Ollie Cole

Ollie Cole Birthplace: Kells, County Meath, Ireland, is singer and lead guitarist with Irish rock band . Cole is perhaps best known for his skilled songwriting and technical proficiency with the guitar. His work is most noticeably influenced by American singer-songwriter Elliott Smith. This influence is particularly apparent with Cole's solo material, though earlier work with Turn showed a fondness for hard rock, most noticeably AC/DC, Black Sabbath and The Pixies. Cole is also noted for his ability to easily form a rapport with a crowd and is regarded as an excellent showman, a talent which enabled Turn cement a reputation as one of the better live bands in Ireland from the late nineties onward.

With Turn

Ollie Cole was responsible for the majority of songwriting duties within the band. The groups debut LP Antisocial was released on Infectious record to predominantly postitive critical opinion and sold solidly. The bands profile was increased in the UK and Ireland due to tours with Idlewild, Seafood and Wilt among others. Infectious records changed hands in the period between the completion and release of Antisocial. Despite reasonable sales and promising reception Turn were promptly dropped from the label. This was a devastating blow to the group and Cole in particular. However the response was an EP entitled In Position released in Ireland only on the groups own Nurture label. It showcased a renewed determination and a defiant will to put the label disappointment behind them. The EP is considered by many as Turn's finest work. The title track in particular perhaps best illustrates the bands strengths while typifying the renewed optimism of a group who had been to the brink of collapse. Two more albums Forward and Turn LP were later released with some success in Ireland but following a number of line up changes and label disappointments the band ultimately grew disillusioned with the prospect of ever reching a wider audience than their small but dedicated fanbase in Ireland and decided to call it a day in July of 2006.
They plan to tour Ireland one last time before going their separate ways.

2006 - Present

Since leaving Turn, Ollie has been working hard on his debut Solo album. In July 2006, Ollie travelled to Freiberg, Germany to start recording. Over 20 songs were recorded all together with roughly 12 going to be finished for the album. In August 2007, Ollie reported on his MySpace page that he had finished recording the album but no news of a release date has been announced yet. In November 2007, Ollie started posting tracks from the new album on his MySpace. Please see below for a list of tracks that have been uploaded so far.

*1) - Oh My Girl (Now Removed)
*2) - Drug Song (Now Removed)
*3) - What will ya do (Now Removed)
*4) - We Albatri
*5) - Holding Your Heart

The songs mark a massive change in his playing and writing style to that of his work with Turn. His new sound is more piano and melody based than the gritty guitars often associated with Turn.

Playing style

Further evidence of Smith's influence in Cole's work is his usage of guitars in various tunings. Almost half of his material with Turn is played on a guitar in standard tuning, the remainder is played on a guitar tuned DGCFAD (down one step). This allows the artist more scope while playing as the chords typically in the artist's preferred key for singing are now primarily playable with open chords allowing greater embellishment and thus the ability to produce more complex guitar pieces. Notable examples include "In Position", "Antisocial", "Another Year Over" and "You Got Style".

Compositions played in standard tuning are usually less complex though there are exceptions ("Ain't It a Love"). Further pieces played on the detuned guitar are usually slower to mid tempo compositions. Those in standard tuning are normally up-tempo and reflective of Cole's love of classic rock.

To achieve this dichotomy effectively Cole is known to use at least two guitars while playing live. A 59' Fender Telecaster tuned DGCFAD. A Gibson SG standard is used in conventional (EADGBE) tuning.

Other

Cole has lived in Dublin for a number of years. He currently lives with his long term girlfriend Danielle Harrison. A solo album is in the pipeline and will be his first since leaving Turn.

Trivia

Ollie Cole is known for his frequent use of the expletive "motherfuckers" when addressing audiences.

He was badly electrocuted by a microphone which had become live while recording the Turn EP "In Position." The incident had a profound effect on him.

He is rumoured to have bought his preferred guitar a Fender Telecaster from U2 guitarist The Edge.

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