AN INTERVIEW WITH EMMA RUGG

York-born Emma Rugg is certainly no stranger to the Hull music scene. A self-taught guitarist, pianist and singer, she initially honed her natural talents by busking on the streets of Hull. At around the same time she began to visit the Musicians Nights at 'The Adelphi' on a regular basis, unconsciously nurturing her hugely supportive fanbase as she sung and played her heart out.
Financed by her busking, she released her debut album in 2003 through her own 'In Dreams' record label. Intriguingly entitled 'Isolated Impression', it was a mesmerising ten-track wonder of a debut which perfectly encapsulated Emma's ability to convey a wide range of emotions with devastating sincerity. Showcasing both her integrity and vulnerability, it's impossible to listen to 'Isolated Impression' and not be profoundly moved, with the entrancing melody leading into opening track 'As You Go' setting the scene in style. Such a release provided Emma the ideal opportunity to present her songs to a wider audience, with a clutch of her oldest songs such as 'If Walls Had Ears' sounding just as sublime on record as they do when interpreted in an intimate live situation.
The word of Emma's sensational voice and subtly intoxicating melodies spread like wildfire. Realising that Emma was a precocious singer-songwriter of the most original order, the Beeb-backed Radio Humberside intervened to help promote her music without hesitation, inviting her to perform a live acoustic session on their weekly 'Raw Talent' show. Unsurprisingly, it received instant widespread acclaim. Through the show (which primarily focused, and to this day continues to focus, on 'underground' bands and artists in the Hull area), Emma struck up an unlikely alliance with American singer-songwriter Henry Doss. Upon hearing Emma's divine music, Henry invited Emma over to the states, forging an enduring friendship on both a personal and a professional level.
Come 2007, Emma hit the road with Henry in the US, playing a staggering number of well-received shows in states such as North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Michigan. This allowed Emma the opportunity to perform a selection of songs from 'Isolated Impression', along with one of her newer songs in the form of 'Oceans', a bewitching tune she'd recorded in 2005. Excitingly, it was a track that heralded a swerve in direction in both musical style and substance.
Whilst on tour, Emma had the foresight to record her and Henry's experiences. For the past couple of years she has been hard at work on vigilantly editing her footage down into bite-sized chunks. Having expertly produced twelve short but infinitely endearing episodes, she is poised to post such episodes on her 'YouTube' page during the course of July and August 2009. The debut episode will premiere on July 20, and two episodes will be posted per week thereafter.
Unleashing the documentary in this manner will enable an international audience to witness Emma's musical talents and personable charm like never before. In addition, it will inevitably provide the momentum for her to record a batch of brand new songs in the not-too-distant future to satisfy old and new fans alike.
Without further ado, it's over to Emma...

HEY EMMA, HOW ARE THINGS?

Things are excellent, I've just finished my latest project and am sitting down with a huge cup of coffee to answer this huge interview! It's raining also which can be nice.

IT SEEMS THAT YOU HAVE BEEN OUT OF THE MEDIA SPOTLIGHT FOR THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS SINCE YOU TOURED THE STATES WITH AMERICAN SINGER-SONGWRITER HENRY DOSS. WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING SINCE RETURNING TO HULL AFTER THE TOUR?

I have been working on a video project. When I came back from my tour with Henry I set about making my 'Directions Tour Film'. I had wanted to make a video for a while and thought this would be an ideal time to do so. Things were going well; I learnt how to use all the video editing software and had used the footage I had shot on tour to make the film.

Work on editing the film was almost finished and then in a freak incident the storage device I had used to save the video totally corrupted, even though I made sure to save everything and make copies, the original timeline of my film was missing and the video files had disappeared. All the work I had done was gone. It took five months to put the original film together and it was April the 1st. I called my friend Steve Clappison; he had done the post-production for the project. I told him, "The video has corrupted and disappeared". He came round to my house shortly afterwards, and when he turned up he said, "You must be joking, this is a joke, isn't it ?????" Because it was April Fool's Day he thought I was messing with his head!

So, the project had reached a difficult point. It was sad to lose so much work but at the end of last year I started planning what I would do with the tour video again and went about recreating it. I am really happy with the end result: the second tour video is much better than the first. It has taken another five months of solid work, I have learnt lots more about video editing, and it has been a valuable experience.

