Tag Archives: get frank

Second chances, Leefest and Pengilly’s on film

Posted on August 11, 2011 | Leave a comment

I’m currently sat in my room listening to loads of bands from tomorrow’s Leefest lineup getting far more excited than is good for my little, beating heart

I’m hoping to cover the festival for my next podcast, having invited lineup curator Rich Legate to join me on my last episode, which you can listen to and download right now by clicking on the handy soundcloud module below…

It’s been a difficult week for everyone, I’m well aware. Seeing people’s tweets, messages and general social networking statuses have been heartbreaking – but I’ve also found equal emotion in the incredible images of crowds holding their brooms aloft and grouping together to clean up and erase the damage. For some this will be impossible and all we can do is try to support them. I’m lucky to have amazing friends who have all been Tweeting and texting to see if I’m fine – thank you! I hope you are all safe too, and will remain so.

As we reach the weekend, London is starting to breathe again. My sigh of relief will come this weekend at Leefest, as I try to brave working the press area of a festival again (it’s been a while!) Again, I’m lucky to have been given my own ‘second chance’ by Dave, Rich and all the Leefest crew, who’ve been immensely supportive and accommodating of me and my very new, admittedly green podcast.

I received a brilliant email from Ric of Leeds/London band Pengilly’s today, to say that the long-awaited video for the band’s single Toby’s Hill is ready for your visual and aural consumption. And my word, was it worth the wait.

PENGILLY’S “TOBY’S HILL” MUSIC VIDEO from BROWN BREAD FILMS on Vimeo.

Live, the band are a sight and sound to behold so make it a staple of your future new music agenda to check them out live sometime soon. In fact, why not this Saturday at Leefest? You can still get tickets for the two day festival (which starts tomorrow). You can either get a weekend ticket, which includes two nights of camping, or a day ticket. It’s a non-profit festival and money will be partly reinvested in next year’s event and also donated to local charity, KidsCo. So many ‘small’ festivals have fallen by the wayside this year – through the dogged determination of its young team of organisers, Leefest has resisted throwing in the towel and is on the eve of greatness. I can’t bloody wait.

Hopefully I’ll see you at Leefest tomorrow, if not, I’ll be bringing an update soon!

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Get Frank’s Leefest Special

Posted on August 1, 2011 | Leave a comment

For my fourth Get Frank podcast, I decided to do a special on non-profit festival Leefest.

The two day event, which takes place on the 12th and 13th August on a farm in Bromley, South London, raises money for charity KidsCo and is a brilliant way of making new music accessible to the masses – whilst attracting big name talent that usually would give Kent amiss. Plus, at just £55 for the full event (including camping), I think you’ll agree that it’s a bit of a bargain!

Get Frank's Leefest Special

Leefest - see you down the front?

For this podcast, rather than feature one interviewee, I took on a co host in the form of the lovely Rich Legate. He’s a former LSR FM station manager and is in charge of booking artists for the festival – no mean feat considering that much of the festival has been organised on next to no money (money that included savings of some of the young organisers).

A unique element of this festival is that it mixes new and emerging artists with big name headliners and attempts to treat all as one. At the festival you’ll be able to see up and coming acts gracing the main stage as well as the smaller tents usually reserved for the newbies. It’s brilliant experience for the musicians and great for us smug, ‘musically-interested’ types who want to see the ‘Next Big Thing’ play in a potentially muddy field in Kent five years before they play in an almost certainly muddy field in Somerset…

Rich was kind enough to put in the legwork for this podcast on my behalf and bring me five of the acts he’s most looking forward to seeing across the weekend (fingers crossed he gets time!) They are; Fraser, Pengilly’s, Loose Talk Costs Lives, Stanley Blacks and Professor Penguin, who Rich performs with as a guitarist.

If you’d like to check out the podcast and possibly even subscribe to future episodes, head here.

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The Get Frank Podcast #3

Posted on June 27, 2011 | Leave a comment

It’s podcast time, and this month it’s ‘The One With… The Union Choir‘

I was really excited to interview Jon from The Union Choir as I’ve had the privilege of rehearsing and performing with the band. It’s one of those insights that not many interviewers are lucky to have, so I hope I made the most of the opportunity in the interview!

