To celebrate the release of my debut solo album as JUNKBOND, I am continuing these song evolution playlists to highlight the older tracks that went through many drafts and lives before finally finding a home on 'Spring The Locks'.
 'Gift Horse Mouth' has a title lifted from R.E.M.'s Monster album and started as an acoustic alt-country piece in the band Quint before getting fleshed out (and rocked up) in The Letter and The Farewell State before being reconstructed with the help of my former band mates Rich, Rob and Stu as the best of all worlds and LP centerpiece!

Best Of Lounge

Gift Horse Mouth (Quint version)

Spring The Locks

Gift Horse Mouth (album version)

To celebrate the release of my debut solo album as JUNKBOND, I am continuing these song evolution playlists to highlight the older tracks that went through many drafts and lives before finally finding a home on 'Spring The Locks'.
 The track 'In The Wars' has one of the longest gestation periods of any on the album, starting out as a teenage dirge called 'Optimisery' heavily inspired by Kid A-era Radiohead and then going through numerous re-writes to ultimately become the riff-rock monster highlight of the finished LP. What sets this song apart are the amazing horns by Andy & Will Cross, adding a woozy New Orleans feel to things!

In The Wars (early draft)

Optimisery (solo sketch)

Volume 2

Optimisery (Fretless demo)

In The Wars (album version)

To celebrate the release of my debut solo album as JUNKBOND, I am continuing these song evolution playlists to highlight the older tracks that went through many drafts and lives before finally finding a home on 'Spring The Locks'.
The tune is about taking a chance on love and leaping into that unknown joy with both feet. It's one of my oldest love songs that never really worked anywhere except solo acoustic until now and it's appropriate for Tom Henthorn to produce it as it was one of the first songs I ever played for him back in 2002 at a solo showcase which led to our first collaboration on the bRoKeN fAcE project.
Like the rest of the LP, it's fleshed out with Tom's studio trickery and bold backing choices - organ AND harpsichord? Why the hell not... - bringing this long standing song to life at last!

Volume 3

Spring Fever (Fretless Demo)

Spring Fever (acoustic sketch)

Spring Fever (electric rough)

Spring Fever (album version)

The first demo of my own songs I recorded with my good friend Richard Loughridge (of The Horn & The Letter) in his attic the summer before going to University. Was released on tape under the name Fretless (after an REM b-side) and had no drums (no drummer!) but plenty of invention and set me on my way writing and recording my own material for the next 20 plus years!

Demo1

Halted

April Fools Day

Damn Yr Hands

In 2002 I put my name forward for a band development course at Red Tape Studios in Sheffield. Anyone selected would work with the music management and production students over a nine month period on recording and playing live along with seminars on all aspects of the industry. I submitted a demo under the name bRoKeN fAcE (didn't like the idea of being a solo artist so came up with an alter ego) and after playing a showcase set at the studio, I was picked for the course. It was a great way of meeting people and my first experience of professional recording, working with Tom Henthorne who I have remained friends with ever since and am now working with again on my current projects

tHe PiEcEs E.p.

World's Too Quiet

Sweetness & Light

Dear John Letter

Beautiful Damage Done

Demo

Absinthe Blues (Demo)

Touchwood (Demo)

Demo Curse (Demo)

To show the creative process of a song, here's the three versions of our first single 'Blessed Or Cursed'. It started as a rough sketch played into a dictaphone back in 2001 under the name 'Insomnia Relief', developed into a demo recorded in a garden over the hot summer of 2002 and was worked on from time to time over the next 18 years until we recorded it properly last year for the album 'Spring The Locks'. From small seeds...

Blessed Or Cursed

A home for orphaned songs written over the last 25 years, JUNKBOND is the new project from Simon Roberts (The Letter/The Farewell State) and showcases those tunes that never made it into bands over the years.

Now armed with debut album 'Spring The Locks', Simon is paying back the debt owed to these long standing songs.

JunkBond

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