Stoney (born Mark Stoney 24 May 1980) is a British musician, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, producer and performer. To date he has released 3 solo albums and six E.P's under his performer name of Stoney. Known for his sharp lyrics and classic melodies, he first came to prominence in the "New Yorkshire" music scene (as the

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

would label it) in the mid 2000s touring and working alongside acts such as

Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Jamie Cook (guitar, keyboards), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, back ...

Long Blondes The Long Blondes are an English indie rock band formed in Sheffield in 2003 by Dorian Cox (lead guitar and keyboards), Reenie Hollis (real name Kathryn Hollis) (bass guitar and backing vocals), Emma Chaplin (rhythm guitar, keyboards and backing ...

and Reverend and the Makers. Following relocation to Austin, Texas in 2009, he became a founding member, songwriter and guitarist of acclaimed "dirt-pop" band Bobby Jealousy, who released two full-length albums between 2012–2014, before resuming his solo career back in the UK. Stoney is also an accomplished producer and co-writer for up and coming talent and has worked with Ivor Novello award-winning

Guy Chambers Guy Antony Chambers (born 12 January 1963) is an English songwriter, musician and record producer, best known for his work with Robbie Williams. Education Chambers attended Quarry Bank Comprehensive School sixth form in Liverpool. From 18, h ...

Rick Rubin Frederick Jay Rubin (; born March 10, 1963) is an American record producer. He is the co-founder (alongside Russell Simmons) of Def Jam Recordings, founder of American Recordings, and former co-president of Columbia Records. Rubin helped popula ...

Warren Huart Warren Huart is an English record producer, musician, composer and recording engineer based in Los Angeles, California who is most associated as a music producer and/or engineer in the recording industry as a multi-platinum producer for The Fra ...

and

Tim Palmer Timothy J. Palmer (born 4 October 1962, in North Shields) is an English record producer, audio engineer, guitarist and songwriter of rock music, rock and alternative rock, alternative music. He Audio mixing (recorded music), mixed Pearl Jam's d ...

. Stoney currently lives and works in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

, England.

Early career

Stoney first appeared on the UK music scene following the release of his debut inventive and homegrown-style album ''Amber'' in 2001. A quirky collection of songs written in his teens, and recorded in his Sheffield basement following his escape from his hometown of

Croydon Croydon is a large town in south London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a local government district of Greater London. It is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater London, with an extensi ...

, it was independently distributed initially through a few local record shops on his own Holy Moly label. Stoney played all the instruments on the record. In response to the positive public reaction, a full band was formed to take the songs to the stage, and a three track EP of songs from the album, entitled ''Amber EP'', was released nationally on

Thunderbird Records Steve Brodie (c.1927 – March 15, 2004) was an American record label owner and founder who was very active during the 1960s and 1970s. He owned or co-owned Thunderbird Records, Sahara Records, Forever Music and various others. He also produc ...

the next year gaining Stoney his first national radio airplay. Stoney signed to

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

in 2003, teaming up with producers Kevin Bacon and Jon Quarmby (

Longpigs Longpigs were an English indie rock band who rose to fame on the fringe of Britpop in the 1990s, comprising Crispin Hunt (vocals), Richard Hawley (guitar), Simon Stafford (bass guitar) and former Cabaret Voltaire (band), Cabaret Voltaire member ...

Richard Hawley Richard Willis Hawley (born 17 January 1967) is an English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer. After his first band Treebound Story (formed while he was still at school) broke up, Hawley found success as a member of Britpop band Longp ...

Sugababes Sugababes are a British girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by All Saints manager Ron Tom, Sugababes releas ...

Finley Quaye Finley Quaye (born 25 March 1974, Edinburgh, Scotland) is a Scottish musician. He won the 1997 MOBO Award for best reggae act, and the 1998 BRIT Award for Best Male Solo Artist. Life Finley Quaye is the son of vaudeville pianist Cab Kaye and t ...

) to record an album. During this time, Stoney and his band performed under the name of ''Stoneylacuna'', to reflect the change from the singer-songwriter feel of ''Amber'' to the bigger, full band sound of the new recordings. However, political wrangles ensued and Stoney parted company with the label the following year without a record being released.

