Wille & the Bandits are hitting the road for their 26-date tour of the UK with a brand-new album and a live show that will make the two-year wait worth every second. Every day of this touring hiatus has given the band new energy and ideas that will only serve to add to the dynamism and creativity that the band channel to their audience. Special guest on all shows is Troy Redfern. Tickets are available from www.willeandthebandits.com.
The “When the World Stood Still” tour will follow the release of the Bandit’s forthcoming highly anticipated album of the same name. The album documents a moment in time that the whole world will never forget, a time where each person on the planet has felt repercussions in one way or another.
The album was recorded in one of Britain’s most iconic recording studios, Sawmills, with one of its most talented producers, John Cornfield. This coupling has, in the past, produced some of the most ground-breaking albums of the last 30 years – Stone Roses (Fools Gold), Oasis (Definitely Maybe), Supergrass (In it for the Money), Robert Plant (The Fate of Nations) and Muse (Showbiz). Wille & the Bandits “When the World Stood Still” sits comfortably with these albums.
Wille & the Bandits are lauded for their live performance; impressive musicianship and expertly crafted song writing, delivered through an immense and immersive sound. The impact is mesmerising, the effect is transcendental. This is what keeps fans coming back for more. In addition to the lead guitar, lap steel guitar and lead vocals of Wille Edwards, the sound of the band is set to become even more well-honed, rhythmic, and dynamic with a brand-new rhythm section composed of Tom Gilkes (drums, percussion) and Harry Mackaill (bass, keyboards). To add a whole new element to the music the band now also features Hammond organ and second guitar with the multi-instrumentalist Matthew Gallagher Hammond organ, guitar, percussion) second making up a four-piece.
“I’m very excited by the new line-up”, says an enthusiastic Wille Edwards. “Our music was starting to have layers within it that were beginning to be impossible to do justice to as a trio. With a band of multi-instrumentalists and a drummer who is technically outstanding, yet plays to what the song needs, we are able to achieve live what I thought might only be possible in the layers of a studio recording.”
Wille & the Bandits are impossible to pigeonhole. They are musically as diverse as Lady Gaga’s wardrobe. They adopt the musical essence, nostalgia, and discovery of the late 60’s and 70’s and mix rock and roll, funk, and soul to create something fresh and wholly unique.
Wille & the Bandits have toured with world-class acts: Deep Purple; twice with Status Quo; Joe Bonamassa who found Wille to be a “superb slide player”, and Warren Haynes. In 2014 they were voted in the Top Ten Bands to see at Glastonbury Festival.
They’ve played festivals and events including Isle of Wight, Rambln’ Man Fair, Steelhouse, Peer Blues, Boardmasters, and the London Olympics. They were invited to perform at Les Paul’s own Jazz club – the world-famous Iridium venue in New York City.
The upcoming tour will feature songs from the new album; tracks that are on another level to that which the band have produced to date. Each song has been crafted with care and attention to detail, worked and reworked, filled with all the emotion and tribulations of during a time that has been strange and tragic, with moments of clarity and moments of reflection. Each of Wille’s songs tell their own stories, but there is also a cohesion between the tracks that tells a bigger story of “When the World Stood Still”.
In addition to tracks from the new album, the band will also dig into their extensive back catalogue. Fans who have followed the progression of tracks such as “Angel” are used to witnessing the evolution of individual songs as they become ever more mesmerising; they can expect to hear tracks they have become well acquainted with morphing and altering, venturing into Pink Floyd-esque landscapes and Led Zeppelin style riffs that take the listener on a deeper musical journey.
For these shows expect original ballads that feel familiar, funky grooves to get you irresistibly moving, massive riffs to rock out to, eight-minute instrumentals that mesmerise, and real songs with melodies will enter your soul and stick with you.
