York songwriter named in NME's ‘50 New Bands for 2015’

In the same week that two York bands were featured on national radio, here’s further evidence that the city’s vibrant scene is busting out of our old walls.

This week UK music bible the NME published its ‘New Music Issue’. At its heart were the ‘50 new bands for 2015’.

And among them, York singer-songwriter Mark Wynn.

We have long been singing the praises of this unique talent. And the NME’s new music editor Matt Wilkinson clearly agrees.

This is what Matt said of our man Mark:

If Sleaford Mods’ rampant truth-telling flipped your mind in 2014, you could do a lot worse than look up Mark Wynn.

Having spent the past year running acoustic nights in York and releasing his music via local ’zines, he’s been hailed as everything from the UK’s next great street poet to the bastard son of Mark E Smith.

One thing’s for sure: songs like the Paul McCartney-baiting Battenburg stick out in the current climate.

<a href="http://markwynn.bandcamp.com/album/captain-fantastic-not-that-one-and-the-discarded-confectionary-blah-a-single">'Captain Fantastic (not that one) and the discarded confectionary blah' a single by Mark Wynn</a>

The man and his music

Born and bred in York Mark started to play guitar aged 13. His first band was The Lowdowns when he was 17 and they gigged at the King William in Chapelfields.

In his 20s Mark developed an idiosyncratic style which can be glimpsed from the titles of his albums, which include James Dean Makes Me Insecure, Why Does He Have To Be So Shexy – The Album and “Music Documentaries Make Me Unable To Deal With Reality” The Album.

He was invited to play on Tom Robinson’s BBC 6 Music show in 2013, leading Tom to give this assessment:

Like the early John Cooper Clarke or Mark E Smith, Mark Wynn has the potential for national treasure status 20 years down the line. And that’s not something you’ll hear me say often or lightly.

Alternatively try this description from Mark’s own blog…

He releases an EP every month or so, makes incomprehensible posters to adorn toilet walls, writes about his experiences as a twenty something know nothing and stays up getting plastered when he should be getting to bed. He is an exercise in work avoidance and stupidity and he would like your money and your adoration.

But enough talking. Time to listen to one of the 50 new bands of 2015.