Ramblings, announcements...et cetera! FESTIVALS, MORE FESTIVALS??

I did not hit her, I DID NAAAATT!!!!! Oh hi there...person reading this!

Yes, many of you will have not understood that, and I risked sounding like a complete nutter. Maybe I am. Maybe I have just spent too much time watching this film:

 

 Yes, the film in question being The Room; undoubtedly the worst film ever made. It features Arnold Schwarzenegger in Borat mode in one of the most bizarre love triangle stories you'll ever witness, interspersed with bad bad softcore pornography and drug dealer subplots that lead nowhere. And that's only skimming the surface!

 Anyway, enough of that. I am sat here in front of my computer in the early hours of the morning to deliver to you news of a festival-y nature. Yes, some of you will already be aware of this, but I don't care, prepare to be made aware once more! This year I am playing, not just one, but TWO UK festivals! I am rather chuffed to say the least - it's going to be fun :)

 This first is Glastonbudget festival in Leicestershire. It's held at turnpost farm in Wymeswold over 3 days - 27th 29th May 2011. Glastonbudget festival initially started life as a tribute act festival, but for the past 3-4 years or so it's been showcasing the very best unsigned and independent artists too. This year, one of those artists will be me, and I'm very happy to be a part of it. Thanks again to all those who helped me get a place on the bill!

  I should also mention that lots of other fellow East Midlands based musicians will be on the bill, which is really cool. I'll be playing alongside local bands like the Breadchasers, Jimmy the Squirrel, and Emily and the Martins.

http://www.glastonbudget.net/

 The second festival i'll be playing this year is Out the box festival. It's being organised by the bassist from Nottingham band The Swiines - who play awesome indie rock akin to the Artic Monkeys and Stone Roses. They'll be playing mainstage along with the fantastic Jake Bugg (brilliant young country & folk singer) and more. I'll be on the acoustic stage on the 18th July, alongside the amazing Gallery 47 and newcomer solo artist Paige Guy.

You can find out mroe about the festival and the rest of the line up at: http://www.outtheboxfestival.co.uk/lineup.aspx

I would love to be playing even more festivals this year - I have applied for End of the Road festival and Tramlines festival, but are there any others you would like to see me play? Please let me know, get in touch on here, twitter, facebook or drop me an email

I have some tales of my escapades with the band The Deeper in Wolverhampton - where we did a photoshoot with renowned photographer Benjamin Lycett - hopefully coming your way at some point. Got so much going on right now it's hard to find a spare moment to think!

As ever, thank you to everyone who is showing me support with my music right now. It is your support that spurs me on, and allows me to do what I love most - making music! :)

All the best,

Marc.

David Choi – By My Side review by Marc Reeves

By My Side is David Choi's second independently released album. For those of you that don't know, David is a singer-songwriter who owes his current success largely to the video sharing website Youtube. He is also a well respected songwriter and producer, having worked for Warner/Chapell.

I recently picked up his second album from his website (he distributes his records himself, as well as through other online retailers like iTunes and Amazon), opting for the physical CD version rather than the download (yes David, many people – including myself – still buy and prefer CD's over downloads, so keep releasing your records on CD!)

It arrived pretty quick (think it took 5 days or so to get to me in UK), and once I had it in my hands I popped it in my CD player, and sat down to listen.

First things first, this is a DIY home studio effort – Choi has all his own recording gear and records and mixes his music in his home – but if you played this to your average music listener, they'd be none the wiser. Even as a recording & mixing engineer myself, I have found this album does a convincing job of replicating the lavish kind of production of albums with budgets considerably largely than what I imagine Choi's to be.

This is on the whole a great sounding album – there are a few things which let the production down – like fairly obviously sampled drums, for example – but it doesn't change the fact that there is obvious character and heart to the recordings, and some great performances – which no amount of budget is going to give you. Considering that he has done everything in the department sans mastering the record – this is wonderful stuff.

I think the most important thing here though is the songs themselves – how do they hold up? No use in great performances and good production if the songs are rubbish!

Thankfully, they're not! There's very little filler here, and if you are a singer-songwriter fan, who's into pop-rock, this is a prime example of the genre done well.

Choi creates some wonderful arrangements for his unique blend of pop, r'n'b, soul and acoustic music. There's even some elements of folk and modern country in here too. He is somewhat of a multi-instrumentalist, playing guitar, piano, banjo (and I think mandolin maybe?) and violin on this album, amongst others. He writes songs mainly about love and relationship troubles, and his voice ranges from sweet, gentle falsetto, to a strong, vibrant chest voice, which can even be at times pleasingly edgy when he strains it a little. He is a very versatile vocalist, and delivers his lyrics with soul & depth.

Some of the fantastic chord progressions and melodies on this album, along with a voice full of personality, I think really display why he is such a great songwriter and performer. I do find him lyrically to be nothing special – his lyrics (as mentioned) are typical love song affairs, and while certainly far from bad, they never really stand out as being relatable on anything more than a basic level.

He does have his moments though, when he strays away from his usual themes – 'Heavens Ease' shows that David is more than your average pop star – this is poetic, slightly cryptic song and showcases his insight and intellect. Meanwhile tracks like 'Amy Ave' show him trying something a little different – reliving childhood memories – and even though the song falls a little flat (not helped by some misguided use of autotune as an effect – although I see what he was trying to do, it just doesn't work though), it shows that he is not afraid to diversify and challenge himself. Album closer 'What do you know' is a witty affair and gives a glimpse of David's tongue in cheek outlook on life.

Overall this is a really promising album, that despite falling flat in a few areas, is on the whole a brilliant piece of work. I think what makes David Choi stand out from the rest is his ability to differentiate himself from similar artists by taking full control over all the elements of his music, and his deep understanding of his craft. This is a man, who, if he carries on this way, I've no doubt he could be seen in 50 years time as one of the song-writing greats. This is incredibly inspiring to other independent artists (like myself) and shows that if you are determined enough you can make a name for yourself without all the middle men typically involved in a musicians career.

I give this album 8/10 :)


www.marcreeves.co.uk