Tom answers fans' questions

TOM ASNWERS YOUR QUESTIONS
18.01.08 | 10.56.am
Mr Chaplin faces your Ask Keane queries

Yes, as promised earlier in the week, we've asked Tom, Tim and Richard to answer some more of the questions which you folks have very kindly been sending in via the Ask Keane area of Ezine. Tom was quickest to reply to our email (gold star to Mr Chaplin!) so we're posting his responses first. Answers from Tim and Richard will follow in the next few days.

"Dear Tom. My question is, how you do always have your voice so tuned?"
Romina
Tom replies: Practice and luck.

"Hi Tom! I wonder if you are related to Charlie Chaplin?"
Siri
Tom replies: So do I! Recently, I've become obsessed by a British TV series called "Who Do You Think You Are?" in which various famous people are helped by a genealogist to find out about their ancestors and the social history that surrounds them. It's often a very moving experience and something I've even considered doing on a private basis! Chaplin is quite an unusual name and although Charlie Chaplin spent a large portion of his life in America, he was born in England. Anyway, I'd be very interested to find out.

"Hi Tom, what is your favourite colour?"
Lauren
Tom replies: All of them. Kaleidoscopes make my brain go funny. Does that count?

"Tom - What is your favourite Keane song?"
Miri
Tom replies: There's a new song called 'Perfect Symmetry', which is the best song that Tim has ever written. A true classic and also a song for our times. I can't wait to start singing it to you lot out there. You won't be disappointed.

"Tom, is it true that you had (or have) a rabbit called 'Biffo'?
Ana Catarina
Tom replies: No. I have two ducks called Hannah and Wayne that potter around on my pond. There were originally five of them but I reckon my builders ate them when they were working on my house. My girlfriend has a miniature poodle (and no it doesn't have a stupid haircut) that I've grown to love. They're actually reckoned to be one of the most intelligent dogs of them all, although this unfortunately also makes him one of the most defiant, spoilt and arrogant dogs I've ever encountered. Those traits seem to have come to the forefront since I've known him. Every dog is like its owner etc… Somehow he seems to get away with it, though. Is that me or the dog? Who knows?

"Tom, what's the most important thing in your life?"
Esmeralda Duenas
Tom replies: It flits between cricket and golf. Followed by the wonderful people I have in my life. As you can tell, my priorities are as confused as I am.

"Tom, can you hold a note for 20.2 seconds (like Morten Harket does in 'Summer Moved On')?
Danielle
Tom replies: I met Morten Harket once and he's the healthiest looking man I've ever encountered. He probably has lungs like hot air balloons. How can I compete with that?

"Tom, I'd like to know how do you take care of your voice? I'm asking because I intend to be a vocalist someday and my biggest fear is to wake up without my voice in the day of a performance! Have it ever happened to you?"
Maria Isabel
Tom replies: My voice only really goes when I get a throat infection or a bad cold. Then there was the War Child gig in Manchester where I had a terrible stomach bug – voice was fine but the rest of my body was a mess. Normally though I'm very lucky that my voice seems to be pretty robust. I do a lot of warming up and I look after my body very well on tour these days…which really helps.

"Tom, what is your favourite football team?"
George Papadakis
Tom replies: Ipswich Town. Wouldn't die for them though. Mainly because they're a bit ****.

"Tom, I am from Costa Rica and I think you guys are amazing. I just wanna know, what do you do when you feel alone?"
Tiffany
Tom replies: Wow, that comes across as an extremely philosophical question. I feel that living in these times we have more distractions and more opportunities to communicate; and yet it seems like there's more loneliness and unhappiness than ever before. Solitude is fine so long as that's what you really want. I like spending time on my own but I don't like being stuck on my own with a lot of bottled up anxieties. My answer, for what it's worth, is to try to talk to someone if you feel alone, however hard that might seem. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that the old cliché of "a problem shared is a problem halved" is very helpful. Whenever I feel alone, it's because I'm stuck with problems and parts of my personality that I don't particularly like. I've spent a fair amount of time over the last year or two trying to articulate those feelings to other people, especially the people closest to me. Anyway, before I start sounding like some awful pseudo-psychiatrist, I'll be on my way. Lots of love to you all. Goodbye. Tom

Source:keanemusic.com