Frankie Ward and Jon Melvin

Hanging out with Jon from The Union Choir

The podcast is quite mellow this time, and I look back after recording it and wonder where all the female artists went – something I shall rectify in the next episode I’m sure. There are, however, some fantastic bands in this episode, and they stretch from the North East through to Southampton so hopefully I’m spreading out my regions a bit!

So who have I got on the podcast this time? Well I kick things off with one of those artists you’ll never forget seeing live; solo medical student Fran O’Hanlon, aka Ajimal. He’s the songwriter that, together with Martin Longstaff (The Lake Poets), is never omitted from debates on Newcastle’s best bands. Continuing the Newcastle trend, I couldn’t resist popping a top track by the North East’s most entertaining and witty act, Brilliant Mind.

In honour of one of the gigs I attended in June, I bring you a track from Pengilly’s, having had the pleasure of seeing the band in question play a strong set at The Lexington. In support of my interview with Jon, I also play two of the acts that played on the same bill as The Union Choir at Camden’s Dublin Castle; Southampton’s Doyle and the Fourfathers and guitar-tapping maestro Daryl Kellie.

If you’d like to be on the next podcast, please drop me a line by emailing frankiepromotes@gmail.com or tweeting @getfrank.

Head over to Podomatic to have a listen to the podcast now – and be sure to leave me a comment here (if you have one)

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The Get Frank Podcast #2

Posted on June 12, 2011 | Leave a comment

I recently published the second of my Get Frank podcast series.

As I’ve moved to London, it’s taken a bit longer to get this episode out! I’m still learning, but I’m just starting on episode 3 now, which will feature an interview with Jon Melvin of The Union Choir (and I’m happy to report has far superior audio quality to the previous two interviews for the podcast as we managed to find a noise-free room!)

The current episode of the podcast features Matt and Matt of the wonderful Vets in Hong Kong. The London based trio defy expectations with their (mostly) acoustic lineup of instruments, creating brooding, occasionally violent sounding arrangements. Their recent self-titled EP features a mixture of DIY and studio produced recordings and is packed full of memorable melodies that are quite impossible to shake off. Live, the band’s sound comes alive with Matt Reay’s impressive percussion, which is a theatrically rhythmic sight to behold.

Podcast guests Vets in Hong Kong

Also featured on the podcast is the hotly tipped acoustic artist Daughter. Since moving to London I’ve started writing reviews for For Folk’s Sake and once of my first pieces was a review of Daughter’s new EP His Young Heart. I’m going to have to see her live soon as I’ve been a fan of hers for a long time.

There’s also ska-brilliance on the podcast, provided by Birmingham’s Glasto favourites 360, guitar packed epic-ness from North East group Holy Mammoth, a hauntingly beautiful new track from super-sized supergroup (and future guests) The Union Choir and a soothing acoustic tune to wrap things up nicely from Zygmunt Day.

Don’t forget, you can send in your own tracks for the podcast to frankiepromotes@gmail.com. Listen to the podcast here.

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New Blinginnings

Posted on May 28, 2011 | 1 Comment

I’ve recently moved into East London and am quite stunned to find how close in proximity I am to some of the favourite stores of my teens.

The other day, by way of – ahem – crucial experiment, I timed my walk to vintage warehouse, Beyond Retro. It was approximately several minutes. Now, I should be overjoyed at this geographical revelation but, I have to admit. I’m scared for my finances!

Another happy discovery made earlier today was that Tatty Devine, who I thought were based purely in Covent Garden, also have a store at the top of Brick Lane (5 minutes away on foot) and had just launched a sample sale. Needless to say I practically ran there after I got back to London post driving lesson in Kent.

