John Izzard profile picture

John Izzard

Feat. The Rebecca Ride

About Me


A passion for songwriting and creating musical soundscapes....
Singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, striving to make something magical, yet doesn't mind a bit of dirt in the mix.
The songs and instrumentals are often stripped back to basics, on such occasions offering little more than sketches for the listener to colour in. Perhaps a phrase, a musical interval or a groove might suddenly click and the imagination takes over. A piece works best when it becomes more than the sum of its parts.
Influences range from electronica composer and producer William Ørbit to classical and avant-garde composer/conductor Esa-Pekka Salonen with plenty of pop and rock stuff in between.
Previously involved with a number of bands and projects, including the pop/rock band 'Mercy Beat' and the folksier, though still experimental 'The Rebecca Ride'.
Released a CD mini-album on my own 'Cinematelier' label in 2005, titled 'Her Ghost In My Room' which received favourable reviews and significant interest via the Internet. This album is now sold-out.
A new full-length album will be available early '08 and is the first to be recorded at my new studio in Honfleur, France. For further details, please subscribe to my blog.

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 1/22/2006
Band Members: Just me...on vox, guitars, piano, synths, cello, various electronic/software treatments and sometimes didgeridoo.
Influences: Wimpy Bars, Wim Wenders, Mike Scott, Air, William Ørbit, Nastassja Kinski, Caroline Dale, Claude Lelouch, U2, Brian Eno, Jean-Jacques Beneix, John Malkovich, Damon Hill, Daniel Lanois, Tom McRae, Mike Lindup, Depeche Mode, Esa-Pekka Salonen, Bernie Taupin, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Jewel Kilcher, Peter Blake, Thomas Hardy, Joanne Whalley, Anton Corbijn, Emmanuelle Béart, 2CV, Peter Gabriel, Eric Rohmer, Axelle Red, Jean-Luc Godard, Claude Chabrol, Bill Nelson, Lloyd Cole, Sophie Marceau, Gavin Maxwell, Katrin Apel....
Sounds Like: Flickering neon, rain against the window, distant church bells, a kiss beneath a meteor storm, waves breaking on a shingle shore, a racing car out of view, tuning stations on the dial, a kite catching the wind, wild otters playing in the burn....
Record Label: Cinematelier
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Lifes a beach....

Its probably poor form to bang on about being unwell, but unfortunately for the last couple of weeks I've just been feeling pretty ughhh. Have been to doctor's once, but as the symptoms aren't gettin...
Posted by John Izzard on Thu, 24 Apr 2008 09:30:00 PST

For Ian Nelson (1956-2006)

I was a huge fan of Ian Nelson's saxophone and clarinet playing, most notably with his brother, Bill (Be-Bop Deluxe, Red Noise, The Lost Satellites etc.) and with Fiat Lux. His premature death on this...
Posted by John Izzard on Wed, 23 Apr 2008 02:05:00 PST

People who do things....

As a previous boss once advised me, "if you want to eat an elephant, make elephant burgers". This seems like sound advice, which despite completely ignoring a vegetarian alternative, does at least bre...
Posted by John Izzard on Wed, 26 Mar 2008 06:18:00 PST

Album Track Preview

Just the briefest of blogs to let you know I've posted a pre-mastered version of a song called 'She Became A Generation', which is from my forthcoming album 'A Sky Lit With Permissions'. It's a fairly...
Posted by John Izzard on Wed, 05 Mar 2008 12:22:00 PST

Its only rock n roll (and I hope they like it....)

Was it really 2007 when I last blogged? I can partly blame January and a fair chunk of February for being slow news months, or at least, if there was any news I didn't get to find out about it. That's...
Posted by John Izzard on Mon, 18 Feb 2008 09:23:00 PST

Paix à Noël

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Posted by John Izzard on Mon, 24 Dec 2007 10:34:00 PST

Rocket Cathedrals

It's the most beautiful, crisp and sunny Autumn day. Everything is still except for the casual sway of the neighbour's bamboo border and a large weeping willow growing in the nearby garden of 'La Forg...
Posted by John Izzard on Wed, 21 Nov 2007 02:31:00 PST

Cool Valves

Spent the weekend in. Plans for a walk this morning, followed by lunch out, were changed due to Jamie being unwell. Sorted through a few unlabeled camcorder tapes, mostly of things taken back in Engla...
Posted by John Izzard on Sun, 18 Nov 2007 02:03:00 PST

Logic, reason and sheds.

Despite deciding that software should only be of limited importance in my recording - i.e. simply a way to get audio onto hard-disk - not only have I opted for the aggressively low-priced, but high s...
Posted by John Izzard on Wed, 14 Nov 2007 02:21:00 PST

The bearable lightness of being (a singer/songwriter)

Despite cooler days, the sun continues to shine in big clear skies, which could easily - at least through the camera lens - be mistaken for High Summer. Went for a walk along the beach this morning, f...
Posted by John Izzard on Sun, 21 Oct 2007 02:34:00 PST