''The Scene and The Unseen''

A few months after parting ways with Island Records, the limited edition single "Constantly Running" was released nationally on the small

Transistor upright=1.4, gate (G), body (B), source (S) and drain (D) terminals. The gate is separated from the body by an insulating layer (pink). A transistor is a semiconductor device used to Electronic amplifier, amplify or electronic switch, switch e ...

label, and became the single of the week on the

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

music store, restarting a frenzy of activity. The single achieved over 17,000 downloads in the UK alone in the first week. Stoney followed up with the ''Soap in a Bathtub'' EP, which brought him further national exposure. After forming a new band, Stoney provided the support for the

first sell-out UK tour in the Summer of 2005, alongside festival appearances at

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury ...

and

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

. Stoney became a regular guest on

BBC Radio 2 BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...

and

BBC 6Music BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available onl ...

and further shows with high-profile acts such as

Jamie T Jamie Alexander Treays (born 8 January 1986), better known by his stage name Jamie T, is an English singer, songwriter, rapper, guitarist and record producer from Wimbledon, South London. Jamie T released his debut album, '' Panic Prevention'' ...

Athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

and Feeder along with his own headline shows quickly gained him a reputation as an exhilarating and charismatic live performer, continuing to win him a steadily growing underground UK fanbase. A double A-side single featuring fan favourites "Until You Leave" and "Holds the Stars" was released at the end of 2005. Stoney released the 12 track album ''The Scene and The Unseen'' in the summer of 2006 on the independent

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

based label Too Nice Recordings and as a download on iTunes. Despite a typically low-key and organic release, it prompted widespread critical acclaim from the national UK papers, with rave reviews from ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'',

'', ''

The Sunday Times ''The Sunday Times'' is a British newspaper whose circulation makes it the largest in Britain's quality press market category. It was founded in 1821 as ''The New Observer''. It is published by Times Newspapers Ltd, a subsidiary of News UK, whi ...

'' and ''

The Daily Express The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first published as a broadsheet i ...

''. It reached Number 19 in the UK iTunes download chart and peaked at Number 4 in France. The album was re-released with full UK distribution on his own Sonic Roar Label in November 2007. During this period, Stoney also started producing other artists, and set up Lacuna Productions, a record production company with fellow Sheffield producer Sam Jones. Lacuna birthed debut singles from several rising Sheffield indie stars such as

Bromheads Jacket Bromheads (formerly Bromheads Jacket) are a two-piece British garage rock band originating from Sheffield, England. History Bromheads formed in Sheffield in 2005, following the split of a band called Fixated. Although often compared to othe ...

and Little Ze.

Relocation to US

Following an acoustic show at the

SXSW South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and conferences organized jointly that take place in mid-March in Austin, Te ...

festival in Texas, he was flown to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

for a private showcase and champions of Stoney on US radio such as

Nic Harcourt Nic Harcourt (born September 23, 1957) is an English-born American radio and television presenter, producer, and journalist best known as the former Music Director and on-air presenter for the Santa Monica, California-based radio station KCRW. Har ...

KCRW KCRW (89.9 MHz FM) is a National Public Radio member station broadcasting from the campus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, California, where the station is licensed. KCRW airs original news and music programming in addition to programm ...

raised Stoney's profile over the Atlantic. His tracks started to feature in several Hollywood films & TV series. In response Stoney relocated to

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the county seat, seat and largest city of Travis County, Texas, Travis County, with portions extending into Hays County, Texas, Hays and Williamson County, Texas, Williamson co ...

in 2009 and began working on new material with a number of producers including C.J Eiriksson ( u2, the rocket summer, Blue October), Darin Prindle (

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...

Destiny's Child Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...

) His first public show was a stripped back set at the British Music Embassy showcase at

alongside

Laura Marling Laura Beatrice Marling (born 1 February 1990) is a British folk singer-songwriter. She won the Brit Award for Best British Female Solo Artist at the 2011 Brit Awards and was nominated for the same award at the 2012, 2014, 2016, and 2018 Brit A ...

& Aqualung and presented by

. In 2010, Stoney was among the earliest artists to implement the fan funding model, teaming up with

PledgeMusic PledgeMusic was an online direct-to-fan music platform, launched in August 2009. It was started to facilitate musicians looking to pre-sell, market, and distribute projects; such as recordings and concerts. It bore similarities to other artist p ...

, he successfully launched a new 4 track E.P entitled "The Soar Before" and an accompanying 16 date U.K tour with

. The fans raised the target in 3 days, and the tour was followed by Stoney's fourth live session and interview on

Dermot O'Leary Seán Dermot Fintan O'Leary Jr. (born 24 May 1973) is an English broadcaster who currently works for ITV and BBC Radio 2. His radio career began when he worked as a disc jockey at Essex Radio, but he is best known for being the presenter of ''T ...

