Have drums, will travel!

The advert could not have been simpler and more to the point: “drummer seeks original rock/pop band going places”.

 

Whether appearing on college notice boards, newspaper classifieds or telephone boxes, such words have led to some of the world’s greatest bands being formed and one local musician hopes to do the same – at the age of 52!

 

With musical influences dating back 300 years, Nigel Mervyn’s tastes are as eclectic as his own journey has been interesting. From banging biscuit tins in his bedroom as a kid to creating his own recording and mixing studio at his old stone property close to Llanfyllin, Nigel has enjoyed a colourful life which is about to open a new chapter with a journey into professional music.

 

“I have been playing drums since I was 15,” he said. “But I am now a professional as this is the first opportunity I have had to dedicate 100 % of my work time to music due to running a graphics/multimedia business for nearly 25 years.”

 

With his unquenchable appetite for writing and performing music greater than ever, Nigel wants to hook-up with music professionals whose “needs, ambitions and aspirations are the same as mine to create and perform good quality popular music”.

 

“Much of the local sound has an indie/punk feel which I quite like. Bands like Colour Sunday are excellent and have some strong emotional and melodic hooks so there are good quality musicians here. It would be good if more local music talent had a stab at writing songs which are less ‘fashionable’. There are some singer/songwriters locally who are good but it is difficult to break through.”

 

Originally from southern England, Nigel settled in Montgomeryshire in 2000 with his wife and has made a concerted effort to learn Welsh, to the extent of writing and performing Welsh songs. He has flirted with the professional music industry over the past 25 years, playing with notable musicians, and he can include Ray Davies of The Kinks among his mentors. He even performed with a band in the cyber world Second Life.

 

“I remember once playing with a band called The Bushe Pilots (circa 1989) with a reputable session singer called Tony Burrows who used to wonder off to the toilet with the microphone to carry on singing while we were still playing on stage,” he recalled.

 

Nigel has enjoyed considerable success in his ‘day job’ in the graphics and media industry, most notably for the music and promo cover CD for the Eidos Games product ‘Tomb Raider IV’. But full time music will dictate his next adventure.

 

“I have my own recording studio so the costs will be kept very low for producing our own material,” he said. “It’s been 12 years since my last recording. I have lots of ideas which have been distilling in the meantime and I’ve got sufficient material for at least another two albums. The surroundings we live in provide incredible inspiration so I am looking to hear from anyone sharing the same aspirations as me.”

 

For more information on Nigel and to listen to his music, visit: http://www.myspace.com/nigelmervynmusic