Badly Drawn Boy
A man never to compromise his artistic-integrity, part of Badly Drawn Boy’s consistent charm and endeavour towards understated pop-grandeur and greatness is what has led to his current standing as one of the UK’s best-loved singer/songwriters.
His original hailing from the north of England (Bolton) may have provided the cutting humour and sharp wit with which he’s well-renowned, yet Damon Gough’s ventures into all musical-genres under the sun is something distinctly untraceable. With the debut-LP ‘The Hour Of Bewilderbeast’ in 2000, an instant-classic was inaugurated, its home-recorded standard and undeniable melodic-grasp initiating a memorable acceptance of the year’s Mercury Music Prize.
Touring ensued – yet reactions were mixed, Gough’s performances occasionally drunken, and – more often than not – utterly spontaneous, with critics dismissing the casual approach to playing live as ‘shambolic’. Soldiering on regardless, it was with the release of 2002’s ‘About A Boy’ movie-soundtrack that BDB was catapulted into the stratosphere, his top-20 singles ‘Silent Sigh’ and ‘Something To Talk About’ indicative of a newly-formed soiree into an even more immediate, accessible sound. The album, like its former, subsequently went platinum.
Yet, never one to sit on his arse amidst astonishing surroundings amidst him, Gough returned just months later with a new LP – the only-just-unleashed ‘Have You Fed The Fish?’, as produced with Tom Rothrock, previously of Beck fame. With its first single – ‘You Were Right’ – both a benchmark in his own song-writing and his first top-ten hit, Badly Drawn Boy’s global impact is fast becoming one both shatteringly concentrated, and inspiringly original.
OFFICIAL SITE: BDB\'s own dedicated, authorised web-portal. Dreamy in design, informative in content - featuring the opportunity to email the people involved within the set-up, plus detailed FAQ\'s - this is one interesting visit.
TWISTED NERVE: His associated label, and the people that - along with XL - release his music. Worth checking out for the other plethora of talent that they deal with.
BEGGARS GROUP: Check out the wealth of acts that the \'Boy is linked to via XL Recordings.