The initiative is intended to generate increased support towards food banks to raise the funds needed to help the increasing number of people forced to rely on them this Christmas.

As the UK continues to witness the Cost of Living crisis, more individuals are forced to live day by day to afford food and basic amenities, the strain on food banks has soared as more individuals rely on their resources to make ends meet. Between April 2023 and March 2024 more than 655,000 reported using foodbanks for the first time, whilst 3.1 million emergency food parcels were sent out to those facing hardships across Britian. This is a 94% increase over the past five years.

In just five years, over a million more people in the UK are now facing hunger and hardship, bringing the total to staggering new heights

Support your local food bank through Bankuet so they can continue providing their life-saving services https://t.co/v1NlWKvP0t pic.twitter.com/4oQw3sm12b

— Bankuet (@bankuetuk) November 18, 2024

Hailing from Glasgow, Travis have established a reputation for creating timeless soft, alternative rock tracks for their ever-growing fanbase since the 1990s. With two number one albums, respectively ‘The Man Who’ released in 1999 and ‘The Invisible Band’ released in 2001, Travis are clearly determined to give back to the very communities that assisted their rise to fame by using their fortunate position to create positive change.

Travis’ frontman Fran Healy has discussed the importance of the band’s involvement in the ‘Eat the Beat’ food bank initiative, stating: “I was poor growing up, so we’re joining forces with Bankuet to help feed not only the growing number of people who are having to rely on food banks but those on low incomes faced with the choice of heating or eating this Christmas”.

He continued: “There is no shame in asking for help, I got free school dinners every day and that made me feel cared for and perhaps more importantly, knowing it helped my mum made it feel even better. Food banks are essential to help families and individuals in need to put food on the table in the UK. We’re so lucky we have some extra money to buy a ticket to go see a gig, so please chuck in a few quid or get rid of your change or tap the app”.

The ‘Flowers In The Window’ band will embark on their headline tour in early December, commencing at Leeds O2 Academy on December 5. Travis will then perform a string of shows across the UK in Manchester, Liverpool, Bristol, London and Glasgow throughout the course of the month.

 

 

 

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The ‘Raze the Bar’ tour accompanies the release of Travis’ latest album, ‘L.A. Times’, their tenth studio album which released back in July. The LP effortlessly displays Travis’ ever-evolving sonic style, with a reinvention of their earlier sound which utilises introspective lyricism but adopts more consistently catchy melodies.

Their forthcoming almost sold-out tour will give attendees the opportunity to give back to their local communities. Fans will have the choice to donate through the Bankuet website by clicking the ‘Eat the Beat’ option at checkout or by donating at any of the venues across the ‘Raze the Bar’ tour. Fans who donate via the Bankuet website (who show proof of donation) or those who choose to donate on the night will receive a donation badge from Bankuet volunteers, who will be present on the night.

This winter, we’re teaming up with @bankuetuk to launch a campaign that’s close to our hearts: EAT THE BEAT – raising vital funds to support food banks during our upcoming Raze The Bar UK tour. Here’s how you can get involved: Donate online at https://t.co/2SBfRteMsX by… pic.twitter.com/kwjBnvyUGz

— Travis (@TravisBand) November 27, 2024

As demand for foodbanks continues, Travis and Bankuet’s ‘Eat the Beat’ food bank initiative aims to start a grassroots effort to help individuals in our local and national communities to have access to resources which lessen their hardships.

They will kick off the tour in Leeds at the O2 Academy on the 5th of December, followed by performances in Manchester, Liverpool, Nottingham, Bristol, Sheffield and more, before a big homecoming gig for the Glasgow natives at Glasgow’s OVO Hydro on the 21st of December.

This headline UK tour will follow a very busy summer for the Glasgow band, where they will be supporting the Killers on their UK arena tour in 16 dates throughout June and July, and they will then return to Europe in August to perform their first headline tour there since 2016 which will run into September. They are also headlining Sign Of The Times Festival in Hertfordshire in July and will perform a set at BBC Radio 2 In The Park in September in Preston. As well as this they have also announced that they will be doing 22 dates across the US and Canada in January 2025.