RESCHEDULED MARCH/APRIL 2022 UK TOUR
WITH SPECIAL GUEST
TROY REDFERN
TICKETS ON SALE FROM www.willeandthebandits.com
Palladium, Bideford
Friday 4 March 2022
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Lower Gunstone, Bideford, EX39 2DE
www.facebook.com/ThePalladiumClub
Old Bakery, Truro
Saturday 5 March 2022
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Blewetts Wharf, Malpas Road, Truro, TR1 1QH
www.oldbakerystudios.co.uk
Phoenix, Exeter
Sunday 6 March 2022
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Gandy Street, Exeter, EX4 3LS
www.exeterphoenix.org.uk
The Musician, Leicester
Wednesday 9 March 2022
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42 Crafton St W, Leicester, LE1 2DE
http://www.themusicianpub.co.uk
The Flowerpot, Derby
Thursday 10 March 2022
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19-25 King Street, Derby, DE1 3DZ
www.flowerpotderby.com
The Bullingdon, Oxford
Friday 11 March 2022
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162 Cowley Road, Oxford, OX4 1UE
www.thebullingdon.co.uk
Philharmonic, Liverpool
Saturday 12 March 2022
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Philharmonic Hall, Hope St, Liverpool, L1 9BP
www.liverpoolphil.com
Continental, Preston
Wednesday 16 March 2022
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S Meadow Lane, Preston, PR1 8JP
Bodega, Nottingham
Thursday 17 March 2022
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23 Pelham St, Nottingham, NG1 2ED
Hug & Pint, Glasgow
Friday 18 March 2022
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171 Great Western Rd, Glasgow, G4 9AW
The Cluny, Newcastle
Saturday 19 March 2022
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36 Lime St, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 2PQ
Elsewhere, Margate
Wednesday 23 March 2022
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21-22 The Centre, Margate, CT9 1RL
www.elsewhere.community
Junction, Cambridge
Thursday 24 March 2022
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Clifton Way, Cambridge, CB1 7GX
The 100 Club, London
Friday 25 March 2022
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Century House, 100 Oxford St, Fitzrovia, London, W1D 1LL
www.the100club.co.uk
Thekla, Bristol
Saturday 26 March 2022
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The Grove, East Mud Dock, Bristol, BS1 4RB
www.theklabristol.co.uk
Guildhall, Gloucester
Wednesday 30 March 2022
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23 Eastgate Street, Gloucester, GL1 1NS
www.gloucesterguildhall.co.uk
The Greystones, Sheffield
Thursday 31 March 2022
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Greystones Road, Sheffield, S11 7BS
www.mygreystones.co.uk
Town Hall, Selby
Friday 1 April 2022
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York Street, Selby, YO8 4AJ
The Tivoli, Buckley
Saturday 2 April 2022
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Brunswick Road, Buckley, CH7 2EF
The Star, Guildford
Wednesday 6 April 2022
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2 Quarry Street, Guildford, GU1 3TY
www.starinnguildford.co.uk
The Robin, Bilston
Thursday 7 April 2022
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20-28 Mount Pleasant, Wolverhampton, Bilston, WV14 7LJ
https://therobin.co.uk
Arts Centre, Bridgwater
Friday 8 April 2022
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11-13 Castle Street, Bridgwater, TA6 3DD
https://bridgwaterartscentre.co.uk
Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon
Saturday 9 April 2022
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Canal Wharf, Brecon, LD3 7EW
www.brycheiniog.co.uk/en
Nightrain, Bradford
Thursday 21 April 2022
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7, 17 Queensgate, Bradford, BD1 1RB
www.nightrain.co.uk
The Tivoli, Wimborne
Friday 22 April 2022
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19 West Borough, Wimborne, BH21 1LT
www.tivoliwimborne.co.uk
Ropetackle, Brighton
Saturday 23 April 2022
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Ropetackle Arts Centre, Shoreham-by-Sea, BN43 5EG
https://ropetacklecentre.co.uk
DISCOGRAPHY
WILLE & THE BANDITS
BIOGRAPHY
Praised by critics and rock legends for being one of the most dynamic bands around the globe Wille & The Bandits conjure up similarities with Led Zeppelin as they move from riff-tastic rock and roll to more acoustic sensibilities that only few bands manage. The use of string arrangements, oscillating delays and soaring lap steel guitar solos give the band an emotive Pink Floyd edge mixed with the groove and vocal phrasing of John Butler Trio, which leaves audiences in pieces.
From humble roots in Cornwall the band wanted to stay based where they feel inspired by the rolling hills and blues seas rather than chase the industry to the City. Their approach has paid off with the industry now chasing them. They have extended their touring reach right across Europe and as far afield as Australia and the USA to provide the sense of escapism and anti-establishment, rebellious spirit that Cornwall has been known for centuries.
With their fresh approach to blues rock music, Wille & The Bandits have been assertively carving a place for themselves in Europe’s music scene, developing a reputation as one of the best live acts around and capturing the imagination and interest of music lovers right across the globe.
The band were listed in the Top Ten Must See Bands at Glastonbury 2014 by BBC Radio 1 and were personally invited to perform on the German TV show Rockpalast, a musical institution of global import.
The band combines four talented and committed musicians who come from very different musical backgrounds. The great musicianship with infectious songs has inspired praise from Rock legends such as Ian Paice, Joe Bonamassa and Francis Rossi.
Throughout a performance the band can be seen playing a range of instruments, sometimes simultaneously, sometimes switching between various guitars, bass guitars and percussion within the same song, giving the audience a complete performance, which has seen the popularity of Wille & The Bandits grow at an exceptional rate.
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