Formed in 2011, the five-piece that is 'The Hummingbirds' have become widely celebrated and much loved in their home city of Liverpool, where they easily command sellout status at the 02 Academy. Their line-up is Jay Davies on vocals and guitar, Matty Brougham on rhythm guitar, Mic Kountis on guitar and backing vocals, Richard Smith on drums and backing vocals and Ryan Lewis on bass guitar.
In July 2012, the monthly music magazine Bido Lito said, " 'The Hummingbirds' could very possibly be the hardest working band on the Liverpool music scene.You may well recognise them from their infamous busking sessions; showcasing their distinctive brand of dynamic and uplifting music on our city's streets. From Liverpool ONE to Church Street, to the lofty rooftop of a certain Seattle-based coffee chain, they have become a welcome imprint of late, stamping their blues-infused stylings across town. With a wealth of live shows behind them, notching up gigs in Manchester and London, not to mention welcoming The Queen into Liverpool, 'The Hummingbirds' show no signs of decelerating."
Their almost insanely melodic song craft has made them the modern-day exponents of the Mersey sound, a rich tradition stretching back to the days when 'The Beatles' first took over the city, and then the world. Vocalist Jay Davies and rhythm guitarist Matty Brougham were the band’s initial backbone, and when Mic Kountis was invited to contribute, he in turn enlisted drummer Richard Smith before Ryan Lewis joined on bass. Jay says, "At the beginning, we did do some covers, then we went to some open mic nights. People liked it, Matty and I on acoustic guitars, then quickly we started writing our own songs, especially when the other guys got involved." Jay had asked Mick and Richard (who knew each other from school) to have a jam one night at a small open mic night in a bar called Heebie Jeebies and a few months later, Richard met Ryan in a bar who offered his position as a bass player to them. Mic adds, "As for the songwriting, it's a five-way thing. Mostly it's a combination of me, Matt and Jay, then Ryan and Rich will add the rhythm section afterwards. We always write acoustically, and simplicity's the key with us. Everyone does get involved, especially sometimes if me and Jay get stumped. It's like five brains in the band, with different influences." Their genre can be described as Mersey Beat, Skiffle, Indie-Folk, Country-Folk.
They won the Liverpool Music Award, 'One to Watch 2013' in their first year as well as being tipped for The Mercury Music prize. Releasing their first EP, 'Out Of The Rain', in November 2015 on their own label, Gladstone Recording Co. and crowd-funded their debut album, 'Pieces of You' through a Pledge campaign saw the album released in March 2016.
What's fascinating about their sound is that it delivers a 21st century take on that heritage, and sprinkles it with elements of Americana and other influences. Think of the hooks of the Fab Four of '64, the harmonies of 'The Hollies' circa 'Sorry Suzanne' and the jangling guitar landscapes of early 'Eagles', and you're somewhere near. Yet, after honing their style on stage and in the studio, the group they sound like most is 'The Hummingbirds'. The other ingredient is a touch of British modesty. "Technically we're not the best players," says guitarist Mic Kountis, "but when we play together, it's kind of unique. You start to add the layers, and it sounds like a Hummingbirds song." The original Americana ingredient was from lead vocalist Jay Davies' collection, which featured the likes of Johnny Cash and Buck Owens. It was this lesser-celebrated country hero's original version of 'Act Naturally', with his trusty Buckaroos, that so attracted four other Liverpool lads in the 'Help!' era. "Wherever you go in Liverpool, you're touching places the Beatles have touched," says Jay. "But we love them, and they definitely influence a lot of our music."
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| The Arts Club, Liverpool 2017 |
At The Arts Club in 2017 they played their last hometown gig for a while and music blog Getintothis' Sarah Pitman was there to take in the action. 'As the final hometown show for a while drew fans out en masse, 'The Hummingbirds' presented them with their very own chilled music styling. After finishing their first song the band let the crowd know how nervous they were about playing the gig as they thought that everyone had forgotten about them which was clearly not the case as the crowd sang along to all their hits. The band released their new 4 track EP 'Moving On' on July 28th which they spent a year working on. 'The Hummingbirds' dug through their back catalogue of songs and performed a few tracks that they wrote back in 2012 even though they admitted to hating to play songs that were written so long ago. One of these songs was 'Talking of Tomorrow' which was the first track they wrote together as a band and clearly held a lot of nostalgia for the band and their fans.'
On their Facebook page and Twitter on the 2nd of January 2022 they posted, "By the end of this week, our second album will finally be complete! What a feeling! Look how happy it’s made Rich. On a serious note we are over the moon to get plugging away. We cannot wait to tackle this year. Full steam ahead."
see also :- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2022/02/pool-of-sound-bamboo-fringe.html
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