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Jonathan Markwell

jmarkwell

A resident of Lincoln for 25 years, Jonathan is a keen writer and contributes regularly to all of Lincoln's major music websites.


He may have sold thousands of copies of his debut album worldwide, but it all started in Lincoln with a memorable launch gig, involving months of planning. With his second album due next month, Ian Brough and his band The Breakfast Club are gearing up for another unforgettable night when he unveils his new material.

Having previously decked out the L4 Bar on Guildhall Street as a sensory room for the launch of last year’s debut album, Ian has even grander ideas for Thursday, May 10, at Walkabout: “We’re going to recreate the artwork for the album onstage, which means getting trees, turf and dismantled cars into the venue.”

The night is to promote Brough’s new album, Car Crashes And Part Time Lesbians, the follow up to debut Surrounded By Autism And Comforting Lights. Ian was humbled by the reception the first effort received: “The last album launch was overwhelming, I’d only been playing for a few months so to have 400 people turn up was incredible.”

Ian Brough (pictured centre), who is taking time out from being a teacher to focus on music, believes that going the extra mile when releasing new material is essential to ensure people take notice in a busy music scene. He said: “There’s so many bands here it’s easy to get swept under the carpet and forgotten, so you have to make it special and turn it into a big event so that people remember it.”

The album was recorded with local producer and Breakfast Club drummer Sam Harrison, also a local musician. Harrison said: “It’s definitely better than the last album, and manically different too. There’s much more experimentation and a wider range of influences on this album.”

Not content with bringing the outdoors inside for his performance, Brough has also assembled a plethora of acts from the city in support including recent Battle of the Bands victors Bear Makes Ninja, soporific folk from Helen Francis, one-man band Loop Cycles and acoustic maestros Good Effort. The event starts at 8:00pm.

They may have recently had to change their name, but it’s business as usual when it comes to Lincoln four-piece The Freefall’s powerful songs and strong work ethic.

Determined to play anywhere to get their (new) name known, this Saturday’s Live and Unsigned event is the perfect chance for the band to do just that.

Despite building up a fan-base from the very start, the boys (Scott Ballard, Ant Macandrew, Ben Selfridge and Will Hoey) recently underwent a name change that threatened to derail their momentum.

Guitarist Scott Ballard explains: “We started as Before The Fall, but recently found a larger band in the USA with the same name, so felt it was a good time to change.

“The worst thing was losing all the ‘likes’ we’d got on our old Facebook page!” he added.

The band found that in a very diverse musical climate, their straight-up pop-hooks have caught the attention of the right people, even earning them a support slot with The Wombats in London just weeks ago.

Ballard is looking forward to the band playing this region’s heat of the Live and Unsigned contest in Derby, and feels their no-nonsense approach that could give them the edge at the upcoming competition.

He said: “We feel we do simple things well. We write great pop songs with thick harmonies and deliver it with as much attitude as we can muster, so we’re hoping this will help us stand out enough.”

Being only two heats away from a potential gig at London’s O2 Arena, The Freefall are getting focussed to do their best: “We know the standard is going to be high so we will have to be on top form if we’re going to progress. We’d all love to play at the O2!”

They’re sure to have a few more after Saturday. Visit The Freefall’s website to find out more about the band and the competition.

You can watch The Freefall’s newest single, Through the Crowds, below:

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