Winter In Eden - The Band

Thomas Cole: Expulsion from the Garden of Eden c.1827-1828		In the beginning was created the Heaven and the Earth, and the Earth was without form, and void; and Darkness was upon the face of the deep. And Man was formed from the dust of the ground, and became a living soul; and a garden was planted, eastward, in Eden. And out of the ground grew every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the Tree of Life also in the midst of the garden, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. And watching from on high, surveying the joyous scene, stands Lucifer, The Morning Star. First-born Arch-angel, loved once above all others. Now fallen, through pride, and malice. And he approaches Eve, the Mother of Mankind, masquerading as the wily serpent. And of the forbidden fruit she eats…………………… and knows. “Her rash hand in evil hour forth-reaching to the fruit, she plucked, she ate; Earth felt the wound, and Nature from her seat, sighing through all her works, gave signs of woe that all was lost.”
And the Man ate of the fruit, and they knew the Knowledge of Good and Evil. And they were as Gods. And their God knew of these things, and he drove them from the Garden. And Darkness was upon the face of the deep. And there was Winter in Eden.

We are the sound of the Darkness. “They hand in hand, with wandering steps and slow, through Edentook their solitary way” John Milton. 1667

	Vicky Johnson as known by Sam Cull I first met Vicky when she joined a prog rock/covers band I’d been playing with for a few months. Steve and Vicky both joined at the same time as we needed a keyboard player too. As soon as we had played the first song it was obvious that we’d found a very talented vocalist. Not only that but she is also an incredibly talented pianist, playing some additional keys on some tracks, and all round musician. We had been playing for a while in that band but we never really had our own style and so we eventually drifted apart. Then a few months down the line I was contacted by Vicky to ask if I wanted to be the guitarist in a new project. Of course knowing I’d be playing with great players I jumped at the chance and Winter In Eden was born. Vicky is a very straight forward and, 'to the point' person, which is the kind of person I get on with as you always know what she thinks and where you stand. She’s also incredibly generous and is always happy to help out with anything anyone has any problems with. Along with Ian, she keeps the rest of us in check and is the chief organiser of the band.
Musically, Vicky is fantastic. Her vocal melody lines are always fitting to the music, but not always the obvious, and so she keeps everything interesting. She’s never short of ideas and is very passionate about how she feels a song should develop (always good for keeping myself in order as I have a tendency to go off on a tangent at times). As mentioned earlier Vicky is also a classically trained pianist, and is always full of ideas to add to the keyboards or a guitar melody. Lastly, but most definitely not least, is her voice. Vicky has a very interesting and unique voice with a lot of body and an instantly recognisable tone. If you hear the vocal, you can tell it’s a Winter In Eden track! Of all the things Vicky brings to the table, her voice is most definitely her greatest asset and live she never puts a note wrong which is just incredible! Without Vicky there would not be a Winter In Eden, it’s a simple as that.

	Sam Cull as known by Wayne McAloon The first time I met Sam was when I was asked to drum for a progressive-rock band. Sam was playing guitar for the band, and my first impression was of a great guitarist in the wrong band. I felt the style and outlook of the band were stifling his playing, and eventually they folded. From the ashes, Winter In Eden was formed, and now being the only guitarist in the band, Sam could express himself fully through his playing. Sam’s a great guy. Pretty laid back most of the time, he tends to take a back seat role in the organisational side of the band, but creatively he is one of the driving forces, bringing great riffs and ideas to the table. He’s also pretty heavily in to Progressive Rock and Metal, and he often comes up with ideas that are radically different to anything I would find myself writing, which is great, and for a musician can be really inspirational. Sam has a great sense of humour and on the road is often the person, along with myself, who laughs the most, and also drinks the most! He has an almost fathomless knowledge of “South Park” and quotes from it at regular intervals, which I find hilarious. He also has a slightly unhealthy obsession with pirates. The “AAARRRGGGHHH!” type, not the Somali ones!
I find his playing an absolute joy, not only to listen to, but to play alongside. His solo work is excellent. Understated and bluesy, with moments of shredding brilliance, but I think it’s his rhythm work that’s exceptional. He just has this casual, relaxed style of playing that locks in perfectly with the drums and the bass guitar. I also think he’s got a great tone, which he would probably vehemently disagree with, always being his own biggest critic, and I think his touch and feel on the guitar is brilliant. All in all, a good guy, a good mate and a great guitar player.

