Paolo Morena
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Paolo Morena

Chelmsford, England, United Kingdom | Established. Jan 01, 2011 | INDIE

Chelmsford, England, United Kingdom | INDIE
Established on Jan, 2011
Band Pop Singer/Songwriter

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"Chelmsford singing star Paolo Morena celebrates big year at The Bassment"

I t's been quite a year for Chelmsford musician Paolo Morena since go! tipped him as one to watch for 2013 back in January.

Well-known around the local music scene as a talented multi-instrumentalist with a wonderfully soulful voice, Paolo decided to step things up this year and make a concerted effort to be seen and heard by a wider audience.

As a result it's been a hectic year for Paolo in which he's become more organised and strategic about what he does.

To celebrate his momentous year, Paolo has a rare 'home' gig at the Bassment, Chelmsford on Friday, December 6 which promises to be a real party night. It's the culmination of months of graft but Paolo says the hard work is paying off.

"The year started off with limiting my focus and getting the live show up and running with full looping and drums," he explains.

"So I tightened up the show and got more organised. Then it was about getting a set of music together that we could put onto an album. The next step was to put together an EP to showcase what I do to the industry."

That was a four-track release called Is (available on iTunes) which proved a very handy way of spreading the word about what Paolo does.

"That meant I could start to work on contacts and some key players in the industry."

It also meant a lot of gigs. An awful lot of gigs. Paolo says he'll have played 80 shows by the time Christmas comes round including plenty of London gigs.

Some notable festival appearances include slots at Cornbury, Willow, Brownstock and Chelmsford's very own The Fling while there have been too many gig highlights to mention but Paolo was particularly pleased to meet legendary punk-poet John Cooper Clarke at a recent gig at The Hole In The Wall in Colchester.

Paolo explains that all the hard work has been about laying the groundwork for releasing an album in 2014.

"This year has been about preparation and we've achieved that. Now the focus is to bring it all together, all the different elements of what I do."

With a radio plugger in place and labels interested in his songs, Paolo is excited and optimistic about what the next 12 months hold but before all that, there's his hometown gig in Chelmsford to think about.

"It's going to be an end-of-year party," he says. "It'll get people up to speed with where I'm at and just be a great night."

With a specially picked support act called The Lunch Band (who Paolo met in London) and local DJ Dave Arscott supplying tunes, it's set to be a memorable night.

"I haven't played there for ages and I love the venue, so I can't wait for this. It's a great way to finish the year for me."

Paolo plays The Bassment, Chelmsford on Friday, December 6. Before that he plays the Weird and Wonderful night at Brentwood Theatre on Saturday, November 30. Find out more about Paolo at paolomorena.com and at www.facebook.com/Paolo Morena.Is?fref>ts-detail/story.html#ixzz2rur8cPDS - Essex Chronicle Chelmsford


"Paolo Morena"

Paolo Morena is a travelling troubadour that has finally settled down. You could say he now has found and placed his roots in music as well as life. I first remember seeing Paolo play live with The Morenas many moons back at a Bay Day festival, when it was held at The Bay Horse. I didn’t get it. Which was a shame, as I’d known Paolo Morena for quite some time and always enjoyed his irrepressible enthusiasm and forward thinking. Nothing, on the surface, ever seemed to dent his ongoing drive.

So it was with a little trepidation that I prepared to go see The Mighty Small‘s album launch at Hooga. I needn’t have worried. The newly decorated Hooga has a hint of once being a prohibition secret room at the back of a hotel for illegal drinking and gambling. Lost in time and put to rest under a dust sheet since the 1920's, and now eased back into life. Hooga and The Mighty Small on that Thursday night was a perfect match.

The room was nicely filled and the anticipation cranked up as Paul took to the stage. Far from looking vulnerable on his own up there, his infectious enthusiasm and likeability reached out and bridged the gap between audience and artist. I knew what was coming but had no idea at how the writing and performing had matured since The Morenas. If you use effects to loop sounds to create a multi-layered song, the danger of error is always going to be high. Make a mistake on stage and it’s gone in a second – loop it, and it’s back again in 4. But any concerns were quickly diminished. It was pretty clear that there had been some intense rehearsing to get this right and make it work, for the timing, looping and ‘pedal dancing’ were pretty faultless.

All musicians, I believe, are haunted by their idols at times throughout their careers, and Morena’s love of Jeff Buckley appeared to be holding him back in his earlier incarnations. This time we saw a maturing of the song writing process that had gone beyond these influences and now stood up on a stage ready to be counted for what it was. With more melancholy than I had previously seen, and the freedom to add texture and layer wherever it was needed, whether it be acoustic, electric, bass, harmonica or keys, it was very easy to forget this was just one man on a stage. The songs now dip and dive with a clever use of dynamics that only comes after years of mastering your art. Morena is no longer stretching for impossible high notes, now seemingly understanding his own strengths and working within them harmoniously.

