Joe Volk

{{Short description|English musician and songwriter}} {{Use British English|date=October 2013}} {{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}} {{Lead too short|date=July 2011}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = Joe Volk | image = Joe Volk.jpg | caption = Joe Volk in Helsinki, Finland. February 2011 | origin = United Kingdom | genre = Acoustic, Folk. | years_active = 2002–present | label = Invada, Glitterhouse | past_member_of = Crippled Black Phoenix, Gonga | website = {{URL|http://www.joevolk.co.uk}} }}

'''Joe Volk''' is an English musician and songwriter from Bristol now based in Bern, Switzerland. He was lyricist and singer with the bands Gonga and Crippled Black Phoenix, and is a solo recording artist.

==Solo== As a solo artist, Volk was first signed to Invada Records<ref>{{cite web |last=Lukowski |first=Andrzej |url=https://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4137918-invada-invasion-of-dis--geoff-barrow-talks-bristol-and-beak |title=Invada Invasion of DiS: Geoff Barrow talks Bristol and BEAK |publisher=Drowned in Sound |date=21 September 2009 |accessdate=13 June 2011 |archive-date=16 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121016111538/http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4137918-invada-invasion-of-dis--geoff-barrow-talks-bristol-and-beak |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content/articles/2008/02/finetuned_feb08_feature.shtml |title=Bristol - Entertainment - Fine Tuned: February 08 |publisher=BBC Online |date=29 February 2008 |accessdate=13 June 2011}}</ref> and released his debut album ''Derwent Waters Saint'' in 2006. The album was recorded, engineered and produced by Adrian Utley,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.clashmusic.com/features/joe-volk |title=Joe Volk | Clash Music Exclusive Ones To Watch |publisher=Clash |date=8 April 2008|accessdate=13 June 2011}}</ref> guitarist with the band Portishead. In December 2012, Volk released a split 12" EP on Invada Records with the experimental Japanese band Boris.<ref name="boris-split">{{cite web|url=https://www.echoesanddust.com/2012/11/boris-joe-volk-split-release-ep/|title=Boris / Joe Volk - Split Release EP|last=Murray|first=Jake|date=29 November 2012|publisher=Echoes And Dust|accessdate=15 July 2018}}</ref>

In 2015, Volk signed to Glitterhouse Records and released his second solo album ''Happenings and Killings'' in February 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://label.glitterhouse.com/releases.php?show=24|title=Glitterhouse Records :: Artists :: Joe Volk|first=Glitterhouse|last=Records|website=label.glitterhouse.com|accessdate=15 July 2018}}</ref> The album was produced by Volk, with additional production and orchestration by Emmy-nominated composer Ben Salisbury<ref>{{cite web |url=http://bensalisbury.co.uk/about/ |title=Ben Salisbury |publisher=Ben Salisbury |date=24 August 2010 |accessdate=13 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110812083930/http://bensalisbury.co.uk/about/ |archive-date=12 August 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref> along with Geoff Barrow.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/Joe-Volk-Happeningsandkillings/release/8137175|title=Joe Volk - Happeningsandkillings|website=Discogs|accessdate=15 July 2018}}</ref> To support ''Happenings and Killings'', Volk toured Germany in early 2017<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/pg/JoeVolkMusic/events/|title=Joe Volk - Events|via=Facebook|accessdate=10 October 2020}}</ref> with a new live band he formed with drummer Thys Bucher and bassist Jürg Schmidhauser. Together the three musicians wrote new material for his third album ''Primitive Energetics'', released in April 2020 under the name Joe Volk + Naiare.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://label.glitterhouse.com/artists.php?show=21|title=Glitterhouse Records :: Artists :: Joe Volk + Naiare|first=Glitterhouse|last=Records|website=label.glitterhouse.com|accessdate=10 October 2020}}</ref>

==Bands== He was first signed to Invada Records in 2003 as the singer with extreme hard rock band Gonga. Volk left the band in 2007 after writing and releasing two albums.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.clashmusic.com/features/gonga |title=Gonga|publisher=Clash |date=8 April 2008 |accessdate=13 June 2011}}</ref> Volk was the original singer and lyricist in Crippled Black Phoenix, a band founded by Justin Greaves in 2004. He left the band in 2012 after releasing five studio albums, one live album and one EP with the band.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.discogs.com/artist/663078-Crippled-Black-Phoenix|title=Crippled Black Phoenix|website=Discogs|accessdate=15 July 2018}}</ref>

==Discography==

===Albums===

{|class="wikitable" !|Year !|Album details |- |2006 |Derwent Waters Saint *Released: 13 February 2006 *Label: Invada *Format: CD |- |2016 |Happenings and Killings *Released: 19 February 2016 *Label: Glitterhouse Records *Format: CD, vinyl, digital |- |2020 |Primitive Energetics *Released: 24 April 2020 *Label: Glitterhouse Records *Format: CD, vinyl, digital |- |}

===Extended plays===

{|class="wikitable" !|Year !|Album details |- |2012 |Boris / Joe Volk Split *Released: 10 December 2012 *Label: Invada *Format: Digital, vinyl |- |}

===Official videos===

* "Call to Sun" (2012)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uZ6mrTbLg30|title=J O E V O L K - C A L L T O S U N|via=YouTube|date=12 December 2012|accessdate=10 October 2020}}</ref> * "Soliloquy" (2015)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVMrADGX21I|title=Joe Volk - Soliloquy - Glitterhouse Records|via=YouTube|date=21 December 2015|accessdate=10 October 2020}}</ref> * "These Feathers Count" (2016)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMtV-w7zp8w|title=Joe Volk - These Feathers Count - Glitterhouse Records|via=YouTube|date=9 November 2016|accessdate=10 October 2020}}</ref> * "Whitesheet" (2020)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkXJdp_rVBQ|title=Joe Volk + Naiare - Whitesheet (official video)|via=YouTube|date=6 March 2020|accessdate=10 October 2020}}</ref>

===With Gonga===

* ''Gonga'' (2003) * ''II: Transmigration'' (2008)

===With Crippled Black Phoenix===

* ''Sharks & Storms / Blizzard of Horned Cats'' (2006) * ''A Love of Shared Disasters'' (2007) * ''The Resurrectionists'' (2009) * ''Night Raider'' (2009) * ''I, Vigilante'' (2010) * ''(Mankind) The Crafty Ape'' (2012) * ''Poznan 2011 A.D.'' (2012)

==Other== Volk is the great-grandson of electrical engineer and inventor Magnus Volk.

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links==  * {{Official website|https://joevolk.co.uk/}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Volk, Joe}} Category:English folk musicians Category:Living people Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Glitterhouse Records artists Category:Musicians from Bristol Category:Invada Records artists