Questions about Alhambra | Questions about live performances
Questions about band members | Questions about songs | Questions about albums | Questions about other things
Questions about Alhambra |
Questions about live performances
Questions about band members |
Questions about songs |
Questions about albums |
Questions about other things
Q. Why won't my Alhambra CD work? I can't see the multimedia!
A. Alhambra was recorded using 'pre-gap' technology - to put it simply, the multimedia data is written in the gap before the music where audio CD players won't find it. This, unfortunately is 'old' technology, and therefore software and hardware manufacturers don't bother with support for it - now it's all 'multisession' CD-roms. Because of this, if you have Windows 95b or later, you will find that you don't have the drivers necessary to play pre-gap CDs. You can find out if this is the cause of your problem by booting your computer to DOS (remember you'll need DOS drivers for your CD drive loaded!) and doing a DIR on your CD drive. If you can only see the six music tracks, your problem is more than just drivers - see below! If you can see all the files, you're in luck, and you have two options. If you have heaps of room on your hard drive, you can copy all the files there - it takes a few hundred meg, but the movies will be as smooth as silk! If you don't have this much room to spare (and who has!) you can get a software fix HERE (20KB)
If you only saw the audio tracks in DOS, unfortunately this means that your CD drive itself does not support pre-gap CDs. There's not much you can do about this. Toshiba and NEC's seem to be the most common brands not to support the pre-gap CDs. Try their web sites for drivers. This may fix the problem.
If none of the above work, there is another option open to you. Several members of Sister-Awake own CD writers, and it is possible to copy the multimedia section onto another CD - so your original Alhambra CD can stay with your stereo and the multimedia-only CD can stick with your computer. If you'd like to discuss this option, please ask on the list.
CD-ROM Drive Incompatibility with Recordable CDs
There is one issue you may like to look into - especially if you do have an old CD drive. Recordable CDs have a different reflective coating than that of your everyday audio CD (so it can be burned by a laser), and CD writers have a stronger laser than your everyday CD drive (that's so they can burn the disk). The problem starts when you try to play a recorded CD and the laser beam simply isn't strong enough to reflect properly - hence the drive will not read the CD. This usually only happens on very old CD drives (if you have a 1x, 2x or even 4x, you may have problems - then again you may not!)
However, it can be a problem on newer CD drives as well. You can check with your CD manufacturer to see if it is likely to be a problem and if they have a fix for it.
If the fact that your drive is old is a worry to you, see if you can borrow a few recorded CDs from a friend (I say a few because there are often times when a drive will read one disk and not another - as you probably know!) Test the drive yourself - if it absolutely refuses to read any recorded CDs, it's probably time for a new drive - your laser is probably going to die soon anyway (yes, they do weaken over time until they eventually die).
Just as a vague guide, I have found that certain drives that have trouble reading recorded CDs tend to have trouble reading many of the cover-disks available on magazines - if this is a curse of yours, I'd be tempted to blame the drive rather than the disks!
When you're buying your new CD rom drive, keep in mind the issues mentioned. If you can, take a disk or two to test to make sure it will read recorded CDs.
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Q. Does anyone know why they called the CD 'Alhambra' and where the origin stems from?
A. Alhambra - (Arabic Al Hambra - the Red One)
The Alhambra (Granada, Spain) dates back to the 12th century and is a collection of buildings, including barracks, offices and palaces, rather than a single structure. It is the most famous of Islamic Spain's monuments, and is possibly the best example of Moorish architecture in the world today. Most of the buildings were added in the 14th and 15th centuries, and parts were demolished in the early 16th century to make way for a new palace within the walls.
Features include The Hall of The Two Sisters (Sala de las Dos Hermanas), The Court of The Lions, The Court of Myrtles and various throne rooms
elaborately decorated with panels of geometric designs interwoven with quotes from the Koran.
The band chose the name for the album as a kind of tribute to the Moors for their impact on architecture and design.
You can read more about the Alhambra at the following sites:
See some pictures here
http://www.greatbuildings.com/buildings/The_Alhambra.html
http://www.red2000.com/spain/granada/alhamb.html
http://tuspain.com/alhambra.htm
http://i-cias.com/m.s/spain/alhambra.htm
http://weasel.cnrs.humboldt.edu/~spain/alh/
http://www.unesco.org/whc/sites/314.htm
http://ftp.sunet.se/ftp/pub/pictures/views/Spain/Alhambra/
Questions about live performances:
Q: I noticed in some of the Tea Party's live performances that during 'Save Me' they play a song that is probably called something like "stranger in the eyes of the maker" and I was wondering if anybody knows who wrote it.
A: The song is called "The Maker" and is by Daniel Lanois, who is a Canadian album producer, having produced for U2, Peter Gabriel, and Robbie Robertson. There have been quite a few 'inserts' in Save Me - from Nine Inch Nails 'Hurt' to, most recently, Jeff Buckley's 'Last Goodbye'. Click HERE for a full list of songs covered in live performances.
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Q: Will a live album or video ever be released?
A: The band were hoping to get enough material on the last tour to put together a live album, but decided to put off the project until at least after the next album. More recording will be done throughout the next tour and hopefully a live album will follow soon after!
Q: Does anyone have a full list of Tea Party shows?
