Thursday, November 29, 2012

Final live show of 2012

We are bringing 2012 to a close with our last live show of the year this Saturday at the Sound Music Venue in Cheltenham. We've been huddled away for the last few months, working on new material for follow up to the critically-acclaimed Liberation LP. We will be showcasing some of the tracks from the new album on Saturday as part of an extended set and selling Liberation at a one off price of five pounds. Support comes from the excellent Harry Jones. Tickets are three pounds and are available here. See you there.


Monday, June 11, 2012

South America single launch with Blue Rose Code and Hiatus

We are thrilled to announce some very, very special guests for our South America single launch party at the 229 Club in London on Wednesday, July 18. The mighty Blue Rose Code, among the finest purveyors of modern Celtic folk on the scene today and on the verge of releasing a very highly-anticipated debut album, will be joining us. If you haven't heard the music, you owe it to yourself to check it out. If you haven't seen Blue Rose Code live, then you owe it to yourself to do so before the album goes stellar. It's a huge privilege to have such a talented singer, guitarist and songwriter as Ross Wilson on the same bill, not to mention his fantastic band. If that isn't enough, Cyrus "Hiatus" Shahrad will kindly be performing with us again on keyboard in a one-off appearance which will include the first ever live renditions of Change Up and Book of Prayer from our recent collaborative EP. It's going to be a cracking night, people. Hope you can make it. Tickets are available from See Tickets and the venue.


Wednesday, May 16, 2012

Interview and feature in R2 magazine

Earlier this year, the excellent R2 magazine gave our Liberation album a glowing 4* review, saying it was "a consciousness-raising collection" of "exceptional songs". This month, they have kindly featured an interview with us. You can check it out below.



Thursday, May 03, 2012

Video for Change Up - Hiatus feat. Smoke Feathers

Here is the video for Change Up, the lead track from a new EP by Hiatus featuring Smoke Feathers. The track is one of three on the EP. You can download B side Flickering here for free and another track, Book Of Prayer, will follow shortly. Please share the video and free music with your friends and family. The promo was directed by the very talented Ed Spencer with help from Rosemary Hill. Big thanks also to colourist Chris Teeder and graphics expert James Smith. Stay tuned for more from the Hiatus/Smoke Feathers stable.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Live footage from our Holland tour with Thomas Dybdahl

You may remember in March, Paul and I embarked on a four-date tour with Thomas Dybdahl in the Netherlands. We had a great time, made a lot of new friends and played in amazing, sold-out venues. We chose a couple of tracks from some of the live footage of the tour to post up on our YouTube page. Liberation Theology, the lead track from our critically-acclaimed album Liberation, from the packed out show in Amsterdam at the incredible De Duif and a brand new song called Old Glory from the Den Bosch gig. Hope you enjoy them.




Thursday, April 12, 2012

Interview on Radio Cardiff with Rhys Phillips

On Easter Monday morning, cycling through the rain, I got a call from Radio Cardiff DJ Rhys Phillips. Rhys played Liberation Theology and South America from our album, Liberation, and we did an interview about the band, the songs and what we've been up to over the last few months. You can listen back to it by clicking here and fast forwarding on the player to about one hour 30 minutes into the show.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Thank you for a wonderful album launch!

Big love and many thanks to everyone who came to the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen last night to help celebrate the launch of our critically-acclaimed album Liberation. We were honestly blown away to see so many friendly faces, old and new, in the crowd and the vibe was just amazing. We felt blessed to have such great support and hope you all enjoyed the night as much as we did. It was a great honour to have Cyrus Shahrad (Hiatus) back on keys for the show - our first gig as a four piece since last summer. Cyrus and I have been working on a Hiatus featuring Smoke Feathers release, which is due very soon. You can download the B side to our Change Up EP here. Stay tuned for more news on that release. Much respect to Will Rees and Joe Kelpie from Pull Up The Roots for staging the launch night in Hoxton. Will, who is now putting on some of the finest and most intimate folk and roots shows in London, gave me some of my first gigs in this city back in the day so it was a really great privilege to be able to bring it full circle. A huge shout out also to the wonderful Gary Nock who opened the night for us with his beautiful, lilting songs and to the mighty John Blood & The Highlys for producing another knock out set - they are a truly mesmerising band that you need to see. John also crept on stage to help us out with We Will Maintain. Please check those two acts out if you haven't heard them yet - they both have music up on iTunes. If you missed the show and want to come and see us play another time, here is a list of upcoming gigs:

