SWITZERLAND TOUR REPORT
These were the band’s first gigs in Switzerland for
four years and it was great to return to this
amazing country of lakes and mountains. The first
gig in the beautiful town of Thun was a sell out,
and with a view of a 9,000 feet high mountain from
the hotel over the lake it was a very relaxed start to
the tour. Whilst at the hotel, Dave and Jo were
interviewed for a Swiss TV programme ‘Fenster Zum
Sonntag’. Then at soundcheck we discovered that the
power supply board in Dave’s nine year old Roland
XV5080 sound module had blown up. This is the
source for most of Dave’s essential live sounds!
After a ring round gear hire companies in Switzerland
it appeared than none had one we could hire. Potential
disaster! However, God didn’t let us down and it
turned out that there was another one sitting in a rack
just behind the stage! It belonged to the keyboard
player from the church that also used the hall on a
Sunday – and he was there helping our sound man
Johan to set up! He graciously allowed us to use it for
the whole tour – thanks Thomas!
The next gig in Rapperswil was in a converted factory
building which had a great atmosphere and another
great audience. Peter Hug did a fantastic job with the
video projection – in fact the lighting at all the gigs
was outstanding.
Geneva was next and an old cinema complex the
venue. A Spinal Tap few hours followed as we tried to
find the entrance to the hall via the lift in the
underground car park which seemed only to lead to
outside the building or to residential apartments in the
block above! The van with our pa system and
instruments wouldn’t fit into the car park, so two
smaller vans were used to ferry the gear bit by bit
underground from the busy city centre street and then
back up in several trips via a very small lift! However
the crew were great and despite a small audience at
this gig we had a great time….until after the gig when
our sound man’s car was broken into and his suitcase
stolen, after which we spent until about 2am at the
local police station! The adventures of life on the
road!
NB several amateur videos from the tour can be
seen on ‘You Tube’
Phil with his electric double bass – Rapperswil,
Switzerland 9/10. Photo by Jean-Daniel Lerber
Joanne – Thun, Switzerland 9/10. Photo by JD Lerber
Joanne – Interview for !Fenster Zum Sonntag”, Thun,
Switzerland 9/10. Photo by JD Lerber
’ANOTHER REALM’ ALBUM PROGRESS
Since the Swiss tour much progress has been made on the album. In October (11th-14th), Jo came over to
Dave’s Open Sky studio and time was spent on finishing writing a few tracks plus lots of vocal recording.
Jo and Dave re-wrote the chorus and breakdown sections for the song ‘And the Angels Dance’, which is
definitely one of the most joyous tracks on the album. Jo was inspired to write some amazing lyrics for the
end section of ‘An Atmosphere of Miracles’ and managed, through tears to put down an incredible vocal.
One of the characteristic sounds we’ve used on several tracks on this album is the use of layered vocal loops.
Dave sets a recording loop going (eg of perhaps 8 or 12 seconds) and, in real time Jo adds a new part as the loop
repeats, gradually building up a layer of several parts, either in unison or in counterpoint. We’ve used this
technique on previous albums but it really seemed appropriate to reintroduce it for the material on ‘Another
Realm’ to create the ethereal, otherworldly feel that re-occurs throughout the album.
One final vocal session is being planned to complete all the vocal recording on the album.
A week later Dave was at Frank’s studio in The
Netherlands as Frank recorded further drums,
percussion, violins and violas for the album. A brilliantly groovy new drum track was laid down
for ‘And the Angels Dance’ plus drums /
percussion on sev percussion on several other tracks and some
amazing, amazing, layered strings. This is a speciality of
Frank’s which we’ve not really exploited before on
previous previous Iona recordings. Frank creates string
arrangements by layering parts which he plays on several different violins and violas, recorded with different
microphones. The end result sounds something like the string section from a really great orchestra! You’ll be able
to hear this on tracks such as ‘Clouds’ and ‘An Atmosphere of Miracles’ and ‘Saviour’.
Talking of ‘firsts’, there are several on the new album. Frank plays some mean lead, fuzz electric violin on the
title track (anyone who remembers The Mahavishnu Orchestra will get an idea of how this sounds!) and on ‘Let
Your Glory Fall’. Jo makes her recorded percussion debut (on a shaker made out of beer bottle tops!). This is
Martin’s debut recording with Iona. Oh – and this will be the first time that Jo has sung the lyrics ‘Oh La La La‘
on an Iona album!
