View
256
Download
1
Category
Tags:
Preview:
DESCRIPTION
Rock, Salt & Nails is all about rekindling a passion for discovering new music. It's all about inspiration, sound and compelling music from the UK and across the globe.
Citation preview
rock, salt + nails 1
Featuring:JAKE MORLEY,Brother + Bones,Deaf Havana,Amber Run+ more
#1 // 05.14
4 rock, salt + nails
conTentsHello. Welcome to the very first issue of Rock, Salt & Nails, a publication that is all about rekindling a lost passion for discovering new music. It’s all about inspiration, sound and compelling melody. But most importantly, giving talented musicians the coverage they so desperately deserve. We aim to showcase the best upcoming talent, inspiring you to listen to
Cover Photo Jake Morley by Alex Genn-Bash
something new. Rock, Salt & Nails is not purely about great music, it is also about feeling inspired, whether that is through print, photography, music or art. The main aim of RSN was to create something that I would ultimately like to buy, as the days where I’d be excited about a new issue of a magazine seemed like a distant memory. This love and appreciation for print publications has definitely been rediscovered,
I hope you enjoy and feel inspired too! You can keep up to date with music news, reviews and other exciting features over at: www.rocksaltandnails.com Thank you to all the wonderfully talented people who’ve got onboard with this exciting new venture.
Rosheene McClintock.rosheenem@gmail.com
rock, salt + nails 5
conTents venues/hidden gems
brother + bONes
ON REPEATPLAYLIST HELLO:
AMBER RUNBIG SCARY
MUSIC MEANING
MUSICREVIEWS
JAKE MORLEY
Nathan Leone
interviewWHY DOESEVERYONE
HATEMUMFORD +
SONS?
BOOK REVIEWS6
8
1224 2630
33 39
444620
profile:adam
duritz
51JAMES
WILLARDQ+A
42
interpreting music
50worth
watching
6 rock, salt + nails
On Re
peat...
You know when you go through phases of listening to a song on repeat? Here’s my pick, that work as the perfect chilled out playlist with a mix of songs that covers all moods from melancholy to blissful happiness. They work in harmony as a playlist and combine a range of older songs with new releases. Growing up listening to Counting Crows, I have
become very song of them, however All My Friends is not a favourite song of my parents. I
recently listened to This Desert Life in it’s entirety (on a CD, in my CD player, remember those?), and could do nothing other than marvel how great the song was. It is wistful and searching, and so deeply
felt it’s impossible not to feel the passion help within the song.
I recently got to see The Fray perform a one-off show at The Scala in London, despite the jet lag and sheer volume of alcohol
consumed by the band, it was one of those ‘goosebumps-on-arms’
moments, where you long for the evening to never end. Happiness
saw Isaac singing to a silent, awestricken room. The best thing about this song is how effective it
is in its artful simplicity.
This is a serious jam. Did I describe a song as ‘a jam’? Yes. Do I regret
it? NO. You can’t help but smile and dance to the rhythm of the music. The exquisite double bass makes
the songs memorable, with singer Luke Concannon belting out the
hight notes in an enviable manner. It’s such a crime that this band is not widely know, and their single The JCB Song doesn’t adequately summarise these musicians skilful
instrumentation.
Caro Padre translates to mean ‘Dear Father’, and it is a deeply felt track with a lyrical delivery that is absolutely heart wrenching. It’s an epic song with a choir which adds an extra emotive dimension.
The song builds up with increasingly dramatic guitars and drum beat before quietening to a stripped back acoustic
final chorus, with the last chord leaving you feeling torn. Deaf Havana thrive in with these sorts of songs, a world away from their older releases which focus
more on heavier rock.
rock, salt + nails 7
Thorns gives me chills every time. As soon as the bass drum kicks in my mind
quietens and I can lose myself within Charlie’s husky voice and beautiful
melodies. There’s always something quietly satisfying to have the lyrics “Let’s drench ourselves in England’s
weather, just to know we’re free” blaring through your headphones when getting
absolutely soaked in a storm.
I discovered this song through the film ‘Safe Haven’, and had to buy the soundtrack as the songs were
incredible. This is my favourite out of all of them, and has quickly become a song that I am very attached to. I’ll be the first to admit that female sing-songwriters are not my favourite. But this song is rhythmic and
her vocals are spot on. The lyrics are what I really love though, relatable with great harmonies.
A positive, upbeat song, with the vocals being the main
focal point emphasised by the musical background. It’s a song
that appeals to all tastes, his distinctive vocal style is velvety smooth, allowing his words to smother you in a caramel kiss.
To me, the song title itself is brilliant. It is compelling, when I first heard this
particular song it really touched me and I related to the lyrics in a way I never thought
possible. It’s almost as if singer Ralph is delivering a monologue straight from his
heart. The musical break allows the singers words to really sink in, when the drums kick
back in it reflects the confusion and hurt within the lyrics.
All My Friends - Counting Crows Fictional State - To Kill A King
(Marie’s The Name) His Latest Flame - ElvisNoah - Amber Run
Dark Blue - Jack’s MannequinThorns - Charlie Simpson
Oblivion - BastilleMillion Faces - Paolo Nutini Demons - Imagine Dragons
Gold & Silver - Brother & BonesCaro Padre - Deaf Havana
Happiness - The FraySexy Plexi - Jack Johnson
Wrap Your Arms Around Me - Gareth DunlopKeep Your Head Up - Ben HowardSay Anything - Tristan Prettyman
22 - Deaf HavanaBitter - Reforma
If You Care About It - NizlopiGood Life - One Republic
8 rock, salt + nails
HELLOIntroducing the best new music to get your teeth
into, from the UK and beyond.
rock, salt + nails 9
Melbourne two-piece Big Scary have a unique spark, the music is completely their own and with each new song they
flourish and grow. Joanna Syme and Tom Iansek create sonically gratifying melody channelled through Big Scary, the band came to fruition in 2006 when mutual friends put the pair in contact. Tom got in touch, then turned up on Joanna’s doorstep guitar in hand, and so the music making began. Describing themselves as a combination of alt-pop, grunge and trip-hop doesn’t even begin to do the dynamic duo justice. 2010’s single Falling Away is a sweeping yet compelling melody with a comfortingly repetitive drum line. Luck Now features layered harmonies and soaring emotion, “I fear that I’m another acquisition, I feel that I’m now just pure imposition my love.” The song reflects sadness and loss in an upbeat and eloquent manner, with one repeated verse working to emphasis the emotionally charged vocals. Thinking About You is another of Big Scary’s best, a rich, luxurious piano driven song with a heart shattering
vocal performance. Joanna takes inspiration from everyday life in the city of Melbourne. “At the moment it’s beautiful and sunny so I’m always outside, walking and riding around, and there’s so many events that get you out of the house.” She also takes inspiration from other musicians such as Arcade Fire, “Even though Arcade Fire are fashionable, they’re also just making the music they feel like, and then the world follows”. Not Art is the band’s latest release, only just unleashed on the UK. The duo follow in a similar vein, making music that they want to and that feels right. When pushed to chose one song to encapsulate the duo’s essence, Joanna admits it’s a tough task.“We’re prettyeclectic,” she says, but she picks Twin Rivers due to its “Hip hop production ideas, with a pretty pop sensibility.” The track plays as a festival ready anthem packed full of percussion, a fierce drum beat and almost chanted vocals. The lyrics reflect the resignation and monotony of getting up for another day. “And the conversations so old. We can’t even muster a fight. And my body goes cold, when you turn off the bedside
HELLO: Big Scary
light.” The track combines a delicate but perfect balance of gentle keys, determined drums and gritty synth. Having released four EPs named after the seasons, it gave the duo a chance to create varying sounds and moods with each song. They didn’t set out to be cohesive - this is a very inventive collection. Not Art demonstrates their growth as both musicians and artists, from start to finish each song is not only engaging, but blend seamlessly into each other. It is not only their talent that has shown growth, but their road crew. “These days we play with two extra players on stage, since the newer tracks require more instrumentation to do them justice live,” Joanna admits. “I actually miss playing just the two of us.” Big Scary are set to take on America, touring across the States this summer. The two-piece radiate musical talent (playing drums, keyboard, guitar and percussion collectively). The band set up Pieart records in order to gain complete creative control and release the record themselves, so Not Art is completely self-recorded and self-produced. Joanna got to escape on holiday for the majority of the process of lead singer Tom’s steep learning curve into album production, but theexperience has given him a whole collection of new skills. Most importantly, he has learned to believe in himself more. “I think he now trusts his own instincts more after coming out the other end of that,” says Joanna. Creating innovative music with soaring vocals, intricate percussion and combing soft sounds with intense noise, Big Scary’s new album, Not Art is available through iTunes now. “Vacation, our last album, feels pretty dated now,” says Joanna. “It’s cool that we can be portrayed a bit more accurately with the release of Not Art”. The band are hoping to head over to the UK later this year for a tour.
“A rich, luxurious piano driven song with a heart shattering vocal performance.”
10 rock, salt + nails
Hello: Amber Run
music. We added ‘Run’ because someone was already called Amber. We probably should have checked that first…” This slightly rookie error is easy to overlook though, as the attention to detail in the band’s music is spot on. The chilling group harmonies in the track Little Ghost is a small touch that adds huge impact, and the whimsical guitars for the opening of Kites really lifts the song into a whole new dimension. One of the very first gigs for Amber Run was playing at Reading and Leeds festival on the BBC Introducing stage last year, a daunting experience for any band, not just one starting out. “We spent days practising for it, because we knew how important it was,” Will says earnestly. Amber Run have created some incredibly powerful
and sonically pleasing songs that makes it impossible to not get swept up within the melody, and perfect for a festival setting - Noah is a fine example of just that. The drums create a steady heartbeat for the guitars pulse, the perfect canvas for the vocals delivered with precision and confidence that is nothing but admirable. The lyrics are soothing yet sang with a potent reassurance. “My name is Noah, and the sea is my home, is my home, and this small wooden boat will be my throne. Oh I’m proud of what I’ve built and the things that I’ve done, oh and all of the people that I’ve learnt to love.” Noah, the title track from 2014’s EP is uplifting and emphasises the notion of Carpe Diem. Singer Joe wrote the song at a time where the band was on the brink between a hobby and a possible way of life. Will sheds some light on the meaning behind the lyrics. “We’ve found the music industry to be quite unpredictable—six months ago I was preparing for my second year at uni, now here I am a guitarist and drop out.” Was the decision worth it? Only time can tell, but the last six months have been spent hard at work, dedicating time and energy to working on music and embarking on a tour. “Noah’s an important reminder that anything can happen and you’ve just got to run with it.” But Amber Run are taking it in their stride and refusing to get phased. Touring Europe, Reading and Leeds Festival, and performing at Brixton Academy are all monumental achievements to cross off the bucket list, a feat even more impressive when you consider they have not even released a debut album yet. Many people grow up with aspirations that fade and transform into something radically different. However, Will always aspired to be a musician, albeit secretly. “There’s always the problem that a lot of people view it as an impossible achievement being able to make a living off being in a band,” he admits. “So the whole thing really surprised us when it worked out actually. If I had stuck with English at university, I still wouldn’t know what I wanted to do besides play guitar.” Emotive, thoughtful lyrics, intricately played songs and fierce drums are all a trademark of Amber Run, with epic choruses to boot. Will feels most inspired when in the studio which is just as well, as the studio has become a haunt of theirs with therecording of their much anticipated debut album well underway. “We like to try out whatever ideas we can and there’s nothing better than when you go in with a song written and come out with it
It’s an incredibly exciting time for youngband Amber Run. The five-piece have liteally just walked off stage at Brixton Academy having supported
Kodaline on tour, their new single Spark is stealing airwaves on Radio 1 and their debut album is in the works. Amber Run are certainly something to shout about, they create compelling music that is upbeat and dance-worthy, whilst constantly experimenting, to push musical boundaries and grow as a band. Amber Run formed when studying at Nottingham University together. “We’ve always hated naming bands we’ve been in, it’s just so difficult,” admits guitarist Will Jones. “We chose Amber originally because it’s a warm colour and that warmth is something we want to bring out in the
“We’ve found the music
industry to be quite
unpredictable”
rock, salt + nails 11
completely reinvented.” As a new band, their sound has progressed steadily and matured a surprising amount; it is clear that they are happy to experiment with new ideas. “Recording the album was a process of discovery for us.” Will says, “People like to tag us as a soft folk band sometimes and there will be songs on there without guitars or live drums on. It’s all about moving forward with your sound for us, and we do it quite rapidly.” New single Spark is taken from their album, a song that sums thefive-piece up nicely. “Spark essentially is about being in a band-about small beginning and those things taking off.” It’s definitely going to be a set list staple, too, “It’s also sonically got that big middle eight which we absolutely love to play.” It is a song with a progressive rhythm that nicely wraps up Amber Run’s experience over the last year, “Well then it’s that feeling that you, you just can’t shake, that your life’s about to start and you just can’t wait. First it’s the spark and then its the flame, then it’s getting blind drunk in the middle of the day.”
It is set to be a whirlwind summer for Amber Run, having started out with a tremendous performance at Brighton’s Great Escape and a performance at the Isle of Wight festival looming. “After that it’s all about the album and we can’t wait for people to hear it. Some of it will really surprise people and that’s what we want,” enthuses Will. Amber Run are doing extremely well for themselves, and nothing can hold them or their infectiously upbeat melodies down.
12 rock, salt + nails
Venues WORTH
TravellingTO... (hidden gems
!)
rock, salt + nails 13
(hidden gems!)
“It is definitely worth
travelling to get a more
intimate and often more memorable experience”
Having moved to London three years ago from Wellington, a small town in the middle of rural Somerset, I thought it was the best thing
in the Universe. I spent years nagging my parents to pick me up from the ‘local’ venue, either Exeter or Yeovil, Bristol if I was lucky - up to a two hour drive away - to witness whatever band decided to risk visiting the West Country. Now, I can simply hop on a short train and navigate the Tube to watch pretty much any band that ever tours, on one London stage or another. But the magic has somewhat faded. I feel a sense of nostalgia looking back at the days when I’d look through gig listings, nearly bursting with excitement at a mention of Yeovil, or Exeter, or even Bristol, if the musicians were special enough to warrant weeks of persuasion and occasional blackmail towards my poor, long suffering parents. I love the availability of London, but most of the venues seem to lack personality. Not all of them though. KOKO is a beautifully majestic venue, and Clapham Grand is blanketed in a sort of magic. London venues are generally bigger and pull a larger audience, with the majority lacking individuality. I have been fortunate to go to shows in pretty much every UK city, and believe it is definitely worth travelling to get a more intimate and often more memorable experience. By going to smaller, independent venues you are also nurturing
and encouraging new talent and allowing them to progress to selling out bigger venues. “Smaller regional venues are crucial to nurture emerging talent, in either helping young acts gain exposure to new audiences, or giving new national and international acts a warm-up circuit before they head out to larger capacity venues and arena tours and gain grassroots fans,” says Lydia Stockbridge, promoter at The Boileroom in Guildford. “We’re very important.” In the past few years I have become a huge fan of ‘The Budget Hotel’, and obsessed over scouring the internet for the cheapest train tickets (which inconveniently often warrants a 5.30am start). I have spent nights on a packed tour bus; waited outside a locked train station at 4.30am awaiting the first train home; crashed on friends sofas and strangers floors - but it is the best feeling in the world. I have made lifelong friends through a shared passion of music and know that no matter what city I turn up to I will have a friend there to explore the city with and catch some live music. So here it is, the Top 5 venues that are worth travelling to and camping out in a £29 Travelodge room, or on a friend of a friend’s sister’s floor.
