Bolton’s Cherry Ghost are set to perform at Manchester Cathedral on Wednesday 25th June.
Fronted by Ivor Novello award winning Simon Aldred, Cherry Ghost have released three albums, their latest being the emotional rollercoaster and musically diverse Herd Runners, which was released in May of this year and follows previous offerings Thirst for Romance (2007) and Beneath This Burning Shoreline (2010). In between, Aldred himself has released a further solo album Invasion of Love (2013) under the pseudonym of Out Cold.
Although Cherry Ghost started off in 2005 in effect as a solo project for Aldred, it was not long before it became a group as Aldred joined forces with Jim Rhodes (Guitar), Ben Parsons (Keyboards), Phil Anderson (Bass) and Grenville Harrop (Drums).
Regarded as a leading songwriter, Aldred has shown incredibly versatility over the years, whether as himself, Cherry Ghost or Out Cold. He has also written for Sam Smith and Kwabs (he can sometimes be found as a songwriter-for-hire!). More importantly he moves through genres with ease, whether dark melancholy, northern-style country-soul, electro-pop, loves songs or soaring symphonic music, and has also seen his Ivor Novello Award Winning song People Help The People covered in 2010 by Birdy and charting highly in fourteen different countries.
Cherry Ghost’s latest album shows this well. Optimism is seared with bleak desperation; heartbreak residing alongside hope. Emotions are toyed with. It’s an album which observes the lives of others, but whilst it may be full of emotion it is not dark, leading Aldred to comment “These songs aren’t as dark as those on previous records. This time round I thought it was important to keep a real empathy for the people I’m writing about.”
Cherry Ghost performs at Manchester Cathedral on Wednesday 25th June 7pm. Tickets £15 +BF.
image credit jhill69/flickr under creative commons license
