Mike Kennedy chats with Jane Allison for his latest Sound Cafe Podcast, they talk about her music, acting and her roots in Wales.
You can listen to the entire interview and music HERE
Mike is a Director at Welsh Connections in South Wales, UK, he is a producer/presenter, writer/reviewer and freelance music journalist.
Photo Credit: Chris Nicholls.
Multi talented award winning songwriter Jane Allison Stanness was born in the Welsh seaside town of Aberystwyth as Jane-Alison Sherman. Her performing career spans the creative landscapes of both music, theatre, TV & film, best known for starring as Deborah in the BAFTA winning comedy series Sally4Ever, as Matron in the 2018 film Slaughterhouse Rulez, and as Mary in the 2020 Sky TV comedy series Intelligence.
In her youth she trained as a dancer at Trinity Laban and was married to Pete Harker, drummer to John Peel favourites, underground cult band The Lines. During this time she was fully immersed in the London punk scene with bands like The Only Ones and Stiff Little Fingers & dance companies such as DV8, Diversions & Transitions, and it was amongst this explosion of innovative creativity she began to realize a lifelong passion and diverse artistic career.
Jane's musical path began in the early 90's singing with psychedelic folk band Childe Roland and X- Machina . She then went on to form new wave post punk band KarmaDeva and began an 8 year long tour across the UK and Europe, sharing the stage with bands like Boxer Rebellion, The Holloways, The Zutons, Super Furry Animals and supporting legendary acts such as Caravan, The Damned, Lene Lovich and Arthur Lee and Love among others.
In 2011 Jane moved to Berlin. Living in Neukolln on the banks of the Landwehrkanal Jane embarked on her solo works. Jane says "I can’t express the feeling of freedom I feel there. Berlin put a beautiful spell on me, one I've never woken up from"
During that time Jane came home to roost musically with her own blend of 70’s English folk revival and Americana. Upbeat bars of lightweight ditties, with biting eloquent lyrics revealing withering accounts of obsessive love, ill-fated romance, abuse and its aftermath and faded dreams. Embracing the darkness while also seeking the light is core to Jane's songwriting.
All her records were recorded and produced in the Tea Rooms Studio in the heart of the Ardennes under the musical wizardry of long time friend Alonza Bevan ( Kula Shaker.)
As an actress Jane is best known for her comedy character roles, the most recent being GCHQ's geeky cryptanalyst Mary Needham in the TV comedy Intelligence written by Nick Mohammed & starring David Schwimmer. Season 2 of Intelligence is OUT NOW on Sky TV and Now TV. Jane also stars as Deborah in the Julia Davis Bafta award winning comedy series Sally4Ever. Other TV & film acting credits include Slaughter House Rulez, a comedy horror movie directed by Crispian Mills starring Michael Sheen & Simon Pegg, award winning TV series Hunderby, Nighty Night, Morning Has Broken, Human Remains and the movie A Fantastic Fear Of Everything.
Her continued successful writing partnership with dark star Julia Davis traverses subjects of death, illness and the wincing, pathetic absurdity of human relationships with surreal imagination and gallows humor. Her writing credits include both the 1st & 2nd series of the award winning series Nighty Night & script development for such TV shows as Camping, Hunderby, Sally4Ever , Morning Has Broken
"Magdalene" the single, "A gorgeous song, mixing musical elegance with lyrical eloquence" - Dave Franklin
In 2016 Jane released Methylene Blue her second album with Alonza Bevan. "A mercurial and brooding record, laced at times with shades of early Velvet Underground, then conforming to Nashville expectations in lilting cowboy balladry, but as often as not mining a darker musical and lyrical theme."
In 2014 her debut album Just Another Girl was welcomed with open arms and rave reviews in the Americana, Country and Folk music scene in Europe, UK and the USA. Written in Berlin & recorded in Belgium at Kula Shakers studio's The Tea Rooms and produced by Alonza Bevan it began her solo venture into the world of folky Americana.
You can listen to the entire interview and music HERE
Website: janeallison.net
Facebook: www.facebook.com/janeallisonmusic
Twitter: twitter.com/JAStanness
Instagram: www.instagram.com/jane_allisonmusicofficial
Comments