FEATURED ALBUM
This enewsletter’s featured album
is:
Veil of Gossamer
Dave Bainbridge
Released in 2004, Dave’s first
solo album release received
tremendous reviews and still
sounds fresh, compelling and
uplifting. Featuring numerous
guest appearances the album is
ambitious in scope and hugely
varied in sonic textures, from
simple acoustic sounds to
complex almost orchestral
passages, over which Dave’s
electric guitar soars. Extracts
from each piece on the album can
be heard at: www.iona.uk.com/
newindex/2004_pages/song%
20samples.htm
REVIEW QUOTES
“To my ears this is the most
successful album of this type since
Mike Oldfield’s masterpiece
Ommadawn. Stunning.”
www.progressiveears.com – Sept
2004
“… a sonic masterpiece …
Bainbridge has given us what is
in my humble opinion one of
the best albums ever to be
recorded … some of the best
music that he has ever written.”
Chris MacIntosh aka
Grandfather Rock
www.tollbooth.org 8/2004
“Indeed, Veil of Gossamer has
flavors of Iona but it is more than
that. This is Dave Bainbridge, freed
from the necessary compromises
that always come with creating
music as a band, free to follow
his own muse, free to cut loose on
his electric and acoustic guitars, free
to explore instrumental and vocal
textures and rich, ambient washes of
aural impressionism … a grippingly
adventurous album … something
completely fresh and filled with such
musical depth and spiritual
goodness that I will be spinning it
again and again. “
www.spiritualprog.com Sept 2004
“Bainbridge’s guitar playing is
superb; his electric solos conjure
Eric Johnson and Allan Holdsworth,
while his acoustic technique
dazzles, thanks to a remarkable
dexterity and the use of unusual
tunings. Looking deeper, the music is
genuinely touching, possessing a
spiritual quality that speaks to the
soul and inspires various states of
positivity, from peaceful tranquility
to breathless exhilaration. Layers of
wordless vocals – courtesy of Joanne
Hogg (Iona), Rachel Jones
(Karnataka), and Mae McKenna –
and McKenna’s heartfelt renderings
of Gaelic hymns (in the original
language) lend an ethereal,
otherworldly quality to much of
‘Veil of Gossamer’… Best of
2004, hands down.”
www.progressiveworld.net 8/2004
“I fear that my words might
not do justice to the haunting
and beautiful guitar that
opens ‘The Everlasting Hills
Part 1’; or misses the beauty
of the vocals accompanied by
Troy Donockley’s Uilleann
Pipes in (part 2) …‘Veil of
Gossamer’ is a truly wonderful
album combining the best of
Iona’s Celtic atmospheres
along with some splendid
guitar work from Dave
Bainbridge, and great
performances from the
assembled cast. “
www.dprp.net. Holland 9/2004
“Sitting here stunned after my first
full listen to Veil Of Gossamer, I’ve
not the command of words to convey
the true gratitude to Dave Bainbridge
for what has instantly become one of
my favorite recordings of all time.”
Kenneth L. Solomon – Progressive
Soundscapes Radio, August 2004.
IONA STORE
***Those of you new to the
newsletter or indeed the band,
may not be aware of the many
Iona cds, dvds and related solo &
collaborative album projects we
have available from our online
store. Buying direct from us
means that a far great profit
comes to the musicians, so we
can continue to make the music
that you love. Should you
prefer the albums or individual
tracks in download form, most
are also available from iTunes.
To access the store, do so via our
website (www.iona.uk.com) or
directly at www.drshosting.co.uk/
iona/
IONA TOUR DATES
Netherlands Tour – April 2011
Thursday 14.4.11, 20h30 Hedon, Zwolle, Netherlands Tel (00) 31 (0)38-452 72 29, www.hedon-zwolle.nl
Friday 15.4.11, 20.00h Ede, Netherlands (joint gig with the band Trinity) Details soon
Saturday 16.4.11 20h30 De Boerderij, Zoetermeer, Netherlands Tel (00) 31 79 3211012 www.cultuurpodiumboerderij.nl
NB- There will be 4 bands on this day as part of the venue’s anniversary celebration. Iona to headline.
