The arrival of Barefoot Confessor is pretty much the “usual story” – Michael Shearer, front man and main songwriter of Barefoot Confessor, modestly relates. The three of them started a band in school; Brit Pop wannabes with Michael thinking he was a thirteen year old Liam Gallagher. Of course he wasn’t, but the harmonic pop sensibilities that lend so well to the Barefoot Confessor sound has never been lost from that adolescent ideal. They played a few gigs around a not-so-enchanting, though utterly British circuit; in tennis clubs, scout huts and basically anywhere else where underage drinking could be achieved clandestinely.

After a few sweaty youth centre practice sessions, tours of public toilets round Hounslow and, let’s call it, a whirlwind growing up, Michael and the band temporarily parted company, while he perfected the art of scribing truly great pop songs.

Musically, it seems he is a hard man to please and maybe turning so wholeheartedly off the indie-schmindy road that British music can too easily drive along at 80mph is what marks them out from their current surroundings of zeitgeist attraction. His affections for more classic pop song writing; the quintessentially British tales of Morrissey, Strummer, McCartney and Lennon, reassembled into something altogether more present, that sense of magic and discovery however left innocently untouched.

Michael played a few sporadic gigs showcasing his solo material. However, used to the comfort of playing as a band and the sound that a whole unit could produce, he felt lost without his comrades. Re-enlisting the support of James Towers and Chris Rees, two thirds of the original line-up, they sought the help of friend and fan Erol Yurdagul. “We have been friends with Erol for years; he was always playing our tunes to us and would always come to watch us practice and play, so he was the obvious replacement”, says lead guitarist James.

So that’s Barefoot Confessor. And let’s nip that name in the bud, now. Originally wanting to be called Barefoot Contessa, (after the film starring Ava Gardner and Humphrey Bogart), the boys found that there was already a band with that name. Staying as close to the original idea as possible, and after not too many sleepless nights, they had a little play on words and Barefoot Confessor was born.

Barefoot Confessor don’t really have a specific sound, their songs painlessly spanning different genres and philosophies. This is probably due to the fact that Michael cites his song writing influences as anything from Morrissey and Buckley to Michael Jackson. Michael’s writing style is simple; he writes about what he sees and feels at one particular time, a throwback to the Brit Pop emotional and social commentary of his youth.

Take “Camden Road”, an observation song and insight into a pocket of North London that takes in the happy slapping on the Silverlink train and militant fists along the way. Others such as “Urgency” and “Heart Skip Jump” reference feelings from past relationships that everyone can relate to, as does fast-paced live favourite “He Doesn’t Love You”, which could be argued as a 21st century Beatles hit via Springsteen; Michael offering the same suburban annotations as The Boss, in a Mike Skinner way with Daltry delivery.

It is clear that Barefoot Confessor want to be huge and they have the charisma, but more importantly, the songs and, dare we argue, sincerity to do so.

Band Members:

Michael Shearer – Vocals & Guitar / James Towers – Guitar & Keyboards / Erol Yurdagul – Bass / Chris Rees – Drums

Barefoot Confessor 2008 tour dates:

(Dates and information subject to change.)

13 November ITKOMS Acoustic @ Liberties London
20 November YOYO @ Notting Hill Arts Club London
21 November Glenside Campus Bar @ UWE Bristol
29 November Powers bar London
18 December Dancetilyoudie @ The Good Ship London

Barefoot Confessor MySpace