In the realm of pop music, there are few artists who can maintain a strong sense of integrity, creativity, emotion and raw talent. Ben Hemingway has been writing music that incorporates all of the above for years, under the cleverly appropriate name, Living Chivalry. The project was started in an Elmira, NY basement in 2002, after spending most of adolescence in various punk rock bands around the area. Hemingway is a drummer by trade, but he displays his natural musical talent, taking on every instrument in Living Chivalry. He composes songs that feature multiple, layered guitar parts and harmonizing vocal melodies. Hemingway recently landed a spot on AbsolutePunk.net’s ‘Forum Members Compilation,’ (selected from hundreds of entries), as well as numerous ‘Track of the Day’ (and more) awards on GarageBand.com.
      In the past year, Hemingway has experienced tragedy, health issues, and sudden changes. While on tour with East Coast Dreamers in the winter of 2005, he became painfully ill, and was forced to withdraw from the remaining majority of shows. The cancelled tour led to an unexpected ejection from the band, to which he had contributed much time and energy, thus beginning the hardest year of his life. These kinds of events fuel the cleverly crafted, poignant lyrics of Living Chivalry’s music, clearly summed up in “everything I feel is so intensely real/I could never turn my back…â€
      In addition to being a multi-faceted musician, Hemingway is a recording studio enthusiast. He has produced, engineered and mixed a handful of records for independent artists, including all of his own material. It is with this knowledge and experience that he dives into every original composition.
      Living Chivalry has played very few full-band shows. However, with the help of the Internet and word-of-mouth, he has developed an array of listeners throughout the country, who are able to constructively critique the music through GarageBand.com. Hemingway has often been compared to Ben Folds and Inspection 12, and influenced by almost the entire pop-rock spectrum. He is currently in the studio recording his latest album, “The Setback,†which will feature tracks that span his entire musical career.
Bio written by TJ Foster.
