Mik Banner

One movement within the local scene which is providing more and more unsigned artists with not only a place to hone their live skills but also a platform for exposure is the humble open mic night.  Every place from the smallest town to the biggest city usually has at least one on the go, Kilmarnock is no different. Open mic nights gave Mik Banner the start he needed; playing covers of his favourite artists then helping him progress to writing and playing his own material. Mik is still a usual fixture at most of the open mic nights within Kilmarnock with a handful of other local acts who meet up and manage to put on a fantastic show every time along with the other participants  that  get up to perform.

As for musical influences when you listen to his music there are two main sounds that come through;

“Alterbridge and Creed definitely form a major part of my sound, I love the way they entwine their guitar and vocal parts to sound bigger as a whole. In addition, I listen to a lot of Mumford and Sons, and Newton Faulkner, so they occasionally find their way into my own material”

I would defiantly consider Banner as part of the new wave of acoustic artists coming through from the Ayrshire scene. 

When the dreaded question of uniqueness came up within interview Banner commented;

“I don’t think there is a lot of ways you can be unique any more. There are only twelve notes in the chromatic scale, so any chance you have of writing something new is quite slim. However, I think that using the guitar tunings I use and the vocal melodies make me sound somewhat 

different from other singer/songwriters.”

Banner recently played as part of them Kilmarnock Fair Festive held at Centrestage theatre playing to just under 100 people along side some other acts and even a Broadway act. This accomplishment although good is not Banner’s best within his musical career. He stated that managing to accumulate enough written material for his debut album was his best - a very humble view of achievement.

Discussion then turned to the unsigned music scene and where he sees himself in the future Banner stated that;

“I think there are areas within Ayrshire where new and unsigned music is greatly appreciated, and new talented individuals and bands are as well. Hopefully, once my album is recorded, I’ll continue along the path I’m walking at the moment, attending new open-mic nights and getting gigs, hopefully with a bigger profile and fanbase each time.”

Banner is definitely on his way to becoming a very well known local artist.

 With his song “Homecoming” even getting the thumbs up from another well known artist,  in the shape of Mechanical Smile.

Mik Banner is playing at the butterfly and the pig in Glasgow on Sunday the 14^th August, after which he hopes to be booking more live shows .

You can hear some of Banner’s recorded tracks on his facebook page here and on his reverbnation page here.

Stuart Newman

“Well, it started out the same way people do, learning an instrument. Then I wanted to buy some software to layer things, and experience what that was like. I kept on, then kept on some more, and eventually made the decision to pursue things. I felt I could offer something and could become something different.”

A familiar answer to an even more familiar question....How did the band first start?

Unlike the question or indeed the answer there is nothing too familiar about Stuart Newman. His vocals provide a strangely haunting sound that blends perfectly over his raw and stripped back sounding music.  You could compare him in ways to his influences which include Simon and Garfunkel and REM and a good few more, but Newman manages to make his sound very fresh.

In regards uniqueness from other artists Newman responded simply with;

“I approach things differently, make different decisions and I’m not afraid to try things out creatively. So far, people seem to agree. I also use the power of saying 'No'. I know what I want to do, and my reasons behind doing things. I think this helps me approach being more original.”  

From speaking to Newman he is easily the most honest and transparent artist I have ever spoken with when it comes to his music. In comparison to some unsigned artists of our generation he has a totally different perception of the old “music industry owes me a living” view.

 “I ‘released’ my first album ‘Single But Defective’ online, as a free download. In fact, all my music is currently on free download. Try it. Share it. Tell your friends. I’ve made it super easy to download and sample what I’m about. My website shows you everything. Music, videos… it’s all there. You can see straight away how I do things. The music world owes me nothing. If I’m to be an artist of note, I must prove beyond doubt any talent I have. So I will continue to try to do this. But it’s fair to say that my ambitions are as big as they could be

The achievements of unsigned artists mostly depend on their ambition. Due to such ambition held by Newman, he has created some amazing opportunities for himself.  Not only has he had airplay of BBC Radio 6 but he has also very much applied to DIY ethic to his career and mailed t shirts around the world for free.

 Single But Defective - Stuart Newman by stuarttnewman

In regards the music industry at the moment and specifically the unsigned music scene I expected Newman to be rather vocal on this subject and he did not disappoint;

“I think the entire industry is going through big changes. The old are fighting to keep that, the new are trying things. I think as an unsigned artist the weight is on you. The previous infrastructure is crumbling. That needs to re-establish itself. I think it’s partially a waiting game, but you need to prove yourself as much as possible in as many ways, before people take any notice. It’s a tough road”

Newman defiantly has something very different and quirky going on and as a result I am hoping big things will come to him in the future. It is so refreshing to speak with musicians who are down to earth and have no qualms about being brutally honest.

You can download and check out all of Stuart Newman’s material on his official website here.  I highly suggest you do.

