BBC SouthernCounties Radio:

Mark Keen? Yes he was folks, yes he was. Slightly nervous. Slightly tall. Our second demo panel winner of the evening - proof that this show is listening to your commendable efforts in getting local music across to Joe Public.

Mark the mathematician came in at about 6 o'clock, with just his guitar and a smile. He was a bit nervous I think as he said words to that effect as I was sorting him out with mikes. I must say - as I did to him - that the demo I heard of his was very different to what he did live. He explained that it was done ages ago, but even so it is difficult to pull off a solo act.
The man pulled it off. And I did the same with my hat. His phrasing is quirky and unique at times and he had a carefree vibe almost throwaway. Good guitar too.
He lives in Arundel and is with a a funky soul band 'Electric Circus' who are playing on Saturday 11th at the Occasions nightclub in Worthing. He travels abroad and plays in France and is in Amsterdam at the end of March.
Check out his first track above (music section) and follow the link to his website where you can have your head fried in the maths section (not for the squeamish or the maths virgin).

MARK KEEN BAND by 'Pabs Ayling'

The Lamb has rapidly established itself as a live music venue in the year or so since the present owners took over. With the main bar being full of Rox memorabilia it is also worth a browse during quieter moments.

However with the Mark Keen Band in residence,quieter moments were few and far between. With Terry Slade and Martin Berry on drums and bass you find yourself driven along with energy and gusto, add to this the sublime Hendrix style guitar of Mark Keen and you have a blues combination without compare.

Playing a set which included several self-penned numbers, amongst some classic blues numbers and naturally a spattering of Hendrix numbers, the mood was set for a raunchy old night. The original songs were hard to seperate from the non-original, which must be a good sign, but for me personally 'Its a Shame' was a
stand-out track.

The bands set list was torn up and thrown away as more and more audience requests came in, all of which the band handled with aplomb. Even the non-blues fans were catered for with tracks like Come Together and the rabble rousing 'Shold i stay or should i go'. This was such a raucus set, that even Terry Slade nearly broke into a solo, so all and all a successful night indeed.

Blues In Britain Magazine

Mark's latest offering is an eight tracker with his current band. This is a guitar led power trio format with Martin Bury and Terry Slade in the engine room. Mark calls his music psychedelic blues, and with Cream and Hendrix among the influences then that's a fair description. The band have been playing around the Sussex area for the past couple of years. The 8 tracks here consist of 5 originals and 3 covers.

Opener "It's A Shame" is fairly typical with a funky rhthym and good use of wah-wah on the guitar. This is followed by "Freedom" with some very Hendrix-y guitar, liked this one. Hendrix's "Fire" is pushed along by the drummer and "Born Under A Bad Sign" features more wah-wah. The original "Electric Circus" describes the band's music and is followed by Tom Waits "Heart Attack And Vine", liked both of these. "Sunday Chile" is a complete change of style being Mark solo and acoustic. The CD closes with "Calico Blues" a nice slow blues with real good guitar.

The rhythm section provide a solid foundation for Mark to work off,the guitar work is generally good and Mark makes intelligent use of wah-wah. The original songs are mainly in the style of Hendrix. Songs are usually 3 or 4 minutes so keep to the point. A tight band worth looking out for.