14 rock, salt + nails
King Tuts is a very impressive venue. It’s the ‘go to’ place for known talent that wants to provide a special intimate show in Scotland, but it is also the place to go to discover rising talent. “The atmosphere is always electric, and the
downstairs bar gives it that extra social element. Gig nights at Tuts always start with a pint in the downstairs bar before heading up to the gig room,” says Lyndsey Massie, a regular to the venue. Granted, I have only adventured up to Scotland once, when a day off coincided with a tour date. The bum and mind-numbing journey of six hours was excruciatingly boring as a solo traveller with an apparently short attention span. However, it was definitely worth it. King Tuts is a very popular venue with Scottish folk, with a reputation for getting a little bit rowdy, in a passionate, music loving way. The venue opened in 1990, has a capacity of 300 and attracts a wide range of people. The concerts are all enthusiastic, tightly knit and sweaty, the upbeat atmosphere ricocheting from person to person due to the small size of the venue and the type of music the promoters put on. It is a key place in a major city for new bands to
#5
start up on the touring circuit, or for big name musicians to put on a special night for their biggest fans. Paolo Nutini and The Klaxons have played here in the last two months. The venue is also steeped in music history; Alan McGee famously signed Oasis within the walls of this Glasgow haunt. The building itself is situated on a hill just out of the main city centre, and has a bar that serves food during the day. “I’ve seen bands like The Used and Finch play there, but also have great memories of seeing Twin Atlantic playing both supporting and headlining slots there in their early days,” says Lyndsey. King Tuts definitely has a soul to it, as opposed to being a money making corporate scheme, and is a prime example of why smaller venues are better. The next time I go to this venue, it will not be an afterthought, but instead a carefully planned out trip to see a band I adore in a place full of heart.
King Tuts - Glasgow“It’s a key place in a major city
for new bands to start up on the touring circuit”
rock, salt + nails 15
My Brighton experience is one that I fondly remember, “It’s 3am and after spending the previous two hours in the uncomfortable grasp of a National Express’ slippery leather chair, (with the two hours prior to that spent sat
at Plymouth coach station shivering under several layers and pooling body heat with my fellow venue-hopping friends). Brighton is still blanketed in inky black darkness, the pubs are shut and hotel check-in isn’t for another eight hours. Once the sun has optimistically risen, we venture to the venue, basking in the beauty of Brighton’s pebbly beaches, using the trusty iPhone map app to walk back and forth along the beachfront before realising we need to go down a level to find the venue. The staff are friendly and amused by our enthusiasm and unintentional earliness, they chat and point us in the direction of coffee and fish and chips - well, to be beside the sea! I’m seeing Madina Lake for the second night of their UK tour, and supporting the main act are Chicago based The Super Happy Fun Club, the drummer Chris Mason invested in a pair of roller-skates when in Europe, and skated off into the distance 30 minutes before they were due to play in the intimate setting. The stage itself is raised way above ground level, with the stage small but deep. The barrier fits a few enthusiastic bodies, but the best view is for those who leisurely stand further back, with a drink in hand, as they get to properly soak up the atmosphere. The crowd are all beaming when the band finally jump across the stage, with Nathan Leone diving back and forth between the crowd and stage, the raised platform means everyone can get a decent view as opposed to spending 90 minutes staring at the back of a head of hair. It is an intimate setting that is bursting with personality, when a band plays it is almost as if there is an invisible surge of electricity that sizzles amongst the crows causing them to let lose and enjoy themselves. Tonight sets the bar for the rest of the week.” (An extract from my journal to document my travels for Madina Lake 2011).
cONCORDE 2 -bRIGHTON
A concert venue and a club combined, the place helps play an integral part of the infamous Great Escape festival which features the best up and coming talent over a weekend of music in the streets, pubs, and venues of Brighton. Ed Sheeran and Saves the Day both played in 2011and are just a few of the exceptionally talented musicians that have played on Concorde 2’s stage, with other acts including Amy Winehouse, Foo Fighters and Florence & the Machine all playing the venue before their phenomenal success. The intimacy of the venue itself is not the only thing that makes Concorde 2 worth travelling to, with its approachable and genuine staff. A stunning location it makes a great day trip out, and a refreshing change from the polluted cityscapes.
#4 “The raised platform means everyone can get a decent view as opposed to spending 90 minutes staring at the back of a head of hair”
16 rock, salt + nails
3
#3The Deaf Institute - Manchester
Nestled in the thriving heart of Manchester city centre is The Deaf Institute. A majestic building reflected in its grand exterior and cosy interior, it is a completely unique venue and cafe that boasts pleasant staff; delicious food;
regular club nights; but most importantly, a great live music scene. The calendar is constantly packed with new artists venturing to The Deaf Institute when on the tour circuit, but there are also regular open mic nights to encourage locals to let loose and sing a song or two. The venue itself has tiered, cinema styled seating, with the walls vibrantly wallpapered giving a distinctive and homely appearance. The venue promoters succeed in getting big name musicians to play the venue, in addition to new emerging talent. This is a great achievement considering the range of different venues that decorate the city and its already rich musical history. “I really like it as a music venue because it almost doesn’t feel like a music venue,” says Ciara Tomlinson, a regular gig-goer on the Manchester scene. “Especially when it comes to bands of a certain size that might usually play in bigger rooms, it can feel a bit more personal than some other smaller venues and allows for good crowd and musician interaction.” Recently the Keston Cobblers Club played the venue, and the talented Dan Croll played during the latter half of 2013. “It’s one of my favourite venues of all time, not only does it look nicer than most with its cute wallpaper, it’s also small and perfect for intimate gigs with your favourite bands,” enthuses Bolton born Abby Chew. “I watched Madina Lake play at the Institute and it’s still ingrained in my memory as one of my favourite shows ever. Being right up at the front and having Mateo pull me up on stage was an experience I’ll never forget.” The building has three tiers with speaker decor surrounding the bar, the acoustics are incredible and the atmosphere induced by the fantastic staff bring it all together, with smaller details, like the gigantic glitter ball giving The Deaf Institute a very distinctive image, and making a welcome change from the masses of grey and grimy venues across the UK.
“It’s still ingrainedin my memory
as one ofmy favouriteshows ever ”
rock, salt + nails 17
3
The Cavern - EXETER
The Cavern is situated below ground, hidden in the very heart of Exeter city centre. It is a tiny, dingy 220 person capacity venue, with constantly sticky tables, but that’s part of the charm. College students pass their free period with a bowl
of curly fries and a coke, planning their next club night or gig. The best thing about The Cavern is the atmosphere. The place is always buzzing with conversation, laughter; building tension and excitement for a gig taking place the coming evening. It is a place for socialising in addition to discovering the best new music, and connecting with fellow fans and talented likeminded musicians. The venue has been running since February 1991, with venue owner David Goodchild putting the success of the business down to “sticking to the original plan of bringing underground bands to Exeter.” The compact size of the venue means that the musicians often spill into the crowd mid-gig when everyone is gaining momentum, with more active members ending up on top of the crowd, and more subdued acts clearing a place in the crowd to sing a capella, surrounded by slightly awestruck fans. The Cavern is great at discovering fresh talent who are just on the cusp of blowing up, and booking them for an intimate show. It’s a difficult art sourcing lesser-known bands and knowing that they are destined for bigger things. The 1975, Bastille and La Roux have all performed on the venue’s tiny stage. The Cavern encourages a sense of community, with support from the locals actively participating in venue hosted events, from weekly club nights to quick drinks after work, but also in a music sense. “Exeter has always fought above its weight on the national scene,” says David. “Currently it is very strong, with bands like The Cut Ups, The Computers and Idiom all doing big things.” He also runs a record label with joint owner Pippa Wrag called Freakscene, which is effective in nurturing local talent as well as bands who drop by on a regional tour. Somerset local Jess Hodges fondly recalls her fondest Cavern moment, “The Audition played a stripped back set, just two guitars and Danny Stevens singing. It was so personal, and everybody there got this feeling that we were a part of something really special.” The Cavern’s energy doesn’t just remain within the boundaries of its
#2
walls, “This might sound strange…but [it] suggests to me that The Cavern is an ethos, not a building,” admits David. It’s essential for smaller bands to have a strong identity to draw in crowds, “I think all successful venues are essentially an extension of the passion the individuals running have for certain genres of music,” says David. “This is what makes up the identity.” Live venues are more important than ever, now that CD sales have slumped. Instead of bands going on tour to promote an album, it sometimes feels that musicians make an album in order to tour.
“The Cavern is an ethos, not a building”
18 rock, salt + nails
3
#1Approaching its 8th birthday this
September, The Boileroom is an independently run family business, managed by a group
of creative people who have a real passion for live music. The Boileroom are proud to host a wide range of events, they ensure the venue is a place to support local acts, nurture rising talent all whilst still getting big-name artists to stop off for a personal performance. It is renowned for its own craft beers, and delicious noodles from a partnering takeaway. “The Boileroom has built its reputation over the years as a friendly place to perform that treats musicians well, in a welcome and friendly atmosphere,” says Lydia Stockbridge. Recently, singer-songwriter Ryan Keen and five-piece Brother & Bones have played shows at the intimate venue. All these musicians hold the spark of something a little special, and are on the cusp of blowing up. The venue has years of industry knowledge under its belt with Dominique Frazer, owner of The Boileroom having worked as a promoter 10 years prior to starting her current endeavour. The lively atmosphere is always positively charged, friendly and packed full of people enjoying themselves and the music.
The Boileroom - Guildford
rock, salt + nails 19
3
The Boileroom - GuildfordA public house since 1910, The Boileroom prides itself in the sense of community that radiates from the venue, “We continue to strive to be Guildford’s alternative live music venue - by filling it with lots of personality to make it a unique, creative space,” says Lydia. Band posters advertising previous gigs are peeling from the walls and the ceiling, providing a sense of nostalgia to regulars and portraying the venues rich array of artists to newcomers. “We believe it’s central to our ethos and brand, all the murals were created by local artists and companies that we work with. We aim to be the hub for local musicians and creatives.” This sense of community is only emphasised further with the partnerships the venue has with local educators, “We support our local music community, we work with local music college the Academy Of Contemporary Music, the University of Surrey, as well as other budding local talents,” says Lydia. “We always push for local supports, host EP launches, and help promote local music online through our social networks wherever we can.” The venue is compact, but this simply adds to the charming character of this little building. The stage is minuscule, and would struggle to fit more than
four members and their gear. Instead of being off-putting it only adds to the atmosphere, and helps to forge a stronger connection between band and fan. A lively, thriving venue like The Boileroom injects life into a community, and is an integral element in kick starting musicians careers. This particular Guildford haunt is a friendly, inviting place to relax, discover some new music, or experience a unique one-off show.
Photography by Megan Smith
20 rock, salt + nails
Adam Duritz has been singer and distinctive fuzzy haired frontman of Counting Crows for 23 years, the creator and lyrical genius behind the band. Best known for 1993’s Mr Jones and 2002’s Joni Mitchell cover Big Yellow Taxi, their
music has spanned two decades. Hailing from Berkley, California Counting Crows is made up of David Bryson and Dan Vickory on guitar, Charlie Gillingham on piano, Jim Bogios on drums, Millard Powers on bass and David Immerglück on guitar and banjo. Although the band have undergone several member changes, Adam Duritz has remained lead vocalist and inspirational lyricist. The bands name comes from the nursery rhyme ‘One for Sorrow’ and is featured in their song Murder of One from album August & Everything with the lyrics, “Well I dreamt I saw you walking up a hillside in the snow. Casting shadows on the winter sky, as you stood there counting crows”. With an impressive twelve albums which include live releases and six studio releases, they are currently putting the finishing touches to album number seven. 2010’s release Underwater Sunshine (What We Did On Our Summer Vacation) is an album purely combined of covers, songs the band admire, or wanted to put their own spin on. Covering Tender Mercies, Bob Dylan and Coby Brown. The band show that they can inject their own personality on any song to make it their own. Adam’s songs are extremely heartfelt, with lyrics so personal that emotion is evident in his voice, eyes and body language when performing live, even years after the song was written and recorded. When on tour Adam has a lyric folder of every one of his songs, to refresh himself on their expansive back catalogue. A Counting Crows live show is a whirlwind of energy and highly unpredictable which reflects the essence of the band. The setlist is different each night, as they don’t worry if their ‘staple’ songs make the cut or not. Instead, compiling a list of songs they feel like playing that evening, taking requests from fans and crew members. Adam allows himself to get swept up in the music, often improvising and altering songs spur of the moment when performing, which means his band needs to be alert.
Profile:
Adam duritz,
Counting crows
Top FIVE Counting Crows songs:
Top three covers:Friend of the deviluntitled (love song)
you ain’t going nowhere
American GirlsHard Candy
A Murder of OneMrs. Potter’s Lullaby
Colourblind
rock, salt + nails 21
22 rock, salt + nails
rock, salt + nails 23
24 rock, salt + nails
Brother + Bones: The Heartbeat of Rhythmic Folk-Rock
Brother & Bones churn out skilfully earthy folk that is rhythmic and delivered with a delectable fervour that is rarely seen these days. Brother & Bones create huge
atmospheric folk-rock songs with impressive guitar solos and lyrics sung with such wilful sincerity, it is impossible not to get wrapped up within the music. They have been lazily compared to Mumford & Sons, yet the only similarity is the ampersand in their respective names. Having spent the day with singer and bandmate Rich Thomas putting together two new songs guitarist James Willard finds the time to chat about their newest EP, tour life, and his musical
inspiration. The band decided to release a live EP filmed at Princess Pavilions in Falmouth. It is set as ‘pay what you want’, so that fans can name their price. “The reason for this was that we wanted to give something back,” divulges James. “It wasn’t like we had to spend a small fortune in a swanky recording studio, we just thought that for fans that come to shows would be able to relive their ‘Brother & Bones experience’ again. Over the past few years we have gained a loyal fan base, so it’s nice for us to give something back.” It is also a way to increase the bands exposure, potential fans can see how much they enjoy the music before investing their money. It acts almost as a taster of
musical potential, and encourages people to be open to taking a chance on the band. In addition, existing fans can part with as much money as they would like to in return for the EP, giving them an opportunity to thank the band for their hard work. “We were quite fortunate in that the timing for that show was right; it just so happened that it was a sold out crowd on a Saturday night in Cornwall.”
James admits that it was easy to decide what performances made the cut, “We had a couple of weeks of gigging under our belt so we were all feeling gig-tight. The performances are real vibey which is all we wanted really, so we just put the songs on there that summed the night up best.”
rock, salt + nails 25
anyone can get anything they want at any time, and have the attention span of a gnat. So if you’re not releasing new videos, photos, or new music there is that niggle in the back of your head [that] out of
sight, is out of mind.” Yet it can also be a great medium to interact with people, and show fans an insight into band life. The band creates a sound that is wildly unique, fronted by an acoustic guitar is an unusual concept, and their songs vary from the stripped back sensibilities, and heartfelt vocals of Gold & Silver, to the bluesy vibe of On The Run and therhythmic I See Red. The lyrics are equally
compelling, delivered with a practised finesse and demonstrating some of the best song writing in recent years, evident through track Raining Stone, off of the To Be Alive EP. “The half full cup and the smile corrupt to the bone, that’s why she’s raining stone”, and the thought provoking Skin and Bone. “But when I saw you walking to your grave it hurt to see nobody by your side.” When questioned whether their distinctive sound puts more pressure on the band to keepdeveloping their sound, James is honest. “The only pressure comes from us, we only write or play music that we feel is good enough. We are pretty hard on ourselves, too. Not much slips under our radar before one of us says ‘doesn’t that sound like so and so?’ Then we are like yeah you’re right it does, back to the drawing board.” James admits, “I guess in a
way that has kept us generating new sounds. It is however, one of the major flaws of having such vast CD collections.” Their style shows evidence of a whole host of music influences, “I’d like to think that we all have pretty good taste in music, as there are a lot of records that we all have and love the same, but the great thing is that each member has slightly
differentinfluences and backgrounds,”enthuses James, “It’s great to share with each other, watchsomeone hear an amazing song for the first time and how they get that buzz. I guess that’s why we are all in this business in the first place, right!” The bands collective influences span from The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix, Sam Cooke, Bob Dylan, Rage Against The Machine. All huge, influential musicians who have changed the world, and Brother & Bones could be next.