Mechanical Smile

There has been a bit of a buzz within the Ayrshire scene at the moment and it all surrounds one band from Kilmarnock. That band being Mechanical Smile. Made up of Dawn Marshall, Garry Irving, Nic Pilmer and Murray Baxter, they describe themselves and their sound as;

“'Two guys, two girls from Ayrshire, combining rock, pop and grunge, creating a melodic and pulsating sound that will blow you away!'

The band have had a busy 2011 so far with a line up change in January and a mini German tour in June after winning the University of the West of Scotland exchange competition. The tour was made up of three dates in Plettenberg, including the main stage of the Immecke (Irock) Open-Air Festival. Mechanical Smile has also been extensively playing gigs within their home town of Kilmarnock, across Ayrshire and within Glasgow promoting their new EP “Sleep and Silence”. Add to these accomplishments their track “Leap of Faith” being chosen personally by Craig McGee (Warner Chappell Scottish Scout / BBC Radio 1 A&R Zone) to be played by Ally McCrae on his BBC introducing show within the A&R zone segment. This accomplishment was then added to even more by McCrae expressing his positive review of the track as ‘Huge’ – all this while they were still in Germany on tour.

The interesting thing about Mechanical smile is their unique selling point of having a female lead, something not that common within a certainly male dominated local music scene.  Marshall however takes this in her stride and shows everyone she can certainly possess the same -if not a higher- level of stage presence and musical passion as her male counterparts.  When you speak to the band about their music and their opinion on their local scene you can see the band “family” dynamic being very much present within Mechanical Smile. The band is extremely supportive of one another including their individual musical influences and ideas.  This in turn leads to their unique and somewhat mixed up style of music where you can hear all the different musical and personal influences throughout the songs.  An opinion agreed with by the band;

“The fact not many rock bands are female fronted that can also play guitar and write songs make us unique but now also there are two girls in the band makes it quite unique. Two guys and two girls that play music that is fresh and new. Not many people find easy comparisons to our sound. The good thing about our band is we all have very different musical tastes and influences, and for some strange reason we don’t really draw on specific  bands for influences when writing songs although bands we all like are Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins and Silversun Pickups.”

On the subject of the local unsigned scene Baxter commented;

“There are so many unsigned bands out there that are amazing, but I feel the smaller towns could do much more for these bands, as there isn’t really a music scene unless you are in Glasgow, and it’s hard to break into the ‘in crowd’ in Glasgow.  It’s all about who you know, which is hard for new bands etc.”

 Sleep And Silence EP by mechanicalsmile 

The band has also played what is seen as the “holy grail” of venues to most unsigned bands this being the legendary King Tuts.  They played as part of ‘The Harder they Fall’ tour with London bands Hopeless Heroic and Fearless Vampire Killers, where I found out from talking to Baxter that they were in fact moved up the bill due to their large amount of pre sales. This impressive fate has now led to them being invited back to play on 5^th October supporting support Young Legionnaire which is sure to be a most victorious King Tuts return for the band.

Mechanical Smile are due to release their new single 'Take Me To The Otherside' on August 15th via iTunes, Amazon Play.com and many other credible online music stores. The track will also be available to stream for free on Spotify, and the brand new music video, produced by Joshua Aaron Porter will be available to view on Youtube. A video which they invited all their fans and friends to be part of.

If this past year has been anything to go by, Mechanical Smile has got an amazing rest of 2011 and a perhaps even most amazing 2012 coming their way. I could not personally think of a more deserving or hard working band for it to happen to. 

Simon Torstensson

                           

There are times in life where I discover that one little musical gem that catches my attention. This could be from randomly browsing my local record store, from hearing an artist live that up until that point was unknown to me or from a random email sent to my inbox. In this instance this gem was in the form of Swedish singer/songwriter Simon Torstensson.

Torstensson’s music is a mix of soulful acoustic tones and stripped back good old fashioned rock n roll. His vocals are adapted perfectly to each of the styles he plays and all this from someone who describes himself as “not a very good musician. I'm mostly just very stubborn!”

Like most musicians Torstensson has a long history with music; “I started making music about 6 years ago. Back then it was mostly just me and my friends who liked to make covers when we were drunk. But after a couple of years I began to write more seriously and try to make music that meant something to both myself and others.”

Torstensson is not only a recording artist but he has also added writing a musical to his credentials.  When asked about this interesting addition to his talents he explained; “My classmates and I actually wrote a musical with just our own songs about a year ago. It was a pretty small gig, but we rocked the ass of every single one in the audience. All 45 of them.”

As an unsigned artist himself, Torstensson will have more insight than most about the unsigned music scene at the moment; “I think there's a lot of really great unsigned bands and artists out there. A couple of them are friends of mine. I myself prefer to go to concerts at small clubs and such. Where they let you get on stage and sing along with the band! That's really awesome!”

