Gloucester Guildhall

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

YOUNG KATO

7 Bit Arcade

“Young Kato, a striking maturity showcased in an intense yet intelligent sound counterbalanced by an imitable youthful reckless ambition evident within the energy that courses through their veins.”

Clash Music

“A six piece, their mixture of Friendly Fires style indie-dance and Morrissey-inspired laments are getting numerous figures in that-there music industry all hot under the collar”

Rocksound

“Young Kato have the potential to take over our lives”

“We are pop, and we’re not afraid to say that”, says front man Tommy Wright (19). “People describe us as having an Eighties’ influence, with our synth and guitar combination with big pop chords.”

Young Kato, a 6 piece band that met in Cheltenham, have just signed to influential Manchester-based label LAB Records their 4- track EP ‘Young Kato EP’ was released on 26^th August 2012. The EP has been produced by Gordon Mills Jnr (Placebo, Ed Sheeran).

The lead single from the EP ‘Drink Dance Play’ is an amazing, punchy track likened to the pop offspring of Friendly Fires and Morrissey, a track about living every day like it’s your last. The video for the single reached 20,000+ views in just a few short weeks.

Friday 18th January // Tickets £6// Doors 7.30pm // Over 14s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.ukTickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

FOALS

Foals formed in Oxford in 2005. The lead singer of another Oxford outfit Youthmovies, Andrew Mears, originally formed the band, playing as guitarist and lead vocalist. He was present on the debut 7” single “Try This on Your Piano/Look at My Furrows of Worry”, but left shortly afterwards to concentrate on Youthmovies’ debut album Good Nature.

Jack Bevan, Lina Simon and Yannis Philippakis were originally in cult math rock band The Edmund Fitzgerald, which did not gain much media interest. The group disbanded, claiming that things had become “too serious” and that they wanted to have more “fun making their music”.

Walter Gervers and Jimmy Smith were part of another small Oxford band called Face Meets Grill. They met at and formed the band from members of Abingdon Boys School. After playing Truck Festival in 2004 they separated to follow different paths and careers. Guitarist Jimmy Smith is the only one of the band members to have completed his degree, at Hull University: each of the band members quit their respective universities when the band signed to Transgressive Records.

Foals like to be self-sufficient, so the music videos & the photography is done by their friend Dave Ma and all of the artwork (excluding cover art of Total Life Forever) is also done by their friend Tinhead.

The band’s musical influences are varied, with members citing minimal techno, Arthur Russell, the Irish based math rock band The Redneck Manifesto, Krautrock bands such as Harmonia, and Talking Heads as their main sources of inspiration. Their musical style, however, can be more directly linked to various genres such as math rock, indie Rock or New rave.

In early 2007, the band released the limited edition 7” singles Hummer and Mathletics, both produced by Gareth Parton. “Hummer” later featured on the Channel Four teen drama ‘Skins’.

In the summer of 2007 Foals began working on their debut album in New York. It was produced by Dave Sitek of TV On The Radio. However, the band decided to mix the album themselves, stating that Sitek made the first master copy of the album sound like “it was recorded in the Grand Canyon”. Yannis has stated multiple times during various interviews that Foals and Dave Sitek are on good terms, even though the copy by Sitek was rejected by the band. Foals released their debut album, entitled Antidotes, on 24 March 2008 in the UK and 8 April 2008 in the US. The album was a commercial success in the United Kingdom, debuting at No. 3 in the UK Albums Charts. The album was a minor success in other countries, charting in Japan, France and the Netherlands.

In August 2009, Foals started recording their second album at Svenska Grammofon Studion in Gothenburg, Sweden. The album, ‘Total Life Forever’, has been described by the band members as sounding like “tropical prog” and “like the dream of an eagle dying”. The band have described the album as being “a lot less funk” than they had originally planned. The album was produced by Luke Smith, formerly of Clor. The album’s title is named after an element of Ray Kurzweil’s theory of singularity. The band’s frontman Yannis Philippakis has professed a long time interest in futurology, with it informing numerous songs on Total Life Forever.

On 1 March 2010, the promotional single “Spanish Sahara” was first played on Zane Lowe’s show Radio 1. Foals’ new website was updated that night with the release of a video for the track directed by longtime collaborator Dave Ma. On 6 March, the Total Life Forever site was officially launched. Puzzles revealed images, lyrics and sound clips of songs from the album. The last clip appeared on 12 March, and resulted with a password entry for the Foals’ new website. The site was opened on 13 March and presented the whole new art concept and media including samples of songs, photos and videos. Lead single “This Orient” was released on 3 May 2010. The album was finally released on 10 May 2010.

