Playlouder - Music is the Network

Phil Campbell is something of an enigma. Born in Scotland and into a family of lay preachers (his father) and hymn writers (his grandparents), Campbell soaked up the religious ether of this existence and then ignored it as best he could. He initially made something of a splash in the mid-1990s when he stood out amongst the more itinerant Glaswegian flotsam and jetsam and signed a development deal with WEA aged just 18. He followed this by signing to EMI and recording his debut album ‘Fresh New Life’ before he had turned 20. This was the point when we were all meant to fall in love with him for the first time. Of course, your good selves know as well as anyone else that true love never happens like this and so it came to pass (are you liking the religious references yet?) that Campbell fell out with EMI (didn’t we all?), blew his advance on drugs and friends (in that order) and then fell on his feet quick enough to get a cute scar on his left cheek and a bunch of songs that tell the whole sordid tale.  That bunch of songs is After The Garden.

Produced by Grammy nominated producer, Andy Bradfield (famed for his work with Rufus Wainwright and Damien Rice amongst others), After The Garden is terrific and everything Campbell promised it could be.  Lead single, Maps which has already been described by the Sunday Times as being ‘witty, self-deprecating, tongue-tied and charming and one of the best love songs of the year’ has a Neil Young edge to it and shares much of the charm of the great man, particularly as well Campbell intones “Well, you know how I feel about you”, you know you are in the presence of someone who means every word.  Another track, Joy, is similarly effortless and casually anthemic in a Blue Nile meets Ryan Adams kind of way and, indeed, there is something a little Paul Buchanon-esque in the way Campbell delivers lines like “You bring me back to life” from Sweet Sister.  Other songs showcase Campbell’s own flirtation with religion, particularly the title track which at first appears to document a father’s existential malaise brought on by nothing more than the education of his sons but then reveals itself to be more specifically about Cain and Abel.  And yet another track, Should Have Stayed At Home, is a heartbreaker; Campbell tells the tale of a cocaine induced visit to A&E with his then-girlfriend and the “coupla lines” that insured the doctor had no sympathy for their plight. “Blizzard of cocaine” no doubt informs this song but something else, indeed the admission that Campbell wishes he was “a bigger man for you/’cus I wouldn’t let that happen to you now” surely makes this one of the most breathtaking pieces of work you will encounter this side of epiphany.

In 2007, Campbell actually resigned to EMI in a bid to revamp their Charisma imprint but events, and the label’s nascent restructuring, have ensured that After The Garden will now be released on Safehouse Recordings and distributed by Absolute/Universal on April 28th.

2008 has already seen Campbelltouring successfully with Turin Brakes and David Gray.  And this week, his new single, Maps (released on April 21st) has entered the top 20 pre-release airplay chart.  We can also confirm that Campbellwill be performing Maps on “Later… with Jools Holland on Friday, April the 18th.

www.philcampbellmusic.co.uk / www.myspace.com/philcampbellmusic