sally biography
The conception of ‘Sally’ came about when fate played a convenient roll in uniting singer song writer Phil Ward with drummer Lukas Meier on a Swiss train back in 2004.
In an attempt to converse in English with an Appenzeller ticket official, Phil gave Lukas the perfect opportunity to prove that English Swiss relations are stronger than ever. Lukas not only helped Phil with the infinite problem of comprehending Swiss dialect but he also later proved that the Swiss & English can work together to produce truly inspiring music.
Phil Ward is a prolific singer song-writer who has explored most musical styles including classical, folk, rock-n-roll, blues and rock. This musical journey has culminated in a diverse and original style which falls into none of the conventional pigeon holes. Perhaps the biggest influence on Phil was ‘The Alarm’ and ‘U2’ who in the 80’s, successfully took meaningful folk music into the rock and eventually the pop domain. A few similarities can be made between ‘Sally’ and the folk-rock icons, however the overall sound of ‘Sally’ is more dynamic combining traditional classical melodies with thumping chorus’s more in keeping with the ‘Manic Street Preachers’ or ‘Stereophonics’ for example.
Naturally Phil Ward injects a very English feel to the music, however the Swiss element comes from Lukas Meier and Fabian Schmidli who prior to Sally have played together for the last 6 years in the very accomplished ‘reggae roots’ band ‘Hilarious’……well known on the Swiss circuit.
OK so Reggae and rock don’t really cross-over, but this just proves the flexibility of Fabian & Lukas who have settled into ‘Brit-Rock’ as if they were natives to the Island.
