Amsterdamned Posted July 18, 2011 Share Posted July 18, 2011 On Monday September 12th, the man described as “one of the foremost authors of the 21st Century American songbook” makes a highly anticipated return to Sheffield. WagonWheel Presents… is delighted to welcome Chris Mills to The Greystones, with a fabulous supporting cast of Quiet Loner and Case Hardin. Chris is touring in support of ”Heavy Years : 2000-2010“, a retrospective record taking in his four previous studio albums which also features two brand new tracks. Advance tickets priced at £7 are available from Wegottickets.com ( http://www.wegottickets.com/event/121134 ) and over the bar at The Greystones. Entry on the night will be £9. Doors open 7.45pm for an 8pm start. ***CHRIS MILLS*** At this point, much ink has been spilled decrying critically acclaimed songwriter Chris Mills’ seemingly perpetual commercial obscurity as has been used to laud his complex and ever evolving body of work, so we won’t bother doing that here. Let’s just cut to the chase, shall we? With the release of the decade encompassing retrospective Heavy Years: 2000-2010 (Ernest Jenning Record Company) long time fans have a new opportunity to trace Mills’ evolution from Chicago alt-country refugee to an astute purveyor of orchestral pop and true American song-craft, while the uninitiated may quite possibly be on the verge of discovering their favorite new songwriting voice. Heavy Years: 2000-2010 collects tracks from Mills’ last four studio albums (Kiss It Goodbye, The Silver Line, The Wall to Wall Sessions, and Living in the Aftermath), as well as two completely new collaborations with producer Alap Momin (DJ Oktopus of Dalek). By combining recent material with tracks from out of print gems, this collection gives testament to Mills’ consistent ability to wrap savvy commentary and emotional realism into mini-studio masterpieces. At turns slyly romantic and heartbreakingly cleareyed, Mills’ songs are packed with enough winks and asides to let the listener know that even though things seem tragic, at least they’re not alone. Emerging from the Chicago roots rock renaissance of the late 90’s, and quickly signed to dearly departed indie Sugar Free Records, Mills rose to local prominence through collaborations with Mekons Jon Langford and Sally Timms, and on bills with acts like Steve Earle, Wilco, Neko Case, My Morning Jacket et. al. But while many would find comfort solely mining the rich soil of Americana music en vogue at the time, Mills was never completely at home within the genres somewhat narrow confines – perhaps first evidenced on tracks like “Signal/Noise”, the closing number on 2000’s Kiss It Goodbye, a post-modern homage to Phil Spector’s wall of sound masterminded by producer Brian Deck (Modest Mouse, Josh Ritter, Califone, Iron and Wine). Over the course of the next decade Mills would travel constantly throughout the United States and Europe, developing a loyal following and touring with artists including Ben Folds, Andrew Bird, Califone, Bishop Allen, The Handsome Family, and Lucero. Heavy Years: 2000-2010 draws from the four albums he created during this period, and documents how Mills’ evolving production and musical ideas kept pace with his constantly developing song writing acumen. Finally settling in Brooklyn, NY, Mills is currently working on songs for his next project, tentatively titled, The Soldier Is The Castle. “His hidden elegance lies in the twist of lovesick metaphor, the wistful chord, the revisionist take on the slamming door” NME “ ‘Nightmare at 20,000 Feet’ is a gem of pop grandeur that showcases Mills’ emotional vocal delivery.” Chicago Sun Times “Over the last few years Mills has quietly assembled an immensely impressive catalogue. His songs are literate, funny and endearingly hangdog” The Independent “a thoroughly confident declaration of independence from an artist finally, fully realizing his remarkable talents as a singer, songwriter and performer.” No Depression http://www.chris-mills.com ***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 new 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/ ***CASE HARDIN*** Formed back in 1999, Case Hardin take their name from the female lead in Boston Teran’s noir thriller ‘God Is A Bullet’. Since then they have self released three EP’s, including the critically acclaimed “Hard Feelings” in 2005, and their first full length record “Some Tunes For Charlie Spencer”. Case Hardin are the outlet for song- writer Pete Gow, and despite something of a revolving door of contributors over recent years, has once again settled to a firm and focused line up; musicians drilled in live performance, clearly comfortable in each others skins on stage and on record. The band are set to release their follow up to “Some Tunes…” later this year on Clubhouse Records. Written and recorded in the summer of 2010, ‘Every Dirty Mirror’, like its predecessor, is conceived and sequenced as two old school sides of vinyl, the first full band and full tilt, the second hinting, in parts, at a more contemplative side. This gig will feature a solo set from Pete Gow. “The songs tell the traumas of the drunken outsider, lost, looking for the right girl, or any girl. Touchingly powerful performances, calling to mind Son Volt playing The Gin Blossoms” Americana-UK “Gin soaked Americana” The Windmill “Undeniably a superior Americana album” Bucketfull of Brains “Pumps with the headaches of broken hearts and empty bottles” Maverick Magazine http://www.casehardin.com Facebook Event page: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=232298043469666 Last.fm Event page: http://www.last.fm/event/2000076 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amsterdamned Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 Chris Mills starts his UK tour in a few days and this Sheffield show is a week on Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amsterdamned Posted September 7, 2011 Author Share Posted September 7, 2011 Slight change of plan with the support, Liam Dullaghan will now be playing in place of Case Hardin: ***LIAM DULLAGHAN*** After almost three years in the making, former member of The HaveNots, Liam Dullaghan has delivered his debut solo album ‘Making History’. One reviewer of an early solo show commented “his voice is cracked and aching, barely getting the words out at times, his guitar playing as though every string plucked causes him physical pain, but his muse is alive and flourishing, and will hopefully emerge from the darkness more often“. With influences ranging from Chris Mills himself, Nick Drake, Jeff Buckley, through to Kate Bush, Weezer, Townes Van Zandt and The Lemonheads a veritable treat is in store. “an amalgam of the joys of The Replacements, Teenage Fanclub, Pernice Brothers and Big Star. Think sweet Americana fused with power pop and you’re halfway there. Think one of the best records of its type to pass this way in an age” The Irish Times “a splendid record full of achingly pretty moments” The Guardian http://liamdullaghan.tumblr.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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