The upcoming UK tour dates are:

December 05 2024 – LEEDS O2 Academy Leeds
December 06 2024 – MANCHESTER Albert Hall
December 08 2024 – LIVERPOOL Olympia
December 09 2024 – WOLVERHAMPTON Civic at the Halls
December 10 2024 – NOTTINGHAM Rock City
December 11 2024 – MARGATE Dreamland
December 13 2024 – LONDON O2 Shepherds Bush Empire
December 15 2024 – BRISTOL Beacon
December 17 2024 – EASTBOURNE Winter Gardens
December 18 2024 – SHEFFIELD Octagon
December 19 2024 – NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE City Hall
December 21 2024 – GLASGOW OVO Hydro

Tickets go on sale at 9am on the 14th of June and you can buy yours here.

Just Before this announcement of their upcoming UK tour Travis also released their latest single, ‘Bus’, off of their upcoming album ‘L.A. Times’ which is set to be released on the 12th of July and you can pre order a copy here. The new single is the third single released from ‘L.A. Times’ following ‘Raze the Bar’ which saw them joined by Coldplay’s Chris Martin, and Killers’ Brandon Flowers. 

Travis Frontman, Fran Healey, said about the idea behind the song “I was on holiday, staring out the window, watching all the boats bobbing on the sea. I was trying to write a song and nothing was coming. It reminded me of all the years I spent waiting on buses. You never think it’s going to come, but if you wait long enough it usually turns up.” 

He added “In the middle of all these thoughts came a cool little melody and the song was written a few minutes later.” 

The song was accompanied by a new music video which was filmed in Scotland, and directed by Healey himself and it features the band waiting for a bus in the Scottish Highlands for what seems to be a long time as well as the group performing the song by the road. It also has a short guest appearance from comedian and actor Adam Buxton. Check it out below.

The three day festival, ‘Radio 2 in the park’, has been taking place since 2011, and each year creates quite a stir, with huge acts taking to the stage each year. Until 2023, it was held in London’s Hyde Park, however now takes place in a different location each year as part of the BBC’s Across the UK plan, with last year’s show taking place in Victoria Park in Leicester.

Recently, Zoe Ball announced the exciting weekend’s initial lineup on her show. So far, the organisers are catering for all audiences, with the main stage on the Saturday being graced by a performance of the iconic Sting, alongside performances from nostalgic artists such as: Sugababes, Snow Patrol, Kim Wilde, Travis, and Craig David.  The Sunday does not disappoint either, with Manic Street Preachers, Sister Sledge and Paul Heaton stirring up audiences. The performance from Sting on the Saturday is set to be like no other, as he takes his new dynamic trio to the stage to perform his own songs, alongside Police classics.

The people of Preston are also clearly excited for this event, with Chief Executive at Preston City Council, Adrian Phillips, telling the BBC, “We’re looking forward to welcoming thousands of people to Radio 2 in the Park, as well as our favourite presenters, who we love to listen to day in, day out. It promises to be the biggest live event Lancashire has seen in many years, and everyone can’t wait to enjoy what promises to be a fantastic weekend of live music in the city.”

Tickets will go on sale at 8:15am 4th June, with each festival day ticket sold separately, priced at £59, excluding ticket fees. Tickets for Radio 2’s pre-party, are priced at £30, also excluding ticket fees. All tickets can be accessed here.

In a message to fans posted on the band’s Instagram account this afternoon, frontman Fran Healy wrote: “Hey Everyone. It’s a massive bummer to learn that we are off the road for another year. Even though it’s hard to take, it feels like the right thing to do. Feeling safe is the invisible ingredient of going to a gig and without it, the experience would never feel right. We cannot wait till this nightmare is over. We hope you are all doing well. Stay safe, Fran X”

Guitarist Andy Dunlop added: “I’m absolutely heartbroken that we have to reschedule, I’m sure like many of you it was my light at the end of the tunnel, but first and foremost we must make sure that the shows are safe and also, hopefully by that time free of any restrictions so we can have the biggest party ever!
Andy xx”

Due to the ongoing Coronavirus outbreak the Travis 2021 shows have been postponed. The rearranged dates will be in May 2022. Customers are advised to keep their tickets as they will be valid for the new dates, any queries please contact your ticket provider. pic.twitter.com/MRFz7vzcNx

— Travis (@TravisBand) February 5, 2021

Healy had previously expressed reservations on the likelihood of the tour taking place in 2021. In an interview with Scotland’s Sunday Post last October, he said: “I asked our managers if they were joking when they talked about booking a tour, but they said we had to just batter on with it. Hopefully, by then, things will be better, but who knows. If not, we go to Plan B, although I don’t know if there is a Plan B. I think everyone is on Plan L or M by now. It’s a funny old time. It’s made everybody stop taking things for granted as much.”

