Tom Waits, Dr John, Louis Armstrong, John Lennon, Randy Newman, The Doors, Parliment, Captain Beefheart, Nina Simone, Monk, Ray Charles, Fats Domino, Oscar Peterson, Miles Davis, Bill Evans, Leonard Cohen, Laurie Anderson, Fiona Apple, David Bowie, Antony and the Johnsons, Herbie Hanckock, The Bad Plus, Henry Mancini, Cole Porter, George Gershwin...
The red velvet storytelling of Charlie Smyles over his alley cat key sounds creates an atmosphere of quirky wit and enigmatic anticipation as one catches an occasional glimpse of his sparkling eyes under his hat. Slinky sax and bass lines weave in and out of Charlie's lyrical journeys - storytelling style, which climax into unforgettable melodies that either leave one exhilarated or overwhelmed with genuine emotion.
Shuttled to and from moods, a Smyles audience is acutely aware that they are partaking in something palpably genuine. Charlie's raw yet viscous vocal is often complemented by stunning 3-way harmonies in a show tunes style, and Matt's own pristine lead vocal shines in one of his own memorable tunes. Each of these 4 musicians brings in a distinct flavour to create a rainbow of genres that is difficult to define but leaves one feeling childlike, excited and sentimental all at once.
We are reminded of the gravity of Cohen's ballads, the storytelling of Waits, and the thrill of Gershwin with overtones of Zappa's off beat comedy.
Charlie and the Smyles have drawn a stable following over the last year, having performed in a variety of venues including the Brunswick Green in what was a successful residency.
"Deep sexy cool then oozed onto the stage in the form of Chalie and the Smyles, melodic hep-cat breaks punctuation Charlie's beatnik keys and gravel hoarse song. Man, dig that" Roarhouse.org...
“The beginning of a Smyles performance is reminiscent of a shadow creeping onto a Twin Peaks scene.” Queeny Qups…
Errol Flynn's Pianist will screen yet again in Russia another two times, once in the Novgorod Kremlin in Nizhni and also at The Loft Project in Saint-Petersburg 2009. More detailed may be sourced from my latest post on snuffboxfilms.
So put a track of Bublitschki, make yourself a Kiev, and sit down to watch Dr. Zhivago as my short film has its third and fourth Russian Federation screening.
Or if you fancy downloading the track directly to your mobile phone you can scan the QR below which will take you directly to the Remix This track at iTunes on your mobile device.
Hey CS, been a bit of an exile lately so that's why I've been like a voice in the wind ... thought I'd pass on this news though ...
After a wonderful best film in nomination win at the ESFF in Moscow, Errol Flynn's Pianist has made it as a finalist in The One Minutes Belgium Open in Ghent. All the details can be read up about it on my snuffboxfilms Blog.