“Spanish Sahara” was featured in trailers for Entourage ‘s seventh season, season four of Skins, and BBC One ‘s Outcasts. It was also used in the soundtrack of the second season of the E4 drama Misfits. It was released as a full physical single in September 2010, featuring an edited remix starring the strings of London Contemporary Orchestra.

The album was nominated for the 2010 Mercury Prize. In an interview with online magazine Coup De Main, Jimmy Smith said how the band members live together on and off the road – heading to Australia to record demos for their next album together. “It’s just like touring with your family, it’s nice.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

JACK SAVORETTI

Since re-emerging on the live scene at the beginning of last year, acclaimed singer songwriter Jack Savoretti has been showcasing material from his new album Before The Storm this time joined on stage by his band The Dirty Romantics and captivating audiences wherever he goes.

Written with, amongst others, long time collaborator Steve Booker (co-writer of Duffy’s ‘Mercy’) and produced by the hugely sought after Martin Terefe and The Suppliers (Mary J Blige, James Morrison and Jason Mraz) this third studio album has already been getting support from BBC Radio 2, playlisting track Knock Knock, along with his duet with Sienna Miller Hate & Love used in The Vampire Diaries.

While his writing has always surpassed expectation, this new collection of songs sees an artist coming of age. Lyrically it remains a quintessential Jack Savoretti album, yet the recordings are far more diverse than ever before. With the romantic introspective poetry ever present, there is someone new, a darker, more experienced vocalist asking no longer for acceptance but looking for the good times and on his own terms.

It all began with his critically acclaimed debut ‘Between The Minds’ in 2006. Named BBC Radio 2’s Album Of The Week, three album tracks aired on ‘One Tree Hill’ and Jo Whiley called him ‘one to watch.’ Jack has been collecting critical praise ever since: Janice Long called him ‘astonishing in every way’ and The Daily Telegraph’s Neil McCormick described his voice as ‘raw, soulful and yearning…a voice that sounds like the truth’. 2012 sees Jack supporting Madison Violet in Germany, an early summer tour of the UK and festivals dates confirmed across the UK and Europe.

Friday 2nd November // Tickets £9// Doors 7.30pm // Over 14s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.ukTickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

FROM THE JAM

THE LEGENDARY BRUCE FOXTON, joined by Russell Hastings, lead vocal & guitar and Mark Brzezicki (Big Country) on drums.

Start, Town called Malice, Precious, That’s Entertainment, Funeral Pyre, The Butterfly Collector, In The City, Eton Rifles, Beat Surrender, Bitterest Pill, Going Underground.

Returning to Gloucester by popular demand and this time hear tracks from the new album recorded at Paul Weller’s studios.

Thursday 1st November // Tickets £17// Doors 7.30pm // Over 14s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.ukTickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

ALABAMA 3

“The best live band in the country.” The Guardian

“This is the first band I could ever dance to in the daytime hours without chemical assistance…and that says a lot.” Irvine Welsh (Author of ‘Trainspotting’ and ‘Filth’)

Welcome, friends…

We’re the Alabama 3.We make Sweet Mutherf***ing Country Acid House music. All night long. We’re not from Alabama, and there’s not three of us. We’re from Brixton, London. We’re the fellas that did that Soprano’s theme tune. That tune bought someone a swimming pool, but it sure wasn’t any of us…

Alabama 3 is a pop band. A punk rock, blues and country techno situationist crypto- Marxist-Leninist electro pop band. We never went on X Factor or Pop Idol or Stooge Quest. We did it the old fashioned way; Back in 1996 We threw a big old party, invited all our friends. Then we took a fistfull of blotters and half a dozen disco biscuits and then made it up as we went along. And Geffen records bought it… for half a million dollars! We never needed a self-appointed quango of jaded vampires to tell us how to sing the blues…we got Mojo*. We have the power to raise the dead.

We spent half of our advance from Geffen on various contraband items and with the rest we made an over-produced, brilliant situationist masterpiece called ‘Exile on Coldharbour Lane’.

Ever since then we’ve been preaching our our Gospel all over the world. We’ve got into a whole bunch of trouble and met a whole bunch of nice people. We make friends where ever we go. Irvine Welsh, Will self, Bobby Gillespie, Keith Allen: theyre all real close personal friends of ours… and we work with legends: Bruce Reynolds, the brains behind the great train robbery. Paddy Hill of the birmingham six. And of course, Rolf Harris…

They’ve tried to stop us. Many times. They said we were degenerates, corrupters of morals. they said we we were too political, too contrived, too ugly. We’ve been in and we’ve been out. In and out of the charts, in and out of fashion, in and out of Rehab. We’ve been skint and we’ve been minted… and you know what? It makes no difference to us. Because we’re never gonna stop. We gonna just keep on putting out records and putting on shows. As ministers in the First Presleyterian Church of Elvis the Divine, we know the party ain’t never over. Not till you’re sitting on the toilet in a big nappy with a rancid quarter pounder in your, cold, dead, fat, emerald-encrusted hand.

