Songwriter John MacLeod speaks of latest deal

The John MacLeod Band

Stoke of Genius:

Local frontman John MacLeod spoke to Stoke of Genius about the exciting new deal his band signed this week.

Despite only having formed in October last year, The John MacLeod Band have already sparked an interest across Stoke-on-Trent.

John said: “On Monday we signed a deal with Neon Tiger Productions UK. They offered to manage us and we accepted that offer.

“They are currently putting our official website together. They are basically taking over the organisational roles, giving us more freedom and more time for us to focus on what we do, which is playing music. It takes some of the weight off our shoulders.”

The four-piece comprises of John on lead vocals and guitars, Paul Hancock on bass, Angela Laxenby on drums and multi-instrumentalist Matt Tyrer on piano, synth, accordion, melodica and guitars.

The act have already played various locations across Staffordshire, including The Sugarmill, The Full Moon and a headline slot at the Bad Edit Venue in Burslem.

“In the coming weeks and months we’ll be playing more shows; some more local, some further afield,” added John.

“We’re still finishing our debut record; we’ve got a few more sessions to go with that,” John added.

Having been a solo act for much of his life, John decided to bring some friends together to form what is now known as The John MacLeod Band. 

The John MacLeod Band

“We’ve got one or two common influences but everybody comes with slightly different approaches. It’s really hard to describe our music because we range from rock, to laid-back acoustic, to slightly quirky sounds, so I don’t think you can really pigeon hole that.

“It’s all about the songs but one song can sound completely different to another. We play music, and that’s about as specific as I can get,” laughs John.

He managed to catch Faux Feet headline Hanley’s The Sugarmill on Friday (Aug 9), as they bid farewell to the music scene, for now at least.

“They sounded as good, if not better, than they ever have. I don’t think it’s the last we will see of them.”

John and the band will be playing at the following locations in the coming future, with more to be added soon:

Aug 23 - The Rigger, Newcastle-under-Lyme

Aug 25 - Leek Beer Festival, The Roebuck, Leek

Aug 30 - The Lowcation, Newcastle-under-Lyme

Oct 27 - The Old Brown Jug, Newcastle-under-Lyme