Colorama (band)


Colorama is an alternative music group formed by Welsh singer-songwriter, music producer and multi-instrumentalist Carwyn Ellis. The line-up varies frequently, both in the studio and on stage.

History

Colorama was started by Carwyn Ellis in Liverpool in 2007, the first shows being as a duo with David Fletcher, on double bass.

Colorama released their Japan only debut album, Cookie Zoo on Noise McCartney Records / Victor Entertainment in April 2008, and released their debut single, Sound via Redbricks Recordings in UK.
In 2008, they became a trio with the addition of Luca Guernieri on drums and have since played Glastonbury Festival, Latitude Festival, Home Game, The Sŵn Festival, Port Eliot Festival, Truck Festival, The Apple Cart Festival, National Eisteddfodau, Cloudspotting Festival, Festival N°6, Green Man Festival and more.
In the summer of 2009, the tragic news was announced that their double bass player, Ellis's best friend David Fletcher had died on 29 June, from a heart attack suffered in his sleep, just days after Colorama’s appearance at Glastonbury Festival.
Magic Lantern Show, featuring songs in Welsh and English was released in September 2009 with Dere Mewn becoming a modern classic in Wales and garnering rave reviews and lots of airplay on both sides of the border.
In 2010 Colorama released their third album BOX on Noise McCartney Records / Victor Entertainment in Japan and See Monkey Do Monkey Recordings in the UK. Shortly afterwards, they released a Christmas single, Cerdyn Nadolig which garnered them the Welsh Christmas Number 1 on the BBC Radio Cymru chart.
BOX was also nominated for the inaugural Welsh Music Prize.
In October 2011, Colorama released Llyfr Lliwio , which was their first predominantly Welsh-language collection.
August 2012 saw their fifth album release - Good Music, produced by Edwyn Collins and Sebastian Lewsley, and featured high in many an end-of year best album list.
In November 2012 Colorama released a limited edition 12" single, Hapus? on Aficionado Recordings.
In 2013, Colorama did remixes for fellow artists, John Stammers and AM & Shawn Lee.
They reworked John Stammers's Idle I'm, 'transforming the stripped back acoustic song into a massive Balearic groove that has a John Barry-esque cinematic feel to it'.
Two Times by AM & Shawn Lee however, was transformed from its dub reggae roots and given a hard rock treatment. Shawn Lee returned the favour, remixing Good Music for Colorama on their Do The Pump EP, also in 2013.
In 2014, Colorama released a new EP, Heaven's Hotel, a new album TEMARI, followed by a split single, Yn Rhydiau'r Afon / Forget Tomorrow with The Joy Formidable.
In November 2014, a compilation of all of Ellis's Welsh songs as Colorama was released on his own, new Agati label, entitled Dere Mewn!.
In 2015, Colorama resumed recording at Toe Rag Studios in London, as well as continuing to perform in the UK and in Spain, including appearances at that year's Green Man Festival and Port Eliot Festival.
A new album, Some Things Just Take Time came out in September 2017, and showed the group taking a more acoustic, folk-influenced direction.
2018 saw the tenth anniversary re-issue of Colorama’s debut album, Cookie Zoo, made available for the first time outside of Japan via a new Madrid-based record label, Banana & Louie Records.
Following Some Things Just Take Time, Ellis worked extensively both with Edwyn Collins and with The Pretenders.
Whilst on tour in South America, Chrissie Hynde suggested that he make an album in Welsh with Brazilian musicians - this he did in Rio de Janeiro late in 2018, releasing Joia! as the first solo project under his own name, Carwyn Ellis & Rio 18 in 2019.
During this period, Ellis also recorded intermittently with American producer and multi-instrumentalist Shawn Lee at his studio in London, which resulted in a Colorama single, And released in June 2020.

Discography

Albums