EL PIANOMAN - SHORT AND SWEET
"A man of the world," said Berlin's Zitty magazine of Thomas Channell. The Pianoman was born in Sydney (Australia), spent his youth in Stellenbosch (South Africa), and then cut his teeth as a songwriter and performer in the New York music scene, where he played at venues like the legendary CBGB, The Living Room, The Bitter End, Cornelia Street Café, The Knitting Factory, Caffe Vivaldi and Mo Pitkin's House of Satisfaction. Based in Berlin since 2007, he has taken the stage at venues like WABE, Kunstfabrik Schlot and Junction Bar, as well as in cities like Dresden, Erfurt and Kassel. He has also performed all over his native South Africa. FRITZ Radio (RBB) in Germany has compared Channell with the young Elton John in the 70`s, when he still played more Rock & Roll and Blues, though Channell's music is more intimate and with more "campfire on the keys". Also expect impressions of Billy Joel and Rufus Wainwright. His second album, "The Seduction of Thomas Channell", was released in 2009 and is a collaboration with top musicians in Berlin. Songs that are emphatic and laconic descriptions of the everyday, born on the streets of Harlem, Queens, Kreuzberg and Cape Town.
THE SEDUCTION OF THOMAS CHANNELL
Citizens of the world are going to love THE SEDUCTION OF THOMAS CHANNELL, the highly anticipated second album by this South African singer-songwriter. Seduced by life in New York City, Berlin and Cape Town, Channell has created an album featuring such fan favourites as the startling “Shooting Star”, the sublime “Florentino Ariza” and the ridiculous “Bacon”. Packed full with 12 tracks that are as diverse as the passengers on a New York City subway car, the album exquisitely showcases Channell’s idiosyncratic style as well as his unique talent for melody with a touch of musical theatre. At last, here is a studio recording of what audiences at performances in Berlin, New York and South Africa have been treated to for years: haunting vocals, lyrics that read like a Vonnegut novel, fiery piano playing and slightly offbeat harmonies. Reminiscent of Ben Folds, Billy Joel, Tori Amos and Rufus Wainwright, Thomas Channell proudly follows in the footsteps of these masters of song and piano. The album was recorded in the heart of Berlin’s trendy Prenzlauer Berg area with producer Jörg Surrey and features the best of the Berlin music scene in Olive Christou (tiger hifi) on backing vocals, Thorsten Lastinger (Joachim Deutschland) on bass, Andre Wenzlitschke on drums, Anthony Thet on guitars, Per Hauber on saxophone, and Anjulie Nock on cello.
THE SEDUCTION OF THOMAS CHANNELL is the follow-up to his debut album CROWDED SUNRISE, which was released to critical acclaim in 2004. The new tracks were born on the streets of Harlem after a thunderstorm, in a small apartment in Queens, in a café in Berlin, and in a jungle in Mexico. Inspiration came from the pages of a secondhand copy of Love in the Time of Cholera, a drive home in a 1982 yellow Volkswagen Jetta on a rainy Cape Town night, and waking up to the smell of fried bacon every morning for one whole year on Riverside Drive, NYC. With its honesty, intimacy, simplicity in expression and good dose of tongue-in-cheek humour, THE SEDUCTION OF THOMAS CHANNELL is an indispensable addition to every good record collection in 2009. “Seduction is much more than an album," Channell says. "It’s a musical diary of four years of my life. It’s a non-immigrant visa to join me on a journey through the places, streets, stories and people that have shaped the skyline of my world.” The album is available on iTunes, CDBaby and all good online music stores, and at live shows.
