Phoenix 23 are a three piece band from
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
. Formed in 2007, they consist of three cousins, Gav Campbell, Neil Donnelly & Glenn Donnelly. They had had multiple guest players in their band throughout the years (cousin Andy Cochrane, Deano, Steve Hodge, Mark Matthewson, John Kearns and Paul Kennedy) but the core of the 3 main members keeps the band going strong!
They had three songs in the soundtrack for the
Ben Kingsley
Sir Ben Kingsley (born Krishna Pandit Bhanji; 31 December 1943) is an English actor. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Ben Kingsley, various accolades throughout Ben Kingsley on screen and stage, his career spanning fi ...
film ''
Fifty Dead Men Walking
''Fifty Dead Men Walking'' is a 2008 English-language crime thriller film written and directed by Kari Skogland. It is a loose adaptation of Martin McGartland's 1997 autobiography of the same name. It premiered in September 2008, and stars Jim ...
'', directed by
Kari Skogland
Kari Skogland is a Canadian filmmaker. In 2016, she co-founded independent production company Mad Rabbit. Her most recent project is ''The Falcon and the Winter Soldier'', a television series for Marvel Studios.
Career
Skogland started as an e ...
; two songs which were written solely for the film; "Hit the Ground Running" (featured in ''
Empire
An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...
'' magazine), and "It’s a Blast", along with "Hurricane".
Their debut album was produced by
Supertramp
Supertramp were a British rock band formed in London in 1970. Marked by the individual songwriting of founders Roger Hodgson (vocals, keyboards and guitars) and Rick Davies (vocals and keyboards), the group were distinguished for blending p ...
’s guitarist
Carl Verheyen
Carl William Verheyen (born April 3, 1954) is an American musician best known for being the guitarist of Supertramp, the leader of the Carl Verheyen Band, and as a Los Angeles session guitarist. He was ranked ''One of the World's Top 10 Guitaris ...
, who also guests on lead guitar. It featured drummer/percussionist
Steve DiStanislao
Steve DiStanislao (born November 18, 1963) is an American drummer.
David Crosby
DiStanislao frequently collaborated with David Crosby. He toured with Crosby & Nash, the band formed by David Crosby, CPR, and Crosby's solo tours. He appears on th ...
and was produced by Bernard Matthews.
In 2010, they had airplay on
Cool FM
Cool FM is an Independent Local Radio station based in Newtownards, Northern Ireland. The station is owned and operated by Bauer and forms part of Bauer's Hits Radio Network.
The station began broadcasting in 1990 when its parent station ...
in Northern Ireland, along with having reviews in Ireland, England, Italy and California.
Gav Campbell
Gav Campbell is the lead singer and songwriter for the band. He can play both drums and guitar, but is currently also a guitarist in the band. He has been a DJ on
Cool FM
Cool FM is an Independent Local Radio station based in Newtownards, Northern Ireland. The station is owned and operated by Bauer and forms part of Bauer's Hits Radio Network.
The station began broadcasting in 1990 when its parent station ...
, a station covering the Greater Belfast area, he now works behind the scenes. His sister Tina Campbell is a presenter on
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
.
References
{{Reflist
Rock music groups from Northern Ireland
Musical groups established in 2007