A. You can download a chronological listing in MS Excel format HERE (78KB). (If you don't have
Excel you can get a viewer for free at Microsoft's home pages)
Q: A friend of mine has a copy of Splendor Solis that is in different packaging to mine - can someone please tell me what the differences are?
A: The original release has a disk with a grey tree on a black background, rather than the orange tree on clear background that comes with the remastered version. It also had an image inside the back cover, which you can see HERE. The first 50,000 original disks came with a promotional concert ticket which was honoured on the October '95 Canadian tour. There is no special value to this CD - it's just Splendor Solis in a different package.
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Q: What does the band think of the endless 'Doors' comparisons?
A: This has been discussed as endlessly as the comparisons have continued ... you can read our views and find out what the band thinks HERE
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Q: Are the band into drugs?
A: Basically, yes. Read what we've had to say about it HERE (within the band name discussion) and HERE. You can also find some information on drugs HERE.
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Q: Where does the band's inspiration come from?
A: See above question on 'drugs' ;) On a serious note however, inspiration has come in many forms for the Tea Party, from the obvious musical influence of Jimi Hendrix, Led Zepplin and Ali Akbar Khan and the not-so-obvious Joy Division and Tricky, through to the literary influence of authors such as Yevgeny Zamyatin, Charles Baudelaire and Tom Cowan. Find out more about the influences of the Tea Party HERE (coming soon), and read what's been said on Sister-Awake HERE.
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Q: Why did they call themselves 'The Tea Party'?
A: There are several stories floating around about this one. In an early interview, Stuart Chatwood was quoted as saying 'You'll have to read the book'. Many interpreted 'the book' to be Lewis Carol's Alice in Wonderland, with its myriad drug references and of course, 'The Mad Tea Party'. In another interview, however, Jeff Martin quoted the Boston Tea Party as inspiration for the name - likening their 'revolutionary' style of music to the revolution at Boston. More recently, he has given the reason for the choice of name as taken from a group of jazz musos who got together once a week for a 'tea party', where they would pretty much get zonked and read poetry. Whichever explanation you choose to believe is up to you, personally I think it depends on what mood they're in :)
You can read what's been said on Sister-Awake HERE.
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Q. Is the band religious?
A. Jeff Martin claims he does not 'subscribe to any one religion'. He is of the opinion that 'all religions are flawed' and, if the album Transmission is anything to go by, believes that the world would be a better place without religion. On the other hand, the band appears to be highly interested in 'alternative' religions, with hints of pagan theology sprinkled throughout Splendor Solis and Edges of Twilight. Click HERE to read more.
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Q: Where can I get Tea Party guitar tabs?
A: An official tab book was recently published in Canada and Australia, but apparently is supposed to be re-published because of a lot of mistakes in both the tabs and the lyrics. (You can find out what sort of mistakes HERE - coming soon.) More reliable tabs can be found on fan pages around the place. Check out some of the sites listed HERE.
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Q: How many videos have the band released?
A: There have been 10 videos released, they are:
Q: How can I get a copy of the Indie CD?
A: An original one? You can't. Only around 3500 copies of the Tea Party's debut album were released, and it's been reported that fans have paid $300+ for an original copy. In most people's opinions it's not worth that much! Besides, the band have been known to hint that the songs will 'inevitably' be re-released one day ...
However, if you just have to hear it - now - there are several ways to get a copy. Firstly, you can download the entire album in MP3 format. GO HERE to find out how.
Not everyone has an internet connection that can handle this sort of download, so there are many list members who are willing to set up trades - if you have any bootlegs you'll have no problem organising a swap, but even if you don't, other arrangements can be made (eg. 2 for 1 blank tape trades).
Most list members agree that the whole idea of trading is not to make money but rather to share something 'special' with fellow fans.
Even if you're not after the indie specifically, and just have a bootleg you want to trade, check out this page to find a list of fellow Awakers' boot lists.
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Q: Where does the artwork from the albums come from?
A: The indie:
Questions about songs:
Q: Who is Inanna?
A: Inanna, The Lady of Heaven, was a powerful Sumerian Goddess. There is a lot of information about her as well as links to a ritual practiced by modern-day Wiccans HERE.
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Q: I've noticed a lot of parallels between 'Save Me' and Hamlet - was the song inspired by the play?
A: In a word - no. Somewhat of an explanation of 'Save Me' can be found HERE
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Q: What is Drawing Down the Moon about?
A: 'Drawing Down the Moon' is a Wiccan ritual which involves drawing the power of the Goddess within. You can read a modern interpretation of the ritual HERE. How this fits in with the song has been speculated about, but no real understanding has been gained.
Questions about band members:
Many people are interested in the personal lives of the members of their favourite band, but as fans we have a responsibility to accept that some things are private, and should be kept just that. The Tea Party have their own habits, loves and life stories, and it is not for us to know what colour jocks they wear on Sundays. Having said that, there are several questions that come up time and again on the list - as far as personal information, if it's not here it's not available, and most people on the list tend to agree that the personal lives of the band are not for discussion. Click HERE to read what we've had to say about this.
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Q. Why did Jeff Martin change his name?
A: (Check out this link: Graduation photos) In a high school yearbook, Jeff Martin is pictured and had the name Jeff Brill. It is unclear whether he has changed his name since his mother remarried, or whether the picture was erronously captioned, as in other pictures in the same yearbook, he is named as Jeff Martin. You can some of our speculations HERE.