WEB PRESS
Western Power Trip
About the artist
In a world where heroes are branded like cattle with the mark of their masters,
where fields burn and temperatures rise and everything is for sale "Western Power Trip" arrives,
rising from the smoke and floodwaters of "Great" Britain, the most relevant radical band of our time.
Formed in the year 2000 Western Power Trip has its set roots in and around the cult underground music scene in London,
stemming from the now sadly defunct acoustic club "In The Line Of Fire" in the Portobello Road area, a club run by Simon Eugene,
songwriter and essential figure of WPT.
About the music
Having already experienced the highs of playing to 20,000 people supporting David Bowie and touring Japan and Asia,
Simon feels the time is now right to unleash the concept that is Western Power Trip. WPT is not just another band it is a
concept driven event. An ever moving mass of people given It's form by those who become involved in it. Effectively, anyone who
contributes becomes part of it. The music is a collision course of blistering melodies, searing guitars and esoteric sound scapes.
From the cinematic drama of "I Won't Shoot" through the alienated synth-pop of "Misconnected Disconnect", the punk riot of "Make You Go Crazy"
to the anthemic "Shelter", surely an All You Need Is Love for the 21st Century. The Lyrics are an expression of what it is like to be alive
right now, an articulation of the ambiguity and confusion of our times. "The message is not clear" because life is not clear and that is what
gives the songs their power and resonance. The idea behind WPT is to create a new movement letting the fans of the band believe that they are
buying into something bigger than just the music itself. The music has an edge that should be echoed within the imagery of WPT culminating in an
almost cult music concept, a breathe of fresh air in today's pop geared market. This is music for people who want their brains back.
http://www.hitmixuk.com/websites/wpt.php
Out Of My Hair
Effectively a vehicle for lead singer and guitarist "Comfort" (b. Simon Eugene, c.1970), so much so that he sacked
the rest of the original line-up when they objected to his controlling influence, Out Of My Hair additionally
comprises Sean Elliot (guitar), Kenny Rumbles (drums) and Jon George (bass). Formed in London, England, and signed
to RCA Records, the sound was one of glamorous indie guitar pop, with Comfort offering a Rolling Stones/Jimi Hendrix-styled
vocal performance at its heart. However, he and the band remained suspicious of the "retro" tag that had dogged more
mainstream artists such as Lenny Kravitz: "I'm not into all that hippie shit. I was watching Woodstock the other day
and it just made me think, Fuck Off!'. Despite this, the group's debut single, "In The Groove Again", had an obvious 60s,
neo-acid rock feel. The follow-up, "Heart's Desire", was less restrained and more sprawling, but still in the classic pop
tradition - or, as Comfort prefers to call it, "psychedelic bubblegum folk".
DISCOGRAPHY: Drop The Roof (BMG 1996)***.
http://www.free-albums.net/mp3/artists/biography/12877
Verbatim from Splashtv.com
OUT OF MY HAIR - "DROP THE ROOF" (Indolent)
Another debut, this time choc-full of late 60's pslightly psychedelic references.
There's definitely a T-Rex element in there - and it's more than mainman Comfort's looks -
there's a real sexy raunchiness that permeates the whole album, along with a hippy-trippy poppiness and
lyrics like "I'm making love with my mind" and "I can move the sky" - hmmmm....But some of these songs
already have the "classic" hallmark stamped onto them - "Thieves In The Fan Club" is a good example.
There are elements here that I wouldn't normally like - that whole cliched '60's thang, but Comfort has put them together
in such a way that I think you'd have to be and ultra-hardened cynic not to get down with it. A great album in the main.
Max
It's very rare for a band on a major label to be featured on these pages.
This is because a) I disagree with many major label policies (the only good thing about being on a major is that you're
likely to be miles more famous and sell miles more records) and b) to be perfectly honest, it's very rare that I come across
a band on a major label that I actually like a lot.
But anyway, I heard some non-major label stuff by Out Of My Hair a few months ago (tracks on a free 7" and tape with Organ fanzine,
and a tape of 4 track recordings from 1993, entitled Valley Sound) which I was most impressed with, so I wrote to Out Of My Hair asking
about their other releases. I received a newsletter informing me of the new single, In The Groove Again. That song was one of my favourite
tracks on Valley Sound so I just had to buy the single, regardless of the fact that it's on a major label!
The four songs on In The Groove Again are all brilliant. Surprising for a major label release, as many records on majors tend to have throwaway
tracks for B-sides. But the fact that all the songs are brilliant doesn't surprise me that much, as I've never heard a bad Out Of My Hair song.
Also well worth tracking down is the previous single, Mister Jones. The title track is piano based, and took a while to get into,
but after a few listens I found it quite simply marvellous. I'd Rather Be is equally marvellous. Comfort In My Life is probably the weakest
song, but is by no means bad.
The sound is very 70s-ish, but I know Out Of My Hair aren't jumping on the 70s bandwagon as they sounded pretty similar back in 1993. But
no doubt they got snapped up by RCA because it's seemingly "in" to sound like a band from a couple of decades ago. "In" or not, however, Out Of My Hair
deserve to be famous.
