October 7 - Ben Ottewell & Lotte Pearl

We're delighted to welcome Brighton-based Ben Ottewell to Hilltop Sessions. Ben is a founding member of Gomez, the British rock act whose debut album, Bring It On, won the Mercury Music Prize in 1998. Gomez never had a designated frontman -- Ottewell, Ian Ball, and Tom Gray all sang, and the band’s albums usually included several vocal performances from each -- but Ottewell took the helm more than his bandmates, making him one of the group's most prominent members. After releasing the band's sixth album in 2009, he began paving the way for a solo career, making his debut with the release of 2011's Shapes & Shadows. His second album, Rattlebag, followed in 2014. In early 2017, Ottewell released the single "Watcher" in anticipation of the release of his third full-length outing, Man Apart, which dropped later that May. 

Lotte Pearl is a 18 year old singer songwriter from Lewes and a graduate of Starfish Music. She writes, plays and produces her own music. Her songs combine passion and gentle humour with beguiling melodies delivered in a voice that echoes the young Joni Mitchell. Her musical influences combine David Bowie, Mika and Leonard Cohen.