York
based seven-piece playing powerful atmospheric rock with a Celtic
edge - hailed as "the leading exponents of the new wave of
British Classic Rock" and often compared to Pink Floyd, Deep
Purple, Genesis and 70's Fleetwood Mac. Although the band make
no secret of their influences, these are far outweighed by their
originality. A front line of flute, low and penny whistles and
vocal harmonies backed by full sounding keyboards, two guitarists,
bass and drums. Their highly acclaimed studio albums "For
all we Shared", "Spirit of Autumn Past", "The
Last Bright Light" and "Passengers"are gaining
worldwide airplay and brilliant reviews. Side projects "Music
Inspired By The Lord Of The Rings" and their official live
series are set for equal success. The band have received awards
from the International Classic Rock Society for "Best Band",
"Best Live Performance", "Best Guitarist",
"Best Female Vocalist" and "Best Track". Their
hectic touring schedule includes regular visits to Europe and
recent tours and showcase appearances with Ritchie Blackmore.
Bryan Josh who leads the band has special affection for the Lion Inn - he was introduced to the pub by his late father as a young fell-walker and it was his teenage dream to one day play at the remote venue "it's always a major event - never just a gig". He chose a souvenir photo of the pub's piano room as the album cover for "The Spirit of Autumn Past" and the third album "The Last Bright Light" was officially launched at Blakey Ridge in November 2000.
Bryan Josh and Heather Findlay visited Blakey the week before this launch gig to tell us about the album and what the band have been up to recently. Bryan: "It's been a very busy and successful year for us - concerts all over Europe and England. We made a lot of new friends and contacts here and abroad whilst touring with Ritchie Blackmore. Next year we've been invited to play Budapest, Rome, France, Holland, Belgium, Norway, Germany and Switzerland. It's been a very exciting time and the album launch is a great way to round off this year. We are really happy to mark it's completion at our favourite venue!"
Featuring 13 tracks and running to 71 minutes "The Last Bright Light" was engineered and co-produced by the excellent Jon Spence. The band are joined on this recording by internationally famed session musicians Troy Donnockley and Albert Danneman (from Ritchie Blackmore's band). Heather described the album as "a natural progression from our previous two albums - colourful, expressive, very emotional - with something of a darker element to it."
Since releasing "The Last Bright Light" things have really taken off for Mostly Autumn. 2001 saw them headline Blakey's first outdoor Midsummer Festival and deservedly gain a major record deal. They released a live album/DVD/video from their sensational concert at London's Mean Fiddler, wrote and recorded an album (in 14 days!) titled "Music Influenced by The Lord of The Rings" and continued with their hectic European touring schedule. The future should be even busier including concerts in the USA . Although the band have pretty much outgown the intimate Blakey venue, they hope to keep returning to play their "spritual home" (including our annual outdoor festival).
The achievements of Mostly Autumn are now happening so fast that I find it difficult to keep this page up to date, please visit their official site mentioned below to find out what's happening in the world of Mostly Autumn...
This pre-release pressing of "The Last Bright Light" was only available at the album launch at Blakey on 24th November 2000 it features the bonus track "Noise From My Head" and is extremely rare.
20 Jan 2000 photos review 6 Apr 2000 photos 24 Nov 2000 (album launch) photos review 21 June 2001 (Midsummer Festival) photos review 9 November 2001 photos 20 June 2002 (Midsummer Festival) photos review click here to download the 2002 Blakey Festival Screen-Saver - designed by Thijs van de Wouw 18 December 2002 (Christmas Concert) photos review 24 July 2003 - Blakey Ridge Festival photos review 18 December 2003 (Christmas Concert) photos 22 July 2004 - Blakey Ridge Festival photos 9 December 2004 (Christmas Concert) photos
www.mostly-autumn.com
Fairview Studios July 2002 photos Live at Hartlepool Theatre 2003 photos
