TEENAGE SINGER-SONGWRITER ELLIS J BARRACLOUGH SHARES HIS OFFICIAL DEBUT SINGLE ‘PATIENCE’

There’s an endearingly boyish charm to 19-year-old Ellis J Barraclough. The singer-songwriter from Hull plays for the purest of reasons: the simple joy of being able to use music to soothe his soul and express any mood he might find himself in. He maintains a healthy naivety about the finer details of the music industry, yet that industry is already recognising him, with early airplay from BBC Introducing, BBC Radio London and BBC Radio – not to mention his first nationwide tour as support and featured guest to Simon Fowler and Oscar Harrison from one of his favourite bands, Ocean Colour Scene.

 
Yet for all his youthful innocence, Ellis’s music feels like it comes from the heart and soul of someone who has been in the game for years. His sound can appeal to modern pop-leaning practitioners of the singer-songwriter tradition like Dermot Kennedy and Tom Grennan, as proven by his new single ‘Patience’.

‘Patience’ also shows that there’s a depth and a variety to Ellis’s sonic palette that’s rare for a musician of his youth. It’s a song that’s big on bright, road trip melodies fuelled by tangible emotions and a voice with the heartening warmth of an old friend. But scratch the surface and you’ll uncover more textures: a smidgen of Fleetwood Mac West Coast harmonies, a touch of Memphis soul, and an undercurrent of Wilco’s alt-country style.
 
Ellis says, “It’s about those moments where you get a little bit into your own head for whatever reason. You have to tell yourself, alright: calm down, be patient, and things will work out because at the end of the day, all of those thoughts are just paranoia. I think everyone has a bit of that anxiety at times.”
 
Music was always a big part of Ellis’s upbringing. His grandfather was a gigging musician, his uncle’s band almost made a big breakthrough as part of the early 2000s indie scene, and both would be present at rambunctious family jam sessions each Boxing Day. A fan of The Beatles and Kings of Leon, Ellis was a natural when he picked up a guitar at the age of seven, and soon discovered he was just as naturally talented as a songwriter. His teenage bands varied from Tool and Deftones-flavoured alt-metal to reggae, but he always gravitated to the kind of music that he currently plays.
 
His first steps were local pub gigs, before his first big paid gig came in unusual circumstances, when he opened at a book launch for the comedian and writer Lucy Beaumont, who described him as “insanely talented.” He also met a mentor in the shape of Vincent Garcia, veteran of Drizabone, the ‘90s soul/acid-jazz band who scored a big hit with ‘Real Love’ and whose remix of Shanice’s ‘I Like Your Smile’ turned the original into an international smash
 
His respect for his home city’s music culture inspired his Hull Cover Series on socials, in which he performed takes on songs from renowned local musicians such as The Beautiful South and Calum Scott. But he also dug deeper, covering Sade in honour of her bandmates and co-writers from Hull, and David Bowie’s ‘Starman’, in recognition of the city’s Spiders From Mars band members Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder and Mick Woodmansey.
 
Music is surely Ellis’s destiny. Even when he has attempted to do something different, fate has guided him back towards music. “I tried to be a plumber, but got sacked on the second day of the apprenticeship, and I’ve been a pot washer in four different pubs. Now I want to make that leap from pot washer to plumber to fuckin’ pop star.”
 
Having previously played the BBC Introducing Stage at the Humber Street Sesh, Ellis J Barraclough will debut his new five-piece live band, The Sunscreen, when he headlines the Hull Social on May 22nd. 

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