Brother & Bones have built up a reputation as an incredible live band, playing Redfest theprevious year I got to witness them charm and captivate a crowd with immensely powerful choruses, and unparalleled enthusiasm, but the five-piece are very humble about it. “We have been gigging and learning our craft for a long time now, so playing on stage is our reward,” says James. “It’s the most direct way to connect with our fans, and the feedback is instantaneous.” Despite the unpredictability of working in the music industry, and the long stretches away from a comfortable bed, friends and family, it’s a life that beats themonotonous 9-5 day job. “The stability would be nice, I don’t think any of us have been on the plus side of our overdraft in years, but then I speak to my 9-5er friends and I feel like I’m richer in so many ways,” says James. Financial security may not be readily available as a musician, but there are much greater gains, “We are all used to the spontaneity of being in a band, I think that’s where half the buzz comes… If I’m honest, I think I’d struggle to go back and ‘work for the man’ again. I’d be way too annoying to be cooped up in an office. I was made to be noisy and entertain.” Having toured extensively across the UK and Europe, and amassing an ever increasing following, I can’t help but question how the band manage to keep spirits high when on the road. “We really love each others company, I think that’s the most important thing. We all share the same passion and goal for playing music we love to the best of our ability.Obviously there are times when we are a bit low, if we have a bad show, or something goes wrong.” However, the positive experiences are infinitely greater than the lows. “We are so used to touring now, nothing really phases us anymore,” James jokes, “if anything we all suffer with itchy feet when not on the road.” There is a massively increasing popularity of social media sites like Facebook, and with theaccessibility of Youtube and Spotify it isconsidered both a blessing and a curse amongst musicians. For starters, it places pressure on bands to constantly be putting out new material: “Society is never satisfied now and we live in a world where
“I was made to be noisy
and entertain”
“Society is never satisfied
now”
toyou?
rock, salt + nails 27
“It’s
necess
ary in
every
day l
ife”
28 rock, salt + nails
“Music is colour, colour is happi
ness”
rock, salt + nails 29
“Music
is a
dvent
ure, b
ut mu
sic is
comfo
rt. M
usic
is hom
e”
inside
the
mind o
f one
jake
morl
ey
“My mi
nd is a
choir
of dif
ferent
vo
ices”
“I am
not
abl
e to
talk
abo
ut th
ings
ver
y w
ell,”
adm
its
Jake
Mor
ley
wit
h a
wry
sm
ile. “
I wri
te m
usic
be
caus
e I s
trug
gle
to e
xpla
in m
ysel
f pro
perl
y, I
end
up b
abbl
ing
and
then
goi
ng h
ome
and
spen
ding
m
onth
s w
riti
ng a
son
g to
try
and
bett
er e
xpla
in w
hat I
m
eant
.” It
’s p
roba
bly
a go
od jo
b th
en, t
hat J
ake
Mor
ley
can
prod
uce
such
exp
ress
ive
and
capt
ivat
ing
song
s.
It’s a
gor
geou
sly
sunn
y da
y in
Bri
xton
, with
peo
ple
buzz
ing
arou
nd th
e lo
cal f
ood
mar
ket.
I’m sa
t in
Dogs
tar,
a ba
r tha
t em
bodi
es th
e m
ix-m
atch
ed sh
abby
-ch
ic v
ibe
perf
ectly
. It’s
pas
t thr
ee a
nd I
am a
wai
ting
a lit
tle la
te, b
ut v
ery
apol
oget
ic Ja
ke to
turn
up.
Ap
pare
ntly
, whe
n in
spir
atio
n hi
ts, y
ou w
ould
be
fool
ish
to re
sist
. Hur
ryin
g in
, he
beam
s, “T
he la
st ti
me
I was
he
re I
was
wea
ring
a su
perh
ero
outfi
t, N
ew Y
ears
Eve
, 20
12!”
It is
a b
usy,
but m
assi
vely
exc
iting
tim
e fo
r Jak
e. H
e is
in th
e de
pths
of c
reat
ing
his s
econ
d al
bum
, the
follo
w
up to
201
0’s i
mpr
essi
ve M
any
Fish
to F
ry w
hich
is a
m
elod
ic st
orm
of a
mbi
tious
yet
art
fully
cons
truc
ted
song
s. N
ot o
ne to
rem
ain
conf
ined
with
in h
is co
mfo
rt
zone
, Jak
e ha
s bee
n do
ing
a gr
eat d
eal o
f dee
p th
inki
ng,
or p
onde
ring
per
haps
, as w
ell a
s tak
ing
the
time
to
expl
ore
new
mus
ical
idea
s.
The
dili
gent
mus
icia
n m
anag
es to
mak
e tim
e in
hi
s bus
y da
y fo
r a ch
at, d
espi
te fi
ndin
g hi
mse
lf in
the
mid
dle
of a
mus
ical
bre
akth
roug
h w
ith a
n ex
cept
iona
lly
prob
lem
atic
song
. “I t
hink
I’ve
pro
babl
y w
orke
d on
this
so
ng m
ore
than
I’ve
wor
ked
on e
very
oth
er so
ng o
n m
y ne
xt
albu
m p
ut to
geth
er, i
t’s a
due
t with
my
unco
nsci
ous m
ind.
M
y m
ind
is a
choi
r of d
iffer
ent v
oice
s,” h
e sa
ys.
E
ntitl
ed W
atch
Yo
urse
lf, it
is m
ore
than
a li
ttle
bit
intr
igui
ng. “
It’s l
ike
tam
ing
a ho
rse
- not
th
at I’
ve e
ver d
one
that
in m
y lif
e,” jo
kes
Jake
, tal
king
abo
ut
the
albu
m m
akin
g pr
oces
s. “T
hat
mom
ent w
hen
you
real
ise,
‘oka
y, th
ere’
s st
ill w
ork
to b
e do
ne’,
but I
kno
w it
’s go
ing
to w
ork,
it’s
goin
g to
go
wel
l.” T
he co
ncep
t of
a su
cces
sful
alb
um
is a
tric
ky o
ne to
fig
ure
out a
s it i
s not
ju
st n
umbe
rs sa
les
figur
es th
at m
ark
out
a go
od o
ne.
“I
thin
k ‘g
ood’
is a
n im
port
ant q
uest
ion,
” Ja
ke re
mar
ks. “
Like
how
muc
h yo
u ca
re
abou
t wha
t oth
er
peop
le th
ink
and
wha
t m
akes
a g
ood
song
. W
hat m
akes
a g
ood
song
for m
e ri
ght n
ow
is o
ne th
at I’
m h
appy
w
ith. W
heth
er a
nyon
e el
se li
kes i
t or n
ot,
I hav
e no
idea
,” he
he
sita
tes.
“But
if it
’s st
uff t
hat I
real
ly li
ke,
if it’
s the
mus
ic I
wan
t to
mak
e th
en I’
ll be
sa
tisfie
d, re
gard
less
w
heth
er p
eopl
e lik
e it
or n
ot…
I th
ink
they
w
ill.”
Man
y Fi
sh T
o Fr
y ha
s a m
esm
eris
ing
and
dist
inct
ive
styl
e so
the
seco
nd a
lbum
is
high
ly a
ntic
ipat
ed. I
f he
app
roac
hes i
t with
th
e sa
me
skill
and
at
tent
ion
to d
etai
l: th
e fu
ture
look
s bri
ght.
H
avin
g to
ured
the
UK e
xten
sive
ly fo
r the
pas
t 18
mon
ths,
Jake
has
man
aged
to co
nnec
t with
a w
ide
vari
ety
of p
eopl
e,
mak
ing
new
fans
and
pla
ying
to e
xist
ing
ones
. “It’
s not
the
sam
e fe
elin
g,” a
dmits
Jake
, dis
cuss
ing
how
it fe
els t
o pl
ay
live
alon
e as
opp
osed
to b
eing
surr
ound
ed b
y hi
s ban
d. “T
he
last
few
tour
s I’v
e do
ne h
ave
been
solo
tour
bec
ause
I’ve
still
be
en tr
ying
to fi
nd th
e so
und
of th
e m
usic
that
I’m
mak
ing
righ
t now
. It h
asn’
t mad
e se
nse
to h
ave
a ba
nd ri
ght n
ow,
until
I ha
ve a
n al
bum
toge
ther
and
I kn
ow w
hat i
t sou
nds
like.
I do
mis
s pla
ying
with
the
band
, the
y’re
my
boys
. We’
re
still
gre
at fr
iend
s, w
e se
e ea
ch o
ther
all
the
time.”
The
in
cred
ible
line
up fe
atur
es Jo
hn P
arke
r, th
e pr
olifi
c dou
ble
bass
pla
yer,
“he’
s in
ever
y ba
nd th
ere
is,”
laug
hs Ja
ke.
Ther
e ha
s bee
n a
disa
ppoi
ntin
gly
long
gap
bet
wee
n th
e re
leas
e of
his
deb
ut a
lbum
, and
the
reco
rdin
g of
a fo
llow
up.
Sh
eddi
ng li
ght o
n th
is, J
ake
is h
ones
t. “T
here
’s th
at p
hras
e ab
out t
he d
iffic
ult s
econ
d al
bum
and
I al
way
s tho
ught
that
w
ould
n’t h
appe
n to
me,
it’s
for l
oser
s,” la
ughs
Jake
. “Ju
st g
ive
me
a bi
t of t
ime
and
it’ll
be e
asy,
I’ll j
ust d
o it.
But
it w
asn’
t ea
sy.”
T
wo
seem
ingl
y en
dles
s yea
rs la
ter a
nd th
ere’
s bee
n a
huge
am
ount
of w
ork
that
has
gon
e in
to th
e w
hole
pro
cess
, w
ith Ja
ke e
ven
ques
tioni
ng h
is m
otiv
es. “
I loo
ked
real
ly
hard
at m
ysel
f at t
hat t
ime,
won
deri
ng w
hat k
ind
of m
usic
I w
ante
d to
mak
e be
caus
e it’
s a g
reat
opp
ortu
nity
to
reex
amin
e w
hy I
do m
usic
and
why
I w
ant t
o do
it, a
nd w
hat
I wan
t to
say.”
Inst
ead
of ju
st co
ncen
trat
ing
on th
e ov
eral
l so
und,
Jake
is th
inki
ng in
gre
ater
dep
th a
bout
the
mes
sage
he w
ants
to p
ortr
ay. “
Ther
e’s a
lot o
f noi
se in
the
wor
ld,
peop
le ju
st ch
urni
ng so
ngs o
ut, a
nd I
didn
’t w
ant t
o do
th
at w
ithou
t a lo
t of c
aref
ul th
ough
t.”
Man
y Fi
sh to
Fry
was
wri
tten
larg
ely
on h
is o
wn
with
an
acou
stic
gui
tar,
gett
ing
a ba
nd to
geth
er to
pla
y it
on re
cord
and
for t
he li
ve sh
ows.
The
seco
nd re
cord
is
bei
ng w
ritt
en w
ith th
e ba
nd in
min
d, in
stea
d of
pl
ayin
g so
ngs a
nd th
e ba
nd jo
inin
g in
, son
gs a
re cr
afte
d ar
ound
the
diffe
rent
inst
rum
ents
, allo
win
g ro
om fo
r a
vari
ety
of st
yles
. The
refo
re, J
ake
has a
gre
ater
scop
e to
be
crea
tive
and
expe
rim
ent w
ith h
is so
ngw
ritin
g an
d in
stru
men
tatio
n. H
e en
thus
es, “
like
in th
is se
ctio
n he
re I
shut
the
f**k
up
and
som
e be
autif
ul th
ings
hap
pen
with
th
e st
ring
s,” h
e la
ughs
. “Th
ere’
s diff
eren
t ide
as g
oing
on,
w
hich
is a
bit
mor
e sc
ary
in so
me
way
s.” It
is se
t to
be a
le
ss li
ghth
eart
ed a
lbum
than
the
last
.
The
deb
ut ra
diat
es sp
onta
neity
, with
a la
id b
ack
feel
. Th
e so
ng B
e W
ith
Me
Onc
e M
ore
star
ts o
ut sl
ow, g
aini
ng
an u
pbea
t tem
po, w
ith a
n in
tere
stin
g an
d hu
mor
ous
lyri
cal c
once
pt, w
here
the
sing
er m
akes
refe
renc
e to
lig
ht b
ulbs
, bee
r gla
sses
, car
key
s and
mor
e. “I
’m a
set
of ca
r key
s dow
n th
e ba
ck o
f you
r set
tee,
I’m a
choc
-chi
p co
okie
dun
k m
e in
you
r tea
,” he
sing
s, al
l del
iver
ed in
a
conc
ise,
chee
ky m
anne
r. Ye
t alb
um o
pene
r The
Lig
ht
is li
ghth
eart
ed a
nd re
flect
ive,
with
the
stri
ngs a
ddin
g a
soot
hing
und
erto
ne, a
nd v
ibra
nt, i
nnov
ativ
e ly
rics
. “So
I’m
fair
ly m
essy
, I p
ick
my
nose
, I li
ke R
ubik
’s cu
bes,
I lik
e ba
rber
shop
qua
rtet
s.” H
e ad
mits
, “It
just
coin
cide
d w
ith
how
I w
as fe
elin
g an
d w
hat I
wan
ted
to sa
y. Yo
u m
ake
the
mus
ic y
ou n
eed
to m
ake
at d
iffer
ent t
imes
in y
our l
ife. I
f I
mad
e th
e sa
me
albu
m te
n tim
es, t
here
wou
ld b
e no
poi
nt
in th
at.”
T
he
conn
ectio
n Ja
ke fe
els t
o m
usic
is n
ot a
re
cent
thin
g,
havi
ng co
me
from
a m
usic
al
fam
ily. “
I was
ab
out e
ight
ye
ars o
ld
whe
n I s
tart
ed
lear
ning
pi
ano,
and
ve
ry q
uick
ly
I mas
sive
ly
fell
in lo
ve
with
it, t
o th
e po
int w
here
I’d
com
e ho
me
from
scho
ol
ever
yday
and
ju
mp
stra
ight
on
the
pian
o,”
he re
min
isce
s. “
I was
qui
te
a sh
y ch
ild,
and
mus
ic
beca
me
a w
ay
to e
xpre
ss
mys
elf i
n a
way
I f
ound
har
d w
ith w
ords
.” Th
is lo
ve a
nd
appr
ecia
tion
for m
usic
then
flo
uris
hed.
“W
hen
I got
in
to m
y te
ens
I lea
rned
to
play
gui
tar,
obvi
ousl
y yo
u ca
n’t
play
pia
no
whe
n yo
u’re
fo
urte
en,
it is
a lo
ser
inst
rum
ent
to p
lay,”
he
laug
hs. S
o in
stea
d he
opt
ed fo
r gui
tar.
“It w
as a
ll tie
d up
w
ith m
y gr
owin
g up
and
han
ging
out
with
my
frie
nds,
and
mus
ic w
hen
you’
re g
row
ing
up is
kin
d of
infu
sed,
it’s
in
the
fabr
ic o
f you
r gro
win
g up
,” Ja
ke a
dmits
. “It’
s ass
ocia
ted
with
cert
ain
mom
ents
in y
our l
ife. I
gue
ss [m
usic
] cam
e to
me
at a
ver
y ea
rly a
ge a
nd th
en I
neve
r sto
pped
find
ing
it fa
scin
atin
g an
d am
azin
g.” Ja
ke re
veal
s tha
t his
fam
ily
mem
bers
are
cons
ider
ed n
ot o
nly
his b
igge
st fa
ns, b
ut a
lso
his b
igge
st cr
itics
, giv
ing
him
an
unw
aver
ing
supp
ort b
ase.
A
lthou
gh m
usic
has
alw
ays b
een
a m
assi
ve, a
ll en
com
pass
ing
love
, he
deci
ded
to b
e se
nsib
le a
nd e
xplo
re
his o
ptio
ns, g
oing
to u
nive
rsity
to st
udy
law
. Jak
e is
hon
est
abou
t his
har
d de
cisi
on w
heth
er to
pur
sue
mus
ic, o
r to
put t
his p
assi
on o
n th
e ba
ck b
urne
r. “I
had
a re
al st
rugg
le
at th
at ti
me
of m
y lif
e w
here
I w
as w
onde
ring
whe
ther
to
follo
w w
hat I
love
d w
hich
was
mus
ic, o
r wha
t I th
ough
t w
ould
be
a se
nsib
le ca
reer
choi
ce. I
n th
e en
d I j
ust k
ind
of th
ough
t, I’l
l go
get a
deg
ree,
then
afte
r I’m
don
e if
I st
ill w
ant t
o th
en I’
ll le
t loo
se w
ith m
usic
and
see
whe
re
it go
es.”
Jake
says
, “th
en if
that
goe
s wro
ng I
coul
d ha
ve
a de
gree
to fl
og m
ysel
f with
.” Bu
t the
nee
d to
hav
e an
ac
adem
ic o
ffice
job
didn
’t ha
ve to
pre
sent
itse
lf.
It w
as 2
007
whe
n Ja
ke’s
mus
ical
end
eavo
urs d
rast
ical
ly
chan
ged.