's BBC Radio 2 show, alongside fellow guest

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

Bobby Jealousy

In the summer of 2012, Stoney took a departure from his solo career and co-founded a new band in Austin named "Bobby Jealousy" alongside local punk singer Sabrina Ellis and producer Seth Gibbs. The trio of songwriters adopted the services of drummer Clint Simmons and quickly established a strong following in Austin with a series of raucous live residencies around the City. Their debut album "A little Death" was recorded at Gibb's Superpop Studio in the space of a few weeks and was met with critical acclaim, with the lead single "Rainbow" being adopted as the theme tune for Comedy Central's "

Big Time in Hollywood, FL ''Big Time in Hollywood, FL'' is an American comedy television series created and written by Alex Anfanger and Dan Schimpf. A 10-episode first season was ordered by the American cable television network Comedy Central, which premiered on March ...

" TV Show. The band released a follow up album "The Importance of being Jealous", appeared at the

Austin City Limits Music Festival The Austin City Limits (ACL) Music Festival is an annual music festival held in Zilker Park in Austin, Texas on two consecutive three-day weekends. Inspired by the KLRU/PBS music series of the same name, the festival is produced by Austin-based ...

and conducted two tours of the United States before parting ways in 2014.

''More Than Animals''

Following the break up of Bobby Jealousy, Stoney resumed work on a Solo album and in 2014 released his third full album ''More Than Animals'' once again to critical acclaim. Largely self produced, several tracks from the album were mixed in Los Angeles with Producer

. The release was again fan-funded through

Pledgemusic PledgeMusic was an online direct-to-fan music platform, launched in August 2009. It was started to facilitate musicians looking to pre-sell, market, and distribute projects; such as recordings and concerts. It bore similarities to other artist p ...

, and met with very favorable reviews internationally. A video for the album track "We Belonged" was shot in the Hill Country in Texas to accompany the album release and the track has since been used in the Series finale of popular us TV show

Hart of Dixie ''Hart of Dixie'' is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on The CW from September 26, 2011, to March 27, 2015. The series, created by Leila Gerstein, stars Rachel Bilson as Dr. Zoe Hart, a New Yorker who, after her dreams of b ...

and the feature film "The Funeral Guest". The album track "Devil on My Back" was used in the first series finale of ''

Legends A legend is a historical narrative, a symbolic representation of folk belief. Legend(s) or The Legend(s) may also refer to: Narrative * Urban legend, a widely repeated story of dubious truth * A fictitious identity used in espionage Books, co ...

'' starring Sean Bean.

Current work

After moving back to the UK in 2015, Stoney began working extensively as a producer and co-writer, helping to develop and support emerging talent across multiple genres, as well as collaborations with established artists such as

The Big Pink The Big Pink are an English electronic rock band from London, consisting of multi-instrumentalists Robertson "Robbie" Furze, Akiko Matsuura and Charlie Barker. Initially a duo, they signed to independent record label 4AD in 2009 and won the ...

and Jade Castrinos (of

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros is an American folk rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 2005. The group is led by singer Alex Ebert. The band's name is based on a story Ebert wrote in his youth, about a messianic figure named E ...

) In early 2020, Stoney announced on social media the forthcoming release of new solo material later in the year.

Discography

As Stoney: * ''Constantly Running''. CD & iTunes single. January, 2005. Transistor Records. * ''Soap in a Bathtub''. CD, 7" and iTunes single. June, 2005. Transistor Records. * ''Until You Leave/Holds The Stars''. Double A-side CD, 7" and iTunes single. November, 2005. Too Nice Records. * ''The Scene and the Unseen''. CD Album. 2006. Too Nice Records. * ''Holds The Stars.'' iTunes Single of the week. November 2006 * ''Jailbird'' CD Single November 2007 - Sonic Roar / Transistor * ''The Scene & The Unseen'' CD Album (re-release) Nov 2007 Sonic Roar/Transistor * ''The Soar before'' CD E.P Nov 2010 Sonic Roar Records * "More Than Animals" 2014 CD Album, Download As Mark Stoney: * ''Amber''. CD Album. 2001. Holy Moly Records. * ''Amber EP''. CD EP. 2002. Thunderbird Records. As ''Stoneylacuna:'' * ''Constantly Running''. CD single. 2004. Transistor Records. As Bobby Jealousy: * "A Little Death" CD Album. Feb 2012 Superpop Records Compilations: * '' The Saturday Sessions: The Dermot O'Leary Show'' (2007, Virgin/

EMI EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...