Dress by Zara, shoes by Schuh (donated by mum) and necklace, £30 (sale ptice) by Tatty Devine

In the shop I picked up a present for someone (and it’s so cool, but unfortunately I can’t discuss as I’ll spoil the surprise) and couldn’t resist buying the necklace pictured above. I got it for £20 (hypnotised  on the spot by the shiny-ness and sheer scale of the thing) but when I looked it up online it seems that they’re selling it for £30 (reduced from £90).

I’ve been far busier than I expected to be since moving hence the reason for my lack of recent posts but I’ve recently completed the second of my Get Frank podcasts.

I’m going to write about the bands and the show in more detail very soon, but I have to say a huge thanks to Vets in Hong Kong for meeting up with me and chatting for the show – but again, more on the guys and the other contributing artists very soon!

I’m going to go and unpack another suitcase…

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The all new Get Frank podcast!

Posted on April 18, 2011 | Leave a comment

I have just finished uploading my very first Get Frank podcast!

I may no longer be working for Amazing Radio, but I want to continue to support new and emerging artists, and I thought that producing and presenting my own podcast would be a good way of doing it.

I’m intending to produce a 30-40 minute episode every 2-4 weeks (depending on the response to the pilot episode). The idea of the podcast is that it will feature a mixture of acts that I have seen live (or am planning to) and will centre around a featured artist who will guest on the show by way of an interview.

The first episode features Wylam five-piece Vinyl Jacket who are currently promoting debut single Painting Stations. The single, which has been released by new Newcastle-based label The Calico Print, has found a home on many a radio station, including BBC Radio 1, BBC 6 Music and Amazing Radio, and should see the boys recruiting a strong fan base. The guys make fantastic interviewees, and I really couldn’t think of a band I’d rather have helping me out on my first episode.

Alongside Vinyl Jacket there’s also mentions for Pandas and People, Let’s Buy Happiness, Grandfather Birds and Pilots, plus plays for Craig Wosahlo, Baskin’s Wish, The Carpels, Toodar and Mammal Club (as remixed by Mr Blazey).

The real challenge I’m currently struggling with is the editing process. This isn’t because I’m inexperienced in using sound editing software, but because I don’t have a professional program intended for the task on my computer. (I miss Adobe Audition greatly!) Currently I’m editing interviews and preparing song extras (with fades/transitions) in Audacity, loading into iTunes and multi-tracking it all together in Garage Band. For the links themselves I’m recording with a Zoom H2 microphone straight into Garage Band. When I was editing the pilot I kept having to rerecord ins and outs because, unbeknownst to me, the clips kept cropping. Once I’m safely back in employment I’ll save up and invest in a copy of Logic Express, and then I can think more about audio imaging and the concept of the podcast itself.

If you have any comments, questions or would like to be featured on the next Get Frank podcast then drop me a line at frankiepromotes@gmail.com. Find out more about the podcast and how to subscribe here.

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The Truth behind the Fiction?

Posted on February 3, 2011 | Leave a comment

I’m working on some more stripped back tunes away from the big, bold pop themes of Get Frank right now.

When I lived in Birmingham I spent a lot of time gigging with just me and my guitar. It was terrifying, I lacked confidence in my ability to play and I was desperate for a band.

Awake, Not Drifting by Get Frank

Since working with Get Frank in Newcastle I’ve decided that sometimes I’d like to be a bit more selfish and play music totally as I envisioned it – or at least certain aspects of it. Sometimes listening to a band can be overwhelming, and you forget that the music you’re listening to is rooted in themes and feelings. Get Frank songs used to be all about the emotions that I felt when writing them – and to some extent still are – but some of them are from a different, past writer and I feel the need to breakaway and do something different.

It can be quite scary to take lyrics to a band and practice them. Playing solo I get to skip this step, and move onto the even scarier stage of playing them straight to an audience. At first I didn’t think I was ready, but if I get some practice in with my guitar, who knows?

Escapology by Truth Fiction

The song above is my first rough demo from my ‘solo venture’ as Truth Fiction. There’s a loose (and musically common) concept to the name of the ‘project’ (if you like that term), as some songs will be true to my life and some inspired by fiction. Others will be a mixture. I learnt a lot about song writing from my very valuable time providing supplementary vocals and instrumentation for The Union Choir, from the image-packed lyricism of the songs, to the emotive construction of the music itself. They are one of the best bands I’ve ever known so I’m lucky to have been a part of it, if only for a little while.