Hav
ing
thro
wn
out a
ll th
e so
ngs h
e’d
been
w
ritin
g si
nce
child
hood
, he
was
bac
k to
pla
ying
pia
no a
lo
t and
get
ting
back
into
gui
tar.
“I g
uess
I’d
alw
ays b
een
a bi
t tur
ned
off b
y gu
itar s
tuff
beca
use
I’ve
asso
ciat
ed it
w
ith sh
owin
g of
f for
the
sake
of t
ryin
g to
look
cool
. So
I’d
alw
ays d
ism
isse
d it
for t
hat r
easo
n,” s
ays J
ake.
“I h
eard
“I am
not
abl
e to
talk
abo
ut th
ings
ver
y w
ell,”
adm
its
Jake
Mor
ley
wit
h a
wry
sm
ile. “
I wri
te m
usic
be
caus
e I s
trug
gle
to e
xpla
in m
ysel
f pro
perl
y, I
end
up b
abbl
ing
and
then
goi
ng h
ome
and
spen
ding
m
onth
s w
riti
ng a
son
g to
try
and
bett
er e
xpla
in w
hat I
m
eant
.” It
’s p
roba
bly
a go
od jo
b th
en, t
hat J
ake
Mor
ley
can
prod
uce
such
exp
ress
ive
and
capt
ivat
ing
song
s.
It’s a
gor
geou
sly
sunn
y da
y in
Bri
xton
, with
peo
ple
buzz
ing
arou
nd th
e lo
cal f
ood
mar
ket.
I’m sa
t in
Dogs
tar,
a ba
r tha
t em
bodi
es th
e m
ix-m
atch
ed sh
abby
-ch
ic v
ibe
perf
ectly
. It’s
pas
t thr
ee a
nd I
am a
wai
ting
a lit
tle la
te, b
ut v
ery
apol
oget
ic Ja
ke to
turn
up.
Ap
pare
ntly
, whe
n in
spir
atio
n hi
ts, y
ou w
ould
be
fool
ish
to re
sist
. Hur
ryin
g in
, he
beam
s, “T
he la
st ti
me
I was
he
re I
was
wea
ring
a su
perh
ero
outfi
t, N
ew Y
ears
Eve
, 20
12!”
It is
a b
usy,
but m
assi
vely
exc
iting
tim
e fo
r Jak
e. H
e is
in th
e de
pths
of c
reat
ing
his s
econ
d al
bum
, the
follo
w
up to
201
0’s i
mpr
essi
ve M
any
Fish
to F
ry w
hich
is a
m
elod
ic st
orm
of a
mbi
tious
yet
art
fully
cons
truc
ted
song
s. N
ot o
ne to
rem
ain
conf
ined
with
in h
is co
mfo
rt
zone
, Jak
e ha
s bee
n do
ing
a gr
eat d
eal o
f dee
p th
inki
ng,
or p
onde
ring
per
haps
, as w
ell a
s tak
ing
the
time
to
expl
ore
new
mus
ical
idea
s.
The
dili
gent
mus
icia
n m
anag
es to
mak
e tim
e in
hi
s bus
y da
y fo
r a ch
at, d
espi
te fi
ndin
g hi
mse
lf in
the
mid
dle
of a
mus
ical
bre
akth
roug
h w
ith a
n ex
cept
iona
lly
prob
lem
atic
song
. “I t
hink
I’ve
pro
babl
y w
orke
d on
this
so
ng m
ore
than
I’ve
wor
ked
on e
very
oth
er so
ng o
n m
y ne
xt
albu
m p
ut to
geth
er, i
t’s a
due
t with
my
unco
nsci
ous m
ind.
M
y m
ind
is a
choi
r of d
iffer
ent v
oice
s,” h
e sa
ys.
E
ntitl
ed W
atch
Yo
urse
lf, it
is m
ore
than
a li
ttle
bit
intr
igui
ng. “
It’s l
ike
tam
ing
a ho
rse
- not
th
at I’
ve e
ver d
one
that
in m
y lif
e,” jo
kes
Jake
, tal
king
abo
ut
the
albu
m m
akin
g pr
oces
s. “T
hat
mom
ent w
hen
you
real
ise,
‘oka
y, th
ere’
s st
ill w
ork
to b
e do
ne’,
but I
kno
w it
’s go
ing
to w
ork,
it’s
goin
g to
go
wel
l.” T
he co
ncep
t of
a su
cces
sful
alb
um
is a
tric
ky o
ne to
fig
ure
out a
s it i
s not
ju
st n
umbe
rs sa
les
figur
es th
at m
ark
out
a go
od o
ne.
“I
thin
k ‘g
ood’
is a
n im
port
ant q
uest
ion,
” Ja
ke re
mar
ks. “
Like
how
muc
h yo
u ca
re
abou
t wha
t oth
er
peop
le th
ink
and
wha
t m
akes
a g
ood
song
. W
hat m
akes
a g
ood
song
for m
e ri
ght n
ow
is o
ne th
at I’
m h
appy
w
ith. W
heth
er a
nyon
e el
se li
kes i
t or n
ot,
I hav
e no
idea
,” he
he
sita
tes.
“But
if it
’s st
uff t
hat I
real
ly li
ke,
if it’
s the
mus
ic I
wan
t to
mak
e th
en I’
ll be
sa
tisfie
d, re
gard
less
w
heth
er p
eopl
e lik
e it
or n
ot…
I th
ink
they
w
ill.”
Man
y Fi
sh T
o Fr
y ha
s a m
esm
eris
ing
and
dist
inct
ive
styl
e so
the
seco
nd a
lbum
is
high
ly a
ntic
ipat
ed. I
f he
app
roac
hes i
t with
th
e sa
me
skill
and
at
tent
ion
to d
etai
l: th
e fu
ture
look
s bri
ght.
H
avin
g to
ured
the
UK e
xten
sive
ly fo
r the
pas
t 18
mon
ths,
Jake
has
man
aged
to co
nnec
t with
a w
ide
vari
ety
of p
eopl
e,
mak
ing
new
fans
and
pla
ying
to e
xist
ing
ones
. “It’
s not
the
sam
e fe
elin
g,” a
dmits
Jake
, dis
cuss
ing
how
it fe
els t
o pl
ay
live
alon
e as
opp
osed
to b
eing
surr
ound
ed b
y hi
s ban
d. “T
he
last
few
tour
s I’v
e do
ne h
ave
been
solo
tour
bec
ause
I’ve
still
be
en tr
ying
to fi
nd th
e so
und
of th
e m
usic
that
I’m
mak
ing
righ
t now
. It h
asn’
t mad
e se
nse
to h
ave
a ba
nd ri
ght n
ow,
until
I ha
ve a
n al
bum
toge
ther
and
I kn
ow w
hat i
t sou
nds
like.
I do
mis
s pla
ying
with
the
band
, the
y’re
my
boys
. We’
re
still
gre
at fr
iend
s, w
e se
e ea
ch o
ther
all
the
time.”
The
in
cred
ible
line
up fe
atur
es Jo
hn P
arke
r, th
e pr
olifi
c dou
ble
bass
pla
yer,
“he’
s in
ever
y ba
nd th
ere
is,”
laug
hs Ja
ke.
Ther
e ha
s bee
n a
disa
ppoi
ntin
gly
long
gap
bet
wee
n th
e re
leas
e of
his
deb
ut a
lbum
, and
the
reco
rdin
g of
a fo
llow
up.
Sh
eddi
ng li
ght o
n th
is, J
ake
is h
ones
t. “T
here
’s th
at p
hras
e ab
out t
he d
iffic
ult s
econ
d al
bum
and
I al
way
s tho
ught
that
w
ould
n’t h
appe
n to
me,
it’s
for l
oser
s,” la
ughs
Jake
. “Ju
st g
ive
me
a bi
t of t
ime
and
it’ll
be e
asy,
I’ll j
ust d
o it.
But
it w
asn’
t ea
sy.”
T
wo
seem
ingl
y en
dles
s yea
rs la
ter a
nd th
ere’
s bee
n a
huge
am
ount
of w
ork
that
has
gon
e in
to th
e w
hole
pro
cess
, w
ith Ja
ke e
ven
ques
tioni
ng h
is m
otiv
es. “
I loo
ked
real
ly
hard
at m
ysel
f at t
hat t
ime,
won
deri
ng w
hat k
ind
of m
usic
I w
ante
d to
mak
e be
caus
e it’
s a g
reat
opp
ortu
nity
to
reex
amin
e w
hy I
do m
usic
and
why
I w
ant t
o do
it, a
nd w
hat
I wan
t to
say.”
Inst
ead
of ju
st co
ncen
trat
ing
on th
e ov
eral
l so
und,
Jake
is th
inki
ng in
gre
ater
dep
th a
bout
the
mes
sage
he w
ants
to p
ortr
ay. “
Ther
e’s a
lot o
f noi
se in
the
wor
ld,
peop
le ju
st ch
urni
ng so
ngs o
ut, a
nd I
didn
’t w
ant t
o do
th
at w
ithou
t a lo
t of c
aref
ul th
ough
t.”
Man
y Fi
sh to
Fry
was
wri
tten
larg
ely
on h
is o
wn
with
an
acou
stic
gui
tar,
gett
ing
a ba
nd to
geth
er to
pla
y it
on re
cord
and
for t
he li
ve sh
ows.
The
seco
nd re
cord
is
bei
ng w
ritt
en w
ith th
e ba
nd in
min
d, in
stea
d of
pl
ayin
g so
ngs a
nd th
e ba
nd jo
inin
g in
, son
gs a
re cr
afte
d ar
ound
the
diffe
rent
inst
rum
ents
, allo
win
g ro
om fo
r a
vari
ety
of st
yles
. The
refo
re, J
ake
has a
gre
ater
scop
e to
be
crea
tive
and
expe
rim
ent w
ith h
is so
ngw
ritin
g an
d in
stru
men
tatio
n. H
e en
thus
es, “
like
in th
is se
ctio
n he
re I
shut
the
f**k
up
and
som
e be
autif
ul th
ings
hap
pen
with
th
e st
ring
s,” h
e la
ughs
. “Th
ere’
s diff
eren
t ide
as g
oing
on,
w
hich
is a
bit
mor
e sc
ary
in so
me
way
s.” It
is se
t to
be a
le
ss li
ghth
eart
ed a
lbum
than
the
last
.
The
deb
ut ra
diat
es sp
onta
neity
, with
a la
id b
ack
feel
. Th
e so
ng B
e W
ith
Me
Onc
e M
ore
star
ts o
ut sl
ow, g
aini
ng
an u
pbea
t tem
po, w
ith a
n in
tere
stin
g an
d hu
mor
ous
lyri
cal c
once
pt, w
here
the
sing
er m
akes
refe
renc
e to
lig
ht b
ulbs
, bee
r gla
sses
, car
key
s and
mor
e. “I
’m a
set
of ca
r key
s dow
n th
e ba
ck o
f you
r set
tee,
I’m a
choc
-chi
p co
okie
dun
k m
e in
you
r tea
,” he
sing
s, al
l del
iver
ed in
a
conc
ise,
chee
ky m
anne
r. Ye
t alb
um o
pene
r The
Lig
ht
is li
ghth
eart
ed a
nd re
flect
ive,
with
the
stri
ngs a
ddin
g a
soot
hing
und
erto
ne, a
nd v
ibra
nt, i
nnov
ativ
e ly
rics
. “So
I’m
fair
ly m
essy
, I p
ick
my
nose
, I li
ke R
ubik
’s cu
bes,
I lik
e ba
rber
shop
qua
rtet
s.” H
e ad
mits
, “It
just
coin
cide
d w
ith
how
I w
as fe
elin
g an
d w
hat I
wan
ted
to sa
y. Yo
u m
ake
the
mus
ic y
ou n
eed
to m
ake
at d
iffer
ent t
imes
in y
our l
ife. I
f I
mad
e th
e sa
me
albu
m te
n tim
es, t
here
wou
ld b
e no
poi
nt
in th
at.”
T
he
conn
ectio
n Ja
ke fe
els t
o m
usic
is n
ot a
re
cent
thin
g,
havi
ng co
me
from
a m
usic
al
fam
ily. “
I was
ab
out e
ight
ye
ars o
ld
whe
n I s
tart
ed
lear
ning
pi
ano,
and
ve
ry q
uick
ly
I mas
sive
ly
fell
in lo
ve
with
it, t
o th
e po
int w
here
I’d
com
e ho
me
from
scho
ol
ever
yday
and
ju
mp
stra
ight
on
the
pian
o,”
he re
min
isce
s. “
I was
qui
te
a sh
y ch
ild,
and
mus
ic
beca
me
a w
ay
to e
xpre
ss
mys
elf i
n a
way
I f
ound
har
d w
ith w
ords
.” Th
is lo
ve a
nd
appr
ecia
tion
for m
usic
then
flo
uris
hed.
“W
hen
I got
in
to m
y te
ens
I lea
rned
to
play
gui
tar,
obvi
ousl
y yo
u ca
n’t
play
pia
no
whe
n yo
u’re
fo
urte
en,
it is
a lo
ser
inst
rum
ent
to p
lay,”
he
laug
hs. S
o in
stea
d he
opt
ed fo
r gui
tar.
“It w
as a
ll tie
d up
w
ith m
y gr
owin
g up
and
han
ging
out
with
my
frie
nds,
and
mus
ic w
hen
you’
re g
row
ing
up is
kin
d of
infu
sed,
it’s
in
the
fabr
ic o
f you
r gro
win
g up
,” Ja
ke a
dmits
. “It’
s ass
ocia
ted
with
cert
ain
mom
ents
in y
our l
ife. I
gue
ss [m
usic
] cam
e to
me
at a
ver
y ea
rly a
ge a
nd th
en I
neve
r sto
pped
find
ing
it fa
scin
atin
g an
d am
azin
g.” Ja
ke re
veal
s tha
t his
fam
ily
mem
bers
are
cons
ider
ed n
ot o
nly
his b
igge
st fa
ns, b
ut a
lso
his b
igge
st cr
itics
, giv
ing
him
an
unw
aver
ing
supp
ort b
ase.
A
lthou
gh m
usic
has
alw
ays b
een
a m
assi
ve, a
ll en
com
pass
ing
love
, he
deci
ded
to b
e se
nsib
le a
nd e
xplo
re
his o
ptio
ns, g
oing
to u
nive
rsity
to st
udy
law
. Jak
e is
hon
est
abou
t his
har
d de
cisi
on w
heth
er to
pur
sue
mus
ic, o
r to
put t
his p
assi
on o
n th
e ba
ck b
urne
r. “I
had
a re
al st
rugg
le
at th
at ti
me
of m
y lif
e w
here
I w
as w
onde
ring
whe
ther
to
follo
w w
hat I
love
d w
hich
was
mus
ic, o
r wha
t I th
ough
t w
ould
be
a se
nsib
le ca
reer
choi
ce. I
n th
e en
d I j
ust k
ind
of th
ough
t, I’l
l go
get a
deg
ree,
then
afte
r I’m
don
e if
I st
ill w
ant t
o th
en I’
ll le
t loo
se w
ith m
usic
and
see
whe
re
it go
es.”
Jake
says
, “th
en if
that
goe
s wro
ng I
coul
d ha
ve
a de
gree
to fl
og m
ysel
f with
.” Bu
t the
nee
d to
hav
e an
ac
adem
ic o
ffice
job
didn
’t ha
ve to
pre
sent
itse
lf.
It w
as 2
007
whe
n Ja
ke’s
mus
ical
end
eavo
urs d
rast
ical
ly
chan
ged.
Hav
ing
thro
wn
out a
ll th
e so
ngs h
e’d
been
w
ritin
g si
nce
child
hood
, he
was
bac
k to
pla
ying
pia
no a
lo
t and
get
ting
back
into
gui
tar.
“I g
uess
I’d
alw
ays b
een
a bi
t tur
ned
off b
y gu
itar s
tuff
beca
use
I’ve
asso
ciat
ed it
w
ith sh
owin
g of
f for
the
sake
of t
ryin
g to
look
cool
. So
I’d
alw
ays d
ism
isse
d it
for t
hat r
easo
n,” s
ays J
ake.
“I h
eard
“tHE W
ORLD I
S FUL
L OF
MILLIO
ns an
d mill
ions
of lo
ve s
ongs,
the pr
oblem
is tha
t we e
nd up
definin
g ours
elve
s by r
eferen
ce to
our r
elat
ionshi
ps wh
ich is
a re
cipe f
or dis
empow
erment
.”
