semaphore

"When you see a lot of gigs you inevitably see plenty of crap. So when you eventually witness a performance from a band so rare and original you want to tell everybody you speak to about them it is something of an event. Semaphore are one such band" Clash Magazine
Hailing from Rome and Dublin respectively, three piece London based band Semaphore have been playing together in various forms since meeting in Rome in 2004.Finding their own individual identity in Italy, the band swiftly moved to London, where they found varying success as a larger five-piece group. The collective self-released their debut EP of dark psychedelic rock in May 2006.Their original incarnation, however, soon imploded as certain volatile personal situations came to a head, causing the remaining three members of Louis, Loris and Marco, to re-assess their future together.As sod’s law would have it, the disbandment coincided with the beginning of a fresh UK tour. The three were forced to cancel the string of dates, save for a final London date at Camden Barfly as their swan song.Stripped of the samplers and effects pedals, which previously enclosed them in a restrictive wall of sound, the Barfly gig was a surprising revelation for the band, seeing Semaphore emerge with a previously un-revealed fragility and beguiling intensity. Newly stripped bare, the band had found their wings.Pitched somewhere between the rich storytelling of Johnny Cash and the hypnotic siren-call of Spiritualized, the band’s sound is expertly held together by Brennan’s distinctive deep, dark and gravel baritone, that suggests a maturity far beyond his 22 years.Semaphore sings songs about drinking, women and everyday disillusion. Their words are peppered with imagery from nature, the Bible and even the wrong side of the bar.Cementing their influence on the current north London music scene, Semaphore has been involved in promoting the Why? Club night at Proud Galleries in Camden and now host the monthly Stabokki! night at the Cross Kings in king's cross.