We are absolutely thrilled to announce that the band has undergone a rather special line-up change as we’ve been joined on an ongoing basis by legends Nige Mason and Gordon Wilkinson!

The line-up now comprises:

Alec Marlow – lead vocals, guitar
Nige Mason – guitar, backing vocals
Emma Marlow – bass, backing vocals
Charles Shelley – keyboards
Gordon Wilkinson – drums

We can confirm that it sounds MASSIVE!!

The first quarter of 2023 has seen the band experience somewhat of a rollercoaster ride.

The new year found us in a very uncertain place emotionally following a particularly challenging period at the back end of 2022. This was only exacerbated by the departure of Izak towards the end of January, with the band reverting to its pre-2019 core 3-piece. For all there was far too much unfinished business to consider calling time, morale was at an all time low and it was unclear how we might continue.

We got together as a 3-piece just to do something to kick the new year off, whereupon we went through material older and newer. It was very shaky and it was felt that the music had evolved so much in the intervening years, that at the very least the introduction of a second guitar was the way forward, even if just to bolster the sound in a live setting.

However due to an element of growing external personal commitments, this was complicated by the need to take the foot off the gas in terms of regular rehearsal time. We were therefore unsure as to how the addition of anyone new might pan out. There were some gigs in the diary which were rationalised down to the two May dates (as were), to give us some time to figure things out.

Following discussions, there was no appetite within the band whatsoever for finding a replacement vocalist, be they female or male. In any case, as a singer I really wanted to find my voice again and return to the lead vocal position. I took to the studio and began to work through the recordings, finding my place in the songs and making them my own. For all that I had written the lyrics, I hadn’t properly performed some of them before. It was a liberating experience having the mental space to be able to do that and my confidence began to return.

I contacted our friend and much respected musician Nige Mason to ask if he might be interested in helping us out, playing guitar in particular for the planned Manorfest set. We had played a number of times with his band Hollow Earth and he was a fan of our music. He was interested but had not played in a band with a full drums-laden backing track before and had some concerns. At this point it was suggested that we could ask Gordon Wilkinson (also of Hollow Earth / Ironrat / Lazarus Blackstar) if he might be interested in playing live drums. Gordon had already played drums on our forthcoming single and had shown an interest in playing more. Nige asked him, he very quickly accepted and a meeting was called so we could iron out logistics (which were not inconsiderable).

Following the meeting, the original remit was for the lads to primarily help us out live for the Manorfest appearance but the more we got together and the more we talked and planned, it became evident that this was the beginning of a very special and exciting chapter. Everyone was bang up for it, on the same page and this was cemented further when we all got together to play. And so very quickly and naturally 3 plus 2 became 5.

Unfortunately, the Manorfest festival was cancelled not long after that and whilst this was disappointing, had it not been taking place in the first place, we would not have ended up where we are. In this case, it is very easy for us to take the positive out of the negative.

Our first appearance will be at the 1 in 12 club on Saturday 20th May supporting Rome Burns and Inkubus Sukkubus.

It’s our intention to proceed with this line-up / configuration going forward for all activities.

The single constant most dependable thing in life is change. Some fear it, some hate it, yet we all must face it. And you can’t fight it.

2022 has seen the band enter its second decade of existence. During the first ten years, we experienced a number of changes and chapters, both within the band and externally. We’ve had good times and bad and people have come and gone. The last 3-4 years in particular saw us go from a 3-piece to 4 to 5 and in the last 18 months, a different 5. The band dynamic has changed considerably over time and also I’d like to think the sound has become more sophisticated. Different ideas and approaches have been tried. Some have worked and some not so much. Although enjoyable, it has at some points in recent times felt creatively inconsistent.

Since embarking on the “The Mandela Effect” album project in 2019, a break and line-up change during the pandemic and attempting to get match fit again in 2021, there has been a large element of playing catch-up with material that was already there. It has seemed like a very long time since we composed anything brand new as a band and certainly with the latest line-up this has never happened.

This year has proven especially challenging for some of us for various reasons and what should’ve been a wholly fun and enjoyable landmark year for us was much more of a struggle than anticipated. Despite a reasonably productive year for live work and decent progress having been made on the album, towards the end of the year the ship was not running as desired.

Keeping busy is often a great distraction from addressing things which need addressing and it can be all too convenient to hide behind the “see how it goes” mantra. In a band dynamic which involves very close friendships and relationships, problems can be difficult to navigate and compartmentalise to the point of discouragement. Before long, something which is supposed to provide you with a sanctuary from life’s problems becomes something which is not that.

It was a long overdue time for us to “turn and face the strain” and address all of the above.

After some discussion, it was decided that the last two gigs of the year were to be our last under the current regime and with the current line-up. Unfortunately, ill health dictated that the last appearance, due to take place in Sheffield on 17th December would not be possible and so the Keighley gig on the 10th was to be the last.

And so, after almost three and a half years, Kaz Buxton is leaving the fold. The band would like to thank Kaz for her work and everything she has brought in that time and we wish her luck for future projects. Kaz leaves to pursue her ongoing band Echofire and her role in local rock covers band Whiskey Shed.

As for the rest of us, the plan is to enter 2023 with a blank page and a fresh resolve. Much is yet to be determined but in the short term, we all agree that there is a very real need to take the pressure off and get back to what we really enjoy doing, which is creating new music at our own pace with no other agenda.

We have some live dates in the calendar for later in the year, which we will of course look forward to playing and whilst opportunities will be considered if offered, we will not be actively seeking them for the foreseeable future. It is all too easy to fall into the trap of filling the calendar to the point where rehearsals and gigs take over the creative process.

Work on The Mandela Effect album will continue in the background as an almost parallel process, the rest of the band members having mostly recorded their parts anyway.

More news on all of this as it takes shape next year.

We’d like to thank from the bottom of our hearts all of the bands, promoters and everyone who has been out to watch us and help us celebrate our first ten years this year.

Have a wonderful festive period and all the best for 2023. See you on the other side!

Cheers!

Alec, Emma, Charles, Kaz and Izak

Just a few months after recruiting new guitarist Tim Furze, we are delighted to announce that we have expanded our numbers further.

On 16th July, Kaz Buxton joined the fold as additional lead vocalist.

Kaz had previously joined us on stage a couple of times to sing “Divide and Conquer”, which is a song she originally sang in our old band Suicide By Cop. A desire for her to be more musically active, coupled with us wondering what she might sound like singing some of our other material led us to getting together to see what happens.

It’s very early days as yet but so far it’s sounding great. We are really looking forward to giving a taster of things to come at the Shadow of the Castle festival this coming Saturday.

Going forward, I still intend to perform some lead vocal duties as well as write the lyrics, so hopefully we won’t be changing beyond all recognition, although we will continue to experiment as is the ethos of the band.

Depending on availability, future gigs may or may not feature all five of us, especially during this transitional period.

We are already working on our next recordings, which will feature the full line-up. More on this in due course.