CVC’s Bassey and Bradfield keep the Welsh music flame burning bright

CVC, or Church Village Collective in full, named their band after the sleepy Welsh town they come from and, if they have it their way, will soon bring international renown to their hometown.

The six-piece musical collective are influenced by Snoop Dogg, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Super Furry Animals and Red Hot Chili Peppers and are comprised of singer Francesco Orsi, bassist Ben Thorne, drummer Tom Fry, keyboardist Daniel ‘Nanial’ Jones and singing guitarists David Bassey and Elliot Bradfield.

It’s worth noting that the latter two are related to Welsh royalty Dame Shirley Bassey and Manic Street Preachers’ James Dean Bradfield, respectively.

Maybe owing to genetics, Bassey states “I don’t think I’d be able to not do this, I don’t actively choose to, I’m just drawn to it”. But the band are all as equally talented with different skills that aid the cacophony of their sound. Simply put, CVC are a democracy, greater than the sum of its parts, and destined for world domination – perhaps.

CVC’s message is a universal one “peace and love and good times, stay real, stay true and that’s it.”

Their ‘Welsh Music Prize’ Nominated debut album ‘Get Real’, produced by the band and mixed by Ross Orton (Arctic Monkeys), was released at the start of 2023 to critical acclaim (“A cracking debut album of feelgood, uber-retro gems” – NME, “A remarkably fully formed debut” – The Times), a year in which they’ve been touring to sold-out venues in the UK as well as wowing crowds across Europe & in the USA (“The best live act I saw last year – of a list which includes Paul McCartney, The Prodigy & Wet Leg” – The ArtsDesk).

Now, tougher, stronger and laden with exuberant new ideas, the inimitable six piece, make a return by crash landing their orbiting vessel to earth with new single, The Lowrider (Just About Meant To Be).

Their first new music since the release of their acclaimed debut album, the single sweeps in on a plump bed of warm bass synth, heavy chunks of Thriller-esque guitars and Bee Gee-tight vocal harmonies to bring a slick CVC back in rude, bossing form.

Never happier than when on the road, whether at home, in Europe, or over in the USA, the band simultaneously announce a run of some of their biggest UK shows to date, including a statement homecoming where they’ll be playing to almost 2,000 people in Cardiff University’s Great Hall on Saturday, December 14.

Entering as an NME 100 hotly-tipped act early last year, all the while squeezing in a run of BBC 6 Music and Radio X-playlisted singles (including the heavily-streamed, live fan favourite, Sophie), the band’s understandable sense of ‘where next?’ has led to the upping of antes and kicking at even bigger doors.

Adjourning to studios in Wiltshire to finesse bold ambitions and digitise pure magic, The Lowrider is the first, tangy fruit of CVC’s work with producer, Chris Hughes, famed for his work across mega-hit albums, including Tears For Fears on 1985’s pivotal Songs From The Big Chair.

Whilst stardust swirls around a gifted band flush with confidence and poised to escalate their honey-voiced, party-percolating profile, at the heart of CVC is an artistry as deep seated as any other. When it comes to The Lowrider, it’s still all about matters of the heart.

Co-songwriter & vocalist on the track, Dave Bassey says: “’The Lowrider’ was written after a lengthy session in our old local (The City Arms in Cardiff) about my long-distance lover and how we are ‘just about meant to be’! Then when we got home and hit the ‘bass’ setting on the synth – the rest of the song just poured out. It’s called ‘The Lowrider’ because we thought it’d be great to get Snoop Dogg involved with it at some point, cos it shares a lot of that that West Coast flavour!”

Bringing that swell of melodic momentum to another run of UK towns and cities, new CVC headline dates for 2024 are confirmed as follows:

• Wed 11 Dec – Glasgow, King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut
• Thu 12 Dec – Leeds, Brudenell Social Club
• Fri 13 Dec – Oxford, O2 Academy 2
• Sat 14 Dec – Cardiff, University Great Hall

Tickets links for all shows can be found at www.cvcband.com

For the most up-to-date CVC information, including new music and additional live dates, connect with the band online at:

https://linktr.ee/cvcband
https://www.instagram.com/cvcband_/
https://www.facebook.com/CVCband
https://twitter.com/cvcband_
https://www.tiktok.com/@cvcband