Chris Swinney is a musician from the north of England.
For many years, the recording studio has been
the place where he performs his songs and he works alone entirely. Somewhere in the back of that place he
cautiously calls his mind, there is a definite temptation to form a band and air these songs live...but for now, it is
only audio without the visuals - "maybe a good thing!", some might say...
Chris released his latest CD, "Try this at home", early in 2009. It is available through this website, at www.cdbaby.com and can also be downloaded (see purchase page).
His other three CDs are available through this website and various outlets including downloads which are listed on the Purchase page.
If you would like a taster of his style of music, there are samples from all of his tracks on the Music page.
Chris has also recorded some short video clips which can also be seen on the Music page.
Chris' CDs to date:
(Samples on the Music page)
Reviews
This is one from Steve at absolutepowerpop.blogspot.com
Chris Swinney - Try this at Home. UK singer-songwriter Chris Swinney has released three previous albums but it wasn't until #4, Try This at Home, that he managed to catch my ear. Thanks to how good the new one is, I'll definitely be looking into the first three. Swinney offers up a singer/songwriter album, power pop style, in the vein of Richard X. Heyman or Bill Lloyd with a British sensibility. "Not Going Down" is pure melodic bliss, and the chiming guitars and catchy hooks of "Makes Me Feel Good" have burrowed their way into my head on a semi-permanent basis. Other highlights include the midtempo "Pull it Down" and the ballad "It Always Ends This Way". Contrary to the admonition of the album title, do try this one at home. Or in the car. Or at the office.
Chris Welch at www.myspace.com/hippymusicman had this to say.
Try This At Home is a rich, harmony driven, self penned collection that recalls late period Squeeze, Crowded House and, of course, The Fab Four.
Swinney might not be exactly re-inventing the wheel but with songs as strong as 'Not Going Down', the Fountains Of Wayne Like 'Throw Me A Line' and the Paul Carrackesque 'Mary Won't Let me Go' it's hard to complain.
With the empahasis firmly on fully realised arrangements, smart chord changes and Swinney's exceptionally fluid guitar playing, Try this At Home is a great listen.
Impressive.
***The second Frozen Rain album "Ahead Of Time" is released on March 9th 2012. It features four tracks which were co-written by Chris Swinney and some backing vocals/spoken intro which Chris has also contributed to the album.***
“Ahead Of Time“ arrives four years after the self titled debut album and marks the second chapter in the history of “Frozen Rain“. In 2008 the dream of the Belgian song writer & multi-instrumentalist Kurt Vereecke became reality when the first album of his AOR / Melodic Rock project was released. The debut was influenced by the classic AOR sound of the 80s and just like in the old days the songs offered memorable hooklines, big guitar sounds, tasteful keyboard accents, backed by a strong rhythm section with real live drums. The very positive feedback of fans and reviewers alike paved the way for a follow-up of the successful first “Frozen Rain“ record.
Already early on some changes for album no. 2 were considered and eventually put into action. Thus all songs of the album were recorded with a constant band line-up of six musicians, besides Kurt Vereecke (keyboards, bass, acoustic guitar, backing vocals), Jurgen Vitrier (keyboards) and Vincent De Laat (bass) were already on board for the debut album. Strengthening the Belgian party of the “Frozen Rain“ team on “Ahead Of Time“ are Kurt’s brother Hans Vereecke (drums) and Rik Priem (rhythm, solo and acoustic guitars). The position as the front man on the mic stand is now occupied by one of the most distinctive German Rock shouters, Carsten Schulz (Evidence One, Paradise Inc., ex-Domain).
Kurt Vereecke and guitarist Rik Priem worked intensively on the arrangements and the production of the tunes giving them an up-to-date more guitar-oriented AOR / Melodic sounds than the first time around while still securing to give enough space to the keyboards that became a trademark on the “Frozen Rain“ debut. Rik’s virtuoso guitar play and the decision to have Carsten as the sole lead vocalist on all songs are a tremendous gain for “Frozen Rain“. In addition the songs sound tighter and more powerful thanks to the consistent line-up of musicians that delivers a real band feel on each cut and the refining of the material through the mix by Alessandro Del Vecchio (Edge Of Forever, Eden’s Curse, Shining Line, Lionville) and the mastering by Dennis Ward (Unisonic, Pink Cream 69, Sunstorm).
Among the highlights of “Ahead Of Time“ are the Melodic Rock hymns “Forever“, “Breaking Out“ and “Turn It On“, the uptempo cracker “The Last Dance Ain’t Over“, as well as the atmospheric title track “Ahead Of Time“ and the bombastic album opener “Believe It Or Not“, for which the band also shot a video. The only ballad of the album “Too Late” comes from the pen of Kurt’s daughter Joke Vereecke, who proves to be a talented song writer and the invitation to the “Voodoo Party“ is an impressive proof that a Melodic Rock outfit can deliver a stunning instrumental.
Also see Chris at the following links:
www.youtube.com
www.reverbnation.com
www.bandmix.co.uk
www.isound.com
www.musicdirectx.com
