I have always had a passion for the guitar. From an early age I learnt how to fret the notes and pick the strings on my father's old classical guitar, as my interest in music grew, so did my desire to learn more about the guitar. In my early teens I started to learn the basic chords and learn to work out songs by ear, by 16 however, I knew that what i really wanted was an electic guitar! The only way I could afford to get one was by working a part time job over christmas one year, and managed to afford a cheap Les Paul copy, after this there was no turning back! As my passion continued to grow I decided to pursue another avenue that interested me; music production. But having shunned music lessons at school I took evening courses in sound recording & music production which lead me to study music technology for 2 years in my hometown of Huddersfield, West Yorkshire.
It was there that I started playing in bands, having lessons, taking my graded exams in guitar & music theory, as well as finding my way around studios & learning how to record & mix music. I also met some great people who have become lifelong friends. But the most important lesson I learned in college was that my heart was solely in playing guitar, although the technology skills came in useful in later life. After studying Music Technology I continued my education studying guitar for 4 years at (what was) the Northern Institute Of Guitar with Andrew Bray, (now at Brighton Institute Of Modern Music), and Barrie Gledden. I continued to play in bands in and around West Yorkshire, and began teaching guitar locally, but in 2000 an opportunity arose for me to move to London, where I knew I could more actively pursue music & tuition.
After settling into the change of pace in London I was lucky enough to meet a guy called Lawrence Lewis from Los Angeles California, who was on a hiatus in London looking to start his music project & band, 'sKamper', this lead to the live incarnation of the band, and a Uk tour shortly after a single was released for which I contributed 2 remixes. And not long after, the 'Fever Pitch' EP was released along with another Uk tour. 2 tracks from the EP were licensed for use in MTV's reality shows 'Suspect' & 'Witness'. Lawrence returned to the US to continue the music of sKamper, and after a long wait a full album was released in May 2008 (to which I contributed some guitar samples).
Shortly after Lawrence's departure, I joined the dark folk band 'Ostara', which at the time consisted of singer songwriter Richard Leviathan, who was looking for a new writing partner to take the band into a more rock/metal direction following the release of their first 2 albums. Work immediately began on the album 'Ultima Thule', writing & recording most of the album at home, expanding Ostara's sound by introducing electric guitar to the darkwave tinged music, as well as doing the programming & production along with most of the keyboards too. The lineup was complimented by former sKamper drummer and friend Tim Desmond (currently playing in indie band 'New Rhodes'). Ultima Thule was released (by Eis & Licht) in 2003, followed by a European tour in 2004. Ostara's lineup was then complimented by Dave Renwick, formerly of Bronski Beat & The Communards, and part of the Coldcut collective, on Bass. Work immediately began on Ostara's 4th album 'Immaculate Destruction', with a harder guitar based direction, and electronic elements.
Released in September 2005 via Trisol (Sony/Soulfood) we played a handful of shows, including some one-off acoustic shows in Europe. Whilst the creative juices were flowing and the band were awaiting to confirm the booking short tour behind the album, we began work on new tracks which would eventually become the next album 'The Only Solace', an album that due to circumstances made it a deeply personal work. The album progressed very slowly despite the stripped down sound, and lack of keyboards & programming, but a crash course in Pro-Tools (whilst mixing!) helped shape the album, giving it contemporary sound with modern production values. This original full band version of 'The Only Solace' is due for a worldwide online release on January 16th 2009, parallel to the limited edition cd pressing of the acoustic version. Following some acoustic shows in May 2008, more acoustic shows are planned in 2009.
During the early stages of the recording for 'The Only Solace' we were asked to contribute an instrumental track to the score for the motion picture 'Saw II', which was a great honour for us to be involved in as the score was composed by Charlie Clouser (ex Nine Inch Nails). The track was written during the sessions and an alternate (vocal) version will appear on the new Ostara album.
Over the last year, as well as concentrating on teaching I have been playing in London based metal band 'Edge Of Your Lies', doing various sessions, and now I'm continuing work on my own project, more details to follow soon!
