NEW ALBUM ‘THE LANGUAGE OF CURIOSITY’ - MEDIA PACK
TIMELINE
- Single #1 - ‘Stone Cold Crazy’ released May 1st, 2020
- Single #2 - ’Lay It Out On Me’ released July 3rd, 2020
- Single #3 - ‘Gaslight’ released September 3rd, 2021
- Single #4 - 'Take Time To Grow Old' released November 5th, 2021
- Album released November 5th, 2021 on all digital platforms, CD and 180g vinyl
We have been informed by the manufacturer that due to a worldwide shortage of vinyl there is a huge backlog of orders and therefore it is looking like May 2022 when we will be able to release the album on 180g vinyl with special edition artwork.
ABOUT THE LANGUAGE OF CURIOSITY
Renowned for their unique sound, distinctive songwriting and beautifully produced recordings, European and British blues award nominees the Starlite Campbell Band released their highly acclaimed second album The Language of Curiosity on independent label Supertone Records on Friday, November 5th, 2021.
Their combined songwriting skills and musicality along with a uniquely British rock & blues sound, make Starlite and Campbell, who fell in love on stage and married following a whirlwind musical romance, one hot ticket!
There aren't many artists out there who write, play, record, engineer and produce their own music themselves but that is exactly what this passionate couple do. As lovers of vinyl and all things analog, producer Simon Campbell’s production and recording techniques have a quality learned first-hand working in recording studios in the early 70’s; it's not retro - it's always been this way!
Suzy Starlite & Simon Campbell are multi-instrumentalists; you’ll also hear a Philips Philicorder, mellotron, Moog Minitaur, theremin & E1-M guitar in the mix. The album was primarily recorded on their 48 channel analog mixing console along with vintage gear such as an original 1970s Echoplex tape echo machine, valve amplifiers and vintage microphones.
With their fresh taste of original '70s British rock and British blues, the husband and wife duo have been on an exciting roller-coaster of a musical ride following the release of their debut album Blueberry Pie to rave reviews worldwide and a prestigious nomination for Best Album in the European Blues Awards.
With extensive international radio play including BBC Radio 2, charting top 10 in the UK, Australia, The Netherlands, American Blues Charts plus receiving over 50 four and five-star reviews worldwide, the band have played all over the world from headlining a festival in their Australian debut to main stage performances at The Great British Rock & Blues Festival in the UK.
The duo has recently completed a six-week full-band festival and headline tour in the UK, The Netherlands and the Czech Republic and will be playing the headline slot on the main stage at The Great British Rock & Blues Festival, UK on Saturday 15th January 2022 with many more dates to be confirmed. Worldwide in 2022/23.
‘'The Language of Curiosity' is a collection of stories about different facets of real-life experiences from working for the man, attitudes towards casual sex, space travel, social systems and abuse of power. money, war and the global refugee crisis, bouncers on the doors of the music industry, people giving up and growing old before their time and feel good British rock and British blues; it's like looking at different sides of a Rubik's cube.”
Suzy explained, “this is the second album that Simon and I have co-written and again we focussed on writing authentic, fun, thoughtful, sometimes brutal words in service of the song which informed the feel and style of music, from full-on rock ’n’ roll, tribal drums, thunderous bass, badass dirty guitar riffs, echoes of slide and lap steel, melting melodies, crazy tornadoes of sound, sirens and laughter to the nakedness of silence, washed by waves of delicious double vocal harmonies.”
As full-time musicians, the art of the song is everything and Starlite and Campbell fly in the face of disposable music – writing, recording, engineering, playing and producing all their work and then releasing on their own independent label Supertone Records.
Campbell started playing the guitar professionally as a studio session musician at the tender age of 17, signed a record deal with Polydor in the ‘80s and is also an experienced music producer having worked with Island Records, Big Jim Sullivan and Derek Lawrence in the ‘90s.
When Starlite and Campbell got together in 2013, they decided to fulfil their calling and go on the road as touring musicians and moved to France and then Spain where they sold everything that wasn’t related to music (including their flat) to buy enough gear to be able to open their own world-class vintage analog semi-mobile recording studio. The Supertone Studio opened in 2014 at the heart of which lies ‘Betty’ the CADAC, a 48 channel analog mixing console - named after Suzy’s Nana from Ponty in Wales, who is featured on the front cover of ‘Blueberry Pie’.
Simon explained ”We love that authentic analog sound and the recording techniques and gear used on the new album are really old school from an original ‘70s Echoplex tape echo machine, original valve amplifiers plus an array of speaker cabinets, vintage outboard and microphones. I think we used one FX pedal on the whole album; 95% of the guitars you hear are one man / one woman and a guitar plugged straight into the amp!! Honest! Direct! On fire!!”
IT'S ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC...
When Starlite and Campbell got together in 2013, they decided to fulfil their calling and go on the road as touring musicians and moved to France and then Spain where they sold everything that wasn’t related to music (including their flat) to buy enough gear to be able to open their own world-class vintage analog semi-mobile recording studio. The Supertone Studio opened in 2014 at the heart of which lies ‘Betty’ the CADAC, a 48 channel analog mixing console - named after Suzy’s Nana from Ponty in Wales, who is featured on the front cover of ‘Blueberry Pie’.
Simon explained ”We love that authentic analog sound and the recording techniques and gear used on the new album are really old school from an original ‘70s Echoplex tape echo machine, original valve amplifiers plus an array of speaker cabinets, vintage outboard and microphones. I think we used one FX pedal on the whole album; 95% of the guitars you hear are one man / one woman and a guitar plugged straight into the amp!! Honest! Direct! On fire!!”