Roots & Culture
Friday, April 27 - w/John Blood & The Highlys, Charlie Wright's, Old Street, London

Driftwood Sessions
Wednesday, May 2 - The Elgin, Notting Hill, London

Bristol Folk Festival
Saturday, May 5 - Colston Hall, Bristol

Festeaval
Sunday, May 6 - Woodbridge, Suffolk

Lakefest
Saturday, May 19 - Near Tewkesbury, Gloucestershire


Sunday, April 08, 2012

Entertainment Focus: Liberation is a "remarkable first record"

Entertainment Focus editor Pip Ellwood has given our debut album Liberation a cracking four-star review this weekend, ahead of our album launch on Tuesday, saying it is a "remarkable first record" and an album "that not only engages but affects you". You can read the full article by clicking here. Our album launch is on Tuesday, April 10 at the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen. We are on stage at 9.30pm, with support from John Blood & The Highlys and Gary Nock.

Saturday, April 07, 2012

Maverick runs Smoke Feathers interview in May/June issue

Last month, I did a really enjoyable interview with Nick Dent-Robinson from Maverick, Britain's leading independent country and roots music magazine. The article features in the May/June edition which is available in stores now. Maverick also gave our album Liberation a great 4* review this year. Big thanks to Nick and the Maverick crew for all their support in the run up to our album launch at the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen on Tuesday, April 10.




Tuesday, April 03, 2012

Chris Hawkins says Liberation Theology is "absolute class", plugs our album launch

For those of you who may have missed it this morning, BBC 6 Music DJ Chris Hawkins played Liberation Theology again on his early show, saying the tune was "very special" and "absolute class". Chris also very kindly plugged the night we are holding at the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen on Tuesday, April 10 to celebrate the launch of our critically-acclaimed album, Liberation. You can listen back by heading to about 25 minutes into the show via this link. We'd like to say a huge thank you to Chris for all the support ahead of the launch. You can buy Liberation Theology and the rest of our album from iTunes by clicking on this link. Tickets for the album launch, with support from the excellent John Blood & The Highlys and Gary Nock, can be bought here.

Monday, April 02, 2012

Another Chris Hawkins play on 6 Music

BBC 6 Music DJ Chris Hawkins will be playing Smoke Feathers on his show tomorrow morning (Tuesday, April 3). Last week, Chris played Liberation Theology, the lead track from our critically-acclaimed album Liberation. Big love to Chris for supporting our music. You can tune in to his show between 5 a.m. and 7 a.m. on 6 Music by clicking here. Don't forget we have our album launch at the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen on April 10. You can buy tickets in advance by clicking here and you can buy our Liberation by clicking here.

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Gary Nock joins line up for Liberation launch

We are delighted to announce that the fantastic singer-songwriter Gary Nock will be joining us at our album launch, opening the night on Tuesday, April 10 at London's Hoxton Bar & Kitchen. You will have probably heard Gary's sound on last year's Mars TV advert, which used his wonderful track Make It Better. You can buy Gary's album here and tickets for the Liberation album launch are available from Ticket Web, We Got Tickets and See Tickets

Chris Hawkins plays Liberation Theology

Thanks so much to BBC DJ Chris Hawkins, who played Liberation Theology on his 6 Music show today and called the track "intelligent, grown up and soulful". We played Chris's Wagon night in February and it's been great to have him supporting our music this year. Listen back to the show here. Liberation Theology, the first track on our critically-acclaimed debut album, comes on at 13 minutes. You can buy the song and the album on iTunes here.

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Cyrus Shahrad on keys again at LP launch

We are going to be lucky enough to welcome back Cyrus Shahrad into the band line up for the Liberation album launch on April 10 at the Hoxton Bar and Kitchen. This will be the first show we have played as a four piece since last summer and it will be great to have Cyrus back on keys for the event - our biggest UK gig of the year so far. Cyrus - who has been throwing himself fully into producing magical electronica as Hiatus - has been there since the start of the band, played on all the tracks on our album and he is also contributing to the new recordings we are working on. Tickets for the night can be bought in advance from We Got Tickets, TicketWeb and See Tickets.

