Dan Hartland, Alex Vann, The Gamophones and Zaria at Best Seat Sessions

Best Seat Sessions, the gig which my friend Jess (with a little bit of help from me) runs welcomes Dan Hartland supported by Alex Vann, The Glamophones and Zaria to Ort in Balsall Heath on the 25t of April.

Dan Hartland’s brand of rootsy country reinvigorates the lonesome troubadour shtick with a wry pop sensibility. From gentle acoustic picking to the robust influences of early rock ‘n’ roll, Dan’s observational, confessional style offers a potent mix of intelligence and soul.

A dynamic and engaging stage presence, Dan is currently touring his brand new album, Young Man's Game, which features eleven literate slices of Americana-influenced songwriting.

“His well crafted songs offer a fine balance between heartache and joy.” Americana UK

“Cuts right through to the listener’s innermost soul.” Maverick Magazine

Alex Vann is a West Midlands Singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He has many years’ experience as a solo artist and also in bands. His music encompasses a wide range of genres and subjects but is mainly from his pop and folk influences, and most with a storytelling focus. Alex is currently recording the fourth instalment of his ‘Silhouettes and Pirouettes’ collection of original songs which has won wide acclaim and sales.


 
Bringing the best music from the most famous eras, The Glamophones will take you back to some of the most iconic songs from the 20s all the way through to todays chart hits. These 3 Birmingham Beauties, Carrie-Anne, Laura & Kate will impress you with their beautiful harmonies and exciting musical arrangements. This talented retro girl group guarantee to keep your feet tapping, fingers clicking and your hips moving with every beat.


 
Zaria picked up a guitar around age thirteen, and unlike most musicians, she could put it down if she wanted to. It took about a year before she consistently began playing. However, her writing career started when she was in 4th grade. After combining the two abilities into an acoustic solo act, she played her first coffee house concert in 2009 with Van Wagner. She then began to learn more about the live performance aspect of music rather than the art of performing to the horses she tends to at a local farm. Her influences include, but are not limited to Ellie Goulding, Ingrid Michaelson, Kate McGill, Regina Spektor, and Gabrielle Aplin. 



Tickets are £5 in advance-http://www.wegottickets.com/event/262653#.UyxNe4WE_Qo

Or you can pay £7 on the door.

Ort is at 500-504 Moseley Road, Birmingham, B12 9AH.

The no. 50 Bus route connects Moseley Road to Birmingham city centre.

There is ample cycle parking opposite Ort and free car parking all around the venue.

What you been doing, Robert?

Been a while since my last post which means there's plenty to tell you about.

I performed at an excellent event in Finedon called Kontra Roots on the 10th of January. Another cool little gig run by passionate people who programme good acts for an appreciative audience. It was very nice to catch up with Louise Petit and her fine band, and hear their excellent three part harmonies.

I made a return to Bohemia restaurant in Selly Oak, Birmingham and as on the last two occasions I had a lot of fun. It's like two very different gigs in one night; the first set its your classic restaurant gig playing some laid back stuff as people eat and chat. After they have finished their meals people behave more like a regular gig audience and there was much singing along and banter. I'm booked to return in September.

Matthew Hernadez invited me along to a gig he runs at The Wild Boar in Warwick which was very cool. Also playing were Millie Hay, Jake Melles,Will Johnson, Lee Evatt & Tom Harris,and Supine Orchestra.

Millie Hay

Will Johnson

Supine Orchestra

On the 30th of January I supported Paul Liddell at Ort in Balsal Heath, Birmingham. Not easy to describe how talented Paul is, I'll leave it to the videos of his set we are hoping to post soon. I can say what a nice fella he is and how much we appreciated him making the journey from Sunderland to play at the event.

Robert Lane with Paul Liddell

Theatre Stuff

The past couple of months have seen me get involved with a few exciting theatre projects. I'm writing some songs and helping organise musicians for A Passion for Birmingham which is happening this Easter. I've got involved because it sounds like a really interesting piece of theatre. Have a look at the website for more information.

I'm doing some more shows with Foghorn Improv this time taking part in some non musical bits as well as improvising songs.

I've been cast as Anton Rybin in The Mother at Birmingham Rep, with two performances on the 15th of March. Birmingham actress Lorna Laidlaw plays The Mother, and Tessa Walker is directing. This one is going to be very cool indeed!

On Saturday 8th of February I played guitar for some short excerpts of Pint Dreams, a lovely piece of pub theatre devised by Tin Box Theatre Company at an event called Appetite Stoke.  I met some very interesting people and had a reet good laugh during the course of the day (even during the frighteningly early train journey...)

Paul Liddell supported by Robert Lane at Ort Thursday 30th January

Paul Liddell supported by Robert Lane at Ort Thursday 30th January 
Tickets £8 available from http://www.wegottickets.com/event/253651
8pm
Ort is at 500-504 Moseley Road, Balsall Heath, Birmingham, B12 9AH


PAUL LIDDELL

Paul Liddell is a working musician/singer/songwriter/recording artist based by the sea in the North East of England. His current album, the excellent Milestones and Motorways is a proudly home-made and independent release.

Paul is an experienced live performer with an unstoppable work ethic, clocking up on average 20 gigs a month both solo and with his band ‘Delphians’. Live, his unique voice and unpretentious delivery combine with the use of live sampling, guitar percussion and layered vocal harmonies to provide a great platform for his wonderful songs to shine. Paul has toured in America, whipping up a storm in several little coffee houses across California. While there he performed on a TV show filmed in Time Warner studios in Hollywood, and got his song ‘Brighter Lights’ placed on a nationally distributed and TV advertised folk compilation CD.
Other live highlights include performing on the main stage at the Beverley Folk Festival, and a memorable show at the Piperine Free Festival in Milan. Other artists Paul has shared billing with include Billy Bragg, Turin Brakes, Beth Rowley, Glenn Tilbrook (Squeeze), Karine Polwart, Polly Paulusma, Calvin Harris, Nick Harper, Nerina Pallot, and Florence And The Machine.