THE ARTWORK IS A PART OF THE ART...
When it came to the album artwork, Starlite and Campbell worked with multi-award-winning English photographer Stuart Bebb to capture the spirit of the music on film for both the single and album artwork.
He is one of the most gifted contemporary photographers out there with a huge talent for capturing the magic of a moment!
Portraits were captured by the wonderful Sandra Ventura.
The band worked with their long term collaborator Barry Kinder from Track & Kern who is responsible for designing all the band’s releases. merchandise and logo, even down to creating their own unique font!
SINGLES
In 2020 and early 2021, the Starlite Campbell Band released three singles ‘Stone Cold Crazy’ and ‘Lay It Out On Me’ from ‘The Language of Curiosity’ followed by a cover of the Blind Faith classic ‘Can’t Find My Way Home’ which garnered fantastic feedback from the media including BBC 6 Music / Radio 2 amongst other national radio and festival enquiries. Their latest singles, 'Gaslight' was released on September 3rd, 2021 and 'Take Time To Grow Old' on November 5th, 2021.
The Language of Curiosity was released on Friday, November 5th, 2021 on Supertone Records and is available to order now direct from the band’s website or from your local record shop in Europe with distribution by Continental Records. The album and subsequent singles will be available on all streaming media.
THE SONGS - TRACK BY TRACK
1. DISTANT LAND
Searing guitar and lyrics kick off the new album by the Starlite Campbell Band. Simon’s amp on #11 with the rhythm section of Suzy and Steve lending swagger to this very contemporary theme - then come the harmonies, oh boy.
About: the continuing refugee crisis and the way the west deals with it.
2. GASLIGHT
Straight up early ‘70s British rock ‘n roll featuring Wurlitzer electric piano and a fabulous opening riff. Suzy’s bass line has a Motown feel which really works throughout the song with Simon playing a mean slide with a cheeky solo on his first-ever guitar, a 1974 Gibson Flying V.
About: populist leaders who tell wholesale lies and get away with it.
3. LANGUAGE OF CURIOSITY
More ‘60s influence in this track with Simon’s electric 12 string providing a catchy motif which recurs throughout the song. Suzy not only plays bass and sings but also fulfils mellotron and Phiicorder keyboard duties. A dark sound born of a turbulent Isle of Man winter.
About: dreaming of a better world.
4. BAD SIGN
Take a step back after the intensity and enjoy the melodies and harmonies in this track. Lovely upright piano by Del Vecchio, classy drums by Gibson and a fun, dreamscape middle eight followed by Simon’s Iberian inspired acoustic guitar solo.
About: the music industry.
5. TAKE TIME TO GROW OLD
Most of this song was recorded at the Supertone Studio in Valencia and elegantly moves through the emotions instilled by the lyrics. Twelve-string guitar, massive bass and drums magnificent harmonies culminating in a fierce guitar solo. Feeling old? Listen to this.
About: many of our contemporaries have grown old before their time. This is a call to action.
6. SAID SO
A trippy, hard rock epic with plenty of fuzz guitar, grinding Hammond organ and driving bass. The feel of the extended middle section is right out of the early ‘70s - classic rock.
About: the power of gangs and the horror of opioid addiction.
7. IT AIN'T RIGHT
Suzy delivers a wonderful vocal performance on this sensitive track based around her Fylde acoustic bass. Watch out for the massive one take harmonies. Something quite unique.
About: discrimination people of colour, LGBT and women.
8. STONE COLD CRAZY
More classic British rock. Tongue in cheek lyric with a bouncy groove, melodic solos and an anthemic harmony guitar part to finish off the track.
About: an ironic take on lust and casual sex.
9. LAY IT OUT ON ME
Desolate stripped back blues. Simple piano and distant tremolo guitar makes this a future classic. Magnificent melodic and sensitive solo by Simon prepares you for the eerie last verse.
About: a bleak take on love and loss.
10. RIDE ON COWBOY
Uptempo commentary on sex in 2021 featuring conga and four on the floor kick. Mighty bass and vocal by Suzy. Killer live track reimagined for vinyl.
About: online dating anyone??
CREDITS
CREDITS
Suzy Starlite: bass guitars, Philips Philicorder, Grotian Steinbeg piano, mellotron, percussion & vocals | Simon Campbell: guitars, Sequential Tempest, MOOG Minitaur, theremin & E1-M guitar, percussion & vocals.
Featuring: Steve Gibson: drums & percussion | Jonny Henderson: Hammond B3 organ, Vox Continental, Hohner Clavinet, Bechstein grand piano and Wurlitzer electric piano | Gabriele Del Vecchio: Yamaha and Grotian Steinbeg pianos, Wurlitzer electric piano and Hammond M100 organ | Maria Saalfeld Reis: Castanets
Production and engineering: Simon Campbell | Assistant producer/engineer: Suzy Starlite | Music and lyrics: Suzy Starlite & Simon Campbell | Recorded at Supertone Records studio in Valencia, Spain; Thören, Germany; Samora Correia, Portugal and Rockfield Studios, Wales | Lacquer cutting: Miles Showell, Abbey Road Studios, London, England | Mastering: Jon Astley, Close to the Edge Mastering, London, England | Photography: Sandra Ventura and Stuart Bebb | Graphic design: Barry Kinder
℗© 2021 Supertone Records, London, England
DOWNLOAD INFORMATION & PRESS RELEASES
To the right is a selection of .pdf files with press releases, full details of the album and singles with technical data, ISRC's, writing credits, track times and lyrics.