Saturday, March 24, 2012

Flickering on Tom Robinson's 6 Music show

Big thanks to Mark from the excellent Mahogany Blog for playing Flickering - the new Hiatus track featuring Smoke Feathers - on Tom Robinson's 6 Music show last night. You can listen back by forwarding to the 52nd minute of the show via this link. Mark called the track an "inspired work" that "left us hungry for more". Flickering is the first track to see daylight from a three-track EP that I have had the privilege to work on with our old friend Hiatus. It is available for free download here. Stay tuned for more details on the forthcoming EP release and the video for the lead track, Change Up.


Thursday, March 22, 2012

John Blood to support at Liberation launch

We are very pleased to announce that one of the finest independent Afrobeat-reggae-soul collectives in the UK - John Blood & The Highlys  - will be supporting us at the Liberation Album Launch at the Hoxton Bar & Kitchen on Tuesday, April 10. John, who starred on our Caribbean tour in November, and his mindblowing band The Highlys have just released a wonderful 8-track EP called These Times, which we highly recommend you check out before the night. More surprises to come... Tickets for the show can be bought in advance from Ticket Web, We Got Tickets and See Tickets.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Session on Janice Long Presents goes live

The three live tracks and interview we recorded with BBC Radio 2 DJ Janice Long for her Janice Long Presents web station are now live, so please check them out by clicking here. We recorded three songs - South America, We Will Maintain and Liberation Theology from our critically-acclaimed debut album Liberation - and talked with Janice about the band and the inspiration behind some of the tracks. Janice has been a great champion for Smoke Feathers in recent months, giving us some of our first major radio play and coming down to gigs when she can, so we'd like to say a big thank you to her for asking us to be involved in the launch of this new venture. Don't forget we have our album launch at Hoxton Bar & Kitchen on Tuesday, April 10.

Monday, March 19, 2012

Free track from Hiatus feat. Smoke Feathers

One of the most enjoyable musical experiences I've had for a long time has been working with my old friend Cyrus Shahrad on a collaborative EP for his Hiatus electronica project. Here's a free download of B-side Flickering to give you a taste of what's to come. We are in the process of shooting a video for the lead track Change Up  and a third track, Book of Prayer - with lyrics and melody from yours truly alongside trademark Hiatus musical production magic - also features on the release. We hope you like what you hear.

Tuesday, February 28, 2012

LP launch at Hoxton Bar & Kitchen - April 10

We are holding an album launch party for our Liberation LP at the Hoxton Square Bar & Kitchen near Old Street on Tuesday, April 10. We are planning a few surprises for the launch, which is being co-hosted by our old friends Pull Up The Roots, purveyors of the finest intimate gigs in London. So grab an early ticket and we'll keep you updated on the details as we go. It's going to be a very big show for us, so we'd really appreciate your support by sharing this post with your friends and coming down on the night to celebrate with us. The album has got a great reception so far with some glowing reviews from Uncut, R2 and Maverick and we'd like to thank everyone who has bought it already. You can buy the album on iTunes here and we will be selling CDs at the launch. Tickets for the show can be ordered in advance for six pounds from TicketWebWe Got Tickets and See Tickets.

Monday, February 27, 2012

Uncut gives Liberation a great 7/10 review

Uncut's Terry Staunton says there are "shades of Jackson Browne and Paul Simon" in a "vivid series of folk-tinged portraits" on our debut album Liberation, in a cracking 7/10 review in the April edition. Big love to Terry for covering the release of the album. We've had some really positive feedback about the record so far and hope you are enjoying it. If you haven't got a copy yet, Liberation is available on iTunes here and at any of our upcoming gigs.

