Forum Chat Transcript 21/6/07

[hyperrune]

Transcript of the forum chat - all your tarty questions captured! ;D
I'm going to have to post in batches, there's 20+ pages. I'm just posting the ones Damien answered, you can enjoy the ones he did not condescend to consider (the naughty ones ) in your own time!

Damien in normal type, questions in italics

Well I'm sitting here in Sony Studios and it's a great to have this chance of chatting with everybody and answering any questions that you have. As you know, 22 steps is going to radio tomorrow so it's getting very exciting right now.
Anyway, drop me a line and I'll chat to you soon.
Damien

Hi Damien – Wombat here!
I absolutely adore “Song for Jarvis” and I’m so glad it is a B-side on the single. Have you been inspired yet to pen a “Song for Jagger”?

Hey there Wombat,
Good to hear from you and yes, there is a new song on the album which at the moment is either called "I'll take you home", or "Not just for the weekend' and I wrote it two days after Jagger came home. I was just inspired by everything that day and having my growing family all sleeping in the living room made the lyrics easy to find.

Trilly
hey Damo..I have a question for ya..does the album have a title yet and if so, what is it? *we have a few suggestions for ya, if it doesn't

Hey Trilly,
Still no title but there are a few roaming around - we have about a week to decide. I have a favourite myself but I'm over to extra suggestions.
Cheers

tarra
Hi Damien,
My daughter and I saw you in Melb (Palm Court), fantastic night. Cant wait for cd release. Hope you do really well with this. Just interest to know if your up coming album has a more rock element? Notice how you changed some of your idol songs around.
Mandy

Hey there Mandy,
Thrilled you enjoyed the concert. The album is still quite acoustic but there are a few up beat songs with a rocky feel - not heavy rock though, more like indy/pop/rock if that's actually a style ha...
I'm thrilled with the album and there's some very special songs on it.
Cheers
Damien

Nollsy
Hey Damien,
Who was your favourite idol from Series One?

Hey there,
Shannon is my favourite although i have to say, the first series had a lot of great acts. Guy has done really well also but Shannons songs are the ones that I most relate with.
All the best
Damien

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HoundsOfLove
Hey Damien, you have proberly seen the begging of your presence at the Damienfest, I sent you an invite in the mail did you receive it??

I saw the invite and I would love to come - it'll be so hard to arrange but if I can't, maybe I can organise a video message or something. It will be great!

Carla
Hi Damien,
Firstly, congrats on the arrival of Jagger, hope you and the family are all great.
Do you have an idea of when you plan to tour with your new album?
Thanks,
Love Carla
XO

Hey there Carla,
Good to hear from you. Well the plan of action is that we have a major concert planned for October (it will be announced in the next week or so), followed by a regional one in the new year. We also hope to go to Ireland in September to promote the album and also maybe do a gig or two.
Cheers

belle
I triply (is that a word lol) can't wait for the album now. It sounds like it's going to be absolutely brilliant. It's amazing how quickly you can write such fantastic songs - a true gift there Damien. When is the actual album going to be released, and do you have a very rough idea of when you might tour Adelaide?
Belinda


Hey there Belinda,
The plan for the album is the 19th of August which gives us enough time to properly release the single and then set the album up. I'm thrilled that my new song has made the album but for whatever reason it just seemed to work straight away and everybody was happy with it - i'm thrilled. I'll be in Adelaide in August for a promo gig and then again in October as part of the tour.
Cheers
Damien

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D-rox
My Question is.....
I notice that with some of your songs, you like to change the arrangement around a bit each time you sing them..(which I like very much) will you also do this with 22 Steps?
Roxychic

Hey there,
With twenty two steps I haven't changed much, mainly because it feels so good as is but there is a beautiful string arrangement in the second verse which wasn't there and I'm also doing it faster than the original. The changes are small but they do make a difference for me singing.
Cheers

Willow
Regional Tour!!!!!!!! I do hope that includes North Queensland - Townsville in particular. We would love to hear your beautiful voice here in person Damien.

You bet! It'll be a big tour.

Nollsy
Damien,
If you were to do a Duet, who would you chose to do one with?

