Feels Like Healing

17/01/2023

New episode out today featuring Sam Genders from the band Tunng. We discuss their brilliant album and all things and - listen now wherever you get your .
Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/sam-genders-tunng/id1630069334?i=1000594826746
Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5j8xLlZRJVw5i6sPPogy2t?si=b201db4a4394486d

29/08/2022

This week my guest is Trinidadian-born saxophonist Jesse Ryan. Jesse is a saxophonist and composer with a keen interest in the connections between jazz and Afro-Caribbean musical traditions and communicating transcendent ideas through his music. Ryan’s debut album Bridges (2020) was nominated for a JUNO award and he was the recipient that year of the Toronto Arts Foundation’s Emerging Jazz Artist Award.

Ryan grew up in Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago surrounded by a rich heritage of music and is the grandson of one of the islands’ calypso veteran, the late Clifton Ryan, aka the “Mighty Bomber”.

When he moved to Toronto in 2013, he had this unspoken fear of losing a loved one while he was away. That became a reality in 2017 when his mother was diagnosed with cancer and passed away on July 27, 2017. He was in Toronto when she passed away and couldn’t travel home in time to be with her. When that happened, he knew that one of the ways that he could deal with the trauma and process his grief was to write some music. That’s how the song 'The Night Before She Passed' came about.

You can find more information about Jesse via his website: https://www.jesseryanmuzik.com/

or follow Jesse on Instagram

Music featured in this episode:

'The Night Before She Passed' by Jesse Ryan (Listen here: https://bit.ly/3CC54EJ)

Feels Like Healing is a show where I talk to creative people about how grief has shaped their art.

These conversations are here to show how those who have suffered loss have found comfort and solace through the act of being creative and how creativity can help us all better understand our grief and reach a place of healing.

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You can follow Feels Like Healing on Instagram / Twitter / Facebook

Produced / Edited by Al Lewis

Theme music by Al Lewis

15/08/2022

This week my guest is English singer/songwriter Charlie Barnes. He has released three albums; the latest, Last Night's Glitter, was released in July 2020. As well as performing and releasing music under his own name, Charlie is also a touring multi-instrumentalist with indie rock band Bastille.

We talk about how Charlie has used songwriting and performing to help him process the untimely death of his Mum, who died of breast cancer when Charlie was just 15.

You can find more information about Charlie via his website: https://www.charliebarnesmusic.co.uk/

or follow Charlie on Instagram / Twitter

Music featured in this episode:

'Film' by Charlie Barnes (Listen here: https://bit.ly/3phTwPa)

'Young at Heart' by The Society Pages (Listen here: https://thesocietypages.bandcamp.com/)

Feels Like Healing is a show where I talk to creative people about how grief has shaped their art.

These conversations are here to show how those who have suffered loss have found comfort and solace through the act of being creative and how creativity can help us all better understand our grief and reach a place of healing.

Produced / Edited by Al Lewis

Theme music by Al Lewis

Artwork by Lauren Rose Illustration

08/08/2022

My guest this week is English singer/songwriter Sam Brookes. Sam is a Bristol-based alt folk artist who has featured and collaborated with artists as diverse as Lucy Rose and Basement Jaxx. His 2011 eponymous debut saw him named as Sunday Times ‘Breaking Act’ and his independently released follow up Kairos was picked as one of the best albums of 2014 by The Independent. Considerable streaming success and support slots for the likes of W***y Mason, Scott Matthews and Joan Armatrading have also earned Sam a dedicated following.

Black Feathers, which was released in 2020, is Sam's first album in six years and is described as “a meditation on grief”.

We talk about how Sam began writing the songs for Black Feathers as a response to several significant and traumatic life events which all occurred within a short space of time, the end of a long-term relationship, the death of his Dad and also the loss of a friend to su***de.

You can find more information about Sam at: https://www.sambrookes.com/

or follow Sam on Instagram /

Music featured in this episode:

'18 and Sleeping' by Sam Brookes (Listen here: https://bit.ly/3vNyf3k)

Feels Like Healing is a show where I talk to creative people about how grief has shaped their art.

These conversations are here to show how those who have suffered loss have found comfort and solace through the act of being creative and how creativity can help us all better understand our grief and reach a place of healing.

::

You can follow Feels Like Healing on Instagram / Twitter / Facebook

Produced / Edited by Al Lewis

Theme music by Al Lewis

01/08/2022

This week my guest is Scottish singer/songwriter Mary Erskine. Growing up in rural Fife in a big old house near the sea, she started writing songs when she was 13. Mary first came to prominence as the lead singer of band 'Talk in Colour', before embarking on a solo career under the moniker 'Me for Queen'.

Mary's excellent cycling inspired album 'Iron Horse' was released at the very apt Stratford Velodrome in 2014 where the stage electricity for the whole launch was provided uniquely by cycle power from the audience. Mary is also in demand as a theatre writer and session musician playing on recordings and live performances for various artists.

