ATTILA THE STOCKBROKER www.attilathestockbroker.com
Social surrealist multi-instrumentalist hardcore wandering minstrel...sharptongued radical poet, singer/songwriter, musician and composer.
Performance poetry, page poetry, verse, rants, songs, instrumentals, stories; love, anger, politics, satire; medieval chamber punk! Analogy: a synthesis of Hilaire Belloc, The Clash and a sixteenth century troubadour.
Attila has spent the last 23 years performing his work across the world at literary and music festivals, rock venues, arts centres, pubs, universities, schools, folk clubs and punk squats in the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the US, Euskadi, France, Scandinavia, Austria, Switzerland, Italy and Poland - and more improbably in Romania, Bulgaria and a hotel basement in Stalinist Albania.
He's created his own global network, organises most of his own gigs (and many for other performers at various one-off events and festivals and at the regular spoken word/music events he runs in his native Southwick) and is very proud to have earned a living as a poet since 1982.
He's released 14 music/poetry albums in 5 countries and 4 books of poems: 'Cautionary Tales for Dead Commuters' (Unwin Paperbacks, 1985), 'Scornflakes' (Bloodaxe, 1992), 'The Rat-tailed Maggot and Other Poems' (1998) and and 'Goldstone Ghosts' (September 2001). The two latest CD releases are detailed above.
He's written for many national and local publications including The Guardian, Time Out, NME, Sounds Magazine, The Independent...done loads of radio and TV work...but writing the words and music for his own performances and those of his band is what inspires him most.
Attila loves humour (wit, wickedness, satire, subversion) and hates 'comedy' (bland jokes about Seventies TV, adverts for undrinkable beer, endless moronic game shows, corporate gravy train spotting).
In 1994 Attila formed his first-ever band, BARNSTORMER, combining his two great musical loves - medieval music and punk! - and giving him the chance to use his classical violin training and play loads of his favourite medieval instruments (crumhorn anyone?). The band released their debut album, 'The Siege of Shoreham' in 1996, and gig regularly all over the place alongside Attilas's solo shows. The latest Barnstormer album, 'Just One Life', was released in October 2000.
'Live in Belfast', his latest CD of poems and songs, was released in March 2003. For a full list of Attila's releases go to the Discography section and for ones currently available to Merchandise.
Attila also...
does sporadic double act shows with the legendary Aylesbury nutter JOHN OTWAY
performs BELLOCOSE, a one-hour celebration of the life and work of his mentor, the poet, satirist and historian Hilaire Belloc (as featured on Radio Four's 'Poetry Please' and 'Pick of the Week')
is currently passionately involved in the battle for a new stadium at Falmer for his beloved Brighton and Hove Albion FC, 2nd Division Champions 2001-2, Third Division Champions 2000-1 and on the way back at last!
'When the ball's in the goal it's not Shearer or Cole, it's Zamora....'
has three pet bullfrogs. Reddit?