The Blind Hearts are a hillbilly rabble of 5 scruffy young guitar pickin’, harmony-hollerin’, bourbon-swiggin’ folk-blues-country yokels from Manchester, London and Japan.

The new single Crying Shame was recorded at The Charlatans’ Big Mushroom studio, produced by Charlatans guitarist Mark Collins and mixed by Jim Spencer (Johnny Marr, New Order, The Charlatans, Liam Gallagher, The Cribs.) The band have always fought against the odds. Just as national radio picked up on the buzz – debut single (Oh Lord and I) Keep On Losing was pick of the week on Absolute Radio’s Sunday Night Music Club show – drummer J. Hirano was forced to return to his native Japan for almost 2 years.

The ‘Hearts vowed to wait for him – showing genuine “we’re all in this together” spirit ironically just as the politicians who coined that phrase restrained them with immigration red tape. “As if they thought assaulting the working man with 2 years of cuts weren’t enough…” the band remark drily.

Meantime, unable to record but with friend Taan Parker standing in on drums for live shows, festivals across the U.K. saw wildly acclaimed sets from the band, supporting a growing list of greats including Seasick Steve, Ed Sheeran, Michael Kiwanuka, Alabama 3 and Ocean Colour Scene.

With J’s elusive long term visa finally granted when the powers that be relented “after he provided the third copy of his great aunt’s dental records”, the band immediately decamped to The Charlatans’ residential studio, and with Mark Collins at the helm recorded the pumping, slide guitar infused Crying Shame, a standout track equally at home on alternative and mainstream radio.

The band are currently on tour and fans in the north-west will be able to catch them live in Manchester’s Night ‘n’ Day on Wednesday 31^st October and Warrington’s Friars Court on Friday 2^nd November. Fans can also catch them in Brighton on the 24^th October, Cardiff on the 29^th, Bristol on the 30^th October, Worcester on the 1^st November and London’s Barfly and King’s College Student’s Union on the 3^rd and 9^th respectively.

Tickets for both gigs in Warrington and Manchester are available from the venues.  The Blind Hearts E.P. Crying Shame is released on November 5^th and contains the songs Crying Shame, (Oh Lord and I) Keep Losing), Standing In The Shackles and Before We Fall

Ian D. Hall