C Duncan | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Birth name | Christopher Duncan |
Born | 29 July 1989 |
Origin | Glasgow, Scotland |
Genres | Indie pop, indie folk, dream pop |
Instrument(s) | Keyboards, guitar, vocals |
Years active | 2012–present |
Labels | Bella Union |
Website | www |
Christopher Duncan (born 29 July 1989) is a Scottish composer and musician. His compositions have been featured on various television programmes, including Waterloo Road , and have been performed by Icebreaker and the Sirens of Titan choir. [1] His first solo single, "For", was released in December 2014. [2] He is currently signed to Bella Union.
His debut album Architect was nominated for the 2015 Mercury Music Prize. [3] In October 2016, he released his second album The Midnight Sun. [4] On 18 January 2019 Duncan announced his third album, Health, would be released on 29 March 2019. [5] On the same day, he released the first single from Health, "Impossible". [6] Health was produced by Elbow's Craig Potter at Blueprint Studios at Salford, Manchester, and will be Duncan's first album he did not record and produce entirely by himself. [7] [8] The album was shortlisted for the Scottish Album of the Year Award 2019.
Duncan's parents are both classical musicians. He initially took up piano and viola as instruments, but playing with bands in his teenage years, he also learned to play guitar, bass and drums. He enrolled in Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (now the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) to study music composition. His pieces were performed by various ensembles across the UK. [1]
Duncan's solo music takes in both classical and modern music and has been described as combining lush choral harmonies and acoustic instrumentation, textured like contemporary dreampop, and a cross of lo-fi folk with the harmonic width of choral composition. He has toured extensively with his band to support both his albums. Duncan is also an artist and has painted the pictures used as covers for his solo releases. [1]
Duncan is gay and wishes to use his platform as a recording artist to champion LGBT causes. In a 2016 interview with The Seventh Hex, he said, "I hope my music reaches as many people as possible. It might sound cheesy, but I honestly want to use my music to help others. For instance, I’m gay and growing up I didn’t have many gay alternative role models, so I’d like to help out in that way too." [9] In a 2019 interview with Scottish broadsheet newspaper The Herald while promoting his new album Health, he explained to writer Martin Williams that his coming out was difficult intellectually to him and he is eager to contribute his point of view to the alternative music community: "It is still a funny thing to have to do (come out to family and friends) because of the years of nerves before you do it. Before that you try to be something you are not. You kind of have a switch that goes on and off, certainly for me, but I now know exactly who I am...Gay alternative musicians are not that common, so I hope I can add to the group that are already there." [10]
Title | Details | Peak chart positions | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
SCO | BE (Wa) | NL | UK Indie | ||
Architect |
| 52 | 154 | 99 | 7 |
The Midnight Sun |
| 28 | - | - | 9 |
Health |
| 21 | |||
Alluvium |
|
Year | Title | Album |
---|---|---|
2014 | "For" | Architect |
2015 | "Say" | |
"Garden" | ||
"Here to There" | ||
"For" [A] (Autumn Rebuild) | ||
2016 | "Wanted to Want It Too" | The Midnight Sun |
"On Course" | ||
"Other Side" | ||
2017 | "Like You Do" | |
2019 | "Impossible" | Health [7] |
"Health" |
A ^ The autumn rebuild version of "For" is included on the expanded edition of the album Architect.
Robert Arthur Mould is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar in the 1990s.
Steven John Wilson is an English musician. He is the founder, guitarist, lead vocalist and songwriter of the rock band Porcupine Tree, as well as being a member of several other bands, including Blackfield, Storm Corrosion and No-Man. He is also a solo artist, having released six solo albums since his solo debut Insurgentes in 2008. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Wilson has made music prolifically and earned critical acclaim. His honours include six nominations for Grammy Awards: twice with Porcupine Tree, once with his collaborative band Storm Corrosion and three times as a solo artist. In 2017 The Daily Telegraph described him as "a resolutely independent artist" and "probably the most successful British artist you've never heard of".
Elbow are an English rock band formed in Bury, Greater Manchester in 1997. The band consists of Guy Garvey, Craig Potter, Mark Potter and Pete Turner. They have played together since 1990, adopting the name Elbow in 1997. Drummer Alex Reeves replaced Richard Jupp in 2016.
Pete Shelley was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. He formed early punk band Buzzcocks with Howard Devoto in 1976, and became the lead singer and guitarist in 1977 when Devoto left. The group released their biggest hit "Ever Fallen in Love " in 1978. The band broke up in 1981 and reformed at the end of the decade. Shelley also had a solo career; his song "Homosapien" charted in North America in 1981 and 1982.
Rowland Kelechukwu Okereke, also known mononymously as Kele, is an English singer, songwriter, and musician. He is best known as the lead singer and rhythm guitarist of the indie rock band Bloc Party. Additionally, he has released six studio albums as a solo artist.
Markus "Mark" Michael Patrick Feehily is an Irish singer. He is of the two lead vocalists of the pop vocal group Westlife. Westlife has released twelve albums, embarked on thirteen world tours and won several awards, becoming one of the most successful musical groups of all time. With 15 number one appearances, he is also the highest-charting LGBT performer on the UK Singles Chart.
