Ashley Newall’s recent EP, “In Between”, goes at once between pop-rock & reggae, and jazzy jam-band & primal screaming thrash, with fluid ease. The band, featuring Adam Fogo (Sarah Hallman, Wax Mannequin) on bass, Jack MacGregor (Fleshpaint) on drums, Brian Simms (Sarah Hallman, Tara Hollway) on lead guitar and Neil Gerster (Mel Leveaux, Urban Aesthetics) on keyboards, was formed in 1998 in Ottawa, and released it’s debut CD, “Shakespeare In The Park” in 2000. Ashley’s unique voice accompanies sensual and spiritual lyrics to “quirky pop” songs, in the Ontario rock tradition of Sam Roberts & Hawksley Workman.  Citing the Beatles as a primary influence, and John Lennon as his ‘personal Jesus’, Ashley is big on social commentary, and Love as a core concept, spinning powerful, melodic ballads alongside sexy groovers, and the odd toe-tapping, comedic ditty. His songs are catchy, and his choruses in particular are “thick and juicy, like a hearty steak” (as one fan recently reflected).

After taking a self-imposed hiatus from the music scene following a financially and physically draining ‘starving artist’ period, Ashley is back with a vengeance, having just released his new EP, and with a full-length CD plus a live EP well underway (live EP scheduled for release this spring, May 15 @ LiVE Lounge in Ottawa). The recent single, “Nurturenature”, “has the bongo-beat, free-your-mind style of early Sam Roberts tunes with a wild, soaring vocal. It's a big, head-sticking summer song.” (Fateema Sayani, Ottawa Citizen)

Ashley is also a multi-instrumentalist, having played bass with local artists Shannon Rose & The Thorns, and percussion with L. Poushinsky. Keep your ears peeled for this rock-solid songwriter, as he is on the launching pad and ready to blast off.