Bright dawn for Til Dusk (From Hampshire Chronicle)
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Bright dawn for Til Dusk
10:32am Friday 15th April 2011 in Leisure
Ash Cutler, Tom Ross, James McLaren and Chris Powell of Til Dusk
HAMPSHIRE has many good bands, but it has been a while since I watched a new one and left an instant fan.
That was until the Joiners Arms in Southampton hosted Til Dusk.
The four-piece rock outfit, which is based in the city, have the makings of a class act.
It features James McLaren on lead vocals and guitar joined by Ash Cutler, Tom Ross and Chris Powell.
The latter has recently replaced Adam Porter on bass, and used to be in another Hampshire group, Hellcyon.
Tom plays the drums while Ash plays pretty much everything else including several guitars and keyboards.
The group started 15 months ago and came about when James and Ash met at Orbit Studios in Swaythling.
Both have plenty of technical know-how and, conveniently, a similar taste in classic rock.
James said: “I’d say our music was English southern rock.”
He added: “We’re looking to get a few more gigs this summer so I guess we’re looking to ‘expand and conquer’.”
Ash said: “There’s so many people out there doing good things, so one problem I think everyone has is getting spotted.”
But the group, whose name comes from rehearsing mainly at night, are already making progress.
They have already played the Indig02 in London and the group is releasing its first album, Cold Lust, which the band will be marketing itself.
But there’s no point recording a bad CD, so Amplified stuck around to check out Til Dusk on stage.
The Joiners Arms was absolutely packed — quite encouraging for a Monday — and the band was very impressive.
Given the technical know-how on board, there would be no excuses for not giving a professional and close-knit performance. And that’s exactly what they delivered with some well-crafted songs that lingered nicely in the mind.
Ash deserves a special mention for the number of instruments he was playing, which included almost everything except bagpipes and the spoons.
It has been a long time since I have liked a band this much on first hearing them. I will see them again.
* Til Dusk will play at The Brook in Portswood Road, Southampton, on Sunday, May 1.
Call the venue on 023 8055 5366, or visit www.tildusk.co.uk for more details.
