| The Owl Service | |
|---|---|
| Origin | England |
| Genres | Folk/rock |
| Years active | 2006–present |
| Labels | Rif Mountain |
| Associated acts | The Straw Bear Band, The Trysting Tree, Wolfgang & the Wolf Gang |
| Members | |
| Diana Collier Steven Collins Dom Cooper Katie English Jo Lepine Jason Steel Nancy Wallace |
|
The Owl Service is a British folk/rock band formed in 2006 by multi-instrumentalist Steven Collins, named after the 1967 novel by Alan Garner.
Contents |
The Owl Service was originally intended to be a solo vehicle for Steven Collins, but while working on the first release (the Wake the Vaulted Echo EP from 2006) he felt the need to enlist some help with vocal duties. This resulted in 2 new recruits; Rebsie Fairholm (who sang on the debut EP, but then made only one more fleeting appearance with the band on the Bitter Night EP in 2008) and Dom Cooper of The Straw Bear Band, who has remained involved with The Owl Service ever since; singing, writing songs and handling all the band's graphic design. The Wake... EP was warmly received and off the back of that the band were asked to contribute a track to the 2007 compilation album John Barleycorn Reborn on the Cold Spring label (for which Collins also wrote sleeve notes). For the JBR album, the band recorded the traditional song The North Country Maid with session singer Rachel Davies. While recording the debut Owl Service album later that year, two permanent female singers joined the band; Jo Lepine from Rochester, and Diana Collier from Leigh-on-Sea (also Collins' home town).
The debut album, A Garland of Song, was released on the band's own Hobby-Horse label in July 2007, and soon after they were invited to support English folk singer Lisa Knapp at a show in London. Up to that point The Owl Service had never played in public, but following the invitation to perform Collins opted to expand the line-up to enable them to function as a live group. It was at this time that Nancy Wallace (formerly of The Memory Band) became a permanent member of the band, and by the end of 2007 they had signed to UK independent label Southern Records.
Southern reissued A Garland of Song in June 2008 on CD and LP - this was followed a month later by a new Owl Service EP, recorded with ex-Mellow Candle singer Alison O'Donnell entitled The Fabric of Folk (released by the Birmingham-based Static Caravan label). By this time, the band had a core line-up of 7, with the addition of guitarist Jason Steel, and experimental musician Katie English (aka Isnaj Dui) providing flute and melodica. The Owl Service parted company with Southern Records at the end of 2009. Their second album, The View From a Hill, will be released by Rif Mountain on May 1, 2010, and features guest appearances from Joolie Wood of Current 93 and Alison O'Donnell among others.