Duets are hard to pick, I think I'd love to do one with Kaie Noonan - she's a fabulous singer.

hyper_rune
I've got a quick question - what about 'Fool'? It's an awesome song, will you be releasing it on an album? What about other older songs, like These Days? Those 2 are my favs

Hey there,
The hardest thing about recording this album was deciding on which songs weren't going to make it and those two are in the group - maybe the second album. Over the last while, the songs I've been writing I think have got much stronger. The main thing is that we'll release alot of extra songs as B sides on the singles. None of the B sides will be on the album.
Cheers
Damien

GAJ
Damien - do you have any tour dates set yet --- especially ADELAIDE & PERTH

Hey there, October I will be in Adelaide and Perth - Can't wait.

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GAJ
Can you put RT out of her misery --- are you touring anywhere near ALBURY

Hey there,
During the regional tour I'm nearly certain Albury is on the list.

D-rox
Damien have you seen any of the CD DESIGN COVERS that any of the girls have been doing for fun?
*is there a job waiting for one of us at Sony??* LOL.

Hey there,
During the regional tour I'm nearly certain Albury is on the list.
I have and I have to say - all you guys are so creative, just increadible.

Bronte35
When is Melbourne Concert Damien? Loved the Crown concerts!!!

October.

wombat
Damien - when are you going to grow back teh curls???
(For Winter)

Ha, I'll have the long hair soon... ha

Bronte35
Congrats on the birth of baby boy number 2!!!

Thanks for that, Jagger, Jarvis and Eils are doing really well.

ktina12
Hi Damien,
Now that you don't have to do the nine-to-five grind as a Chemist, do you get up early most mornings, or are you enjoying sleeping in and having a more flexible day?
Tina.

I loved my job as a chemist but music has always been my first love. I still have the early mornings and I'd say I'm busier now than ever... it's great!

belle
Damien do you have a rough idea of which venue you will be performing at in Adelaide?
Thanks,
Belinda

Hey Belinda,
I'm not sure off the top of my head. I know that the concerts in October are all theatres.

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GAJ
Any chance of getting a video blog with "Everybody Here Wants You" on it .............loved Lilac Wine ....have been playing it endlessly.......

Alright, I'll arrange to do one - i love that song and it sounds nice on the acoustic

lozzab
Damien,
Will you be playing at Tamworth as part of your regional tour?
PS See you at the D-Fest!!!
Love Lozzy

I'm not sure, not all the dates have been locked in yet.


ktina12
What has been your favourite performance so far, Damien?
Tina....
....PS..... Perth is waiting for you....

My favourite performance so far was the Logies

Colourmehappy
Oh I forgot to ask you a question before d'oh! Ok, have you had anymore feedback from the Big O's family after your wonderful rendition of "Crying" on Idol? Oh and if I can be cheeky enough to ask one more....have you got any funny secrets about young Matty Cornell that you could share with us lol?
cheers,
Nat.

hyper_rune (quoting ktina)
Oh yeah! I forgot that! Have to talked to the Orbison family?

I haven't heard anything further from them but apparently they did like my rendition whcih was great.

Kamitsuki
I suspect it might be too soon to know this for sure, but assuming there is going to be another Tasmania show this time around, is it likely to be at Wrest Point again? The concert there was just brilliant.
It was especially great hearing 22 Steps for the first time there - the lyrics really moved me personally, and I think it was just a brilliant choice for a first single.

Ah thank you for that and we plan to do two concerts in Taz, not sure if they're both in Wrest Point.

[dededom]

Damien also answered my questions earlier in another thread:

dededom

My questions about the new Single are"what appealed to you most about 22 Steps when you first heard it?" and "What emotions do you hope to convey when performing 22 Steps?"

Hey there,

The main thing that appealed to me about 22 steps was the theme. and the melody. When I first heard it I thought, wow, I'd love to give that song a go - it just sounded like something that I would sing. As for the theme, I think most people can relate with the idea of loving somebody from afar but never quite having the guts to go up to them and say Hi or 'do you fancy a coffee'. I've been there when I was younger and singing to that theme was something I could easily work with.

Cheers

Damien

[RT]

dededom said:

Damien also answered my questions earlier in another thread:

dededom

My questions about the new Single are"what appealed to you most about 22 Steps when you first heard it?" and "What emotions do you hope to convey when performing 22 Steps?"

Hey there,

The main thing that appealed to me about 22 steps was the theme. and the melody. When I first heard it I thought, wow, I'd love to give that song a go - it just sounded like something that I would sing. As for the theme, I think most people can relate with the idea of loving somebody from afar but never quite having the guts to go up to them and say Hi or 'do you fancy a coffee'. I've been there when I was younger and singing to that theme was something I could easily work with.

