This one, for a change, isn’t about a band. It’s about a solo artist who, when even over a year ago as I first caught him performing bloody brilliantly at a local open mic, I remember thinking that this was just the beginning for him. This almost certainly goes a lot further back for the ones who have known him longer, because it almost feels as though this was always going to be something huge, and the snowball has long since started rolling down the hill. 

With a newly released album (The Flesh and Bone, available here) fresh under his belt, Joseph Hicklin has sealed the deal with the amazing video to first single, ‘Be’, which features the faces of local residents of Walsall in black and white throughout. Such a simple concept that works so well. The video is also set in The Fountain, a (fantastic) Walsall Pub in which Joseph previously worked, so the whole thing has a nice, personal feel about it.

A prominent name amongst the open mic circuit, Joseph’s style has a sort of blues-y feel to it, and his I’ve yet to see anyone disappointed by his songs. Since the album release, rave reviews have popped up all over the place, and even the Express & Star has jumped on it, featuring him as the next big thing both in print and online. Seriously, check the album out, and keep your eye out, because he’s just warming up.