Al Start profile picture

Al Start

"I Heart History" NEW ALBUM **OUT NOW**

About Me

"Some girls were just born to perform." DIVA
Bursting onto the acoustic music scene - you cant fail to notice Al Start. Her music is as striking as she looks! Firmly rooted in the indie-acoustic singer/songwriter genre; her exceptional songwriting sets her apart from the rest. With smooth vocals that have been compared to Tracey Thorn mixed with kd lang, and a strong guitar style worthy of Ani Di Franco or Joan Armatrading; the sum total is a breath of fresh air!
Having attained a distinction for the Advanced Songwriting HND at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music, (BIMM), in 2003, Al was chosen by BMG executives to attend the infamous residential songwriting week with Chris Difford (Squeeze). Here she excelled, and co-wrote with top industry writers such as Helen Boulding (Alex Parks), Matt Deighton (Oasis/Mother Earth), John Hammond-Hagan (Liberty X) and Jill Sobule to name but a few. She has now been invited back by Chris three times.
Start tells stories Joni Mitchell would be proud of - cross-dressing neighbours; rent boys and missing cats are inter-mingled with touching reminiscences of childhood, surreal dreams and candid confessions.
Musically, the sound ranges from natural and intimate acoustica through to solid Fleetwood Mac-style folk-rock with sprinklings of cutting-edge programming. Produced with Tracey Field, the arrangements are thoughtful and effective throughout; giving an accessible, radio-friendly sheen to some raw, ingeniously left-field songs.
TOURS 2004 Coveted Tour. Opening for Horse
2005 Girlsworld Tour with Nat Ripepi & Belinda OHooley (June)
2005 - Winter Acoustic Tour with Belinda OHooley (Nov/Dec)
2006 Mini Adventure Tour with Belinda OHooley (Feb)
2006 The "GO" Tour USA and UK (Oct & Nov)

WHAT NEXT...? **NEW ALBUM OUT FEB 14th 2008**
" I Heart History" is rocking the archives! Each song tells a true story from Brighton's history. Love, passion, deceit, betrayal and even murder.
Go is available online at: www.lonecoyote.co.uk and www.cdbaby.com and as a digital download from: Apple iTunes, Napster, Arvato, MusicNet, Sony Connect, Liquid Digital Media, QTRnote, MusicNow, Next Radio, Solutions, Tradebit, MSN MusicPassAlong, Rhapsody, NetMusic, AudioLunchbox, BuyMusic, WrapFactory, Emusic, Iriver, Media Online, GroupieTunes, Hear Music, Interi, MusicIsHer, MO, Systems, Destra.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 9/10/2005
Band Website: alstart.co.uk
Band Members: Solo, but sometimes has acoustic band. 2006 UK "GO" Tour features multi-instrumentalist Kellie Santin www.myspace.com/kelliesantin
Influences: Beatles/Simon & Garfunkle/Joni Mitchell/ Smiths/ Crowded House/ David Gray/ Everything But The Girl/ Turin Brakes
Sounds Like: kd lang meets indigo girls meets the beatles invites david gray
Record Label: Lone Coyote Records
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

"L of a TRIBUTE Night" lesbianna extraviganza!!

An L of a Tribute Night **SAT 29th MARCH** kd lang, The Indigo Girls, Tegan and Sarah, Annie Lennox, Melissa Etheridge, Horse...where else would you find these lesbian icons in the same place at the s...
Posted by Al Start on Fri, 14 Mar 2008 06:09:00 PST

Album finally ready...HONEST!

After a bit of a frustrating cock-up, the artwork is done and the brand new album, "I Heart History" will be on the proverbial shelves this Friday. I was hoping to launch it on Valentine's Day, but al...
Posted by Al Start on Tue, 19 Feb 2008 10:45:00 PST

NEW ALBUM A VALENTINE TREAT!

There will be a special Valentine treat this year...the new album "I Heart History" launches at Brighton Museum, come along to a free event in the museum itself from 3pm. Album available from: www.al...
Posted by Al Start on Wed, 23 Jan 2008 05:39:00 PST

NEW ALBUM...Preview!

I have added two songs from my forthcoming album, "I Heart History".   See what you think! I will tell you all about the songs in my next blog...as they are all true stories from the town where I...
Posted by Al Start on Tue, 08 Jan 2008 02:26:00 PST

D.U.M.B.O...Dumbo!

DUMBO..(That's Down Under The Brooklyn Overpass to you and me! ) is a very, very cool neighborhood that I would never have got to see if Joce hadn't taken me out on a tour on my last day in New York, ...
Posted by Al Start on Sun, 17 Dec 2006 11:25:00 PST

Rockwood Music Hall, NYC, that a-way!

Ahem, well, I got on the subway to get to my final gig of the tour, and sat congratulating myself on how well I had negotiated the New York Subway system! Lots of the people I met in the States told m...
Posted by Al Start on Sun, 17 Dec 2006 11:20:00 PST

Back to New York...getting philosophical!

Next morning Andrea pretended that I hadn't been snoring like a drain all night and I pretended I believed her , and we set off to locate a suitable breakfast establishment. This was due to the fact t...
Posted by Al Start on Sun, 17 Dec 2006 05:28:00 PST

ABC Cafe, Ithaca. As simple as D'oh Ray Me!!

Got back to Andrea's house in one piece (by following her car all the way!!) and met her lovely parents. Apparently they were dying to meet this English girl and hear her talk funny! So I did my best ...
Posted by Al Start on Sun, 17 Dec 2006 04:49:00 PST

I'm on a road to no-where...

La la la Tra la la! Oh hello birds, hello trees!The drive was just great! Through tiny little towns that ran along one dusty road, crossing rail tracks, past little wooden white-washed churches. The...
Posted by Al Start on Sun, 17 Dec 2006 04:46:00 PST

Little Houses on the Prairie!

At the end of the night, I packed up the car, and Steve drove up beside me, "Follow me home!" We drove up the hill away from Troy...up and up...up and up, my word...we were driving for 30 minutes then...
Posted by Al Start on Sun, 17 Dec 2006 04:44:00 PST