Cheers

Damien

i read the answer to your question in that thread and sat there for a while thinking i was in the right thread... come to find out i was wrong!!

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Great pic, Dede! Is that an actual pic of him this morning?! How do you find these things?!
More to come folks, sorting through the bazillion pages over at the official site!

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Leithal Dame
Great Damien! That was my favourite too. Apart from Today show June 29, do you have any upcoming tv performances booked? I cannot get to your shows due to health issues and so look forward to your appearances.

Oh Get well soon! I'll be on the Today show next Friday, live from Federation Square and I know there will be quite a few more televisions performances also.

wombat
Damien, what usually comes first - the words or the music?

For me it's generally both and more often than not, very fast. When the inspiration arrives I normally write the song quickly but fixing it up afterwards normally takes a while

princess
Damien, How do you keep yourself going, with a new baby in the house and all of your comittments. You must be exhausted.
Princess

Ah it's all down to alot of support from Eileen and tonnes of energy drinks ha

chrissy
Hi Damien, Can't wait to hear the song on the airwaves, already sending requests to local radio stations
Fabulous to see the answers to questions we have always wanted to ask, too!
My question is: How is Eils recovering after Jagger's birth? Is she all ok?
Love, Chris (Christyl)

Ah thanks for getting the requests in... that's brilliant.
Eils is doing really well - little Jagger is staying awake at night and asleep during the day so that's taking it's toll on us both but all in all, she's just fabulous. Eileen's definitely the strength in our relationship.

hyper_rune
That's interesting.
Just wondering how do you compare song writing to writing a novel? You enjoy both I know, I'm looking forward to reading it, I love writing stories myself

Writing the novel is so different. I am writing mysecond one right now and comparing the two is strange - songs come faster but are hit or miss straight away - the novels are slower and it takes a much longer time to find out if the story is working or now. I love writing the novels mainly because they're a great release.

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shimmery
Damien I really enjoyed seeing you perform at the Jeff Buckley tribute and seeing you in that smaller venue. Do you think that you might still perform some smaller shows from time to time like that, it was a great atmosphere there.

Yea, in the near future I plan to have a few intimate gigs. I love the big concerts but the intimate venues is where I feel most at home.

GAJ
Do you wish now that you had done a touch typing course ??

I'm typing like crazy here and I just hope that it reads alright... ha

HoundsOfLove :Hey Damien, when the book is released will you be promoting it and having signings???

Yes, the book release will happen around the same time as the tour so we plan to link them as much as we can and also do signings and talks.

Loveroftheirish
ps.......just KNEW you would win Idol, from the moment I saw you on the auditions.
Really! Just ask all my family LOL

Ah thanks, Idol is a tough competition and I'm over the moon that it all worked out well.

The Brookles
Hey Damien! =]
I was just wondering what inspired you to finally take the road of pursuing a music career? Were there other careers you had previously tried to pursue?

Music and I took a while to get together but once it I started singing it just took over my life and from about 17 onwards I started trying to get somewhere in it. It's a hard business and that's why i always maintained the day job.

Colourmehappy
Damien, now that you have 2 boys are you going to keep going until you have a girl??
cheers,
Nat.

Well time will tell - we love our children and being parents so you never know... I'll leave that question to Eils.

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crazyinlove
i have to type or else i'll freeze up here..... back to an old question damien
how did you find making the music videos?

Making the video was great - the company 50/50 were fabulous to work with and being new to the whole video making business, they made things very easy for me. I think you'll all be happy with the video and in many ways it tells the story of the song so well. It leaves things over to interpretation which is how it should be.

Carlz
Hey Damien.
My mate tried out for idol and got through to the exec producers a few times but not onto the show, they made the comment to him that he was really good and probably at the same stage you were a few years ago so to come back next year and he'd probably get in... I'm curious, where were you at musically a few years ago and I guess in life?
Also, I live close by and love reading where you've dined lately as ironically I have usually be at the same places dining throughout the week... just wondering what your favourite place so far is if you had to choose on?
Cheers.

