About Andy Mackay + The Metaphors

Andy Mackay + The Metaphors started performing in early 2008 expanding their repertoire to include material by the Velvet Underground, Roxy Music, Radiohead and others. They are writing and developing new material this summer. The album 'London! Paris! New York! Rome!' will be available shortly.

"What we are trying to do in The Metaphors is to explore combinations of instruments and musical sensibilities that have, perhaps, never occurred before. Listen to 'Three Coins in the Fountain' - Paul's super-solid drumbeats combined with TJ's ethereal guitar harmonics and Julia's harp, an instrument usually seen as 'soft' becomes hard, metallic and threatening. Andy's sax playing has never fallen into any particular school although you can hear influences of both the rock, classical and soul he loves with the jazz he admires. The familiar spiky rock oboe first heard on 'Virginia Plain' gives way to lyrical classical inspiration combined with Hazel's cool, sparse piano. Our aim is to create disturbing beauty for your minds and your hearts." – The Metaphors

Band Members

Andy Mackay - sax/oboe
Paul Thompson - drums
Julia Thornton - harp/percussion
TJ Allen - guitar/laptop
Hazel Mills - piano/vocals

This eclectic line-up perfectly reflects Andy Mackay's lifetime musical odyssey and obsessions from the rock 'n roll sax, electronic experimentation to classical and film music. He was listening to all this, long before he co-founded Roxy Music with Bryan Ferry and Brian Eno, through their decades of performance, to the awareness of newer directions in music from contemporary bands including Battles, Sigur Ros and Godspeed You! Black Emperor.

Andy Mackay

Distinctive sax, oboe and keyboard player and founding member of Roxy Music, along with Bryan Ferry and Brian Eno. Also famed for writing the music for the TV series Rock Follies, which produced a number one album, and recording several solo albums. Wrote a history of Electronic Music in 1982 published by Phaidon, and in 1983 formed The Explorers with Phil Manzanera, a collaboration which resulted in several albums. One of four original members on the recent, highly acclaimed Roxy Music world tour.

Paul Thompson

On drums, the solidarity of Roxy Music's The Great Paul Thompson; a key Roxy member since the formation of the band in the early 1970s. On leaving Roxy Music in 1980 he played with many well-known artists including Gary Moore and Jonathon Perkins, and achieved his first gold album in the US playing with Concrete Blonde. In 2001 he rejoined Roxy Music for their successful world tour, and has also played and toured extensively in recent years with Bryan Ferry.

Julia Thornton

Although known as a top rock percussion player, Julia's first love and study was the harp. Winning various awards and a place at the National Youth Orchestra, she studied harp and percussion, embarked on a successful classical career and has released two solo albums. Playing percussion on Roxy world tours, she met Andy and subsequently became a Metaphor. She has recently been touring playing in Jeff Wayne's 'War of the Worlds'.

TJ Allen

Bristol-based experimental guitarist, laptop musician and producer - here filling all these roles. Known for his work with the likes of System Vertigo and Hazel Mills, and for his own material and remix work under the moniker, Aesoteric.

Hazel Mills

Pianist and vocalist of the modern classical avant-garde (Feldman, Reich, Cage), whose acclaimed debut EP, Butterfly, was released in June 2007. A long-time collaborator of TJ Allen (Aesoteric), her mesmerising fusion of live-looped vocal soundscapes, 60s psychedelia, Minimalism, Post-Rock and 'sophisti-pop', appeals to many.

Discography

Music can be purchased from the Buy section of this website.

London! Paris! New York! Rome! (2008)

Track 1: Three Coins in the Fountain
Track 2: Love is the Drug
Track 3: Elle
Track 4: I Love Paris
Track 5: New York, New York
Track 6: Waterloo Sunset

This album (The Metaphors' first recorded project) consists of arrangements and variations of pop, film and show tunes, searching for the dark heart of the contemporary city.

Guest musicians:
Chris Spedding - guitar
Guy Pratt - bass guitar
James Lindsay - string bass

Produced and mixed by: TJ Allen and Michael Boddy
Executive producer: Andy Mackay

Recordings engineered by: Michael Boddy and Marco Migliari at Real World Studios
Mixed at: The Hospital
Mastered by: Doug Shearer at Town House