Tag Archives: Panic Room

Panic Room announce new guitarist

Posted on August 7, 2013 by Tim Hall

From the Panic Room Facebook Page: a studio update that names the lead guitarist for the forthcoming album and tour.

Some of you have been asking, and we’ve been biding our time to tell you (while we jam & learn our new songs together)… but for this album, we are delighted to welcome on lead guitar a fantastic musician by the name of Adam O’Sullivan!!!

Many of us in the band have known Adam for a few years now, as he and his family are well-known as some of the most respected musicians in this area… Gav & Yatim even play occasionally in a band with his dad, Paddy!

But for a few years Adam was away in London studying music at university, so our paths didn’t cross for a little while…

He’s now back in Wales though, and after spending a long time debating our options this year, we realised we needed someone local to us for working together on the future Panic Room music.

We’ve been absolutely blessed to have the amazing skills & energy of Pete Harwood on guitar with us for this year’s shows so far, but as will become apparent this week, his band Morpheus Rising have some big stuff coming up, and we want to wish him an incredible future ahead with all the success he and the band so thoroughly deserve!

He will always be a part of our Panic Room family, and we’re sure it won’t be the last time we all share a stage / tour together!

But now, for the new Panic Room album and this next unfolding chapter of our journey, we knew it was important to be brave and leap into the future, and think about who could possibly fit our band sound & vibe the best while being close enough to jam and create with…

And we all thought of Adam, as one of the best and most versatile players we know, and certainly one of Wales’ finest!

He’s a rare find, in that he can rock hard & yet play with great sensitivity too, as well as having a fantastic funky/jazz flair which will suit our stuff all round!

We think you’ll all Love his playing.

And that’s good, because he’ll be playing all lead guitar parts on this new album! …As well as joining us on stage for the autumn/winter shows..

And after that, who knows! If he likes what he finds, he might stick around ;oD

As anyone who saw those two incredible shows at Bilston and Manchester at the end of the Summer tour will attest, Pete Harwood did an incredible job, absolutely nailing the guitar parts and adding so much energy it was like having two Yatims on stage (or, as happened in at Bilston, in the middle of the audience). Quite a few fans would have loved to see him stay for longer, but with Morpheus Rising having ambitious plans of their own it was always going to be unlikely that he’d ever be able to continue double duty in both bands.

So, we welcome Adam O’Sullivan to the band, for the next few months, at least.

Posted in Music News | Tagged Panic Room | 2 Comments

Panic Room & Morpheus Rising, The Flowerpot

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Tim Hall

After a one-off gig in Milton Keynes back in April, Panic Room came to The Flowerpot in Derby for the first date of their short UK tour.

Openers Morpheus Rising had supported Panic Room on last November, and they’re back again for this tour. They have a changed lineup for these gigs, with Touchstone’s Henry Rogers joining the band on drums, and this weekend, Andy Gooby standing in for Andy Smith, who was off in Holland with Mostly Autumn. Despite the musical chairs, they are getting better and better as a live band with their modern take on classic twin lead guitar hard rock.

They’re now working on a second album, and the set contained quite a bit of brand-new material alongside favourites from their first disk “Let the Sleeper Awake”. Their signature guitar harmonies between Pete Harwood and Damien James Sweeting are as good as ever, with some very impressive soloing from Damien in particular. The new material came over very strongly, possibly slightly more riff-orientated than before, and whets the appetite for the forthcoming album.

Panic Room themselves have an altered lineup from last year, with Pete Harwood doing double duty in both bands. Playing only his third gig with the band, he’s fitted in very well. With Morpheus Rising he doesn’t play many solos, leaving them to Damien Sweeting with his flashier shred-metal style. But Pete Harwood’s playing suits Panic Room’s music perfectly. He’s got the same less-is-more understated style as the departed Paul Davies, which is precisely the sort of guitarist Panic Room’s music needs. There are many bands made up from a couple of key members plus supporting cast, but Panic Room have always been an ensemble where the whole is far more than the sum of the parts.

It’s almost impossible to pick out highlights from Panic Room’s set, such is the strength of their material. The set naturally drew heavily from their latest album “Skin” with selected highlights from the first two albums. The songs range from the out-and-out hard rock of “Apocalypstick” and “Hiding The World” to the emotional intensity of “Skin” and “The Fall”. The jazz-flavoured “Chameleon” saw Anne-Marie Helder’s ‘Silver Wand’ making an appearance, and they’re still playing their inventive reworking of ELP’s “Bitches Crystal”. Anne-Marie was on superb form as always, demonstrating just why she’s an award-winning vocalist. But then so was everyone else.

With The Flowerpot not far short of full, one wonders how much longer it will be possible to see this band playing small and intimate venues like this. The tour continues with shows in London, Norwich, Bilston and Manchester before Panic Room head into the studio to work on their fourth album.

