Newton Faulkner sells out the Oxford O2 Academy
Brit-nominated, acoustic guitar virtuoso Newton Faulkner is playing a sold out gig at the Oxford O2 on Thursday May 10 ahead of his new album released later this year. Newton’s debut ‘Hands Built By Robots’ spent over10 months inside the Top 40 Album Charts and become one of the Top 20 Biggest Selling UK digital albums of all time. He’s currently putting the finishing touches to his new album, taking a back to basics approach and recording most of it at home. Jamie Hill caught up with him for a chat.
Hi Newton, I caught up with you a couple of years ago. How have things been going? It’s definitely been a busy and quite strange time of it over the past couple of years. There’s been a lot of touring since the release of my second album and it’s only been recently that I’ve kind of stopped to take stock and start working on my next album. Tell me about the new album? I’ve absolutely loved making this album. I think with the second album I found myself losing my personality in the recording of it just because of the studio system. This new record is a lot more personal and a lot more me. I was able to self-produce this one a bit more so I was involved in the process from start to finish. I was also able to make a lot of it away from the studio at home. I think studios are great but they’re not exactly a personal space that you can relax in and record from. Being at home made me feel like I had more creative freedom, like it was more mine. On the flip-side it also meant that I couldn’t escape it so for the duration I was eating, sleeping and breathing the music. If I woke up with something in my head I would immediately put it down rather than having to wait until the next day. It was great but intense. Are you looking forward to the tour? Definitely. Playing live is an addiction and I don’t think I’ll ever have enough of it. That’s why there are so many ageing musicians out on the road. They keep needing their ‘live’ fix. During this tour I’ll also be
showcasing some of my new material so it’s definitely going to be interesting to see what kind of reaction it gets. Were you surprised that your date at the Oxford O2 Academy has sold out? Definitely. I haven’t had a new record out for a couple of years so I’m surprised people still want to see me. It’s very flattering. I suppose, although, I haven’t been releasing much I’ve still never really left. I was touring after the second album when I suddenly discovered social media and I reckon that’s made a huge difference in how a musician can interact with his or her fanbase. It’s amazing. People can say stuff on Facebook and I can reply directly. I can also tweet directly to everybody at once. If a musician’s clever they can use Facebook and Twitter to really promote their tours and what they’re up to. It’s an amazing way to get information out there. I think that’s one of the reasons why the gigs have done so well as my social media following has probably helped shift a hell of a lot of tickets. What will people think of your new material? I hope that they respond well. I’m really pleased with it and I think it’s the best work I’ve ever done, but I would say that. I’m touring now and then I’ll be doing a few festivals like Cornbury over the summer so I’ll be able to really get a feeling on how people will react. It’s quite an exciting time for me as there’s nothing like introducing people to your new material.
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