Graeme Lockett - mainly guitar, vocals and percussion with help from Anthony Read who has been known to drum and shake things. A few collaborations with Alison O'Donnell have been completed with more to follow.
Influences
A fan of many many many things. Much of which won't have elements heard in HSBW tunes, but the following might;
Pentangle
Bridget St John
Mellow Candle
Jethro Tull
Robert Wyatt
Velvet Underground
Fairport Convention (and all sorts related...)
Black Sabbath
Spirogyra
Fuchsia
Principal Edwards Magic Theatre
Nick Drake
Neil Young
Incredible String Band
Midwinter
Danielle Dax
Karl Blake
Gong
B52's
Sea Nymphs
Cardiacs
Pink Floyd
PJ Harvey
Kristin Hersh
Suzanne Vega
Pram
Pavement
Talk Talk
Bark Psychosis
Gorkys (and post Gorkys solo-ness)
Mercury Rev
Slapp Happy
Faust
Curved Air
Hazy Loper
Ned Collette
Retsin (& other Tara Jane O'Neill delights)
Jenny Hoyston...
In 2004 I accidentally grew a scruffy beard and posed for some photos next to a gallows pole in Wiltshire on a bitterly cold February Sunday. I hatched a plan at that point to write and record a bunch of songs designed to sound not out of place on the Wicker Man soundtrack. Trouble was, about two thousand people had the same idea around the same time. Besides, my 8 track had recently blown up so I had to resort to four-track cassette which is a major pain in the arse when you're trying to be self-indulgent. So that project was rather short lived.
The urge to go "roots" was always there though, but now there is no theme in mind. Head South By Weaving is basically something I have wanted to do for years. Even when I was 17, churning out 90 second nuggets of the middle-class English small town equivalent of Californian hardcore punk (about 8 years too late, naturally) in Winchester, I was secretly going home and listening to "Salamander" by Jethro Tull thinking "ooh that's nice, wish I could do that". Still can't, but never mind.
I'm not a purist by any means. The good old clanking Boss drum machine makes that obvious, and if I have been listening to something .. Records it'll creep in there somewhere...
2008 saw the first Head South By Weaving release thanks to the good people of Fruits de Mer. On a limited run coloured vinyl 7" single will be found covers of Nick Drake's "Day is Done" and Nico's "Frozen Warnings" featuring the glorious tones of Alison O'Donnell.
In November 2009, Alison O'Donnell released her debut solo album "Hey Hey Hippy Witch" which features the HSBW collaboration "Harbour Boy" alongside contributions from Steven Collins of The Owl Service, Kevin Scott of Mr Pine, Dave Colohan of Agitated Radio Pilot, Gavin Prior of United Bible Studies, Richard Moult, Michael Tyack of Circulus, Isabel Ni Chuireáin and Jonny Tennant. Esteemed company indeed.
O'Donnell's naturally otherworldly delivery allows her to pick up Drake’s haunting and sentimental 'Day Is Done' and make it her own;
…the almost inimitable Nico's 'Frozen Warnings' is positively dripping with icy darkness that fills the grim but somehow mellow depths of the piece with more superb vocalisation set against the drone of Cale-esque tones and timings.
O'Donnell can hold her head high in the knowledge that she did herself and Drake and Nico proud with her scintillating versions of their songs. Pete Brown aka Toxic Pete
…a brace of remarkable re-appraisals, whose intention it seems is to have you all a swoon…a caressing ghostly hue woven from the subtle dash of softly shimmering and hauntingly hushed psyche intonations
…captures perfectly the fragile almost chilling monochrome appeal of the original and frames it within a darkly hollowing ethereal soft psyche folk mantra like bewitchment that's both statuesque in deliverance and enchantingly epic in appearance. Indescribably essential.
Mark at Losing Today
…a more powerful rendition of the original without losing any of the feel lyrically that does no harm at all to Nick Drake's, or for that matter, Alison O'Donnell's continuing legacy…
…takes Nico's stark message and drops the temperature further with an intense and hypnotic performance…Quite harrowing…Nico would have loved this! Nick Leese at Heyday Mail Order, London
…adds an extra darkness and starkness to the already tragic originals…if you think Alison O'Donnell's best work is behind her - think again. Rough Trade, London
…genuine, black, shimmering and positively medieval in its menace. Winter bleak...Drake is generally pure class and this is a cover that adds lustre…the fractured oscillations wrapped by sneaky percussion makes it all something that a sinister Syd Barrett would be doing for his dominatrix
Unpeeled
"deliciously haunting"
Fran Ashcroft, Happybeat Studios I edited my profile with Thomas Myspace Editor V4.4 (www.strikefile.com/myspace)
How are you, Head South By Weaving? Haven't checked in on you lately, so I swung by to wish you a happy holiday season & hope you are feeling well! Listen, I have another track up on my page, "Attack Of The Mushroom People." You can Hear it right Now, if you'd like at: www.myspace.com/psychedelicpablo OK, that's it for the shameless self-promotion.Thanks for being a friend. adios for now! Pablo
Described as: 'like Soulfly if Trent Reznor were part of the band,' their debut album "There's No Profit in Truth", mixes the pent up frustration of acts such as Rage Against The Machine with the raging, highly charged riffs of classic Machine Head. Good, honest, politically aware and highly charged Metal at its best...
PRINCIPAL EDWARDS The Devon Tapes CD Previously unissued 1974 recordings Released Monday 14th April 2008 on Cherry Red CDMRED 360 (distributed by Pinnacle Entertainment)
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Hola!! Wow i am so glad u invited me to berfiend u....or rather BEFRIEND u. What gorgeous, sunshine filled music u r making in that misty wet land! Where can i get your tunes? Peace and storms from OZ, x Cristina
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