Oasis Big Up Our Nic!
NME's covermount CD 'Oasis On The Road World Tour 2005' features one of Nic's stormers amongst a bunch of specially selected tracks from Noel Gallagher-
Track 12. Nic Armstrong And The Thieves – Broken mouth Blues
NME Says: ''Nottingham/Newcastle native Nic Armstrong has been propping up Oasis in the US and Canada ‘The Greatest White Liar’ album crept up on 2004, and now his unpretentious sound, is sounding out across American stadiums, thanks to the Gallagher’s patronage.''
Noel Says:”If him and his group can fucking sort their haircuts out, they’ll be one of the biggest bands in Britain. They’re pretty special, man. Like Cavern and Star Club-era Beatles played by Goths.”
Biography
Nowadays it seems authenticity is easily bought. Get yourself a pair of ball hugging strides and a copy of Funhouse by Iggy and The Stooges and 1969 can be yours. However, while every Tom, Dick and Harry are proclaiming a life long love of all things from the swingin’ sixties the real deal is hard to come by. Depth, soul and a bit of love are apparently not high on the agenda for this new wave of trend hopping charlatans.
Enter Nic Armstrong, a 24 year old displaced geordie, now living in Nottingham, who releases his debut single, Natural Flair, in November on One Little Indian, proof that not everything with a keen eye on the past must surrender it’s soul and turn a blind eye to anything vaguely contemporary.
“Music saved me from going mad,” muses Armstrong in the Old Angel pub in the heart of Nottingham’s Lace Market.
Having left Newcastle to start a course in fine art in Nottingham, before long Armstrong was searching out like minded souls with his battered guitar and love of the authentic roar of the likes of Gene Vincent, Bob Dylan, Eddie Cochran, Chuck Berry and the Beatles.
A series of dead end bands, crappy jobs and missed opportunities left Nic lost and disillusioned with his lot. Salvation came about via a nation-wide talent competition organised by style magazine Dazed & Confused. Vowing to give it one last shot, Armstrong submitted a battered tape of lovelorn, soul-drenched tales.
The third generation tape sounded crap and the recording methods were far from professional. However, his unique voice, somewhere between the brooding rasp of Eric Burdon or the primal Hamburg scream of John Lennon, and keen ear for a jaw droppingly catchy tune was enough to convince that this boy was the real deal.
Within days Armstrong had gone from scratching a living to picking up a recording and management contract. After years of accruing an enviable armoury of songs there was no hanging about and Armstrong was promptly dispatched to Toe Rag studios, the analogue bastion of producer Liam Watson who immediately understood what Armstrong was hoping to achieve. A couple of weeks later and Armstrong’s debut album, the thirteen track The Greatest White Liar was born.
Each track showcases the remarkable talent of Armstrong and his unnerving ability to twist his classic influences into a contemporary album of finely crafted pop moments. Recalling the early to mid sixties and the halcyon days of British pop music before trousers flared and acid was dropped, the thirteen tracks have a rare innocence and beauty often knocked out of music by many of his contemporaries keen to achieve the authentic sixties hit.
To be released in early 2004 The Greatest White Liar reinstates the song as something your milkman can whistle. There’s no posturing, little fuss just good old tunes, something often forgotten about in the rush for the right haircut. Nic Armstrong, a timeless talent for 2004 and beyond.
