3. Alex RexParadise
Alex Neilson – Alex Rex – is phenomenal. He has such a treasure trove of imagination and he’s such an astounding musician, an incredible drummer, who has played with so many musicians, like Shirley Collins, Will Oldham and Alasdair Roberts. He has this lovely ability to get the essence of the soul on the drums – his feelings and emotions are displayed through every note.
He’s also a very characterful singer and songwriter, his styles are very varied, really interesting and eclectic. He’s always presenting the inside of his head to us like this strange philosopher, which I loved. I toured with him a few years ago with We Are Muffy, and it was such a phenomenal experience. Every night he’d soundcheck every Frank Sinatra’s ‘Only The Lonely’ which is an amazing feat of vocal acrobatics. If I were to learn that it’d take a good few days as it’s so complicated, but he’d just sing it like it it was nothing. I’d just sit back and soak it up.