It did take a while to get round to thinking positively about the video again, especially after it had gone totally AWOL. I was disappointed for a while but I didn't want to let it go to waste. Because the film had been almost finished once already it would have been such a shame to see it just left to become nothing... 'coulda, woulda, shoulda' and all. I was determined to kick its ass yet again. Throughout the editing of the new version of the film it soon became apparent that it was going better than before anyway so maybe it was just meant to be. The first video obviously wasn't meant to be released; the second one was, and will be, so in the words of none other but the great Alice Cooper: "Vengeance Is Mine". I kicked its ass; now all the tears and late nights have been worthwhile. I also have more backups than I know what to do with.

Now that the film is finished I am so happy that I had the determination to see it through. I have also been writing lots more new material including the songs 'Erika', 'In Suburbia' and 'The Most Beautiful'.

HOW DID THE 'DIRECTIONS' TOUR WITH HENRY GO? DID IT LIVE UP TO YOUR EXPECTATIONS, OR DIDN'T YOU NURTURE ANY EXPECTATIONS IN THE FIRST PLACE?

The tour was absolutely great, we had such an amazing time getting out on the road, taking our music to all those different and new places. We got to play at many venues that we'd never been to before. We made so many new friends and I got to meet more of Henry's family. I also got quite used to sitting on the side of the mountain at Henry and his wife Chris' log cabin. It was a great time and when we did have time at the end of our tour to slow down we were really sad that it was over. Afterall, what was anyone going to do every night now that we didn't have shows to go play and people to meet? Henry and I have been creating recordings and working on collaborations for a number of years but this was our first tour together.

Thinking about expectations, I guess when I went over to see Henry and begin our tour I didn't really have many of them, I didn't envisage how it would be because sometimes life is all about being surprised or just letting things go their own way. My only expectation, I suppose, was that we would go out there and play to a lot of new people and get our music out there which is always exciting. I didn't expect to meet so many people I'd already met before somewhere else. US singer-songwriter Neil Cleary left me a note on a listings poster at one venue and the band Practically Einstein stopped by at one of our shows in Virginia. They advised me to get to a Waffle House but I never did. It's on the list of things to do for when I go back though, along with visiting Indiana and California.

It's nice to think that these people that you met back where you live have crossed paths with you in some way again. I had supported Neil at The Adelphi in Hull years before, and I met Practically Einstein outside The Welly Club on Beverley Road. It's a small world.

DID YOU FIND IT EASY TO ADAPT TO PLAYING ON STAGE WITH ANOTHER MUSICIAN SINCE YOU USUALLY PERFORM SOLO ACOUSTIC SHOWS WITH ONLY YOURSELF AND YOUR TRUSTED GUITAR FOR COMPANY?

It was great to perform with Henry. Playing onstage with other people is something I've always loved to do even though I have been a solo artist for the majority of my musical career. I didn't have my own trusted axe because I left it at home. I thought I would spare it the hassle of being smashed around on the plane some more because some of the latches from my guitar case had broken off so I borrowed one of Henry's guitars. To be fair I would say I had more problems adapting to the new guitar than I ever could have done playing onstage with anyone. You know how you get that 'this is my one and only guitar' thing going on? I love my guitar, it is my one main acoustic guitar that I always play so I felt like I had left my accomplice at home in a way.

WERE THE AUDIENCES IN AMERICA AS RECEPTIVE TO YOUR MUSIC AS THEY WERE TO HENRY'S?

The people we met on the road who came to our shows had so many nice things to say about our performances. I was really happy at the response we got in general. A lot of people stayed afterwards to talk with us, helped us out by giving us directions, or even bought us drink. Everyone made us feel really welcome wherever we were. They were really the friendliest people you could hope to meet and we were lucky to have such receptive audiences to play to. I think my music was received very well and I was happy to get to know many interesting characters along the way. The people we met on the road that we got to know have added us on 'MySpace' and it's nice to be able to stay in touch.

WHOSE IDEA WAS IT TO HIT THE ROAD TOGETHER?