Mat
Qua
ke,
Sub
stan
ce P
hoto
grap
h
“It w
as l
ike
walk
ing ou
t int
o Na
rnia”
32 rock, salt + nails
“There
’s a
lot of
nerdin
ess
on thi
sal
bium”
this
song
on
YouT
ube
that
this
guy
sent
me.
It w
as th
e m
ost
beau
tiful
song
I’d
hear
d, it
had
som
e cl
ever
gui
tar s
olos
in
it, a
nd I
obse
ssed
abo
ut h
ow to
pla
y it
and
that
got
me
into
th
is id
ea o
f act
ually
pla
ying
clev
er g
uita
r stu
ff, a
nd a
ctua
lly
havi
ng so
ngs t
hat m
atte
r rat
her t
han
just
show
ing
off.”
Di
fficu
lties
aro
se w
hen
tryi
ng to
pla
y co
mpl
icat
ed g
uita
r pa
rts,
but b
eing
una
ble
to se
e w
hat h
e w
as d
oing
. “Sp
ur o
f th
e m
omen
t I tr
ied
seei
ng w
hat i
t wou
ld b
e lik
e th
e ot
her
way
aro
und,
it w
as a
big
mom
ent f
or m
e.” T
his w
as th
e fir
st
time
he d
ecid
ed to
pla
y th
e gu
itar o
n hi
s lap
, “It
was
like
w
alki
ng o
ut in
to N
arni
a a
bit l
ike
‘oh
my
god’
ther
e’s t
his
who
le n
ew w
orld
of t
hing
s to
do.”
T
he m
usic
ian’
s dis
tinct
ive
styl
e m
eans
his
gui
tar g
ets
a be
atin
g, b
ut su
rpri
sing
ly h
e ha
s nev
er h
ad to
thro
w o
ut
an in
stru
men
t. “I
’ve
had
to re
pair
a lo
t, re
cent
ly I
had
a ca
tast
roph
ic fa
ilure
of s
ome
woo
d,” a
dmits
Jake
. “To
me
it’s a
tool
, I d
on’t
nam
e th
em o
r any
thin
g.”
Jake
’s m
usic
has
an
irre
sist
ible
char
m, h
eigh
tene
d m
ore
by th
e co
nsci
ous l
ack
of re
latio
nshi
p so
ngs.
“It’s
som
ethi
ng I
thou
ght a
bout
a lo
t, an
d no
t tal
ked
abou
t muc
h. T
he w
orld
is fu
ll of
mill
ions
and
mill
ions
of
love
song
s, th
e pr
oble
m is
that
we
end
up d
efin
ing
ours
elve
s by
refe
renc
e to
our
rela
tions
hips
whi
ch is
a
reci
pe fo
r dis
empo
wer
men
t, it’
s muc
h be
tter
to d
efin
e ou
rsel
ves b
y ou
rsel
ves,
to b
e st
rong
peo
ple
and
to b
e ok
ay in
who
we
are.
The
n if
we
see
peop
le, o
r mak
e fr
iend
s, w
e’re
not
fore
ver d
efin
ing
ours
elve
s by
thos
e re
latio
nshi
ps b
ecau
se th
ey m
ight
chan
ge a
nd th
en y
ou
end
up m
iser
able
.” W
ise
wor
ds in
deed
, and
an
extr
emel
y re
fres
hing
poi
nt o
f vie
w, b
ut th
is re
solv
e m
ay h
ave
shift
ed sl
ight
ly. “
My
seco
nd a
lbum
is le
ss so
, not
that
it’
s all
just
goi
ng o
n ab
out r
elat
ions
hips
. I’d
still
say
the
driv
ing
forc
e of
it is
abo
ut w
ho y
ou a
re a
nd th
e ki
nd o
f so
met
hing
with
in o
urse
lves
, rat
her t
han
‘oh,
I lo
ved
you
and
then
you
don
’t lo
ve m
e an
ymor
e,’ sh
ut u
p! A
lthou
gh
ther
e ar
e on
e or
two
like
that
.”
Ins
pira
tion
can
hit a
t the
mos
t unl
ikel
y, an
d of
ten
inco
nven
ient
mom
ents
, but
with
the
influ
x of
tech
nolo
gy
it m
akes
the
crea
tive
proc
ess a
lot e
asie
r. “I
hav
e hu
ndre
ds
of v
oice
mem
os o
f me
on th
e tu
be m
umbl
ing.
I lis
ten
back
to
them
the
next
mor
ning
won
deri
ng w
hat a
n ea
rth
the
mum
bly
rubb
ish
mel
ody
is.”
He
furt
her a
dmits
, “I’v
e ne
ver
been
one
of t
hose
peo
ple
who
’s ro
man
tical
ly in
love
with
w
ritin
g on
not
epad
s.”
“F
or m
e th
e be
st, m
ost i
nspi
ring
thin
gs h
appe
n w
hen
you’
re n
ot tr
ying
to w
rite
a so
ng. Y
ou’re
not
tryi
ng to
forc
e an
ythi
ng, i
t jus
t hap
pens
,” sa
ys Ja
ke. “
That
’s pa
rtly
wha
t th
e so
ng W
atch
You
rsel
f is a
bout
, it’s
got
wha
t fee
ls li
ke
quite
a co
ntro
lling
, dom
inee
ring
cons
ciou
s ele
men
t to
our
min
ds w
hich
alw
ays w
ants
cont
rol a
nd li
kes t
o th
ink
it m
akes
dec
isio
ns. I
t’s th
e au
thor
of o
ur a
ctio
ns a
nd k
now
s w
hat’s
bes
t, bu
t act
ually
that
’s no
t alw
ays t
rue.
Tha
t par
t of
the
min
d ca
n ju
st g
et in
the
way
and
mak
e yo
u ge
t it
wro
ng.”
The
sing
er a
dmits
to b
eing
hap
pies
t whe
n le
ttin
g go
of w
orri
es.
W
hen
aske
d to
cons
ider
the
song
he
is m
ost p
roud
of
crea
ting,
Jake
coul
dn’t
poss
ibly
choo
se. “
Part
ly w
hy
I wri
te so
ngs i
s bec
ause
it’s
a ch
alle
nge
to u
nder
stan
d m
y ex
peri
ence
of l
ivin
g, b
ut th
e ex
peri
ence
of l
ivin
g is
re
ally
bro
ad. S
omet
imes
you
mig
ht b
e ha
ppy
or so
lem
n or
pla
yful
, why
pic
k a
happ
y so
ng w
hen
I’m n
ot a
lway
s ha
ppy?
” Pon
deri
ng O
n A
Scen
ario
, fro
m h
is d
ebut
alb
um
is a
n in
spir
ing
song
that
flaw
less
ly co
mbi
nes J
akes
gui
tar
tapp
ing
with
the
gent
le m
urm
ur o
f the
dou
ble
bass
. The
si
nger
’s fin
gers
app
ear t
o da
nce
over
the
guita
r with
an
unm
easu
rabl
e pr
ecis
ion
and
delic
ate
art.
“The
goo
d th
ing
abou
t thi
s son
g is
that
it’s
not r
eally
abo
ut b
eing
hap
py o
r sa
d, o
r any
thin
g. Y
ou ca
n be
in a
ny m
ood
and
that
kin
d of
fit
s.”
T
he n
ew a
lbum
has
bee
n pa
inst
akin
gly
thou
ght o
ut,
with
eac
h w
ord
care
fully
chos
en. H
e se
t out
to m
ake
a th
ough
tful,
inte
llect
ual a
lbum
. “I w
as a
bit
bore
d by
em
otio
ns in
mus
ic. I
t’s v
ery
com
mon
to ju
st sp
lurg
e yo
ur
emot
ions
, esp
ecia
lly in
mus
ic, a
nd so
met
imes
that
’s ju
st
tirin
g,” Ja
ke a
dmits
. “I w
ante
d to
wri
te a
n al
bum
full
of
mor
e id
eas,
and
thou
ghts
that
wer
en’t
emot
iona
l, be
caus
e th
at fe
lt m
ore
valu
able
in so
me
way
s - a
n id
ea fe
lt m
ore
valu
able
than
an
emot
ion.
” Pon
deri
ng is
an
exam
ple
of
this
conc
ept,
”It’s
an
idea
song
, the
re’s
not m
uch
emot
ion
in th
at so
ng a
nd y
et it
can
actu
ally
be
quite
em
otio
nal t
o pl
ay o
r to
liste
n to
. I se
t out
to w
rite
a lo
t of t
hose
, but
as
I w
as w
ritin
g ab
out t
hem
, bit
by b
it th
ose
idea
s wer
e st
artin
g to
get
ove
rwhe
lmed
by
emot
ions
, and
song
s th
at st
arte
d be
ing
abou
t ide
as b
ecam
e em
otio
n so
ngs.”
Th
is w
as a
cont
radi
ctio
n of
thou
ghts
for t
he m
usic
ian,
“I
was
initi
ally
dis
appo
inte
d, I
thou
ght j
ust s
plur
ging
out
em
otio
ns co
uld
just
be
a bi
t em
otio
nally
futil
e.”
W
hen
push
ed to
reve
al d
etai
ls o
f the
new
alb
um Ja
ke is
ve
ry u
nwill
ing
to d
iscl
ose
anyt
hing
, but
adm
its h
e w
ould
lik
e an
odd
num
ber o
f son
gs to
mak
e th
e fin
al cu
t. “W
e ca
n’t r
ecor
d an
unl
imite
d nu
mbe
r of s
ongs
, we
have
to
prio
ritis
e w
ith th
e on
es w
e th
ink
are
mos
t lik
ely
to b
e th
e be
st,”
he sa
ys. “
If yo
u ha
ve a
n od
d nu
mbe
r of t
rack
s you
ca
n ha
ve a
mid
dle
trac
k. I’
ve g
ot th
is so
ng ca
lled
Room
in
the
Mid
dle,
whi
ch I’
d qu
ite li
ke to
put
in th
e m
iddl
e.”
That
’s cl
early
the
acad
emic
edg
e th
at h
asn’
t qui
te fa
ded,
“t
here
’s a
lot o
f nee
dine
ss o
n th
is a
lbum
.”
My
time
with
this
phe
nom
enal
tale
nt is
alm
ost u
p, b
ut
ther
e’s s
till t
ime
for t
hat a
ll im
port
ant q
uest
ion,
with
the
mus
icia
ns N
ew Y
ears
out
fit in
min
d… “W
hat w
ould
you
r su
perp
ower
be?
” Afte
r muc
h de
liber
atio
n, h
e do
esn’
t w
ant s
uper
stre
ngth
or x
-ray
vis
ion,
inst
ead
sett
ling
for
a po
wer
muc
h m
ore
eloq
uent
and
ver
y us
eful
. “I t
hink
m
y su
perp
ower
wou
ld b
e th
e ab
ility
to d
escr
ibe
exac
tly
how
I th
ink,
or t
o ph
rase
my
wor
ds in
a w
ay th
at e
xact
ly
mak
e se
nse.
Tha
t wou
ld b
e a
very
cool
supe
rher
o po
wer
to
hav
e,” Ja
ke sa
ys. “
If yo
u’re
supe
rman
you
wou
ldn’
t wis
h fo
r mas
sive
flyi
ng sk
ills a
nd st
reng
th, s
o yo
u ch
oose
a
supe
rher
o tr
ait t
hat y
ou m
ost l
ack,
oth
erw
ise
you
don’
t
need
it.”
Mat
Qua
ke,
Sub
stan
ce P
hoto
grap
h
rock, salt + nails 33
Mat
Qua
ke,
Sub
stan
ce P
hoto
grap
h
giving our opinion on the best new music, films + books around at the moment
Reviews
34 rock, salt + nails
DEAF
HAVA
NA cLAP
HAM gR
AND 1
0TG +
11TH
aPRIL
2014
. It’s the second and final night of Deaf Havana’s residency at The Clapham Grand in south east London and fans have been queuing hours before doors,
clad in a range of Deaf Havana merchandise. Many faces are familiar from the previous evening, yet are no less excited. Promptly on first are The People The Poet, the South Wales five piece with the vital task of preparing the swelling crowd for tonight’s performance, they get a smattering of applause with their ambient folk-rock. Next up are The Maine, who swagger on stage to a long instrumental, allowing them to limber up whilst the crowd look frankly disinterested, besides a row of teenage girls dancing at the barrier. Deaf Havana is a band whose name is in lights… Quite literally. Featuring their very special guests, London’s Youth Choir and a string quartet, you can’t quite shake the feeling that tonight will be talked about for years to come. Opening with the aptly named Lights the enticing strings are followed swiftly with rhythmic drums and awe-inspiring vocals. Their simplistic stage production of the illuminated band name, and extra musicians elevates the live show into an experience so profound that each member of the audience seems to be visibly drawn to the music. The band’s smiles are wide and the crowd bounces around as the chorus strikes. Everybody’s Dancing and I Want to Die is a clear favourite among fans. The dynamic six-piece clearly thrive in the electric atmosphere that is only heightened within the beautiful high-ceilinged venue. New single 22 encapsulates a boundless enthusiasm, with its steady drumbeat reverberating through the heartfelt shouts of “With Springsteen in my headphones singing mockingly away, oh Brucey baby I’ve seen better days, and these are not better days.” Causing foot stamping and a subsequent eruption of lyrics, Leeches
is infectious and impossible not to dance to. Determined to kick things up a notch or six, The Past Six Years is reflective and a great illustration of just how well this youthful band are doing and how far they have progressed. Little White Lies encourages chaos with its unforgettable chorus and spectacular high notes. People clamber on each other’s shoulders as they belt the lyrics out equally as enthusiastic as the band themselves. Bringing it back to newest album release Old Souls, and encouraging a slightly calmer mood you can’t help but marvel over James Veck-Gilodi’s vocals and honest, personal lyrics. The string quartet enhances each song mellowing the gentle songs and placing emphasis on the guitars in rowdier tracks. The band are helpless to the thanks tumbling repeatedly from their mouths, as their fans soak up each precious second they get to spend in the company of one of the best live bands around. The tremulous vocals of Boston Square and ferocious drums reflect the despair and anger they translated into the music as they deliver an array of deeply searching, raw music. Anemophobia is engrossing and impossible to not get lost in the sheer desperation and depth of emotion that crackles through the air, the crowd are left in silent awe as the piano works its gentle magic, until the chorus kicks in allowing a mass release of feeling from band and fans alike. Hunstanton Pier is dedicated to their childhood friends, who stand watching proudly from the back of The Grand, as the band transition into an acoustic led song about growing up. The night ends with an intensely powerful and thought provoking Caro Padre, singing of his absent father, James’ voice radiates a deep passion. This is a band who thrive in a spotlight, and definitely sets the bar high when it comes to live shows—every band needs a choir and orchestra to help elevate their performance.
live
rock, salt + nails 35
live
36 rock, salt + nails
SINGLES
Ed Sheeran // sing
Foot stomping and country hollering would not go amiss when listening to Love Don’t Lie, The Fray’s adventure away from the shackles of piano solos and soaring melody
that is trademark of the band. Instead cascading guitars and a persistent drum beat nestle amongst soothing harmonies that work to colour Isaacs passionate lyrical delivery creates an energetic and memorable track.
