Update from Oz

Recent blog posts have been album reviews of some of my favourite records but for the last 2-3 weeks, I’ve been either traveling in Cambodia or visiting family in Australia spending time with my crazy/gorgeous niece and nephew. So researching and writing such a detailed article has been tricky! That said, I have been working on a couple of cool lyric-based projects which I’d like to update you on here. Perhaps the most exciting has been a new collaboration with Austrian multi-instrumentalist and songwriter, Phil Deekay.

Phil Deekay

Phil is a remarkably talented musician and just as importantly, he’s been really friendly and easy to work with. (If only all of my clients were more like Phil – my job would be a dream!) I’m really excited to contribute lyrics to a funky new song he is in the process of writing. Sadly I can’t share that track but here’s a video from one of his previous songs, Cliché. How this didn’t garner more attention at the time of release is beyond me, but watch this space for an update as the song develops and please give him a follow on Facebook or Youtube.

Vyvienne Long

You may recall that a few weeks ago I reviewed one of my favourite albums – ‘O’ by Damien Rice. An unexpected bonus of researching this article was discovering that Mr Rice’s former cellist, Vyvienne Long, is a talented composer in her own right, and has just released a new album of original music. Titled ‘A Lifetime of High Fives’, it’s now available on CD and Spotify and I really recommend checking it out. I’ve no space for a full review but the arrangements are rich, her voice engaging (is it strange that I feel like I could explicitly trust someone I’ve never met, based solely upon their singing voice?!) and the lyrics are thought-provoking. See the video below for ‘Seahorse’ – the first single from the album – though ‘Photographs’ is a delight and the string break in ‘Enough’ is magnificent.

Pull No Punches Update

Last year I posted about a Tropical-House remix of former Storey single ‘Pull No Punches’ (read it here) I’d produced with my long-term friend and collaborator Jack Hardman. It may be nearly 10 years since ‘Pull No Punches’ was last performed onstage (during a brilliant night at a packed out Dingwalls, London, for those of you who were there) but this week it received another unplanned airing. While on a family road-trip across New South Wales, we stopped off at Black Dot Music – a friendly music shop with knowledgeable staff and a superb collection of quite wonderful Fender guitars. I may spend most of my time working as a composer and lyricist but I did start my career as a guitarist so I can never resist an opportunity to try out a beautiful Strat! While doing so, the staff asked me if I’d like to perform something for their YouTube channel and I jumped at the chance. After quickly strumming through the song to ensure I could still remember the lyrics, I dropped in a verse and chorus, loving every second. Perhaps I miss public performance of my own material more than I realised so am seriously considering working up a set of original material for some gigs… stay posted for an update. Anyway, here is the video itself:

End of Update

Other songs in the pipeline with Kessy, including a video for the next single ‘Angel (Time)’ scheduled for release in December. Until then, please feel free to share or comment below and if you’re looking for a co-writer (a composer, lyricist or producer) for your project then please drop me a line via the CONTACT page of this website. In the mean time you can stay up-to-date with my Instagram page or subscribe to my YOUTUBE channel.

Another review next week. Take it easy…
Arron

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.