Posted in Live Reviews | Tagged Featured, Morpheus Rising, Panic Room, The Flowerpot Derby | Comments Off

Panic Room SKIN Tour

Posted on June 18, 2013 by Tim Hall

Panic Room hit the road again with six live appearances, beginning at The Flowerpot in Derby on 28th June, and ending at Sound Control in Manchester on 13th July. Special guests on all dates will be the excellent Morpheus Rising, and the London show at The Garage on 6th July will be a three-band bill with Touchstone.

These will the the final dates on the SKIN tour before Panic Room head into the studio to work on their fourth album.

Posted in Music News | Tagged Panic Room | Comments Off

Luna Rossa – Sleeping Pills and Lullabies

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Tim Hall

Luna Rossa is an acoustic project from Anne-Marie Helder and Jon Edwards, best known as members and principle writers of the highly acclaimed Swansea-based rock band Panic Room.

The words “acoustic album” tends to suggest rootsy folk-orientated or heavily stripped-down recordings, but “Sleeping Pills and Lullabies” takes a rather different approach. For much of the album the dominant sounds are Jon Edwards’ expressive grand piano and Anne-Marie Helder’s remarkably versatile voice, supported by strings and sparing use of acoustic guitar. Occasionally you’ll also hear some spidery electric guitar, programmed rhythm tracks, some of Anne-Marie’s flute, and all sorts of other strange instruments.

After an initial drone, opener “The Dark Room” starts with a rolling piano figure accompanying the vocal and gradually adds layers to build into the closest thing the album has to a conventional rock song. The following “Heart on my Sleeve” is a spine-tingly beautiful atmospheric ballad with the string section prominent, and I love the moment towards the end where Anne-Marie uses her voice as a solo instrument with a wordless vocal line while the strings take up what had been the piano line. Then “Mad About You” is a complete change of pace, an uptempo love song based around acoustic guitar and percussion.

Aside from the delicate cover of The Magnetic Fields’ “Book of Love”, all songs are co-written by Anne-Marie and Jon, and quite a few of those songs wouldn’t have sounded out of place on a Panic Room record despite the absence of any crunchy guitars or a rock rhythm section. But I’m also reminded of Jon Lord’s post-Deep Purple classical work, especially on the instrumental “Leaving for the Last Time” with some evocative flute from Anne-Marie. The laid-back improvised feel of “Cloud” recalls the mood of Kate Bush’s “50 Words for Snow”. There are moments recalling Massive Attack at their most song-orientated, especially on the powerful closer “Gasp”, with it’s dramatic piano chords and multi-tracked backing vocal that some might recognise as the intro tape used in Panic Room’s most recent tour.

It’s an extremely varied record; rich and layered in places, sparse and minimalist in others, experimental in some ways yet anchored in melodies that get stuck in your head after just a few listens. This a work that’s pointless even to try and pigeonhole, It’s not really a rock album as such, certainly not prog-rock in the traditional sense, yet with its elements of classical music and touches of electronica it’s progressive in the original meaning of the word. The quality of the songwriting combined with Anne-Marie’s ever amazing voice should appeal strongly to Panic Room’s existing fans, but I can also see this record also having a far wider crossover appeal.

For more information, including how to pre-order the album, visit the Luna Rossa website at www.lunarossa.co

Posted in Record Reviews | Tagged Luna Rossa, Panic Room | 2 Comments

Panic Room 2013 UK Tour Dates

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Tim Hall

In danger of getting buried in the news about Paul Davies’ departure from the band is the news that Panic Room have some UK tour dates in spring and early summer.

April 19th â€“ The Stables, Milton Keynes

June 28th – The Flowerpot, Derby

June 30th – The Scene, Swansea

July 5th â€“ Arts Centre, Norwich

July 12th – Robin 2, Bilston

July 13th – Sound Control, Manchester

Nice to see them play a gig in Swansea for the first time in a while, in a new venue. Previous shows at The Garage had been poorly attended due to lack of promotion by the venue, let’s hope The Scene is a bit more on the ball and they get the sort of attendance they deserve in the their home town.

As previously stated, Morpheus Rising guitarist Pete Harwood will be standing in on lead guitar for these dates. Morpheus Rising themselves will also be the support for the five dates in June and July.

Posted in Music News | Tagged Morpheus Rising, Panic Room | Comments Off

Paul Davies leaves Panic Room

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Tim Hall

Press release from Panic Room

Dear friends, fans, and followers of Panic Room…

We are deeply saddened to have to make the announcement today that Paul Davies – our lead guitarist – will be stepping down from the band as of this time.

We know that this will come as a huge shock to everyone; and indeed, it is a very sad time for us all.

Paul has not just been our band-mate, but our best friend too, for many years.

But, the time has come where Paul feels he must step away from Panic Room, for personal reasons; and we, as his close friends, must accept and respect any decision which he makes, fully and with nothing but care and admiration for him.

Paul is simply a stunning musician, with a talent as deep and true as his heart; and he has been with us on this journey since the very beginning. He is a brother to us, and so it is just not possible for us to put all our feelings into words right now.