Thursday, February 23, 2012

Supporting Thomas Dybdahl in Holland

We are very excited to announce we will be supporting the exceptional Norwegian singer-songwriter Thomas Dybdahl on the Netherlands leg of his European tour. We are playing four dates with Thomas - Rotterdam, Den Bosch, Ottersum and Amsterdam - between March 8-11. The Rotterdam and Amsterdam shows are already sold out but apparently there are a few tickets available for the Den Bosch and Ottersum shows, so grab one now before they go if you are in the area. It's our first trip to the Netherlands to play and it's a real privilege to be asked to be part of these shows which mark the tenth anniversary of Thomas' debut album, That Great October Sound.

Thursday, March 8 - LantarenVenster, Rotterdam
Friday, March 9 - Perron 3, Den Bosch
Saturday, March 10 - Roepaen Monastery, Ottersum
Sunday, March 11 - De Duif, Amsterdam

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Liberation LP now for sale on iTunes

After getting a lot of requests from friends, family and fans - and some great reviews and coverage - over the last couple of months, we have decided to make the Liberation album available in digital format ahead of its scheduled and official CD release date. The album has been awarded three 4* reviews so far and we hope you like what you hear. For those of you who have been following us since day one, thank you for sticking with us and we really hope it's been worth the wait. The album consists of 11 songs and was produced by ourselves and the exceptionally patient and creative Chris D'Adda at his vintage Vale Studios in the wilds of Worcestershire. You can buy Liberation from iTunes by clicking here. Please share this with as many people as you can to help spread the word. We promise the next one won't take so long.

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Listen back to our Resonance FM interview

If you missed our appearance on Friday night's Soundcheck show on Resonance FM, you can listen back to our interview with host James Hodder and the three songs we showcased from the Liberation LP by clicking on his Mixcloud page here. We talked about the making of the album at Vale Studios, the origin of some of the songs and Stu's fantasy stage costumes.

Friday, February 10, 2012

"A great first album" - Maverick magazine

Britain's leading country, folk and roots music magazine Maverick has awarded our Liberation LP four stars and kindly called it "a great first album". Reviewer Nick Dent-Robinson says the album is "a musical journey that is hard to resist" with "beautiful harmonies" and he also praises the production skills of Chris D'Adda at Vale Studios, the wonderful place where we go to record all of our music. We'd like to thank Nick and Maverick for covering the LP's release - it's the third 4* review we have received so far.

Thursday, February 09, 2012

Feature in Oxford Mail ahead of Dodgy show

The Oxford Mail ran a great full-page feature on Smoke Feathers in The Guide section today, ahead of our show supporting Dodgy at The Bullingdon on Sunday, February 26th. We did an interview with the Mail's Tim Hughes earlier this week for the article and would like to thank him for supporting us in the run-up to our album release. You can read the article by clicking on the image below (you may need to zoom in using your web browser). If you are in the Oxford area that weekend and want to come to to see us play with the mighty Dodgy, you can buy tickets here. We will be selling pre-release copies of our album Liberation as well as our new Belong EP at the show.

Wednesday, February 08, 2012

Interview on Resonance FM this Friday

This Friday's Soundcheck show on London's excellent independent arts radio station Resonance FM will be dedicated to our album Liberation, with host James Hodder showcasing three tracks from the album and broadcasting an in-depth interview with the band. We recorded the interview at Resonance's studios near London Bridge last night and helped select tracks for James to play - forthcoming single South America, Light Over Me and live favourite Once Revolutionary. We want to thank James for supporting the release of the album and also for being such a gracious host. You will be able to hear the show between 10pm and 10.30pm on Friday night on 104.4 FM if you live in central London and via the Resonance website if you live further afield. It's way too cold to go out at night anyway at the moment, so why not make yourself a nice Horlicks and tune in on Friday. If you miss it, you can catch up with the show by clicking here afterwards.

Tuesday, February 07, 2012

Another 4 star review for Liberation LP

To add to our lovely 4* review in the latest edition of R2 magazine, we have also received another great four-star write up for our forthcoming Liberation LP - this time from Linedancer magazine. Our 4* mark was for listening but we only managed to score three in the magazine's dance category. We hope you can all prove them wrong at the upcoming Dodgy gigs. We've heard those fellas can pull off a mean Hoedown Throwdown. You can read the Linedancer review by clicking on the image below.