Tonight’s performance just goes to show how much you can achieve if you know what you are doing and rehearse rehearse rehearse. It was a lesson for any musician preparing to tread the boards – know your stuff. This could so easily have been a disaster on so many different levels, but in fact it was a resounding success. - Panic Magazine


"Paolo's In The Loop"

IN a small room in a quiet corner of Chelmsford something rather remarkable is happening.

One man is creating a song, bit by bit, instrument by instrument. Surrounded by guitars, pedals, drums, keyboards, cables and all manner of other technical gubbins, Paolo Morena, aka The Mighty Small, is building a track.

It might start with a guitar riff. Then a vocal harmony. Next might be a bassline, perhaps some drums and then a layer of synth. And then come the lyrics.

Suddenly, from these constituent parts, a fully formed song emerges. It's very different from the normal "1, 2, 3, 4..." count in by a drummer before the band kick into a song. It's more like witnessing a song deconstructed then reconstructed.

Those who know the Essex music scene will be familiar with Paolo from his band The Morenas and his solo gigs since then. He's a very talented multi- instrumentalist and he's found a unique and fascinating way of showcasing that talent through looping.

Under the guise of The Mighty Small, Paolo's latest "musical adventure" sees him building tracks live onstage. Nothing is pre-recorded, it's all constructed right in front of you, from a single riff through to a complete, coherent song that you would think a whole band were playing if you had your eyes closed.

Indeed, Paolo is very much a one-man-band for the 21st century.

I was lucky enough to visit The Mighty Small HQ and witness Paolo at work and it's a remarkable process. He makes it look effortless but it involves great musicianship, split-second timing and considerable dexterity.

Musically, The Mighty Small covers blues, rock, folk, indie pop, a bit of reggae and even some new wave synth touches, all bound together with catchy tunes and Paolo's soulful voice.

"I started looping about four years ago, that's when I first got into using loop pedals," explains Paolo.

"I didn't have the time or the resources to get a band together so I realised I had to work within limitations. Originally I was just looping the vocals and choral arrangements. Then I realised as it was just me, I could write something and do the whole thing myself. It was an easier process.

"It made the way I write songs change. I didn't want to use pre-recorded tracks, I wanted to do it all live and build up the song. layer by layer.

"It's very different to working with a band. There are limitations on what I can do, but I don't have to compromise on the sound I want. With a band the songwriting can be a slow process but when it's just me, there's no debate about how the song should go."

It also means that if Paolo fancies playing style or genre, he can do. He plays me a number of tracks. Damned If I Do, Damned If I Don't is a built around a bluesy riff and features a Led Zeppelin style vocals.

The Loneliness of the Long Distance Lover is a blues style song too, relating a tale of a slow-burning relationship over many years.

I Believe In You is a synth-laden rallying cry while One Stroke Engine is an hypnotic mantra of a song that Paolo has had for ages but he says only really makes sense with what he's doing now.

After years of songwriting and building up an impressive repertoire of songs which Paolo's says he's now ready to unleash on the world.

He's launching The Mighty Small at Hooga on Thursday, September 8 when the website will also go live. On the site a new song and video will be uploaded each month, along with a number of surprises, remixes and collaborations.

After a year, members of the website will be able to build their own Mighty Small album from the tracks they want and even design how it looks.

"It'll be completely bespoke, you'll make your own album," says Paolo.

It's another innovative approach in The Mighty Small project - make sure you're at the launch night to witness something very special.

Paolo launches The Mighty Small at Hooga, Chelmsford on Thursday, September 8, playing from 9.30pm. Go online at www.themightysmall.com - This Is Essex


"Dance for your Dictator"

Superb Essex power trio THE MORENAS still seem to rack up the kudos more for their extracurriculars than their regular work. Last year they took part in the infamous Le Mans 24-hour race, while frontman Paolo Morena recently played John Lennon in a controversial documentary on Princess Margaret which is due to air on Channel 4 during November.

All of which is fine in itself, but isn't Peter Doherty already confirmed as the tabloids' favourite whipping boy? Do we really need to continually be diverted away from what we discerning folks out here love about The Morenas to begin with: i.e the music?

'Course not, which is why the arrival of band's sizzling new 4-track EP "Dance For Your Dictator" is timely to say the least. More immediate and in-your-face than the daft puns and brass-led diversion that was spy-loving previous single "It Shouldn't Mata", the four tunes here are all about The Morenas souped-up, superior garage-pop and find the band playing like their hides depend on it.

Lead track "I Just Wanna Be Someone" hitches a Ramones-style title to a tune played with similarly manic intensity, finds Paolo reining in his occasionally irritating Matt Bellamy vocal inflections, Tim Jackson and Steve Wilson again staking their claim as one of the best contemporary rhythm sections operating out there and even some daft, Devo-style synth splatches.

