not the case. It’s a song about a soldier being afraid and wondering why he’s off fighting some pointless war far from his home. I suppose the lyrics are very tongue-in-cheek, which makes them open to misinterpretation. It was one of the first songs I wrote and it’s a subject I still return to a lot, for example in A Bad Dream. I think we may even release it very soon!

TIM ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS - PART ONE

Last week, we asked you, the good readers of km.com, to email us questions to ask Tim. Hundreds upon hundreds of you did just that (big thanks to all of you). We read every single one of them and then sent Tim our favourite 30. We'll be running the answers over the next few days, starting right about now...

Have you ever been approached to compose a soundtrack for a movie and would you do it if asked? Tosh, Miami, Fl USA

Tim replies: Not a full soundtrack, but we’ve often been asked to write songs for movies. My Shadow was actually written for the closing credits of a big film.

Time To Go has the hallmarks of a classic intriguing Tim song - in that it isn't clear who the subjects are in the story. Is this particular song a recollection of someone saying Time To G' to Tim personally, or of Tim saying this to another person, or Tim witnessing someone saying this to someone else, or something else!? In short, who is the song about and what was the occasion? Jane A

Tim replies: I wrote it after a party in London a couple of years ago. I was nervous because I didn’t know anyone, and compensated by drinking a vast amount of champagne. It was a fun night with lots of dancing and great music, but on my way home I refused to get off the train because I thought we were at the wrong stop; then I tripped over and accidentally head-butted my wife, in a Superbad-stylee. It’s generally not my style to behave that way, so I guess I wrote the song as a warning to myself.

Hi Tim! I seem like a real saddo saying this but on the Everybody's Changing 1.34 into the video (the little 4 bar break) you play a C instead of a D, any reason or didn't you know!? I shall go and get a life now! Ollie Gwyther

Tim replies: Ha – I’ve no idea! Either I made a mistake, or the director just edited in a bit of footage that doesn’t sync with the music. Dear Tim, I noticed that many of your songs have to do with or mention the ocean or water of some sort (Atlantic and UTIS, obviously, but also The Lovers Are Losing, Black Burning Heart, and Crystal Ball).

Is there a particular reason for this or do you just feel a connection with water?--Kelsey

Tim replies: I’m sure a psychologist would have something to say about it. I guess the ocean has always inspired people. It’s a powerful thing to behold something so massive and almost boundless – I think it makes us think about our mortality and how small we are. When I was a kid we used to go down to Bexhill on Sunday afternoons and I always noticed old people who had driven down there and just sat in the cars looking at the sea.

Hi Tim. How do you start off writing a song? I'm trying to do so at the moment and I'm finding it really difficult getting ideas down. Could you give me any tips? Elliot, Isle of Man

Tim replies: Buy a Dictaphone, so you can note down your ideas quickly. I tend to sit at the piano, or a synth, or with a guitar, and play chords and sing over the top. Eventually (on a good day) a melody and some lyrics start to take shape. You have to be patient though, and you have to focus and work hard. The old cliché about “1 per cent inspiration and 99 per cent perspiration” is totally true. My ideal is to sit at the piano for about 8 hours and play without interruptions. Sometimes I have to do that for three or four days before anything good emerges. But something good will come out eventually! The key is to not be afraid to try different ideas or styles. If you play the same four chords over and over again for hours and try singing in a bunch of different styles, with different words over the top, you’ll hit upon something eventually. And always finish a song before you give up on it.

Hi Tim! What is the hardest song you have ever composed / written and why? (I asked the same T-T, no fair!) Wouter, the Netherlands

Tim replies: Hmm. I found Crystal Ball very hard. I just couldn’t write any lyrics for it, and I tried a bunch of different things. It took me months and months. I’m still not happy with the chorus. It’s totally impassioned and a very deep song, but it comes across as simplistic, I think. You Haven’t Told Me Anything took a while too, I think because it’s a song with short burst of melody and I had a lot of information I wanted to pack in. But I kept chipping away at it and I’m really pleased with the lyrics for that one. It’s one of my favourite Keane songs.

What is the first thing you like to do when you get home from being on tour? Alice

Tim replies: Have a bath. :O :P

Just wondering about My Shadow and why it didn't make the album (although the album was still great without it). John, USA

Tim replies: As I mentioned above, I wrote the song for a film. The nature of the movie steered the lyrics of the song, but out of context I didn’t feel the lyrics were strong enough, and they didn’t seem to fit with the tone of the rest of the album. Everyone else wanted to put it on the record and I kept fighting against it. To be honest I think I was wrong on that one!

Have you ever written a song drunk? josé carlos villalobos yañez

Tim replies: I need all my wits about me to write. I remember doing some demos with Tom many years ago when we were both a bit drunk. We listened to it all the next day and it sounded shit, so we kind of learned that lesson early!

