He's got the blues
Kent’s hottest new musical property, Funke and the Two
Tone Baby, is off on his first UK tour. The one-man blues rock
revelation gave Chris Price an exclusive sneak peek at the album
which is going to put the county’s music scene on the
map.
Awkwardly walking up to the mic, Dan Turnbull changes completely
when he starts to perform.
“Whenever I pick up an instrument, the blues is what I play,”
said Dan, better known by his alter ego, Funke and the Two Tone
Baby.
“I try and play other stuff but it never flows as easily. I must
have the blues in my fingers,” said the one-man band who lives in
Rochester, shortly after playing Bella’s Kiss, his signature live
track which will become the first on his debut album.
“I gig to eat really,” said the 24-year-old former Canterbury
Christ Church University student, who graduated with a degree in
commercial music.
The story of Funke and the Two Tone Baby began at open mic
nights run at the Broadstairs campus, where the Essex boy studied
for three years before making Kent his home. He realised he could
make a living out of his passion and began gigging in Thanet, then
Canterbury, then Medway before taking bookings all over Kent.
“I was chatting to some gig musicians and they said ‘we do an
hour and a half set and get paid £150 for it’ – I thought what an
amazing way to make money. I phoned around every venue in Kent and
139 gigs later, here I am.”
And where Dan is, is on the verge of something big. He has just
finished recording his as-yet-untitled first record at Rochester’s
Ranscombe Studios, conveniently next door to his flat on Star
Hill.
Doing a day on and a day off over the past week or so, he has
been trying to make the best of the 36 hours he had to record 10
tracks. Next is his first UK tour, starting in Whitstable and
Canterbury before heading to Coventry, Oxford, Bristol, London and
beyond. It is a lot to take on one man’s shoulders but going it
alone is Dan’s style.
“I never really thought about it,” he said when asked why he
does not perform with a band.
“I picked up a loop pedal and realised I could be a band on my
own and it never even occurred to me to get in another guy to play
something.
“I jump in my car of an evening and go to various pubs where no
one knows who I am but then after the first set, people come up to
you. It is a good life. I’m incredibly fortunate to be doing what I
am doing. It has its ups and its downs.
“Sometimes, when it really goes wrong, I would kill to have a
band behind me. When you are on your own, all eyes are on you and
if you mess it up, you are the only one to blame.
“But mainly people are stunned at the sound I can make. They say
‘I’ve never heard anything like that before’ and often say ‘I
thought it was a four-piece band when I was standing outside’. That
is a nice feeling.”
On stage, charisma oozes from Funke. Although his audience
banter makes him appear like a dandy version of the Hitcher from
the Mighty Boosh, his vocals are Dylan-esque and his stage manner
echoes Jack White.
The White Stripes frontman’s exploits are also present on
Funke’s debut album. Much like the Detroit band’s seminal record,
Elephant, Funke’s efforts will be recorded entirely in analogue, a
practice which distinguishes Ranscombe Studios from almost all
others in the country.
“It is an incredible place,” said Dan. “It really is striking
and Jim Riley, the owner and producer is completely legendary in
the analogue recording studio field.
“My last EP, Injustice and Queen, was digital but analogue gives
a track a new life. I get to keep the massive reel tapes, which is
incredible. It is such a more physical thing rather than just
getting an MP3 pinged off to you.
“I haven’t really experimented with it before but when you put
the headphones on, you hear a crackle, which is amazing and so much
better than hearing a dead digital sound. It’s going to be a great
experience. I can’t wait.”
Funke and the Two Tone Baby kicks off his first UK tour at
Whitstable’s Duke of Cumberland on Sunday, November 25. Admission
free. Call 01227 280617. He is also at the Cherry Tree, Canterbury,
on Tuesday, November 27. Admission free. Call 01227
451266.
21/11/12
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