And so, we are proud to give to you, our blessed congregation.

We want to make you feel good. We know you’ve had trouble in your life, real bad trouble. We know you’ve got debts. We know you’ve had your heart broken so many times you’re still finding pieces of it in your pillow. Maybe you’ve done some good things in your life, maybe you’ve done some bad things. We forgive you. Forgive yourself. Then dress up real sexy and come and party with us. We’ll look after you. That’s a promise.

Wednesday 28^th November // Tickets £18 Adv. £20 door// Doors 7.30pm // Over 14s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.ukTickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

SIMON MCBRIDE

Predicted to be the next Irish blues guitar hero in the footsteps of Rory Gallagher and Gary Moore, former Young Guitarist of the Year McBride has undeniable guitar artistry combined with a fine voice and a real knack for creating memorable hooks and great melodies.

Simon comes to Gloucester with his band as part of a tour to promote his new CD Crossing The Line a fiery amalgam of guitar skills, songcraft and character-soaked vocals, spinning tales of girls, gambling and corporate avarice. Recorded in Northern Ireland and The USA, mixing of the album was placed in the experienced hands of New York-based Peter Denenberg, the veteran producer and engineer whose CV takes in everyone from Deep Purple to the Spin Doctors and Robert Cray). Industry critics reckon this is the album that truly delivers on McBride’s potential.

And what potential. Rewind to the early-’90s, and you didn’t have to squint to spot future greatness in the unassuming kid from Belfast, who picked up his first guitar at ten and eschewed formal lessons to bend his fingers around the music of Free, Jeff Beck and Hendrix. Aged 15, Simon won Guitarist’s hotly-contested Young Guitarist of the Year competition in a Wembley Conference Centre showdown, and at 16, he turned pro, leaving education behind to wow the world as a hired gun in projects than ranged from metal with Sweet Savage, to R&B and soul with ex-Commitments vocalist Andrew Strong.

Even by the lofty standards of Northern Ireland, where drinkers still raise a toast to the audacious talent of the late Rory Gallagher and Gary Moore, this young maestro’s name was soon starting to be dropped in the same reverential breath. Certainly, Simon is a fan, and the energy and aggression of his live show recalls those much-missed Irish masters, but when he released his debut album Rich Man Falling in 2008, it was clear this musician was nobody’s heir, but rather his own artist.

A UK tour opening for guitar wizard Joe Satriani gave Simon’s profile a boost, while he proved his appeal reached far beyond guitar nuts with a set at Glastonbury 2011, and Don Airey’s Soul & Blues Festival. He has also supported Jeff Beck and Joe Bonamassa.

It’s all been building up to the international release of Crossing The Line: the album that will recruit more followers to Simon’s fanbase, raise the bar for blues-rock, and kick out a chair at the top table of the genre. This is the sound of a world-class talent.

Thursday 15^th November // Tickets £10 Adv. £12 door// Doors 7.30pm // Over 14s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.ukTickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

MISSING ANDY

Missing Andy are a 5 piece band who hail from Braintree in Essex. They are no bedroom activists, their message is getting out and impacting. In an era when even bands like The Killers and Kaiser Chiefs struggle to hit the singles chart, Missing Andy have reached the Top 40 twice, with ‘Sing For The Deaf’ and ‘The Way We’re Made’. The anger is genuine but Missing Andy have a happy knack of appealing to the brains and dancing boots of their fans with their absurdly catchy tunes; whether it’s the Jam-tinged fiery rants of ‘Alive’ and ‘Scum’ or anthemic escapist epic ‘Kings Of The Weekend’.”

Saturday 27^th October // Tickets £10 // Doors 7.30pm // Over 14s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.ukTickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.

Gloucester Guildhall and Gloucester Museums Presents

GERALD DICKENS PERFORMS A CHRISTMAS CAROL

Actor Gerald Dickens, great great grandson of legendary author Charles Dickens, will this year reprise his internationally renowned performance of A Christmas Carol, bringing the authenticity and passion that only a relative can.

During his 80 minute performance, Dickens plays at least 26 characters, giving each one distinctive voices, mannerisms and facial expressions that have bought audiences around the world to their feet. The story follows Ebenezer Scrooge’s realisation of his many shortcomings and his search for redemption, when faced with the prospect of eternal misery.

Gerald first performed The Carol in 1993, when he was asked to give a reading to celebrate the book’s 150^th anniversary. He was immediately struck by the theatrical possibilities of the story, which has a huge range of atmospheres, emotions and locations. Since then, he has gone on to receive worldwide critical acclaim and establish himself at the forefront of the genre.

