Following their triumphant headline gig at the Camden Club in November 2024, the band have been eagerly looking forward to playing live again. The waiting will come to an end on 1 June, when Storm Deva play a double header with Landmarq at The 1865 club in Southampton.
Five days later, in the afternoon of 6 June, Storm Deva will open the Soundle Festival, at the Queen Victoria Hall in Oundle, nr Peterborough. “We cannot wait to be out there performing again,” says Carollyn Eden, founding member of Storm Deva, and the main composer for the band, “Audiences have been so welcoming to us, and we can’t wait for them to hear this new line-up of the live band.”
Carollyn, on piano and vocals, is joined by Storm Deva’s other founding member Stuart Clark on guitar, and Pete Clark (no relation!) on bass. Pete has appeared on four of Tony Lowe’s ESP Project releases and was their live bassist from 2018-2022. He joined Storm Deva to play at the Camden Club. “
Pete gelled with us so well last year, both on and off stage, that we are delighted he is joining us again this year. He got the music straight away and has such a solid groove to his playing – plus can bust out some serious Chris Squire vibes when needed,” says Stuart.
“I’m really excited to be working with Storm Deva again and I’m looking forward to our collaboration and recording the second album,” says Pete.
Joining Pete in the rhythm department for the two June gigs is drummer Jack Summerfield, who also plays for Karnataka and The David Cross Band. “I saw Jack play with David Cross a few months ago and thought of him immediately when we needed to find someone for these gigs. He brings the perfect blend of technical ability and feel to his playing,” says Carollyn.
“I’m excited to be playing with Storm Deva and bringing this album to the stage for audiences to experience it live,” says Jack.
Completing the line up will be keyboardist Sheila Maloney, a solo artist who is also part of The David Cross Band. Her latest album Beyond by Darkfish will be released on 2 July. She brings a deft touch of keyboard magic to the band, combining the symphonic and electronic (synthonic, perhaps?) aspects of the music to more fully capture the sound of the album in a live setting.
“For these gigs we wanted to go big in terms of the sounds we had at our disposal. After endless discussions about how to do this, Carollyn and I decided we needed a keyboardist like Sheila. Then we thought, hang on – instead of someone like Sheila, why not just ask Sheila? We were thrilled when she said yes,” says Stuart.
“It’s really great to be doing this – and I’m loving the chance to experiment with adding synthonic(!) texture to the live Storm Deva sound,” says Sheila.
Storm Deva also have their sights set on the Summer’s End Festival on 4 October, when they will open proceedings on Saturday in the prestigious Progzilla Presents slot. “Having had to pull out of the festival last year due to illness, we are determined to pull out all the stops this year and repay the festival and Progzilla Radio’s belief in us,” says Carollyn.
Voted in the top 10 best new bands of 2024 in the Prog Magazine Readers Poll, Storm Deva are not only hard at work preparing for the gigs but also preparing material for their second album.
“Carollyn is really rocking this time,” says Stuart, “It’s incredibly exciting every time she sends me a new piano demo, I listen first as a fan – then I put guitars all over it!”
As a result, this trio of appearances is likely to be the band’s only performances this year.
“Right now we are getting ready to super-focus on our second album.The songs are flowing wonderfully and are almost completely written. Now its all about spending the time to make this the best album we possibly can. It means everything to us. Music is an expression of our deepest being.” says Carollyn.
1 June 2025 details: https://geoffreytucker42.wixsite.com/solentareaprog/landmarq2025
6 June 2025 details: https://wegottickets.com/f/13516
4 October 2025 details: https://www.summersend.co.uk/lineup