It was a collective 50/50 idea. Henry and I had been talking for a long time about playing live together and getting some shows sorted. We had done two in-studio collaborations where we'd recorded together so I guess the natural progression of our collaborative friendship brought us round to the idea of going on tour together.

At the beginning of the year we set about planning the entire tour. We worked together via the Internet and email to get everything done. By the time I had left Hull I had pressed badges, sorted out all our promotion and web design, and had even visited the Lord Mayor's office. Meanwhile, Henry and Chris had been busy booking venues. Chris spent a lot of time working on making our CDs up for us; even when I got there she was pressing them and we'd all sit round sticking on labels and putting CDs in boxes. Mostly everything was done between the three of us and with a little help from Henry's friends we had a place to stay. For the whole duration of the tour we only stayed in a hotel one night because for the rest of the time someone either kindly put us up or let us take over their house for a while.

YOU PLAYED A STAGGERING NUMBER OF SHOWS IN THE NORTHEASTERN REACHES OF THE UNITED STATES OVER AN EXTREMELY SHORT PERIOD OF TIME. DID YOU FIND THAT BEING ON TOUR AND MOVING BETWEEN DIFFERENT TOWNS AND CITIES ON ALMOST A DAILY BASIS WAS AN EXHAUSTING EXPERIENCE?

The opposite. It's so great to be able to wake up somewhere new everyday, to see the view, to see the landscape changing as you venture into a new state or region. I loved our 14 hour drives. Driving at night can also be good. There is one picture however that Henry took of me on tour where I'm holding a laptop and I look like I'm about to fall asleep, my eyes are barely open and it looks like it's lunchtime. I think I must have been tired that day. Needless to say, that one isn't featured on my main website.

There were times when Henry did look tired, especially having to do all the driving. I would sit there in the front seat making sure we'd stop at every possible opportunity for coffee, then I'd hook up my iPod and switch over to the Rock playlist so we'd have something loud to listen to. I even fell asleep myself in the car at one point; it was 5:30AM and I managed to sleep through two states before I woke up. Chris would fall asleep in the car more often and sometimes when it was late at night we would see how many hours we could drive before she would wake up and make us stop for the night.

WHERE WERE YOUR FAVOURITE PLACES TO PLAY, AND WHY?

Any place is always good to play but everywhere is always different. I think our show at The Inside Out Gallery in Michigan was one evening where we both particularly enjoyed the set up. The sound was beautiful, the space was huge and it was a great night. There was also a gallery space with lots of abstract art which made for interesting surroundings. I also enjoyed our concert at the home of Rick and Cindy Beyer. Toby Marquez had showed up with his huge video camera and filmed our whole performance along with everyone who was there on the night talking and having a great time at this party. It was a very warm and welcoming atmosphere: it was a great night.

YOU REGULARLY SUNG ON SOME OF HENRY'S SONGS. DID YOU FIND THEM DIFFICULT TO LEARN?

We had a relatively short amount of time to practise together so I learnt Henry's songs at home. I wrote arrangements of the songs we had decided to work on together and emailed them to Henry so he could practise them too. When we finally got the chance to play the material before the tour we only had a few days to get sorted but it went well and the songs sounded really good.

WHILST YOU WERE BOTH ON THE ROAD, YOU KEPT A VIDEO DIARY WHICH PERFECTLY CHRONICLED THE PLACES YOU VISITED AND THE PEOPLE YOU MET. DID YOU MAKE A CONSCIOUS DECISION TO FILM AS MUCH FOOTAGE AS POSSIBLE WITH A VIEW TO ULTIMATELY EDITING IT DOWN INTO A TOUR DOCUMENTARY, OR DID YOU INITIALLY FILM JUST FOR THE FUN OF IT?

Whenever I have been to America before I have always taken a video camera. The first time I met Henry I filmed everything just the same as I did with my tour footage. I like to document and have quite a lot of tapes from previous visits. The idea of making a tour video happened when I watched the footage back at home. I thought it would be something that could work as a project, so I thought I'd have a go.

WHAT DID YOU DO WHEN YOU EVENTUALLY RETURNED TO ENGLAND? DID YOU SET STRAIGHT TO WORK ON EDITING DOWN THE FOOTAGE IN ORDER TO SEE IF YOU HAD ENOUGH QUALITY MATERIAL FIT FOR PUBLIC CONSUMPTION?

