The Tear the Signs Down album tour was a tour by the Welsh rock band

The Automatic The Automatic (also known as The Automatic Automatic in the U.S.) was a Welsh rock band. The band's last-known lineup was composed of Robin Hawkins on vocals, bass and synthesisers, James Frost on guitar, synthesisers, backing vocals and occas ...

, in support of their third album '' Tear the Signs Down''. The band made their live comeback at Cardiff Barfly on 19 September 2009 and soon after announced a string of dates in November where they would preview new material from their then upcoming album. The band undertook a full UK tour, with plans to tour in Europe and America.

Background

During 2009 the band only played a handful of dates,

Jarocin Festival Jarocin Festival was one of the biggest and most important rock music festivals in 1980s Europe, by far the biggest festival of alternative music in the Warsaw Pact countries. Founded in 1980, the festival was based on the earlier ''Wielkopolskie ...

in Poland and Tamworth Midlands Music Festival in July and August, and then their 'comeback performance' on 19 September 2009 in their native

Cardiff Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...

at Barfly, where they performed new material for the first time. Soon after they announced a small 10 date tour across parts of the United Kingdom, in November 2009. Prior to the November tour the full album tour was also announced, across the England, Scotland and Wales in March 2010. Three sold out London dates were at the start of the tour, at Hoxton Bar and Kitchen, The Borderline and Camden Barfly. During the March 2010 tour dates the band were supported by Straight Lines and White Belt Yellow Tag. Throughout the tour The Automatic ran a competition via Twitter, giving fans the chance to win a free guest list place every night of the tour. After the March 2010 tour the band played sporadic gigs and festivals across the summer. They were also favoured to support

Ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

in April or May on tour, this never became. In late June The Blackout supported The Automatic at a charity performance at

Pontypridd () ( colloquially: Ponty) is a town and a community in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. Geography comprises the electoral wards of , Hawthorn, Pontypridd Town, 'Rhondda', Rhydyfelin Central/Ilan ( Rhydfelen), Trallwng ( Trallwn) and Treforest (). ...

Muni Arts Centre, whilst later in July The Automatic supported

Funeral for a Friend Funeral for a Friend are a Welsh post-hardcore band from Bridgend, formed in 2001 and currently consists of Matthew Davies-Kreye (lead vocals), Kris Coombs-Roberts (guitar, backing vocals), Gavin Burrough (guitar, backing vocals), Darran Smit ...

on their

Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation ''Casually Dressed & Deep in Conversation'' is the debut studio album by Welsh rock band Funeral for a Friend. It was released on 13 October 2003 through Atlantic Records and was produced by Colin Richardson with co-production by the band themse ...

tour dates.

Reception

Despite

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

's poor reaction to the album '' Tear the Signs Down'' the magazine praised the performance at Liverpool on 14 March 2010 - also contradicting their album review calling Tear the Signs Down ''"an impressive third record"'', Mike Haydock wrote ''"They look happy, and it's infectious, translating into a hugely impressive, enjoyable show that puts smiles on people's faces. And surely that's the whole point, right?"'', noting also that hit singles "Steve McQueen", "Monster", "Raoul" and "Recover" all gained the most response.Live review: The Automatic
NME, 30 March 2010

Set list

Many of the tracks from ''Tear the Signs Down'' have been alternated throughout the tour, with "Run and Hide", "Interstate", "Something Else" and "Cannot Be Saved" remaining present at all dates. "Steve McQueen", "Magazines", "This Is A Fix" and "Light Entertainment" along with an alternation of Sleepwalking and other tracks from ''

This Is A Fix ''This Is A Fix'' is the second album by Wales-based band The Automatic. It was released on 25 August 2008. The band worked with producer Don Gilmore in Los Angeles, but were disappointed with these sessions, and instead worked with Butch Walker ...

''. "Monster", "Campaign Trail", "Raoul" and "Recover" have all been present from ''

Not Accepted Anywhere ''Not Accepted Anywhere'' is the debut album from Welsh rock band The Automatic, originally released on 19 June 2006. Working with producers Stephen Harris, Richard Jackson and Ian Broudie on different tracks at a variety of studios around the ...

'' whilst "That's What She Said" and "By My Side" have been included on occasion. You Shout, Keep Your Eyes Peeled, Seriously I Hate You Guys, Team Drama and Rats have yet to be performed with Paul Mullen as a member of The Automatic. * Interstate * Recover * Magazines * Run and Hide * Raoul * Race to the Heart of the Sun * Monster * Something Else * This Is A Fix * Can I Take You Home * On The Campaign Trail * Sleepwalking * Cannot Be Saved * Light Entertainment * Steve McQueen

Tour dates

References

{{Authority control The Automatic 2009 concert tours 2010 concert tours