I have been joined by John Dredge who have answered some questions about his musical career so you can find out a bit more about his music!
Introduce yourself!
My name is John Dredge and I’m a singer and songwriter.
I’ve just released an indie guitar-pop single with The Balcony Shirts Band called Double Agent Working Alone.
The introduction is now complete.
How did you come up with the band name ‘John Dredge and The Balcony Shirts Band’?
Well my parents came up with the name John Dredge…
I used to go in a T-shirt shop in Uxbridge called Balcony Shirts and I got to know the owner, Scott Balcony. It turned out he’d been in bands for years, as had I, so we decided to collaborate. Scott has a studio set up at the back of his shop, and he was able to recruit the rest of the band from the shop staff, hence the name The Balcony Shirts Band. It’s quite a long name, but then again it could have been The Balcony Shirts Shop Staff Band.
What got you into music?
Probably watching The Monkees as a kid. They seemed so cool, with this great lifestyle. All living together on the beach, then going out and playing songs – it seemed like so much fun. Sadly the reality of being in a group is somewhat different. For example I don’t live on the beach. I live on the estate. But The Monkees songs really stand the test of time and they are still an influence on me to this day, in so far as I like to write short songs with the emphasis on a memorable tune.
Who are your musical inspirations?
Definitely The Kinks, and the way their best records created a magical atmosphere. Also the mysterious quality of Michael Stipe’s lyrics, and Brian Wilson’s gift for melody.
You have just released your new single ‘Double Agent Working Alone’ would you like to tell us about it?
I’m fascinated by Michael Caine’s early films and after watching The Ipcress File I decided to try and capture the spirit of that film in song, hence the new single. There’s something appealing to me about turning a film into a two-minute pop song. We’ve also made a video which is greatly influenced by those early spy thrillers.
What was the experience like recording the song?
Quite odd, because we recorded it in the shop. A lot of the customers were wondering what was going on.
What memories will you take away from the song creation?
Trying to avoid the customers.
What can fans expect from one of your gigs?
We’re concentrating on recordings rather than gigs – we both prefer using the studio environment, particularly as it is in the shop. I suppose we could play live in the shop. But I’ve always been a records person rather than a gigs person. So our fans can expect more recordings, videos and more shop work.
What is your dream venue to perform at and why?
If we were performing gigs, which we aren’t, then our dream venue would be The Albert Hall, which it isn’t.
In fact our dream venue would be Woolworths. If we played there, the band could afford themselves of sweets from the Pic ‘N’ Mix section while they played. Unfortunately Woolworths has closed down. And it was never a music venue anyway. Which doesn’t help.
What’s next for you?
More songs, more videos and more recording, more or less.
I also hope to open a chain of Woolworths.
If you would like to check out 'John Dredge' music you can find him here:
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