MILES HUNT PRESENTS...  "SHARED"
The Wonder Stuff’s Miles Hunt presents “Shared”, an evening of acoustic performances by some of the UK’s finest artists.

Having now been touring and releasing records for over two decades I have seen more than my fair share of gigs from the early energetic and often shambolic era of the mid’ 80’s Indie Music Scene, where I first cut my teeth, to the more considered forum of the acoustic singer/songwriter & raconteur that I now find myself a part of.  I’m more than happy in the company that I currently share.

So much so that having been given the opportunity to play at the newly refurbished Birmingham Town Hall I fought off the temptation of simply hogging the limelight to myself and instead felt compelled to invite a gathering of some of the finest players I’ve seen over the years, some of them friends of mine and others that I have admired from a distance. Every artist performing at “Shared” has had a great affect on me, not only as a writer/performer myself, but also as a fan and I take it as an honour that they have accepted my invite.

I like to think that this, hopefully the first of many such events, will allow audiences to reconnect, or even connect for the first time, with artists that continue to write, record and tour but in my humble opinion perhaps do not receive the attention that they deserve, given their wonderfully consistent output, each spanning more than a decade. And where better to stage this event than the prestigious surroundings of Birmingham Town Hall?

It is with great pleasure then that I invite one and all to come and share in a night that features such varied and distinct performers. It promises to be a very special evening indeed.

Miles Hunt. June 2008

 

The first “Shared” event will be held at Birmingham's Town Hall on January 30th 2009.  Tickets are priced at £19.50 each (plus booking fees and other charges where appropriate).  Tickets are available from August 25th via the Birmingham Town Hall's website where a number of special offers and deals on local accommodation are also available.  Tickets may also be available from other outlets.

The line-up for the forthcoming event will be:


 
Miles Hunt and Erica Nockalls

Miles and Erica will be once more delving into their back catalogues to perform tracks from The Wonder Stuff and Vent 414 in addition to Miles' own extensive solo career alongside more recent tracks from their 2006 acoustic album, 'Not An Exit'.

The eagerly-awaited follow-up release to 'Not An Exit' is due for release on February 2nd 2009 and tracks from the new album will be performed during their “Shared” set.

Audience members will also get the exclusive opportunity to buy the new album before it's official release date.


 
Wayne Hussey

The name Wayne Hussey is usually more associated with his work in Sisters of Mercy and The Mission. 

What many do not realise is that Wayne has been touring with his own solo material for a number of years, including the release of his album "Bare" in June 2008 containing tracks regularly performed during his solo shows stripped down to an acoustic format.

 

Roddy Frame

A who's-who of the artists that Roddy has worked with would include some of the most distinguished names such as The Clash' Mick Jones, Edwyn Collins, Paul Carrack and Ryūichi Sakamoto.

Roddy first came to prominence in the UK with his work as singer/songwriter with Scottish group Aztec Camera, recording between 1981 and 1995 although the group was effectively Roddy Frame plus session musicians since their 1987 album, "Love".  In 1995, Roddy laid the Aztec Camera brand to rest, working and releasing material under his own name.

Roddy's first solo material came out in 1996 with the album "The North Star" on the Independiente label.  His most recent release was the 2007 live album, "Live at The Blue Note, Osaka" although he continues to write and perform live across the UK, including a recent appearance at the 2008 Glastonbury Festival alongside long-time friend, Edwyn Collins.
 

Nick Heyward

Back in 1982 there can hardly have been a person in our United Kingdom that couldn’t whistle you a tune from Haircut 100’s ‘Pelican West’ album. Filled with all that summer promises, this album heralded a bright new era in British pop music, fresh, optimistic & suitable for a picnic or a party. But like fruit off the vine, or indeed a sharp new haircut, not built to last.

‘Pelican West’ was the only Haircut 100 album fronted by Nick Heyward. By 1983 Nick had gone solo & it was quickly apparent that he was by no means a flash in the pan. His debut solo album, ‘North of a Miracle’, kept the hits coming & ever since Nick has continued to write, record & tour.

Notably, Nick released ‘From Monday to Sunday’ in 1993, which heralded a change to a more classic rock style. The album yielded an American radio hit with "Kite" which reached 4 on the Magazine Modern Rock Tracks chart.

In 1995 Nick released ‘Tangled’ on the Epic label, which chimed with the Britpop zeitgeist and provided him with his first UK Top 40 single in twelve years when "Rollerblade" reached 37 on the UK Singles Chart. After being 'discovered' by Alan McGee performing at an Ed Ball gig, ‘The Apple Bed’ was released in 1998 on Creation Records.

Nick has released new music less frequently in recent years. ‘Open Sesame Seed’ (2001), a collaboration with British actor/musician Greg Ellis, featured Ellis reading Nick’s poetry to the accompaniment of his musical backing. An album of songs recorded with singer/actress India Dupre, ‘The Mermaid and the Lighthouse Keeper’, was released in 2006.

Nick’s appearance at ‘Shared’ will be a great opportunity to see a true British treasure doing what only he can do.
 

Katell Keineg

Katell Keineg was born in Brittany and was brought up both there and in Wales. In the mid-nineties, she went to live in New York and was quickly embraced by the buzzing café scene around St Mark’s Place’s Sin-é. In 1993, while building her reputation for “conveying a nearly beatific sense of joy in performance” (Los Angeles Times), she released a seven-inch single on Bob Mould’s SOL Records label. That same year, Katell sang on Iggy Pop’s “American Caesar” and following his passing of her single on to Elektra, they signed her and released her first album “O Seasons, O Castles” in 1994.

1997 saw the release of Katell’s second album “Jet” receiving rave reviews leading to tours in the U.S. and Europe. It was even named one of the “Best Overlooked Pop Masterpieces Of The Decade” by Esquire. Keineg’s live work has included singing with Jeff Buckley, Allen Ginsberg and Calexico, opening for many people from Morphine to the Tarafs De Haidouks.

In 2002, Katell released an E.P. entitled “What’s The Only Thing Worse Than The End Of Time?” on Brooklyn based indie label, Field Recording Co. The recording included a live performance of “River Man” from a tribute to Nick Drake held at St Ann’s Church in Brooklyn.  In their review of the night, The New York Times declared her “…a young songwriter due for her own cult, who travelled the fine edge between rapture and loss so essential to Mr Drake’s art.” Following the release of a second E.P. (Shaking The Disease), Keineg released “High July”, her third album, in late 2004 to further enthusiastic reviews.

A re-recorded version of “On Yer Way” from that album was used on the soundtrack of Deborah Kampmeier’s indie film “Virgin” with Robin Wright Penn, also in 2004. Katell was the subject of a 6-page profile in The New York Times Sunday Magazine in July 2006 which led to sold out gigs in New York City. Summer 2007 was spent playing European festivals with concert pianist Katia Labeque’s experimental band, B For Bang, whose first album was released in January 2008. Keineg releases a 4-song E.P. this autumn that includes the re-recorded “On Yer Way” and a Welsh language cover of the Super Furry Animals song “Y Gwyneb Iau”.  She is currently recording her fourth album.
 

  plus one final act to be announced shortly...

Media Links

Website resources
          Shared page on MySpace
          Birmingham Town Hall's Shared page (inc ticket links)

Hi-resolution images
          Miles Hunt and Erica Nockalls          Wayne Hussey          Nick Heyward          Katell Keineg

Press Release
          PDF download

Promotional Flyer
          TIF download

For further information, contact Tom Haxell at Spirit Music and Media on 0208 746 7461 or email tom@spiritmm.com.

Lovin' the world, lovin' each other