Being an artist that is just starting out and building up his stage presence and music catalogue people could mistake Torstensson for someone who has unreachable big dreams and ideas about his future. The stark reality is something much more humble ; “In the future I will hopefully be on stage somewhere. I'd be happy if I had like a hundred fans who would follow me around on tour”.  


With such down to earth goals  Torstensson is a breath of fresh air from the norm. Instead of having empty dreams of fame and fortune he would be happy with a small loyal fan base to share his music with. 


Just like his music his aspirations are honest and stripped back, I hope for big things for Torstensson and with the talent he has already I can see this improving even more through the years ahead of him. 

Reclaimed Review on Glasgow Music

So I wrote a review a good few months back for Glasgow Music and I have now realised its been kinda put into the stored file per say so I have reclaimed it and going to put the whole thing on here below, Enjoy





THISFAMILIARSMILE - Red Wine

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Since the release of their 2008 EP "What kind of monster am I ?" Glasgow/Ayr four piece ThisFamilarSmile have been on a fast track to success.Not only have they gained a massive fan base but have toured the UK and parts of Europe playing festivals and general shows.

Their latest offering is their new single "red wine" from their new debut album "Ribbons,Regards and The More Machine" which is out later this year.

The song includes all the usual complexed melodies expected from the band with well blended vocals and the outstanding passion that seems to be in all their songs. Essentially ThisFamilarSmile are a band who put a new spin on an already saturated genre of music and have managed to keep a sense of individuality about them.

With rave reviews from publications like Rocksound the band are sure to be very successful in the future and with the release of their album later this year I can only imagine their popularity growing even more.

http://www.myspace.com/thisfamiliarsmile

As Darkness Falls

If praise should be given to a band for great accomplishments in 2010 so far it should be Ayshire five piece “As Darkness Falls”.

The band was formed in February 2009 after competition of line up, by bassist David Crossley and drummer Jamie Dobbie following the demise of their previous band “Illegal Eye”. With the addition of guitarists Scott McCallum and Craig “DJ” Brown they produced 5- 6 tracks but were still without a vocalist. After a two year search and countless failed try outs, David Leggate contacted the band and after a few practice sessions was immediately offered the gig.

As uniqueness in bands go vocalist David Leggate admits that

“We have our own unique sound that comes together from every individual, with a mixture of the heavy end and our melodic harmonies catchy choruses and the fact that we're not trying to be a specific style or sound.”

This unique sound comes across very strongly within each of their songs taking influence from such great metal band as Pantera and Metallica amongst other genres and bands. These influences mixed in with impressive song writing and passion for their own music results in something truly enjoyable listening.

Within the scene of unsigned bands “As Darkness Falls” are considered fairly new and yet despite this they have managed to create an impact. They have played support to such bands as Glasgow metallers “Bleed From Within”, and prog-metal band “Enochian Theory”

The bands biggest achievement this year though has to be winning the “Best Newcomer Award” at the Scottish Alternative Awards in last month. After four months of public voting they were awarded the title over such bands as Make my Day, Bronto Skylift and The Darien Venture.

Whatever the future holds for “As Darkness Falls” if this year so far is anything to go by it shall be very successful.

The band are currently recording their debut E.P. which will consist of 6-7 songs, but currently have older demos available online via MySpace.

“As Darkness Falls” are currently booked and confirmed to perform at Killiefest in Dirty Martini's on April 10th.

As Darkness Falls can be found at the following sites:

http://www.youtube.com/user/asdarknessfalls09

http://www.myspace.com/asdarknessfalls09

From Collisions I Collapse

A typical setting, marking the foundation of a not-so-typical band.

Singer Garry Gillies and David Scott were having a drink and realised they shared similar musical influences.

After hours of consumption an agreement was reached and a band was formed in late 2007.

Never before has a brand of Screamo nodded in the direction of Spandau Ballet, but it seems to be working and record labels are knocking on the door of Glaswegian six-piece From Collisions I Collapse.

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By their own admission, originality isn’t their forte, rather their unique storytelling voice.

“We’re a heavy band but we like to write a story behind our songs, but I would say our live show makes us stand out. People pay money to come see us we’re going to make it worth their while” said guitarist David Scott

The band has already played with Swedish favourites Her Bright Skies, scenesters Exit Ten and impressive touring lot Deaf Havana.

From Collisions I Collapse is currently writing a debut album after extensive label interest in the midst of a metal takeover in the underground – a subculture which demands great industry support and grabs the game by the jaffers.

Glaswegian Screamo never looked so good

Call it metal, call it screamo but hardcore is getting prettier, sellable and cleaner. That’s not to say less sanitised – but rather like the grungy undercurrent in their tunes, the rawness is equalised with a sellable face on the packaging.

MySpace – www.myspace.com/fromcollisionsicollapse

From Collisions I Collapse are currently in the Scottish finals of Live and Unsigned.