silvery

Silvery are an indie art rock band hailing from London with a "splenetic, frenetic, kinetic" sound unlike any other. Founder and lead singer-songwriter James Orman creates a world immersed in all things eccentrically English, with lyrical content mixing non-fiction, Victoriana, love of historic machinery, and 70's TV detective-isms with a musical philosophy of "anything goes". With a doff of a stove-pipe hat to Blur, Bowie, XTC and Sparks, their sound is an eclectic but commercial proposition.

Silvery's first album, Thunderer & Excelsior, was an Artrocker Album of The Year (No.19), and their unique blend of English eccentricity won them fans across the board from Steve Lamacq, Gary Crowley, Marc Riley, Mark Lamarr and David Quantick. The album received strong radio support including sessions for BBC Radio 1 and BBC 6 Music as well as a various other radio accolades (see radio below). The band were invited to play at Rough Trade East's 1st Birthday, Amsterdam’s annual London Calling festival and as guests of British Sea Power at their "Sing Ye From The Hillsides" Tan Hill Festival and also on their late 2009 tour.  The success of Thunderer And Excelsior fueled Silvery to continue their creative brainstorming, and the band are looking to the future with the release of their latest album: Railway Architecture.

Due out August 9th 2010 on Blow Up Records, with the first single "The Naked & The Dead" to be released on July 26th, Railway Architecture builds on the success of Thunderer And Excelsiorwithout straying too far away from Silvery's tried-and-true roots. In describing the relationship between the band's two albums, James Orman states, "I wanted to populate the townscapes I described on the first album; both albums are very much connected..." As a result, Railway Architecture is an infectious mix of catchy choral melodies, such as "Identity" and "Ropes & Sails," along with moody, crooning vocals with "The Quaire Fellow" and "Hook Woods." But the band truly shine when the guitars open up into an old-school distorted cacophony and the rhythm section lock into a heavy, driving groove with tracks like "Identity" and "The In Insects Jerk."

Railway Architecture expertly blends post-punk, Britpop (for want of a better word), music hall and 60's pop into this year's most exciting release yet, having already caught the attention of BBC 6 Music's Steve Lamacq with a nomination for his Rebel Playlist (the band having previously won with a briefly available Christmas single – their cover of "You Give A Little Love" from Bugsy Malone which is finally released properly on the album). Silvery are also due to release a music video exclusively on Artrocker TV in late June 2010 for "The Naked & The Dead" The video was directed by Alastair Brotherton and Jock Mooney at Trunk Films - the same team who won the 2010 London Short Film Festival award for Best Music Video with Silvery's previous single, "Horrors."

2010 Line up: James: Guitar and singing / Jarvis: Bass guitar and singing / Lewis: drums / Zara: Keyboards.

2010 ‘Railway Architecture’ personnel: James: Guitar, singing, keyboards / Joe: Bass / Alex: Drums / Simon: Keyboards. With: David Williams: Ukulele & backing vocals, bass on 7 & 8 / Leo Osborn: Brass & woodwind / Nicolas Cole: Spanish trumpet, electro-cordian

2008 ‘Thunderer & Excelsior’ personnel: James: Guitar and singing, Joe: Bass, Alex: Drums, Simon: Keyboards.

'Railway Architecture' press quotes 2010:

"Exhilarating art-pop from band bordering on greatness” ★ ★ ★ ★ UNCUT

"Hunt down this album” ★ ★ ★ ★ ARTROCKER

"Irrepressible and exhilarating” NUDE

"Delicious and daringly at odds with almost everything else out there” CLASH

"Genius twisted pop. A truly original pop masterpiece” BIG CHEESE

"Wonderfully wacky” NME

"Stylish, literate and witty but properly hook-aware” TIME OUT

Read full reviews here

Previous press quotes 2008-2009:

"This album has barely been out of my CD player at home all week"
"You will not hear anything like this all year"
Steve Lamacq (Silvery on Steve Lamacqs 6music blog read blog ...)

"A fine debut album from the London band, just as they promised it would be" The Organ

"It’s mental and it rocks" Artrocker 'Recommended'

"MADCAP LONDONERS MAKE AN ARTY RACKET" Q Magazine

"Strange, surreal and stunning - purchase on sight" losingtoday.com

"Exciting, forceful, intelligent, and on all the time" David Quantick, Word Magazine

"The potential to capture the imagination of a generation" Classic Rock

"Tumble-dried Blur melting Sparks into liquid pop" What's On The NME Stereo?

"Silvery's eccentric organ-led pop is quintessentially British with more than a nod to David Bowie, a wink to Syd Barrett and a wave to XTC" 8/10 Alternative Ulster

"A wonderfully ebullient album of eccentric, quirkily catchy, organ-led Brit Pop with singalong choruses aplenty" Nude

"Get used to the madness because Silvery could be around for a very longtime" Rock'N'Reel

"A band to get rather excited about" Clash

No. 19 - Artrocker Magazine's Top Albums of 2008

BBC 6Music - Album of the Day

blow up releases

1. Two Halves Of The Same Boy 1:52

1. A Deconstruction Of Roles 2:55

1. A Deconstruction Of Roles 2:55
2. Identity 1:35
3. Two Halves Of The Same Boy 1:52
4. The Naked & The Dead 2:18
5. Will Self (Or The Man Who Wasn’t There) 4:04
6. The Quaire Fellow 1:57
7. The Nod 2:45
8. Sparks & Fire 1:58
9. Ropes & Sails 1:50
10. An Account Of The Raising Of A Spirit 1:00
11. The In Insects Jerk  2:14
12. The Murder Holes Are About You  1:47
13. You Give A Little Love 4:01
14. Hook Woods 1:41

1. the naked & the dead  

1. the nishikado ('rebuilt in 2009')  
2. identity
3. murder holes
4. the public purse

1. you give a little love  
2. you give a little love (radio edit)

1. action force  
2. the nod  

1. horrors
2. devil in the detail  
3. action force 
4. a penny dreadful
5. warship class
6. star of the sea
7. revolving sleepy signs
8. orders
9. 1994
10. the nishikado
11. ghosts
12. foreign exchange & the drilling machine
13. that which is / that which is not
14. animals are vanishing

1. devil in the detail (single edit)  
2. the squadron leader 

1. horrors 
2. orders 

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links:
www.myspace.com/silverytheband
www.silverytheband.com
silvery facebook group
facebook fan page
interview with James from Silvery

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