Monday 26th July: At just over three and a half minutes Lazy Susan, the newly released and incredibly catchy (I found myself singing it at work the day after first hearing it) single from Adam Dawson is by far the most radio-friendly of all the singer-songwriter's physically releases. (His previous, the album In The Beginning from 2004 is much more pastoral, almost contemplative.) Immediately bringing to mind 60's pop, you can easily imagine the song being performed by the likes of the Beatles. The short but complementary electric guitar sections, which naggingly remind me of something that I can't quite put my finger on, add an extra flourish to the almost simplistic main tune - a mix of acoustic guitar, Hammond organ and drums, all played by Adam himself. Don't be put off if that description makes it sound a bit of a strange melange. Everything works together to produce a superbly melodic song which, along with the accompanying video, tells the story of how a young party-goer finds herself re-evaluating her life. Light, airy and instantly likable.
In what can only be a strange coincidence, the second track, Mirror Mirror, opens with the type of simple, repetitive keyboards reminiscent of some of Iain Jennings' songs. (Adam is about to join Iain's Breathing Space as their new guitarist.) This wonderfully atmospheric song would fit right in with some of related band Mostly Autumn's output which is, perhaps, no surprise given Adam's past guitar teacher. But that's not to take anything away from Adam's writing - there's nothing wrong with showing your influences, especially when they lead you to produce something as beautiful as this.
Although not mentioned anywhere on the CD, I believe that Silver Skies is dedicated to Dirk Macrae, former frontman of The Asylum Seekers (one of Adam's former bands), who died suddenly in 2006. Without being too sentimental, this is a lovely tribute to an absent friend and a song which will soon be performed "full band" (as Adam has stated it was always meant to be) by Breathing Space. In the future, this version may only be seen as having historical interest but it rounds the highly enjoyable single off in style.
This review was based on the physical release but all tracks are also available from itunes.
Track Listing:
1: Lazy Susan
2: Mirror Mirror
3: Silver Skies
Credits:
All songs written and performed by Adam Dawson
Engineered by John Spence at Fairview Studio
Lazy Susan video directed by Paul Richardson and featuring Roxanna Kilmaszewska as Susan
Monday, 26 July 2010
Sunday, 25 July 2010
Falling From Paradise
Friday 23rd July: After a recent couple of quiet acoustic gigs, tonight it's time for a bit of loud metal goodness as I meet up with Roj and Lynn to finally catch up with a band that Roj has recommended a few times.
When I arrived, Fibbers looked packed and it was four deep at the bar - a good sign as gigs in York rarely come close to selling out and a big crowd is, generally, a prediction for a good gig. I was, however, a little surprised by the amount of tattoos on view, mostly on young women. We took up position towards the back, not the best place to experience bands but probably a lot less sticky than being at the front, given the heat.
First to take the stage was Frantic Alice, an energetic four-piece from Milton Keynes. Although showing nice use of various fringes as elaborate head-banging accessories and some potentially excellent, although swamped by the rhythm section, guitar solos, I'm afraid they didn't do too much for me. Vocally, they were just the wrong side of shouty, not hiding their punk influences at all. Frontman Jakk Spence's frequent use of the f-word got a little irritating at times - I'm not averse to swearing, but he just went a bit too far. Their songs, however, were different enough from each other to keep the set varied and, even from the back, Spence's vocals were clearer than some bands we have seen. Would I pay to see them again, probably not, but only because they weren't my "thing".
The Fallen are a twin-guitar five piece from York who I haven't come across before. That's a shame, really, as I enjoyed this set a lot more than the first (despite the somewhat 80's styles on show from some members of the band. Headbands? Eye-liner?? Really...?) A more generic style of rock, their best song tonight was the melodic Ghosts, which wasn't actually representative of the rest of their output. Johnny Fallen's vocals were less clear, but more powerful than those of Spence and the songs a little less varied but, when something sounds good, why vary it too much? An entertaining, if no brilliant set, and I particularly liked the synchronised headbanging.
