The Galleon - Portsmouth's Official Student Newspaper

The stage of Southampton Guildhall played host to unsigned singer/songwriter Rainy Boy Sleep on Saturday 4th February, supporting James Morrison on his sold out UK tour.

On first impression, Rainy Boy Sleep (a.k.a Stevie Martin) looked slightly nervous with just his guitar for company. But then he opened his mouth to sing and all that awkwardness died away; the audience was treated to a haunting and soulful voice, not unlike that of Stereophonics and Mumford and Sons.

For an acoustic act, he has a big voice that rings around the Guildhall with a power that was a little unexpected, and what’s more impressive is that he makes it look effortless. The stand-out track among many cleverly written melodies was ‘Ambulance’; its catchy tune and memorable lyrics mean that this could potentially be a massive hit in the not too distant future.

However, despite Rainy Boy Sleep’s obvious natural talent, he is as yet unsigned and risks falling into the sea of acoustic singer/songwriter acts that have already flooded the music scene in the past few years. While his music is of a high standard and easily listenable, it is not unique; it is the kind of raw sound that you regularly hear from unsigned bands that play at alternative bars or open mic nights but rarely on the radio.

Nevertheless, if anybody can fight for recognition in this fast growing area of music, it is Rainy Boy Sleep; he has already performed on tour supporting Cyndi Lauper and made it to the BBC Introducing stage at last year’s Reading Festival, and if this performance at Southampton is anything to go by we haven’t seen the last of him yet.