I spent a lot of time writing new material. It was nice to be able to play my guitar again and I had missed it. I also had spent a lot of time playing my piano when I got back. I went to The Netherlands for a while and returned with a 1938 vintage typewriter I had bought for 20 Euros at the Waterlooplein Market in Amsterdam, I worked on building a studio computer with my friends. I set about making the video, at first not with much direction, just throwing together whatever would work to see what happened. The results were pleasing; the footage I had shot was good and included some great encounters with many interesting people and places, along with performances of our songs.

DO YOU ENJOY THE PROCESS OF EDITING, OR DO YOU VIEW IT AS A TIME-CONSUMING CHORE TO BE ENDURED?

It is a time consuming process but it is also enjoyable. I didn't think for one minute at one point that I'd be able to get my head round some of it but I think I have surprised myself. I have learnt two versions of the same editing software, and getting up-to-date with the new tools and features was scary sometimes when everything was so new. There were days upon days where I'd get up and it would be a relentless effort to get some clip or title sequence sorted. By the end of the project I was tired of hearing Henry's and my own voice every day for eight or so hours. I was like "shut up already!" It was funny.

It can also be a very rewarding process and I'd definitely do this again. I like being able to see the results. I think, for what it's worth, that I have created a video that I am really happy to release.

YOU ARE NOW POISED TO UNLEASH THE FRESHLY RE-FINISHED DOCUMENTARY IN BITE-SIZE EPISODES ON YOUR 'YOUTUBE' PAGE. WHY HAVE YOU DECIDED TO RELEASE YOUR DOCUMENTARY IN THIS WAY, AND WILL FANS BE ABLE TO OBTAIN COPIES OF THE ENTIRE DOCUMENTARY ON DVD?

I will be releasing the entire film on my YouTube channel - EmmaRuggTV. I think it's great to be able to post something on my channel that documents our tour. In regard to the film being released on DVD, for now the film in its entirety will be posted online. If it becomes apparent that there is demand for a DVD, who knows?!

HAVE YOU USED 'YOUTUBE' IN THIS WAY ON PREVIOUS OCCASIONS IN ORDER TO ACTIVELY PROMOTE YOUR MUSIC?

I have videos of older performances on my YouTube channel. There are also a few videos that have been posted by other users. After the Tour Film is released I will continue to post more videos.

THE NATURE OF YOUR 'DIRECTIONS' TOUR DOCUMENTARY IS UNIQUE IN THAT IT FOCUSES AS MUCH ON THE PEOPLE AND PLACES YOU AND HENRY ENCOUNTERED AS IT DOES ON YOUR MUSIC. WHAT INSPIRED YOU TO AIM FOR SUCH AN ENTERTAINING BALANCE IN TERMS OF CONTENT?

I loved our encounters with all those different people you will meet in the film. As they share their stories, there is such a genuine warmth about them. I wanted to include them as much as the places we visited and the other experiences we had. My choice of content in the film reflects our personalities a lot, I think. It is quirky and can be funny in places, and of course there is our music too. We weren't really trying to go for anything specific when we were filming. Everything is literally just how it happened at the time.

WHILE THE SONGS FEATURED ON 'ISOLATED IMPRESSION' WERE EXPLICITLY ORGANIC IN THAT THEY REVOLVED EXCLUSIVELY AROUND YOUR VOICE, GUITAR AND SUBTLY HYPNOTIC PIANO MELODIES (WITH THE DRUM-BACKED 'GRAND DESIGNS' & 'PRELUDE TO THE END' BEING EXCEPTIONS), YOU OPTED TO WORK WITH A FULL BAND WHEN RECORDING 'WHEN I LOOKED @ YOU' FOR YOUR 'OCEANS/ DEPART' RELEASE. WHAT FORM WILL YOUR NEXT BATCH OF SONGS TAKE? ARE THEY LIKELY TO BE STRIPPED-DOWN AFFAIRS OF THE HEART, OR ARE THEY DESTINED TO WIELD A MULTITUDE OF COMPLEX ARRANGEMENTS?

