BIO
With the tragic passing of Andy Race - enigmatic front man, vocalist, songwriter, producer, guitarist, friend and inspiration to all those who knew him, we are pleased to be able to bring you two previously un-released albums of work. the last we created as a band.
For Andy, music was the most important thing in his life and it remained so right until the end. The band have had success in a previous life under the name "BLOOM" Their debut self released album "All That Is" gaining critical acclaim from press and fans alike, selling over 20,000 copies
The Album, All That Is, achieved gold sales in Italy and after a few tours, TV and radio appearance, interest was building in several territories. The band began working on their next album and industry professionals from many countries were wanting to get involved.
Sadly, there were a few separate incidents that were to change the bands fortunes. First, after a promising start in the UK, the albums' distributor, Pinnacle, went into receivership and the band not only lost the distribution deal but also had to buy their albums back. Then the bands promoter in Italy ran off with all the money made in that territory, funds which were meant to launch the next album. Disillusioned, the band never released a second album and spent the next roughly 10 years doing solo projects and working with different people but always remained close friends and frequently came back together to collaborate and play.
Andy continued with a solo project under the name Jackson Nova, releasing an album under that name and received an invitation to play at Canada's North by North East festival, which he did with guitarist Richard fewings and delivered a number of spine-tingling, stripped back acoustic sets that really showcased the power and the emotion in his voice. The album, A Constant State of Change, was a touching collection of songs both new and old delivered in a direct and personal way, as Andy found his voice in this new direction. A few successful gigs at renowned acoustic venues such as The Bedford in Balham, saw invitations to record at Peter Gabriel's Real World Studio's and gained industry interest from Rolling Stone's producer Chris Kimsey.
Andy then buried himself in the studio again, for what transpired to be one last time. He wanted to create an album with atmosphere, passion and soul that whilst being stripped back and laid bare had an emotional content that was more than the sum of its parts. He threw himself into this project, much as he did with everything in life but with an intensity that is hard to convey. He spent literally months, writing, recording, and mixing. He later said that when delivering the vocals he was often literally in tears - he put everything into it. This last album was called Harmonic Sun and it is devastatingly brilliant.
With the band now officially back together they wanted a name change to reflect the new direction. they decided upon The Indigo Rising. A new release and come back gigs were being planned. There was also renewed industry interest to release a single and moves were being made to re-record and release this when the final devastating hammer blow struck - Andy was diagnosed with cancer.
The band did what friends do and closed ranks. retreating into the studio to record together much as they could. Andy remained totally dedicated to music. His last desire in music was for the band to release the work they had created together, Both are incredible pieces of work and show the range, song-writing ability and power of his voice. Sadly, he didn't live to see this happen, but the band had all made the promise to each other that the work would be released . The fist of these albums " Harmonic sun" is now available through flicknife/humdrum records across all major platforms. the second album will follow in summer 2021
Whilst the band remains largely unknown, these releases are real hidden musical gems to discover. There is so much life and soul in their music, nothing fake or engineered or synthesized. It needs to live on and it should do - share it - tell people about it, pass it on and Andy will live on through his music.