Moondusty’ is a new band led by "Cess" aka Daniel Orcese, a London-based singer-songwriter blessed with decades-long experience of making magical music. He’s toured with Pete Doherty, made an album with critically acclaimed Jazz pianist Greg Foat and has contributed backing vocals for a Paul Weller track.
Back in the noughties, Dan co-owned The Gladstone Arms in Borough, a legendary South-East London music pub. During his tenure in charge of the pub, in between pouring pints, he founded the Moon Music Orchestra, for which he starred as co-lead songwriter and vocalist. The “MMO” were an infamous house band at the Gladstone playing monthly shows and recording an album above the pub using a 4-Track “The Gladstone Cassettes.” An album of solo material recorded at Marco Nelson’s Magnetic Studios 2011 “Random Acts of Fate” under the name Borough Lovers soon followed, both albums released under the pub’s Superglad label.
The eponymous Moondusty#1 is Danel’s first release after an eight-year hiatus, packed with a rejuvenated sense of purpose. This first song hints at his past work while offering a fresh take on his favourite influences: Pink label early Island Records, Ronnie Lane and The Band to name but a few. .
Moondusty Takes Off
On a Tuesday evening in late November 2021, Dan took his guitar to Deptford’s Matchstick Piehouse: a buzzing and intimate live music, cabaret, and theatre venue hidden in a railway arch. There, to a capacity crowd in high post-lockdown and pre-festive-period spirits, he met up with a cluster of old bandmates, and together they performed a set of songs conceived during the pandemic-induced isolation. After years away from the stage, Dan didn’t know what to expect.
The reception was simply rapturous. Propelled by the singular rush of performing live, the experience of re-connecting with an audience, and the many requests for recorded material, Dan resolved to capture the energy and spontaneity of the evening, he had re-found his musical voice.
“The experience of preparing for the set, and the joy in sharing ideas and playing in concert gave rise to the band’s unique sound,” says Dan, which he describes as “cosmic, acoustic folk-rock”.
If you are wondering from where the name ‘Moondusty’ originates, Dan offers a beautiful – if teasingly enigmatic – explanation:
“It’s about waking up from a dream somewhere long ago and coming to – in a place that had become a bit ‘settled’,” he says, a wolfish grin curling on his lips. “It’s a reawakening, if you like. When I played the song Moondusty#1 to close the set, with my old friends I hadn’t expected to be the beneficiary of so much positivity.‘Moondusty’ seemed to fit the bill just perfectly.”
ALL SOCIAL MEDIA / WEB LINKS:
https://www.instagram.com/moon__dusty/
https://www.youtube.com/@Moondusty8
PRE ORDER LINKS: