EVERYONE loves the king of rock n roll, and he makes an appearance at the top of this week’s soundtrack. Kind of.
Elvis impersonator Ben Portsmouth isn’t wedded to the music of one of the greatest musicians of all time.
He also writes his own material and it is this that appeared in the Wokingham Loves Music soundtrack this week.
You can listen for FREE, via Spotify.
There’s a special page set-up at bit.ly/wokinghamlovesmusic
Ben Portsmouth – The Only One
If you are an Elvis fan you’ll know local artist Ben as one of the best Elvis tribute artists around.
He proved this by being the first non-American to win the Official Ultimate Elvis Tribute Contest.
He also writes and records in his own name and here’s a track from his latest EP, Worth Fighting For, recorded at John Mitchell’s Outhouse Studio in Reading.
It’s an uplifting slice of sing-along pop rock so, if Ben’s original music is new to you, that’s all right, just take the mystery train and surrender to this guitar man – www.facebook.com/benportsmouthmusic
Kindred Spirit Band – No Smoke Without Fire
Here’s a band that has graced the stage at Wokingham Festival.
Their inventive folk prog sound includes electric violin, flute and rhythms based around the haunting emotional melodies created by singer, songwriter and guitarist, Elaine Samuels.
The band has built up a solid reputation with their album releases and live performances and late last year they released a series of digital singles taken from their albums.
This track is from their latest album, Elemental – kindredspiritband.co.uk
Hoopy Frood – Round Shaped Hole
This Wokingham-based band have just released their third album called Affirmations. Have a listen to their ‘psy groove electro rock’ on this track from the album – www.hoopyfrood.co.uk
Alfie Griffin – Fi-Lo
Some mellow grooves here from a Reading-based musician who has previously appeared live at Wokingham Festival – www.facebook.com/alfiegriffinmusic
Katie Ellwood – The Only Thing
A wonderful debut single written, recorded, produced, played and sung by this talented young musician at her home in Wokingham during lockdown – www.katieellwood.com
The Lost Trades – Hummingbird
Recommended by photographer Andrew Merritt who saw this trio when they visited the area to play at The Acoustic Couch before lockdown – thelosttrades.com
Red Tape Resistance – Hollow
This Bracknell-based band will be releasing new material very soon and while we wait for that, here’s their single from early last year – www.facebook.com/redtaperesistance
Rachel Redman – Against the Tide
Rachel has played at Wokingham Festival and here’s her new single which she describes as ‘a reflective tale of dealing with life in lockdown and all the chaos and frustration that comes with it.’ www.facebook.com/rachelredmanmusic
Third Lung – Falling Stone
The band describe themselves as ‘emotive, evocative and enchanting’ and they recently streamed a live online performance from Generation Studio – www.facebook.com/ThirdLung
Milan Webb – It Never Snows in Spain
The new solo single, mixed by Dean Nelson, from the man you’ll have seen as Carlos at Oye Santana shows at Wokingham Music Club – www.oyesantana.com