We did move forwards a bit for Heaven's Basement, finding a clear area about halfway closer to the stage and positioning ourselves for what would turn out to be an assault on the eardrums... In a good way. Normally a five piece, but tonight down to four due to one guitarist breaking his finger playing football and with a stand-in vocalist after the departure of Richie Heavenz in February. (I'm a little unclear who the vocalist was - the paragon of truth that is Wikipedia states James Sinclair, but HB's own pages say they are still auditioning. Johnny Fallen, of the Fallen is mentioned as touring with them but I think that was earlier in the year.) Anyway, opening with a machine-gun like drumbeat, HB certainly entertained for their all too short set. For me, Sorry was their best track, while hard-hitting Paranoia featured the broken-fingered guitarist and Never Gonna Stop (at least, I think that was the title) showed the band are just as good with the slower numbers. Being one guitar down didn't seem to hamper the band - this was a full-throttle performance and one of the best rock acts I've seen for a while during an, overall, entertaining evening.
When I arrived, Fibbers looked packed and it was four deep at the bar - a good sign as gigs in York rarely come close to selling out and a big crowd is, generally, a prediction for a good gig. I was, however, a little surprised by the amount of tattoos on view, mostly on young women. We took up position towards the back, not the best place to experience bands but probably a lot less sticky than being at the front, given the heat.
First to take the stage was Frantic Alice, an energetic four-piece from Milton Keynes. Although showing nice use of various fringes as elaborate head-banging accessories and some potentially excellent, although swamped by the rhythm section, guitar solos, I'm afraid they didn't do too much for me. Vocally, they were just the wrong side of shouty, not hiding their punk influences at all. Frontman Jakk Spence's frequent use of the f-word got a little irritating at times - I'm not averse to swearing, but he just went a bit too far. Their songs, however, were different enough from each other to keep the set varied and, even from the back, Spence's vocals were clearer than some bands we have seen. Would I pay to see them again, probably not, but only because they weren't my "thing".
The Fallen are a twin-guitar five piece from York who I haven't come across before. That's a shame, really, as I enjoyed this set a lot more than the first (despite the somewhat 80's styles on show from some members of the band. Headbands? Eye-liner?? Really...?) A more generic style of rock, their best song tonight was the melodic Ghosts, which wasn't actually representative of the rest of their output. Johnny Fallen's vocals were less clear, but more powerful than those of Spence and the songs a little less varied but, when something sounds good, why vary it too much? An entertaining, if no brilliant set, and I particularly liked the synchronised headbanging.
We did move forwards a bit for Heaven's Basement, finding a clear area about halfway closer to the stage and positioning ourselves for what would turn out to be an assault on the eardrums... In a good way. Normally a five piece, but tonight down to four due to one guitarist breaking his finger playing football and with a stand-in vocalist after the departure of Richie Heavenz in February. (I'm a little unclear who the vocalist was - the paragon of truth that is Wikipedia states James Sinclair, but HB's own pages say they are still auditioning. Johnny Fallen, of the Fallen is mentioned as touring with them but I think that was earlier in the year.) Anyway, opening with a machine-gun like drumbeat, HB certainly entertained for their all too short set. For me, Sorry was their best track, while hard-hitting Paranoia featured the broken-fingered guitarist and Never Gonna Stop (at least, I think that was the title) showed the band are just as good with the slower numbers. Being one guitar down didn't seem to hamper the band - this was a full-throttle performance and one of the best rock acts I've seen for a while during an, overall, entertaining evening.
Tuesday, 20 July 2010
Breathing In
Monday 19th July: Two weeks ago I hadn't heard of Adam Dawson, although over the past few years he has played with at least three bands (the first when he was just 14 years old) as well as a solo performer. However, it was recently announced that he would be joining Breathing Space as their new guitarist so, tonight, Andy and I are at the Roman Bath checking out a solo show by somebody who, while not on the verge of major stardom, is probably about to get recognised (and scrutinised) by a relatively large and passionate group of music fans.
Although a multi-instrumentalist, Adam's solo act (tonight, at least) is that of yet another in the ever growing crowd of man-with-guitar or, in this case, two guitars, acoustic with added effects. While I was expecting that, I can't say it filled me with joy and anticipation. There have been too many times when such a performer, usually a singer-songwriter, has failed to grab my attention or entertain me. It turns out that this wasn't going to be the case tonight.
Adam's set comprises of acoustic, cover versions of songs ranging from artists as diverse as Coldplay (Viva La Vida), Snow Patrol (Chasing Cars), Kings of Leon (Use Somebody), Pink Floyd (Wish You Were Here), Take That (Shine), Steve Harley (Come Up And See Me), Oasis (Wonderwall), Turin Brakes (Underdog), Chuck Berry (Johnny Be Good), Neil Diamond (I'm A Believer) and, errrm, Lady Gaga (Poker Face), mixed with a handful of his own songs, including Silver Skies, I'm Coming Home, new single Lazy Susan and my favourite on the night Behind The Light.
