TV SMITH Releases Second Single

Punk legend TV SMITH releases new single “Never Again Until The Next Time”

New album ‘Land Of The Overdose’ out September 14, 2018

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TV Smith has just released the second single from his new studio album “Land Of The Overdose” which will be released by JKP, the label of German outfit Die Toten Hosen on September 14, 2018.

Hear “Never again Until The Next Time” here:
https://open.spotify.com/album/070pEnB8M2pSUGJtqIaSbt

Described as “one of the most important political songwriters in the U.K” TV Smith comments on what drove him to make the new record:

“It’s been a long journey from 1977. I used to think that punk rock was a one-off protest movement, but sadly now in 2018 there is even more to protest about. The punk spirit lives on. In “Land Of The Overdose” I’ve tried to sum up everything I feel about what’s wrong with the world and what we can do about it. The only compensation for me about the awful state we find ourselves in is that it’s inspired me to come up with some of the best songs I’ve ever written. I hope this album sends out a positive message that if we recognise the problems in the world things can start to change for the better, and that music can be a force for the good.”

Hear previous single “No Hope Street” here: https://open.spotify.com/track/0Qk3zdAZeZoKzlBIcJqfor?si=P7ISl9zjR6KQQ6QOoxIrVw

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TV Smith – Land Of The Overdose“ (JKP)

Track listing

01. No Control
02. We Stand Alone
03. Land Of The Overdose
04. Satellites
05. Keys To The World
06. Green Zone
07. No Hope Street
08. Never Again Until The Next Time
09. Sunny Side Up
10. File It Under Not My Problem
11. Written Out
12. Last Lost Sheep

Pre-order the album here: http://smarturl.it/wu4bx7

TV Smith will be back out on the road again which started with an hour long set on the Almost Acoustic stage at Rebellion Festival on August 2, 2018 and then out on the road over the next few months.

“Land Of The Overdose 2018” Tour

15.09.2018 (UK) Sourton – The Highwayman
21.12.2018 (UK) Leicester – Duffy‘s Bar
22.12.2018 (UK) Manchester – Star & Garter
19.01.2019 (UK) Worcester – Marr‘s Bar
20.01.2019 (UK) Nottingham – Foremans

More info on TV Smith

TV Smith was one of the first stars of the London punk scene. Today he is considered one of the most important political songwriters in the U.K. In the last year alone he played more than 130 concerts. In these days of Brexit, Boris and Trump, people need his voice more than ever.

Try and place TV Smith in the musical landscape of 2018 and you’ll probably end up somewhere between Frank Turner and Billy Bragg. Tim Smith, as his friends know him, started his career as a singer in the Adverts, one of the early stars of the London punk scene in 1977, and since then has established himself as the irrepressible voice of the underdog. At 62 years old he has become one of the most important songwriters Britain has produced. His mission, as he sees it, is to comment on his broken country, to hold political and corporate power to account, and to criticise inequality and social division.

TV Smith writes and sings about a superficial world where we are “virtually” more connected than ever, but at the same time feel more and more isolated. In an age where discussion and debate are discouraged, he continues to ask the pertinent questions. Rather than sounding negative, his songs put forward an optimistic and positive viewpoint. His attitude is: it’s time to stop complaining and start doing something about it.

TV Smith has that rare ability to write protest songs that on first listen don’t come across as protest songs. He describes the big issues in terms of small details. He can play the snotty-nosed punk equally as well as the traditional balladeer storyteller. What stands out is his authenticity, which has a lot to do with the fact that he has been on the road for so long, seen so much, and tackles his subject matter so unflinchingly. In these times of political chaos, voices like his are more important than ever.

The clubs are dying out, the cost of housing has hit the roof, and the politicians are at each other’s throats. We should be glad that there are still a few artists who are prepared to make a stand and speak out. TV Smith has been commenting on the lack of integrity in the British political system long before it hit the headlines. In some period’s political comment falls on deaf ears, but in these “days of distress” – as Smith terms it – songs about the real world are back on the agenda.