I think that you can expect both. Some of the songs I have been writing are a lot darker than those featured on previous releases. There are also songs that could work in a number of ways. It just depends how they turn out in the end or where I decide to go with it when it gets recorded. Everything is crazy right now: I have so many songs, so many pieces of paper to sort through, so much stuff in my head to write about. It seems to come together in a very organic way, there is no process, I don't sit down and write songs where I'll maybe think, "Let's write the music, then the lyrics". As a result of that I have a lot of ideas, scribblings, finished songs, half-done songs, songs about to happen. The songs have definitely changed, there is a natural progression and they don't sound like they did a few years back, things have moved on.

YOU ARE CURRENTLY COMPETING IN 'THE PEOPLE'S MUSIC AWARDS' WITH YOUR 'OCEANS' SONG. HOW DOES THE COMPETITION WORK, WHAT IS THE PRIZE, AND HOW CAN PEOPLE VOTE FOR YOU?

The Peoples Music Awards is the first annual awards to be held for unsigned artists. My song 'Oceans' has been entered into this year's awards under Best Female Artist and Pop categories. The TPMA includes guest judges from the music industry who can give valuable feedback on the songs that artists have uploaded. After voting, there is an awards event where artists in the final will perform and the winner is announced. You win a fabulous award and the honour of being the winner of course!

Please (pretty please with sugar on top) vote for me -
Listen to my song 'Oceans' and vote for it at
http://www.thepeoplesmusicawards.com/emmarugg

WHEN WILL THE FIRST EPISODE OF YOUR 'DIRECTIONS' DOCUMENTARY GO ONLINE, AND HOW CAN PEOPLE FIND YOUR PAGE IF THEY ARE NOT ALREADY SIGNED UP TO 'YOUTUBE'?

The first episode will be posted online on the 20th of July via my own YouTube channel - EmmaRuggTV (http://www.youtube.com/EmmaRuggTV)
The full 12 episode series will be posted over a duration of six weeks.

WHAT DOES THE REST OF 2009 HOLD IN STORE ONCE YOU HAVE UNLEASHED YOUR DOCUMENTARY?

As always, working on new material, piano, live shows, more videos, new projects... watch this space!

FINALLY, WHAT IS THE BEST WAY FOR PEOPLE TO STAY UP-TO-SPEED WITH NEW EMMA RUGG RELEASES AND LIVE DATES?

Join my mailing list - email your name / details to info@emmarugg.com

Visit:

OFFICIAL SITE
www.emmarugg.com

FACEBOOK
www.facebook.com/pages/Emma-Rugg/63817107679

MYSPACE
www.myspace.com/emmarugg

TWITTER
www.twitter.com/EmmaRugg

YOUTUBE
www.youtube.com/EmmaRuggTV

(Questions by Steve Rudd; Answers by Emma Rugg)

Hey all!

Please don't forget to vote for Emma in The People's Music Awards!

For more information, please visit...

www.thepeoplesmusicawards.com/emmarugg

YOUR VOTE WILL COUNT AND COULD MAKE ALL THE DIFFERENCE!

Thank you!

Don't forget to watch the first episode of Emma's awesome 'Directions' tour documentary which is due to be posted on her 'YouTube' page on Monday July 20th!

The address of Emma's page is www.youtube.com/emmaruggtv

You won't be disappointed!

DIRECTIONS TOUR REVIEW BY STEVE RUDD

EMMA RUGG RELEASES 'DIRECTIONS TOUR FILM'

It's fair to say that it has been relatively quiet on the Emma Rugg front over the past couple of years. I, for one, thought she'd relocated to the United States in the wake of the 'Directions Tour' she undertook there with Henry Doss in 2007. Having first made contact through the BBC radio show 'Raw Talent' in 2003, Emma had visited Henry in the states on a couple of occasions prior to heading over to hit the road with him.

