Rock band with debut album

The quiet country village of Hassocks, nestled at the foot of the South Downs, may not be the obvious breeding ground for rock bands. At this time of year, the village has held all its Summer Fairs and pupils at its three schools are getting ready for the Autumn term. However, this summer has also seen the release of the debut album from local rock band A Citizen Above Suspicion.
 
The band, led by Hassocks-based brothers Paul and Ross Shepherd, take their musical cues from the likes of Muse, Manic Street Preachers and Radiohead, along with the more traditional influences of Pink Floyd and David Bowie. Entitled ‘Evacuate’, the album is a 12-song, 45-minute piece written and recorded entirely in the band’s home studio. There was a clear division of labour, with Ross contributing melodic vocals to Paul’s dark, tension-filled rock backing tracks. The result is, according to the brothers, a modern concept record – diverse musical arrangements are connected by common lyrical themes. ‘The album tells a story,’ says Ross. ‘Although we like to leave it up to the listeners to interpret the CD in their own way, it was definitely written with a specific storyline and characters in mind. Very roughly, the album is about humankind and our place in the world.’
 
The songs themselves range from calming piano/keyboard instrumental sections through to energetic, heavy rock. ‘We have always admired bands who tried to do something a bit challenging or different to the norm,’ says Paul. ‘So rather than release the odd mp3 or demo CD like we have in the past, we wanted to try and put together and release a full, cohesive album ourselves.’
 
Paul and Ross (who are related not so distantly to the late T-Rex frontman Marc Bolan) spent most of 2004 writing, recording and mixing the album themselves. Once complete, they financed the manufacture of the album with funds raised from earlier live shows. CDs are distributed through an online store, and the entire album can be downloaded from the band’s website.
 
The band, which is completed by musicians Stephen Simmons (keyboards), Matt Allen (bass) and Grant Tulley (drums), is now preparing to perform the material from ‘Evacuate’ live for the first time. Having previously played shows mainly in nearby Brighton and London, the band are now hoping to broaden their reach with shows across the South later in 2005.
 
 
Looking back
Since forming around three years ago, the band has kept itself very busy. Weekly rehearsals at Scream Studios in Brighton soon followed its inception and the band started to find its feet as a live act in 2002, with multiple appearances at the ‘Cable Club’ evenings run at The Pressure Point venue. Meanwhile, Paul had begun to play around with various types of home-recording software and had attempted some rough recordings of ACAS material.Although production was very raw, these recordings were tweaked to become the band’s first demo CD. In 2002, the band also won a competition run by ‘Metal Hammer’ magazine – the prize was a week’s studio time with established rock producer Mark Daghorn at his New Rising Studios in Essex.
 
After spending most of 2003 gigging and writing new material, a change of direction emerged during 2004. The band uncovered a fresh area to their writing with Paul taking a more direct approach to the music likewise Ross’s vocals becoming more melodic. For the duration of 2004 the band worked on writing this new material – the result is the ‘Evacuate’ album.