One Autumn night back in 1998, Steve Lamacq played a song on The Evening Session that I only heard once. It was by a band called Stony Sleep, and it proved very hard to find in any of my local record shops. A shop in Trowbridge had a copy of the single for £3.99, but convinced I could get it cheaper elsewhere, I left it on the shelf and gradually forgot about it. Years later the Manic Street Preachers released a B side called 'Lady Lazarus', the same title as the Stony Sleep track, but not a version of the same song. This reminded me about that old single I never got round to buying, and I now have an mp3 copy of the track, which will have to do until I purchase their 'A Slack Romance' album on CD.
"Stony Sleep was a teenage grunge rock band, formed in 1993 by brothers Ben Fox Smith (vocals, guitar), Christian Smith-Pancorvo (drums, vocals), and William Salmon (bass). They were signed to Big Cat Records in 1995 and recorded 'Music For Chameleons' which was originally released in 1996. The band then replaced Will Salmon with Lee Citron and recorded 'A Slack Romance' in 1997, released in 1999. They split up in 1999 following the demise of Big Cat Records and under pressure from drug addiction and lack of finance. During the band's career Stony Sleep toured Britain extensively, and played a handful of gigs in Europe and the USA. Highlights of their career included a top 30 slot in the Australian album charts, an exceptional review by Ozzy Osbourne for the NME, and an interview with Johnny Vaughan, live on the Big Breakfast. They recorded two very successful sessions under John Peel, which are very hard to get hold of. Frontman Ben Fox Smith went on to front Serafin. Drummer Christian Smith-Pancorvo has played in various bands, most notably being the original drummer with Razorlight, and is currently also in Serafin with Ben Fox Smith. Lee Citron died in November 2001..."
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