DUKE launch the 2016 Shipston Proms and wow crowds

DUKE

Beatbox band DUKE launched the 2016 Shipston Proms with an exhilarating performance that got the crowds dancing, in the Townsend Hall in Shipston-on-Stour.

The band who play everything live, with no samples, demonstrated with Ed Travers (vocals & beatbox), Marko Pandazis (vocals & beatbox), and Flynn Stronach (vocals & guitar), how they create their amazing sounds.

Brixton Alley

The evening was started off with DJ Dirty Harry warming up the ever increasing crowd with his dance tunes, before 2015 Fame Contest band winners Brixton Alley took to the stage.

Crowds enjoying DUKE

Brixton Alley lined up with Jonny Magro (vocals & guitar) Ben Wells (vocals and bass guitar) and Alex Wells (drums) and gave us some of their ever expanding repertoire of their own songs, having improved a lot since they last performed on the main stage at the 2015 Last Night of the Proms.

Then DUKE played their amazing set with encores to an ever appreciative crowd.

The following day was the Fame Contest with two categories – Solo/Duet and Bands.

Savannah

In the Solo/Duet we had grunge band The Pettibones with Ben Bryan (vocals & guitar) & Grace Spalding (drums), soulful ballads from singer Savannah Eden and a violin duet from Hannahflail (Hannah Porter & visiting American Abigail Hobart).

In the bands section we had Feedback with Sam Albury (vocals/bass), Shane Leahy (vocals/bass), Jamie Pullen (drums), Tom Cawley (rhythm guitar) from Shipston High School.

In competition with them was a more mature band Rock Roots Revival with Alex Lilley (electric drums), Rob Banfield (bass guitar), Andy Robinson (vocals & guitar) & Neil Pearson (guitar).

Rock Roots Revival

Rock Roots Revival were planning to play at last year’s Fame Contest but due to the ill health of their guitarist Mike Seddon (who sadly passed away later in 2015) they had to pull out.

After each act had performed two songs the judging panel of Chris Davies, Alan Thompson (Chair), Dan Packer, Laura Furnell & Richard & Louise Harvey then had to decide which point to give to each act.

Fame Contest Winners

After a short break the Shipston Proms chair Tim Porter announced that Savannah Eden had won the solo/duet category and Rock Roots Revival had won the bands section.

Proms chair Tim Porter thanked Charlie Thomas & Stephen Haynes for manning and setting up the sound and lights, along with thanks to James Thomas & Eleanor Stanley for loaning some of the sound equipment

With still two weeks of interesting acts playing at various locations in and around Shipston-on-Stour.

Events of note are the Ceilidh on Friday 24^th June at Shipston Primary School with music from 16 Strings Ceilidh Band, Saturday 25^th June with Jazz at the Feldon Valley Golf Club with music from Hot Club ’42 and 3^rd Dimension (with platinum sponsor Translyft’s Gorge Scholes on guitar) on Friday 1^st July at the George Inn in Lower Brailes.

Then we have the Goin’ Local Street Party in the main square in Shipston-on-Stour on Saturday 2^nd July with Fame Contest winners, Kinky Farnham and WIRED, which is put on as a Free event.

Shipston Proms 2016 Music Festival – Line-up Taking Shape

Beatbox band DUKE

The 18th Shipston Proms starts on Friday 17th June 2016. The annual 2-week festival is unusual in that it embraces music of all genres from classical through folk and blues to heavy rock, and gives musicians of all ages and backgrounds a chance to be part of it.

This year's Proms starts with a big Launch Party Night with DUKE – a beatbox band who play at festivals up and down the country, local 2015 Fame Contest winning local band Brixton Alley and local DJ Dirty Harry, all performing in the Townsend Hall on Friday 17th June.

As the band DUKE commented on performing this year “Since our performance (last year) we have fans from Shipston-on-Stour contacting us every week asking when we'll be back, well, WE'RE BACK and we couldn't more excited!!! We have been invited to play at the Launch night of this year's Proms and we can't wait to see everyone from last year! Hold on to your pants, it's going to be a big one!! Much love... The DUKE boys!”

The Fame Contest, on Saturday 18^th June in the Townsend Hall, is a must for aspiring local musicians to enter, with the winners of solo/duet & bands categories getting an opportunity to play on the main stage on the Proms last night.

Kinky Farnham perform at 2015 Proms

Classical music includes The Orchestra of The Swan, the Shipston Town Band and Young Musicians night at St. Martin’s church Barcheston, world music comes from Leamington Spa based community samba band Sambassadors of Groove and folk with Stratford Folk Club coming into town.

As usual the power of music will be celebrated in schools, halls, and pubs in the town and surrounding villages with events every day over the period.

The fortnight finishes with the now legendary free concert in the town square with a Goin’ Local theme with the two Fame Contest category winners then two legendary local bands Kinky Farnham and Wired to finish off the night in style!.

