The Score

Les King

The Katie Winter is one guy and a guitar from Ipswich, England creating softly sung songs which he describes as “thought bubbles, simple imaginings, which will last just long enough.” Les King is also a member of the band folk/country band Uncle Black and has also published his own poetry in “The Companion Set”.

If you’d like to introduce yourself, who and what is The Katie Winter

The Katie Winter is just me, Les King

Tell me the idea behind The Katie Winter, were you in a band previously and decided to do some solo stuff?

My ‘proper’ band Uncle Black have been releasing records for a little while, and I have always geared the song writing towards the band. But my first love has always been more lo-fi, gentler songs and though I was writing them, I was never letting them live as they didn’t work for Uncle Black, so they just got lost. But as more and more came along, I decided I needed to have another outlet for them under a different name, hence The Katie Winter.

Who are your musical influences?

I like music that is a bit challenging and that can be because it is so quiet or loud. So although I people like Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy, Smog etc, which perhaps influence my style, I love Mogwai, Sunn O))), Future Kings of England, Dinosaur Jr. Saying that though one of my biggest influences, and this shows up more in Uncle Black, is Stephen Duffy. I also seem to be listening to a lot of female singers at the moment, a favourite being Sylvie Lewis.

Your songs are very lyrical, you publish your own poetry, do you have any literary influences?

I have always enjoyed books and poetry, and it fluctuates depending on my mood. Generally I do not like ‘deep’ literature, but I do like factual books, particularly expedition tales and travel generally. I find John Hegley always makes me laugh, and, a bit strangely, I am always drawn to the books of William Horwood.

What are your future plans for The Katie Winter? Live shows? Also are you planning on any new releases?

I keep planning to, and intend to do some solo outings, but I get extremely nervous performing and have got used to playing with the other guys with me..so it is summoning up the courage really to do the solo thing, which I will do somehow. I have recorded a couple of proper demo’s and hope to do some more later in the summer, and look for a means to release them. In the meantime I will keep putting up the home recordings, in their varying degrees of quality, on the Katie Winter myspace page.

Check out The Katie Winter at http://www.myspace.com/thekatiewinter

and also at http://www.uncleblack.com/

Mister Fusty