MORE 2011 IONA DATES TO BE ANNOUNCED SOON!!
OTHER DATES OF INTEREST
DEW WORSHIP Dave will be joining Frank and his wife Marlou’s band Dew Worship for the Passion and Purity tour in
The Netherlands in a week’s time. For more details go to www.dew-worship.com / http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=162934737055128&ref=ts Each evening starts at 7.30pm (doors 7pm). Entrance is free – an offering will be taken
Friday 12 November in Leusden; EGL, Larikslaan 14
Saturday 13 November in Rotterdam; Julianakerk, Zaandijkstraat 5
Sunday 14 November in Kampen; Ichtus College, Jan Ligthartstraat 5
DAVE BAINBRIDGE Dave and his wife Debbie (vocals / keys) will be leading an evening of worship music (‘Open the
Floodgates of Heaven’) in Yorkshire in a few weeks time. Entrance is free, all are welcome.
Saturday 20th November 2010, New life Community Centre, Haw Lane, Yeadon, LS19 7XQ, UK Doors 7pm Start 7.30pm
info: 0113 250 6249 email: peter.j.robinson@btinternet.com
Dave will also be playing with the Fairclough Youell Band (featuring virtuoso bassist Fred T Baker) in Sheffield on 1st
December. This is a launch gig for the band’s ‘debut album Momentarily’, which features Dave on keys / guitars. Also on
the bill is amazing multi-instrumentalist Kayla Kavanagh
Wednesday 1st December, 7.30pm doors, The Boardwalk, Snig Hill, Sheffield, S3 8NA, UK Tickets £8
see: www.myspace.com/faircloughyouell
SNIPPETS
IONA possible DVD releases!
TV producer Tim Finch is currently looking into the feasibility of several IONA DVD projects. The first of these
would be and IONA TV concerts DVD featuring footage from several professionally shot concerts which the
band played during the early years (1990 – 1995). The search is currently on to find all of the source footage (if it
still exists!) and then to look at whether the project would be financially viable. The band has VHS copies and
have uncovered some great live performances of some of the most well known IONA tracks plus some that have
not been played live for years. Stay tuned.
IONA ‘ANOTHER REALM’ album release schedule
We’re looking at completing the recording on the new album before the end of the year, mixing during January /
February and releasing the album in April 2011. We hope to begin taking pre-orders for the album in January. As
we’re funding the album ourselves we’d like to enlist your help to get it out there and will be providing a
discount on bulk orders. Further details coming soon.
Bright Silver Dark Wood / Raphael’s Journey
Martin excellent acoustic folk album is now available from the IONA store. Joanne’s ‘Rafael’s Journey’ album
should be added by the time you read this (or VERY soon after)!
IONA Website Redesign!
Tim Ostendorf our friend from the USA is currently totally redesigning the IONA website which will have a
completely new look and loads of new, interesting content. Launch date is scheduled for around 1st February
2011.
MORE SNIPPETS!
Aradhna – great new album out
Our good friends Chris Hale and Pete Hicks’ great band Aradhna have released a new album. Their music is
a unique blend of Indian and Western influences and well worth checking out. For more info and to see their
beautifully shot promo video go to: http://aradhnamusic.com/ NB Chris sang a fantastic, impassioned vocal
on a track on Dave’s ‘Veil of Gossamer’ album!
Facebook
Let us know what you’re thinking on our FACEBOOK PAGE and whenever possible we’ll try and respond
back. Please encourage other Iona fans to join – it’s a great way for us to keep in touch with you.
The White Horse rides into Battle!
Jo recently did a photoshoot on the Northern Irish coast with photographer Heather Armstrong from the USA.
Jo was photographed riding her
handsome white horse with
some spectacular cloud
formations behind her,
resulting in some amazingly
atmospheric shots, some of
which will be used in the new
album artwork, which is to be
designed once again by Tim
Martindale. Watch out for
some photos in the next
enewsletter!
Martin & Phil – Rapperswil, Switzerland, 9/10, photo by JD Lerber
BEST WISHES, IONA
www.iona.uk.com
www.facebook.com/ionaband
www.myspace.com/ionauk
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