TV Smith’s new studio album “Land Of The Overdose” will be released by JKP, the label of German superstars Die Toten Hosen. Seventeen years ago the band recorded and released an entire studio album with him – “Useless: The Very Best Of TV Smith” – something they have never done with any other artist. His new work is awaited with particular anticipation this time around. Thanks to Brexit, Trump & co., the recent political landscape has changed beyond all recognition – rich pickings for Smith’s brand of songwriting.

Campino (Die Toten Hosen): “We’ve known since 1977 that TV Smith is one of the best songwriters in the music scene. His songs are more important than ever in the current political situation. We respect him for sticking to his guns and fighting incessantly for equality and social justice. As soon as we heard his new songs we knew that “Land Of The Overdose” had to come out on our label.”
TV Smith spends his life travelling to gigs, and plays a huge amount of concerts – more than 130 in 2017 alone, and in 34 countries so far at the last count. He says that in the past couple of years he often gets the feeling that the world has gone mad: “Wherever I go I meet people who think completely differently to their political leaders, but whose feelings and aspirations are being ignored,” he says. Back in England between tours he started to write and record a batch of new songs based on his experiences and observations. “Land Of The Overdose” is his seventeenth album of new material, and in true D.I.Y. style the first that he has played and recorded completely on his own. His punk roots are evident in every groove. The album was produced by fellow countryman Jon Caffery, renowned for his work with Sex Pistols, Einsturzende Neubauten and Die Toten Hosen among many others.

The opening track has barely begun before TV Smith starts to ask the big questions: “Do you remember when you had a voice? Do you remember when you had a vote?” In another new song, “We Stand Alone,” he makes an illuminating diagnosis: “The pubs get closed/The future’s unknown/Our only hope for salvation/And escape from isolation/Is to fight our way outside our comfort zone.” And in an age where we are defined by Facebook algorithms, Smith succinctly sums up the situation in “Green Zone”: “Spy on what I buy/How I vote, what I wear/Put me in your algorithm/I don’t care/I know you’re watching me/I’m watching you too/And what did you do?”

Before TV Smith started performing as a solo artist he had already lived through more than most musicians could ever hope to experience. His band The Adverts was one of the driving forces of the London punk rock scene. His song “Gary Gilmore’s Eyes” was one of the biggest punk rock hits of the era. In Germany, his connection with Die Toten Hosen has brought him a large fanbase, thanks to their album together and his tireless touring. Occasionally when he plays in Germany his old friend Vom Ritchie – the English drummer of the Hosen – sits in on drums and the duo adopt the name TVOM.

Forty years after founding his career in the heady days of the Sex Pistols and The Damned, TV Smith’s story is far from over. He is still one of the most observant and artistic chroniclers of the changes in society and their impact on ordinary people’s lives. And one thing is clear: as long as there is inequality and a lack of true values in the world in general – and his country in particular – TV Smith will continue to sing about the “Land Of The Overdose.”

http://www.tvsmith.com/
https://www.facebook.com/TVSmith77/

About Louise Swift

I first went to a gig in 1981, Gillan at Leeds University. I've been a regular gig goer ever since. I haven't kept count of how many gigs I've been to over the intervening years, but it's a lot! My favourite bands are AC/DC then, in no particular order, Anti-Nowhere League, Slaughter and the Dogs, Towers of London and Dirt Box Disco. I tend to like Glam/Punk and rude offensive lyrics, not sure what that says about me but as Animal would say 'So What!' The question was recently put to me - did I write for any online publications? My reply - No, but I'd like to! Planetmosh was suggested and I found myself offering to review Aces High Festival. Easy peasy I thought! Well not quite, if a jobs worth doing it's worth doing well! I had sixteen bands to research. I found I actually enjoyed that and it kept me too busy to be making lunatic comments on Facebook! ;) Then I felt a bit inadequately qualified. I mean, who am I to comment on others, when my musical expertise extends to being able to play a mean Greensleeves on the recorder and a passable Annie's song on the flute! Haven't picked up either instrument for years! What I do have, however, is over 30 years of experience as a gig goer, so I can comment on what I like and what I don't! It's only my opinion and, if I don't like a band it doesn't mean they are bad, just not to my own liking. I admire anyone who has the guts to get up on that stage and have a go!