Gideon Conn hails from the great city of Manchester and and he was recently in London for a few gigs. In between his performances he was cool enough to meet with the blog of wonder for a chat and some wine in a cave aka Gordon’s Wine Bar. Let’s see how we got on shall we?

The Wonder- Hi Gideon!

Gideon Conn- Hi!

W- I like your t-shirt. Did you design that? [Gideon is wearing a t-shirt with his smiling face on it]

GC- No, I didn’t. My friend who owns the clothing company Yes No Maybe did and he manufactures them and then I buy them off him. So I’m wearing it today cos I always wear them to the gigs. People see it and then they buy it.

W- Is it weird walking around with your face on, so to speak?

GC- I’m used to it, I don’t think anything of it now!

W- You’re pretty creative, with your music, artwork and clothing. When you get an idea how do you decide what avenue to go down to express it?

GC- My main focus is music. I spend 80% of my time practicing, rehearsing or gigging. The artwork is on the sidelines. When I have free time I do drawings for pleasure. Every now and again they sell, which is nice!

I’ll show you some of my drawings… I always carry a sketchbook with me when I’m travelling. [He shows us his some pretty cool drawings] I like the way people make shapes, the way they blend into each other. I also like the way architecture merges with the people around the space.

W- So how did your band come together?

GC- We met five years ago. I have a manager who said I’m going on my honeymoon in South America for 3 months sp please have a band by the time I get back. So I waited 2 and a half months, then I thought I’d better make a few calls…I met my drummer Nick, who’s an excellent drummer, from someone I knew. And the rest of the band sort of came together.

W- You’ve been on tour as a support act. What’s that like?

GC- It’s great cos you’re performing to a large audience who in general don’t know my music, haven’t heard of me and I can win them over. Yeah, it’s wonderful.

W- You’ve supported some big acts as well, like Jason Mraz.

GC- We did support Jason Mraz, there were thousands of people there each night and they were really warm. They loved it. I’ve also done a tour with Dan Le Sac and Scroobius Pip. They’re great, people I really admire, cos they’re quite unique. They’re a proper music band. I’d like to get more support tours. Jason did invite me to sing onstage with him, but I didn’t want to!

W- Why not?

GC- I don’t like his style of music!

W- Haha. Fair enough! What do you think of the genre that’s been used to describe your music, folk-hop?

GC- In one sense, fair enough, but it’s not enough. I just love great songs and that’s all I’m interested in, producing songs that I think will be really great songs, a sound that hasn’t been heard before. I’m not fussed about genre, it doesn’t bother me. I absorb a lot of styles a lot of music and it is there, but I wouldn’t say it’s recognisable.

Someone like Bob Dylan, has a unique quality in his voice. That is what will set aside exceptional artists, they have to have a voice of their own. People will know who they’re listening to.

W- Who are you listening to at the moment?

GC- What did I buy recently…I buy my music from charity shops, I look for classic albums that I haven’t heard before. I’ve got a double cd by the French musician Jacques Brel. I don’t know much about him cos I’ve only heard his cd once, but I think I’m really going to enjoy that one. I also bought an early album by the Roots.

W- I like the Roots.

GC- They’re amazing. The band has got a good set up. They’ve been at it a long time, they’re veterans.

W- You released your album in August, what was that experience like?

GC- It was a good time. The songs that are on the album, New Bop Sounds, were written over a long time. I narrowed it down to 12 songs that I thought would work well together. The album was recorded 18 months before the release. I was really pleased to get it out there for people to enjoy it.

W- What’s the response been like?

GC- From people that have heard it, I’ve had some lovely feedback, people have really enjoyed it.

W- When you write your music, how do come up with the lyrics?

GC- There’s a few different ways, but mostly I’ll have a melodic idea and then I’d probably get a chorus first and then the verse.

It’s a funny process, I don’t have it on tap. It just happens sometimes. Whatever I do, if I’m not feeling it that day then, y’know I always know there’s another song around the corner. At least I hope so anyway! At the moment, I’m quite happy. I wrote 4 songs in the last fortnight. For one of them, I was walking the dog, then I just had a melody and by the time I got home I already had a verse.

W- Is it frustrating that not all types of music is heard? It seems to be mainly pop songs that get all the attention. Not that I hate all pop music!

GC- That’s why 6 Music is such a great station. They have a playlist but they can fit in around that anything they want to play, which is great. It’s a rarity.

W- What bands inspire you?

GC- Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder, he’s got a lot of soul. I like indie bands. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Maximo Park. I have a large music collection. Soul, jazz, a little bit of hip hop. I like the Beatles. There’s a timeless feel to their music. You could listen to their music now and it would sound contemporary.

W- Is that what you aim for? Making music that’s timeless?

GC- Yeah, I really do. I make a special effort to not make references to specific events as there’s no need to put them in. I write about love, family, universal themes that work in any country, for any age.

[And then in the middle of Gordon’s wine bar, we got an impromptu gig from Gideon. He played a new song that’ll feature on his next album. Awesome day!]

W- Is there anything you want to say to someone who hasn’t heard your music before?

GC- Just er, I hope they get the opportunity!

Well what do y’know, why not click on these links right here?!

Gideon’s Website, Myspace, Album.