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Tuesday, 28 April 2015

WES FINCH - New Album 'Awena' out on June 8th

WES FINCH - New Album 'Awena' out on June 8th, booking live tour dates now Even
 though
 Wes 
Finch
 has
 released 
two 
previous 
albums
 ‘Asthill

 

WES FINCH - New Album 'Awena' out on June 8th, booking live tour dates now

 DSC3028
Wes Finch
Even
 though
 Wes 
Finch
 has
 released 
two 
previous 
albums
 ‘Asthill
 Grove’
 and
 ‘Mayflower’
 both
 of
 which
 were
 recognised
 in
 various
 guises, ‘Awena’
 is
 his
 first
 fully
 studio‐realised
 album.
 The
 title
 is
 taken
 from
 his
 mother’s
 Welsh
 name
 and
 means,
 appropriately
 enough,
 ‘muse’
 or
 ‘inspiration’.
 Produced
 by
 Gerry
 Diver
 (who
 has
 worked
 with
 the 
likes
 of
 such 
folk
 music 
new bloods 
as 
Lisa
 Knapp, 
Sam 
Lee 
and 
O’Hooley
 & 
Tidow,
 as
 well
 as
 on
 his
 own
 acclaimed
 solo
 album),
 the
 new
 album
 is
 forged
 out
 of
 a
 fruitful collaborative
 year
 that
 began
 with
 three
 Wes
 Finch
 demo
 tracks
 and
 allowed
 a
 special
 musical
 and 
personal
 rapport
 to
 develop
and 
inform
 their
 work
 together. ‘Awena’ 
is
 made
 up 
of 
ten 
tracks,
 nine 
originals 
and
 one 
distinctive
 version
 of 
Elvis 
Presley’s
 ‘Love 
Me
 Tender’.
There’s
 a
s lightly
 discordant,
 sepulchral
 ambience 
to 
Awena’s
 opening 
song
‘Handfast’.
 Most
 striking,
 however,
 is
 Wes’s
 narrative and
 the 
impact
 of
 his
storytelling.
 His 
unconventional
 use
 of 
song 
structure,
 prose
 poetry
 and
 narration
 allows
 his 
songs 
and
 stories
 to
 unfold 
in 
a
 natural,
 creative 
way.
 “I've
 always
 loved
 being
 read
 to”
 he
 says “and
 had
 all
 the
 sanitised
 bible
 stories 
and
 folk
 and
 fairy
 tales
 when
 growing
 up. 
I
 much
 prefer
 the
 darker
 ones 
I've
discovered
 as 
a 
grown
 up”
 he 
adds. “I
 love
 to 
hear
 them
 but 
I'm 
a 
terrible
 oral
 story
teller”
 (he
 says 
modestly) 
“but 
I 
have
 a
 great 
love
 for 
fiction
 and
 especially
 the
 short
 story 
form.
 I 
read
 a 
lot 
for 
pleasure
 and 
I've 
studied 
literature
 of
 different
 kinds.
 Good
 stories, 
lines,
 turns
 of 
phrase 
all
 inspire 
me 
in 
writing
 and
 I 
love
 to 
try 
and
 convey
 a 
good
 story 
through 
a 
song".
Wes is a rare talent. Stylistically, he creates a sound that is at the same time both gentle and vulnerable but also epic in proportion. Wes is one of a new school of musicians who is rewriting our understanding of modern folk music. Recognised for support by the likes of Billy Bragg and Martin Carthy, Wes is an undeniably important figure for the future of British music.
"A blast of originality, primal energy and musical magic in a market saturated with cloned artists and homogenised songs" - (Gerry Diver - Producer)
Capture Smiling Loner
Wes Finch - 'Smiling Loner'
As
 an
 avid
 reader
 and
 walker,
 Wes
 takes
 his
 inspiration
 from
 stories,
 characters
 and
 landscapes
 of 
Old
 England.
 His
 songs 
offer
 a
 great
 deal 
of
 insight
 and
 observation 
and 
do 
not
 shy
 away
 from
 the tougher
 experiences of
 life.
 “There
 are
a 
few 
songs”
 he 
points 
out “
that
 are
 inspired
 by
 some
 of
 my
 reading
 over
 the
 last
 year
 or
 so
 (Ronald
 Blythe,
 Robert
 Macfarlane,
 Alan
 Warner),
 a
 few
 that
 mix
 personal
 experience
 and
 personally
 collected
 stories
 and
 some 
just
 purely
 made
 up
 tales. 
There
 are
 some 
dark
 themes
 running
 through
 the
 songs:
 loss,
 tragedy,
