The record commemorates the second launch of the project on World Mental Health Day October 10th 2019, in collaboration with Stockport & District Mind at Stockport War Memorial Art Gallery.
The topic is explored by a series of internationally acclaimed mixed discipline artists, that intends to challenge and inspire the audience whilst celebrating the makers involved. ‘A Different Light’ features four film commissions, spoken word and an exclusive 12 track album, using creativity to encourage more open discussion of sensitive issues that affect us all.
MUSIC | Chris Butler, Simon Connor, Jonny Booth, James Smith & Chorus Of Others
PRODUCER | Simon Connor
REMIX | Bopperson featuring Ben Mellor
DESIGN | Daren Newman
FILM | Pantling Studio
Includes unlimited streaming of IGNORANCE IS BLISS
via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
...more
Sold Out
about
This record commemorates the second launch of ‘A Different Light’ on World Mental Health Day October 10th 2019. A collaboration between UK art collective We Are Willow and Mind contributing to continued awareness of male mental health, featuring four film commissions, spoken word performances and an exclusive12 track album.
We Are Willow presents a body of work exploring the topic by a series of internationally acclaimed mixed discipline artists, that intends to challenge and inspire the audience whilst celebrating the makers involved. ‘A Different Light’ uses creativity to encourage more open discussion of sensitive issues that affect us all.
Stockport & District Mind is an independent charity that receives no core funding. By supporting this project you have helped continue delivering a range of services to people throughout all SK postcodes, including groups, workshops, counselling and support for mental health carers.
lyrics
LYRICS - Ben Mellor
The man whose songs helped some decide to stay upon this earth,
A man adored by fans from east to west, from south to north
But whom no amount of love could help persuade him of his worth,
His illness dragged him down, they found him floating in the forth.
And the man who last month found his partner lifeless on the floor,
Now drinking every day to dull a grief he can’t express.
It won’t be long before he joins her on that distant shore
She was the only one who stopped him living to excess.
And all the men brought up by dads with iron-stiff upper lips
Who never learned to open up and talk of how they feel
Now raising sons with whom they have constrained relationships,
and still don’t know how to address the wounds they need to heal
All these boys and all these men are told to feel no shame
About their pain, their weaknesses, that they just need to speak
About what troubles them, it’s what the ad campaigns proclaim -
That if they simply ask then they will find the help they seek
And that’s all well and good but it can be hard to talk
When you can’t tell which is your voice and the ears keep getting cut
And the hashtags and celebrities, though well-meaning make you balk
At being told to open up when your local ward’s been shut.
So this is for the men and boys, the women and the girls
Who know that talking is a start but that you also have to act
Who know life’s gritty bits don’t always alchemise to pearls
But we may be another’s shell when we can see they’re being attacked.
credits
from IGNORANCE IS BLISS,
released October 8, 2019
WRITERS
Chris Butler, Neil Bopperson, Ben Mellor
PERFORMERS
Chris Butler (vocals/guitar), Simon Connor (guitar/synth/vocals), James Smith (drums/vocals), Jonny Booth (pedal steel/guitar/baritone guitar) Chorus Of Others choir (vocals) Neil Bopperson (additional music and production)
Recorded at Studio de la Paix, Vincennes, France
Mixed by Adam Scrimshire
PRODUCED & MIXED by
Simon Connor
MASTERED by
Phil Bulleyment
PHOTOGRAPH by
Simon Pantlling
SLEEVE DESIGN by
Daren Newman
DEDICATED TO
THE DADS AND THE LADS
THE MUMS AND THE SONS
Creative studio and multidisciplinary arts collective, collaborating on projects engaging in cultural, commercial and community interest on a national and international scale.
Mostly recorded during late nights, hence the title, this EP is full of whispery synthpop that is both beguiling and mysterious. Bandcamp New & Notable Nov 12, 2022
British folk musician Tom Nash built these delicate and moving songs around a broken harmonium, allowing its limitations to open up worlds. Bandcamp New & Notable Oct 12, 2021