Other notable achievements include making it through to the final 10 of Q Magazine’s Glastonbury competition, being named as the hardest working, most gigging songwriter of 2009 by the PRS, and selling over 3000 albums and EPs solely at live performances.

Paul is currently unsigned and unrepresented, building a cottage industry into something more in a purely independent, DIY fashion.

Praise for Paul’s album Milestones and Motorways:
Paul is a smooth and capable guitarist, and his low-key vocals tackle social injustice and media corruption with wry compassion. The vivid splashes of grungy electric riffage that punctuate this album add welcome force to this sharply etched portrait of life in modern Britain – Guitarist Magazine

"Milestones And Motorways" is a real troubadour album, one that throws life and experiences right back at you, ready to challenge your thought processes and move on. Politics both personal and global aren't shied away from, Liddell is not about to sell himself and his listeners short by compromising yet still contrasts his aggression with recocilliation – Fatea Magazine

An artist in the bloom of their creativity – Folking.com

Lyrically, the songs come armed with a social and political conscience (bankers, the media, Catholicism, instant gratification culture,) as well as exploring self-doubt and the human condition….. capable of sharp observations and on the lovely Footprints with its ‘walking in circles footprint wheels’ line, unbridled romanticism. – Netrhythms

www.paulliddell.com


ROBERT LANE

Robert Lane is a singer songwriter based in Birmingham.

Robert was chosen by the LG Arena to perform before concerts by Dire Straits front man Mark Knopfler, BBC Sound of 2010 winner Ellie Goulding and international superstar singer/songwriter John Mayer. In May 2013 he returned to the Forum Live to play before Eric Clapton’s main stage appearance. In August 2013 he was on of 15 songwriters selected to attend a song writing retreat/course with Kinks front man Ray Davies.

Robert has appeared at The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Birmingham Artsfest and The Tenby Blues Festival as well as venues including Birmingham's Glee Club and Jools Holland's famous venue The Jam House. He has supported a wide range of performers including Nell Bryden, Polly Paulusma, Paul Liddell, Alice Gold, Cattle and Cane, Jazz Morley, Edwina Hayes, Dan Wilde, Jess Morgan, Steve Gibbons, Jay Leighton, Dan Whitehouse and Steve Ajao.

“(his) songs all have a fantastic melodic core…really intrigued by the melody…it’s particularly sweet” Alan Clifford BBC Radio Nottingham drivetime

"Well crafted, written and of course performed...bang on your iPod" Steve Pettitt - Contributor to Guitar-Cafe.co.uk

"Lane is another prime example of the sheer amount of talent we have residing in the Midlands at the moment, and a valuable addition to the Birmingham music scene as a whole." Luke Deakin, Counteract Magazine

"Robert Lane accomplishes what many fail to do, writing catchy songs without compromising any of his musical integrity…dynamic selection of tracks that instantly becomes a compelling listen." Darren Brookes, Media Essentials

"Rather splendid…songs about changes, very wistful quite impressionistic…slice of a moment" John Edgar, The Storyjohn Podcast

www.robertlanemusic.co.uk

I haven't posted in all of November, how truly disgusting and remiss of me!

A fair amount has been going on.

I spent Halloween night watching the National Theatre Live encore broadcast of Frankenstein starring Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller. Brilliant piece of theatre, enthralling. I hadn't been to an NT Live broadcast before but I'd very happily go to another. I've found the whole National Theatre 50th anniversary stuff  that has been on TV and Radio incredibly interesting. When theatre/music/art are combined with history that pretty much always appeals to me. Especially if stories featuring Laurence Olivier and the like being huge luvvies and creating amazing theatre are involved.

I went to a book talk by journalist and author Jon Ronson. Jon has written a whole load of books that I've been greedily gobbling up over the last three years or so since I happened upon The Psycopath Test at a service station and something about it grabbed my attention (always judge a book by it's cover.) Jon was discussing his latest collection of stories, Lost at Sea, as well as previewing some new writing and then having a lovely Q and A session. I really enjoyed hearing Jon read extracts from his books and fill in some background to the stories. He was funny and disarmingly understated, quite a lesson in maintaining an audience's attention by being still, quiet and extremely interesting.

I also enjoyed Tartuffe at Birmingham Rep. First person on stage was Janice Connolly, a Birmingham based comedian/actor/writer/legend who I performed with a couple of times when I was a student. Good on the Rep for using some local talent!

I went along to Theatre Exchange at The Old Joint Stock in Birmingham, where my friend Nadia was taking part in a rehearsed reading of a new play. Great events these. They are moving to new, bigger venues in the new year http://theatreexchangebirmingham.com/

As for gigs there was a return visit to Gaslight Club in Leeds, and a début at the rather wonderful Crown of Lights in Heckmondwike.

I supported the superb Polly Paulusma at Ort in Birmingham. A gig that had an added feeling of loveliness as we were both celebrating our birthdays that week.

Robert Lane and Polly Paulusma

This week I'm providing music (and maybe acting and singing a bit) for Fog Horn Improv's improvised musical http://www.foghornimprov.com/

Then appearing at Ditch The TV in Coventry on Friday night (details on the "live" page)