Camel Club Presents

In todays episode I catch up with Bill Hann (formerly of popular local band The Bessingbys and Misterkite) and these days an extremely accomplished podcast presenter of the much loved and viral tik tok sensation "This Album" Podcast. When i set out on the journey of recording a mini podcast series to help promote the 20 year reunion show my intention was to chat with all the people involved in the night, and Bill as our headline DJ act of the night was the final piece of the puzzle. We discuss his podcast (and hopefully had "a little bit a fun whiiiilst doing it") Bill has also then kindly curated his dream festival line up.

In todays episode I catch up with fellow Rickmansworth school alumni Simon Francis. During my time promoting and gigging in Watford, Simon was ever present in local bands with his musical talent shining through for all to see. It's therefore no surprise that when you fast forward twenty years he's gone on to tour the world as a session bass player for the likes of Ellie Goulding, The Pierces and Kylie Minogue. He's graced stages as big as Glastonbury's Pyramid, and appeared on Jools Holland and Jimmy Fallon. These days when he's not on stage he's becoming a real force in the world of musical direction for the likes of Mumford & Sons, Years and Years and Becky Hill. This was a fascinating and inspiring conversation!

I was delighted to catch up with Paul who with his partner Laila have been a cornerstone in Watford's music community for over 12 years since they opened the LP Cafe in Watford. I was keen to chat all about running that business, but equally i first met Paul during the mid noughties when he was a founder member of 13 piece Wartgore Hellsnicker, who graced the Camel Club stage. He's since gone on to tour with other amazing Watford punk bands - The Social Club and Nervus - so plenty to discuss.

In todays episode i've ticked off two great Watford bands by catching up with Ross Collins, bass player of both The Stetsons and Langley Road to discuss the highs and lows of both bands during the noughties.

Welcome back to my conversation with Shane Lamont. Thanks for listening to part 1, but if you haven't yet, give that a go first (episode 10)Todays episode concludes the chat talking all about the infamous Horns open mic, Shanes Memories of times spent in the film world due to family connections, and we discuss where he is today.I had a great evening catching up with him, and i hope you enjoy it too!

We re join Pearse Grady to discuss his fantasy festival line up in todays bonus edition. The Cock heavy festival has been born, but do keep an eye out for Madonna,

I had the pleasure of catching up with Watford music legend Shane Lamont in todays episode. In fact the conversation was so interesting with so much great content from Shane, that i felt it was right to split the episode into two parts. Episode 10 covers his early years as we chat about where music came into his life, with some crazy travel tales of his years spent in the US. We conclude by discussing his reintroduction into Hertfordshire life where he met another local legend Pete Curtis, and joined a popular local covers duo Wing and a Prayer.

Todays episode moves a few stops up the Met Line where i've reconnected with legendary Dj and gig promoter - Pearse Grady. Many bands from Watford would have played at Trinity Bar in Harrow on the Hill, and the scene and local following Pearse helped build echoed what was happening in our own town. Like me, Pearse was tracking up and coming bands on myspace, and creating great shows that showcased local bands with up and coming artists. A feather in his cap is that during this time he booked the first shows performed by Kate Nash, Dan Le Sac and Bastille. He was also instrumental in helping FKA Twigs and there are some lovely stories in the pod about all of the above. Not only did he provide a stage for bands that went on to become legendary, but he had the likes of Billy Bragg, Edwyn Collins, The Cribs, Example and Bombay Bicycle Club on that tiny stage in Harrow. Its a great listen!

In todays episode Im delighted to be joined by Martin Renshaw of the band Phoenix Down. Martin, Or Marv as i remember him, was not only a singer songwriter in the aforementioned band Phoenix Down, but played a huge and vital role in developing a creative arts community in the town. His work with Inspiral was incredibly pioneering and important in shaping the music scene to look beyond simply promoting a standard format gig. We recorded the show at Sanctuary Studios in Watford, which allowed us to also record a live track written by Marv, and he's joined on this by the wonderful Lee Voss. Episode 9 is recorded in memory of Dave Smale - a wonderful talent who was incredibly special to so many people and was of course a huge part of everything Marv helped to create in Watford.

Todays episode is with the lovely Anna Swannell. She has to be one of the busiest creative minds that i've spoken with, she was ever present during the noughties Watford music scene and today continues to shine. However, today, not only is she a performer / vocalist and musician, she is also a stand up comic, a community choir leader, a vocal coach and open mic host. When she had time to come up for air amongst all of these inspirational endeavours she joined me on zoom to discuss the old days and bring me up to speed with where we find her in 2025!