Maxïmo Park are an English alternative rock band, formed in 2000 in Newcastle upon Tyne. The band consists of Paul Smith (vocals), Duncan Lloyd (guitar), and Tom English (drums). The band have released seven studio albums: A Certain Trigger (2005), Our Earthly Pleasures (2007), Quicken The Heart (2009), The National Health (2012), Too Much Information (2014), Risk to Exist (2017) and Nature Always Wins (2021). The first two albums went gold in the UK and their debut was nominated for the Mercury Prize.
Duncan Matthew James Inglis is an English singer, actor and television presenter. He became widely known in 2001 as a member of the boy band Blue and later for playing Ryan Knight in the British soap opera Hollyoaks.
Roddy Woomble is a Scottish singer, songwriter and writer. He is the lead vocalist of indie rock band Idlewild, with whom he has recorded nine studio albums. Celebrated for his poetic lyrics and warm, baritone voice, In 2006, Woomble released his folk-influenced debut solo album, My Secret Is My Silence, and has since released four subsequent studio albums: The Impossible Song & Other Songs (2011), Listen to Keep (2013), The Deluder (2017) and Lo! Soul (2021). In 2020 Woomble released the 'Everyday Sun' EP which featured largely spoken word pieces over minimal, ambient backing. He followed this sound and direction into 2021's 'Lo Soul' which he recorded at home during the COVID-19 pandemic.
I Am Ghost was an American post-hardcore band from Long Beach, California, United States, conceived of and founded by Steven Juliano in 2004. They were signed to Epitaph Records from 2005 to 2010, before splitting up in July 2010. They briefly reunited on April 28, 2016.
Jon Fratelli is a Scottish musician and singer-songwriter, best known for his work with the band The Fratellis. Alongside his work with The Fratellis, Lawler has played in a band called Codeine Velvet Club and as a solo artist.
Nico Asher Muhly is an American contemporary classical music composer and arranger who has worked and recorded with both classical and pop musicians. A prolific composer, he has composed for many notable symphony orchestras and chamber ensembles and has had two operas commissioned by the Metropolitan Opera. Since 2006, he has released nine studio albums, many of which are collaborative, including 2017's Planetarium with Sufjan Stevens, Bryce Dessner & James McAlister. He is a member of the Icelandic music collective and record label Bedroom Community.
Thomas Fec, better known by his stage name Tobacco, is an American electronic musician. He is the frontman of the psychedelic rock band Black Moth Super Rainbow, in addition to working as a solo artist. As of late 2018, he has teamed up with rapper Aesop Rock to become the music duo Malibu Ken, releasing their self-titled debut album in January 2019.
Michael Samuel Kiwanuka is a British singer-songwriter and record producer who is signed with Polydor Records. His 2012 debut album, Home Again, went gold in the United Kingdom and his second album, Love & Hate, debuted in 2016 at number one. He has been nominated for numerous honours, including the Brit Awards, MTV Europe Music Awards, BBC Music Awards, and The Grammy Awards. In January 2012, he won the BBC's Sound of 2012; and, in September 2020, he won the Mercury Prize.
John William Peter Newman is an English musician, DJ, singer, songwriter, composer and record producer. He is best known for the track "Love Me Again" which peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart in July 2013 and appeared in FIFA 14, as well as co-writing and singing on Rudimental's 2012 singles "Feel the Love" and "Not Giving In", which peaked at number one and number 14 on the chart, respectively. In 2014, he featured in the Calvin Harris single "Blame", which also topped the UK charts.
Nick Mulvey is an English musician, singer and songwriter. He played the hang as a founding member of the band Portico Quartet. In 2011 he started his career as a singer-songwriter releasing the EPs The Trellis (2012) and Fever to the Form (2013) and his studio album First Mind in 2014 which received a Mercury Music Prize nomination. His second album, Wake Up Now, was released on 8 September 2017.
Tilian Pearson, also known mononymously as Tilian, is an American singer-songwriter, musician and record producer born in Clearwater, Florida. Since 2012 he has been the third clean vocalist for the post-hardcore band Dance Gavin Dance. Pearson began his music career as the lead vocalist and guitarist in the progressive rock band Tides of Man, releasing an extended play and two studio albums before leaving in 2010.
Gerard Crosbie, professionally known as Gerry Cinnamon, is a Scottish singer-songwriter and acoustic guitarist.
The Skeptic is the third solo studio album by American singer-songwriter and Dance Gavin Dance vocalist Tilian Pearson, released on September 28, 2018, through Future Friends and Rise Records. The album is a follow-up to his second studio album, Perfect Enemy (2015), and is his first solo release on Rise since departing with Vital Records. The album was produced by Kris Crummett, who performed drums and percussion on the record, while Pearson performed guitar, keyboards, and bass guitar.
John Cornelius O'Callaghan V is an American singer-songwriter and musician. He is best known for being the lead vocalist, guitarist and pianist of American rock band The Maine which he joined in 2007. He debuted a solo project under the name John the Ghost in 2016.