Henry Dennis

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BIO

“Embrace the shadows for they are all part of the light”

Singer/songwriter Henry Dennis has just completed his first solo album, ‘Remember’ and it’s companion piece ‘Embers’. They were recorded at Peter Gabriel’s Real World Studios in England, and remotely with producer Norman Arnold, utilising Grammy nominated musicians in Los Angeles, including Foo Fighter Rami Jaffee on keys. The albums are packed with powerful emotion and an underlying Celtic authenticity and authority. A blast of rock with fragments of folk; Americana with a British coat.

A current fan of Sam Fender, Fontaines DC and Arcade Fire, and a lifelong fan of Pink Floyd and Syd Barrett, he likewise draws material from social division, love and loss - notably the loss of his former songwriting partner in 2018, the late great South African rock legend Ramsay Mackay. Mackay’s firebrand poetic style pervades Dennis’s solo work still, as well as influencing an occasional hint of African rhythm amid the more bluesy or pop numbers. Aside from Dennis’s own backlog of songs, several Mackay co-written sketches have been further developed from a wealth of shared material they curated during their time together.

Dennis describes his musical self as something darker, separate to his day to day persona. A shadow; his creative ‘other’. “My goal is to give it some form, even colour, and ultimately fragment it in light”.

Live:

Currently performing solo, Dennis uses a loop pedal to add more nuance to his shows, layering guitar riffs, beats and vocal harmonies. At other times building intimate solo acoustic songs to a groove based ending, on to which he will add a Gilmour-esque fuzz guitar to soar an optimistic melody onto an otherwise melancholic poem. He has a powerful vocal range to draw upon with a default natural ability to harmonise with himself. It is captivating, soulful, raw and real.

Most recent performances:

Facebook Live, Green Note (Camden, London), various boutique and private events locally (Oxfordshire / Gloucestershire) and Concord USA, The Spice Rooms (Soho, London), Berrybank Amphitheatre (Cotswolds), The Bedford (Balham, London)-

Check out ‘No Regrets’ below or the entire Jools Holland style 13th Feb 2024 Bedford gig on Facebook HERE (2nd up in the 1st part and 1st up after the interval - 2 songs in each part).

UPCOMING:

Westival, Wales - 6-10 June

AVAILABLE FOR BOOKING ...

PRESS

“Previously writing with South African legend Ramsay Mackay under the moniker ‘The Fumes of Mars,’ Dennis has just released his first solo album, ‘Remember’ and what a big bold breath of fresh air it is. From beginning (“Superman”) to end (“I Would Only Be A Martyr for You”), the stories, the tales, are flush with bits of Springsteen and Byrne, filled with valor and verve. Of Geldof, of (Mitch) Ryder, of (Roger) Waters and Bono, the sleigh of this 24-carat diamond rushes forth like a modern-day Summer of Soul” (isaidocean.com)

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