DUKE Photo: Copyright DUKE

Kinky Farnham Photo:  Copyright Chris Roberts/WiderViewPhoto 

Shipston Proms 2015 Finish with a Bang

Creedence Clearwater Revived

The 17^th Shipston Proms had its finale on Saturday 4^th July with a Independence Day Party free concert, in the square in the South Warwickshire town of Shipston-on-Stour. The acts on stage were the two Fame Contest winners from 20^th June (Toby Coffey – Solo/duet section and from the band section Brixton Alley), The Peas, Duke and finishing off with Creedence Clearwater Revived.

The Proms this year featured a wide range of musicians and bands ranging from classical concerts, including an excellent Young Musicians concert in Barcheston, through World Music with the Brazilian influenced sounds of Incandescendo, Stratford Folk comes to Shipston (with Tori Rushton and her band Daisy Chain Quartet leading the event), Blues from Sons of the Delta, Soul from Shipston High School band Battered Soul through to excellent Open Mic events at the Black Horse in Shipston and Gate Inn in Upper Brailes.

Toby Coffey

The schools also got involved with a well received Primary School concert in Shipston (Shipston, Acorns & Brailes CE Primary Schools) and an excellent Shipston High School Summer Concert, showing the high standards that Head of Music David Hunt had coached and guided out of the High School children.

This just scratches at the surface of the over 30 events on this years calendar.

The setup for the Last Night of the Proms began at 6pm on the previous day with the arrival of the 40ft artic trailor (Thanks to Fosseway Hire) which was parked outside Lloyds Bank and R. Clarke Electrical services, and setup to give a large level stage.

On the Saturday morning the Shipston Proms team arrived at 7:30am to help erect the marquee that was going to become the Proms bar, and once up the bar inself was built. The team had to work around the Saturday morning shoppers as the road itself was fully closed until 3:30pm. The sounds and lights team then started the long process and wiring up the stage from lunchtime and final preparations were finished around 6:30pm when the bands on the bill did their soundchecks.

Jonny Magroo - Brixton Alley

For the pre-show in El Café we had local Shipston band 16 Strings and a Dead Goat (Eleanor Stanley – violin/guitar/vocals, James Thomas – guitar/vocals, Mike Beeston - percussion, Matt Watkins - bass) entertaining the El Café customers with their mix of folk, rock and blues. The band name came from having a fiddle, 12 string and a bodhran - hence 16 strings and a dead goat, but now with added bass from.

First up on the stage at 7pm was Shipston Proms Fame contest winner of the solo/duet category Toby Coffey. Toby is a 12 year old attending Shipston High School and having impressed Shipston High’s Head of Music David Hunt in his demonstration of his singing, was then allowed to apply for a place in the concert.

Toby sang three songs including When I was your Man (Bruno Mars) and the finale of Gravity to an appreciative audience.

Next up we had the Fame Contest band winners Brixton Alley (Jonny Magro – guitar, Ben Wells – Bass and Alex Wells – drums) with their three piece alternative/indie band and strong lyrics, including their own songs. They enjoyed their set on the large set to a growing crowd.

The Peas

Next up were exciting duo The Peas (Kelvin Leitch - guitar/ vocals Kelly Rashleigh - double bass – vocals) with their eclectic sound. They are described as a duo of many parts with songs from the 80s onwards, now laced with kazoos, mouth trumpets, beat box, vocal harmonies, double bass,

acoustic guitar, bass drum and tambourine! They definitely fitted this description and the crowd really enjoyed their songs.

Next up on stage were a band from a different genre when Duke

DUKE

(Markos Pandazis – (Vocals/Vocal Basslines/Beatbox), Edward Travers - (Beatbox, FX, Vocals) and Flynn Stronach - (Guitar, Vocals) took to the stage with their Beatbox sound.

Duke, from Cheltenham, are three voices, one guitar, no backing tracks, looping or sampling to produce their amazing covers sound. They had the crowd jumping up and down to the pulsating sound, including a Bon Jovi singalong, which bounced around the High Street buildings until 10:30. Duke were kindly sponsored by The George Hotel, Shipston.

Then we had the headline act Creedence Clearwater Revived, featuring Johnny Guitar Williamson, with their repertoire of classic CCR songs from 60s onwards, which got the crowd dancing until they finished just before midnight.

Then it was time for the Proms team to start the clear-up and put the High Street back to its normal trading form with parking available. Then after the Press Releases, Blogs and images are finalised it is a recovering break before the team continues its thoughts about the 2016 event and line-up.

The full Last Night of the Proms Flickr imageset can be viewed at: https://www.flickr.com/photos/widerviewphoto/sets/72157655507910462   

With 16 Strings and Dead Goat Pre-show Flickr set: https://www.flickr.com/photos/widerviewphoto/sets/72157655524153501