Songdog

Infobox musical artist
Name = Songdog


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Origin = Blackwood, Caerphilly, Wales
Genre = Folk Noir, Acoustic, Singer-songwriter
Years_active = 1990s– present
Label = Evangeline Records, One Little Indian Records
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URL = [http://www.songdog.co.uk/ Songdog Website]
[http://www.myspace.com/songdog1 Songdog on Myspace]
Current_members = Lyndon Morgans
Karl Woodward
Dave Paterson
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Songdog are a Welsh three-piece folk noir band noted for their intelligent lyrics and sparse (often acoustic) musical arrangements.

Tracks from 'The Time Of Summer Lightning' have received radio airplay on Jonathan Ross' BBC Radio 2 show and John Kennedy's XFM show, amongst others. Celebrity fans include Bruce Springsteen, who covered 'Days of Armageddon' (from 2003 album 'Haiku') for "walk in music" on his last European tour and personally requested a copy of the last album.

Band members

*Lyndon Morgans: vocals, acoustic guitar and songs.
*Karl Woodward: electric guitars, mandolin, banjo, harmonica, keyboards.
*Dave Paterson: drums, keyboards, percussion.

Albums

* The Way Of The World (Self-released, 2001)
* Haiku (Evangeline Records, 2003)
* The Time Of Summer Lightning (One Little Indian Records, 2005)
* A Wretched Sinner's Song (One Little Indian Records, 2008) Leaked on January 16, 2008.

ome Key Songs

* 'Goodbye Isabel' and 'I Love My Angel's Plastic Wings' from 'The Way of the World' (2001)
* 'The Girl on the Escalator at HMV' and 'Days of Armageddon' from 'Haiku' (2003)
* 'The Waitress from Yorkville, Toronto' and 'Childhood Skies' from 'The Time of Summer Lightning' (2005)

Press Reviews

* Morgans "is smitten by that old salty Belgian dog Jacques Brel, as shown by the sparse, candlelit arrangements and tremulous vocals". 4 Star review of 'The Way of the World' from Martin Aston, The Times, June 2001.
* "If 2001's superb 'The Way of the World' was a fittingly damaged, literary affair for a songwriter in thrall to the Beats, Brel and Dylan, 'Haiku' ups the ante with more extreme, nerve-jarring tales of love and sex in all its obsessive, voyeuristic, clammy glory". 4 Star review of 'Haiku' from Rob Hughes, Uncut, Feb. 2003.
* "There's a raw honesty to [Morgans'] acute insights set in sparse, intimate musical surroundings... 'The Time of Summer Lightning' is one of those albums you can get lost in for weeks. Another example of why quiet might just be the new loud". 4.5 out of 5. The Sun newspaper, 24th November 2006.

Quotes from Lyndon Morgans

* “If I could create a record as powerful as mid-period Joni Mitchell, or Leonard Cohen, Tom Waits, I'd die happy”.
* “I'm not a great believer in this idea that rock music is cool because its disposable, its chewing gum - enjoy it then throw it away - I think when you write music you should strive to endure, like a great writer or painter. All the great rock music that I value is on the same level as any other art forms - when I try to write a song, I try to write it as if its forever (although I'm not claiming that any of our stuff will live beyond tomorrow..) I wouldn't be happy just stringing together a cliched set of chords, saying this'll be energetic and get people's rocks off tonight”.

Trivia

* Lyndon Morgans was a playwright before going into music. He wrote a play entitled "Water Music" which was shown at London's Cockpit Theatre in 1992.
* Haiku, the title for Songdog's second album, means a Japanese verse of three short, unrhymed lines.
* Songdog have supported Joan As Policewoman, Ed Harcourt, The Handsome Family, and The Go-Betweens, Australian indie rockers.

References

* [http://www.whisperinandhollerin.com/chat/chat.asp?id=2512 Whisperin & Hollerin, June 2005]