Thursday 11 Aug 2022, 1:07pm
Mike Seal has been an active musician for 40 years. Mike is available for session work, studio and live, dep work for covers bands and any interesting original music project.He has his own studion with pro gear and can work remotely.
He has worked as a musical director, composer, producer and engineer and has played hundreds of gigs across the world. He specialises in double bass, fretless and fretted bass and rhythm guitar. He can also play banjo, mandolin, dobro and most string instruments. He has played everything from Punk, Blues, Jazz. Ska, Country, Americana, Indy rock to pop - good music is what is important to him and consequently he seeks to 'serve the song'. Mike has played on over 40 albums and written over 250 songs. He co-wrote interlude music for several childrens programmes including the Beeps (48 episodes) and the theme music for Radio 4 programme 'X marks the spot'.
Mike currently plays for three professional artists. He plays upright bass for blues artist Sean Taylor, and has done four UK and two European tours with him. Sean has a growing worldwide following and ten acclaimed albums to his credit. Sean's most recent album was produced in Texas by legendary producer Mark Hallman and received a four-star review in Mojo and has been played on BBC Radio 2. He plays upright bass with 'A Different Thread', a collaboration between Robert Jackson from Lichfield, England, and Alicia Best from Durham, North Carolina, USA. Following the release of their debut album ' On A Whim' they landed interviews and live sessions on both the BBC and NPR radio. They have garnered a loyal following across the UK, Europe, the US and Central America. Their second album 'Call of the Road', which Mike plays on, comes out in August 2022. He also plays upright bass and banjo for Caitlin Jones and Chris Elliot, who were described by 'Bright Young Folk' as experienced storytellerswho bring timeless to their music. Their second album, which Mike is about to play on, comes out in autumn 2022.
He has also played as a musician in dance, drame and theatre productions. The lastest was Chain Stories 'an exciting site-specific performance telling the story of those who came to contact with the chains made in the Black Country''. involving dance companties from the Black Country, Ghana and Grenada.
In terms of his own projects, Mike plays with Lonesome Gods (Americana/Country) who are signed to Animal House Records. Their eponymous album came out in October 2020 and they are working on their second. He also plays for the Avant-Garde Jazz trio Told Americans. They feature an intense experimental sound with political overtones. Fatea reviewed them thus 'Told Americans possess an abundance of expert musicianship with energy, passion and a desire to truly experiment with preconceptions and push the artistic envelope... unusual, stimulating and most invigorating'. He also plays guitar with the Queen has Two Heads, an Americana/ soul 7 piece, who' s debut EP, Ready To Go, was released in late 2018 - they are now working on a post lockdown album and are playing festivals this summer. Mike is also a part of folk/ Americana/ electronica duo Manna, with Anna Reuben, who have released two albums on Nub Country records.
He played guitar and was co songwriter for Red Bird Sky (Folk Americana). They played across the UK and Canada. Their first album, released on Tree Top Records and produced by Paul Milner in Canada. Folk words described it thus 'This album reaches for you to ensure you share in the intensity of its songs and the potency of its melodies'. Their second album, The Unravelling', was given a four-star review by R2 and described as a 'scintillating experience'. Mike previously played double bass and was co-songwriter for Blue Soup who played at the Jazz Cafe, Cheltenham Jazz Festival, Canterbury Jazz Festival, Ealing Jazz Festival and toured Europe twice. In 2012 they released 'Attention' on A Major Sounds produced by Paul Milner (Keith Richards, Eddy Grant, Sting) which was nominated for a Grammy.
Outside of music Mike is a professor of critical pedagogy, author of 14 books, and a freelance educational consultant.
07773718180
mikedwinseal@gmail.com