I'm happy to say that the original songs were good enough that they fit right in with the rest of the set. This was no bland performance - the songs were catchy and different enough to stand out not only from the covers but also from each other. These may have been stripped down, acoustic versions of the full songs but they were extremely good versions.
Being a Monday, the Bath was a lot emptier than we normally see it and, therefore, a lot quieter, which meant that it was easier to hear the vocals. For the most part these were incredibly clear, especially on the quieter numbers, but there were a couple of times when they became a little muddy (particularly during the Snow Patrol number). Although it was during the quieter numbers that Adam seemed to shine vocally (one of my favourites from his covers was a really nice version of The Plain White Ts' Hey There Delilah), his guitar playing was superb throughout, with the mixture of styles required for the different songs all being performed more than adequately. During the set there was a couple of really smooth segues - I'm A Believer into American Pie and Brown Eyed Girl into a Beatles song (the title now escapes me), the latter being done so smoothly that I didn't even notice until he started singing...
During a break in the set, I took the opportunity to chat to Adam and found him to be a genuine, affable bloke who exudes a slight air of controlled excitement at the prospect of joining Breathing Space. He told me that they had already worked on turning Silver Skies into a full band version and that there would, inevitably given the new line-up, be a slight change in direction.
While tonight may not have been the best indicator of how Adam is going to fit in or perform in the band, given the polarity of styles, it was a thoroughly entertaining evening during which my foot tapped and I sung along. A good selection of songs, performed well to an appreciative, if fluctuating audience - what more can you ask for?
Although a multi-instrumentalist, Adam's solo act (tonight, at least) is that of yet another in the ever growing crowd of man-with-guitar or, in this case, two guitars, acoustic with added effects. While I was expecting that, I can't say it filled me with joy and anticipation. There have been too many times when such a performer, usually a singer-songwriter, has failed to grab my attention or entertain me. It turns out that this wasn't going to be the case tonight.
Adam's set comprises of acoustic, cover versions of songs ranging from artists as diverse as Coldplay (Viva La Vida), Snow Patrol (Chasing Cars), Kings of Leon (Use Somebody), Pink Floyd (Wish You Were Here), Take That (Shine), Steve Harley (Come Up And See Me), Oasis (Wonderwall), Turin Brakes (Underdog), Chuck Berry (Johnny Be Good), Neil Diamond (I'm A Believer) and, errrm, Lady Gaga (Poker Face), mixed with a handful of his own songs, including Silver Skies, I'm Coming Home, new single Lazy Susan and my favourite on the night Behind The Light.
I'm happy to say that the original songs were good enough that they fit right in with the rest of the set. This was no bland performance - the songs were catchy and different enough to stand out not only from the covers but also from each other. These may have been stripped down, acoustic versions of the full songs but they were extremely good versions.
Being a Monday, the Bath was a lot emptier than we normally see it and, therefore, a lot quieter, which meant that it was easier to hear the vocals. For the most part these were incredibly clear, especially on the quieter numbers, but there were a couple of times when they became a little muddy (particularly during the Snow Patrol number). Although it was during the quieter numbers that Adam seemed to shine vocally (one of my favourites from his covers was a really nice version of The Plain White Ts' Hey There Delilah), his guitar playing was superb throughout, with the mixture of styles required for the different songs all being performed more than adequately. During the set there was a couple of really smooth segues - I'm A Believer into American Pie and Brown Eyed Girl into a Beatles song (the title now escapes me), the latter being done so smoothly that I didn't even notice until he started singing...
During a break in the set, I took the opportunity to chat to Adam and found him to be a genuine, affable bloke who exudes a slight air of controlled excitement at the prospect of joining Breathing Space. He told me that they had already worked on turning Silver Skies into a full band version and that there would, inevitably given the new line-up, be a slight change in direction.
While tonight may not have been the best indicator of how Adam is going to fit in or perform in the band, given the polarity of styles, it was a thoroughly entertaining evening during which my foot tapped and I sung along. A good selection of songs, performed well to an appreciative, if fluctuating audience - what more can you ask for?
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