In This Is The Last Time - why does Tom always sing the first few lines specifically to you? (Love it but have never understood why). Sue

Tim replies: Probably because it’s just me and him playing at that point. It gives us a chance to engage in the middle of a gig. And he likes to wind me up by standing on my piano!

Tim Q&A!!!

From km.com....

TIM ANSWERS YOUR QUESTIONS
06.02.08 02.29.pm
Mr Rice-Oxley faces your 'Ask Keane' queries

Yes, we're taking a break from the YouTube videos today to bring you something even more exciting than a man strumming 'Crystal Ball' at the seaside. Tim has very kindly taken a break from working on the third Keane album to respond to the latest batch of questions which you folks sent in via the website. Thanks to everyone for sending in questions and to Tim for answering them.

"My question is this: There're some bands that have a clear objective (like does Bono with U2 for example)...With your music, in general do you have an aim? Why do you do music?"
JiMe from Argentina
Tim replies: That's a big question. I love writing songs because it enables me to express thoughts and ideas and feelings that I seem to be incapable of expressing in any other way. I think the same is true of the band as a whole - when we play together we seem to be able to say something more powerful than any of us could say as individuals. It's a magical thing about being in a band. So that in itself is enough really. However, we've always admired people who consciously use their music to deliver a message of some sort. There are many great examples, from the protest songs of the 60s to the rave music of the 90s. Over the last few years we've become better at deliberately articulating specific ideas in our songs - 'Is It Any Wonder?' for example, or 'A Bad Dream', or even something like 'Atlantic'. That's really exciting for us. You have to be careful not to let the process become too contrived, or you'll lose the soul of the music. But for me probably the best thing about being in a band is hearing that one of our songs has had some kind of profound impact on someone, especially when it's someone on the other side of the world who speaks a different language and has a completely different experience of life. I can't explain how that works, but it's an incredible feeling and I suppose that's why we "do music".

"In your songs, you talk a lot about getting older. Is there a reason for the similar topic among the songs, or does it just happen that this is?"
Rachel
Tim replies: I constantly have the feeling that I'm trying to catch up, that I'm running late for something very important in my life. I think that's partly because it took us so long to get any recognition as a band. We made a lot of sacrifices in our twenties in order to keep the band together, and so now we have the opportunities we have I constantly feel that I need to do as much as possible to make up for lost time, and that time is always moving too fast for me. I'm sure it's a pretty common sensation. Plus I feel very youthful and I live in fear of settling in some kind of resigned lethargy as I get older. I hope I'll be one of those mischievous old people who always acts like a teenager, and my kids will dread bringing their kids to see me because I teach them rude words and make them listen to old fuddy-duddy music (Aphex Twin, Radiohead, etc) at deafening volumes.

"Who is James Sanger? How did he get a writing credit on such songs as 'Bedshaped' and 'This is the Last Time'?"
Kara
Tim replies: It's a long story, and judging from the current discussion on the forum, one that's long overdue to be cleared up! James is what's known as a programmer - someone who specialises in adding interesting parts of one sort or another (usually beats and synth parts) to a recording. Back in 2000, before we had a record deal, we worked on some songs with a producer called Mark Wallis. If I remember rightly Mark was working on another project at the time, and had asked James to help out on that project.

Anyway, a few months later James came down to see us while we were doing our weekly rehearsal at Backstreet Studios on Holloway Road. He had recently bought a farmhouse in France with a view to building a studio there, and he asked us if we wanted to spend some time there recording. We were feeling pretty desperate at the time so it was a really exciting offer. We had agreed all this with him when we were a four piece guitar band, but a few days before we went out to France, Dominic (our guitarist) decided to leave the band. I remember we were very nervous about telling James because we thought he might change his mind about working with us, but we persuaded him
that it would be really fun to make a more electronic album, which was more his area of expertise anyway.

James knew we didn't have any money to pay for his time or the use of his studio so we cut a deal with him whereby we agreed to give him a percentage of the publishing royalties from any resulting recordings if they were released commercially. He would also receive a reduced royalty if the songs we worked on were released in a different form - ie not the versions we recorded with him in France. At the time we'd never made a single penny from any royalties, so it all seemed like a pretty good deal! Publishing royalties are the royalties paid to the writers of a song, and if you get a cut of the royalty it means you get credited as a songwriter. We worked on four of the 'Hope And Fears' songs at James's place in France, hence he is credited as a songwriter on those songs, even though they were all already completely written before we worked with him, and even though the versions on the record are massively different from the versions we did with him.

James helped us out immensely by giving us the use of his studio and equipment, and also by teaching us how to record music using a computer. The latter has been especially useful over the years, enabling us to record demos at home. We never released any of the recordings we made in France, but the four songs from H&F did include some parts that we wrote and recorded while at James' studio. They also include a few bits of programming that James actually did himself - eg the great drum loop that's tucked in under Richard's drums in 'Sunshine', that big fat kick drum on 'She Has No Time', and the cool bass sound in the middle eight of 'This Is The Last Time'.

