ASHLEY HICKLIN

Winner of Leeds 'Bright Young Things' 2006 Ashley Hicklin has been described as a “devastatingly talented new singer-songwriter” (The Leeds Guide). With folksy Irish blood, a Northern English heart and a distinct style, Ashley has a solid grounding in classical composition and opera singing which has certainly injected a unique twist to his string-quartet-based debut album ‘Parrysland’. The contemporary fusion of these influences is an array of carefully sculpted songs that are both rootsy and heart-warming, a dynamic musicality that speaks compassion and sensitivity.

As a youngster, Ashley’s introverted upbringing in the solitary Yorkshire Moors was greeted with musical experiments involving his father’s array of guitars, a battered upright piano and an array of challenging social relationships. He began to write songs in his early teens, and by 14 was performing both in bands and as a solo artist, partaking in gigs, festivals and auditions throughout the UK as well as in Europe.

Having achieved a Grade A in music at A-level, (as well as pushing his grades in percussion, clarinet, piano and vocal studies) Ashley was drawn towards the city lights of Leeds and went on to study music and operatic vocal performance at Leeds College of Music, later majoring in classical composition. His concert-hall works have subsequently been performed by renowned ensembles such as London Sinfonietta, the Goldberg Ensemble, the Apollo Saxophone Quartet and the COMA Orchestra.

In combining this classical background with a passion for contemporary music, Ashley began to develop an entire set of popular acoustic songs with original string-quartet accompaniments, an innovative concept in Leeds and the UK as a whole. His current work features him principally on guitar and vocal ably abetted by a unique live ensemble of a talented string-quartet from the Royal Northern College of Music, and the traditional backing of bass guitar and drums. Ashley Hicklin & The Troubadours formed in the fall of 2005 and swiftly stirred media interest on the Leeds music scene leading to Ashley’s victory in the Leeds Bright Young Things 2006 competition.

Ashley is a natural, prodigious talent who having now completed his studies is regularly gigging both as a solo artist and with his Troubadours. New material is currently being recorded with Tim Speight (engineer behind Gareth Gates, McFly, Westlife), whilst Will Jackson (co-producer of Coldplay, Embrace, Kaiser Chiefs) is keen to start work on the debut album. With live London showcase dates soon to follow and major label A&R reps circling, Ashley is building a secure team behind him to support his project and the great things to come.

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