CAMP ACTOR
Since their first meeting in a West London record shop, North London’s Camp Actor (aka Justin James and Marlowe) have forged a unique musical partnership.
The boys quickly established a common appreciation for the work of music’s pioneers - electronic and non-electronic alike – and began work on what was to become their debut album; “Warmer”.

Regular live performances at their own monthly “Press” club nights in Shoreditch’s (then fledgling, now hyper-trendy) Herbal bar on Kingsland Road were used as a sketch pad for many of their early ideas, and helped to shape their sound into what it is today (well, this month) – richly layered, complex, at times riddled with (sometimes stinging) melody, at other times punctured with jagged beats and twisted electronic noise, but never cold. JJ’s intelligent and emotive vocal stylings swing from soulful to tormented, while Marlowe coaxes, (occasionally tortures) noises out of their assembled “machinery”.

Always aiming for a raw, organic sound, Justin and Marlowe use a variety of analogue (sometimes vintage – always dirty) synthesizers to achieve their goal, but are never averse to injecting some good old gutsy (sometimes downright offensive) real guitar and bass sounds (as in their third Press Industries single “Get Hold of This!”).

A series of UK and International gigs and three single releases on their own Press Industries label have garnered the praise of the likes of Steve Lamacq (BBC Radio 1), Mark Moore (S’Express), Jagz Kooner (Primal Scream – producer/programmer) and Ann Shenton (Add N to X) - see the Record Shop section of this site for discography details.

A listen to debut LP “Warmer” takes you through a year of life in modern London - but don’t expect the scenic route. The flood of hope delivered with Spring’s thaw in “Flower” quickly evaporates into doubt and despair in the harrowing “Tower of London”. Stagger into the club on a warm Saturday night with “Kick Out the Kitsch”, and leave dizzy and battered with your ears ringing to “Get Hold of This!”.