16th October 2012
Newton Faulkner at the O2 Academy
Singer Newton Faulkner will be appearing at Leicester’s O2 Academy on Monday 13th November. We last reviewed his work in 2012 – so here is the text of the article that we published on Arts in Leicestershire magazine.
Lauren Raybould’s review of this is live now on our November page.
Singer and songwriter Newton Faulkner was in Leicester so we sent Adam Zareba to talk to him and see his show at the O2 on Tuesday 16th October.
Adam: You stated that you wrote the new album to be played live and not to be recorded; do you feel that you achieved your goal, and if so in what way? If you had to choose, what is your favourite song on the new record?
Newton: Of course, I feel that, as a whole, the album translated a lot better than my other works. My favourite song would have to be right now, Sugar In The Snow.
Adam: Since your last album, how do you think you’ve progressed as a musician?
Newton: I think, overall, I’ve just gotten better at playing, spending time working on my weakness and developed my skills at writing. In some ways, I feel that the second album as a little bit too ‘personal.’
Adam: You’re style – when it comes to playing – is unique. How did you develop it?
Newton: Just through experimentation and messing around with new techniques. I would often sit and watch other players and mimic small hand movements and build upon that.
Adam: Has the birth of your son affected your style as a musician and is there a track on the album that has some significance to him?
Newton: Not at all, maybe in certain obvious ways, such as traveling, as for a song on the album, no there is not, only fragments scattered throughout the entire record.
Adam: If you could invite three people to dinner, living or dead, who would it be?
Newton: Peter Sellers, Sami Davis Junior and Brain Blessed.
Adam: What former aspect of your life growing up will most affect how you raise your own children?
Newton: I think the most important aspect would be just following what he wants to do in life. My parents always supported me in doing music, so I feel that that is important for a child to have, the idea of being supported.
Newton Faulkner’s third album WRITE IT ON YOUR SKIN came out on iTunes.
Adam Zareba was at Newton Faulkner’s gig at the O2 Academy and here is his review:
I had the pleasure of attending Newton Faulkner’s live show at the O2 Academy in Leicester. On arrival at the venue, there was already a vast crowd gathered outside, waiting to be let in. The excitement grew as the doors opened and people flooded in.
First to take to the stage, armed just a guitar, was Sam Brookes. Carrying his voice effortlessly through the crowd caused the conversations to stop, as people watched on in excitement and awe. With a hint of Damien Rice to his voice, Sam held his own very well, even speaking to the crowd in-between songs and keeping them entertained all the way through until finally leaving the stage with a thunderous applause. He certainly won the hearts of many girls in the room, along with the fans.
Colour The Atlas, came on next – a four piece band with a clean and crisp sound. Led by their female vocalist Jess, they started their set strong, keeping the tempo rather slow and calm, causing lighters to be waved in the air as Jess’s voice reached every corner of the room with ease, hitting falsettos which caused everyone’s mouth to drop, with the sheer power of her voice.
The crowd, who had warmed up a bit more at this time, had got involved, clapping their hands at any given opportunity, until finally, the band left the stage to a loud cheer.
You could now feel the excitement as people began to push their way to the front of the crowd to be able to catch a glimpse of the ginger dreaded legend and fifteen minutes later, they got their wish, as Newton arrived on stage/
With his full force, he opened his set with the amazing Pulling Teeth ( from the new album) causing the crowd to bounce and scream the words back to him. Going on to play other new tracks such as Brick by Brick and Clouds, Newton certainly knew how to keep the crowd engaged.
Even when blasting out a cover of Superstition, by Stevie Wonder, he dazzled the crowd with the finger tapping for which he has become famous. Watching from the front, I could almost sense the excitement oozing from the crowd as they soaked up as much as they could, seeing Newton doing his thing.
Newton’s down to earth nature helped him interact with the crowd with ease, even joking about him not being able to afford shoes since the release of the new album – which helped give the room a relaxed atmosphere. Newton played classics such as I Need Something and the very rare Full Fat, beaming from ear to ear as people sang the words back to him.
As the night drew to an end, Newton closed his set with the ever favourite Dream Catch Me and of course the Write It On Your Skin, from the new album, even giving the crowd a small encore with Pick Up Your Broken Heart, before leaving the crowd wanting more.
It’ s clear to see that all the acts had found the skill in keeping a crowd not only entertained but also connected with them on a much more personal level but I think it’s safe to say, that everyone there would agree that Newton is certainly an act that deserves what he has, and in some ways is still underrated. Either way, if you do have a chance to see this ‘ginger dreaded Jesus’, as one fan called him, then we would definitely recommend it.
Adam Zareba is a singer, songwriter from Nottingham who has performed this year, in Leicester, several times. Find out more about him on Facebook.