	Steve Johnson as known by Ian Heddle The first time I met Steve ‘Stevie J ’ was at the first rehearsal Wayne and myself attended for the band that was shortly to become Winter In Eden. My first thoughts on Steve were that it was good to see someone who was actually a keyboard player – someone who didn’t just bash out block chords to fill in the space like a rhythm guitarist. Instead here was someone who put a lot of thought and effort into the parts he played, the voices he chooses and the layering of the sounds. This is even more so when he is not restricted to two hands, and is using the computers to build up arrangements which can sometimes stretch to dozens of individual and carefully planned parts. In essence Steve is the keyboard player and chief orchestrator of the band. I think he’s a frustrated film score writer. The parts that Steve writes add an extra dimension to the Winter In Eden sound, they can add a range of layers and emotions and all with unique a sense of melody and style. He loves his toys - one man can never have enough keyboards! Steve's studio seems to expand on a regular basis with keyboards, rack gear and computer equipment – all put to good use for the band and he also has a good range in vest tops!
Steve is very passionate about his music and the band and can get very frustrated when we have the occasional problem or a hitch with a venue or promoter, but I think this is only because he doesn’t want the audience to have anything less than the best experience when they come to see us perform. Steve is also Captain of the SS Windelfel

	Ian Heddle as known by Vicky Johnson When I first met Ian I thought he was friendly but quiet. I remember asking him what he thought about Mark King and he thought that he was, "a bit too flashy" for his liking to which I responded, “we would have to agree to disagree” because the man is a legend in my eyes. It took a while for me to get to know Ian. He is an incredibly private person. He is definitely a mediator and tries to find the middle ground for the sake of the band. On the other hand if he really believes in something then he will speak up and not back down. I really admire that because being in a band is all about compromise and he does, but it is so important not to compromise what you believe in. Saying that, I still feel that there is a lot I don’t know about Ian and he is not the kind of person to volunteer information. You have to specifically ask him a question and don’t be surprised if the answer is simply “yes” or “no”. He is an unbelievably talented musician. The bass guitar is not his main instrument. He is a classically trained pianist but in a former band they needed a bass player so he learnt to play bass. He is focused and has the ability to listen and write what the song needs, not what necessarily shows off his skills. I think the bass lines he is starting to write are becoming unique to him. He won’t just play it safe and I would have confidence in him to play any bass line no matter how complicated. Ian loves to perform and comes alive on stage giving 110% to every performance.
He is a machine. If you are writing a song, it will be Ian that remembers the arrangement of the song and the chords after playing it through only once, even if it was weeks ago. Not only that, he is unbelievably hard-working and never stops. I don’t think he knows how to say “no”. He can always be relied upon to put the band first. He has the nickname of “JC” (Jesus Christ) in the band because the guy can walk on water! I once saw a t-shirt saying “Jesus Christ is in my band” and believe me I was seriously tempted to buy it and I wish I did now. Ian puts in a lot of work behind the scenes which can be a thankless task but he takes it in his stride and doesn’t want or need praise. He doesn’t have an ego and that’s refreshing. Although he may the member of the band that fans probably feel they know the least, he should not be underestimated and is an essential part of the WIE team.

	Wayne McAloon as known by Steve Johnson It is surprising that Wayne and I never met when we were children as we have always lived so close to each other. We were both brought up in the same area, and even shared a couple of friends. Although our paths have come close they never quite crossed. If they had, Winter In Eden might have been born many years ago. We finally met when he (and Ian) auditioned for a previous band I was in. I remember he had long hair, a beard and was wearing black clothes and glasses. Then one day after a trip to LA he turned up at the front door with a mohican, a bright red t-shirt, shorts and was no longer wearing glasses. His image had completely changed and I think he constantly likes to surprise. He has introduced me to a lot of bands and music that I probably wouldn’t have listened to, or even given a second look at in a music store, which helped shape the style and sound of the band. He has helped me look at writing in a different way. Wayne is heavily influenced by Iron Maiden, ACDC and rock in general (especially of the spandex variety)! That said he can play many different styles, but his passion is rock, and that comes through in his playing. His playing drives the music, bonding the orchestral and rock parts of the songs together. Someone once told me that, “he plays what is best for the music, not for himself” and I totally agree.
Although Wayne’s first instrument is drums he is also a keen guitarist. It does help when writing together, because if Sam has “writers block”, he can come up with a guitar lick or short riff that can spark something in Sam. He also has a fantastic knowledge of British history and is well read. This is reflected in his lyrics. The two words I would use to describe him are “rocker” (through and through) and “comedian”. He is constantly keeping the band entertained with his funny (if sometimes slightly exaggerated) stories. When in a drunken state he likes to describe himself as a “bloody rock god” (which always cracks me up). Wayne has always said that he just wants to play and doesn’t like all of the other business elements. However when he does set his mind to it he is a good businessman and spokesperson. He is never short of something to say and always has an opinion which means there is never a dull moment.