) - "Waterfall" * KCRW's ''The Next One'' (2008) - ''Until You Leave'' * SXSW 2009 "Sounds of Yorkshire - "Skyline" Production, songwriting and guest appearances: *

Co-writer, Various 2020 * Franz Von, Various 2020, Producer, Guest vocals *"Cortney Dixon" "Kingpin" 2016 songwriter, arranger, all instrumentation, Producer, *"Cortney Dixon" "Summer's Eyes" 2016, 2019 songwriter, arranger, Original Production *"Cortney Dixon" "Anywhere's Home" 2016 songwriter, arranger, all instrumentation, Producer *"Cortney Dixon" "What you wanna do" 2019 songwriter, arranger, original production *"Cortney Dixon" "Parliament of Owls" 2020 songwriter, arranger, original production *"Annie Lennox" "Bittersweet" Lyricist *''Nolween Leroy'' "Lights are on" Lyricist *''Border Scout'' "Hold your fire" & "Let's Pretend we're Dead" Guest Vocalist *''Kym Brown'' "I got the stuff" Arranged/Remixed *''Jonnie Horden'', "All's not lost", Producer *''Midnights Silent Repose'': Producer/ Co-writer *Neil McSweeney - Guest vocals on "Standing Still" from the album "Shoreline" *Quiet Company - Guest backing vocals on album "We Are All Where We Belong"

Film and television

* The Moguls (2006 - Jeff Bridges, Ted Danson, US) features Stoney's track ''Underdog'' *

Fireflies in the Garden ''Fireflies in the Garden'' is a 2008 American drama film written and directed by Dennis Lee and starring Willem Dafoe, Ryan Reynolds, and Julia Roberts. It premiered at the 2008 Berlin International Film Festival and was released theatrically in ...

(2008 - Julia Roberts, Willem Dafoe, US) features Stoney's track ''Best laid plans'' * BBC

EastEnders ''EastEnders'' is a Television in the United Kingdom, British soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the Ea ...

episode June 2006 Featured Stoney's Track ''Until you leave'' * D.I.R.T (Touchstone, US) Season 1, Episode 7 features Stoney's track ''Best Laid Plans'' * Heroes & Villains (2007 - Vertigo films, UK) Features Stoney track ''Holds The Stars'' * Dirty Sanchez (2008, MTV) Features various Stoney tracks * Hades Bridge - (2008, UK VHK films - in production)Trailer features Stoney Track ''Round Here'' *

Current TV Current TV was an American television channel which broadcast from August 1, 2005, to August 20, 2013. Prior INdTV founders Al Gore and Joel Hyatt, with Ronald Burkle, each held a sizable stake in Current TV. Comcast and DirecTV each held a smalle ...

documentary on Stoney - 2008 ''Sheffield Rock Star'' (Current TV, UK/US) * My Dangerous Loverboy (2009-Vita Nova films UK) Features Stoney-produced ''Set me Free'' *

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...

Season 10, week 5, Features Stoney track "Ghost" *

Falling Overnight ''Falling Overnight'' is a 2011 American drama film directed by Conrad Jackson and written by Parker Croft, Aaron Golden, and Conrad Jackson. ''Falling Overnight'' stars Parker Croft and Emilia Zoryan Plot ''Falling Overnight'' tells the story ...

(DPO productions, 2011) Features Stoney track "Until you leave" * Chuck and Ted's Outback Adventure, (A-List entertainment, 2013 ) Original Score by Stoney *

Starring Sean Bean (TNT productions, 2014) Season Finale Features Stoney track "Devil on my Back" *

(Comedy Central, 2015) Features "Rainbow" as theme tune, co-written by Stoney & Bobby Jealousy *

(The CW, 2015) Series 10 finale Features Stoney track "We Belonged" * The Funeral Guest (Aphtic Productions, 2015) Feature Film Features Stoney track "We Belonged" * Buster's Mal Heart (Well Go USA Ent. 2017) Feature film opens with a cover of Tom Waits "Starving in the Belly of a Whale", on which Stoney performed. * Her Majesty's Spiffing Computer game, 2017 features Stoney & Guy Chambers track "The Fall" as closing credits * The Row (Emmett/Furla/Oasis films, 2018) Feature Film features Stoney tracks "Glory Days, Constantly Running, and "Now's a Good Time" *

Interrogation (TV series) ''Interrogation'' is an American true crime drama television series, created by Anders Weidemann and John Mankiewicz, that premiered on CBS All Access on February 6, 2020. In November 2020, the series was canceled after one season. The season wa ...

(CBS All- Access, 2020) Episode 6 features Stoney track "Ghost"

References

External links

Official WebsiteWordkrapht More than animals reviewStoney's Amazing More Than Animals: Rockworld Magazine articleMore than animals Rocking Republic album reviewUnder the Gun - More than Animals reviewBobby Jealousy article American StatesmanNPR session at SXSW 2007Entertainment Weekly Article on StoneyDrowned in sound Album review

BBC InterviewBBC Review - Stoney at The PlugHybrid Magazine 'The Scene And The Unseen' reviewXfm Session
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stoney 1980 births Living people Musicians from Sheffield English male singer-songwriters