Im Anschluss an das diesjährige Cruise To The Edge reisten Big Big Train in die Sweetwater Studios in Fort Wayne, Indiana, um an einer Aufnahme- und Mixing-Session unter der Leitung von Sweetwater-Cheftechniker Shawn Dealey teilzunehmen. Diese Session gab der Band die Gelegenheit, eine alternative Version von Last Eleven aufzunehmen, dem Schlusssong des diesjährigen, erfolgreichen Studioalbums The Likes Of Us. Die Sweetwater-Version von Last Eleven, die von Shawn abgemischt wurde, kann man sich hier anhören:
Shawn hat bereits mit Künstlern wie Steve Hackett, Spock’s Beard, Animals As Leaders, Counting Crows, Jared James Nichols, Bootsy Collins, Beth Hart und vielen anderen zusammengearbeitet. Mehr über Shawn erfahrt ihr hier.
Lead Sänger Alberto Bravin sagt: “Having rehearsed at Sweetwater before our USA shows and Cruise To The Edge in March, it was wonderful to return there for a recording session. It was interesting to take an alternative approach to Last Eleven, which differs significantly from the version released on The Likes Of Us album. We really enjoyed working with Shawn in Sweetwater’s amazing studios and hope to return there again in the future.“
Schlagzeuger Nick D’Virgilio fügt hinzu: “I really get into how songs make me feel and this version of Last Eleven, with its mellow beginning, has such a great vibe to it. Not that the original has anything wrong with it at all! I just like how the story in the song now comes across. It starts mellow, revs up and gets powerful, then ends mellow again. It also showcases some wonderful vocals.”
Gitarrist/Keyboardist Rikard Sjöblom sagt: “We had this idea to take it down in the first verse, which I think turned out really sweet! I ended up doing the intro on acoustic guitar, with Oskar [Holldorff, keyboards] on Fender Rhodes and Clare [Lindley] adding some nice violin lines, which turned Last Eleven into a different song for me. I also played some electric baritone guitar later in the song too, which added some further flavour to the overall sound. I think I like this new version even better than the original!”
Big Big Train sind Headliner des letzten Night Of The Prog Festivals in Deutschland am 21. Juli, bevor sie am 9. August ihr Debüt auf dem renommierten Cropredy Festival in Großbritannien geben. Im September und Oktober geht die Band dann auf ihre eigene Headline-Tour und spielt 13 Shows in Großbritannien und Europa, bevor sie im April nächsten Jahres als Co-Headliner von Cruise To The Edge zurückkehren.
21st July – Night of the Prog, Loreley, Germany
9th August – Cropredy Festival, Oxfordshire, UK
17th September – Wyvern Theatre, Swindon, UK
18th September – The Riverfront, Newport, UK
19th September – Playhouse Theatre, Whitley Bay, UK
21st September – Queens Hall, Edinburgh, UK
22nd September – Palace Theatre, Newark, UK
24th September – Stables Theatre, Milton Keynes, UK – Sold Out
25th September – The Stoller Hall, Manchester, UK – Sold Out
27th September – Stadthalle, Weinheim, Germany
28th September – Boerderij, Zoetermeer, Netherlands
29th September – Boerderij, Zoetermeer, Netherlands
1st October – Cosmopolite, Oslo, Norway
2nd October – Viften, Copenhagen, Denmark
5th October – Cadogan Hall, London, UK
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