Smokehand profile picture

Smokehand

Smokehand - Dark Loungecore from Wales, UK

About Me

Welcome to Smokehand's corner of the Myspace universe!
Our debut album, 'The Last Train' is now available worldwide from HERE !
(It is also available from your local friendly record store and other online retailers)
You can read a review of the album and a biog here .
You can visit our website where you can see live photos, plus a video for Dancing With Strangers.
You can also listen to us at last.fm
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WHO ARE WE?
Our label's press release says this:
Smokehand are a 4-piece Dark Loungecore combo from Cardiff who play well-crafted songs with style and the confidence that comes from experience. Unashamedly eclectic, the band's sound exploits jazz, Latino, classical and pop influences to create a post-modern Film Noir soundtrack that is one minute sinister and the next Sinatra. Dark, brooding and as a whole breathtaking, this is the voice of the real musical underground calling up from a Parisian cellar bar or seedy, city tenement block.
We think that neatly sums us up, but have a listen to the MP3s and feel free to make up your own mind.
We've been going a few years now, just taking our time writing & recording at our own pace until we were happy with the direction we were going in. Now we think weve cracked it, and were building up a loyal following for our bizarre, exotic and dramatic live performances.
The people that have heard us seem to like the fact that we aren't really trying to sound like anyone else. Well, its pretty obvious to us that if you are in a band that plays original music, we reckon you should actually *be* original. Dont you think? ;-)
Have a listen and look around our website. If you live anywhere near any upcoming gigs, do make sure to put them in your diary and come along.
And of course: If you like what you hear, please buy the album!
You are welcome to leave us a comment, or contact us via email. We genuinely appreciate your feedback! We love hearing from you, whoever and wherever you are.
You can email us at [email protected]

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 6/10/2005
Band Website: smokehand.co.uk
Band Members: We are a four piece:
Adam - Vocals & Double Bass
Andy - Guitar
Ben - Drums
Dan - Keys & Backing Vox

Influences: Ready? Comfortable?

Tom Waits, Scott Walker, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Tindersticks, The Velvet Underground/Lou Reed, David Ackles, Leonard Cohen, Jacques Brel, Miles Davis, Nick Drake, Portishead, Gil Evans, Captain Beefheart & The Magic Band, David Bowie, The Divine Comedy, Led Zeppelin, Frank Zappa, Charles Mingus, Jeff Buckley, Black, Lee 'Scratch' Perry, Wu-Tang Clan, Thelonius Monk, Dr Octagon, John Peel, George Gershwin, (early) Fleetwood Mac, John Barry, Stevie Wonder, King Crimson, Desmond Dekker, Bill Evans, William Burroughs, Beastie Boys, PJ Harvey, John Coltrane, Nine Inch Nails, Neil Young, The Smiths, Chris Morris, DJ Shadow, Rogers & Hart, the music to The Elephant Man by John Morris, Radiohead, Steve Reich, The Clash, Kurt Weill, Lenny Bruce, Howling Wolf, Otis Redding, Buena Vista Social Club, Lenny Breau, Bark Psychosis, Brian Wilson/The Beach Boys, Kraftwerk, Cream, Duke Ellington, Horace Andy, Gustav Mahler, Quincy Jones, Holland-Dozier-Holland, Pink Floyd, Sparks, Cousteau, Queen, Johnny Cash, Philip Glass, Simon & Garfunkel, Elvis Costello, Charlie Parker, Jack Kerouac, The Tiger Lillies, Marvin Gaye, David Lynch, John Cage, Burt Bacarach, Einsturzende Neubaten, Henry Rollins, Rufus Wainright, Bjork, Steely Dan, Bonnie Prince Billy, Kate Bush, Barry Adamson, The Prisoner, Igor Stravinsky, Aphex Twin, Peter Cook, Tori Amos, Dr John, Bob Dylan, The Rolling Stones, John Adams, Lalo Schifrin, John Williams the film composer, and John Williams the guitarist
Sounds Like: We have been described as: 'Scott Walker singing Tom Waits songs'… which is extremely flattering and, if we’re honest, not too far from the mark.

If you want a band that goes from orchestral ballad, to Latin groove, to heavy rock, to bizarre fairground stomp, and you’ve been frustrated that there isn’t a band that caters for your needs…

…Then we’re the band you’ve been waiting for. Hooray for us and you!
Record Label: FF Vinyl (www.ffvinyl.com)
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Stroking Heaven in 2007...

Well, it has been nearly a year since the last blog update. Sorry *looks down at feet*. In that time, we have done a multitude of gigs, to a whole bunch of lovely new people, in some fine new places, ...
Posted by Smokehand on Mon, 08 Jan 2007 09:08:00 PST

Your Free Complimentary Welcome Pack

Mawnin'As 2006 eases gently in, we in Smokehand have had an excellent start to the year. In fact, so good has the start been, we anticipate escape velocity by the end of December.We've had a run of go...
Posted by Smokehand on Mon, 27 Feb 2006 02:28:00 PST

Christmas is coming, put Smokehand in your stockings...

Right. Our wonderful debut album - The Last Train - is now out and available. You must buy it! We're really proud of it, it's terrific and that's not just us saying it, we've had some rave reviews...
Posted by Smokehand on Tue, 06 Dec 2005 03:14:00 PST

The Last Train has arrived!

Those of you fortunate enough to live in Germany, Austria or Switzerland can now buy our marvellous debut album, "The Last Train" from all good record shops. You can also order the album online from...
Posted by Smokehand on Thu, 22 Sep 2005 09:10:00 PST

Fuck me, yes it's really important news!!!

FANFARE!!! TAAAA-ta-ta-tatatatatata-TA-DAAAAAAA The Last Train, our wonderful debut album, containing romantic tales of woe, throbbing exotica and sublime ...
Posted by Smokehand on Tue, 30 Aug 2005 04:28:00 PST

New Gigs!

As you cannot have failed to notice (of course you haven't, you're an observant person, we can tell) we've got a gig coming up at The Barfly in Cardiff on 10th September. Also performing that night i...
Posted by Smokehand on Mon, 01 Jan 1900 12:00:00 PST

Gigs, Website, Housekeeping (and other such nonsense&)

You have probably noticed by now that were playing soon at one of our favourite venues: Moles in Bath on 8th September. Were playing with some pretty awesome bands (Flipron and Mistys Big Advent...
Posted by Smokehand on Mon, 01 Jan 1900 12:00:00 PST

Lyrics up....

Don't know if you noticed but we've put up the lyrics to the songs we put so you can sing along if you want! This may be irrelevant to some people but if you really wanna get to know the songs this ma...
Posted by Smokehand on Mon, 01 Jan 1900 12:00:00 PST

Album news...Catch The Last Train...

Some of you have been asking us about our album, The Last Train, and when & where its available. First of all, thank you so much for your interest...it is really rewarding to know that other peopl...
Posted by Smokehand on Mon, 01 Jan 1900 12:00:00 PST