Our 5th year at Bath Festival Party in the City!
Fridge Mechanics are delighted to be playing again at the amazing Bath Festival Party in the City on Friday 17th May 2019 at BRSLI (Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institution), Queen's Square, 16-18 Queen Square, Bath BA1 2HN.  Entrance is free and we are on at 5pm, so an early start.  Bristol poet David Punter will be joining the band to contribute readings and poems.  We are supporting the entertaining and popular Bath band Now and Then who will be presenting a programme of singalong favourites!  We are asking Spikey Tim to MC for the evening including some of his delightful performance poems.  The programme finishes around 7.15pm, so plenty of time to catch some of the other 100's of acts appearing in the Party in the City across Bath that evening.  A fantastic, eclectic evening to suit all tastes!

Welcome to Richard Godfrey, Paul Meager and Evie Rainey!

 ... a warm welcome to three new members of the Fridges!  After sadly losing Micko because of illness, we have been very lucky to find Richard Godfrey (above left), a very creative guitarist;  also, a warm welcome to Paul Meager  (above center) who has joined the band after adding his amazing fiddle playing to our gigs over the years.  Finally, after singing with us for over a year, we say  goodbye to Jo and welcome to Evie Rainey, (above right) visiting the UK from New Zealand and adding her tuneful  harmony and lead singing alongside Ce.  We look forward to introducing Rich, Paul and Evie into the band during our gigs and rehearsals this year.  Learn more about them here

Watch! - now including videos from the Kino Sessions 2018 gig

Here is a video of the Watchett Tragedie performed at the Cafe Kino with Kate Fletcher and Paul Meager in full flow!

Why not visit our new Watch section to see some more videos of the band performing at the Kino Sessions.  Also, some older sessions of Barry performing with various retired members of the Fridge Mechanics at the now closed Valindra Open Mic in 2015.  Some great instrumental playing from Jamie Hill and James Anderson.  Also, a video of the band performing at the Rec House, Bath in June 2017.

Gigs in 2019?
We look forward to some of our favourites, but especially an appearance at Bath Festival Party in the City on the 17th May and a booking for Keynsham Festival on July 6th - Several others in the pipeline, so watch this space as gigs unfold!

A new CD?
New songs continued to arrive and I am sure some more will make their appearance in 2019!  Creating music and lyrics is always an amazing experience, and it means a lot to be able to share these with you and receive your responses.  Our last CD was Indian Ink, made in December 2014, and we are hoping to get back into the studio in 2018 to make another.  Watch this space

Animations and Videos

 IF I HAD THAT SHIRT VIDEO - SONGSHEET #1

I have always been fascinated by the possibilities of integrating visual imagery with music and over the years have sometimes used films and slides when performing some of my songs.  Some of you will know The Shirt Song, a song I wrote about a tramp I used to see gazing longingly at a shirt in a shop window in Saville Row, London.  The song is all about dreaming and wishing and I always imagined a cartoon o r animation to bring this story to life.  In 2015, I hired an Australian animator Durand Greig http://is.gd/hG2KsV to interpret the song for us.  He did a wonderful job, there is a still from it on this page.  You can play it on this page, also here is a Youtube link to it if you want to view it full screen;  https://youtu.be/WJ8YlSxt-M8  It's a Happy New Year pressie for you, and hope you enjoy it!  Let me know?  Leave some comments on YouTube!  I like the idea of sharing songs like this, with lyrics and images combined with a recording, so this will be Songsheet #1 of a series I will publish on Youtube this year.  I will be asking some other animators to produce some more interpretations of the songs we do.

NAILHOUSE - SONGSHEET #2
Some of you will have heard a new song, Nailhouse, we performed last December at the Cafe Kino and at the Square Club in Clifton.  This song is about Chinese people who refuse to move their homes when a motorway or office block is bu ilt, s o the authorities build them around their houses, until they eventually flamethrow or bully them out.  Their homes are called Nailhouses because they are 'nailed' to the ground.  I was moved and fascinated by the images of Nailhouses on Google, so I wrote a song about it.  A film maker called Diana Taylor, in Clifton, Bristol UK http://is.gd/0Lam7K heard us performing this song, and has made a film based on the song lyrics and story of Nailhouses.  The film is an apt and powerful interpretation of the lyrics and music.  We are proud to present this song, and Diana's moving film.

A CD of new and regular songs recorded with Dutch concert cellist Mieke de Laure in December 2014.  Sung and played by Barry Lane with guest appearances from the Fridge Mechanics band. Available as a CD or individual tracks via Paypal for £5 from the STORE (please have credit card ready)  listen to demo tracks from the CD HERE

Cover artwork by Sarah Parkinson.
Calligraphy Mollie Meagre
www.molliemeagre.co.uk

 

  DIDN'T WE DREAM
Barry Lane and the Fridge Mechanics
Available as a CD or individual tracks via Paypal for £5 from the STORE
(please have credit card ready) 
listen to demo tracks from the CD HERE

 Cover artwork conceived and designed by
Barry Lane and Sarah Parkinson.