The Cornermen were formed in October 2022 by John Houston. John has run the South Moreton Boxing Club for the last 20 years and in 2022 started (with partner Steve James) The Cornermen Support Service Charity based at the Club, employing a full time support worker and aimed at Men’s Mental Health and Suicide Prevention in the local community.

 

During the crowdfunding stage of the project, after playing a slot at a local music festival, John thought The Cornermen also sounded like a great name for a band and so recruited friends and fellow club members Tom Dalby (guitar), Chaz Snell (drums), Dave Oglesby (bass), Ben Heaney (electric violin), and John Mitchell (guitar/production). 

 

As well as the full band performing together, Ben and John often go out and gig as The Cornermen Trad, playing a mix of Cornermen tunes and Trad songs.

 

The songs often address issues encountered in the Cornermen Support Service, such as grief, addiction, loneliness and the need for meaning and comradeship. John’s lyrics are woven in with strong guitar riffs and powerful drums to create songs that veer from hard rock to melodic pop. John’s Irish roots also infuse a number of songs with their themes and style, hence the inclusion of fiddle and uilleann pipes on some tracks.

 

Since forming they have released 30 original singles; got over 1M Spotify Streams, released an Album of Trad Music songs, played over 45 gigs (including a live gig at BBC Oxford, O2 Oxford, Jericho Tavern Oxford, played the Main Stage at Europe’s largest free music festival - Bunkfest, and The Underworld in Camden) received extensive local radio play and were signed by Plastic Head Media in December 2023.

 

John and Steve also go out to give talks on Mental Health and Suicide Prevention to companies and organisations, and cover many related issues in their monthly Podcast. All revenue from streaming and live performances are donated to the Cornermen Support Service, and so far this has raised enough to provide over 600 counselling sessions to men in crisis.

 

2026 sees some exciting gigs, including supporting Ian Prowse in Oxford and the inspirational Damien Dempsey in London. There will also be a number of singles released early in the year as well as another album of Trad material in the Summer and a new album of original material to close out the year.

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