An incredibly gifted American singer-songwriter who hails from North Carolina, Henry is a former banker who 'returned' to music in 1999 after thirty years 'away'. The proud bearer of two astounding albums, Henry's music is liberally laced with elements of Country and Rock, underpinned by upbeat melodies which are easy on the ears. As for Emma, she has been penning and performing music for over ten years, having taught herself to play guitar in 1998. Remarkably, she funded the recording of her debut album by busking come rain or shine on the mean streets of Hull. Released through her own record label - 'Indreams' - it deservedly received widespread acclaim upon its eagerly anticipated release. It was immediately evident that her epic, acoustic-anchored tales of love and loss could be easily related to, the darkness of her emotionally mature lyrics lunging straight for the jugular. Her supremely versatile voice has always ensured that even her most heartbreaking songs can still be uplifting. Impossible to pigeonhole, Emma loathes her music being described as 'Folk music'. Should you really listen to it, and listen hard, you'll realise that there is nothing 'Folky' about her music in any respect. 'I'd rather it be described as "Anti-Folk" if anything,' she confesses. Unconsciously straddling a multitude of genres, her music is experimental yet catchy, alternative but accessible. Her lush melodies never fail to engage, while the raw passion dominating her vocal performances is naturally intoxicating. The fact that her 'MySpace' page has received over 100,000 hits - a staggering amount for an unsigned artist - is testament to Emma's talents.

Interested to see what publicity would come of them jumping in Henry's car and stalking the highways and byways between innumerable towns and cities in the northeast of America, Emma left the UK on March 27, 2007. She returned on May 9. In the interim, Emma and Henry gigged and travelled between venues on almost a daily basis, their debut performance taking place in Jefferson, North Carolina. It might have been April Fool's Day, but there was no fooling the folk down at West Jefferson Golf Club. Emma's and Henry's musical and vocal interplay left the captive audience speechless. A few days later they were treading the proverbial boards of The Acoustic Coffee House in Johnson City. Having temporarily fled North Carolina, they were eager to see how their songs were received by folk in Tennessee. It was the state in which Henry had been born, and the omens were good, the formidable strength of their collective vocal performances and melodies silencing any wannabe critics. Emma and Henry then returned to North Carolina in order to play a series of universally well-received shows in Charlotte and East Asheville before they excitedly edged into the state of Virginia. Playing at a wide variety of venues which took the form of chilled-out bookstores, cosmopolitan cafes and rowdy bars, Emma and Henry wound up exposing their music to a true cross-section of the American public, having the privilege to talk to many of their new found fans after each respective show.

Emma took her camcorder wherever she went, shooting over six hours of footage which she has somehow managed to edit down into twelve Internet-friendly episodes, all of which boast a running time of approximately eight or nine minutes. Effortlessly encapsulating what it's like to go on tour, this documentary wields a perfect balance of music and behind-the-scenes fun, with Emma eager to introduce viewers to some of the genuinely extraordinary characters they met as they pounded the wide open roads and music-hungry venues of America into submission. After exiting North Carolina, the pair made their presence felt in Michigan, playing shows in Traverse City and Detroit. They subsequently concluded their tour with a gig at New York's home of Anti-Folk: 'The Sidewalk Cafe.'

By default, a superb selection of both Emma's and Henry's music is featured in the documentary, live footage culled from their gigs popping up between 'interviews'. Having never played proper shows together before, it was fortunate that their singing and guitar-playing styles couldn't have been better suited. Chopping and changing their set-list on a nightly basis, Emma and Henry duly played a smattering of their own songs in their own time, on their own terms, yet Emma also learnt a clutch of Henry's songs to enable them to collaborate to stunning effect at some points during their shows.

Naturally, the bulk of the material Emma aired came from her mesmerising debut album 'Isolated Impression' and her 'Oceans/Depart EP', with live performances of the understated magnificence of 'Oceans', the dark sincerity of 'Grand Designs', and the entrancing 'Floor 8' striking rousing chords in episodes two, four and nine respectively. New tracks such as 'Fireworks' and 'Round The Corner' are also brought to life, Emma's distinctive, spine-chilling voice consistently sounding sublime, regardless of whether she's singing her heart out in a quiet cafe environment, or a packed bar teeming with inebriated revellers. Henry, meanwhile, plucked the majority of the tunes he played at their shows from his 'Remnants of A Conversation' and 'Floating Islands' releases. As a result, songs such as 'It's Good To See You Happy', 'Simple Consolation' and 'Each Day' regularly worked their way into their sets. Emma sung or strummed along on 'I've Been Thinking', 'Good Intentions' and 'Lies' on occasion.