Out Of My Hair may have signed to a major but they haven't got completely impersonal as you can still write to them and get free badges and
PHOTOCOPIED newsletters! Write to Out Of My Hair at PO Box 607, Freepost (SW 8031), London SW6 4YY.
*note - this address is no longer valid
Special Thanks to Kim from Bliss Aquamarine for permission to use this article
Verbatim from www.eccentrica.org
OUT OF MY HAIR "Drop The Roof"
Sweet is a word I would definitely use to describe Out of my Hair's debut album, but I would stop at sickly sweet.
Simon Comfort's voice, however, hits the right tone in between mellowness and melancholy,
gently fluctuating between the two perfectly as the lyrics demand. "In the groove again" is delivered with just the right
touch of poignancy while "That's all" and "Mary" are simply so heart-wrenching that only the more up-beat tunes save the album from
descending into unadulterated sentimentality, without dominating it entirely. But the rest of the album never quite rises to the great heights
of "In the groove again", which is a great shame. Perhaps it would be rather a tall order to demand better one-liners than
"High top chairs they never stop me from falling down on my back". Drop the Roof never wallows in total depression, despite
the deep dissatisfaction that emerges in "I'd rather be" and "Mr Jones", due to the farcical lyrics supplied courtesy of
"Gracie's Social Please Me's" and "Judas Flip". The mix of joy and gloom is just right, in fact one thing that stands out is the
almost perfect balance between the two throughout the album. In a way, this is quite disturbing, as if all emotion has been sacrificed for
a sugared finish. It isn't obvious when listening to isolated tracks, but the whole ensemble does give off this impression.
More sugar? No thanks, it's quite sweet enough. More jangly guitars and penetrating lyrics? Not necessary, it's jam packed already.
More raw emotion wouldn't go amiss though. [Anna Beard]
Verbatim from I Really Love Music
out of my hair - drop the roof
acoustic guitars meet mark bolan melodies. this is a mellow sunday afternoon guitar pop song album.
the kind that major record companies dont seem to have faith in these days, shame. as this is fantastic.
the lyrics are incisive and in parts biting. the singer (named as 'comfort') was heralded with much praise at
the time and being presented as a future star ! oh well - doesn't detract from this great release. hunt this down.
Contender for Nicest Record Ever Made, 'In The Groove Again' was
featured heavily on the late night Mark Radcliffe Show, but as usual the band sank without a trace even with
a good album 'Drop The Roof'. The covers always shown a big bloke with a huge perm as shown above. This I presume is
Comfort the singer and writer of the band. It really is a great song even though I think it sounds a bit Simon and
Garfunkel. Find a copy of it on white 7" vinyl or on Costly Disc with a nicer version of In The Groove Again.
The lastest news is that the group have reformed as 'another group'. They release the first single on 17th January 1998.
http://members.tripod.com/~junge/me/oomh.html
Out Of My Hair: "Drop The Roof" (1996). This British band just fell into my lap and refused to leave my
CD player for days! To describe them would be a mixture of Lightning Seeds and your basic britpop act.
With a very fine sense of balance, though.
http://www.lemec.net/hot030599.html
Print Press
Ikon Magazine - 1995
out of my hair
safe boy
bmg
According to frontman Comfort, Out of My Hair was inspired by the
"realization that things weren't fully focused".
This revelation occurred back in 1991 and, after four years' evolution, the band have finally
released début album Safe Boy.
Listening to Safe Boy is like bumping into a vaguely familiar acquaintance and wondering where you've met before. Some of the pieces
are blatant; Wide Together belongs on an
Oasis recording and the title track is a near-perfect Beatles reproduction. Yet Comfort seems too resourceful
to carve a career from simple duplication. Lyrics are often steeped in ambiguous imagery and this repeatedly
rescues the album from mediocrity. Obscure tales like River of Gold, full of lines like
"When I opened my eyes/there was mud in the sky..." remove the suspicion of deja vu.
Perhaps Comfort's biggest fault is his discernible lack of emotion. These tales of cankered love and healing are so smothered
by acoustic-fingered pop that it's hard to tell whether the stories are personal introspection or impartial narratives. I'll plumb
for the later, because of his apparent indifference.
Comfort openly admits that his "idea of success is the charts", and most of the songs on Safe Boy are radio-friendly summertime pop; catchy as a six-foot fishing hook, fizzy as a sherbet fountain.
-Kate Merry
Promotional Items
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The Proof of You Fan Club Letter for September 29, 1997 release
Fledgling Operator EP Fan Club Letter for July 14, 1997 release
Drop the Roof Fan Club Letter for April 15, 1996 release
new!--> Drop the Roof Official RCA Press Sheet for April 15, 1996 release
Safe Boy Promotional Postcard and Badge for March 15, 1996 release
In the Groove Again, 2nd release, Fan Club Mailing and Badge for September 4, 1995 release Page 1 | Page 2
Christmas Tape and Fan Club Letter for December 1995
Heart's Desire, Fan Club Mailing for November 7, 1994 release Page 1 | Page 2
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