HOLLOW EARTH

 

Hollow Earth began after a meeting between Kym and Stewart back in Christmas 1999 when Kym placed an ad in the local paper looking for musicians.  A few weeks later and the outlines of a project had been sketched out between them.  They both agreed that they wanted a band with a difference, to only perform the songs that they appreciate as a tribute to progressive rock of the 70s and 80s.  Having the shared interests in bands like Genesis, The Strawbs, Yes and Pink Floyd, they discovered a wealth of material that they could cover.  The hunt for like-minded musicians began.  Having been influenced by Rick Wakeman, Stewart had already adopted a style on keyboards that allowed the music to travel into the realms of orchestrated rock.  Kym and Stewart began to piece together the tracks 'Roundabout' and 'Time and a Word' by Yes, rehearsing in Stewart's converted spare room.  The pair could barely move for the array of keyboards and wiring with Kym playing bass and singing.  It was eventually decided that they needed to invite people over for a listen.

 

  

 

At about the same time Colin Cronin from the Kryptones had coincidentally seen Kym's ad and he arranged a meeting at Stewart's house.  Liking what he heard he offered his services as a bass player which made Kym decide to sing and front the band.  Colin contacted his friend Tim Dew from No Frills and asked if he would be interested in playing drums.  Colin and Tim had previously played together in a short-lived prog band that sadly never made it out of the rehearsal room.  The band was called Hollow Earth and Tim suggested they re-use this name for the new band.  He immediately introduced his wealth of knowledge about 'all things Genesis' and soon realised that it was a project that he wanted to be involved in.  Colin was heavily into Yes which fitted in well with what Stewart was already learning.  Unfortunately Colin had to leave the band some months later but his input during it's early stages was enough to drive the band forward. 

A call came from Paul Hart ex 'Boy Bastin' and one time friend of Nik Kershaw, who'd seen the ad in the local music shop.  Paul had a wealth of experience on his side and he instantly impressed the other members by learning 'Roundabout' almost overnight.  The band was almost complete but they had to quickly find a replacement for Colin.  At about this time the band had 'The World' logo designed and manufactured which is still used.

It's fair to say at this point that despite things sounding easy, it certainly was not.  Well over a year had past and the band had still not performed live that often.  A few gigs had been achieved before Colin left and these proved that there was an interested audience.  They still needed a full and positive line up of committed musicians and so a good bass player was essential.  Pete Smith was a friend of Pat Rolph, lead guitarist for The Glamstars and Dogwood (coincidentally two bands that Kym briefly played bass for).  Pete had heard of Hollow Earth and he liked what they were doing so he was invited along.  At a rehearsal one night at the back of the 'Billy Bluelight' pub off Hall Rd in Norwich, Pete listened to the guys and he immediately decided to join.  Pete's bass style intruduced other songs into the ever growing set list (see EARTH MATERIAL) and soon they were gigging again.

Kym wanted to take the band out with a full light show including special effects and with enough time and effort it might have been possible.  It probably would have just added complications though because the band was already and quite suddenly becoming unsettled.  Sadly, 2004 came with the band temporarily calling everything to a halt.

 

 

It was the start of a long and gloomy period for the band with a total loss of direction and enthusiasm.  Stewart and Pete were preoccupied as their wives were expecting.  Paul was being sent anywhere in the country on business which made it hard for everyone to keep in touch, Kym was going through a divorce and Tim was the only one interested enough in keeping the guys and the band together.  Worse was to come when the band got news that Paul had been involved in a bad car crash and was now in hospital.

Nearly a year passed but eventually, after a much needed break and when Paul had recovered from his injuries, Tim managed to salvage what he could by successfully getting everyone to agree to sit around a table one night.  They all agreed that the band was worth saving but disappointingly Pete said he'd had enough and was about to quit music completely.  The search was on for a third bass player!

  

Andy was already an accomplished bass man and he had just started taking classical guitar lessons from Pat Rolph (another spooky coincidence) when he heard that Hollow were looking for a bass player.  The band auditioned him and they set him the task of learning the whole set within three months for their next gig...he succeeded in doing so and the gig was one of the best the band had played.  The audience were in full support and were keen to show their enthusiasm for Hollow's return.  It was the injection that the band needed. 

 

At long last the band was being noticed and many gigs were played in and around Norwich to appreciative audiences.  The size of equipment grew and the lighting and effects took up more space than they had in the small pubs and clubs.  Kym and Stewart were becoming restless with the same old show and so suddenly things became unsettled again.  Drummer Tim had a parting of the ways in October 2007 and his replacement Dave Clark (not who you think it is!) had an opportunity to be involved.  It was a tough time again for the band because Tim had been there from the start and he was instrumental in it's reforming however Kym and Stewart decided that they needed to play with other musicians after yet another break.  By February of 2008 the band began rehearsing with Dave who was keen to rekindle his abilities playing the Yes material in particular.

Hollow have created a faithful following of 'Earthlings' along the way who support them at gigs and the material that they perform is becoming more intricate and enjoyable.  The light show and special effects that was so badly needed is finally taking shape but it is intended to become better as time and money allows.  Their own compositions are being fitted into the already impressive set list which is giving the musicians a more creative outlet.  

In late 2007 sound engineer Martin Shearing of MJ PA Hire came on board to do the sound for the band.  Martin, a musician himself playing bass for the Norwich based band The Elevators, helped Hollow Earth out one night after they were having problems with their own equipment.  Martin's rescue meant that the gig was one of the best sounding ever and so he was asked to stay but sadly being heavily involved with his PA company's workload meant that Martin understandably couldn't commit.  Some of the gigs performed in this period though showed the band's real worth because of the full sound and quality.  It was decided to completely go for broke with new equipment and the hunt was on for a full time engineer.  

A chance conversation again made everything change with a lucky break.  Kym was talking to his friend Mervyn who was friends with brothers Ken (Brad) and Ernie Bradfield who are technical whizz kids with anything electronic.  With help from Stewart's brother Francis the four of them immediately became interested in helping the band achieve bigger things.  Now lovingly known as 'HE Teckniks', Brad, Ern, Francis and Merv are members of the band sorting out the lighting and sound and they also generally tinker with anything that get's broken and fix it!  More recently they have all acquired a large building that has been turned into the 'Hollow Earth Studios' where the band can practice, write and record, store equipment and just be in a musical environment whenever they like.  HE Tecknics have built the Hollow PA rig, big enough to perform outdoors, whilst the band have been experimenting with lighting and effects as well as recording their own stuff.     

Finally and to bring things up to date, the band is now looking forward to getting bigger venues, learning new material and to constructing more lights and effects.  Now that they are completely independant with their own crew and sound equipment they can also dictate where and when to play.

In true rock'n'roll tradition, good bands never die, they evolve!

  

Progressive; when rock bands were more like a full orchestra and when music was important.  Sit back and imagine giant inflatable pigs hovering menacingly overhead, aircraft crashing into the stage and drum kits resembling giant insects thrashing out amidst smoke and lasers.  Brace yourself for epic ten minute instrumentals from some of the legendary bands of the seventies.  Prepare for...

HOLLOW EARTH...'Prog' just got better!   

 

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