Toby
(vocals & guitar) Dave (vocals & bass) and Andy (vocals
& percussion) have been writing music together since 1998 and
played their first gigs together as 'The Glorious Amber Life'. Millzy
joined on lead guitar in the spring of 2002 and 'Sound Sanctuary'
was born.
Their
experience of playing out was usually turning up at parties, being
given an acoustic guitar and playing in kitchens, bedrooms and gardens.
Being based in Kent (Badgers Mount, Maidstone, Tunbridge Wells and
Tonbridge) there were few venues and they knew that they'd have
to go to London. So in 2002 they played at 'The Rock Garden', 'Sound',
'The Kings Head', 'The Hope and Anchor' and 'W14', promoting a solo
album (The Sound Sanctuary) that Toby had recorded at The Old Barn
studio in the small village of Hildenborough. Anyone who's been
to these venues will know how it works - loads of people from Kent
would catch a train to support them but their music would not reach
fresh ears. However the album itself showed Toby's song writing
skills and help came from the strangest of places including Lynn
Parsons who played several tracks on her night time Radio 2 show.
By
the end of 2002 the band began writing together in Millzy's parents'
(still not quite finished) house in Badgers Mount with a new confidence.
It was then that producers Andy & Guy (Bombay Monkey) asked
them if they'd like to work together at their soon to be finished
studio 'Lo-Tek' based in the Ashdown Forest (Winnie the Pooh country).
Bombay Monkey's experience was in electronica, dance, hip hop and
Super Mario Karting. The duo had already made tracks for Ministry
of Sound, DJ 1st Rate, and their own band Bombay Monkey but loved
the acoustic side of Sound Sanctuary.
Between
2003 and 2004 the collaboration produced two demo CDRs which were
played out at some of London's best acoustic music venues in the
summer of 2004 before they returned to the studio to begin work
on their debut release. 2005 will see 2 EP releases from Sound Sanctuary
and the band will be returning to the cream of these venues in May
and June this year to promote their debut EP Contact and (space
permitting) introducing drums to the live experience. And the odd
sample. |