Antony Harding

Antony Harding (fl. c. 2000) is an English singer, songwriter and musician from London who grew up on the Isle of Wight. He is best known as the drummer in London band Hefner, and has also played independently as ANT and now performs solo as Antony Harding.

It all started back in 1997 at the intimate 12 Bar Club in London supporting London's best unsigned band Rhatigan on a monthly residency. Antony's first CD, Cures For Broken Hearts came out in 2000 on Fortune & Glory Records (UK) to positive reviews: "Likeable delicate stuff" said Q Magazine, "An unexpected Joy" said Mojo, and the CD received airplay on BBC Radio One. He was asked to record a solo session for John Peel during the summer of that year, featuring 4 acoustic versions of songs that would later appear on his debut album. The debut album, a collection of London home recordings called A Long Way To Blow A Kiss, was quietly released in 2002 on Fortune and Glory Records. It was also warmly received: "Ant proves a delicate little joy" said Teletext, and "Scruffy, gorgeous notes-to-self" was how Mojo described it. After relocating to Malmo, Sweden, Floating On The Breeze, a mini album of home recordings was released on Italian label Homesleep Records (2003): "Charmed mini album of ringing acoustic pop" said Uncut, "Pleasing bedroom rock" said the NME. Ant's first compilation CD of rarities and b-sides, Sad To See It's Morning, emerged on Fortune & Glory in 2004 to positive words: "Beautiful acoustic nuggets" Mojo, "Sweet, charming, piquant pop gems" Record Collector. The second album, Footprints Through the Snow, was recorded in 8 days one hot summer in Bologna Italy in 2004 and released in 2006 to rave Italian reviews: "Close your eyes and breathe it in" recommended Subba-Cultcha. After a break of some years, another mini album of home recordings, this time aided by friends, entitled These Long Dark Country Roads, came out in 2009 on cult Spanish label Acuarela Discos: "Gorgeous lo-fi, acoustic pop songs" said Rock Feedback. That 'difficult' third album The Birds Sing Goodnight To You And Me, recorded with his old Hefner band mates Darren Hayman, John Morrison and Jack Hayter, seemed to come easily. It was released in March 2012 on Italian label We Were Never Being Boring, and was hailed as "the album of the year 2012" by Dandelion Radio's Mark Whitby. It was followed in 2013 by a mini-mini-album of sunny instrumentals entitled Only Pipe Dreams in the Pipeline, once again on the WWNBB collective of Italy, described as "A feast of frothy folk" by Soundsxp. Antony has toured in England, Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and China, where he celebrated his 100th solo performance.

His fourth full-length album, By The Yellow Sea, and his first as Antony Harding, set sail in June 2015.

• A Soft Place (Split 7" with Darren Hayman Black Kitten Records IT 2009)
• Only Pipe Dreams in the Pipeline (Digital instrumental mini-mini-album, WWNBB ITALY 2013)
• (This is Just) the Calm Before the Storm (digital single, WWNBB ITALY 2014)
• Walk With No Real Place To Go (digital single WWNBB ITALY 2015)
• Once You Had A love (But The Love Refused To Grow) (digital single, WWNBB ITALY 2015)
• By The Yellow Sea (CD album, WWNBB ITALY 2015)
• True Love (Under Sheets Of Rain) (digital single WWNBB ITALY 2016)

• I Hope You'll Always Be There (7" Evil World Records UK 1999)
• Where Happiness Begins (3 track CD Fabulous Friends Records SWE 1999)
• Cures For Broken Hearts (CD mini-album, Fortune and Glory UK 2000)
• A Long Way To Blow A Kiss (CD album F&G UK 2002)
• Floating on the Breeze (CD mini-album, Homesleep ITALY 2003)
• Mountains (Imprints of Emotion EP) (Split 7" Zenith/Smudgey Records SWE 2003)
• Sad to See It's Morning (CD compilation album of singles and rarities, F&G UK 2004)
• Footprints Through the Snow (CD album Homesleep ITALY 2006)
• Footprints Through the Snow (CD album Avant Garden Records Taiwan 2006)
• When Your Heart Breaks (Into Many Little Pieces) (Split 7" Let's Expect Art Records SWE 2006)
• I Couldn't Remember the Dream (Split 7" Black Candy Records IT 2006)
• These Long Dark Country Roads (CD mini album, Acuarela Discos SPAIN 2009)
• When The Morning arrives (MP3 album of outtakes and rarities, Antsongs SWEDEN 2009)
• Footprints Through the Snow (CD album Pocket Records/Sounds Good CHINA 2011)
• Black Swans on the Water (digital EP, Antsongs SWE 2011)
• I Long To Quicken The Beat of Your Heart (digital EP Antsongs SWE 2011)
• Kisses on a Plate (digital single, We Were Never Being Boring IT 2011)
• The Birds Sing Goodnight To You And Me (CD album We Were Never Being Boring ITALY 2012)
• Dandelion Radio Session (digital EP, Barely Out/Audio Antihero UK 2012)
• Minimal Radio Session (digital EP, Antsongs/Minimal Radio SWE/CHINA 2012)
• Oh Won't The World Leave Us in Peace (Digital live album, Antsongs SWEDEN 2012)

• John Peel BBC Radio 1 session, London 12 October 2000
• Tom Robinson BBC6 session, London 9 March 2006
• Jean Luc Radio Onda D'urto session, Brescia Italy, March 2007
• The Glass Shrimp Show Resonance FM session, London March 2006
• Giovanni Gandolfi Radio Citta Del Capo, Bologna Italy April 2006
• Giovanni Gandolfi Radio Citta Del Capo, Bologna Italy, May 2004
• Giovanni Gandolfi Radio Citta Del Capo, Bologna Italy, May 2003
• Mark Whitby Dandelion Radio Session, March 2012
• Mini Cat Radio/Minimal Radio session, Beijing China, May 2012

• John Peel BBC Radio website
• Dandelion Radio website
• Ant's official website discography page