The Grey Lady Music Lounge, Wednesday 14th March 2012

Originally formed as a three piece back in 2001, indie rock band Cyrano soon became a foursome with the addition of lead guitarist, Karl Barton. From this moment on, their sound was born. With influences from bands like Pearl Jam and Elbow, Cyrano have crafted a unique blend of thoughtfully written songs, rock guitars and Tom Yorke-esque vocals resulting in a hugely melodic sound. The band are currently recording their second album in Assault and Battery Studios in London. Their first album "I, You, Us, Them" is available to buy on CD and iTunes. The band’s line up is Joe Ackerley on Vocals and guitar, Matt Wilson on drums, Tim Hubbard on bass and vocals, and Karl Barton on lead guitar.

Show full profile »

Richard Navarro’s live shows are renowned for spectacular feats of vocal and instrumental virtuosity and improvisation. Previous collaborations include the ‘Let Go Light’ UK tour with live visuals controlled by wireless shoes, the ‘Firewatching’ UK and Ireland tour with choirs and brass bands, and with The Luminants featuring extraordinary magic lantern displays.

Navarro composed and produced the music for Lemn Sissay’s critically-acclaimed ‘Warrior Poets’ and is curator of the poetry stage at the prestigious In the Woods Festival.

Along with fellow multi-instrumentalist Nicholas Thurston, Navarro has performed at many UK festivals including Latitude and Greenbelt, and toured as support for Joan Armatrading. Many of these performances and projects have included young and marginalised people in composing and performing new music.

“Finely-crafted songwriting” -- Joan Armatrading

“Richard is a genius” -- Lemn Sissay

“You were fantastic!” -- Imelda May

“Staggeringly talented” -- Charlie Andrew (BRIT Awards Producer of the Year 2016)

Show full profile »

Formed in late 2009 by Mike Wilton, The Standard Lamps believe that it's about time that we took things back to basics. During the last two years, Mike has been experimenting with various musicians to produce ‘The Standard Lamps’ which consists of James Livett on bass and Matt Bennie (Goldie Reed, Billy Jupp) on drums.

Playing countless gigs in the South East, The Standard Lamps have been pleasing audiences since Early 2010. Their music can be described as a mixture of melodic tunes with a raw blues edge. With their first EP ‘Portland’ (2010) and debut album ‘Sell Everything You Own’ (2012) already under their belts, they are now planning the second album with a trilogy of singles to be released throughout Summer 2013.

The Standard Lamps believe in sounding where you come from. The Standard Lamps believe in variety. The Standard Lamps believe having fun with what you're doing. The Standard Lamps believe in giving you a good time.

Show full profile »

Singer-songwriter, Paul Dunton leads his own unique cross-over orchestra providing an atmospheric fusion of alternative and pop with a classical twist. Paul & his Orchestra take influences from varying modern day artists such as Pink Floyd, Elbow, ELO, Turin Brakes, Massive Attack, Damien Rice and contemporary composers such as Samuel Barber, Ludovico Einaudi, John Barry and Hans Zimmerman. The Orchestra performs Paul's own compositions and a varied selection of uniquely arranged standards from a wide range of artists. The line-up of 8 violins, 4 cellos, guitar, flute, bass and percussion accompanies Paul on vocals and piano, joined by his lead vocalists, Charlotte Andrew and Poppy Raine. Paul and his Orchestra regularly perform at concerts, festivals and private events throughout the UK and internationally, including headlining the Theatrium Wilhelmstraße Festival in Wiesbaden, Germany and an 8 state tour of the USA which culminated in a spectacular roof-top performance on top of the New York Strand Hotel. Increased attention and success led to the orchestra being featured on BBC Radio 2 by Joan Armatrading with interviews and airplay of one of Paul's songs, 'Don't Forget'. This led to Paul supporting Joan Armatrading on five occasions during her recent UK tours.

Show full profile »