 depression
 and 
death. 
Not
 to 
worry”,
 he
 laughs,
 “I'm
 feeling
 pretty
 good 
myself!
“I
 brought
 all
 these 
lyrics 
to 
the 
table 
and
 Gerry 
and 
I
 worked
 on 
the
arrangements
 of 
half
 of
 them
 together. We
 both
 agreed
 we
 wanted
 to 
Anglicise
 this
 record
 a
 little,
 if
 that
 makes
 sense;
 to
 avoid
 the
 Americana
 influences
 of
 my
 previous
 recordings
 which
 can
 often lead
 down
 easy,
 and
 overly
 trodden, musical
 paths.
 It
 felt 
right
 to
 approach
 the
 songs
 in
 this
 manner
 as 
so 
much 
of
 the
 subject
 matter
 is
 English 
in 
origin
 and
 outlook. ’Widow
 Thomas’
 is 
about 
the
 wife 
of
 Edward
 Thomas
 going 
to
 meet
 the 
dying
 Ivor
 Gurney.
 ’Man
 of
 Bones‘
 was
 written
 with
 the
 tradition
 of
 Death
 And
 The
 Lady
 in
mind
‐
 someone
 pleading
 with
 the
 Grim
 Reaper
 for
 more
 time,
 trying
 to
 bargain
 for
 life. ‘Red
 Coat‘
 was
 inspired
 partly
 by
 a
 story
 related 
to 
the
 writer
 Ronald
 Blythe
 about 
a 
newly
recruited
 soldier
 returning
 on
 leave
 to
 his
 family
 and
 partly
 by
 a
 story
 told
 to
 me
 by
 an
 artist
 I
 was
 apprenticed 
to 
about
 her 
brother
 on 
leave 
from
 the 
navy. 'Jackie's
 Stone‘
 was 
sparked 
off
 by
 reading
 a
 passage
 in
 an
 Alan
 Warner
 novel
 and
 is
 a
 story
 about
 the
 often
 unsung
 Irish
 navvies 
who 
built
 the 
roads
 and
 canals
 of
 this 
country. ‘Handfast’ 
is
 about 
the 
pagan
 version
 of
 marriage."
“Genre 
barriers
 seem
 to 
be 
less 
and 
less 
important
 to
 listeners
 now” Wes says.
 “People
 like
 what
 they
 like.
 Modern
 music 
is
 more
 about 
what 
elements
 you
 are 
bringing
 together.
 I'm
 without 
a
 traditional
 folk
 music
 upbringing;
 it
 was
 never 
present
when 
I
 was 
growing
 up.
 I
 came
 through 
metal,
 rock,
 punk,
 blues
 and
 country
before 
I
 got
 to
 folk 
music
 and
 I 
hope 
I can
 perhaps 
bring
 something
 with 
a 
unique
 new
 flavour
 to the 
table 
because
 of
 that. I
 think
 a 
lot 
of
 what
 we
 do
 as
 writers 
and
 musicians 
is
 to 
make 
interesting
 combinations
 of
 the
 many
 things
 that 
have
 come
 before.
 True
 originality 
is
 rare
 if
 not 
impossible
 today
 but there
 is
 always 
a
 fresh 
new
 way 
to
 approach
 and 
contextualise 
anything."
“Some
 musical
 forms, 
the
 folk 
tradition 
especially
 can
 sometimes 
be
 resistant
 to
any 
kind
 of
 evolution
 but,
 as
 with 
language,
it
 inevitably 
will
 change
 and 
I
 think
 that's 
a 
healthy
 thing.
 Know
 the 
'rules'
 and
 the
 tradition 
and 
don’t
 be
 afraid
 to
break
 from 
it
 and
 bring
 your 
own
 interpretation. “Someone 
like
 Gerry, 
steeped
 in 
traditional
 Irish
 playing
 but
 also
 with
 a 
vast 
knowledge
 and
 experience 
of
 other
 styles
 of
 music
 and
 production,
 is
 an 
incredible
 person 
for
 an 
artist
 like

me
 to
 work
 with.
 Gerry
 isn't
 scared
 of
 taking
 risks,
 getting
 edgy
 sonically
 and
 working
 in
 different
 ways.
 Partnering
 with
 him
 on
 a
 project
 like
 this
 really
 feels
 like
 a
 potent
 combination
 at 
the 
edge
 of
 modern 
music
 making.“

Click here to see Wes perform 'Jackie's Stone'

Wes-Finch-358
Wes
***
We are taking bookings for this extraordinary artist now to promote his new album, for all enquiries, promo copies and live dates on the album launch tour please contact:
GAIL COOKE
LAUGHING DOG MUSIC
gail@laughingdogmusic.co.uk
tel: + 44 (0) 7905 952 374

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