The Music of Douglas E Powell

Shows in June

2009-06-06T11:16:00.000-07:00

15th - Liliicos, Barnstaple, Devon. With Peter Bruntnell, The Caves. Free entry. Part of The North Devon Festival.
Info at www.northdevontheatres.org.uk

19th - The Goldcoast Ocean Fest. Croyde, Devon. Tickets and info from www.goldcoastoceanfest.co.uk

25th - Lilicos, Barnstaple, Devon. Solo acoustic set.
More info at www.douglasepowell.co.uk

2009-03-26T11:57:00.000-07:00

Live at Upstairs @ TWL, Braunton

2009-03-02T14:32:00.001-08:00

Live at Lilicos, Barnstaple, Devon, 19th Feb

2009-01-29T05:44:00.000-08:00

Americana UK Review of The Iron Coast

2008-12-22T13:29:00.000-08:00

Click here to read what Americana UK said about The Iron Coast.

The Ballad of the Roman Road - Douglas E Powell

2008-12-22T13:14:00.000-08:00

Good news for the download generation

2008-12-12T07:13:00.000-08:00

My latest release The Iron Coast is now available to down load from Amazon. This will shortly be followed by itunes, Napster and many others.

For those of you still happy to wait for the mailman to delivery a hard copy to your door. The Iron Coast and The Still and West are still available to buy from my web site at douglasepowell.co.uk.

If that is still not option for you. You can still walk into a record store a buy a copy at Solo Music.

I think that is most of my bases covered.

Happy shopping

The Ballad of the Roman Road - Video

2008-12-04T06:10:00.001-08:00

With a lot of help from Mark Brindle and his crew at Maniac Films I was lucky enough to be able to make a video. The track The Ballad of the Roman Road was taken from my album The Iron Coast.
The location for the filming was a disused warehouse in Barnstaple, North Devon, UK. The idea for the animal masks was taken from the film The Wickerman. The song itself was penned on the side of the M40 near Banbury whilst waiting for roadside assistance from the AA to replace a broken clutch cable.

Click this link to watch The Ballad of the Roman Road

I would like to here what you think about the video. So please leave comment.

DEP.

The Iron Coast out now

2008-09-26T05:33:00.000-07:00

The Iron Coast is the second studio album from Devon based songwriter Douglas E Powell. It's available to buy from Twister Valley Records (cat Number TVR002).
The Iron Coast is also available to buy on line at douglasepowell.co.uk also from Fivetrees and can be downloaded from Lastfm

Great things I have seen in June.

2008-07-15T05:08:00.000-07:00

Great things I have seen in June.
The month of June was made all the better by two major events in my life.

(1) June is the month that The North Devon Festival comes to our sleepy and often culturally weak corner of the UK.
I got to see live, Polar Bear, a very modern five piece jazz band that includes some of the member of Acoustic Lady Land. They played an amazingly musically diverse set at The Broomhill Art Hotel.
At The Factory, Barnstaple, I got to see Peter Bruntnell perform with his band The Murder of Crows, playing a selection of tunes from their forthcoming album. I also caught Peter playing a solo set at The Cellar Sessions, Lillicos, Barnstaple. He was playing songs from his extensive back catalogue with a free psychedelic light show. Joining Peter on the bill were The Caves, playing as a two-piece with snare drum and brushes, acoustic guitar and harmonized vocals. The Caves really had that power pop close harmony thing wired. Very reminiscent of XTC, The Beach Boys and to a curtain degree Stock & Powell.

The month long festival ended with The Wild West Festival at Pilton Village Hall. On the bill, The Left Outsides, Fur Lined, Indigo Moss and John Power. Two standouts for me on this diverse bill were Indigo Moss. A husband and wife duo from London. He had a more than a passing resemblance to a young Billy Childish and his wife wore a rather fetching 50's polka dot dress. Sweet vocal harmonies straight from the set of O Brother, Where Art Thou and harmonica from Free Wheelin’, Bob Dylan. A great find. Secondly, John Power, ex The La's and Cast. Now playing a not too dissimilar sounding set to when I saw them play in the early 90's as The La's, but this time around they have managed to capture that 50's, 60's feel of the white boys play the blues sound of The Yardbirds. I look forward to a hunt around the web for some recordings of him.