We talk about how Mary turned to songwriting to help her process the often unspoken trauma of miscarriage.

You can find more information about Mary at: https://www.meforqueen.com
Music featured in this episode:
‘These Hands’ by Me for Queen
'Inside' by Me for Queen

Feels Like Healing is a show where I talk to creative people about how grief has shaped their art.

These conversations are here to show how those who have suffered loss have found comfort and solace through the act of being creative and how creativity can help us all better understand our grief and reach a place of healing.

Listen now on & Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your

Artwork/Animation by Lauren Rose Illustration 🎨

25/07/2022

This week my guest is English double bassist John Parker. John first came to prominence as one half of the band Nizlopi, which he formed in Leamington Spa with his best friend from school Luke Concannon.
In 2004, they released their first album Half These Songs Are About You, "JCB" became a single from that album and reached number one on the UK Singles Chart on the 18 December 2005. It eventually won the duo an Impala Platinum award recognising sales of over 500,000 copies of the song across Europe in 2007.


John now works as a freelance session player and has worked alongside artists such as Maz O'Connor, Polly Paulusma, Jake Morley and Paper Aeroplanes.


We talk about how John used creativity and music as an outlet to help him through the grief of losing his Dad when he was 14. John also talks about what life has been like as a full-time carer for his Mum before she sadly passed away last year.


You can follow John on Instagram


Music featured in this episode:
'JCB Song' by Nizlopi (Listen here: https://bit.ly/3PvCdW8)

Feels Like Healing is a show where I talk to creative people about how grief has shaped their art.


These conversations are here to show how those who have suffered loss have found comfort and solace through the act of being creative and how creativity can help us all better understand our grief and reach a place of healing.

Listen now on Spotify & Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your

Artwork/Animation by Lauren Rose Illustration 🎨

18/07/2022

This week my guest is Welsh singer/songwriter Sarah Howells. Sarah first came to prominence in the Welsh music scene with her band 'Jylt', which she formed with her best friend from school Nia George.
Just as the band were beginning to make waves, Nia was diagnosed with leukaemia and sadly died at just 21.
Sarah continued in music and went on to form the band 'Halflight' with Richard Llewellyn which would later become 'Paper Aeroplanes'.
The band achieved great success in the UK and Europe, touring extensively and releasing 4 albums between 2009-2015.

Sarah now releases music under the moniker Bryde and with around 10 Million streams on Spotify alone and a nomination for the Welsh Music Prize, Bryde has taken Sarah to several corners of the globe.

We talk about how Sarah has used her creativity and songwriting to help her through the grief of losing Nia at such a young age.

You can find more information about Bryde at: https://www.brydemusic.com/
or follow Sarah on Instagram / Twitter

Feels Like Healing is a show where I talk to creative people about how grief has shaped their art.


These conversations are here to show how those who have suffered loss have found comfort and solace through the act of being creative and how creativity can help us all better understand our grief and reach a place of healing.

Listen now on Spotify & Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your

Artwork/Animation by Lauren Rose Illustration 🎨

11/07/2022

This week my guest is Welsh singer/songwriter Ywain 'Yws' Gwynedd Yws Gwynedd. Yws first came to prominence in the Welsh Language music scene with his band 'Frizbee', who released 3 albums before Yws took a break from music to work in television. In 2014, Yws returned to music with a brand new band, singing under his own name. The band have achieved huge success since then with well over 1 Million streams on Spotify after their debut album Codi / \ Cysgu won Best LP at Y Selar music awards and was nominated for best Welsh-language album of the year at the National Eisteddfod in 2015.


We talk about how Yws has used his creativity and songwriting to help him firstly, through the grief of losing his brother, who died in a car accident when Yws was just 19 and then how the grief of losing a child during pregnancy inspired Yws to write one of his most famous songs 'Sebona Fi'.


Feels Like Healing is a show where I talk to creative people about how grief has shaped their art.


These conversations are here to show how those who have suffered loss have found comfort and solace through the act of being creative and how creativity can help us all better understand our grief and reach a place of healing.

Listen now on Spotify & Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your
Artwork/Animation by Lauren Rose Illustration

27/06/2022

Here it is folks. Episode #1 of with English singer/songwriter Jake Morley.

It felt right to start this series with Jake’s story as there were so many similarities in what both Jake and I experienced. We both lost our Dads at 21 and for both of us this was the driving force behind our decisions to forge careers as musicians.

In this episode we discuss how became an outlet for Jake’s and how his experience of losing his Dad weaved its way into his .

Jake’s story is rather different to mine however in the fact that his Dad wasn’t ever ill like my Dad, but was tragically killed in the 7/7 bombings which took place in London back in 2005.

We talk about how the very public circumstances surrounding Jake’s loss impacted his life and creativity.

Listen now on Spotify & Apple Podcasts or wherever you listen to your

Artwork/Animation by Lauren Rose Illustration

15/06/2022