STORNOWAY

Stornoway is a British alternative indie pop band from the Cowley area of Oxford that consists of singer and guitarist Brian Briggs; singer, guitarist, cellist and keyboardist Jon Ouin; singer, guitarist and bassist Oliver Steadman; and drummer Robert Steadman. The band is usually joined by trumpeter Adam Briggs and violinist Rahul Satija. Named after the Hebridean town on the Isle of Lewis, which appears on all UK televised weather reports and shipping forecasts, the group incorporates string instruments and keyboards, supported by a typical pop backline of guitar, drums, and bass guitar.

The band released their first single "Zorbing" in July 2009. Their second single "Unfaithful" was released on 28 September 2009 on CD, 7" vinyl and iTunes digital download. The launch concert for this single was held at the Institute of Contemporary Arts in London on 21 September. Their debut tour took place from 16 to 30 October culminating in a concert at Oxford's Sheldonian Theatre, accompanied by the Oxford Millennium Orchestra.

Stornoway played sets at a number of UK summer festivals in 2009, including Glastonbury festival 2009, and wrote a series of articles about their experiences for the Daily Telegraph newspaper.

On September 1, 2009, they played a secret free concert at Tate Modern, London, being introduced by Sara Cox and supported by Reverend and The Makers The event was to celebrate the launch of the new climate change campaign 10:10.

Stornoway appeared on Later... with Jools Holland in November 2009, along with Sting, Norah Jones, Jay-Z and Foo Fighters.

In December 2009, Stornoway were announced as entrants onto the longlist of the BBC's Sound of 2010 competition having been selected by a panel of some 165 UK-based 'tastemakers'.

REVIEWS :

'A breath of fresh air. Come join the lovely revolution.'
NME

'A passionate singer makes his case and a violin holds the line, wiry, visceral guitar parts ensure the song lodges in the brain. 4/5'
'Unfaithful' review, THE MIRROR

'No-one ever said this would be problem free" sings Brian Briggs, yet this makes for two stirring singles out of two. Briggs' vocals wander around a vast range, guitars build to an exultant scream, the strings soar with a rare grace. The best new band around. 9/10'
'Unfaithful' review, PLANET SOUND

'Songs such as 'Unfaithful' and 'Zorbing' have them in danger of shaking off their 'best-kept secret' tag in the near future. 4/5'
ARTROCKER

'Maybe it needs a bunch of degrees to write songs this amazing. It doesn't require anything other than working ears to realise how special they are. 5/5'
THE NEWS OF THE WORLD

'Magical, majestic songs. 4/5'
Live review, THE SUNDAY TIMES

'My favourite single of the year'
'Zorbing' review, THE GUARDIAN

'Stornoway's sound is like shifting sand: a mixture of acoustic pastorals, pop balladry and folkedelia. Tomorrow, Glastonbury. Next week, the world. 4/5'
THE INDEPENDENT

'It is that rare thing, a pop song so devoid of cynicism and so bathed in sun-dappled melody it is impossible not to love'
'Zorbing' review, DROWNED IN SOUND

Source : Wikipedia