EP Preview – Track #3 Break In

Ever felt like going in circles? This song was an outlet of frustration for me when I wrote it. After repeatedly going through the same struggles, I kinda felt like I was wadding through mud. I’m a bit of an introvert so I can overthink things pretty easily and make them way bigger than what they actually are. Making negative thoughts big in my life eventually turned into depression. Depression over nothing really specific either. Just a dull, numb inexplicable feeling.

I’ve been reading one of Stephen Fry’s books and of learning his battle with depression, which was/is certainly considerably worse than anything I’ve had to deal with. Listen to My Fry talk about his depression:

Listening to him talk about it though is quite confusing to me as I’m so used to him making me laugh with his brilliant witty genius! It outlines pretty heavily to me that anyone can be going through stuff you have no idea about, and gives me a little more patience for some people.

One of the things Fry links to depression is the sense of nothingness and no future. It’s like being locked in a padded room filled with mirrors so you can’t see past yourself. You can’t see your future, or your purpose for living. If you don’t have a sense of purpose, why bother?

I started writing this song in the midst of something like this, but also where I found someone, or should I say found me, who simply came alongside me.

October 24, 2014 1 Comment

Into the wild..

May 18th – Launch night. The previous weeks had been a blur.. the most hectic since my wedding. Friends and family started pouring into the Merchant Inn, Rugby, as the legendary crew and I finished the setup. It all looked perfect. But there was still much on my mind.

It wasn’t until after our first set, when the big screen came down and the Dry Bones video began playing in all it’s glory, where the weight of it all fell off . And like a father on the sidelines watching his son step out onto the football pitch for the first time, we watched.. proudly. Although not pride in our own ability, but more in the fact that so many people were involved. From our EP designs and Merch stands, to the audio & video production and photography.

We were able to share why we write and play music, and we hope to bring you along this journey of sharing songs and stories of hope and love to anyone who needs to hear it, or just likes our sound.

(Photo’s by Redwood Photography)

What’s happened since?

Monday, May 19th marked the launch of Dry Bones to the world and it has had some brilliant response. We’ve had various blogs and shares from abroad, featured on the Noise Trade website and sat in the top downloads for 4 days. It has also seen radio play from various local, national and some international radio stations and other 1700 plays on YouTube (What here).

What’s next?

Thank you so much for sharing the video and free download. Your sharing truly helps us get our music out there so do keep it up.

Next up, we’re really excited to be releasing our EP in July followed by a brand new single and video later in the summer! And if that wasn’t enough, we have more writing and 19 shows (so far) this summer to keep us busy.

With special thanks to..

Chris Porter and Mikey at LifeIsArtFilms for doing such an awesome job producing the Dry Bones video, Chris Bearne for having the perfect face for Dry Bones, acting, sailing and generally being the perfect sport acting for us through rain and shine. Martin Morris for driving us across the country with various boats and gear from dawn till way past dusk. Jeff Cotterill for being one of the most resourceful and generous men we know.

Adam Collins for providing the lighting and running the audio for the launch. Sean McCabe for being a legend and helping out off the cuff. Adam also filmed some of our shenanigans while recording the EP. Basically trys to make us look / sound good. Pete Dowsett for tracking producing our EP and Stuart Jones at the legendary Woodworm Studios.

Emilie Barbier for designing the EP & Ayse Herring for designing the merch stand.

Matt Jones at Lucious Fox Photography and Emilie Barbier for some live photos. Rob at Redwood Photography for live photo’s and launch night review which you can see here. Thanks to Stylusboy for supporting us on the launch night.

Thank you to all our friends and family for supporting us, and continuing to support us.

Speak soon,

James, Matt & Nath.

(Photo by Emilie Barbier)

June 3, 2014 Add Comment

Tada!

Well.. it’s been a crazy few months for me. Eventful for many of us I imagine, with Christmas, New years, work.

On top of that, I’ve got a beautiful new wife, doubled my family, a house, with more bills to pay.. It’s certainly a season of new things.

But on top of THAT .. We (myself, Matt, Nath, and other good friends of the team) have been working hard to reveal some new things that have been bubbling up for months…….

This past year or so I’ve had many gigs. Though there’re always ups and downs, I love them all. Playing my songs, sharing my stories and meeting you is quite a privilege indeed. Matt and Nath love it too. The idea of the three of use playing together was conceived over a year ago now after many gigs together it has grown into something rather special.

This year introduces Speak, Brother.

The same songs,
the same 3 faces,
the same antics,
… just a new outfit.

We thought long and hard about the name, we feel it sits deep within our ethos.. So I’m sure I’ll share bits about that in my blog as we go.

This year, expect:

Singles, music videos, new CDs, blogs and most important of all – more shows near you.

Speak soon,

James Herring

January 16, 2014 Add Comment