Archive News: 2012
14th March 2012:
Following hot on the heels of Blue Touch Paper's debut UK gig on 10th March 2012, the band have now announced a UK tour. Venues and dates are as follows:
16th May 2012 - Turner Sims, Southampton
17th May 2012 - Clwyd Theatr Cymru, Mold (North Wales)
18th May 2012 - The Queen's Hall, Edinburgh (Scotland)
21st May 2012 - The Wardrobe, Leeds
22nd May 2012 - 606 Club, London
23rd May 2012 - Lakeside Arts Centre, Nottingham
Then, as mentioned last time, they're off to perform at ElbJazz Fest, Hamburg, Germany on 26th May
Their debut album Stand Well Back has just been released this week (on 12th March 2012). Don't be expecting Mask Orchestra or NDR Big Band-type material - Stand Well Back is an entirely different beast altogether. Featuring the extradorinary talents of Colin Towns (keys, vocals, atmospheric genius); Mark Lockheart (guitar); Chris Montague (saxes and clarinet); Benny Greb (drums); Stephan Maass (percussion) and Edward Maclean (bass), you will NOT be disappointed by this release.
I was fortunate enough to catch their UK debut gig and was blown away by their incredible musicianship. In two parts, the gig held my attention from start to finish. Nice to see Colin back playing keyboards, although for me, a drummer of dubious ability, Benny Greb was a delight and a joy to watch / listen to. From memory, they played the entire album, along with other original material, presumably recorded but left off the album. Shame, as these pieces were magnificent works in their own right too. The interplay between the musicians was first-rate (particularly between Benny and Stephan for my money!), with all involved being as tight as the proverbial duck's arse! Colin is a master at creating atmosphere, and used occasional pre-recorded sections of music / words to either introduce a track or to enhance the ambiance during the material. It was a delight to see the band having a good time, with broad smiles all round. Some nice extended work outs and soloing from the boys too. They finished with a blistering version of Crazy Man On Platform 13, a wonderful and fitting end to the show. Lined up side by side to take the customary bow, it was clear to see the band had enjoyed their time on stage, and this was enthisiastically reciprocated by the appreciative audience.
I urge you to make the effort to get to see this band (and buy the CD!) - with so much poor music about these days, it's refreshing to see and hear Colin's latest musical foray in the flesh. Go on, you know it makes sense....
20th February 2012:
Here are few updates for your consideration!
Colin's latest musical adventure, Blue Touch Paper, has announced their UK debut performance, to coincide with the UK launch of their debut album Stand Well Back (released on 12th March 2012). It's going to happen at Kings Place, London on 10th March 2012, so make sure to check out the site to book your tickets. Personnel is: Colin Towns, Mark Lockheart (Polar Bear, Loose Tubes); Chris Montague (Troyka); Benny Greb (check the internet – drummer extraordinaire!); Stephan Maass (Randy Brecker) and Edward Maclean (Peter Fox). Keep up to date on Blue Touch Paper's activities on Facebook here
There will be a UK tour in May 2012 in support of the album, but as yet details are a little sketchy, so I'll announce the info here in a few weeks once the dates have been finalised. However, they finish the tour at Hamburg's ElbJazz Fest on 26th May. Watch this space...... Colin also has interviews with Jazzwise and JazzUK magazines (although I don't know which issues!) and an interview on BBC Radio 3's 'Jazz Line-up' (again, I don't know when this is planned although the programme airs on a Sunday!).
Other news:
Colin has recently been in Wales working on 'As You Like It' for Clwyd Theatr Cymru and will return there soon to score the music to 'A Doll's House'. He has also recently worked with the Druid Theatre Company in Galway, Southern Ireland on the play 'Big Maggie' (in November 2011)
He will be playing a festival with the NDR Big Band on 21st March in Neubrandenburg, Germany, performing the multi-media project 'Hamburg Harbour Sound and Vision', which was premiered at Hamburg's Elbjazz Festival in May 2011. Then on April 17th Colin will be in Sardinia, Italy with Orchestra Jazz Della Sardegna performing 'It's Later Than You Think' with vocalist Norma Winstone
On top of all that(!), Colin will soon begin working on the third series Flemming (German TV)
The titles and credit for the fifth series of Doc Martin have now been added to the Mini-series section of the site, as too have the titles to the second series of Flemming