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FOCUS ON: STEPHEN LANGSTAFF

By Editor-in-Chief ⋅ February 25, 2008 ⋅  Print this post ⋅ Post a comment

Chris Baynes

On March 8th this year, Stephen Langstaff will make a little piece of history. By headlining the 1,200 capacity Carling Academy 1 – a stage usually reserved for established acts and playing host the same month to The Fall and Supergrass – the Liverpool-born singer-songwriter will become the first unsigned solo artist to ever do so. His enthusiasm is obvious. “I’m extremely excited” he beams. “I can’t wait, I’m dying to sing and hear my voice bounce around the room”.

When asked about why he thinks his home town has taken to him with such zeal, Langstaff is modest and unassuming, but confident; suggesting only that it is his sincerity that proves an attractive draw. “I do work hard. It’s been very word-of-mouth up until the end of last year. I think I just sort of write songs that are very enduring. There’s a lot of soul in them, which I think people sort of take to heart”. This emotive quality Langstaff strives to include in his music is evident in his earnest lyricism and passionate delivery. “I find music to be spiritual in itself – it is non-physical, something you can feel. You know when you go and see a really good gig and there’s someone on stage putting this feeling across? That’s how I approach it.”

Songwriting is clearly something that comes naturally to the Kirkby-born 25-year-old, whose solo voyage began to take hold three years ago after unfruitful periods in various bands. “I was never interested in just being a guitarist or being the next Slash. I thought I could do something more, I wanted to reach out for something – so I sort of took myself away with my guitar”. The produce of this seclusion was first aired, fleshed out by the addition of a three-piece band, in last year’s Curious EP.

Now, with an eponymous debut album coinciding with his show at the Academy, record label interest, and a touring jaunt around the country planned for the summer, Langstaff is beginning to reap the fruits of his labour. “The edges are blurring” he says excitedly of the development of his music from a hobby to a bona fide career. “I can’t wait. The last six months have been amazing and it’s only going to get better”. Given his rapid ascension in his hometown thus far, Langstaff’s optimism seems unlikely to be misguided.

Stephen Langstaff is at Carling Academy 1 on March 8th. Tickets £6. www.myspace.com/stephenlangstaff