(or A Mission Statement)
From the ancient and secret kingdom of Northumbria, home to the displaced children of Dogger Bank - the Brigante tribe and their venerable descendants - The Smoking Rolo Sideshow has now trundled its way into town. Its metaphorical wagons sit momentarily at rest, the aural Big Top has been raised and is ready for all comers; so enter, gentlefolk, and marvel at the sublime and ridiculous exhibits within...
No mere band but a collective effort of generations of Northumbrian music talent, The Smoking Rolo Sideshow has set out to craft a myriad works of perception, beauty and sheer hard rock 'n' roll muscle. Fusing the best elements and influences of this New World music with the songwriting traditions of the Olde, Mucho Mojo Baby - and its current successor, Rocket Silence - are the result of both half a decade of occasionally-relenting toil and centuries of combined experience between players. Mixing ancient iconography with modern form and highly personal insight, The Smoking Rolo Sideshow have aimed to create a weight of songs, sounds and such where each element is unique, complimentary to that which both precedes and follows, and is truly worthy of its inclusion in the canon.
In this sense, these recordings are as much a rejection of the modern hegemony of the "twelve track, three song album (and damn the rest)" approach to modern music as they are a celebration of a musical form threatened more by neglect from artless artists and abuse by less-than-industrious industry figures than it is by any number of freebooting pirates. Instead, these works - humbly proffered herein for your perusal and delight - embrace the form of the two-act play in sound and song (otherwise known as "the long-playing record") that has presented this globe of planet Earth with our finest musical achievements for the last century and more.
We do this because we love music. We do this because we love our record. We do this, dear reader, because we love you.
Ladies and gentlemen, The Smoking Rolo Sideshow is now open. Roll up! Roll up!