We’ve had a hell of a year! With that in mind, we’ve decided to give you a quick rundown of the highlights of 2011 from where we were standing. Enjoy!
New Disorder Music Festival
“It might have been the middle of fucking nowhere, but it was a mighty fucking night!” – Whitty, frontman
“I’d bought along an absolutely stupid pair of union jack trousers. Moments before our set, Whitty insisted that if I was going to wear them then it should be without a shirt. I was already kind of nervous at this point since hardly anybody in the crowd knew us. As I stepped out onto the stage, I raised my Guinness to the audience, knowing that if it fell flat, I’d have looked a total nob-end. Luckily, they went mental.” – Alex Thomson, Bass
We were very excited to be on the bill for this, and what a gig it turned out to be! Reasons we were chuffed with how this went included the wonderful luck-of-the-draw time slot we ended up with, the number of metalheads who prised themselves away from the bar to check us out (we weren’t really expecting this at all), the amazing reception we received, and the very kind reviews written after the event for Nottingham Live and Midlands Rocks.
We were very happy with how our set went, Alex’s devastating trousers notwithstanding – often the energy we try to build up gets interrupted by an equipment malfunction or us being crap at changing between songs, but for this gig it all went off without a hitch. Whitty’s zombie facepaint suited him down to the ground.
Funds raised by the day for Rock Against Child Pornography and Abuse amounted to a total of £1500 – a wonderful achievement we were very proud to be a part of.
Whitty, having forgotten about the previous days’ corpse paint, was discovered in the back of a van the following morning staring in horror at his own reflection and whimpering incoherently that he would never drink again.
Kerrang! Vintage Arts Fair
“Dale End was fucking heaving. I’ve never signed so many shoes and bellies in my life” – Whitty, frontman
We were invited by Heretic Promotions to be their representative at the Kerrang! Radio Vintage Arts Fair. At first we were that heady mixture of excited and worried – wow, Kerrang! Radio! Will anyone want to see a gig in the middle of Dale End? Will all our gear get nicked while we play? Will the weather hold out? Will stuff be thrown at us?!
It was with some trepidation, then, that we hauled our gear up the goods lift of The Square Shopping Centre in Dale End, emerged blinking into the bright sunshine, and … bloody hell, the place was rammed. Our first concern, easily dismissed.
The lovely people who’d turned out for the day hung on in their hundreds to see us. Someone had handed Whitty a radio mic, which enabled him to perform much of the set while running around the square and, at one point, while riding an onlooker’s skateboard. After our set, we were proffered with many, many things to sign – somewhat bizarrely, much of the audience seemed to want our scribblings on their shoes. And arms. And skateboard.
We love you, Birmingham!
Playing Live on BBC WM
“I was so nervous, I thought I would be sick right there in the studio before we went on.” – Joshua Watson, Guitar
The day before the release of Radiostasis, we rolled up to BBC WM with our full complement of equipment. We’d been invited to perform the EP in its entirety, live, for the thousands of listeners to BBC WM’s unsigned show. This was quite unlike anything we’d ever done before, and listening back to it, it shows – not necessarily in our playing of the songs, but we suddenly realised none of us really knew how to be interviewed. We’re pretty sure we talked total rubbish. Hopefully it wasn’t enough to put people off the music itself, which we played OK – but what an experience it was!
Kilburn Festival, London
“That drunk woman dancing around in her one-piece swimsuit had me pissing myself.” – Mez, drums
“Downright lovely.” – Whitty, frontman
We stumbled upon a slot at a free open-air festival in the summer in Kilburn Grange Park which turned out to be absolutely amazing. The weather was hot, the drinks delicious and the people many. We climbed PA stacks which were not strapped down and in so doing unwittingly endangered everyone’s lives. We gave away about 30 CDs, causing a stampede towards the stage, and in so doing unwittingly endangered everyone else’s lives.
It’s a miracle any of us made it out alive.
Sonic Rock Solstice
“Sonic Rock was amazing again this year, apart from the fact I got thrown out on the final night for bringing my own drinks in… but then again, if you play with feathers you’re going to get your arse tickled.” – Whitty, frontman
Our favourite ever full festival, we appeared on the Top Rock Radio stage for the second year and once again enjoyed it immensely. Josh and Alex got so drunk after the CH set that they can’t really remember anything. Having reviewed the evidence, we have to conclude that at some point we hung out with our good friends Dakesis…
Radiostasis & El Nibre EPs
“Our recorded output in 2011 makes me weep. It’s around an 80/20 mix of joy and horror.” – Alex Thomson, Bass
Yes, this year we released two EPs. We’re extremely pleased with how they both came out and it’s fair to say that by recording ourselves, in our own time, in our own lockup, using our own equipment, we’ve hit upon a way of working which really produces the goods. Our guitarist-cum-producer, Josh, has been able to shape our sound the old-fashioned way: by spending countless hours mixing and constructing harmonies and guitar layers during the actual recording process. This simply wouldn’t be possible for us working in a big studio, where time is quite literally money, but it’s been crucial in carving out a sound and identity which is unique to us.
This is continuing through into 2012 as we get ready to release our debut album, of which more news very soon…
Captain Horizon would like to thank all of our fans from the bottom of our hearts for an incredible year!
P, L & B
Captain Horizon