Friday, February 03, 2012

On Resonance FM's Soundcheck tonight

Tune in to Soundcheck between 10pm and 10.30pm tonight on the excellent Resonance FM to hear some of our music given a spin. Resonance FM can be found on your dial at 104.4 FM. You can also listen in online by clicking here.

Wednesday, February 01, 2012

Vale Studios on recordproduction.com

Here is the maestro Chris D'Adda telling the world about his amazing self-built studio - Vale Studios - in a feature on recordproduction.com. We record and mix all our material with Chris at Vale and it's always an incredible experience to work with him and the unbelievable range of vintage microphones and equipment he has collected over the years. Chris has also created his own echo chamber, plate reverb and range of compressors. We can't recommend this place enough to anyone who wants to capture that beautiful, natural and classic sound you thought had disappeared long ago. Check out the interview with Chris and the tour of the studio here.

Monday, January 30, 2012

Album artwork by OneDrinPen's Ninety

We are currently finalising the artwork for the forthcoming release of our Liberation LP. The cover and sleeve art are being designed by Ninety at OneDrinPen, using images from a wintry, sunrise shoot with our old friend James Honey in south London's Crystal Palace park late last year. We're very lucky to be able to count on such talented characters to help us with everything - you can check out the cover of the album below. We love the results so far and hope you do too. Expect an update when it is all complete.

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Collaboration with former Feather: Hiatus

I am very excited to let you know about my latest creative adventure with old friend and former Smoke Feathers keyboard dynamo Cyrus Shahrad, contributing vocals, lyrics and melody for his spellbinding and critically-acclaimed Hiatus project. We have been working on three new tracks together for an EP which will be released in the near future. The vocals were recorded this week at the magical Vale Studios in Worcestershire, where we laid down the forthcoming Smoke Feathers album, Liberation. Cyrus will now work his magic back in his south London studio to pull it all together. It's sounding very strong so far and it's a real treat to be making some music with Cyrus again - our first musical expedition since the summer. It feels like many lives have passed since we first started jamming Gentle Flame in a tiny, damp room, deep below our university residence, with the explosive Chris Lund smashing the skins. Needless to say, the situations have changed and the sounds have evolved, but the musical bond remains as inspiring as ever and an honour to be a part of. If you haven't checked out Cyrus's beautiful Hiatus album Ghost Notes, now is the time to discover it.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

Belong EP set for official release on Feb 27

We plan to release the Belong EP on Monday, February 27, featuring three songs from our debut album Liberation. The EP will include South America, Liberation Theology and We Will Maintain. For those of you who didn't get a chance to tune in, you can hear us performing a live acoustic version of South America in session on Robert Elms' BBC Radio London show here. You can download Liberation Theology for free for a limited time by liking our Facebook page here and you can hear Janice Long giving the track a spin on her BBC Radio 2 show here. The EP artwork has been designed by the awesome Ninety at OneDrinPen, using an old photograph of ours of the magnificent Essequibo river in Guyana, on the north coast of South America.

Thursday, January 26, 2012

Another play from Janice Long on Radio 2

The lovely Janice Long dedicated a few minutes on her BBC Radio 2 show last night to Smoke Feathers, talking about the band and our music, after we had recorded a live session for her new, forthcoming music project Janice Long Presents earlier in the evening. She also gave Liberation Theology a spin and recommended coming to see us play at the 12 Bar tonight, the Old Queen's Head in Angel on February 2 or Cafe Rene in Gloucester on February 3. You can find more details about those gigs on our Shows page. Janice has seen us play a few of times in recent months and we hope to catch up with her again soon. You can hear what she had to say about us on her show by clicking here and jumping 44 minutes into the show. We will let you know when our Janice Long Presents session and interview goes live. Thanks Janice!

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

New Smoke Feathers logo design by Ninety

Our very good friend Ninety at OneDrinPen has conjured up a beautiful new logo for us, drawing on the story behind our name and the vibe of what we do. We met Ninety through Natty's Vibes and Pressure movement, which has brought us so many different great new friends and experiences. Ninety is also designing our EP and LP covers ready for the forthcoming releases and we highly recommend his services. You can contact him via email here.

