As we near the end of this tumultuous year, we are beginning to glimpse a more hopeful future. Mass vaccinations are on the horizon and this brings the promise of something like ‘normal’ life returning soon. For music lovers like us, this means, amongst many other things, the return of the live music scene. For too long, we have been denied the simple joy of experiencing live music surrounded by fellow fans, revelling in the moment together. To keep you going while we wait, AUK has been sharing ‘mini-gigs’ from great artists – a taste of the musical performances to come. Today, we are delighted to bring you two songs from Morning Crush.
You may remember a video of Tim Ostrowsky-Thomas (often shortened to Tim OT) busking outside a Wilko store going viral. That video has now been viewed almost a million times. From the age of 14, he was busking on high streets regularly as well as sneaking, under-age, into open-mic events. His early music career included touring around the UK, USA and Europe, often sleeping rough and taking it one day at a time. An artist with a social conscience, Tim OT has raised funds for charities through 24-hour busking marathons. Throughout December, proceeds from his busking tour has supported We Make Events. He explains why he felt this was so important: “I’ve worked as a venue rep for Banquet Records for a few years, I’ve made lots of good friends in touring crews, all their lives have been turned upside down by this pandemic.”
In 2019, he adopted the moniker Morning Crush and earlier this year released his first single, ‘Better Friend’, which was mixed by Frank Turner and produced by Chris Hope. The follow up, ‘Back in London’, has just dropped. With an engaging melody and smart lyrics, the song is an absorbing introduction to Morning Crush. Tim says of the new single, “After years of relentless hand to mouth touring, I got a job at Banquet Records and slowed down for a while. This is an honest account of moving back to London but still having that desire to carry on this adventure in my own way.” The single is the first of two songs Morning Crush have recorded as an acoustic duo exclusively for AUK. It’s followed by an excellent cover of Dylan’s ‘Simple Twist of Fate’. Enjoy a mellow start to your weekend with another great AUK mini-gig.
