LEICESTERSHIRE-BORN MUSICIAN, HOWARD ROSE SPEAKS TO PUKAAR MAGAZINE’S JESSICA CHALLONER-STERLAND ABOUT PERFORMING IN HIS HOMETOWN AND NEW MATERIAL FOR 2017.
You may remember Howard Rose from season four of the BBC’s hit talent show, The Voice UK, where he became part of team Tom. Reaching the live shows, Howard entertained the judges and viewers with his unique spin on songs such as; ‘Read My Mind’ by The Killers and ‘My Generation’ by the Who.
Since leaving the show, Howard landed an agent with London-based Booking Agency, Nova Music. The exposure has also given him and his band the opportunity to perform at more high profile shows around the UK, including award-winning festival, Wilderness.
Born in Melton Mowbray, Howard has always had a passion for music; he learnt to play guitar at the age of eight, performed in various school productions and went on to study a Music course at Leicester College. Funding his career as a musician, Howard also teaches guitar, ukulele, singing and songwriting to children: “It just made sense to use the skills that I had to try and support myself and share those skills with other people.”
Having lived in Manchester and London to make a name for himself, Howard has since been back to Leicester to perform at The Soundhouse, Simon Says and The Donkey, to name a few: “Leicester has been great, I think I’d probably neglected it a little bit, which is disappointing. It’s a great place to play and people turn out for the live music, which is rare in a city so it’s been amazing.”
With various released songs under different projects and an EP to his name, Howard’s main focus has been on writing and producing new material with bandmates Damon and Joe, who have been working together as a group for one year. Howard speaks about the inspiration for his new music: “I don’t like the idea that my best work is behind me and I’d like to think that my Songwriting has gotten better. My main aim is to try and be honest. There are certain life experiences that come through in the songs, about love and being dissatisfied with where you are.”
Set for release in April 2017, the bands new music pull together a unique blend of genres and can only be described as, upbeat rock and roll with a retro twist: “One of the new songs is almost like a cross between Fleetwood Mac and Paramore, and another, if Led Zeppelin played a Stevie Wonder song. It’s definitely pop but there’s influence from folk, jazz, old rock and soul music as well.”
Anticipating the new record, the band have been posting covers on YouTube to say thank-you to their fans for being so patient: “We’ve got a good team around us who are working hard towards our next record, making sure that it’s got the right platform to reach new ears, and for the people already listening, hopefully, they’ll like it as well.”