Travis’ return to the stage in 2022 will provide fans with a belated first opportunity to hear live renditions from the Caledonian soft rockers’ 2020 album 10 Songs. The group’s latest record – their ninth studio LP – reached number #5 in the Official UK Albums chart in October, and topped the charts in their native Scotland. Seven of the ten tracks on the album have been released as singles; most recently the string-infused ballad Nina’s Song.

Reviews for 10 Songs were broadly positive, with Louder Than War‘s Sean Hornby praising the band’s durability and consistency. Hornby wrote: “Many of their contemporaries have fallen by the wayside. Yet, even if they’ve not always been the flavour of the month Travis remain a constant. In 2020 they’ve released a career-high, pertinent, contemporary collection of songs that will rightly find their place within their audience’s psyche. Once again Travis have managed to retain their dignity by remaining true to their values and ethics.”

2021 marks the twentieth (twentieth!) anniversary of Travis’ chart-topping third album, The Invisible Band, a quadruple platinum-selling LP which maintained the group’s standing as one of Britain’s most influential contemporary bands two years on from the success of the seminal The Man Who. The Invisible Band also spawned three stellar folk-pop singles in Sing, Side and Flowers In The Window.

The rescheduled dates for Travis’ 2022 tour are as follows:

10/05/22 – Corn Exchange – Cambridge
11/05 – O2 Academy – Leeds
12/05 – Forum – Bath
14/05 – Victoria Hall – Stoke
15/05 – Symphony Hall – Birmingham
17/05 – Albert Hall – Manchester
18/05 – O2 Academy – Bournemouth
20/05 – Roundhouse – London
21/05 – O2 City Hall – Newcastle-upon-Tyne
22/05 – Royal Concert Hall – Glasgow

Don’t forget to tune in to The @latelateshow with @JKCorden tonight to see our performance of ‘A Ghost’ from 12.30am (PST) on CBS! pic.twitter.com/Fsl5C0KKUr

— Travis (@TravisBand) November 2, 2020

A Ghost, the second of seven singles released from 10 Songs to date, is an up-tempo folksy number which dwells on themes of ageing, love, regret and acceptance. In the chorus lead singer Fran Healy’s words speak to both middle-aged anxiety and undimmed resolve: “Oh but I saw a ghost/In the mirror coming near/ A little close for comfort tonight/ He said ‘It’s easier to be alive/ Than hide under your pillow/ While your life is passing you by’/ So live your life/ Don’t waste your time.”

The singles released from the album so far include gentler acoustic numbers (Kissing In The Wind, All Fall Down and The Only Thing, a sweet duet with Bangles singer-songwriter Susanna Hoffs); the string-tinged pop-rock ballad Nina’s Song; the driving, Arcade Fire-esque Waving At The Window; and the electric guitar-laden Valentine, which was accompanied by a video which plays out like a darker (and trippier) version of the iconic promo for the group’s smash hit Turn.

10 Songs, which reached number 5 in the UK albums chart in October, is the eighth Travis LP to scale the British top 10 over the band’s thirty years in the business. The last Travis album to reach the Top 40 on the other side of the Atlantic was the 2001 classic The Invisible Man, the follow-up to their generation-defining 1999 masterpiece The Man Who.

The band’s appearance on one of America’s biggest chat shows on the eve of a hugely contentious election feels opportune; with affable frontman Fran Healy having spoken at length about how one of the new album’s main themes (‘to be kind‘) is the antithesis of a certain presidential candidate’s approach. Healy, who now lives in Los Angeles, told Vulture that he is hopeful the upcoming election will lead to a change of course for his adopted homeland.

