The Voluntary Butler Scheme is the stage name for

one-man band A one-man band is a musician who plays a number of instruments simultaneously using their hands, feet, limbs, and various mechanical or electronic contraptions. One-man bands also often sing while they perform. The simplest type of "one-man ban ...

Rob Jones, based in

Stourbridge Stourbridge is a market town in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley in the West Midlands, England, situated on the River Stour. Historically in Worcestershire, it was the centre of British glass making during the Industrial Revolution. The 20 ...

near Birmingham. Jones records and produces the majority of his material by himself in the home studio in his bedroom. The VBS (Voluntary Butler Scheme) uses the technique of live looping at gigs, playing in parts on various instruments such as

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected stri ...

guitar synthesizer A guitar synthesizer is any one of a number of musical instrument systems that allow a guitarist to access synthesizer capabilities. Overview Today's guitar synths are direct descendants of 1970s devices from manufacturers (often in partner ...

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

kazoo The kazoo is an American musical instrument that adds a "buzzing" timbral quality to a player's voice when the player vocalizes into it. It is a type of '' mirliton'' (which itself is a membranophone), one of a class of instruments which modifi ...

and

ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings. The tone and volume of the instrumen ...

. The debut album ''At Breakfast, Dinner, Tea'' was released on 7 September 2009 on Split Records. Singles from the album have been championed by 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 ...

'',

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

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. ...

BBC Radio 6 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 '' XFM'', and The VBS has played sessions for Huw Stephens, Marc Riley, Dermot O'Leary and Jon Kennedy. Declared "one to watch" in publications as diverse as '' Q'' and '' The Sun'', and

Suggs Graham McPherson (born 13 January 1961), known primarily by his stage name Suggs, is an English singer-songwriter, musician, radio personality and actor from Hastings, England. In a music career spanning 40 years, he came to prominence in the ...

declared himself a fan, stating in an interview that "they are a very good band".

Biography

The Voluntary Butler Scheme came about in 2008, when a chance spotting on MySpace led to Rob Jones being asked to play a gig in Birmingham. He went ahead, playing six songs to a crowd of about 12, and subsequently decided that he no longer wanted to play with bands and that The VBS was the path he wished to follow. Since 2008, The Voluntary Butler Scheme has toured with

Duke Special Duke Special (born Peter Wilson; 4 January 1971) is a songwriter and performer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A piano-based songwriter with a romantic style and a warm, distinctly accented voice, he was previously known for his distinctiv ...

, Joe Lean & the Jing Jang Jong, Brakes, Jason Lytle (Grandaddy) & Adam Green. In July 2008 The Voluntary Butler Scheme did a session on the

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 ...

show - performing "Trading Things In" and a cover of "

Build Me Up Buttercup "Build Me Up Buttercup" is a song written by Mike d'Abo and Tony Macaulay, and released by the Foundations in 1968 with Colin Young singing lead vocals. Young had replaced Clem Curtis during 1968, and this was the first Foundations hit on which ...

Debut album

The Voluntary Butler Scheme's debut album ''At Breakfast, Dinner, Tea'' was recorded in a month-long stint at a studio in Stockwell, with producer Charlie Francis (known for his work with REM and the High Llamas) and a handful of guest musicians. ''At Breakfast, Dinner, Tea'' has gained much attention with regard to the unusual and quirky lyrics. ''Q'' says "The lyrics of longing about running shoes, coffee, MP3 players and turning vegetarian are clearly quite daft but utterly endearing". A BBC Music Review states that Jones "has a wicked line in witty lyrics", and The Daily Growl commends his "quaintly observational everyday lyrics". The line 'wear a De La Soul t-shirt once in a while to make you feel more hip hop than you are' has even been put onto VBS merchandise T-shirts. Rob states of his lyrics, "I think it's about not trying too hard... You know, I read something

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

said in some sound magazine, about the recording of "Be My Baby", and asking, 'Is it dumb enough? Are people gonna get it?' I'm not trying to make it dumb, but there's something in that - stuff feels so much more honest when it's simple." The single "Trading Things In" contains the lyric "yes we can listen to La Bamba on your mp3 player". Mexican folk song " La Bamba" is one of Rob's all time favourites, though he states "I don't even know what the guy's singing about... it really doesn't matter. The way he sings it – it just breaks your heart. And I remember thinking, oh, I can probably just talk about whatever I've been up to that day and it'll work." The song "Trading Things In" was used in Season 6, Episode 4 of ''

Grey's Anatomy ''Grey's Anatomy'' is an American medical drama television series that premiered on March 27, 2005, on ABC as a mid-season replacement. The series focuses on the lives of surgical interns, residents, and attendings as they develop into se ...

'' on 8 October 2009.

Discography

Singles

*"Trading Things In" (2008) *"Multiplayer" (2009) *"Tabasco Sole" (2009) *"Split" *"Multiplayer"

Albums

*''At Breakfast, Dinner, Tea'' (2009) *''The Grandad Galaxy'' (2011) *''A Million Ways To Make Gold'' (2014)

References

External links

The Voluntary Butler Scheme Myspace
{{DEFAULTSORT:Voluntary Butler Scheme 1985 births Living people English male singer-songwriters English pop guitarists English male guitarists 21st-century English singers 21st-century British guitarists 21st-century British male singers