Amsterdamned
28-04-2009, 12:40
On Sunday May 3rd US singer/songwriter Chris Mills comes to The Grapes, Sheffield, in support of his latest album 'Living In The Aftermath'. Some are already calling it his finest work. One hell of an accolade considering the strength of his back catalogue. Come and see for yourself one of America's finest. As if that wasn't enough there's also support from the fabulous Quiet Loner and more great things instore from Killing Fields Of Ontario who open the show with an acoustic set. Advance tickets priced at £6 are available from Jacks Records and Seetickets.com. Doors open at 7.45pm with the live music kicking off shortly afterwards. Admission on the night will be £8.
***CHRIS MILLS***
Chris Mills' Living in the Aftermath is the latest collection from one of America's most wandering-est of wandering troubadours. After almost a decade of rave reviews and countless shows in stadiums and shoeboxes (the past 2 years alone have seen him alongside Ben Folds, Bishop Allen, Lucero, Limbeck, and many more), Mills, once again, threatens to break free from seemingly perpetual obscurity, by providing some of the most unaffected, and yet emotionally affecting work of his career.
Harvesting music and lyrics from headlines, horror movies, four-color ash-can adventures, and the black and white reflections of late night re-runs, Mills returns from the recent orchestral majesty of his critically lauded The Wall to Wall Sessions with a raw and ready collection of true rock n' roll numbers, each one peppered with knowing asides, and unencumbered poignancy.
Songs like Untitled No. 1 (which you can hear at : http://www.myspace.com/wagonwheelmediapromotion ) and Calling All Comrades spin epic tales of lovers on the run from aliens, a-bombs, and vampire insects, while more personal moments unfold in the dream-like imagery and subtlety of Such a Beautiful Thing, Blackbirds, and the "Twilight Zone" inspired Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.
But its not just the songs that make this Mills' strongest record to date, it's the art and immediacy of their execution. Recorded and mixed in eight days, Aftermath benefits from the visceral performances of Mills and a crack cabal of New York City co-conspirators: bassist Drew Glackin (The Silos, Willard Grant Conspiracy, Graham Parker, The Hold Steady), drummer Konrad Meissner (Teddy Thompson, The Silos, Matt Nathanson), keyboardist/arranger David Nagler (Nova Social, Camphor, Chris Lee), and engineer/co-producer Tony Maimone (Pere Ubu, They Might Be Giants).
Additional players include trumpeter Dave Max Crawford (Sea and Cake, Poi Dog Pondering), violinist Jean Cook (Jon Langford's Ship and Pilot, Beauty Pill, Ida), and steel guitar/banjo virtuoso Jon Rauhouse (Nico Case, Calexico, Giant Sand).
Company aside, it is the ever-impressive evolution of his craft that firmly places Chris Mills alongside peers like Okkervil River's Will Sheff and Wilco's Jeff Tweedy as one of the foremost authors of the 21st Century American songbook.
http://www.chris-mills.com
http://www.myspace.com/chrismillsmusic
***QUIET LONER***
Quiet Loner's debut album "Secret Ruler Of The World" was released to widespread acclaim in summer 2004, spending two months as the number one album on Maverick magazine's Americana album chart and ending the year being voted best album of 2004 by the readers of americana-uk.com.
Quiet loner sings songs about love, infidelity, suicide, attempted murder, capital punishment, the database state, terrorism, religion, war, fallen angels, the secret rulers of the world and the redemptive power of country music. Hinged around singer-songwriter Matt Hill, often accompanied by the remarkable pedal steel guitar playing of Alan Cook. Quiet Loner subvert traditional country and folk themes into modern day tales of urban life all set in a distinctly British landscape. In fact more than one reviewer has commented that Quiet Loner's peculiar take on the dark side of country music owes as much to Morrissey and Costello as it does to Johnny Cash and Gram Parsons.
As a solo, duo or band Quiet loner have shared stages with many great performers opening for acts like Lambchop, Joe Pernice, Josh Rouse, Chris Mills, Richard Buckner, Neko Case, Jackie Leven, Peter Bruntnell and Neal Casal.
"a real talent for songwriting plus some wonderful darker moments that you can't help but fall in love with" Maverick magazine
"echoes disparate bedfellows such as Gram parsons and Elvis Costello - four stars" Classic Rock magazine
http://www.myspace.com/quietloner
***KILLING FIELDS OF ONTARIO***
Killing Fields of Ontario were formed in 2007 by Tom Brewster and Stuart Kempster. In early 2008, after months of song writing, they were put in touch with musical prodigy Dave Loffman, who kindly agreed to record a demo. Dave also took up drum duties, and semi-legendary 'Rocketeers' front man James "Roadkill" Brooks stepped in on bass to complete the line up.
The initial recordings were predominantly acoustic and banjo driven, however as new songs emerged the band became more electric, with bigger drums and bigger guitars (in a musical, not dimensional, sense). Using a varied combination of acoustic and electric instruments, the band create a sound that is powerful and modern, and yet still steeped heavily in folk roots.
