Joe Volk

Joe Volk
Joe Volk in Helsinki, Finland. February 2011
Joe Volk in Helsinki, Finland. February 2011
Background information
OriginUnited Kingdom
GenresAcoustic, Folk.
Years active2002–present
LabelsInvada, Glitterhouse
Websitewww.joevolk.co.uk

Joe Volk is an English musician and songwriter from Bristol now based in Bern, Switzerland. He was lyricist and singer with the bands Gonga and Crippled Black Phoenix, and is a solo recording artist.

Solo

As a solo artist, Volk was first signed to Invada Records[2][3] and released his debut album Derwent Waters Saint in 2006. The album was recorded, engineered and produced by Adrian Utley,[4] guitarist with the band Portishead. In December 2012, Volk released a split 12" EP on Invada Records with the experimental Japanese band Boris.[1]

In 2015, Volk signed to Glitterhouse Records and released his second solo album Happenings and Killings in February 2016.[5] The album was produced by Volk, with additional production and orchestration by Emmy-nominated composer Ben Salisbury[6] along with Geoff Barrow.[7] To support Happenings and Killings, Volk toured Germany in early 2017[8] with a new live band he formed with drummer Thys Bucher and bassist Jürg Schmidhauser. Together the three musicians wrote new material for his third album Primitive Energetics, released in April 2020 under the name Joe Volk + Naiare.[9]

Bands

He was first signed to Invada Records in 2003 as the singer with extreme hard rock band Gonga. Volk left the band in 2007 after writing and releasing two albums.[10] Volk was the original singer and lyricist in Crippled Black Phoenix, a band founded by Justin Greaves in 2004. He left the band in 2012 after releasing five studio albums, one live album and one EP with the band.[11]

Discography

Albums

Year Album details
2006 Derwent Waters Saint
  • Released: 13 February 2006
  • Label: Invada
  • Format: CD
2016 Happenings and Killings
2020 Primitive Energetics
  • Released: 24 April 2020
  • Label: Glitterhouse Records
  • Format: CD, vinyl, digital

Extended plays

Year Album details
2012 Boris / Joe Volk Split
  • Released: 10 December 2012
  • Label: Invada
  • Format: Digital, vinyl

Official videos

  • "Call to Sun" (2012)[12]
  • "Soliloquy" (2015)[13]
  • "These Feathers Count" (2016)[14]
  • "Whitesheet" (2020)[15]

With Gonga

  • Gonga (2003)
  • II: Transmigration (2008)

With Crippled Black Phoenix

  • Sharks & Storms / Blizzard of Horned Cats (2006)
  • A Love of Shared Disasters (2007)
  • The Resurrectionists (2009)
  • Night Raider (2009)
  • I, Vigilante (2010)
  • (Mankind) The Crafty Ape (2012)
  • Poznan 2011 A.D. (2012)

Other

He is the Great Grandson of electrical engineer and inventor Magnus Volk.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Murray, Jake (29 November 2012). "Boris / Joe Volk - Split Release EP". Echoes And Dust. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
  2. ^ Lukowski, Andrzej (21 September 2009). "Invada Invasion of DiS: Geoff Barrow talks Bristol and BEAK". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on 16 October 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  3. ^ "Bristol - Entertainment - Fine Tuned: February 08". BBC Online. 29 February 2008. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  4. ^ "Joe Volk | Clash Music Exclusive Ones To Watch". Clash. 8 April 2008. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  5. ^ Records, Glitterhouse. "Glitterhouse Records :: Artists :: Joe Volk". label.glitterhouse.com. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
  6. ^ "Ben Salisbury". Ben Salisbury. 24 August 2010. Archived from the original on 12 August 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  7. ^ "Joe Volk - Happeningsandkillings". Discogs. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
  8. ^ "Joe Volk - Events". Retrieved 10 October 2020 – via Facebook.
  9. ^ Records, Glitterhouse. "Glitterhouse Records :: Artists :: Joe Volk + Naiare". label.glitterhouse.com. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
  10. ^ "Gonga". Clash. 8 April 2008. Retrieved 13 June 2011.
  11. ^ "Crippled Black Phoenix". Discogs. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
  12. ^ "J O E V O L K - C A L L T O S U N". 12 December 2012. Retrieved 10 October 2020 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ "Joe Volk - Soliloquy - Glitterhouse Records". 21 December 2015. Retrieved 10 October 2020 – via YouTube.
  14. ^ "Joe Volk - These Feathers Count - Glitterhouse Records". 9 November 2016. Retrieved 10 October 2020 – via YouTube.
  15. ^ "Joe Volk + Naiare - Whitesheet (official video)". 6 March 2020. Retrieved 10 October 2020 – via YouTube.