News, gigs, pics.

Sweeney Astray playing at Cloudspotting Festival 2013.

Here's a copy of our e mail which was sent out to our mailing list this week. To join the mailing list sign up to reverbnation http://www.reverbnation.com/sweeneyastray or send an e mail to milltowncafe@gmail.com and request to join and I'll sort it for you.

Hi there again.

Just to let you all know that Adam from the Travelling Band has given us another Sweeney Astray gig at the Odd Bar on August 3rd, 2014. That's myself, Hannah on double bass and Anna (so far). So all say - wooo!!!

It had a good audience last time, an engaged audience that liked new music, and it's a nice atmosphere upstairs with the northern quarter on a Sunday night having a little buzz all of it's own. We did it last year and it was one of my favourite gigs without a doubt.

I myself, monsieur Mike Kneafsey, am playing When The Whistle Blows, in the foyer at the Guild Hall Preston at 1.45 this Friday. June the 13th,as part of the World War One commemorative Preston Remembers - a big council thingy do. I might do it to a backing track of Katie on the piano and in synch with a film - weird. Looking forward to that.

Plus it's going to be used as part of an educational film in schools so I'm pleased that I wrote it and it's being used for something positive and historical.

I wrote a blog on that song on the Sweeney Astray/Industrial hedgerows blog site. Hope you like it if you read it. We've had over 5,000 page views on that site since I started putting up posts. I'll keep posting during the summer. Sticking up pics, web links and songs. When summer starts...that is.

Sweeney play a busy support slot at the New Conti in Preston last Autumn

http://sweeneyastray1.blogspot.co.uk/

Plus I'm doing some private gigs on a pro basis, you understand, to add to the guitar teaching and keep myself in Chorley Cakes and Guinness, so it's time to brush up the covers that I love and hopefully the punters love too.

I put a couple of them up on soundcloud for a free listen  https://soundcloud.com/mike-kneafsey-songwriter/anna-go-with-him-cover . I also put them on fandalism which has proved decent for getting your music listened to. Over 7000 listens on that too. Not complaining.

Plus you get to listen to other songwriters and get that sparse online communication which is not up to real life for me but, well you know, it's the world we're in and it's something. Check out Stephanie O'Brien, great voice https://soundcloud.com/stephanieobrienofficial/crying-and-sleeping

and if you like folk, this has a nice sound...it all keeps you rolling as you put up with the semi pants experience of browsing (give me people any day). https://soundcloud.com/salt-house/little-birdie

Ok so finally I'm recording on Sunday with Elliott Dryden of the Remedy and Anna to try and complete an EP or album that I've been hoping to do since last October. So far we're working on Sketches of Elvis, Two people, Tales from Kawau, The Best Mistake, Without Your Love and History but I've got two new songs I'd like to add to that. We'll see.

Wish me luck.

PS would you mind inviting your friends to "Like" our facebook page. You can do it by visiting the page itself and going to the "invite friends" bit. It helps us roll.

https://www.facebook.com/SweeneyAstray

http://www.sweeneyastray.co.uk/

https://plus.google.com/+SweeneyAstray/posts

Sweeney playing at the Odd Bar in Manchester last summer.