About DougMcleod
After taking up the bass at 13 I was inspired by the great work of Steve Vai and began to teach myself guitar. While my friends were off travelling and working in their gap year before university I shut myself away and spent every day practicing my craft and brushing up on my music theory.
I went on to study guitar at Neath college where I studied chart reading and the finer points of improvisation and playing changes and also joined the college jazz band, Diet Water with whom I performed at many of the local jazz clubs and events around Swansea and Cardiff, including a show as main support to legendary saxophonist Simon Allen.
Next stop was Brighton where I spent the next two years learning guitar from world renowned musicians Guthrie Govan, Paul Bealotowic and Jim Williams to name but a few.
Around the same time, I formed a retro-grunge rock band called Stone Sun with whom I performed at Concorde 2, Komedia as well as countless other Brighton and London venues as well as Bristol based festival Pit Fest.
Through performing with Stone Sun I began to develop my singing and applied the same discipline and passion that aided my guitar progression. As a result I have now advanced from simply supplying backing vocals for Stone Sun to taking a full lead vocalist role.
I have remained in Brighton since completing my studies where I teach guitar, play for various cover acts at weddings and functions, host and perform at acoustic events and am hired as a studio guitarist on occasion.