Quiet Loner + Greg Harrisburg + Neil McSweeney @ WagonWheel Presents...

On Thursday February 9th WagonWheel Presents… brings 3 great singer/songwriters to The Greystones stage. As well as individual sets from Quiet Loner, Dan Raza and Greg Harrisburg there will be some collaborations too as the trio undertake a joint UK tour. Quiet Loner will be a familiar face to many, most recently with us when supporting Chris Mills in September 2011. Dan Raza makes a long overdue return to Sheffield as he is set to finally release his debut album and their fellow member of the Snake Mountain Revue songwriters’ collective Greg Harrisburg makes his WagonWheel bow. Advance tickets priced at £5 are available from www.wegottickets.com/wagonwheelpresents or entry on the night will be £6. Doors open 7.30pm.

***UPDATE*** due to illness Dan Raza will no longer be appearing tonight. Neil McSweeney will now be kicking off this evening’s show.


***QUIET LONER***

Quiet Loner is the pen-name of songwriter Matt Hill. His recording and live work as Quiet Loner has won him many accolades, including Americana UK Album of the Year 2004 for his debut LP ‘Secret Ruler of the World’, and he has played with kindred spirits like Lambchop, Joe Pernice, Neko Case and Chris Mills.

As Quiet Loner he sings songs about love, loss, infidelity, suicide, attempted murder, capital punishment, the database state, terrorism, religion, war, fallen angels, the secret rulers of the world and the redemptive power of country music. Hill is an accomplished raconteur and powerful live performer delivering a show that is emotional, often funny, usually political, occasionally angry, sometimes satirical but nearly always gentle and human.

Inspired by the storytelling traditions of American folk and country music, Hill’s songs also have a distinctly British lyrical bite. His most recent album ‘Spectrology’ is a stark and honest collection of performances recorded deep in the English countryside during the big freeze of January 2010. Produced by Mat Martin (Kirsty McGee, The Brute Chorus) it contains eleven songs of experience and wisdom, and features contributions from Inge Thomson (Bonnie Prince Billy, Broken Family Band), Roy Dodds (Fairground Attraction,Hank Wangford) and long term collaborator Alan Cook (Jackie Leven).

“The wordplay is pure Costello. Delicate songwriting, with hints of folk and Americana. Bleakly beautiful” Uncut

“An outstanding record. Uplifting and inspiring” Maverick Magazine

“It’s not an overstatement to say it’s up there with Ryan Adams’ “Heartbreaker”. Believe me, you need to hear this album.” Whisperinandhollerin

“dissecting heartbreak with surgical precision. Highly recommended” Americana UK

http://www.quietloner.com/


***GREG HARRISBURG***

Greg Harrisburg is the pseudonym for Welsh singer/songwriter Greg Rees. He is part of the Snake Mountain Revue songwriters’ collective (along with Dan and Matt). A little bit folk, and a little bit country, though he wouldn’t thank you for the labels, he just sings songs with words in them. As Greg himself puts it “Words don’t merely serve to punctuate the vocal but formulate it. Phrasing is the most important aspect of the art of singing in my eyes and ears and I strive to make each performance disturbingly fresh. My work is as much influenced by Dostoevsky, Pessoa, & Keats as it is Dylan, Van Zandt, & Thompson.”

http://www.myspace.com/harrisburgsongs


***NEIL McSWEENEY***

Neil McSweeney is a songwriter from Sheffield who performs his material on his own or sometimes with five-piece band The Gents (tonight will be solo).

McSweeney started writing his Americana-tinged, folksy solo material while teaching English in Italy. Upon returning to his native Sheffield, he continued to write songs inspired by the likes of Low and Papa M, and his intense, brooding live performances quickly won him many fans.

With two acclaimed albums already to his name, debut ‘Remember To Smile’ and 2009 follow up ’Shoreline’, a third record is currently in the works with recent shows having featured some of those new tunes.

“Deeply felt, brooding songs rich in imagery…he has the tools to make a real impact” The Guardian

http://www.neilmcsweeney.com/