Mt. Desolation gig on 21 October coincides with Keane fan reunion
October 19, 2017

Battle Festival patron Tim Rice-Oxley and Keane band mate Jesse Quin are bringing their band Mt. Desolation to perform a one-off show in aid of the festival, a gig which coincides with the second international Keane fan reunion to take place across Battle, Hastings and Bexhill.

The intimate gig on Saturday 21 October at St Mary’s Church (7pm – with support from Rachel Wilson) will be the first time the band has played live together in seven years.

Mt. Desolation was formed in 2010 by Keane band mates Tim Rice-Oxley and Jesse Quin who went into London’s Eastcote studios in January of that year with some musical friends to record the debut album (produced by Emery Dobyns), with the aim of recording as much of the record live as possible in true country style and in the vein of the great American songbook.

A few years later the band regrouped at Tim’s studio and are now taking new material out on the road. The songwriting this time still has the same storytelling quality but the music has become less country and everything hangs a little more on the lives and experiences (both musical and otherwise) of the band. The palette of sounds has broadened. But the most important thing still remains, a bunch of friends playing music in a room. And drinking beer.

Reconnected: An International Keane Fan Reunion will see around 50 fans from all over the world gather in East Sussex. The event is organised by Canadian Leah Salt, and dedicated fans will also travel from all over the UK as well as from the USA, Argentina, Switzerland, Belgium, Netherlands and Australia. The group started in 2013 as a small number of fans who missed seeing each other at Keane gigs, but has since grown.

As part of the weekend’s itinerary the group will visit the Keane band members’ childhood haunts and inspirations for Keane songs, such as Sovereign Light Cafe in Bexhill. They will of course also be attending the Mt. Desolation gig on Saturday 21 October.

The Mt. Desolation show is kindly sponsored by Littlewood Fencing Ltd and all proceeds will go to support the education and outreach work of Battle Festival Charity.

Tickets are £22.50, to book click here.