It's a great start, and the remainder of the EP continues on to force home their advantage in style. Despite its' title, "My Violent Femme" apparently has little in common with Gordon Gano's mob, instead flaunting a more angular guitar style and some of ye currently fashionable olde post-punk moves, though another juggernaut of a chorus saves it from sounding too parodic and Tim Jackson even has the gall to try some Mark King-style popping. And gets away with it against the odds.

"Leave Me Alone" is introduced by the sound of someone punching numbers into a mobile phone, but soon assembles itself into another irresisitible rush of randy, raunchy guitar pop with a stalker-obsessed edge. Paolo's gritty vocals spar nicely with the "whoo-oo-oo"s and the whole thing sounds flamboyant, exhilarating and successful.

The closing tune "Filthy," meanwhile, is apparently resurrected from the Morenas great debut single, which is a little mystifying when you consider they have loads of great songs in reserve, though it's certainly well-worth hearing now if you missed it the first time round. It's chugging, intense gear with the whole band cooking and serving up a killer chorus in the process. No complaints really, but another new track woulda been nice.

Anyway, I've said it before, but it bears repeating: The Morenas are a woefully under-rated band, but one who clearly have no intention of remaining in the long grass of relative obscurity. "Dance For Your Dictator" calls a fierce, unrelenting and exciting tune and demands you follow its' lead.
- Whisperinandhollerin


"Wednesday 05/10/05 Inme, The Morenas, Sweet Suzi @ Academy 2, Manchester"

The Morenas are next, like a less piss-taking The Darkness with bigger gonads, rocking hard enough to keep the kids happy. "Filthy" and "Leave Me Alone" show their mix of rock n roll posing backed up by hard-ass bass riffs in their best light, but it's their punked-up cover of Boomtown Rats' "I Don't Like Mondays" that gets everyone's attention. If only Sir Bob had done it like this, maybe Live8 would have actually worked better. - Gig wise


"Yeah The Morenas"

Vaguely glammy, slightly poppy and potentially rather good The Morenas new single 'My Violent Femme' gives the impression that there are bigger and better things to come from this Essex power trio. Paolo Morena's hysterically over the top vocals are excellent here and there's a real swaggering sense of purpose to this single. - Room13


"Wednesday 05/10/05 Inme, The Morenas, Sweet Suzi @ Academy 2, Manchester"

The Morenas are next, like a less piss-taking The Darkness with bigger gonads, rocking hard enough to keep the kids happy. "Filthy" and "Leave Me Alone" show their mix of rock n roll posing backed up by hard-ass bass riffs in their best light, but it's their punked-up cover of Boomtown Rats' "I Don't Like Mondays" that gets everyone's attention. If only Sir Bob had done it like this, maybe Live8 would have actually worked better. - Gig wise


"Acoustic Six EP"

"Paolo's voice is very flexible and has great range. The depth of his talent for expression and emotional conveyance to the listener is really something." - Taxi Music Publishing


"Acoustic Six EP"

"Really great material, vocal performances are top notch." - Taxi Music Publishing


"Acoustic Six EP"

"Paolo's voice is very flexible and has great range. The depth of his talent for expression and emotional conveyance to the listener is really something." - Taxi Music Publishing


"Live at the Borderline"

"Awesome you're a star, great songs, original sound. What a wonderful end to an excellent evening, well done " - R Smith - Nice idea productions


"Live at the Borderline"

"Awesome you're a star, great songs, original sound. What a wonderful end to an excellent evening, well done " - R Smith - Nice idea productions


Discography

Still working on that hot first release.

Photos

Bio

The concept of Paolo Morena performance is very much a one man band for the 21st century. No cymbals are strapped to knees here! Without band members and without reverting to samples, Paolo creates a song, bit by bit, instrument by instrument.

Surrounded by guitars, pedals, drums, keyboards, cables and all manner of other technical gubbins, a track is built - it might start with a guitar riff. Then a vocal harmony. Next might be a bassline, perhaps some drums and then a layer of synth. And then come the lyrics.

Suddenly, from these constituent parts, a fully formed song emerges. It's very different from the normal "1, 2, 3, 4..." count in by a drummer before the band kick into a song. It's more like hearing a song deconstructed then reconstructed.

Paolo makes it seem effortless but it involves great musicianship, split-second timing and considerable dexterity.

Musically, Paolo covers blues, rock, folk, indie pop, a bit of reggae and even some new wave synth touches, all bound together with catchy tunes and Paolo's soulful voice.

His musical skills have been honed after years of playing and touring around the world with different bands (from the falsetto of Martin Grech (Island) to the heavy rock of InMe (V2)) and in different guises, mastering his art to the point where he can be just one man playing all parts with intricate timing, looping and pedal dancing, expertly building texture from acoustic, electric, bass, harmonica and keys.

And far from being vulnerable as a one man entity, Paolos infectious enthusiasm and likability reaches out and bridges the gap between audience and artist.

You've got to hear this, youve got to see this....

Band Members