Giving an indulgent and painfully brief insight into the patiently awaited follow up to Young Pilgrim is Winter Hymns. Intricate guitar picking is softened further
with Charlie Simpson’s distinctive husky vocals, that are intense and lead to gorgeous harmonies. A soothing and intriguing song, heartfelt with the singer imploring, “I promise I won’t make a sound, as I figure you no longer want me around.” The song is a perfect soundtrack for the tentatively sunny mornings to close the doors on the misery of winter. Winter Hymns masks raw emotion, it is captivating and gives an intriguing taster of the new album. Going all out Sing is a funk tempo driven
song. Breaking from his distinctive style grounded in guitar playing, Ed Sheeran croons, “I need you darling, come on set the
tone.” Featuring his signature acoustic strumming, the singer-songwriter transitions seamlessly into a verse of indulgent, highly melodic rap. A mash up of genres tied together with wavering vocals in a compelling and pleasing way that is mastered through phenomenal talent and a great deal of precision. Heavily commercial with a pop edge, Sing is direct and extremely infectious.
the fray // love don’t lie
charlie simpson // winter hymns
rock, salt + nails 37
The demise of The Good Natured, female fronted electro-pop was saddening to hear for lovers of upbeat, infectious melody. Having been shelved by their label despite the much anticipated debut album Prism awaiting to be unveiled—a devastating blow to the music industry has tuned into a positive new beginning for the vibrant young trio. Emerging as a solid unit and brandishing a new name, Lovestarrs have confidently delivered new song Get Your Sexy On. Enticed with precision drums and echoed cries of Get Your Sexy On, the track has a real summery vibe to it with its effortlessly rhythmic pull and progressive keys. Buoyant pop with a sultry undertone, Sarah, Hamish and George unite to create a strong and colourful track that could readily dominate the charts.
the fray // love don’t lie
Lovestarrs // Get Your Sexy On
38 rock, salt + nailsalbum
Fresh faced Amber Run are set to entice and delight with new EP Spark. The title track creates wave upon wave of deliciously upbeat and thoughtful lyrics paired with
gentle piano chords, layered with enthusiastic drums. The uplifting performance allows the lyrics to shine and expel the bands current adventure, “It’s that feeling that you just can’t shake, that your life’s about to start and you just can’t wait.” Bursting into the very heart of the song, the sweeping guitars and subtle harmonies gather momentum before fading into an instrumental to allow the other members to shine. Heaven is all melodic guitars and wistful, melancholy vocals repeating the theme of a fiery passion, frontman Joe sings, “and it’s you that burns brighter than all.” Chamber is a delicate song with a comfortingly repetitive rhythm, female harmonies adding to the dreamy feel of the song. Closing with the silky velvet of Hide & Seek, the buoyant drums echo in the distance with a break in the music to allow a powerfully poignant group harmony. Harnessing an effortless charm, and simple elegance Spark is uplifting, confident and undeniably destined for festival stages.
Caustic Love is a celebration of 27 year-old Paolo Nutini’s transition into manhood. Featuring a greatly developed sound, a rhythmic soul and blues feel contrasts with
the effortlessly upbeat melody of previous release Sunny Side Up. Scotsman Paolo allows for a career defining album with his third LP. Album opener Scream (Funk My Life Up) is full of groove, the feel-good track is memorable with female backing vocals and Nutini’s purr of his dream woman. Let Me Down Easy is reminiscent of 60s soul with earthy undertones. The raspy melody of One Day sees Nutini sing, “I’ll cry and you cry and we’ll cry, till the rain turns black and the devil moves and clings to us.” Soaring vocals are enhanced by smooth, resonate violins. Numpty is a jaunty track despite the downbeat lyrical content, “Building a house so we can fall at the first brick. If the cement don’t stick, but I’ve been told that it only gets harder from there.” His soulful voice envelopes you into a strong narrative. Better Man is a soft, acoustic led song, sung with an honest conviction. The stripped back track is a welcome contrast with the fervour seen throughout the rest of the album. Iron Sky is all echoed melody and delicate cymbals, shifting into a moody Diana displaying soul funk at its best. Recorded with a live band the each song is enriched with a smoky ambience, a man of many talents he sheds his indie acoustic stylings in favour of a richly matured sound to create one of the best albums of 2014.
amber run // spark [ep]
Paolo Nutini // Caustic Love
rock, salt + nails 39 album
How many people let go of their hopes and dreams to commit to a mundane 9-5 day job, when instead they could be doing something enjoyable and inspiring. Exploring the world whilst in the
company of your friends, perhaps it sounds unrealistic? Jamie Pham’s ‘I Could Be the President’ is a collection of memories, hopes, and fears that have been combined to create an honest and unique insight into a life spent chasing your dreams. It documents how he got into the fiercely competitive music industry, working from the very bottom to gain experience and demonstrate his worth, it also touches on more personal matters such as his father’s ill health. Jamie decided he wanted to work within the music industry after setting up a clothing label whilst still at school with a group of friends, they got a merchandise booth on a local Warped Tour date and got to see behind-the-scenes of a successful music festival: it was then that Jamie uncovered a desire to work with musicians. The book illustrates the author’s dedication to hard work and his thirst for new experiences and provides a unique insight into what goes on behind-the-scenes in getting band to stage. A book about life, and living it to the full, as well as the alteration of passions and change of career aspirations. I Could Be the President is skilfully written, a short but extensive account set to leave the reader inspired. It leaves you craving the next instalment—where has life taken the ambitious Jamie Pham.
i co
uld b
e the
presid
ent BY ja
mie ph
am books
40 rock, salt + nails
It’s getting harder for musicians to earn a living, unless they are selling out arenas and signed with a
major label. As a result, artists are looking at alternative methods to make money to continue doing what they love. It’s a natural progression to start writing, as touring the world is an adventure in itself. The creative mindset needed to make music also lends itself nicely to writing an engaging book. They benefit from already having their name out there, being able to reach out to fans to support their ventures, in addition to people interested in the music industry wanting to purchase a book written by an industry expert. After all, who could possibly be better to talk about the industry than somebody who lives it each day. A benefit from having a core following already is being able to utilise funding sites such as Kickstarter to generate start up funds and concentrate on writing. Not only that, but there is a larger profit margin as artists can publish their books independently. Nathan and Matthew Leone, identical twins from the band Madina Lake both made the decision to write a book. Nathan’s is in the style of an autobiography, and documents his somewhat crazy life, whereas Matthew’s is a conceptual story of a fictional town which was planned alongside their trio of albums.
books
rock, salt + nails 41
books Don’t Love Me, Judge Me BY NATHAN LEONE
An insightful glimpse into the extraordinary life of Nathan Leone. Don’t Love Me, Judge Me is a hilarious yet painfully unabashed
collection of anecdotes from his early life to his most present adventures and experiences. Don’t Love Me, Judge Me follows Nathan from childhood, to gaining a scholarship to play NCAA soccer, deciding to pack it in to ride a camel across the dessert and chronicling the surprising Fear Factor win that funded the start up of demo for Madina Lake, Nathan’s band. All of these experiences were shared with Nathan’s other half and partner in crime, identical twin Matthew Leone. Where else can you read - in explicit detail - what happens when you want to get even with a cowboy builder and end up with explosive diarrhoea and a broken nose? The ethos of the book is indeed, ‘Don’t Love Me, Judge Me,’ it’s impossible not to be awestricken, humiliated, hysterical and ashamed reading the events of this one man’s life. “I think the best experience was when Matthew Dan Mateo and I we’re out in LA for the final Fear Factor stunt because we’d just been totally scammed by some C rate local manager, were in the process of getting scammed by some C rate producer in LA but being together for the first time as a band,” says Nathan. “Hiding Mateo and Dan in our Fear Factor hotel room while we left to do the final stunt was so fun. Then we won and nobody knew it but us four. We had the time of our lives whilst two
Lila, The Divine Game is deeply
philosophical, whimsical, yet terrifyingly dark. The brain childof Matthew Leone, bassist of the late Madina Lake, the story ties their trilogy of albums neatly together, yet can be read independent of the albums.The concept is questioning life and death through a mythical town which acts as a metaphor for the world, with its occupants each standing for a different emotion or trait. Meet Adalia, a socialite in a place obsessed with celebrity culture—she is a symbol of America and all it stands for in the 21st century—until she gets murdered. Meet Pandora, the sexy goddess, envious of Adalia’s popularity. And meet Forrest, he has a mission to do but he is unsure what. A town shrouded in mystery and cut off from the world, mysterious Auspices fall from the sky, with a special note for the recipient, gifted by The River People, strange faceless creatures cloaked in white. Where’s Adalia? What’s happened to the once peaceful town? Matthew’s book is eloquently written with a skill and passion that is rarely seen. Extremely well written, it keeps you guessing and pages turning at great frequency until the climactic ending. L
ila, T
he Div
ine Ga
me By
Matthe
w Le
one
scam artists thought they’d bested us!” However, it’s not all misdemeanours and surreal experiences, as he touches on what life was like having lost him mum at the age of 12, getting car jacked and the night where time screeched to a halt on discovering that his brother had been attacked and was in critical condition. Take the journey through Don’t Love Me, Judge Me, to discover the wondrous highs and terrifying lows of playing Download Festival, creating lifelong friendships, several near death experiences and battling depression and anxiety, all whilst gaining invaluable insight into the difficulties faced being a musician.
42 rock, salt + nails
Your life has been anything but ordinary, is it just a case of shrugging your shoulders and diving head-on into the next adventure/experience?Yeah you kind of have to right? Despite your greatest effort, you can only control so much of your life circumstance. There will always be highs and lows, joy and pain, tragedy and triumph. So I think the key is not to dwell on anything and keep moving. It’s easy to fall into the traps of useless emotions like regret, guilt, resentment and anger. But the fact of the matter is neither of those things have one productive or beneficial value whatsoever. If there’s a lesson to be learned learned it and move on!
Why did now feel like the right time to release a book?We’d recently closed a major chapter of our lives and it felt like an appropriate time to document it and put it in the vaults. We’ve continued to write music and will continue to create perform and otherwise engage in every aspect of music forever but closing the Madina Lake chapter was significant for us. I think the
Nathan Leone
Q+A with....
“Don’t Love Me, Judge Me”
book was a nice way to get closure.
Did you find it to be a challenging experience writing, or was it therapeutic in a sense?Both though it was much more challenging. Whenever I’ve made records there’s always been a manager, label person, bandmate or producer telling me when I had to stop writing and commit to what I had on account of deadlines. I’m neurotic enough when it comes to writing so to have to determine when to stop obsessing was impossible!
Have you kept journals, or was it a case of remembering the necessary anecdotes?I used to keep journals ages ago but I think I’ve told those stories so many times throughout my life that they just became permanently embedded in my mind.
Was there anything too weird to write about/share with the world?Ha. If you can believe it yes. and it already gets pretty weird as it is so...
rock, salt + nails 43
Q+A with....
Follow Rock, Salt + Nails online at www.rocksaltandnails.com
44 rock, salt + nails
Stepp
ing
into
HM
V I b
risk
ly w
alk
over
to th
e CD
sect
ion,
al
low
ing
my
finge
rs to
wor
k m
etho
dica
lly fr
om th
e le
tter
‘A’
, pau
sing
eac
h tim
e I d
isco
ver a
CD
I’ve
been
crav
ing,
or
if th
e al
bum
art
catc
hes m
y ey
e. T
he L
umin
eers
, Luc
y Ro
se,
Man
ic S
tree
t Pre
ache
rs. M
y pa
lms a
re sw
eatin
g an
d I a
m u
ltra
awar
e of
all
the
thud
ding
foot
step
s sur
roun
ding
me.
I qu
ickl
y gr
ab
the
desi
red
CD a
nd h
urry
ove
r to
the
tills
. Tha
nkfu
lly th
e qu
eue
is
shor
t, ye
t I lo
ok d
own
inte
ntly
at m
y sh
oes t
o av
oid
the
yout
hful
ca
shie
rs ju
dgin
g ey
es a
s he
scan
s Bab
el, a
nd “Y
es th
ank
you
very
m
uch,
I w
ould
like
a b
ag to
dis
guis
e m
y so
mew
hat m
ortif
ying
£4
.99
purc
hase
.” W
hy d
o so
man
y pe
ople
seem
to h
ate
Mum
ford
&
Sons
, whe
n th
eir i
mpr
essi
ve re
cord
sale
s tel
l a d
iffer
ent s
tory
?
Que
stio
ning
the
auth
entic
ity o
f fol
k m
usic
is n
ot a
new
thin
g.
The
lege
ndar
y Bo
b Dy
lan
has b
een
face
d w
ith a
gre
at d
eal o
f cr
itici
sm th
roug
hout
his
care
er. I
n an
inte
rvie
w w
ith th
e LA
times
in 2
010
Joni
Mitc
hell
stat
ed: “
Ever
ythi
ng a
bout
Bob
is a
de
cept
ion,
” she
refe
rred
to h
is n
ame
chan
ge, a
nd a
lso
accu
sed
him
of
pla
giar
ism
. Yet
Dyl
an h
as h
ad p
heno
men
al su
cces
s thr
ough
out
his c
aree
r and
is co
nsid
ered
one
of t
he b
est f
olk
artis
ts o
f the
60
s. Fo
lk m
usic
was
seen
as t
he m
usic
of t
he m
iddl
e-cl
ass,
the
mus
ic o
f a co
mm
unity
. The
mus
ic w
as sh
ared
ora
lly a
mon
gst
wor
king
clas
s com
mun
ities
pre
-20t
h ce
ntur
y w
hen
peop
le w
ere
larg
ely
illite
rate
. Fol
k m
usic
had
a re
viva
l with
Bob
Dyl
an a
nd
has p
erio
dica
lly e
njoy
ed m
omen
ts in
the
limel
ight
. Whe
ther
it
was
Suz
anne
Veg
u an
d th
e N
ew Y
ork
coffe
ehou
se sc
ene
of th
e 19
80s,
or th
e an
ti-fo
lk m
ovem
ent o
f the
nou
ghtie
s. Or
ag
ain
mor
e re
cent
ly w
ith M
umfo
rd &
Son
s and
oth
er
band
s lab
elle
d w
ith fo
lk te
nden
cies
. Mus
ic w
as m
ade
acce
ssib
le w
ith re
cord
ing
equi
pmen
t and
now
it is
not
si
mpl
y sh
ared
am
ongs
t a sm
all c
omm
unity
, but
rath
er
anyb
ody
who
wis
hes t
o lis
ten.
Cur
rent
folk
mus
ic su
ch
as T
o Ki
ll A
King
, The
Lum
inee
rs a
nd T
he S
tray
bird
s, is
cr
eate
d by
mus
icia
ns u
sing
trad
ition
al fo
lk in
stru
men
ts
incl
udin
g ac
oust
ic g
uita
rs, b
anjo
s and
the
doub
le b
ass.
They
ofte
n dr
aw o
n tr
aditi
onal
folk
them
es w
ithin
the
song
s suc
h as
fam
ily re
latio
nshi
ps a
nd th
e id
ea o
f a
sim
plis
tic li
fest
yle
that
reso
nate
s am
ongs
t the
com
mun
ity.
Inst
ead
of th
e in
tens
ity o
f tra
ditio
nal f
olk
mus
ic co
min
g th
roug
h th
e so
und
of in
stru
men
ts a
nd th
roug
h co
mpl
ex
inst
rum
enta
tion,
the
inte
nsity
of t
he ly
rics
and
voc
al
deliv
eran
ce a
dds t
he e
mot
ion
and
pass
ion
that
is in
twin
ed w
ithin
th
e fa
bric
of t
he m
usic
. The
sim
plic
ity is
effe
ctiv
e on
taki
ng th
e lis
tene
r on
a jo
urne
y an
d to
ade
quat
ely
port
ray
the
mes
sage
en
visa
ged.
Alth
ough
mod
ern
folk
doe
sn’t
stic
k to
usi
ng a
cous
tic
inst
rum
ents
, the
idea
rem
ains
the
sam
e.
Q
uest
ioni
ng th
e au
then
ticity
of a
ny m
usic
is a
tric
ky b
usin
ess,
as it
is im
poss
ible
to la
bel s
omet
hing
as t
ruly
uni
que,
but
then
why
ha
ve so
me
peop
le b
ecom
e so
enr
aged
at M
umfo
rd &
Son
s bei
ng
refe
rred
to a
s a fo
lk b
and?
One
of th
e re
ason
s lie
s in
the
band
’s ba
ckgr
ound
. The
four
-pi
ece
is m
ade
up o
f fro
ntm
an a
nd le
ad v
ocal
ist M
arcu
s Mum
ford
, Be
n Lo
vett
, Win
ston
Mar
shal
l and
Ted
Dw
ane,
The
y al
l pla
y m
ultip
le in
stru
men
ts, a
nd jo
in in
with
sing
ing
voca
ls. A
s affl
uent
an
d pr
ivat
ely
educ
ated
indi
vidu
als t
hey
all h
ad a
gre
at st
art
in li
fe, s
omet
hing
that
man
y tr
aditi
onal
folk
mus
icia
ns m
aybe
la
cked
, hav
ing
com
e fr
om h
umbl
e, w
orki
ng b
ackg
roun
ds. I
f thi
s is
the
reas
on p
eopl
e qu
estio
n M
umfo
rd &
Son
s aut
hent
icity
, it
seem
s rat
her s
illy,
as th
ey h
ave
sim
ply
had
mor
e pr
ivile
ged.