‘As an actor you get completely wrapped up in the story and live through the Cratchit’s tragedy, the joyousness of Mr and Mrs Fezziwig’s Christmas celebrations and the terror of Ebenezer Scrooge as he is faced with his own bleak future. I can honestly say that there are real tears at every show!’

The fact that the story is so popular also helps, with viewers from every generation sure to have seen at least one adaptation.

‘The audiences all know the story in one form or other, be it from the novel itself or from one of the many film versions and that means that they become involved. Often the audience are as big a part of the performance as I am!’

2012 marks the bicentenary of the birth of Charles Dickens and Gerald is fortunate to be performing in many venues visited by his ancestor throughout the year, ensuring that his stories remain as popular as ever. The unique circumstances surrounding the event, combined with Gerald’s talent, make this the closest available alternative to Charles Dickens’ original work and an exciting addition to the festive season.

‘It is such an exciting year, with the official celebrations at Westminster Abbey and Buckingham Palace being a highlight, but the most amazing thing is to see how much passion there still is for the works of Charles Dickens.’

More information about Gerald can be found at his website: www.geralddickens.com

Sunday 23^rd December // Tickets £12.50 Adults £9 Concs. // Doors 7.30pm

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.uk.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

EMF

EMF will be playing the gig of a lifetime this December.

Come and join the band as they embrace their roots at the legendary Gloucester Guildhall for one very special night. The Guildhall is a huge part of EMF history as it was the backdrop for the band’s breakthrough video, ‘Unbelievable’ as well as several spectacular performances.

EMF took the world by storm in 1991 with their debut album, ‘Schubert Dip’, which featured mega-hits ‘Unbelievable’, ‘I Believe’ and ‘Children’. The follow up in 1992 was the critically-acclaimed album, ‘Stigma’, which featured radio favorites ‘They’re Here’ and ‘It’s You’.

This evening at the Guildhall will feature not only ‘Schubert Dip’ being played in its entirety, but also fan-favorite ‘Stigma’ being played start-to-finish for the first time ever. Many of the songs on ‘Stigma’ have never been played live, while only a few others remain in the band’s current live show.

After the music stops, there will be a meet-and-greet session and DJ set spun by EMF’s own James Atkin and DJ Milf.

Tickets cost only £30 but are guaranteed to go very fast as dedicated fans from around the world converge on Gloucester for this early Christmas present. You don’t want to miss out on what is certain to be an unforgettable experience.

Tickets go on sale Monday 17^th September at 10am.

Saturday 15^th December // Tickets £30 // Doors 7pm // Over 14s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.ukTickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.

Gloucester Guildhall Presents

THE BIG LAUGH CAFE

Gloucester’s comedy club the Big Laugh Café returns to the Guildhall for its autumn season on Saturday 6^th October, with guests Ivan Brackenbury, Ryan McDonnell and Andy Robinson.

Headline act Ivan Brackenbury is character comedy at its very best. Brackenbury is an inept and insensitive hospital radio DJ and is the creation of Tom Binns, a former breakfast radio host on XFM as well as a comedian in his own right.

The character first struck comedy gold at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2007, where he was nominated for the if.comedy prize for Best Show, and his roadshow, complete with inappropriate records and bungled jingle cues, is now a regular fixture on the live circuit.

The jokes come thick and fast, the wacky DJ persona is honed to perfection and even his ineptitude is delivered with such technical skill that audiences can’t fail to be amazed and in hysterics at the same time!

Ivan was recently voted in the Top Ten Best Characters Ever in the Foster’s Comedy Awards, and also appeared in comedy website Chortle’s list of the Top 50 Stand Up Shows of the Decade.

Belfast boy Ryan McDonnell has been a hit in Ireland for the past couple of years and is currently building up a great reputation for himself on the UK comedy circuit. Ryan interjects a sharp wit and Irish charm in his observation of everyday life. 2010 saw Ryan make his debut at the Edinburgh Festival in the prestigious Pleasance Courtyard from which critics at Three Weeks acclaimed his stand-up as ‘Live at the Apollo quality live comedy’.

Birmingham’s Andy Robinson is one of the live comedy circuit’s best acts. Always popular with audiences, his wry views on modern life and ability to connect instantly with even the toughest crowds makes for a guaranteed evening of laughs. Which always helps at a comedy club.

The Big Laugh Cafe presents the best in international stand-up comedy every month, plus table seating, food and drink and a great disco to round off the night in style.

Saturday 6^th November // Tickets £12 // Doors 8.30pm // Over 18s

For tickets visit Gloucester Guildhall’s Box Office, call 01452 503050 or book online at www.gloucesterguildhall.co.uk. Tickets are also available from the Tourist Information Centre on Southgate Street.