For now I’ll continue to record with just me and a guitar performing live in my room. It’s tempting to build up recordings by doing everything closed microphone style, layering with various bits of precussion, but whilst I’m still playing these songs on my own I’ll keep things raw.

Please listen/download Escapology, and let me know if you’d like to hear more.

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The first photos…

Posted on November 21, 2010 | Leave a comment

We have photos!

They were taken by the lovely Faye Green (guitarist Todd’s sister.) She’s currently studying art at the University of Newcastle. I don’t know if she has a blog but if you’d like to get in touch with her, leave a comment and we’ll pass it her way!

Yours truly: Frankie Ward

David Mabbott (bass)

Mark Edwards (drums)

Neil Andrew Smith (keys)

Todd Green (guitar)

Get Frank

If you’re interested in seeing us live please check out our Facebook page. You can get in touch about gigs by emailing me at frankiepromotes@gmail.com.

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Awake, Not Drifting

Posted on November 14, 2010 | Leave a comment

Here’s our first EP, Awake, Not Drifting!

Awake, Not Drifting by GetFrank

I’m still wondering how we should release it so it’s currently set to stream online. If you have 79p spare and would like to help reimburse recording costs then you can grab Vacant from our amazingtunes.com profile page.

My friend and very talented illustrator/graphic designer/musician/legend Brendan Kearney has kindly offered to help us out with the artwork for the EP. You can see his artwork for his band Broken Boat over on their myspace. It’s all rather lovely! Hopefully I’ll pop some stuff on here soon – the stuff he’s done so far looks amazing. The illustration below is quite similar to what he’s working on.

http://www.brendankearney.blogspot.com

If you think you’d like a CD copy then please let me know – I think it would be quite nice to create some hard copies. Maybe we’ll do one of those ‘official EP launch’ things… Our first gig is Thursday 25th November so please do come check us out in the flesh. I’m hoping we’ll get offered some support slots – if you’d like to book us then just email me; frankiepromotes@gmail.com.

Hope you like it!

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The perfect LBLD?

Posted on November 13, 2010 | Leave a comment

I’ve always dreamed of finding that ‘perfect Little Black Dress’

I thought I found it for a mere £9.99 in H&M today but when I got to the dressing room it just didn’t fit right.

I had places to be so had to leave the strapless, shiny black pleated bargain behind with the shop assistants. Feeling down I moved to leave the shop but stopped in my tracks near the exit… By Jupiter! I had found it!

It was wrinkly, not in my size and made of fake leather! I had to buy a size up but it means it will be perfect for casual winter layering (for the Amazing Radio office) whilst not being a too tight and ‘fetish’ looking. Once off the hanger and on my body the wrinkles disappeared and gave an almost smooth look.

Faux leather dress, £14.99, white shirt both by H&M

Faux leather dress, £14.99, white shirt both by H&M

It’s the perfect day-to-night dress too. Here I toughen it up a little with my Peacocks grey hiking boots.

Boots £20 by Peacocks

I quite like it with my red heels too; there’s plenty a pair of shoes that would work with this dress which is why I adore it so.

I have a gig with The Union Choir in support of The Winter Hill Transmission’s single launch next Friday (19th November) and I’m not sure if I should wear this or the Primark dress below…

Dress £15, by Primark

The flash of my camera has made the underskirt of this dress look a lot shinier than it actually is. It reminds me of a Peacocks dress I saw in a magazine (but it’s a lot nicer in the lace detailing department and £8 cheaper.) I have to wear it with a belt because the empire line design into the full skirt is so unflattering I was tempted to take it back. The swift addition of the belt made me have a sudden change of heart.

I think that the leather look dress might be better for The Union Choir gig, and the crochet dress for my first Get Frank gig on the 25th November – but again, I’m not sure.

Help me out? Which one for which occasion?!

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