A big hefty slab of funk rock!
 
Having jammed with the guys from Ethnic Minority in June 2012, they asked me if I'd like to be their new singer and within two weeks we had written this original track together and recorded it at MaryJane Studios with Paul Grimshaw.

Dave's bass groove is funk rock at it's best backed up by some great drumming by Roland. Damien's somewhat unconventional guitar work gives the song a trippy feeling that really brings the song to life - it baffled me how he came up with such 'crazy parts' as he called them! haha

The pause before the solo is brilliant; Dave knew exactly where he wanted the song to go and took it there. Damien's solo blew me away. We had a few takes until he nailed it with a raw passion that makes his style of playing so great. Listen out for his playing in the last chorus...he's an animal!!

The vocal I was struggling with at first when rehearsing as me and Dave were recovering from the drunken Fragile Audio gig the night before, but I eventually got the raspy attitude in my voice that the song needed. Paul came up with the idea of backing vocals in the chorus and I came up with the idea of the 'telephone' sound on my voice in the first half of every chorus to add a different feel to the track. 

Most of the lyrics came from skat-singing during rehearsals and describe several characters you might see on a regular night out on the town. The chorus hints at someone drinking away their sorrows until they're so plastered that they'll say or do anything to feel happy again. The title itself comes from myself being a lover of whiskey, and as such being a 'Whiskey Soul.'

When describing it's sound, I always say it's like Guns N' Roses jamming with Red Hot Chilli Peppers...and I think it hits the nail on the head!

ETHNIC MINORITY - Whiskey Soul

This track was written back in January 2007, and often closed our shows in the early days. Originally there was no arranged timing for the end solo, so some nights it could extend to almost 7 minutes with Liam prancing on tables and running outside the venue hall soloing away...talk about rock n roll!

I think the song contains some great melodies, and the breakdown part is very similar to that included in the Made In Wonderland track, 'Last Orders'. Rosannah Lynch provides harmony vocals on the track which I think sound great. 

We did that many overdubs with the lead guitars at the end though it was almost impossible to recreate them live - a problem we seemed to have with the backing vocals on the other tracks too.

Interestingly, the song was originally entitled 'A Wife Is A Man's Best Bitch'...three guesses why we changed that title...

LOADED DECK - Ride

Recorded in a drunken haze, the rap features excerpts from Liam Cummiskey's crowd interaction during Loaded Deck's August 2007 show at The Backdoor, Rochdale.

The dog barks were my idea.

Still makes me laugh every time!

DJLD - The Liam Rap

Cover of the Guns N' Roses classic recorded live and acoustic during Lauren Webb's Unsigned Show on 96.5 Bolton FM, 11/07/12.

Nick and Aaron are on the acoustics with me providing vocals.

There's a couple of mistakes but it's probably the best recording of the track we have. Shame we didn't do the ending though...

MADE IN WONDERLAND - Patience (Live and Acoustic on Bolton FM)

Rough recording of the White Lion classic featuring Kyle Halliday (Checkerboard Dolls) on guitar duties, June 2010. Kyle was originally planned to be the lead guitar player in Made In Wonderland, but lack of communication lead him to quickly be replaced as Aaron moved to lead and James stepped in on rhythm.

There is no denying his abilities on the guitar though, as this recording proves. All the guitar tracks were played straight into the computer so the sound quality isn't brilliant at times and the timing is a little off, but I still think it's a great cover. I ended up putting a little too much echo on my vocals though and couldn't seem to rectify the problem so kept them as is.

CRAIG WELLS & KYLE HALLIDAY - When The Children Cry (White Lion Cover)

Only heard this song a few times but it wasn't until a friend told me to listen closely to the lyrics that I realised how much they related to me and the situation I seem to be in too many a time... so I decided to learn it on my acoustic and see how it would sound.

The lyrics in the second verse are apparently the ones Labrinth sings when he performs the track solo.

Haven't got the bridge part nailed yet so I left it out, but I'm pretty happy with the vocal so thought I'd share it with everyone :)

CRAIG WELLS - Beneath Your Beautiful (Labrinth w/Emilie Sande Cover)

Opening track to kick off our electric set at the Halloween Monster's Ball held at Tyldesley Conservative Club, 27/10/12!!

A cover of the Van Halen classic that stays true to the original musically, but vocally is very much our own.

For some reason I forgot the quiet bit was coming in hence why there's a line missing in my vocals, but other than that I'm pretty happy with my vocal performance despite dips in clarity here and there (the PA wasn't brilliant for the low roof regarding mic feedback). 

The band's sounding awesome, I love the raw edge we have to our playing style!

MADE IN WONDERLAND - Ain't Talkin' Bout Love (Live @ Tyldesley Conservative Club)

Third track from our electric set at the Halloween Monster's Ball held at Tyldesley Conservative Club, 27/10/12!

One of the heavier tracks in our arsenal, and still a favourite of mine to sing live. I love how Dave's bassline adds depth to the track that it never had before...it reminds me of Geezer Butler's work with Black Sabbath. Also my favourite of Aaron's solos...

MADE IN WONDERLAND - Can't Get Through (Live @ Tyldesley Conservative Club)

Our 7th track from our electric set at the Halloween Monster's Ball held at Tyldesley Conservative Club, 27/10/12!

Maybe a touch too fast but I love the track's ferocity and the gnarly vocal. Didn't do the scream in the intro like usual as I had another 10 songs or something crazy to get through, so didn't wanna risk harming my vocals! haha :')

MADE IN WONDERLAND - Last Orders (Live @ Tyldesley Conservative Club)

Cover of the Leonard Cohen penned classic in the style of Jeff Buckley.

Currently one of my favourite songs that I have played solo on a couple of occasions during some Made In Wonderland shows.

There seems to be a lot of depth to the song's meaning, but I read it as someone losing their faith in love, whether it be with themself, their lover or with their religious beliefs.

The vocal is dodgy in places and gets a little muffled when it gets louder, but I think it's a pretty decent take on a classic song :)

CRAIG WELLS - Hallelujah (Jeff Buckley Cover)

Singer/Songwriter with Made In Wonderland and Ethnic Minority. Play the odd bit of tambourine with Fragile Audio too...

Whiskey Soul

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