Gothic Beauty, German 10 Neurotics, Sticker, Back from New England

We are back from our New England shows in Cambridge MA, Portland ME, & West Warwick RI. It was a wonderful time and we have some great new friends and memorable moments. Going on the road with a new band is a chance to perform new material, and also a chance to see if you get along or if you want to throw somebody off the island. Fortunately, Athan, Nicki & I are a pretty good match. We had fun, ate some good food, and didn't want to kill each other. Win! At the same time, Gothic Beauty Magazine #29 is out with a two page interview. The German edition of 10 Neurotics (on Trisol) is in stock at Projekt. We also have a new sticker for you! You can read the full Gothic Beauty interview, here. Q: After 20 years of not having a drummer in Black Tape for a Blue Girl, you said this album "demanded a rock-n-roll drummer." What do you feel necessitated that decision? Sam: The songs have an urgency and power that is best realized with a drummer kicking it along. On the last few albums Michael Laird played percussion; but 10 Neurotics is conceptualized within a more traditional rock sound. I asked Brian Viglione to be involved. I knew he would understand my ideas of "this part needs to be subtle and washy, and this part needs to be powerful and driving." On a song like, "Sailor Boy," he gets to do both within one song! Working with Brian was fantastic, because I might have a vague idea of what I was looking for, and he would come in to the studio with a fantastic arrangement that often worked perfectly right away. On a few songs we tried something, but then listening to it for a few weeks we would decide a different approach was needed. The way the drums smash in on "Love of the Father" was the 2nd idea, and it propells the song in such an emotional way. Brian's like a brother in sound, for me. He gets where I am coming from and he has great ideas to add to my songs. His involvement is definitely more integral to the sound, than has been the case with past musicians in my band.

Black Tape for a Blue Girl two interviews + New England mini-tour

Ascension Magazine Italy Autumn 2009 Read the full July 22 interview in English. here

Sonic Seducer Germany October 2009 Read the full August 24 interview in English. here

Thursday November 5th ~ The Cantab Lounge in Cambridge, MA
(Downstairs) 738 Massachusetts Avenue, 617-354-2685. $10. 21+ Venue Website & Dark Sky Productions myspace page. With: MELT, Dreamchild & Faebotica. Facebook event page.

Friday November 6th ~ Plague in Portland, ME
at The Asylum, 121 Center Street. 9-1am. 21+. Only $4 - free before 9:30 !!!! With DJ Dehuman8.
Facebook event page.

Saturday November 7th ~ Blazes Billiards in West Warwick, RI
1229 Main St. (401) 615-7677. $8. With DJ Matthew Griffin, Spindle Shanks, The Dirge Carolerss & Dorian James and The Brood. Facebook event page.

Black Tape For A Blue Girl on the new Sonic Seducer CD

The October 2009 issue of Germany's Sonic Seducer Magazine comes with a cover-mount CD that includes our track "Tell Me You've Taken Another." You can read the full interview, in English, here.

05. Black Tape For A Blue Girl „ Tell Me You’ve Taken Another“
Die 10 neurotischen Hymnen, wohl einem ganz bösen Mädchen gewidmet, erzählen von den unterschiedlichsten beziehungstechnischen Frauenkrankheiten. Wer kennt das nicht! Untermalt von Gast-Vokalisten Athan, Laurie & Nicki ist dieses Kunstwerk ein wahres Spiel aus Enttäuschungen, makaberem Fetisch und manischer Depression. Wer inneren Frust verarbeiten will, wird garantiert nicht enttäuscht.

10 Neurotics poster is now at the printer

Click for larger image

Yes, I know, I know. Procrastination doesn't pay off, and now I am late on the poster. But I have finally gotten it together and it is at he printer. I kept it PG rated, for the clubs and stores that will be hanging it. Would you like a copy of the 10 Neurotics poster? It is not yet on sale, but you can add your name to the list at the Projekt.com store and we will email you as soon as we have them. We have shows coming up in early November. Cambridge Mass is confirmed for Thurs Nov 5. Three more shows to be announced any day! And, finally, I have been having fun communication with some of you on my facebook page, concerning my rants about Illegal Downloads. Add your comments.