(2) On a trip to my local Blockbuster, with a severe hangover. On the look out for a celluloid cure for my ills. My girlfriend, who was on the hunt for a Rom-Com picked out Into the Wild, based only on the merits of its front cover, which is a good way as any to pick a movie. Especially when you are severely hung over.
I didn’t realize until the opening credits rolled that the sound track was by Eddie Veder. At that point I remembered a conversation with a work colleague about "one of the best films he had ever seen". This was the very same film.
After having to watch the film again from the start, because my girlfriend and fallen asleep 20 minute in, we both sat back under the granny blanket and watched.
Into the Wild has (had) everything. A soundtrack direct from my own record collection including songs that have inspired my own writing. A stand-alone story line, which is believable, plausible, and, I did not realize until the final credits ran, absolutely true.
Without giving too much of the story line away, it’s basically a road movie with all the twists and the turns that you come to expect from this genre of film. It’s narrated by the sister of the main character Chris McCandless, the time lines are blurred, jumping from day to day and year to year. But not in any disjointed way.
Chris attempts to cast off the life he once lived. Opting for a life of discovery, travel, experience and the ultimate goal of living alone and surviving off the land and the natural environment of the Yukon, Alaska.
Come the final credits I found my self in floods of tears. I was left feeling that although the final outcome was not what I wanted, or what I expected, I was left with a great sense of achievement and happiness. Which nowadays is a very rare thing for a film to do!

For those of you who have not yet had the pleasure of seeing this film. I urge you to do so.
I don't usually get this exited about films or write about them, but this one moved me.

2008-06-12T04:40:00.000-07:00

Hello all,

It’s taken a while but the new web site is now up and running!

Big thanks to all at Tigerplum Design and Maniac Films for all their hard graft and for making it look so good.

All the usual web stuff is there. Gig Dates, Biog, Song Sampler, Buy Album Online, Photos and My Blog.

The Still and West is still selling well all over the world! But I've nearly finished recording album No2 ‘The Iron Coast’. You should see this out by the end of this summer.

So, go on take a look at the new web site @ douglasepowell.co.uk

Regards,

Douglas E Powell

Chig Fest, Kilkhamton, Cornwall, 26th July

2008-05-09T06:57:00.000-07:00

Chig Fest, Kilkhamton, Cornwall, 26th July
Chig Fest is held at The Grenville Rooms, Kilkhampton, Cornwall. It's look like a village hall. How cool is that. Urns of tea and Victoria sponge cake for all, I hope.

I am on stage (if there is one) at 3.45pm. Also on the bill, The Tom Conibear Band, Roholio and Tucky Pie.

Entry £1.50 on the door.

For more info go to www.myspace.com/chigfest

The Tobacco Factory, Bristol, 25th May 2008

2008-04-30T05:37:00.000-07:00

This will be a welcome return for me to this excellent venue. A very welcoming venue for a singer songwriter to play. Fully equipped with a huge stage, lights, a superb pa with monitors and an audience that wants really to listen to great music. Very refreshing!
I will be playing two, 45 minute sets from 8pm.
For more info go to www.tobaccofactory.com or call 0117 9020344. The Tobacco Factory is located at Raleigh Road, Bristol, BS3 1TF.

Hope to see you there.

A New Blog is Born

2008-04-23T05:45:00.000-07:00

I am new to the game. Not entirety sure how it all works just yet. I'm one of those sit in front of it till you get it people, but my agent who is a very wise man in the why's are where fore’s in the art of all things Blog tells me that this is the way forward.
So if you have been directed, lead, persuaded or just by pure luck chanced here upon whilst utilizing the complexities of on line technologies. I thank you and encourage you to read on.

The purpose of this Blog is to keep you the reader up to date with my world or some parts of it at least. The music side and a modicum of social life, which in time will inevitably, bleed into it somewhere along the line. In my life the lines between social and work can often blur.

Going against the better judgment of my agent. I will not be using this time or space for blatant self-promotion. My apologies if at times I do. I can leave that to my web sites at douglasepowell.co.uk and Myspace. All the usual can be found there in. You all know the drill.

Here I want to write, discuss and muse over all things musical. Especially folk music both new and old, recording techniques, influences, gigs and related travelling experience. In fact anything that I feel that is relevant to my musical life.
I will also keep you up to date with the trials and pit falls of writing, recording and promoting a new album all from a home built office/studio in North Devon.

Look forward to your comments along the way.

A new Blog is born.

Douglas E Powell, Live at The Landmark Beer Festival, 5th May, 2008

2008-04-15T06:22:00.000-07:00

Live music, beer, bank holiday weekends and something for free are four England’s favorite things and to have 3 of these things (the beer aint free) under one roof. Well, that is just fantastic!

So why not head down to The Landmark Theatre, Illfracombe, Devon on the 5th of May at 5pm. Where I will be playing two sets of 45 minutes on the Green Man Day. Also appearing on the bill will be Amy Newton and Chris Millington with his band Babel.

There will also be a massive selection of beers and cider from all over the land to choose from.

It shaping up to be a classic English bank holiday weekend.

For more information and a full list of all the bands playing at this year’s festival visit The Landmark Beer and Music Festival

Hope to see you there.

Regards,

Douglas E Powell