Aidan Bartley was born in Belfast, but in 1988, after travelling throughout the Scandinavian countries, Israel, and Spain, decided to settle down in Barcelona. So, it may be said that he learnt playing on the European streets and subways. It was just during one of his stays in Barcelona, when he recorded the LP "Between the gutter and the stars", which was left forgotten in a drawer until five years later the label Grabaciones en el Mar recovered it and edited it (April 1988).
His link with a Spanish label and his mastery of the Spanish language allows him to establish a close contact with the public in his concerts. In May 1997 Aidan took part, along with other artists, in his first Spanish tour, which celebrated the third anniversary of Grabaciones en el Mar in cities like Valencia, Zaragoza, Madrid and Barcelona.
In the meanwhile, his debut album "Between the Gutter & the Stars" started to be praised by critics. This first record sounded pop, dotted with folk touches, prevailing acoustic instruments, and string arrangements. The most current-established comparisons by public and critic make reference to artists like Leonard Cohen, Billy Bragg, Tindersticks... As a matter of fact this first album was made at a pop-influenced period.
In November 1997 he went on a tour of different Spanish cities like Valencia, Castellón, Bilbao, Pradejón (Festival Serie B), Monzón, Mallorca, Menorca, Madrid and Zaragoza.
In this tour he played many songs that would be part of his following record: much more under the influence of artists like Wim Mertens or Philip Glass and not so pop-influenced as the first one. So, in his third Spanish tour Aidan would be playing with a three-member band: acoustic and Spanish guitar, cello and piano.
The carefully and well-decorated stage, along with his delicacy and charm turn his concerts into ceremonies in which the simple click of a lighter may be a nuisance to the ears of an audience that often seems to be imbued in a world brimful of emotions.
At the beginning of 1998 he started the recording of his new CD "Soulstream", which would be finalised in that summer and published in February 1999. So, the next month he went on a tour of different Spanish cities to present his record to the public.
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