Ferocious Dog

Ferocious Dog are an English folk punk band from Warsop, Nottinghamshire, England. The band has headlined tours of the UK and Europe, performed in Dubai,[1] festivals such as Bearded Theory, Alchemy, Deerstock, Farmer Phil's Festival, Splendour and Beautiful Days,[2] and toured in support of New Model Army, The Levellers and The Wonder Stuff.[3] In 2015 the band played in the Field of Avalon at Glastonbury Festival,[4] attracting the third largest crowd to the stage over the course of the weekend.

Ferocious Dog
Ferocious Dog on stage at Rock City, Nottingham in November 2015
Background information
OriginWarsop, Nottinghamshire, England, UK
GenresCeltic punk, folk punk, Celtic rock, ska punk
Years activec. 1988–present
LabelsIndependent
Websiteferociousdog.co.uk
MembersKen Bonsall
Dan Booth
Ryan Brooks
Johnny Edwards
John Alexander
Alex Smith

History

The band released a number of EPs before a first album on Weird Sounds in 2013, described by Louder Than War as "startlingly good, and so it should be, it’s been many years in the making".[5] The album has been reviewed positively in both folk[6][7] and metal[1] sources.

On 11 February 2015, Ferocious Dog announced that they would be releasing a second album, From Without,[8] this was funded by fans pre-ordering the album in advance. It was produced by Matt Terry and mastered by Al Scott. It was released in October 2015 after single releases of "Ruby Bridges" in June 2015 and "Slow Motion Suicide" in August 2015.

Touring the new material started at The Bodega in Nottingham on 7 March 2015, the first live appearance with the new line-up including Leslie Carter on guitar and Scott Walters on drums - it sold out in 22 minutes.[9] This kicked off a busy year of touring and festivals, culminating in a sell-out home town gig at Rock City in Nottingham. Ferocious Dog are the first independent act to sell-out the venue in its 35-year history.[10] The band encouraged those attending to bring items for a local food bank to the gig, completely swamping the room Rock City had put aside to store them in the process. The gig was filmed and recorded, and released as a CD and DVD.[11] 2016 ended with a UK and European tour supporting The Levellers, including shows in the Netherland and Germany. Further shows in the Netherlands were played in February 2017.[12]

Fans

Fans of Ferocious Dog are affectionately referred to as 'Hell Hounds' - taking their name from the Ferocious Dog song.[13] They have a growing renown for lively mosh pits and increasingly elaborate stacking routines during the band's performances. Many of them have been tattooed with the Ferocious Dog fighting dogs logo by lead singer Ken Bonsall, a former coal miner who now operates as a tattoo artist.

Lee Bonsall

Pivotal to the ethos and drive of Ferocious Dog is the sad fate of Ken's son Lee. Lee served in Afghanistan from the age of 18, and upon rejoining civilian life took his own life in 2012 at the age of just 24, unable to overcome the post traumatic stress disorder he was suffering from stemming from one of his friends being killed by a sniper. Lee is commemorated in the songs "The Glass, Lee's Tune" and "A Verse for Lee" on their first album. This gave rise to The Lee Bonsall Memorial Fund[14][15] which is a constant focus for fundraising and awareness building by the band. Lee's story was featured in the BBC documentary Broken by Battle.[16] Lee Bonsall gave the band their name as a child.

Discography

Albums
  • Ferocious Dog (2013)
  • Ferocious Dog 3 Piece Acoustic (2014)
  • From Without (2015)
  • From Without Acoustic (2017)
  • Red (2017)
  • Fake News & Propaganda (2019)[17]
  • The Hope (2021)

EPs and singles
  • "Ferocious Dog" (2011)
  • "Hell Hounds" (2012)
  • "Revolution" (2012)
  • "Ruby Bridges" (2015)
  • "Slow Motion Suicide" (2015)
  • "American Dream" (2017)
  • "The Landscape Artist" (2018)
  • "Psychedelic Spin" with Dr. Peacock (2019)

Other media
  • Live at Rock City (CD/DVD) (2016)
  • Live at the Rescue Rooms (CD/DVD) (2018)

Members

Current
  • Ken Bonsall - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar (1988–present)
  • Dan Booth - Violin (1988–present)
  • John Alexander - Bass Guitar (2014–present)
  • Alex Smith - Drums (2017–present)
  • Ryan Brooks - Lead Guitar
  • Johnny Edwards - Banjo, Acoustic Guitar, Mandolin, Accordion, Whistle, Harmonica, Mandola

Former
  • Dave Drury - Bass Guitar (2010 - 2014)
  • Brad Drury - Drums (2010 - 2014)
  • Kyle Peters - Electric Guitar (2010 - 2014)
  • Scott Walters - Drums (2015–2017)
  • Ellis Waring - Acoustic Guitar, Mandolin, Bouzouki, Banjo (2010–2017)
  • John Leonard - Guitars, Banjo, Mandolin, Tin Whistle, Uilleann pipes (2017–2019)
  • Leslie Carter - Electric Guitar (2015–2019)

Crew
  • Darren Hallsworth - Stage Technician, Guitar Technician
  • Luke Wheatley - Sound engineer, Head Technician
  • Paul Bateman - Merchandise

References
  1. Kane, Phil. "Ferocious Dog". Metaltalk.com. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  2. "2014 Line up". Beautifuldays.org. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  3. "600 Follow Ferocious Dog At Music Festival". The Chesterfield Post. 2 September 2011. Retrieved 20 August 2014.
  4. "Glastonbury 2015 line up". The Guardian. 2 June 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  5. Suttie, Nyika. "Ferocious Dog – interview and album review". Louder Than War. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  6. Carroll, Tim. "'Ferocious Dog' - straight from the heart and not for the faint hearted". Folk Words. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
  7. Woodroffe, Rosamund. "Ferocious Dog review". Brightyoungfolk.com.
  8. "Ferocious Dog". Facebook. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
  9. "Ferocious Dog interview". Nottingham Live. 5 March 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  10. "Live Review: Ferocious Dog, Rock City (28/11/15)". Impact Magazine. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  11. "Live at Rock City DVD/CD". Louder Than War. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  12. "Ferocious Dog". Bureau Zwaardis (NL). Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  13. Hutchison, Charles (11 October 2016). "Folk-punk band Ferocious Dog bound for Fibbers with their Hell Hounds in tow". York Press. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  14. Henesy, Brian (31 March 2014). "We shall remember him... doves and memorial for soldier Lee". Nottingham Post. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  15. "Lee Bonsall memorial fund". Facebook.com. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  16. "BBC Panorama 2013 Broken by Battle". YouTube. 15 September 2013. Retrieved 4 February 2016.
  17. "Music". Ferociousdog.co.uk. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
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