But, we hope you will all join us in wishing Paul the very best for the future, as we send him our love, support, gratitude, and sheer awe at everything he has achieved and created.

For those of you who are coming to see PANIC ROOM play live this Spring / Summer, fear not – we will not be cancelling any of our Tour Dates, as we wish to honour each commitment and not let anyone down.

So, we are pleased to announce that our good friend Pete Harwood – of the band Morpheus Rising – will be ‘depping’ with us on lead guitar for the next few gigs. We are incredibly grateful to Pete (and of course his band-mates) for agreeing to play some shows with us, and for being such a huge help at this most difficult of times.

View PANIC ROOM Tour-Dates

PANIC ROOM also plan to record our 4th studio album later this year, with recording sessions booked for August onwards.

But, we wish to allow ourselves – and our loyal fans – enough time and headspace to take stock of everything and to readjust, before we commit to finding a long-term ‘replacement’ for Paul.

So, we intend to write and record this next album as a 4-piece, then possibly add some ‘special guest’ guitarists to the mix, each bringing something new and positive to our music.

We are looking forward, and keen to create another brand new musical ‘world’ to share with you, as we have with each of our past albums.

As a band, we have always strived to create and move through new areas and musical adventures all the time, and standing still has never been an option for us. This is equally true today.

Each band has its own ‘journey’, and ours has been an amazing experience so far… Like any kind of journey though, there will be unexpected detours, obstacles and changes along the way. But you have to hang in there – keep your eye on the ultimate destination you’re aiming for, and keep on moving.

Sometimes, not everyone will make it to the end of the journey; they might make a different turning of their own, and move down a path which leads them away. But, you know that you wouldn’t have got to where you are now without them being a part of it…

And for us, Paul will always be a part of the reason that Panic Room are where we are today.

The next few weeks will be very intense for us all, as we plan, rehearse, and work on a multitude of things to make this next Panic Room chapter as successful as it deserves to be…

But we are committed to making both the Live shows and the next album absolutely spectacular, and you know that we never like to disappoint!

So we hope that you will join us every step of the way, as we brave these rough seas over the next few weeks… because your amazing support and devotion has always kept us afloat; and right now, every ounce of that is something we will draw strength from.

With love, light, and a million stars to guide the way…
from Anne-Marie, Jon, Gav & Yatim. *x*

Not really much I can add to that. It’s come as a complete shock to me and no doubt to many other fans. Unlike some of their peers Panic Room had kept a stable lineup for some time, and I’m sure that’s been one factor that’s made them such a tight live band over the last couple of years. Paul will be a very hard act to follow

Posted in Music News | Tagged Panic Room | 2 Comments

You can tell you’re a Panic Room fan if whenever one of the band wanders off into the crowd mid-set and keeps playing (As happened with Blue Coupe last night) you describe it as “Doing a Yatim”. First time I’ve seen a drummer do that, though…

Posted on February 1, 2013 by Tim Hall | Comments Off

Panic Room – Bilston Robin 2

Posted on December 29, 2012 by Tim Hall

Some photos of Panic Room, as well as the supports Morpheus Rising and Howard Sinclair, taken from the stunning Christmas gig at Bilston Robin 2 on December 2nd.

Posted in Music, Photos | Tagged Panic Room | Comments Off

2012 Album of the Year

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Tim Hall

And finally we get to the album of the year. I can’t really imagine this one’s going to be much of a surprise for most regular readers â€“ I’ve written about this album a lot over the past year, and even interviewed the band for Trebuchet Magazine.

Panic Room â€“ SKIN

In a year that’s seen the release of many great albums, there is still one that manages to stand out, and that’s the third album by Swansea’s Panic Room.

Their 2008 dÃ©but was the sound of five supremely talented musicians searching for a new collective musical direction. The second was the sound of a band with a clear vision of what they wanted to be. With SKIN, they’ve consolidated that vision and taken it to another level. With the combination of Anne-Marie Helder’s award-winning vocals, and the amazing vituosity of the band, the result is a an ambitious cinematic work that defies simplistic genre pigeonholing. It’s a hugely varied record, with songs ranging from shimmering jazz and heartfelt stripped-down ballads to hard rock numbers that sound like Kate Bush fronting Led Zeppelin.

For years, Panic Room have been one of the British rock scene’s best-kept secrets. With “Skin”, their strongest and most assured album to date, they’ve delivered a record that deserves to be heard by a far wider audience.

Posted in Record Reviews | Tagged 2012 End-of-Year List, Panic Room | 8 Comments

Panic Room Interview – Part III

Posted on November 17, 2012 by Tim Hall

The third and longest part of my interview with Anne-Marie Helder and Jon Edwards of Panic Room. This one goes behind the music itself to cover things like the music biz and Panic Room’s place in it, the use and abuse of social networking, and the thorny question of whether or not Panic Room are Prog.

Parts one and two are here and here.

Posted in Music | Tagged Panic Room | Comments Off