Billy Bibby & The Wry Smiles are a British

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band formed in the autumn of 2015 in the area around

Llandudno Llandudno (, ) is a seaside resort, town and community (Wales), community in Conwy County Borough, Wales, located on the Creuddyn peninsula, which protrudes into the Irish Sea. In the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 UK census, the community � ...

North Wales North Wales ( ) is a Regions of Wales, region of Wales, encompassing its northernmost areas. It borders mid Wales to the south, England to the east, and the Irish Sea to the north and west. The area is highly mountainous and rural, with Snowdon ...

and

Chester Chester is a cathedral city in Cheshire, England, on the River Dee, Wales, River Dee, close to the England–Wales border. With a built-up area population of 92,760 in 2021, it is the most populous settlement in the borough of Cheshire West an ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

Background

Billy Bibby names

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one of the most significant cultural figures of the ...

Fleetwood Mac Fleetwood Mac are a British-American Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1967 by the singer and guitarist Peter Green (musician), Peter Green. Green named the band by combining the surnames of the drummer, Mick Fleetwood, and the bassis ...

Mark Knopfler Mark Freuder Knopfler OBE (born 12 August 1949) is a British musician. He was the lead guitarist, singer and songwriter of the rock band Dire Straits from 1977 to 1995, and he is the one of the two members who stayed during the band's existence ...

Dire Straits Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (lead vocals, lead guitar), David Knopfler (rhythm guitar, backing vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar, backing vocals) and Pick Withers (drums, percussion). Th ...

Noel Gallagher Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Gallagher is the primary songwriter, lead guitarist and a co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis (band), Oasis. After leaving Oasis, he formed Noel ...

, and

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician, singer and songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Culture ...

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

as key musical influences. The band is fronted by Billy Bibby, former lead guitarist and founding member of

Catfish and the Bottlemen Catfish and the Bottlemen are a British indie rock band formed in Llandudno, Conwy, Wales, in 2007. The band currently consists of Van McCann (lead vocals, guitars) and Benji Blakeway (bass guitar, backing vocals). Their debut album, '' The Bal ...

. In 2014, Billy Bibby began writing songs and playing acoustic shows in various UK cities in order to test public response to his new music. In the spring of 2015, Billy Bibby began seeking musicians to form a new band. Auditions were conducted with the help of Simon Jones, formerly of

The Verve The Verve were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones (musician), Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Sim ...

, and his business partner James Coe, at their recording studio (Faktory Studios) in Great Barrow, Chester. Band members Rob Jones (lead guitar), Matt Thomas (bass), and Michael Pearce (drums) were selected to form the original lineup of the four-piece ensemble. On 3 February 2018, Thomas Hill (lead guitar) and Ailís Mackay (drums) played their first live gig with the band at Nambucca in London, replacing former members Rob Jones and Michael Pearce. Billy Bibby & The Wry Smiles released their debut single "Waitin' for You" on 3 November 2015. The song has received radio play on

BBC Radio Wales BBC Radio Wales is a Wales, Welsh national radio station owned and operated by BBC Cymru Wales, a division of the BBC. It began broadcasting on 13 November 1978, replacing the Welsh opt-out service of BBC Radio 4. As of August 2022, the stat ...

, Radio X, UIC Radio Chicago, RKC, and other independent radio stations. The band played their first live show at Telford's Warehouse in Chester, UK on 28 November 2015 and toured extensively throughout the UK playing more than 70 shows in 2016. Billy Bibby & The Wry Smiles released their debut EP '' Bide Your Time'' on 5 February 2016. It was recorded at Orange Sound Recording Studio in Penmaenmawr, North Wales with record producer Russ Hayes who had previously worked with Bibby on two EPs released by

. All songs on the debut EP are written by Billy Bibby. On 17 June 2016, the band released another single produced by Hayes called "Are You Ready?". The song received advance radio play by Adam Walton of

and Jo Good of Radio X as well as coverage by ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'' and emerging music websites such as XS Noize and Best New Bands. On 27 January 2017, a third single, "Substitute" was released. It was immediately playlisted on BBC Radio Wales,

Virgin Radio UK Virgin Radio UK is a national Hot Adult Contemporary radio station in the United Kingdom that launched on 30 March 2016, owned by News Broadcasting, which is itself a subsidiary of News Corp. It is the second incarnation of Virgin Radio in the U ...

. and Indie FM 103.1 Los Angeles. The single "Always Something" was released 31 March 2017, coinciding with two summer 2017 festival announcements: a headline slot on the Crystal Stage at

Tramlines Festival The Tramlines Festival is an annual music festival held in Sheffield, UK. The festival was originally free to attend, but now requires tickets. The line-up consists of national and local artists. The festival was curated and organised by a pan ...

2017 and an appearance on the Calling Out Stage at

Kendal Calling Kendal Calling is a music and arts festival, held annually at Lowther Deer Park in the Lake District, Cumbria in the North West of England. It has grown from a two-day, 900 capacity event in 2006 to a 40,000 capacity 4-day music festival. Kend ...

2017. On 9 November 2016, it was announced by

BBC Music BBC Music is the arm of the BBC responsible for the music played across its services. The current director of music is Lorna Clarke. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio operational division; however, its remit also includes music used i ...

that Billy Bibby & The Wry Smiles had been awarded Horizons Launchpad 2016 funding for new music development. Billy Bibby and Matt Thomas were interviewed by

Eleri Siôn Eleri Siôn (; born Eleri Jones on 18 January 1971) is a Welsh radio and television presenter. She currently presents The Friday Afternoon Show and The Late Show on BBC Radio Wales Monday-Thursday. Early life Born and raised on a farm in Neuadd ...

about the award the same day. On 31 January 2017, the band announced in a second interview with Eleri Siôn of

that the band had been awarded a grant from Arts Council of Wales for audience development over the next six months. In mid-2019 Bibby and Hill formed a new band, HAiG, with bass player Carl Rutherford and drummer Joe Mooney.

Discography

EPs

Singles

References

External links

*
BBC Music Artist page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Billy Bibby and The Wry Smiles Musical groups established in 2015 2015 establishments in Wales People from Llandudno Welsh rock music groups Catfish and the Bottlemen