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The alias of highly regarded English singer/songwriter
Pete Astor and a small group of close associates, The
Wisdom Of The Harry were formed in 1997. Initially an
outlet for Mr. Astor’s burgeoning skills with the
Atari console, 8-track tape recorder and junkshop sounds
from long forgotten easy listening LPs, the band allied
these elements with Astor’s flair for the perennial
Velvet Underground stylings gleaned as leader of Creation
Record’s pioneers The Loft and The Weather Prophets.
[...]
News
03/10/04—
Upcoming shows, more
Pete Astor will be playing a solo set under The Wisdom
Of Harry tag this Thursday night (11 March) at London's
Water Rats in support of The Broken Family Band. Continental
dates to follow include 13 March in Covo, Bologna, and
23 March at Paris' Nouveau Casino, in support of Laika.
Cherry Red (UK) will be releasing a compilation CD of
material from Pete's prior band, The Weather Prophets,
'Blue Skies & Free Rides (1986-19989) in April.
12/12/03 — New Videos
No fewer than THREE new videos have been posted: two
from the new album, namely "Great Inventor",
and "Ladies and Gentlemen", and a fourth,
a cover of the Blue Orchids' "Sun Connection".
All on the music page.
11/24/03 — First MP3
posted
The first MP3 has been posted from 'Torch Division'.
It's entitled 'Sports Boy' and it's a doozy. Download
from the music page.
08/06/03 — New album
done
"moody", "cinematic", "mysterious" -- these are all
words that have been used to describe the creepy old
fucker who runs the movie projector at my local cinema.
Pete Astor, on the other hand, is a friendly, effusive
music nut who also happens to be one of our fave singer/song-scrawlers
of the past 20 years. The new album from his most song-y
vehicle, The Wisdom Of Harry, is coming out on Matador
Europe this October. With the fetching title, 'Torch
Division', Astor's 3rd TWOH album is preceded in September
with a 7"/CD single of "Crash Helmet" a tune so beautiful
it brought tears to my eyes. Or perhaps that was just
the tear gas (the police are looking for that projectionist).
The Wisdom Of Harry will be supporting The French at
London's Bush Hall on August 14. If that's too long
a commute, you can check out some quicktime video shot
by Gerard Cosloy of The Wisdom Of Harry performing
"Great Inventor" from the new album, and a cover
of the Blue Orchids' "Sun Connection" at a recent
London show opening for M. Ward.
04/14/03 — "We've been
playing music in our shed and working up songs from
our forthcoming album, 'Torch Division', as well as
some older stuff and covers from Randy Newman, The Blue
Orchids, Richard Hell & Anne Briggs.
The new line up is:
Pete Astor - guitar, electronics & singing
David Sheppard - drums
Tom Hodges - baritone & soprano sax, harmonica
& we'll be playing live at the following places & times:
May 16th at the Betsy
Trotwood Farringdon Road, London EC2 with Alan
Tyler & the Lost Men of Littlefield and Darren Hayman
playing records
May 20th at the Buffalo
Bar, Highbury Corner, Islington, London N1 with
the Chap.
04/14/00 — The Wisdom of Harry have just completed
their debut Matador album, House of Binary and those
who do what they do have deemed it to be released in
the early Autumn, just in time for us to claim our share
of the university scholarship pie that I used to call
"the music fund." To get you through the lazy days of
summer, you have to suffice with the new three-track
"Coney Island Of Your Mind" 7", a steaming slice of
electro 'n' roll, detailing the decent into psycosis
& delusion of an ex-caberet performer marooned in his
twilight years in a dying, windswept resort (which is
what his head actually feels like...). "Hal Choc" is
the soundtrack to the bizzare murder riddle of a man
dressed as a cowboy found floating in a lake in lancashire
and "Vent Aziz", which rounds off the record, comprises
a lock groove detailing a view of the world from inside
the mind of a family pet.
11/15/99
New The Wisdom of Harry single under the name
“Atari Priest” [...]
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