Chris hits the top by going underground
 By Trevor
O’sullivan
An Irish singer is enjoying success throughout Britain thanks to a concept
album based around London’s Underground.
Dubliner Chris Singleton’s album Twisted City has also been embraced
by music critics having recently been called “one of the most promising
songwriters to surface this year”.
The inspiration for the album came during the many years Chris spent commuting
between Ireland and Britain.
The Irishman — who suffers from severe hearing difficulties —
said: “The basic idea behind Twisted City is that it’s a Tube
journey through London — each song is a stop on the journey.
“I wrote a lot of it on the move as I was travelling an awful lot
between Dublin and London.
“I basically didn’t have that much time to write and record
in the conventional sense so I’d jot down ideas for songs on old
Tube tickets, boarding cards, you name it.
“I’d even record myself singing onto my mobile phone’s
voicemail. In the end I had this mad collection of musical bits and bobs
on various bits of travelling paraphernalia and I eventually put them
all down properly in my little studio. That’s how the album came
about.”
The positive buzz surrounding the album has even seen Chris featured on
ITV News.
He is delighted with the praise his music is receiving. He said: “It’s
all very exciting. I think when you do something with an album you are
always wondering which way it is going to go critically but thankfully
it has received a very positive response.”
But Chris’ success is even more remarkable because he has had to
overcome serious hearing difficulties.
During the recording of the album Chris was diagnosed as suffering from
hyperacusis. The rare condition means Chris has an increased sensitivity
to sounds.
As a result he can feel pain or discomfort when he hears sounds that most
people are able to tolerate. Eventually after months of distress and a
barrage of tests a solution was found. It was a huge relief to the singer.
He said: “By the time I felt my hearing was back to normal I had
spent around £760 and seen three GPs, three consultants, three nurses,
two trainee hearing therapists and a hearing therapist.
“If there was more knowledge within the medical profession about
hyperacusis I am sure I could have finished my album far quicker.”
Twisted City is an album which is set on or around the Tube
with every song having a location. In Chris’ own words the track listing
below is a map to the album and explains where and what each song is about.
Get Up — Bank
“This song is about bumping into people and things — very easy to do on the
Underground. It’s a song about being confused by relationships and the lack
of consistency in feelings for people. I was imagining rush hour on the Tube
when I wrote it — trying to find a line, tripping over people, being
confused. The less appealing side of the Tube I guess but when you’re new to
London rush hour is still quite exciting, if baffling.”
Pieces — King’s Cross
“This song is about getting lost which is very easy to do in London. You can
physically get lost, emotionally get lost or quite simply be told to get
lost. Every musician who looks for success in London gets a few knocks — and
this song is partly about that and partly about trying to put a relationship
back together. As with a lot of my songs it deals with a mixture of
professional and personal stuff. And King’s Cross is the backdrop for this —
because so many Tube lines run through the station, you can lose your way
very easily.”
The Only One — Piccadilly Circus
“One thing that strikes me as fascinating on the Tube — although I’m not
exactly sure why as it makes very good sense — is the way people adhere so
strictly to the stand on the right protocol on escalators. This song starts
with an occurrence of somebody not doing that and getting berated by a
businessman in a hurry as a result. To be perfectly honest I’m not sure what
the rest of the song is about; it’s one of those ones where the words just
came to me and I didn’t really have to think that much about them.”
Wherever — Edgware Road
“This song is about being sure of something only to find that it suddenly
changes quickly beyond recognition. I’m largely talking about girls here but
the same can be said of the Circle Line as it’s one big loop, you can head
off in one direction and end up going in completely the opposite one.
Or you can set off somewhere and end up back where you started from. You
sometimes have to wait quite a while for Circle Line trains at Edgware Road
so it was there that I got thinking about various situations which seemed to
involve changing my mind and direction.”
You Carry On — Heathrow (Terminal 1)
“I wouldn’t quite go as far to say that this song is about appendicitis on
the Underground but it was written shortly after I came out of hospital
after having my appendix removed.
“I was traveling from my aunt’s house in north London to Heathrow on the
Tube when I started feeling sharp pains in my stomach.
“In spite of the worst pain I’ve ever encountered I forced myself to keep
going and keep changing lines so that I didn’t miss my flight back to
Dublin. A nurse I subsequently spoke to informed me that I was quite stupid
to get on the plane as my appendix could have burst and death wouldn’t have
been entirely out of the question. Not the most rock and roll way to go
although I suppose it does involve jet planes.”
|