Sadly James does tend to pop up on TV every few months claiming to have written lots of songs for us, invented the Keane sound, kicked Dom out of the band, or whatever, but I think that's just something you have to put up with when you have a bit of success! He helped us out when we needed a boost, and we'll always be grateful for that.

I told you it was a long story!

"Dear Tim. Can you tell me who is that person talking at the end of the song 'The Iron Sea' and what is he saying??"
Sharon-From Ecuador
Tim replies: Er, I'm pretty sure it's me. I remember listening to the individual track when I edited together the Magic Shop version of 'The Iron Sea', but I don't think you can really hear what I'm saying. At one point you can hear me singing a little Mellotron line from the end of 'Airbag' by Radiohead though.....there's a geeky piece of trivia if ever there was one!

"Tim - I've watched so many live videos of you guys and you get so into playing. It's like you lose yourself in the music. How does that feel?"
Yire
Tim replies: It feels deeply surreal. I think maybe I have to lose myself in the music because I'd be too terrified to play otherwise. If I ever thought about the fact that there are thousands of people watching me play, I'd probably freak out completely.

"Hi. There's a song of your last album that i like very much Atlantic. Everyday i saw the video clip of this music but i can't understand it very well. I really wanna know what's the true message you guys want to pass for us. Could you solve this problem for me? Thank you."
Nilo Daniel
Tim replies: You'd really need to ask Irvine Welsh, as he wrote and directed the video. I felt that he was picking up on the "fear of dying alone" aspect of the song. For me, the video is about mortality, about clinging on to worldly things even as the shadow of death creeps towards us. So a jolly little number.... but then you wouldn't expect anything else from Irvine. The man's a genius.

"Tim, why do you never talk on stage? Even Brendan Benson had to introduce himself and YOU although you were the host at the War Child gig in London."
Lena
Tim replies: I don't like the sound of my voice.

"Hi Tim! I recently noticed that when you played 'We Might As Well Be Strangers' live, which is one of my favourite songs, you played it half a tone higher than on 'Hopes & Fears'. Is there any particular reason why you do it this way for gigs?"
Martin
Tim replies: The verses of the song are quite low for Tom's vocal range. On the record that gives them a nice intimacy, but when we came to play it live it felt like the verses were getting lost. Putting the song up a key meant Tom could project the melody a bit more, which is pretty crucial when you're trying to fill a big venue with delicate emotions.

"Hi Tim. Do you like the cover of your song 'Everybody's Changing' by Lily Allen?"
Cindy, Colombia
Tim replies: I love it. I find it very flattering when anyone covers one of our songs, but I particularly like Lily's cover. It's full of energy and really gives a new slant to the song. We played it in that sort of reggae/bluebeat style when we played it with her at the War Child show in November, and we all really enjoyed playing in a different style. It was quite refreshing for us as musicians just to do something different.

"Tim, in your opinion, which is the best song that you composed?"
Gabriela Kozakievich, from Argentina
Tim replies: I think probably 'Atlantic'. Or possibly 'Leaving So Soon?' Tom's convinced that the new songs we're working on are better than anything we've done before, so hopefully one of those is the best I've ever written.....I'll let you be the judge of that...!

"Have you ever felt like composing harder music and dressing up like KISS??"
Fatima
Tim replies: I wouldn't mind up a bit more dressing up I must admit. Putting on any sort of mask, real or imaginary, is a good way of freeing yourself up to do new things that you wouldn't normally do. As far as harder music goes, I always feel like I'm the only person on the planet who didn't go through some sort of hard rock/heavy metal phase as a teenager. I feel kind of embarrassed about it actually, as I feel I should be able to enthuse about Iron Maiden and Kiss an so on. I do like a good rock song, but I can't be doing with those interminable guitar solos where the notes get faster and faster and higher and higher. It's hard to take most rock music seriously once you've watched This Is Spinal Tap.



I was getting nervous but today it finally has been posted *woot*
I have to admit I got terribly depressed when Tim mentioned the word 'kids' I don't like Jayne T_T *tears* buuuu
Coming back to the topic, I have the same feeling as Tim about getting older. I don't want to grow up. I feel I've been the same through all my years of life so when I'll be old I'd still do my headbanging while listening to IIAW? lol

As for The Iron Sea, I always thought it was Tom's voice...I gotta listen to 'Atlantic' over and over again...and why Tim doesn't like his voice? it's beautiful, he has a golden throat. I love his voice, laughing, talking, singing, etc.

Definitely, I'm more relaxed now...this q&a made my day! I'm happy!
I hope he answers my question next time.

Some goodies...

this was made by budrose18 based on Shelley's vid of Early Winter

this was made by Sim163

I want to be lost in music with him