So yeah, most of you are already aware of Abby’s health situation…and so we’ve been scarce while the docs try to figure it all out.

But this past weekend, my oh my.

There will be a few more shows this summer, we’ll see on the scheduling…doctors will be determining that. But there is more recording going on. There’ll be a record. There will be shows. There will be Europe, sometime, as soon as we settle on a promoter/tour agency. There’s stuff in the works. We haven’t forgotten you.

And as you all showed this weekend, you hadn’t forgotten us, either. Thank you.

and Ludo, if you’re still reading these-I’ve lost your email address. Send it again!

Chris on behalf of:
Abby, Erik and Mike

By now, many or most of you have probably heard the news that Abigail was diagnosed with Inflammatory Breast Cancer. We have been overwhelmed with everyone’s kindness and concern, and thank you for your thoughts and prayers.

there is a new link here on the site called ‘hope’ at the top of the page that will take you to Abby’s blog and also information about the disease itself.

thank you all for your concern,

Chris & Abby

just a few notes…

The Gaslights are NOT playing at Davey’s Uptown on the 18th of July. Scheduling snafu. We ARE playing at The Record Bar on the 19th. and it’ll be early (like 9-ish) so all of you that complain about shows starting too late and use that as an excuse to not go will have to buck up and venture out into the world. I know it’s scary. You’ll be okay. Your other excuse-”It’s too smoky” is also gone, thanks to the new law, so as far as I can see that means you are out of excuses. See what I did there? See how I roll? I knew that you could.

We’re also still in Columbia, MO on the 25th @ The Blue Fugue.

I’ve been contemplating doing a video blog of our new studio and recording process. Would any of you be interested in such a self-indulgent endeavor? Might be fun, I dunno. Just a thought. Drop us a line and let us know what you think. It’ll give me a reason to figure out how to use the video editor stuff on this piece of crap Windows Vista laptop we spent a bunch of money on that doesn’t work very well. I don’t suppose Bill Gates reads our blog, though, so I don’t imagine it matters to say so out loud. Or in print. Or whatever this is.

By the way, Abby and I just read ‘The Road’ by Cormac McCarthy (No Country for Old Men, All The Pretty Horses, etc.) It won the Pulitzer in ’07. It’s pretty amazing, and I recommend it to all of you.

See you soon!

My, my, how time flies. I just realized that I’ve not played a proper set-length performance in four months. That would be the longest drought since I started playing music. No wonder I’ve been a bit loopy.

Our webmistress, Miss Mary, is in Italy at the moment, but there are some show updates-

May 24th @ The Riot Room, KCMO
June 19th @ Davey’s Uptown, KCMO
July 19th@ The Record Bar, KCMO
July 25th @ The Blue Fugue, Columbia, MO
July 26th @ TBA, St. Louis, MO

and of course, our debut on May 4th @ P.Otts on the Plaza.

Hope to see you all soon. there are new songs and the old ones are all a bit different now. Feels like a rebirth.

Chris

Well, not really exaggerated, per se, as they were true. I say ‘were’ true…

Upon returning from Europe this past December, it was apparent that the three founding members could no longer work together. Abigail had a burst eardrum thanks to a clueless monitor engineer at a festival in Belgium. Largely due to misunderstandings, we had a falling out with our Belgian promoter. Out of frustration with one too many body blows, I pulled the plug on The Gaslights. I didn’t touch a guitar for a couple of months (of course, it helped that my trusty ’72 telecaster was stolen) and generally sulked about, working, drinking to excess, pondering different paths. So many things had gone so very wrong, and yet…there were accomplishments. Many things had also gone right. Three records to be proud of, the latest (and best)sitting in a big stack in our living room, staring me in the face. All those miles. Three tours in Europe. Two vans. 8 bass players. One dead moose. Countless suicidal-free-roaming-Wyoming-chihua-huas (That’s a long story.)

Maybe something different, I thought. Maybe Abby and I could reinvent ourselves musically, do something else. Abby started writing songs, I built a new guitar, we started playing them….

and what do you know? They sound an awful lot like Gaslights songs. I guess that’s just what Abigail and I sound like together. I guess in the end it just doesn’t make sense to throw the baby out with the bathwater. In the desire to drop the baggage, I nearly threw out everything we’d struggled for. And the baggage would still be there anyway. We are who we are, we’ve done what we’ve done, and we sound like we sound. No use denying it.

So, The Gaslights shall soldier on, as Abigail and I for now. We’ll be looking for bass players and drummers, and in the meantime we’ll be performing as a duo, Abby on her big ‘ole Gibson Jumbo and me on my new stratocaster. Looks like a lot of duets on the way. Keep an eye out, here and the myspace site for updates, and feel free to drop us a line any old time.

Thanks so much to all of you that have offered your support these past months, and here’s where I have to admit that you were right, all of you. We can’t just quit now.

Sincerely,

Chris Meck
The Gaslights