Whenever Emma was unable to shoot footage, either Henry or his wife Chris Arvidson assumed the role as camera person. Eager to capture as much of their trip in digital format as possible, the viewer is also lucky enough to be able to see the types of landscapes through which they passed as they travelled cross-country. Off-the-cuff footage of the ravishing, snow-smothered mountain scenery which basks on the doorstep of Henry's home in North Carolina demands as much attention as passing shots of Amish folk clip-clopping along the road in Ohio on a horse-pulled cart. In addition, stunning footage of roadside trees, smashed to smithereens by a storm, crops up in the wake of a caught-on-camera conversation with a guy called Brendan at 'The Cave' in Chapel Hill who waxes lyrical about the time he dropped by the humble venue to find Michael Stipe, Mike Mills and Peter Buck casually chilling within. It's glaringly obvious from the way he swoons about them that he has long held REM in high regard.

Languishing in a league of its own, the 'Directions' documentary provides a priceless insight into the excitement of edging into the unknown, of throwing a couple of acoustic guitars into the back of car and putting one's foot down in order to skip town. It's always interesting to see not only what the wider world has to offer you, but also what you have to offer it. In spurts, the documentary can even be likened to a fly-on-the-wall travel show as Emma enthusiastically describes how her and Henry are driving over the Ohio River or strolling down Washington D.C.'s Mall in real time.

Emma also got the chance to meet Mayor Meeker in Raleigh in order to present him with a gift from the Mayor of Hull; for those not in the know, Raleigh in North Carolina and Kingston Upon Hull in England are twin cities. In this respect the documentary serves to educate as well as entertain, with an excerpt of an interview with a man called DG Martin informing viewers about how Raleigh is named after Walter Raleigh, the English writer, poet, soldier, courtier and explorer. All of the featured interviews are fascinating. Many are illuminating; others are downright hilarious. Indeed, Emma's documentary succeeds in being hugely entertaining on many levels. Even if you've never heard Emma's or Henry's music before, you will still be able to enjoy the footage that's been filmed and edited because it is totally unpretentious in nature. It literally is what it is: nothing's theatrically staged for the sake of it, and nothing is forced. It is subtly dramatic on its own terms. The people are genuine; the travels are inspiring; the songs are life-enhancing.

Throbbing at the core of each episode are the sublime live performances, and Emma's voice has never sounded better than when scaling the high notes of 'Fireworks' and 'Round The Corner' at a house party, even if she does have to comically improvise and say 'hello' when somebody's ringing phone unwittingly steals Emma's thunder. Climaxing with a heartfelt rendition of Henry's 'Lonely Child' number, come the end of the final episode you really feel like you've been on the state-hopping journey yourself. Mirroring the nature of their songs, the trip is an emotional rollercoaster of horizon-broadening proportions. What's more, as the lilting strains of Emma's spellbinding 'Oceans' - a hypnotic and infectious song which she penned at high altitude on a flight to Michigan - stir for one last time during episode twelve, you come to realise it's a journey that you really don't want to end. Honest, light-hearted and revealing, the documentary is a work of art, a labour of love of which Emma should be immensely proud.

Vying to post each of the twelve episodes of the 'Directions Tour' documentary on her 'YouTube' page over the course of six weeks, the publicity that the documentary will inevitably generate is bound to reap huge long-term rewards for both Emma and Henry. It might have taken two stressful years to produce, but the trials and tribulations which have been part and parcel of the editing and production process have been worth enduring. Emma is now in a position to once again move forward with her career, having already written the lyrics to many new songs. Henry, meanwhile, is also working on fresh material.
'I've been playing and writing and hoping for the chance to record a whole new suite of songs later this year, say around Thanksgiving time,' he recently confided. That in mind, watch this space - but just make sure you watch the documentary first!

(Review by Steve Rudd)


TOUR DOCUMENTARY CREDITS:
Filmed, edited and produced by Emma Rugg.
Post Production and animation by Steve Clappison.
Additional filming by Henry Doss and Chris Arvidson.

For more information about Emma Rugg visit - www.myspace.com/emmarugg
For more information about Henry Doss visit - www.myspace.com/henrydoss

For more information about the Directions Tour Film visit - www.emmarugg.com
See the Directions Tour Film at - www.youtube.com/EmmaRuggTV