Hebden Bridge West Yorkshire -Chamber Pop group Beware of Trains have announced the release of their festive single ‘Forever Home’ mixed and co-produced by acclaimed producer Darren Allison, ahead of a UK tour 1st-3rd December with shows in Halifax, Newcastle, and Glasgow.
Comprising of Yorkshire born singer/ songwriter Leighton Jones (“Melancholic piano ballads with a meticulous approach to sound design – The Herald) and Scottish soprano Marie Claire Breen (“A soprano of rare fluency” – The Daily Mail), the group describe themselves as “Symphonic chamber pop and Music Hall for hapless romantics, shimmering strings, heavenly harmonies and a dollop of Disney on the side!”.
Meeting in 2014 while performing in an operatic variety show in the back of an articulated lorry converted into a touring theatre, the duo formed to combine their shared love of performance, musical theatre, Kate Bush and The Divine Comedy. Leighton Jones explains “I’d been a songwriter and performer in Scotland since 2001, touring as keyboardist for Celtic Fusion act ‘The Peatbog Faeries’, performing in piano bars around Glasgow and playing The Edinburgh Fringe with my folk quartet ‘The Dead Man’s Waltz’. Then all of a sudden I was stunned to land a part in a Scottish Opera show and find myself crammed into the back of a lorry with a cast of pro actors and Opera singers. Then hearing Marie Claire sing ‘Donizetti’ for the first time, I fell in love and didn’t want the show to end…so it didn’t!”
Returning to Yorkshire and releasing their first two singles in 2019, Beware of Trains were invited to perform ‘A Kitmas Concert’ to a packed audience at Bradford Cathedral with members of Leeds Opera North to raise funds for Allerton Cat Rescue. “We were inspired to write a festive song based on the rescue centre’s slogan ‘Helping cats and kittens find their Forever Home for over 40 years’. It stood out as a great title to explore that sense of longing and belonging the phrase conjures, at a time of year that is difficult for many people…” says Leighton.
‘Forever Home’ is a bittersweet symphonic festive tale that transports us into a snow globe and whisks us away through snowy Yorkshire fields and skies, revelling in the spirit of homecoming the festive season brings whilst reflecting on the passing years and sadness of saying goodbye to the people and places we love.
The single and exclusive limited-edition artwork will be available for purchase and download on Bandcamp 17th November 2023 at https://leightonjones.bandcamp.com/
Joined by multi-instrumentalist and Leeds Conservatoire lecturer Laura McIntosh on additional keys and bass, their live shows promise a plethora of symphonic chamber pop originals and nod to their inspirational influences, including Kate Bush, Neil Hannon, and Orlando Weeks.
“Maverick, mellifuous music” (Helen Meller, Hebden Bridge Arts Festival Director). “A combination of Opera, The Divine Comedy and John Shuttleworth” (Heptonstall V-fest 2020)
1st December – HALIFAX, Square Chapel Arts
2nd December – NEWCASTLE, The Globe Theatre
3rd December – GLASGOW, The Old Hairdressers