Keith, Gideon and Deadbeats at Jabez on 6th

• 2nd Apr 2005

VManEvents Presents…

KEITH

Gideon Conn
The Deadbeats
+ Keith Vs The Deadbeats till 2am

Wednesday April 6th 2005 @ Jabez Clegg, Manchester. Tickets £4 adv/£5 otd, Doors 7:30pm.

KEITH link
With a debut single release imminent, packed out gigs and hordes of record company interest following them, these are exciting times for Manchester’s Hottest New Band™. Recently the band signed a short term deal with Lucky Number Records to release debut single ‘Hold That Gun’ which has already been played on Zane Lowe’s Radio 1 Evening Session and they follow recent impressive appearances for Akoustik Anarkhy with support slots with Hard-Fi and Tom Vek.

Formed in 2002 whilst studying in Manchester for a music production degree, Keith's sound can be described as groove-rock, incorporating elements of dub, folk, indie, soundscapes and dance music. While Keith's influences are undeniably eclectic (ranging from DJ Shadow and Can to Elliott Smith and The Beta Band), the loving way in which each element is incorporated into the overall sound, combined with the presence of a vocalist with a truly distinctive voice (“somewhere between Morrissey and Jeff Buckley” -Gigwise.com) has ensured the creation of a distinctive, Keith sound. The band's intense live gigs have also earned them critical plaudits as well as a passionately loyal fan-base.

“Manchester's most talked about new band” BBC GMR

Live band of the month award- Buzz Magazine

“… like a rock band playing Hacienda classics… from melodic downbeat numbers into jackin bass lines and driving kick drum rhythms. Brilliant.” David Henshaw- Glasswerk.co.uk

GIDEON CONN link
A solo artist who simply HAS to be seen. An eccentric, enigmatic genius who performs an unforgettable mix of jazz, funk, hip-hop and scat on acoustic guitar. Best summed up by his equally hilarious/equally brilliant cover of ‘Hey Ya!’, Gideon Conn has the sort of astonishing tunes and bewilderingly brilliant stage presence that compels first time viewers to grab their friends/workmates/family members/random passers by and tell them all about the extraordinary event they’ve just witnessed.

With a recent session at BBC GMR just behind him and a date at London’s famous Jazz Café ahead of him, this Mancunian legend-to-be is set for Badly Drawn Boy-esque levels of crossover success.

THE DEADBEATS link
Labelled “The best looking band in Manchester” by Heat Magazine of all people, The Deadbeats are a five-piece country blues rock n ‘roll band who match their looks with equally striking tunes. Fronted by Sam Hammond, an influential face in the local music scene, the last twelve months have seen an incredible rise for the band that has seen them win Manchester’s Battle of the Bands 2004, support Pete Doherty for the Manchester leg of his NYE gigs and then firstly winning a place in the final 6 out of 1500 unsigned entries to play Glastonbury 2005 and then actually winning the whole thing (won last year by The Subways) for a place on the acoustic stage at the world’s most famous festival.

Using the money from their Manchester Battle of the Bands win, the band cut a demo at the vintage Toerag Studios famously used for The White Stripes album ‘Elephant’. The demo successfully captured the band’s energetic live sound with the track ‘Emptying my pockets’ appearing on Papercut magazines ‘best of Manchester’s unsigned’ CD and the demo becoming a key part of their Glastonbury nomination and subsequent win. Regularly playing to large crowds at top band nights such as Blowout, tHE gREAT wHITE cHOCOLATE dEBATE and Ricochet has maintained the band’s sharpness live, a joyous foot-stomping spectacle well worthy of all the attention.

“I wasn’t expecting this lot to be anywhere near as good as they were. The music was infectious. I tried not to dance and I failed! Shot through with blues the five lads from Manchester clearly had a fan club and by the end I wanted to sign up too. Laid back acoustic guitarist and singer Sam Hammond reminded me of a young Black Crowes. The sound was fantastic” Scott Williams- Glastonbury Unsigned Review- efestivals.co.uk

“I have to agree with the audience I was surrounded by that The Deadbeats are an exciting, entertaining band which urge people to get up and dance… it was extremely uplifting to see a band with so much energy when performing. I was surprisingly impressed.” Claire Thorpe- Student Direct