Has Alex got the X Factor?

31/05/2012 @ 12:33

Local singer/songwriter and now mynewtown columnist Dai Robs has signed up to run a series of reviews throwing the spotlight on our local music talent.

The UK Open Mic finalist is widely respected in the local music scene and over the coming weeks he will share with us the ones to watch and where to watch them.

And what better place to start than by taking a look at the artist that had Simon Cowell in a spin in the latest series Britain’s Got Talent. Rumour has it that Alex Davies (right) has been invited back to its sister show and this Friday night at Oak Live, Welshpool will get to see if he really does have the X Factor!

Take it away Dai....

“We are fortunate in this area to have an abundance of great musicians but for my first review there was only one place to start...Alex Davies, a hugely gifted songwriter and performer who has had a whirlwind 12 months.

I first saw him perform at one of his very first solo gigs and from the moment he started playing I was hooked. The combination of his offbeat guitar playing (not off-key) and his use of syncopated lyrics, which give his songs rhythm without the need for a band, draw comparisons to Ed Sheeran. However it is unfair to say that he is like anybody else. He is unique, he is Alex Davies.

During the last year Alex has completed a university degree in Newport (a town which inspired his song “trouble ‘round here”), performed on Britain’s got talent (reaching the last 100 of 70,000 entries and playing in front of a live audience of 3,000 people), countless bars, his own university May Ball, two boats and a national history museum. Amazingly he also finds time to free run and teaches the sport at the KIK free running gym in Newtown.

His interest in music stems from a young age where he used to watch his brother who was the drummer in Newtown-based ska band, ‘Smoke Like A Fish’. He then went on to play keyboards in his own ska band ‘24-7’. Even as an acoustic performer there is still a lot of ska influence in his music.

Alex’s Youtube videos have thousands of views and also display what a talented filmmaker he is. Making films is something Alex loves doing and was a large part of his performing arts degree. His films also really display his character. He is charming, funny and I think it’s fair to describe him as off-the-wall.

I’ve spent a lot of time with Alex at various gigs, in fact he came on tour with my band The Velvet Dukes recently - and the thing that strikes me most about him is how grounded he really is. Alex has an album’s worth of songs that I would buy tomorrow and I’m sure thousands more would too. Despite this, Alex has yet to record them despite several offers as he wants to make sure that it gets done correctly. How refreshingly sensible.

However, as I suspected the first time I ever saw him (and remember this has all happened in less than 12 months) and still suspect now, it is only a matter of time before Alex goes on to bigger and better things. For now, though, you can still see him free of charge in some of our great local venues.

This Friday he will be performing at the new Oak Live music nights at the Royal Oak, Welshpool with support from Tom and Rob of Colour Sunday and DJ Dru Lewis. FREE entry and starts at 8:30pm.”