Tonight they revert back to that stripped down sound with an acoustic set as they did when supporting Otis Gibbs in December.
http://www.myspace.com/killingfieldsofontario
Facebook Event page:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=88390023083
http://c2.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/104/l_e09ea269ce824f529c207810334e1d31.jpg
***CHRIS MILLS***
Chris Mills' Living in the Aftermath is the latest collection from one of America's most wandering-est of wandering troubadours. After almost a decade of rave reviews and countless shows in stadiums and shoeboxes (the past 2 years alone have seen him alongside Ben Folds, Bishop Allen, Lucero, Limbeck, and many more), Mills, once again, threatens to break free from seemingly perpetual obscurity, by providing some of the most unaffected, and yet emotionally affecting work of his career.
Harvesting music and lyrics from headlines, horror movies, four-color ash-can adventures, and the black and white reflections of late night re-runs, Mills returns from the recent orchestral majesty of his critically lauded The Wall to Wall Sessions with a raw and ready collection of true rock n' roll numbers, each one peppered with knowing asides, and unencumbered poignancy.
Songs like Untitled No. 1 (which you can hear at : http://www.myspace.com/wagonwheelmediapromotion ) and Calling All Comrades spin epic tales of lovers on the run from aliens, a-bombs, and vampire insects, while more personal moments unfold in the dream-like imagery and subtlety of Such a Beautiful Thing, Blackbirds, and the "Twilight Zone" inspired Nightmare at 20,000 Feet.
But its not just the songs that make this Mills' strongest record to date, it's the art and immediacy of their execution. Recorded and mixed in eight days, Aftermath benefits from the visceral performances of Mills and a crack cabal of New York City co-conspirators: bassist Drew Glackin (The Silos, Willard Grant Conspiracy, Graham Parker, The Hold Steady), drummer Konrad Meissner (Teddy Thompson, The Silos, Matt Nathanson), keyboardist/arranger David Nagler (Nova Social, Camphor, Chris Lee), and engineer/co-producer Tony Maimone (Pere Ubu, They Might Be Giants).
Additional players include trumpeter Dave Max Crawford (Sea and Cake, Poi Dog Pondering), violinist Jean Cook (Jon Langford's Ship and Pilot, Beauty Pill, Ida), and steel guitar/banjo virtuoso Jon Rauhouse (Nico Case, Calexico, Giant Sand).
Company aside, it is the ever-impressive evolution of his craft that firmly places Chris Mills alongside peers like Okkervil River's Will Sheff and Wilco's Jeff Tweedy as one of the foremost authors of the 21st Century American songbook.
http://www.chris-mills.com
http://www.myspace.com/chrismillsmusic
***QUIET LONER***
Quiet Loner's debut album "Secret Ruler Of The World" was released to widespread acclaim in summer 2004, spending two months as the number one album on Maverick magazine's Americana album chart and ending the year being voted best album of 2004 by the readers of americana-uk.com.
Quiet loner sings songs about love, infidelity, suicide, attempted murder, capital punishment, the database state, terrorism, religion, war, fallen angels, the secret rulers of the world and the redemptive power of country music. Hinged around singer-songwriter Matt Hill, often accompanied by the remarkable pedal steel guitar playing of Alan Cook. Quiet Loner subvert traditional country and folk themes into modern day tales of urban life all set in a distinctly British landscape. In fact more than one reviewer has commented that Quiet Loner's peculiar take on the dark side of country music owes as much to Morrissey and Costello as it does to Johnny Cash and Gram Parsons.
As a solo, duo or band Quiet loner have shared stages with many great performers opening for acts like Lambchop, Joe Pernice, Josh Rouse, Chris Mills, Richard Buckner, Neko Case, Jackie Leven, Peter Bruntnell and Neal Casal.
"a real talent for songwriting plus some wonderful darker moments that you can't help but fall in love with" Maverick magazine
"echoes disparate bedfellows such as Gram parsons and Elvis Costello - four stars" Classic Rock magazine
http://www.myspace.com/quietloner
***KILLING FIELDS OF ONTARIO***
Killing Fields of Ontario were formed in 2007 by Tom Brewster and Stuart Kempster. In early 2008, after months of song writing, they were put in touch with musical prodigy Dave Loffman, who kindly agreed to record a demo. Dave also took up drum duties, and semi-legendary 'Rocketeers' front man James "Roadkill" Brooks stepped in on bass to complete the line up.
The initial recordings were predominantly acoustic and banjo driven, however as new songs emerged the band became more electric, with bigger drums and bigger guitars (in a musical, not dimensional, sense). Using a varied combination of acoustic and electric instruments, the band create a sound that is powerful and modern, and yet still steeped heavily in folk roots.
Tonight they revert back to that stripped down sound with an acoustic set as they did when supporting Otis Gibbs in December.
http://www.myspace.com/killingfieldsofontario
Facebook Event page:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=88390023083
http://c2.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/images02/104/l_e09ea269ce824f529c207810334e1d31.jpg