Musically a few years ago I was gigging an awful lot and still in many ways, trying to find my sound. That's the thing I think takes the longest. I thought i knew who i was many years ago but really that has only happened over the past three or four.
Lately I've been mostly eating in Mojo's in Bondi and the Gallery in Annadale... ha

raiyne.talon
Can you please ask eileen if she can wake up every morning and tell you that Raiyne.Talon thinks you are hot?

I'll tell her that... ha

D-rox
Damien,
do you have a favourite Venue you really like to sing at?

I did a gig in the Basement when I first arrived in Australia and it was brilliant - really intimate and great sound.

GAJ: Oz we all know Mark Wilkinson rocks your socks !!
Mark Wilkinson you introduced us to him in your concerts any plans of gigging again with Mark .........he is fantastic

Mark's fantastic and a good mate... he won't be back for the Theatre tour but I'd love for him to play during some of the regional tour. He's recording now so we'll have to see how he's fixed around that time.

ktina12
RT - You are a crack up!!! I'm not missing your posts - so I bet Damien isn't either.... He's just blushing too hard to write anything!!
Damien - working on your second novel - You seriously must have ADD! lol

ADD ha...

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Nollsy
Damien,
if you got the chance to be in a movie what kind would it be? romantic, comedy, horror?
and would u ever star in an aussie soapie?

I would love to be a movie as a lovable rogue... ha

Pilko
Damien,
Where in Brizzy did you film the clip for the CD, if you are able to tell us. Would love to know.
Sister

The indoors scenes were in the Old Governers House in Bris and all the rest was in a in the surrounding city.

belle: Damien do you think there is ever a possibility of the Live Room touring with you?

Yea, i'd love for that. We've chatted about it in the past and I'm sure somewhere along the line we'll try or arrange something. They're great!

trilly: mmm.can't quite see it D!! haha lovable, yeah, rogue...btw, do you ever lose it? swear, throw things? haha....just curious...

I'm pretty calm generally but I've acted as Fagin a few times and I''ll love acting as something that's quite the opposite of who i am... i's more fun.

Nollsy: Damien, Do you like the country (rural)?? and whats your favourite animal?

I'm a country boy back in ireland so I love being in the outdoors and walking accross fields.... I've just relaised that my spelling has been terrible throughout this chatting session... ha
My favourite animal is a dog.

nutralady2001
Or Captain Jack Sparrow lol

I'd love that role!

belle
That would be great, you would be brilliant. I have a burning question .... do you think you will ever do a musical? I would LOVE to see you in a musical.
Belinda

I would love to do one; maybe in the future... I love acting.

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Carlz: Another quick question... do you get to go to many gigs now locally? And have you ever been to The Execelsior in Surry near Central on Monday nights? Amazing songwriters gigs. Would highly recommend it as everyone sings amazing originals and its so laid back.

I used to get to loads of gigs but lately not so many. I'm sure when things quiet down I'll get out and about.

Carla: Damien, you are so giving and kind to your fans, especially us over at DLO, just wanted to say thank you sincerely for everything you do for all of us.
You're amazing to keep up with your home life, career and all of your fans and we really appreciate it
XO

Thanks so much Carla and thank you everybody for all your support. You have been behind me all the way and I really appreciate it. Unfortunately though I'll have to get off now because I've an interview for the Sunday papers.
It was great chatting with you all and we'll try to keep things as up to date as possible.
Thanks Everybody
Damien xx x

And that's it guys! Perhaps someone would like to pick out the best tarty moments as well?

[RT]

hyperrune said:

Carlz: Another quick question... do you get to go to many gigs now locally? And have you ever been to The Execelsior in Surry near Central on Monday nights? Amazing songwriters gigs. Would highly recommend it as everyone sings amazing originals and its so laid back.

I used to get to loads of gigs but lately not so many. I'm sure when things quiet down I'll get out and about.

Carla: Damien, you are so giving and kind to your fans, especially us over at DLO, just wanted to say thank you sincerely for everything you do for all of us.
You're amazing to keep up with your home life, career and all of your fans and we really appreciate it
XO

Thanks so much Carla and thank you everybody for all your support. You have been behind me all the way and I really appreciate it. Unfortunately though I'll have to get off now because I've an interview for the Sunday papers.
It was great chatting with you all and we'll try to keep things as up to date as possible.
Thanks Everybody
Damien xx x

And that's it guys! Perhaps someone would like to pick out the best tarty moments as well?

[hyperrune]

Not convincing, RT!