About Sylvia

Forged in Moseley, Birmingham, Sylvia are Daniel Sweeney (lead vocals, guitar), Russell Collins (drums), Jamie Kendall (guitar) and Phill Ward (bass). Daniel, Phill and Russell studied music at the University of Birmingham and formed a band soon after graduating, adding Jamie to the line-up in early 2011.

In the summer of 2009, Sylvia disembarked to Rathea in Co Kerry, Ireland to begin recording their debut album. In a converted turf shed by the coast, the band set to work using what equipment they had to hand. After a brief diversion to the Green Man Festival, they returned to Moseley where the recording continued apace. The band began to experiment with sounds, layering a diverse array of household objects into the textures of the music, from wine-glasses, to Chinese health balls.

In the ensuing months, significant headway was made on the recording, much of it taking place on a farm in Somerset, a stone’s throw from the Glastonbury Festival site. Locked in isolation, ideas fermented, the ancient and musically-apt setting providing ample inspiration. Long days of recording, followed by late night trips to the Tor, cemented the band's love of the area, and they returned many times, honing and tweaking their ever growing album. Whilst in the area, Sylvia became regular performers at the Pilton Working Mens Club, famously established by Glastonbury Festival founder, Michael Eavis; himself a witness to the band’s sets on several occasions.

Enthused and driven by these forays into quiet rural seclusion, the songs became more refined and mature; harmonies became more intimate, atmospheres more dense and imposing. For the next two years Sylvia strove to discover a sound befitting their ambition and vision, and eventually completed the task in December 2011. The band's debut album ‘Rathea’, is due for release in summer 2012 and will feature songs written in the spaces between touring, and others nurtured on many trips and travels.

What Sylvia have created on this journey is a truly immersive piece of work - in equal parts majestic and yet restrained. The listener is carried down one unexpected and surprising avenue to the next, the glorious contrasting powerfully with moments of stillness. You'll be hard pressed to hear anything as heartbreakingly beautiful as ‘Foals’ all year, with 'Possessed' rendering the listener blissfully unaware of their surroundings.

Sylvia then jolt us out of reverie and reflection with tracks 'Hollowstar' and 'It Is Not A Question Of' galloping along purposefully. Sweeney's voice comes into its own on 'Greyson Chance Syndrome', swooping and diving over wonderfully nonchalant guitars. Sylvia have a playful approach to rhythm and chord progression without alienating the listener, allowing us to wallow in the songs, before being transported off again. Well established tracks 'Heartlands' and 'Bought What I Paid For' are given a new lease of life, rewarding us with new perspectives on each listen.

The finished 12-track album is a fantastic achievement, coming close to 70 minutes in length and - although a fact not reflected in the sonics - an entirely self-produced and home-recorded piece of work; the band’s musicianship augmented with the help of a talented inner-circle of friends.

Sylvia are beguiling natural songwriters and musicians, with a keen ear for sound and texture and it's this which makes the new record such an exciting prospect. Those who have seen them live, or know anything of their dedication to create something inspirational, will be awaiting this sterling debut with anticipation.