User:Raymondwillis/Ruth Theodore

Ruth Theodore

Born in Winchester, England in 1983 Ruth Theodore is a contemporary composer, singer, multi-instrumentalist, guitarist, poet and song writer.

She has released 3 studio albums as a folk singer under her own name, a instrumental studio album using the alias Victor Menace, and one EP of original barber-shop blues music. All her releases to date have received positive feedback from critics and press.

Theodore has been classified as [|folk rock] musician but she has reached across genres and her music has been difficult to describe for many. She co-founded her own independent record label (River Rat Records) in 2007, which is distributed by Proper Music Distribution. She continues to write complex and cryptic lyrics, using unusual guitar tunings, and her untampered english accent is her signature style. She has performed with the likes of [|Ani Difranco]2012, [|Nick Harper]2009 , [|Jackie Leven]2010, Erin McKeown 2014 ,

Life and Career

Principally a Violinist, Ruth taught herself guitar as a busker on the streets of Southampton. Claiming to still barely know the names of the strings, her guitar playing and use of unconventional techniques and unique tunings has dumbfounded guitarists ever since. Ruth played every single day outside WHSmiths and at venues across the south coast moving to scotland briefly where she did much the same, performing at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in. Having been told at a young age she would never be able to play guitar and following a bad accident having to have her tongue sewn back on, singing and playing guitar was an unexpected career choice.

Deciding to move to London in 2006, Ruth and her sister Kate Theodore, a visual artist in her own right, lived beneath work benches in an artists workshop which later, when hand built by Ruth and a team of musicians became the River Rat Records studio engineered by James Hurst who had been coming to her shows. Discovering their mutual affinity for attention to detail Ruth and James founded River Rat Records in 2007. Its first release was Ruth's edgy and thought provoking debut ‘Worm Food’ receiving play on BBC late junction and securing Ruth a distribution deal with Proper Music Distribution

After her sister left London Ruth eventually moved on to tiny narrow boat with no electricity on a river in East London, her home for the last 7 years. The river and the contested land on which she moors has been a source of great inspiration lyrically throughout her compositions. This is particularly apparent in the eccentric and poetic ‘White Holes Of Mole Hills’ released in 2010, which received critical acclaim from The Guardian, The Observer , BBC Radio3 and BBC6music. During the writing and recording of the record, which featured cello, clarinet, musical saw, melodica, bass and drums, Ruth had a nervous breakdown which was echoed in tracks 'False Alarm' and 'Race Cars' which were in turn noticed by Tom Robinson he was and is a keen supporter of her music and in particular the lyrics, organising amongst other things a writing retreat for Ruth and other hand selected musicians and poets. Touring this material Ruth opened for Nick Harper and Jackie Leven and played UK festivals including [|Glastonbury Festival], [|Larmer Tree Festival] , [|Big Chill Festival] ,

In 2011 ‘Victor Menace’ the six piece 'high speed classical punk' side project that Ruth composed for and fronted on the violin, released its debut record through River Rat Records going on to headline world music stages at festivals throughout the UK. Impressed by the [|classical] influence in the music Ruth was commissioned by conductor Willis Farrow to write a piece of classical music for an orchestral ensemble but Ruth was battling with psychosis and bad hallucinations so never managed to complete the piece. She later describes the events in the song 'Psychosis and the Willow'. Following this Ruth took time to spend with family and life long friends…

In 2012 Ruth opened for grammy award winning american folk singer Ani DiFranco for two sold out shows at the Union Chapel, London. Ruth performed those shows without her two front teeth! In June 2013 the release of the much anticipated ‘Dear Lamp Love Moth’ was delayed as Ruth was rushed in for emergency open surgery. Whilst recovering Ruth stated she wanted to start from scratch with the recording, finally releasing the record in June 2013. ‘Dear Lamp Love Moth’ received further high praise from The Guardian, Mojo magazine and other national press and BBC radio. Ruth's arrangements this time featured French Horn, Oboe and Viola amongst others which were intentionally those used in Prokoviev's 'Peter and the Wolf' the only piece of music Ruth was listening to at the time. The ensemble played shows and festivals around the UK

"I am a musical shoplifter. My style and ideas are my own but I'll pocket anything about a topic or a genre that appears shiny to me and then get the hell out of there before the shutters come down."

In September 2013 Ruth began writing for and assembling the barber-shop blues musicians that now accompany her latest material. Currently they are playing UK festivals and venues, Ruth is also composing on piano and for a future venture for voice and string quartet.