The Pleasure in the Pain Video

When I went to college for TV/film, I used to make video art pieces to go along with my music. It was 20 years ago when I directed my last video. Over the years, I often thought about making them for Black Tape For A Blue Girl; but I always had other things distracting me from it. No More! "The Pleasure in the Pain" is the first video for 10 Neurotics, and I plan to make more in the coming months. Let me tell you, I am so thrilled with the way this turned out.

"The Pleasure in the Pain" stars vocalist Athan Maroulis, model Narcissa and myself. As a director, I went for a somewhat dreamy but literal interpretation of the lyrics in the song. "I realize I’m absolutely yours, immobilized, you touch my neck as you draw your arm back. I’m waiting that way, excited like a schoolboy, humiliated by my convictions." Athan's character drifts through memories of the D/s relationship, wherein the two lovers were doing the things that got them off. And the conflict? Where is she? Will she come back? What is she doing now? You find out in the 2nd half of the piece.

Believe it or not, we did this shoot with no crew at all! Narcissa did her make-up, brought the props and had ideas on the interaction. Athan provided suggestions for staging and to do a lot of it lip synch. I conceived the story, did the camera work and the editing. Oh, and the lighting, built the chair, dressed the set, ran the playback and generally over-thought everything. But we wanted to make our first video in 20 years a jaw-dropping stunner. I hope you will agree that we succeeded!

Brian says it should win the "Creepiest video on MTV" award. ; )

If you are in NYC, visit Narcissa's photo exhibit at Madame X, 94 West Houston Street. The reception is Thursday Sept 17. Free. 21+.

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"The Pleasure in the Pain" from 10 Neurotics Projekt Records (US) & Trisol Records (EU).

The Video | Actors: Athan Maroulis, Narcissa & Sam Rosenthal. Conceived, directed & edited by Sam. Additional inspiration, staging and suggestions by Narcissa and Athan. Thanks to Edin Velez for storyline suggestions. © 2009 Sam Rosenthal.

The Song | Words & Music : Sam / Melody : Athan & Sam / Sam : guitar, bass & moog / Brian : drums / Athan : vocals

The Gear | Filmed with a Canon 5D Mark ii using a EF 85mm f/1.8 USM lense. Edited with Sony Vegas PRO 9.0 on a 2.93 Ghz Intel Core 2 Duo iMac, running Boot Camp. Uploaded as a 1280 x 720 .wmv - 4.8 Mbps HD.

Please post your comments on the youtube page. Sam

Free "Sailor Boy" MP3 at Amazon.com

We put a lot of love and passion into the creation of 10 Neurotics, and I am pleased the CD is making its way to the fans. You are giving me great feeback. It is always a risk to try something new, so reading your enthusiasm is really encouraging. Trisol Records is releasing the album in Europe. Alex asked me to create a "more provocative" cover for Europe, it is the image in the middle on the left. You can see all the artwork with links to the photographers and the models: 10neurotics.com. I have been busy doing interviews for Euopean magazines. So far I have "talked" with Orkus, Zillo, Sonic Seducer, Ascension and Elegy. When the issues are out, I will post the original English version on the website, here. It has been interesting to talk about the album. I think the thing that comes across to me is that even though the lyrics are about all of these erotic/extreme experiences, the theme boils down to: follow your desire. To kick things off, we are giving away a free MP3 of "Sailor Boy" in conjunction with our friends at Amazon. You can grab the track here.

Back From Our Show in Boston
We had a blast! I was joined on stage by new band members Athan Maroulis and Nicki Jaine (in the photo, above a few more at this flckr page). Our set was the premiere of new songs from 10 Neurotics, "Militärhymne," "Tell Me You've Taken Another," "Love of the Father," "Rotten Zurich Cafe," and "Sailor Boy." It was exciting to play the guitar. Performing "Love of the Father" with no backing tracks was a great new experience, and it came off wonderfully. I am talking with a promoter in Boston about a return engagement (with the full set) in a few months. More news soon.

Autographed copy of 10 Neurotics available from Newbury Comics

C L I C K :

The best Art is always dangerous. "Black Tape for a Blue Girl albums tend to be heavily themed, and this one is no exception. The theme? Sex. Passion. Desire. And some of the dark and weird and wonderful places they can take you." Nice fan blog/review: expandingtheproscenium.blogspot.com