Ally Kerr

*Ally Kerr's new album - OFF THE RADAR - out now* "Inspired....jangles with all the rainy loveliness of Belle and Sebastian" - UNCUT magazine “A great new songwriting talent from Scotland” – Bob Harris, BBC “A sparkling tunesmith” – Metro “Beautifully melancholic” – Press Association “A heady combination of guitar riffs and pop melody has seen Ally Kerr become the next big thing on the British music scene” - Time Out "Kerr's songs meld the saccharin side of Belle and Sebastian with the kind of melancholy that Paul Simon's cat must feel at the end of a day's recording after milk and biscuits. They are beautifully written and wistful" - Sunday Herald. "Gentle Scottish folk with a pop tinge. If Stuart from Belle & Sebastian did a solo gig…” - Express (part of the Washington Post Company). One of Scotland’s fastest-rising songwriters continues to flourish as an independent artist, picking up fans across the world. Ally Kerr’s success initially began in Japan following the release of his critically-acclaimed debut album Calling Out To You, much of which was written as Ally travelled between the East Coast of the USA and the West Coast of Scotland. It was self-funded and recorded on a shoestring budget back home in Scotland and was first released on tiny Japanese label Quince Records. Its inclusion in a major Japanese music magazine’s list of “Top 20 Albums Ever To Come Out Of Scotland”, was testament to the strength of the songs and the album happily sat alongside the seminal works of Orange Juice and Belle and Sebastian. During his first-ever-headlining tour of Japan, Kerr received word that one of his songs was to feature as the theme tune to a major new Japanese animated TV series Mushishi, based on a hugely popular comic book. The Sore Feet Song was released in Japan as a CD single and his fanbase in far-flung corners of the world is continually growing as a result of this exposure. New converts in the USA, South America and Europe have been eager to find out more. The series has been broadcast in several countries and was released on DVD in North America last year. A truly international artist, Kerr was also featured in the China Daily (the country’s biggest English newspaper) and has many fans across this country and also other parts of Asia. Second album - Off The Radar - was licensed to Universal Records in the Philippines in late 2008. The singer/songwriter’s international profile rose another notch after he was selected to play at the North by North-East music festival – Canada’s biggest and most important music festival. The home team finally took notice and Calling Out To You received a full release on Neon Tetra Records in 2005. Although echoes of Belle & Sebastian, Big Star, Kings Of Convenience, Simon and Garfunkel and many other artists resonate, Kerr’s style is singularly distinctive. One of Scotland’s broadsheet newspapers - Scotland on Sunday - recognised him as “one of the most interesting and creative musicians working in the country right now” in its rundown of the “Hottest New Scottish Talent”. Melodious, heartfelt, beautiful, melancholic, and quirky are adjectives regularly used to describe his music. The release of the debut album followed the critical success of his limited edition debut EP, Midst of the Storm, which was released on 7-inch white vinyl by cult Spanish label Elefant Records (Lambchop, Camera Obscura) and garnered airplay around the world. Kerr continues to receive regular press and radio support from European DJs. Self-effacing, yet single-minded and determined, Kerr released his second album Off The Radar on Much Obliged Records and in Japan on the Ultra-Vybe label. This album has received glowing reviews, international airplay and continued ‘word of mouth’ support across the internet with many agreeing that this new album is a real step-up from the much-lauded debut. As the record continues to filter out further and wider, interest in Kerr continues to grow. Touring in Europe and Asia will continue while putting the final touches to home demos that will eventually be realised in the studio. These songs will comprise the third, as yet untitled album, which Kerr feels is his strongest work to date.