SOARING MUSIC STARRING The Beautiful South MEMBERS Dave Hemingway AND PHIL BARTON
The man who once told us he loved us from the bottom of his pencil case, founder Beautiful South member Dave Hemingway returns with his new band SUNBIRDS.
Having retired from the live scene at the back end of 2016, Dave has been keeping busy together with erstwhile South colleague, guitarist/songwriter Phil Barton, new discovery singer/violinist Laura Wilcockson and drummer Marc Parnell.
‘Cool To Be Kind’ was released in November 2020, signalling the arrival of Sunbirds with new songs and a new sound.
Although born and bred in England, the band's sound predominantly features the instrumentation of traditional American roots music combined with the occasional outburst of guitar heavy melody more associated with Seattle in the late 80's/early 90's.
“Although a lot of the songs have an Americana feel” says Dave “they’re still about life in England. You’re going to feel a bit daft singing about pick-up trucks and low down honky-tonks when you live in Yorkshire. Now we’re Sunbirds we’re free to dig a little deeper into ourselves””
Their debut album, captures truthful, open-hearted, funny and sometimes painfully honest songs, turning the page to a new chapter for Dave Hemingway and The Beautiful South story.
“A must-have album by an amazing new band” - UK Music Reviews
“A highpoint of it’s rootier ilk” - We Are Cult
“Appealingly understated song writing” - Classic Pop Magazine
“An album with warmth to spare” - MOJO Magazine
WITH SUPPORT FROM NATHAN O’ REGAN
Nathan O’Regan has a mastery over his voice that his peers surely envy. Slipping gracefully between gritty impassioned pleas and sweet longing melodies, Nathan pairs his beautiful singing with delicate, refined songwriting. A natural raconteur, his songs are full of melancholy and hopefulness that have captivated audiences all around Ireland. Like any artist worth their salt, Nathan has faced his own challenges. His voice and writing were spotted by Universal, who signed him at sixteen, recognising even at a young age Nathan's ability to write songs that would stop a listener in their tracks.
He was paired with producer, Jimmy Hogarth and tasked to record an album. Halfway through the project, as is often the case, contact from the label grew cold and the work never saw the light of day. Universal’s mistake proved to be Ireland’s gain. Some artists capitulate after being dropped by a major label, but Nathan has gone from strength to strength, his talent impossible to ignore by anyone who has heard his songs or witnessed him lead his band like it was the last gig on Earth. A truly special talent.