BIOGRAPHY
Four-piece Stone From Delphi bring energy, passion and innovation to a sound described as intense, dark, alternative rock. Drawing their influences from modern bands such as Queens Of The Stone Age, Sigur Ros, Radiohead, Oceansize, Mogwai and The Cooper Temple Clause, they have created their own epic sound that sets them apart from their contemporaries.
The Band formed in Spring 2001 bringing together four restless young musicians, Rob Calderbank, Piers Dixon, Andy Nelson and Ally Russell, harbouring their musical aspirations in sleepy Cotswold villages. After a year and half as a covers band playing under various names, writing some of their own songs, Stone From Delphi settled on a name and began to play sets consisting of entirely their own material. Moles Club in Bath was an early stomping ground, and played host to the majority of their early gigs. They entered the 2002 Moles Battle of the Bands as an unknown quantity, took the competition by storm, and came a close second.
In 2003, after some time spent travelling together, Delphi recorded their first demo, the eclectic three track “Hands Up” ep, and continued gigging in venues around Bath. All four of them began university and moved to Bristol in the autumn. They again entered the Moles BOTB at the end of the year, this time winning the contest, earning themselves three days in the prestigious Moles recording studio.
Recording of the “Informed” ep was undertook early in the new year, produced by Paul Corkett (The Cooper Temple Clause, Biffy Clyro), it represented a more stripped down, rocking sound for the band, and was received well by members of the music industry. With a new demo in the bag, SFD broke onto the Bristol gigging circuit and began to play venues such as The Fleece and The Louisiana. In the spring they entered another battle of the bands, this time the international Emergenza competition. They won the southwest regional heat, playing a storming set at the Bristol Carling Academy, which gave them a place in the national final at the London Astoria, where they played in front their biggest crowd to date of around 1500.
By the autumn the band had confirmed their status as one of Bristol’s best bands, headlining gigs at all the city’s venues, and with a growing following. The third demo “Debt Collected” was released in December to rave reviews, giving the band great hope for the future.
2005 has proved a year of great growth for Stone From Delphi, playing gigs further afield, at venues in Birmingham, Oxford and London, and recording a new seven-track EP, “All Else Can Wait”, over the summer.
The band continue to push their song writing, focusing on the dynamics and atmosphere of the music, and bringing a fragility to their songs’ energetic drive. The sound Stone From Delphi possess today, reflects all that the band savour in the music of their influences, taking the subtle electronics of The Cooper Temple Clause, soaring falsetto vocals in the style of Matt Bellamy, the cataclysmically epic Oceansize sound and the unashamedly cool edge of The Queens of the Stone Age. Onstage they truly thrive, giving committed, explosive performances displaying their inherent quality.