Mor
e an
noyi
ng is
the
‘gen
tlem
an fa
rmer
s’ im
age
and
the
nam
e M
umfo
rd
& S
ons,
cons
ider
ing
the
mem
bers
are
n’t e
ven
rela
ted,
can
seem
bo
th e
xces
sive
and
unn
eces
sary
. In
folk
ther
e is
a tr
aditi
on o
f fa
mily
sing
ing
toge
ther
whi
ch a
gain
em
phas
ises
the
com
mun
ity
spir
it. T
he C
arte
r fam
ily w
ere
an A
mer
ican
fam
ily w
ho re
cord
ed
blue
gras
s and
coun
try
mus
ic to
geth
er, D
oc W
atso
n al
so p
erfo
rmed
w
ith h
is so
n M
erle
Wat
son
for m
any
year
s. Th
e M
umfo
rd &
Son
s ba
nd n
ame
feel
s alm
ost m
ocki
ng o
f tra
ditio
nal f
olk
root
s. Th
ere
is a
pre
ssur
e on
peo
ple
to e
ither
‘lov
e’ o
r ‘ha
te’ t
he E
nglis
h ba
nd,
with
indi
ffere
nce
no lo
nger
bei
ng a
n op
tion.
Lau
ra M
arlin
g cr
eate
s a si
mila
r sty
le o
f mus
ic, a
nd co
mes
from
th
e sa
me
priv
atel
y ed
ucat
ed b
ackg
roun
d as
Mum
ford
& S
ons,
yet
she
is w
idel
y pr
aise
d w
ithou
t a su
bsta
ntia
l bac
klas
h. P
erha
ps it
is
not
due
to m
ere
supe
rfic
ial d
etai
ls li
ke im
age
and
back
grou
nd,
but t
he a
ctua
l mus
ic p
rodu
ced,
as o
ppos
ed to
its r
oots
. The
re
are
cert
ainl
y so
me
poor
lyri
cal c
hoic
es e
vide
nt in
Mum
ford
&
Sons
cata
logu
e. F
or e
xam
ple,
the
rhym
ing
of “f
ire”
and
“des
ire”
in
thei
r son
g H
opel
ess
Wan
dere
r, or
its d
isap
poin
ting
and
fran
kly
bori
ng ch
orus
: “Bu
t hol
d m
e fa
st, h
old
me
fast
. ‘Cau
se I’
m a
hop
eles
s w
ande
rer.
But h
old
me
fast
, hol
d m
e fa
st. ‘C
ause
I’m
a h
opel
ess
wan
dere
r.” A
ll of
the
song
s are
ver
y si
mila
r, in
stea
d of
wor
king
as
a co
hesi
ve p
iece
of a
rt, t
hey
blen
d in
to o
ne n
ever
-end
ing
mas
s of
banj
os a
nd u
nins
pire
d ly
rics
.
Bab
el w
orke
d as
the
follo
w u
p to
Mum
ford
& S
ons 2
009’
s de
but a
lbum
Sig
h N
o M
ore,
who
se a
lbum
title
was
take
n fr
om
Shak
espe
are’
s ren
owne
d M
uch
Ado
Abou
t Not
hing
, and
was
aw
arde
d Al
bum
of t
he Y
ear.
Yet B
abel
smas
hed
this
reco
rd,
beco
min
g th
e to
p se
lling
of a
lbum
in 2
012
and
selli
ng o
ver
600,
000
copi
es in
its f
irst
wee
k in
Am
eric
a. T
he st
ar o
f the
alb
um
is si
ngle
I W
ill W
ait,
whi
ch is
una
sham
edly
catc
hy; y
et th
e ly
rics
ar
e fa
r fro
m im
pres
sive
. “W
ell I
cam
e ho
me
like
a st
one,
and
I fel
l he
avy
like
a st
one
into
you
r arm
s.” T
he m
elod
y is
infe
ctio
us, b
ut th
e ly
rics
com
e as
a so
rt o
f afte
rtho
ught
.
S
inge
r son
gwri
ter J
ake
Mor
ley
adm
its to
enj
oyin
g th
e ba
nd’s
de
but a
lbum
, but
was
left
disa
ppoi
nted
by
Babe
l. “I
was
real
ly
hopi
ng th
at th
eir s
econ
d re
cord
wou
ld d
evel
op th
eir s
tyle
fu
rthe
r… B
ut I
didn
’t ge
t the
ir se
cond
alb
um a
t all,
” he
says
. The
bi
gges
t dis
appo
intm
ent w
as in
fact
the
lead
sing
le. “
To h
ave
a bi
g hi
t cal
led
I Will
Wai
t, I j
ust f
ind
noth
ing
in th
at,”
Jake
stat
es. “
I will
w
ait f
or y
ou is
so g
ener
ic, i
t’s a
pro
blem
I ha
ve w
ith so
me
mus
ic. I
t tr
ies t
o be
so a
ll en
com
pass
ing
and
so d
eep
that
it a
ctua
lly re
veal
s no
thin
g. ‘I
will
wai
t for
you
’ cou
ld b
e th
e m
ost b
eaut
iful,
deep
ly
mea
nt p
hras
e th
at so
meo
ne co
uld
say
to y
ou, b
ut in
a so
ng
like
that
it’s
just
so g
ener
ic it
mea
ns n
othi
ng.”
“H
ow m
any
reco
rd la
bels
and
radi
o st
atio
ns st
arte
d ta
king
m
ore
notic
e of
folk
mus
ic th
at a
lrea
dy e
xist
ed a
nd la
belle
d it
as n
ew si
nce
Mum
ford
hit
it bi
g,” a
rgue
s Jam
es W
illar
d,
guita
rist
for B
roth
er &
Bon
es. “
I don
’t th
ink
it’s g
ot a
nyth
ing
to d
o w
ith M
umfo
rd &
Son
s, it’
s the
reco
rd in
dust
ry. T
hey
are
all t
oo sc
ared
to ta
ke ri
sks a
nym
ore.
If th
ey w
eren
’t th
en
we
wou
ldn’
t stil
l be
hear
ing
of ‘f
olk
band
s’, w
e’d
be li
sten
ing
to th
e ne
xt b
ig th
ing.”
Man
y pe
ople
are
furi
ous,
beca
use
a ba
nd w
ith e
xces
sive
ban
jo p
layi
ng a
nd d
ull m
usic
is a
llow
ing
incr
edib
le ta
lent
s to
rem
ain
unno
ticed
so th
at th
e m
unda
ne
can
thri
ve.
T
here
is p
rais
e fo
r the
ban
d th
ough
. “W
hen
they
firs
t st
arte
d w
orki
ng to
geth
er a
nd m
akin
g m
usic
toge
ther
they
w
ere
just
doi
ng it
out
of a
gen
uine
exc
item
ent a
nd lo
ve o
f wha
t th
ey’re
doi
ng a
nd it
was
infe
ctio
us, i
t was
bri
llian
t. Th
ere’
s a
reas
on w
hy th
ey b
ecam
e st
agge
ring
ly p
opul
ar a
nd it
was
bec
ause
w
hat t
hey
wer
e do
ing
was
kin
d of
exc
iting
,” ad
mits
Jake
.
Folk
mus
ic is
a ce
lebr
ator
y w
ay o
f bri
ngin
g pe
ople
toge
ther
. W
hen
Mum
ford
& S
ons p
laye
d at
Rea
ding
fest
ival
in 2
010,
the
atm
osph
ere
was
triu
mph
ant,
ever
ybod
y w
as h
avin
g fu
n an
d en
joyi
ng th
emse
lves
. Whe
n pi
anis
t Ben
Lov
ett a
sks t
he e
ager
cr
owd,
at t
he N
ME
stag
e “D
o yo
u w
ant t
o da
nce
toni
ght?
” the
re
spon
se w
as n
ear d
eafe
ning
. Dur
ing
Roll
Away
You
r St
one
the
rapi
d gu
itar s
trum
min
g ca
uses
roar
s of d
elig
ht a
mon
gst
the
exte
nsiv
e cr
owd.
The
ir la
st li
ve fe
stiv
al p
erfo
rman
ce a
t Gl
asto
nbur
y 20
13 w
as si
mila
rly su
cces
sful
with
fans
dec
lari
ng
thei
r lov
e fo
r the
mus
icia
ns in
the
brea
k be
twee
n so
ngs.
Th
e ba
nd m
ay b
e la
ckin
g in
subs
tanc
e bu
t the
re is
a ch
arm
in
kno
win
g ex
actly
wha
t you
are
get
ting
whe
n yo
u lis
ten
to
som
ethi
ng. “
Let t
he p
eopl
e th
at lo
ve it
carr
y on
lovi
ng it
and
they
’ll
carr
y on
mak
ing
thei
r mus
ic re
gard
less
of a
nyon
e’s o
pini
on,”
says
Ja
mes
. Yet
the
band
dec
ided
to g
o on
hia
tus i
n la
te 2
013,
telli
ng
Rolli
ng S
tone
, “Th
ere
won
’t be
any
Mum
ford
& S
ons a
ctiv
ities
for
the
fore
seea
ble
futu
re.”
The
futu
re o
f the
ban
d is
still
unc
erta
in,
but t
hat d
oesn
’t st
op sp
ecul
atio
n. M
arcu
s adm
itted
to e
njoy
ing
the
band
bei
ng o
n in
defin
ite h
iatu
s. H
e jo
kes,
“Eve
ryon
e ke
eps a
skin
g if
we’
ve b
roke
n up
as a
ban
d, w
hich
I lo
ve. S
o I k
eep
sayi
ng y
es,
and
then
we
can
have
a b
ig co
me
back
tour
nex
t yea
r.” H
owev
er,
ther
e m
ay b
e an
ele
men
t of a
pla
n in
wha
t he
says
, as b
ands
hav
e m
ade
a lo
t of m
oney
with
com
ebac
k to
urs,
whi
ch a
re b
ecom
ing
mor
e ex
pect
ed. W
ith th
e cr
itici
sm th
at th
e ba
nd h
as fa
ced,
they
m
ay h
ave
deci
ded
to d
isap
pear
for a
shor
t whi
le to
ens
ure
a w
elco
me
retu
rn w
ith a
new
alb
um, o
r per
haps
they
too
have
be
com
e tir
ed o
f the
exc
essi
ve b
anjo
pla
ying
. Hav
e M
umfo
rd &
Son
s ex
haus
ted
thei
r pot
entia
l, co
nsid
erin
g al
l of t
heir
mat
eria
l sou
nds
dist
inct
ly si
mila
r? W
ith M
umfo
rd &
Son
s off
the
rada
r for
now
, it’s
tim
e fo
r oth
er b
ands
to sh
ine,
who
hol
d da
ring
am
bitio
ns, h
arne
ss
raw
tale
nt a
nd p
rodu
ce o
rigi
nal m
usic
wor
th g
ettin
g ex
cite
d ab
out.
Why d
oes ev
erybod
y hat
e mumf
ord +
sons
“We’l
l ta
lk a
bout
anyt
hing w
ith a
n acou
stic
guita
r bein
g fol
k mus
ic but
fol
k mus
ic doe
sn’t
deserv
e that
kind
of de
finitio
nal
abuse”
- Jak
e Morl
ey
rock, salt + nails 45
“Per
haps
th
ey to
o ha
ve
beco
me
tired
of
the
exce
ss
banj
o pl
ayin
g”
Stepp
ing
into
HM
V I b
risk
ly w
alk
over
to th
e CD
sect
ion,
al
low
ing
my
finge
rs to
wor
k m
etho
dica
lly fr
om th
e le
tter
‘A’
, pau
sing
eac
h tim
e I d
isco
ver a
CD
I’ve
been
crav
ing,
or
if th
e al
bum
art
catc
hes m
y ey
e. T
he L
umin
eers
, Luc
y Ro
se,
Man
ic S
tree
t Pre
ache
rs. M
y pa
lms a
re sw
eatin
g an
d I a
m u
ltra
awar
e of
all
the
thud
ding
foot
step
s sur
roun
ding
me.
I qu
ickl
y gr
ab
the
desi
red
CD a
nd h
urry
ove
r to
the
tills
. Tha
nkfu
lly th
e qu
eue
is
shor
t, ye
t I lo
ok d
own
inte
ntly
at m
y sh
oes t
o av
oid
the
yout
hful
ca
shie
rs ju
dgin
g ey
es a
s he
scan
s Bab
el, a
nd “Y
es th
ank
you
very
m
uch,
I w
ould
like
a b
ag to
dis
guis
e m
y so
mew
hat m
ortif
ying
£4
.99
purc
hase
.” W
hy d
o so
man
y pe
ople
seem
to h
ate
Mum
ford
&
Sons
, whe
n th
eir i
mpr
essi
ve re
cord
sale
s tel
l a d
iffer
ent s
tory
?
Que
stio
ning
the
auth
entic
ity o
f fol
k m
usic
is n
ot a
new
thin
g.
The
lege
ndar
y Bo
b Dy
lan
has b
een
face
d w
ith a
gre
at d
eal o
f cr
itici
sm th
roug
hout
his
care
er. I
n an
inte
rvie
w w
ith th
e LA
times
in 2
010
Joni
Mitc
hell
stat
ed: “
Ever
ythi
ng a
bout
Bob
is a
de
cept
ion,
” she
refe
rred
to h
is n
ame
chan
ge, a
nd a
lso
accu
sed
him
of
pla
giar
ism
. Yet
Dyl
an h
as h
ad p
heno
men
al su
cces
s thr
ough
out
his c
aree
r and
is co
nsid
ered
one
of t
he b
est f
olk
artis
ts o
f the
60
s. Fo
lk m
usic
was
seen
as t
he m
usic
of t
he m
iddl
e-cl
ass,
the
mus
ic o
f a co
mm
unity
. The
mus
ic w
as sh
ared
ora
lly a
mon
gst
wor
king
clas
s com
mun
ities
pre
-20t
h ce
ntur
y w
hen
peop
le w
ere
larg
ely
illite
rate
. Fol
k m
usic
had
a re
viva
l with
Bob
Dyl
an a
nd
has p
erio
dica
lly e
njoy
ed m
omen
ts in
the
limel
ight
. Whe
ther
it
was
Suz
anne
Veg
u an
d th
e N
ew Y
ork
coffe
ehou
se sc
ene
of th
e 19
80s,
or th
e an
ti-fo
lk m
ovem
ent o
f the
nou
ghtie
s. Or
ag
ain
mor
e re
cent
ly w
ith M
umfo
rd &
Son
s and
oth
er
band
s lab
elle
d w
ith fo
lk te
nden
cies
. Mus
ic w
as m
ade
acce
ssib
le w
ith re
cord
ing
equi
pmen
t and
now
it is
not
si
mpl
y sh
ared
am
ongs
t a sm
all c
omm
unity
, but
rath
er
anyb
ody
who
wis
hes t
o lis
ten.
Cur
rent
folk
mus
ic su
ch
as T
o Ki
ll A
King
, The
Lum
inee
rs a
nd T
he S
tray
bird
s, is
cr
eate
d by
mus
icia
ns u
sing
trad
ition
al fo
lk in
stru
men
ts
incl
udin
g ac
oust
ic g
uita
rs, b
anjo
s and
the
doub
le b
ass.
They
ofte
n dr
aw o
n tr
aditi
onal
folk
them
es w
ithin
the
song
s suc
h as
fam
ily re
latio
nshi
ps a
nd th
e id
ea o
f a
sim
plis
tic li
fest
yle
that
reso
nate
s am
ongs
t the
com
mun
ity.
Inst
ead
of th
e in
tens
ity o
f tra
ditio
nal f
olk
mus
ic co
min
g th
roug
h th
e so
und
of in
stru
men
ts a
nd th
roug
h co
mpl
ex
inst
rum
enta
tion,
the
inte
nsity
of t
he ly
rics
and
voc
al
deliv
eran
ce a
dds t
he e
mot
ion
and
pass
ion
that
is in
twin
ed w
ithin
th
e fa
bric
of t
he m
usic
. The
sim
plic
ity is
effe
ctiv
e on
taki
ng th
e lis
tene
r on
a jo
urne
y an
d to
ade
quat
ely
port
ray
the
mes
sage
en
visa
ged.