He said “(Trump)’s appealing to people who have been neglected by fucking government after government after government who doesn’t even acknowledge their existence…A lot of people have been ignored for generations, and suddenly this guy comes along and says, ‘I see you.’ He’s not giving them love, though. He can’t. He’s not capable of that… I think this election is going to be America’s IQ test. I think you’re going to get flying colors. You’re going to pass it because people have woken up…”

The Glaswegian band are due to take 10 Songs on tour in the UK next May, but Healy admits that the situation is still up in the air. He told Scotland’s Sunday Post paper “I asked our managers if they were joking when they talked about booking a tour, but they said we had to just batter on with it. Hopefully, by then, things will be better, but who knows. If not, we go to Plan B, although I don’t know if there is a Plan B. I think everyone is on Plan L or M by now. It’s a funny old time. It’s made everybody stop taking things for granted as much.“

Last month, the Scottish four-piece has ended their four-year absence from the music scene with the announcement of ‘10 Songs.‘ They also shared the first preview of the album with “A Ghost,” the track that brings back all the good old times during the peak of brit-pop in the late 1990s.

Yesterday, the “Closer” hitmaker has continued a streak of nostalgic tunes with the second cut from the LP. Titled “Valentine,” frontman Fran Healy explained to NME about how the group has created the “closest” work to what the songs in their 1997 debut ‘Good Feeling‘ sound like:

““Valentine“ was recorded as a predominately live performance in December 2019 at RAK Studios in London. It’s the closest Travis have gotten sonically to our debut album.” Healy also added that the song is similar to work by Scottish blues and rock artist Alex Harvey. Have a listen below.

What’s more exciting about ‘10 Songs‘ is the 46-year-old frontman’s return as the major songwriter of every track on the album. “I find it hard to sing other people’s songs,” Healy confessed, “I love Dougie [Payne, bassist] and Andy [Dunlop, guitarist] lots and that’s what makes Travis vibrate the way it does, but I needed to tell them that I had the energy to do this and they were totally cool with it.” Read the full interview here.

This means Travis’ fans can expect the same darker vibe in the brilliant ‘12 Memories‘ album that Healy was in complete charge of the writing process. Moreover, the upcoming album is shaping up to be another great record of the band as the album is co-produced with indie rock producers with the likes of Robin Baynton (Coldplay, Florence + The Machine), Grandaddy’s Jason Lytle, The Bangles’ Susanna Hoffs, and Greg Leisz (Beck, Emmylou Harris, Bruce Springsteen).

‘10 Songs‘ is set for release on October 9 via BMG. The band also releases a special 10″ vinyl of the track “Valentine,” designed by International Turner prize winner Douglas Gordon, which is exclusively available on the band’s official site.

Today we release ‘Valentine’. It’s the best recording of us rocking out ever! Douglas Gordon, International Turner prize winner, has created a limited edition 10” vinyl of the track which is available only from our store NOW!

Click here….https://t.co/ZefIzej6Ni pic.twitter.com/kS6OXcz1dJ

— Travis (@TravisBand) July 8, 2020

‘10 Songs‘ Tracklist
1. “Waving at the Window”
2. “The Only Thing” (feat. Susanna Hoffs)
3. “Valentine”
4. “Butterflies”
5. “A Million Hearts”
6. “A Ghost”
7. “All Fall Down”
8. “Kissing in the Wind”
9. “Nina’s Song”
10. “No Love Lost“

The supergroup consists of Midlake’s Eric Pulido, McKenzie Smith, Joey McClellan, and Jesse Chandler, plus Band of Horses’ Ben Bridwell, Franz Ferdinand’s Alex Kapranos, Grandaddy’s Jason Lytle, and Travis’ Fran Healy. The band are currently working on a debut album entitled Volume I, as The Dallas Observer reports, with the aim to release the album in late 2016.

The formation of Banquet is down to the Midlake boys, with Eric Paulido leading the efforts. Talking to The Dallas Observer Paulido said he fired off emails to various musicians asking if they were interested in joining, saying “I was surprised people said yes.” He added that “It’s a humbling and cool experience to share something like this with some of your musical idols who are also nice people.”

The Observer interview article also had Paulido liken the group to “a poor man’s Traveling Wilbury’s”, the late 80s supergroup comprised of Bob Dylan, George Harrison, Jeff Lynne, Roy Orbison and Tom Petty. The Wilbury’s brought out two albums between 1988-1990 called Vol. 1 and Vol. 3, with Vol. 2 being bootlegged by George Harrison’s estate in 2007 in his George by George boxset. No suprise then that the title of Banquet’s Vol. I is an effort to reflect the Wilbury’s.

Paulido also talked of a Vol. 2, with the idea to get some of his other favourite musicians involved; his wishlist included Rufus Wainwright, Norah Jones, and John Grant.