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Four star review for Liberation LP in R2

The January/February issue of R2 Rock 'N' Reel magazine features a great, four-star review of our debut album Liberation, which is described as a "consciousness-raising collection" of "exceptional songs". Thanks to R2 news editor and music author David Burke for such a positive write-up in what is our first official review for the album. You can read it in full below.

Friday, January 13, 2012

Another date for Dodgy LP tour - Liverpool

The gracious Dodgy crew have asked us to play on another date on their forthcoming album tour, meaning we are on every night of the tour with them outside of London. We'll be at Eric's in Liverpool on Saturday, February 18th, so if you are in the area please come out and support us. Eric's has re-opened as a music venue after closing in 1980. For those of you who love a bit of British rock history, the club hosted The Clash, The Sex Pistols, Echo & The Bunnymen and early gigs by New Order and U2 back in the day. We want to say a big thanks to Dodgy for giving us the opportunity to get out on the road with them this year. The supports we did at the end of last year were unforgettable and it's been a real privilege watching one of our favourite British bands emerge once again with some killer new tracks. More importantly, they have also chipped in to share the care of our very own Stu Thoy (who has been wielding the bass live for Dodgy on their new material), which has given a bit more time to the rest of the Smoke Feathers family and friends to repair our livers in the new year than is usually the case.

Thursday, January 12, 2012

Live in session for Janice Long on Jan 25

We will be recording a few songs and having a chat with BBC Radio 2 DJ Janice Long on Wednesday, January 25 at the Scandinavian Kitchen near Oxford Circus in London. The session is part of a new show "Janice Long Presents..." which will be going live very soon. Janice has been kind enough to champion us on her Radio 2 night-time shows over the last couple of months and has also been to see us play a few times live now, so it's great to be invited along for her latest live music project. The evening gets going at around 8pm. We'll let you know when the sessions are due to be broadcast.

Monday, January 09, 2012

Supporting Dodgy on their 2012 album tour

We will be hitting the road again in the second half of February with the mighty Dodgy as they release their hotly-anticipated new album. We were lucky enough to support them last year and it's a big honour to be asked back. Their new material on the album Stand Upright In A Cool Place has rightly been getting a lot of attention from the music press - the songs easily rank with their best. We suggest you check them out when you can and hope to see some of you out and about on the tour. Tickets can be bought here.

Friday, 17th February - The Box, Crewe
Saturday, 25th February - Eiger, Leeds
Sunday, 26th February - Bullingdon, Oxford

Saturday, January 07, 2012

Liberation LP to be released on March 26, new three-track EP out on February 27

We are very excited to announce that our 11-track debut album Liberation will be released early this year. We will be launching the album in CD and digital formats on March 26th through Absolute Distribution on our own Delta Creek Records. In the run up to the launch, we will also be releasing a three-track EP featuring South America (which we recently played live on the Robert Elms show on BBC Radio London), Liberation Theology and We Will Maintain on February 27th via Absolute. For those that can't wait until March, you will be able to buy a pre-release copy of the album at any of our gigs from now on. The tracklisting for the album, recorded over the last couple of years with the inspirational Chris D'Adda at Vale Studios, is as follows: Liberation Theology, South America, Islands In Her Eyes, The Border, Light Over Me, Thunder, Faint Heart, The Wheel, We Will Maintain, Once Revolutionary and DJ On The Weekend. As many of you know, it's been a long road for us to get to this point, with many hurdles along the way - thanks for sticking with us so far. We hope you all dig the album.


Tuesday, January 03, 2012

Check out our live session for Robert Elms

We had a wonderful time on the Robert Elms show at the BBC Radio London studios today. As avid listeners, Robert has introduced us to some amazing acts on these live sessions in the past (such as Ray LaMontagne), so it was an incredible thing to be invited to play ourselves. We did an acoustic version of South America and had a nice chat with Robert about the band. Robert also played our studio recording of Liberation Theology. He's a cracking host and we hope very much to return to BBC Radio London in the future. If you missed the show, you can listen back to our full interview and live session here. The interview begins two hours and thirty-four minutes into the show, Liberation Theology follows that and we play South America after a little break. We have also created a video on our YouTube channel with just the performance of South America, which you can check out below.