Alth
ough
mod
ern
folk
doe
sn’t
stic
k to
usi
ng a
cous
tic
inst
rum
ents
, the
idea
rem
ains
the
sam
e.
Q
uest
ioni
ng th
e au
then
ticity
of a
ny m
usic
is a
tric
ky b
usin
ess,
as it
is im
poss
ible
to la
bel s
omet
hing
as t
ruly
uni
que,
but
then
why
ha
ve so
me
peop
le b
ecom
e so
enr
aged
at M
umfo
rd &
Son
s bei
ng
refe
rred
to a
s a fo
lk b
and?
One
of th
e re
ason
s lie
s in
the
band
’s ba
ckgr
ound
. The
four
-pi
ece
is m
ade
up o
f fro
ntm
an a
nd le
ad v
ocal
ist M
arcu
s Mum
ford
, Be
n Lo
vett
, Win
ston
Mar
shal
l and
Ted
Dw
ane,
The
y al
l pla
y m
ultip
le in
stru
men
ts, a
nd jo
in in
with
sing
ing
voca
ls. A
s affl
uent
an
d pr
ivat
ely
educ
ated
indi
vidu
als t
hey
all h
ad a
gre
at st
art
in li
fe, s
omet
hing
that
man
y tr
aditi
onal
folk
mus
icia
ns m
aybe
la
cked
, hav
ing
com
e fr
om h
umbl
e, w
orki
ng b
ackg
roun
ds. I
f thi
s is
the
reas
on p
eopl
e qu
estio
n M
umfo
rd &
Son
s aut
hent
icity
, it
seem
s rat
her s
illy,
as th
ey h
ave
sim
ply
had
mor
e pr
ivile
ged.
Mor
e an
noyi
ng is
the
‘gen
tlem
an fa
rmer
s’ im
age
and
the
nam
e M
umfo
rd
& S
ons,
cons
ider
ing
the
mem
bers
are
n’t e
ven
rela
ted,
can
seem
bo
th e
xces
sive
and
unn
eces
sary
. In
folk
ther
e is
a tr
aditi
on o
f fa
mily
sing
ing
toge
ther
whi
ch a
gain
em
phas
ises
the
com
mun
ity
spir
it. T
he C
arte
r fam
ily w
ere
an A
mer
ican
fam
ily w
ho re
cord
ed
blue
gras
s and
coun
try
mus
ic to
geth
er, D
oc W
atso
n al
so p
erfo
rmed
w
ith h
is so
n M
erle
Wat
son
for m
any
year
s. Th
e M
umfo
rd &
Son
s ba
nd n
ame
feel
s alm
ost m
ocki
ng o
f tra
ditio
nal f
olk
root
s. Th
ere
is a
pre
ssur
e on
peo
ple
to e
ither
‘lov
e’ o
r ‘ha
te’ t
he E
nglis
h ba
nd,
with
indi
ffere
nce
no lo
nger
bei
ng a
n op
tion.
Lau
ra M
arlin
g cr
eate
s a si
mila
r sty
le o
f mus
ic, a
nd co
mes
from
th
e sa
me
priv
atel
y ed
ucat
ed b
ackg
roun
d as
Mum
ford
& S
ons,
yet
she
is w
idel
y pr
aise
d w
ithou
t a su
bsta
ntia
l bac
klas
h. P
erha
ps it
is
not
due
to m
ere
supe
rfic
ial d
etai
ls li
ke im
age
and
back
grou
nd,
but t
he a
ctua
l mus
ic p
rodu
ced,
as o
ppos
ed to
its r
oots
. The
re
are
cert
ainl
y so
me
poor
lyri
cal c
hoic
es e
vide
nt in
Mum
ford
&
Sons
cata
logu
e. F
or e
xam
ple,
the
rhym
ing
of “f
ire”
and
“des
ire”
in
thei
r son
g H
opel
ess
Wan
dere
r, or
its d
isap
poin
ting
and
fran
kly
bori
ng ch
orus
: “Bu
t hol
d m
e fa
st, h
old
me
fast
. ‘Cau
se I’
m a
hop
eles
s w
ande
rer.
But h
old
me
fast
, hol
d m
e fa
st. ‘C
ause
I’m
a h
opel
ess
wan
dere
r.” A
ll of
the
song
s are
ver
y si
mila
r, in
stea
d of
wor
king
as
a co
hesi
ve p
iece
of a
rt, t
hey
blen
d in
to o
ne n
ever
-end
ing
mas
s of
banj
os a
nd u
nins
pire
d ly
rics
.
Bab
el w
orke
d as
the
follo
w u
p to
Mum
ford
& S
ons 2
009’
s de
but a
lbum
Sig
h N
o M
ore,
who
se a
lbum
title
was
take
n fr
om
Shak
espe
are’
s ren
owne
d M
uch
Ado
Abou
t Not
hing
, and
was
aw
arde
d Al
bum
of t
he Y
ear.
Yet B
abel
smas
hed
this
reco
rd,
beco
min
g th
e to
p se
lling
of a
lbum
in 2
012
and
selli
ng o
ver
600,
000
copi
es in
its f
irst
wee
k in
Am
eric
a. T
he st
ar o
f the
alb
um
is si
ngle
I W
ill W
ait,
whi
ch is
una
sham
edly
catc
hy; y
et th
e ly
rics
ar
e fa
r fro
m im
pres
sive
. “W
ell I
cam
e ho
me
like
a st
one,
and
I fel
l he
avy
like
a st
one
into
you
r arm
s.” T
he m
elod
y is
infe
ctio
us, b
ut th
e ly
rics
com
e as
a so
rt o
f afte
rtho
ught
.
S
inge
r son
gwri
ter J
ake
Mor
ley
adm
its to
enj
oyin
g th
e ba
nd’s
de
but a
lbum
, but
was
left
disa
ppoi
nted
by
Babe
l. “I
was
real
ly
hopi
ng th
at th
eir s
econ
d re
cord
wou
ld d
evel
op th
eir s
tyle
fu
rthe
r… B
ut I
didn
’t ge
t the
ir se
cond
alb
um a
t all,
” he
says
. The
bi
gges
t dis
appo
intm
ent w
as in
fact
the
lead
sing
le. “
To h
ave
a bi
g hi
t cal
led
I Will
Wai
t, I j
ust f
ind
noth
ing
in th
at,”
Jake
stat
es. “
I will
w
ait f
or y
ou is
so g
ener
ic, i
t’s a
pro
blem
I ha
ve w
ith so
me
mus
ic. I
t tr
ies t
o be
so a
ll en
com
pass
ing
and
so d
eep
that
it a
ctua
lly re
veal
s no
thin
g. ‘I
will
wai
t for
you
’ cou
ld b
e th
e m
ost b
eaut
iful,
deep
ly
mea
nt p
hras
e th
at so
meo
ne co
uld
say
to y
ou, b
ut in
a so
ng
like
that
it’s
just
so g
ener
ic it
mea
ns n
othi
ng.”
“H
ow m
any
reco
rd la
bels
and
radi
o st
atio
ns st
arte
d ta
king
m
ore
notic
e of
folk
mus
ic th
at a
lrea
dy e
xist
ed a
nd la
belle
d it
as n
ew si
nce
Mum
ford
hit
it bi
g,” a
rgue
s Jam
es W
illar
d,
guita
rist
for B
roth
er &
Bon
es. “
I don
’t th
ink
it’s g
ot a
nyth
ing
to d
o w
ith M
umfo
rd &
Son
s, it’
s the
reco
rd in
dust
ry. T
hey
are
all t
oo sc
ared
to ta
ke ri
sks a
nym
ore.
If th
ey w
eren
’t th
en
we
wou
ldn’
t stil
l be
hear
ing
of ‘f
olk
band
s’, w
e’d
be li
sten
ing
to th
e ne
xt b
ig th
ing.”
Man
y pe
ople
are
furi
ous,
beca
use
a ba
nd w
ith e
xces
sive
ban
jo p
layi
ng a
nd d
ull m
usic
is a
llow
ing
incr
edib
le ta
lent
s to
rem
ain
unno
ticed
so th
at th
e m
unda
ne
can
thri
ve.
T
here
is p
rais
e fo
r the
ban
d th
ough
. “W
hen
they
firs
t st
arte
d w
orki
ng to
geth
er a
nd m
akin
g m
usic
toge
ther
they
w
ere
just
doi
ng it
out
of a
gen
uine
exc
item
ent a
nd lo
ve o
f wha
t th
ey’re
doi
ng a
nd it
was
infe
ctio
us, i
t was
bri
llian
t. Th
ere’
s a
reas
on w
hy th
ey b
ecam
e st
agge
ring
ly p
opul
ar a
nd it
was
bec
ause
w
hat t
hey
wer
e do
ing
was
kin
d of
exc
iting
,” ad
mits
Jake
.
Folk
mus
ic is
a ce
lebr
ator
y w
ay o
f bri
ngin
g pe
ople
toge
ther
. W
hen
Mum
ford
& S
ons p
laye
d at
Rea
ding
fest
ival
in 2
010,
the
atm
osph
ere
was
triu
mph
ant,
ever
ybod
y w
as h
avin
g fu
n an
d en
joyi
ng th
emse
lves
. Whe
n pi
anis
t Ben
Lov
ett a
sks t
he e
ager
cr
owd,
at t
he N
ME
stag
e “D
o yo
u w
ant t
o da
nce
toni
ght?
” the
re
spon
se w
as n
ear d
eafe
ning
. Dur
ing
Roll
Away
You
r St
one
the
rapi
d gu
itar s
trum
min
g ca
uses
roar
s of d
elig
ht a
mon
gst
the
exte
nsiv
e cr
owd.
The
ir la
st li
ve fe
stiv
al p
erfo
rman
ce a
t Gl
asto
nbur
y 20
13 w
as si
mila
rly su
cces
sful
with
fans
dec
lari
ng
thei
r lov
e fo
r the
mus
icia
ns in
the
brea
k be
twee
n so
ngs.
Th
e ba
nd m
ay b
e la
ckin
g in
subs
tanc
e bu
t the
re is
a ch
arm
in
kno
win
g ex
actly
wha
t you
are
get
ting
whe
n yo
u lis
ten
to
som
ethi
ng. “
Let t
he p
eopl
e th
at lo
ve it
carr
y on
lovi
ng it
and
they
’ll
carr
y on
mak
ing
thei
r mus
ic re
gard
less
of a
nyon
e’s o
pini
on,”
says
Ja
mes
. Yet
the
band
dec
ided
to g
o on
hia
tus i
n la
te 2
013,
telli
ng
Rolli
ng S
tone
, “Th
ere
won
’t be
any
Mum
ford
& S
ons a
ctiv
ities
for
the
fore
seea
ble
futu
re.”
The
futu
re o
f the
ban
d is
still
unc
erta
in,
but t
hat d
oesn
’t st
op sp
ecul
atio
n. M
arcu
s adm
itted
to e
njoy
ing
the
band
bei
ng o
n in
defin
ite h
iatu
s. H
e jo
kes,
“Eve
ryon
e ke
eps a
skin
g if
we’
ve b
roke
n up
as a
ban
d, w
hich
I lo
ve. S
o I k
eep
sayi
ng y
es,
and
then
we
can
have
a b
ig co
me
back
tour
nex
t yea
r.” H
owev
er,
ther
e m
ay b
e an
ele
men
t of a
pla
n in
wha
t he
says
, as b
ands
hav
e m
ade
a lo
t of m
oney
with
com
ebac
k to
urs,
whi
ch a
re b
ecom
ing
mor
e ex
pect
ed. W
ith th
e cr
itici
sm th
at th
e ba
nd h
as fa
ced,
they
m
ay h
ave
deci
ded
to d
isap
pear
for a
shor
t whi
le to
ens
ure
a w
elco
me
retu
rn w
ith a
new
alb
um, o
r per
haps
they
too
have
be
com
e tir
ed o
f the
exc
essi
ve b
anjo
pla
ying
. Hav
e M
umfo
rd &
Son
s ex
haus
ted
thei
r pot
entia
l, co
nsid
erin
g al
l of t
heir
mat
eria
l sou
nds
dist
inct
ly si
mila
r? W
ith M
umfo
rd &
Son
s off
the
rada
r for
now
, it’s
tim
e fo
r oth
er b
ands
to sh
ine,
who
hol
d da
ring
am
bitio
ns, h
arne
ss
raw
tale
nt a
nd p
rodu
ce o
rigi
nal m
usic
wor
th g
ettin
g ex
cite
d ab
out.
46 rock, salt + nails
lyrics often place extremely colourful images into our minds, which is what makes them so memorable. SONGS ARE GENERALLY SUNG ABOUT PERSONAL EXPERIENCES, WHICH ARE OFTEN RELATABLE TO LISTENERS. this collection of photographs are inspired by a song, entitled ‘Farmer and his gun’ from charlie simpson’s debut solo album young pilgrim.masks are used to crudely cover the protagonists identity to show that its not just relavent to the couple in the photograph, but rather it can encompass a whole range of people and things.
Song
insp
irat
ion:
Far
mer
& H
is G
un -
Char
lie S
imps
on
(Yo
ung
Pilg
rim
- 20
11)
rock, salt + nails 47
48 rock, salt + nails
Then I realizeThat I will dream of you tonightShadows fold out likeBlankets on the ground
Run, run, rabbit runJust don’t get caught outBy the farmer and his gunWell, hide, hide, rabbit hide
It’s best to lose yourselfBefore you ever lose your pride
rock, salt + nails 49
Spoken like a true manTrying to make his way through the fieldsMy back is heavyAnd my heart is feeling empty but stillI’m so far away from you
There’s no use complaining to myselfI made these shoes to walk inAnd they’ll walk until the end
Spoken like a true manTrying to make his way through the fields
My back is heavyAnd my heart is feeling empty but still
I’m so far away from you
There’s no use complaining to myselfI made these shoes to walk inAnd they’ll walk until the end
Then I realizeThat I will dream of you tonight
Shadows fold out likeBlankets on the ground
50 rock, salt + nails
How are were you when you first picked up a guitar?I was about 14, I learnt a few chords from a friend at school then self-taught for a couple of years before I started taking it really serious.
What is your first musical memory?I remember seeing my dad play drums with a band at a local festival out the side of one of those covered lorries, hardly glamorous, but to me it was mesmerising. I remember holding my mum’s hand watching him, and looked up and said, “That’s what I want to do.”
What was your first song obsession?I remember having Now 42 and I had to play it in my older brother’s room as I didn’t have a CD player. Just Looking was on there by the
and Tender by Blur, which I remember waiting for on the Top Twenty and taping onto a cassette player, trying to time it right so not the have the DJ talking first.
What song do you wish you’d written?There are so many. In a business sense Happy Birthday, as I would be f*cking minted! I have always loved The Scientist by Coldplay. I think just how that song all comes together is pretty amazing, great melodies and simple. There’s 100s.
Which song are you most proud of?I guess from a guitar point-of-view, I See Red, (from the For All We Know EP) mainly as that style is my favourite to play, and I can really
change it up loads live. I also really like how we have changed To Be Alive, I think that song has become more us and more original now.
What is your karaoke song of choice?Bittersweet Symphony. I’ve sung that song for years, still love it. Plus you never want to do karaoke unless you can do a half good job on it, do you!
What is the last song you purchased?Georgia by Emily King.
james
willard BROTHER + BONES
Q+A with....
of
rock, salt + nails 51
Worth Watching
... Head over to YouTube and watch “Balcony Sessions” with Ralph Pelleymounter and To Kill A King. A series of live sessions of the bands own songs and some incredibly compelling covers, they enlist the help of some very specials guests to create an array of wonderfully executed songs that are a pleasure to listen to whilst watching the magic unfold on singer Ralph’s balcony. Everybody who takes part in these sessions are clearly having a blast and that’s not the best bit - collated into an album available for your listening convenience and pleasure, the proceeds of the sales were given to Great Ormond Street Children’s Hospital. You can still purchase online over at: tokillaking.bandcamp.com If you have an ear for soaring melodies, breathtaking harmonies and intricate strings then you will not be disappointed. These sessions are a refreshing way for an exceptionally capable band to get recognition whilst displaying other talented musicians.Following a recent trip across the states, the Balcony Sessions were reignited, with covers including Smashing Pumpkins ‘Tonight, Tonight’ fittingly filmed in picturesque Chicago, IL.
YouTube: ‘To Kill A King Balcony Sessions’
Recommended