An unfortunate turn of events...

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

Oh, you know...stuff.

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!

Back in the Saddle...

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

The reports of our demise have been greatly exaggerated...

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

we now return to our regularly scheduled program...

Hey folks-

sorry about the silence the last few days; the website was down. Back up now, so time to update...

last night, we played The Ace Cafe in Rumst, which is sort of a neighborhood/village outside of Antwerp. You wouldn't know that, however, by looking at it. The Ace could've been in New York, Austin, San Fransisco...or anywhere else in the states for that matter. Lots of American memorabilia on the walls, old gas pumps, various vintage pop culture signs, etc. Great little rock and roll bar, felt right at home.

Friday night wins for the ultimate in really awful load-ins; two flights up narrow assed-rickety stairs with full P.A. It was kind of a jazz venue, so we had to play VERY quietly, which sucks for us, as you could guess. All in all my least favorite show thus far although Lier, Belgium is a beautiful town. The town hall there dates to 1369 AD. It was as old as our whole country when Columbus walked the earth. Put that in yer pipe and smoke it.

Today we have two shows, in Breda, Holland and Mortsel, Belgium. Mike A. has gone off to Brussels to meet his girl and then meet us in Breda. Tomorrow, Abby and I are off to Paris for a couple of days. I haven't been since I was a wee pup, and we're really looking forward to it. Hoping to catch a rock show in addition to the usual tourist attractions. I guess Springsteen is in town tomorrow, although it's sold out and I'm sure the scalped tickets will be far beyond our pedestrian means. One could hope, though. Most likely, we'll find some crappy little joint and see some french rock and roll. Should be interesting. Glen will be around, and hopefully over the next couple of days he'll blog up for y'all. We'll be back Wednesday.


Chris

the last couple of days...

have been a study in contrasts.

Saturday night we played a ranch, cleverly named the 'Double D'. Pretty good sized place, complete with stuffed game on the walls (including a moose). Mike A. snapped some cool photos, which we'll upload sometime soon.

There was line dancing happening; pretty surreal that THAT particular americanism has taken hold here, but it has. Before our set, in between sets, and afterwords there were belgian line dancers that we were convinced just wanted us off the stage so they could dance to Kenny Chest-implants-ney or whatever. Talkin' ten gallon hats, ropers, and pressed jeans. The whole deal. We were going to play a Loretta Lynn cover to try and break the ice, but when Abby asked the crowed who knew who Loretta Lynn was, nobody knew. So we skipped it. While we played, they just sat at their tables and watched. as soon as we were done and the young country hits of the day started playing, they were up and dancing en masse.

Then, when we were finished with the second set (played hard and loud...'cause that's what you do in that situation) they lined up and bought CD's. Weird.

Sunday we played this little bar in Bonheiden called Den Bromfiets. Small, small stage. By showtime it was nuts-to-butts packed with people who love music. No linedancers (even advertised as 'no lines', or no linedancing). Just a good, rowdy crowd having a good time. Great fun.

Today we are off; we're thinking of going to visit a concentration camp nearby that is a museum now, but we'll see. I'm a WWII buff, so that's what I'm pushing for. Of course, we're very near to lots of landmarks from that war, and the first as well. I understand KC is getting hammered with ice and snow right now; here it's 40 degrees and rainy. The old-timers say that winter doesn't come here anymore and that it used to be bitter cold in December with lots of snow. Having been here in February a few times and now December, I tend to think they're right. Global warming indeed.

We'll chat again soon,

Chris

Well, that was fun! Holland is home to some of the most beautiful people in the world. Flat out beautiful. L.A.'s got nothing on em'. We played a little joint in a town I cannot pronounce at the moment but cherry beer will do that to anyone. The load in looked to be the worst on planet earth, however, leave it to the Dutch to figure out how to rig up a collapsible elevator thingie to move heavy things up and down stairs. I got to push the button. It made me giggle. The bar was an "English bar", lots of hunting prints and dead animals etched in glass (brace of pheasant, etc., etc.) with a sparkling, shiny circular bar. Polished brass and candy dishes and books behind glass. Needless to say our scruffy bunch felt mildly out of place, but after 9 courses of various chinoise deliciousness at the restaurant upstairs, the bar filled up and we slipped in and felt right at home.
The drinking age is 16 here. I love that. Kids learn how to drink before they learn how to drive and that is brilliant. It takes longer to learn how to drink. The drug laws are also more, hem, liberal, in Holland but I was talking to a tall (very good looking cause he's Dutch) fellow about that and he said "Americans come to Holland and smoke pot, but we can smoke pot always so it isn't a big deal. You smoke a joint or two when you're young. No big deal." Apparently, it isn't a "big deal". Legislating mutherscratching everything is silly. Have I mentioned that none of the playground equipment is made of nerf either? Get up and rub some dirt in it, dank u!
We will attempt to get up early tomorrow and ride the bus into Turnhout to the market in the square. Then we will go to the kaaswinkel and I will be in heaven.
Tomorrow night, the double d ranch. Lawsy help us. There may be ponies and I may be forced to ride them. Goedenact, ya'll.
xoxox Miss A.