Altsounds - WINTERSLEEP - NEW! Single 8th June

Back in the UK for their second trip this year Wintersleep's busy schedule includes supporting White Lies on three Sold Out shows, headline gigs as well as festivals in Brighton, London, Leeds and Bristol. Making time to headline an XFM X-Posure Barfly Gig in London and record a Zane Lowe session for Radio 1 (a big Wintersleep supporter, they've already had 'Hottest Record In The World Right Now' and Album of the Week on his show). Plays from Zane and Colin Murray last week with Jo Whiley and Jonathan Ross following this week.

UK Shows As Special Guests to WHITE LIES:
May 3rd LEEDS – Metropolitan University
May 4th GLASGOW – Barrowlands
May 5th MANCHESTER – Academy

Wintersleep Headline Shows and Festivals:
May 7th NEWCASTLE – Academy 2
May 8th EDINBURGH – The Wee Red Bar
May 9th BELFAST – Auntie Annies
May 10th DUBLIN – Academy 2
May 11th YORK – Fibbers
May 13th CAMBRIDGE – The Portland
May 14th BRIGHTON – THE GREAT ESCAPE – Hector’s House
May 15th BRIGHTON – THE GREAT ESCAPE – The Providence
May 16th SOUTHAMPTON – The Unit
May 18th MANCHESTER – Roadhouse
May 20th LONDON - Barfly XFM Show
May 21st Stag and Dagger – LONDON - Macbeth
May 22nd Stag and Dagger - LEEDS – Packhorse
May 23rd Dot To Dot Festival - BRISTOL – Fleece

Yarmouth, Nova Scotia is a small and friendly town on the East Coast of Canada, which averages 191 days of fog a year. Perfect conditions for a fledgling songwriter to hunker down and begin creating what would turn out to be the emotive, intense and layered, yet undeniably melodic songs by WINTERSLEEP.

Paul Murphy, WINTERSLEEP’s founding member and songwriter, is from a big family by anyone’s standards. The Murphys, composed of 9 brothers and 1 sister, were supposed to be a sports and science family though any parental hopes in that direction were nixed when one of the older brothers, Jon, and his friend Brian Borcherdt (now of Holy F**k along with Wintersleep members Michael Bigelow and Loel Campbell) formed a band. 12 year old Paul and his bunch of ‘dirtbag friends’ just wanted to be like them, so forming their own band was inevitable. Being a close community meant the new band included guitarist Tim D’Eon, who Paul had known since he was 5 years old.

Early musical influences were limited. A Buddy Holly tape was stuck in the cassette player of their family station wagon for 2 ½ years. No one seemed to care. They mostly listened to Roy Orbison and Leonard Cohen at home, maybe some Cat Stevens or his parents’ classical records. Paul’s Dad introduced them to Simon & Garfunkel but after close reading of the lyrics to ‘Cecilia’ it was decided Paul Simon was a pervert, never to be played again.

20th Century literature and poetry have always been a crucial influence on Paul Murphy’s lyrics - David Foster Wallace, Don Delillo, Kafka, Ted Hughes and Sylvia Plath. No surprise then, that the more literate songwriters have also been an influence; the aforementioned Leonard Cohen, Mark Lanegan, Thom Yorke, Bill Callahan, Morrissey, Nick Drake, Velvet Underground, Pixies, et al.

2008 was a good year for WINTERSLEEP. Winners of the Juno Award for Best New Group and Much Music Award for Best Independent Video , they have spent most of the year away from their adopted hometown of Montreal, building their growing army of fans touring with fellow Canadians Black Mountain and Wolf Parade, amongst others.

WINTERSLEEP is: Paul Murphy (lead vocals, guitar), Tim D’Eon (lead guitar), Michael Bigelow (bass), Loel Campbell (drums), Jon Samuel (keyboards, backing vocals)

Single: Weighty Ghost
Released June 8th 09 (7” & Digital)

Live EP available from May 4th – iTunes Exclusive
(Tracklising: Dead Letter and the Infinite Yes / Weighty Ghost / Sore / Search Party / Oblivion / Early in the Morning)

Wintersleep
Wintersleep on MySpace Music