The voice of Zoe Johnston has travelled the world. From the beaches of Ibiza to the bars of Prague, from karaoke machines in Amsterdam to TV sets in Melbourne, it will almost certainly have found you along the way. You may not know her face, but you are bound to know her music.
Over a period of years she has written and recorded with trance, house and dance acts as well as featuring on numerous other acoustic and more downtempo tracks. Zoe has also performed live in numerous different countries including the UK, when among other appearances she sang to around 70,000 people from the main stage at Glastonbury 2002.
Zoe Johnston first featured on a number of tracks from house act Neon Heights album ‘A View from the Heights’ which – a few glowing reviews and a number of inspired remixes later – saw her voice become a regular favourite on the club circuit.
At this time Zoe also wrote with old friends Bent on their critically acclaimed album ‘Programmed to Love’ which produced the timeless, beautiful ‘Private Road’ and ‘Swollen’, both of which have been borrowed for numerous different compilations, adverts and television programmes internationally.
It was the bruised, pensive vocals on ‘Swollen’ which, among thousands of others, touched Rollo Armstrong, Dido’s older brother and member of the highly successful dance band Faithless. He initially believed that Zoe’s voice was in fact a sample from age-old vinyl, so was stunned to discover that the singer was actually alive and well. It was this joyful discovery that led him to invite Zoe to feature on the multi-platinum selling album ‘Outrospective’, which saw her join Faithless for an eighteen-month-long world tour, playing to crowds of up to 90,000 and travelling to places as far flung as New Zealand and Malaysia as well as enjoying the home crowds of the UK.
Similarly, when Paul Heaton of the Beautiful South heard ‘Private Road’ he also reached Zoe to ask her to sing on his first solo album, released under the pseudonym ‘Biscuit Boy’. Their performance together on ‘Poems’ has frequently been acknowledged by reviewers as the standout track on the album.
Zoe Johnston has also written and recorded with million-selling Canadian band Delerium and UK trance champions Above and Beyond, among others.
Her first solo album ‘Happenstances’ is a collection of very private sounding home recordings made over the years she spent collaborating with other artists. These songs are understated, broken and roomy, with a gentle sincerity that is apparent from the offset, and full of both longing and rapture. The album contains the original version of the much celebrated Faithless song ‘Crazy English Summer’, and exudes the kind of rickety, accidental charm that will end up giving it a life that lasts forever.
Check out Zoe’s new release:
Happenstances
For more info on Zoe Johnston visit:
www.shivarecords.com
myspace.com/zoejohnstonsings
Christa Belle, of Hungry Lucy, has been chosen as our Angel of the Month for March. For more information on this lovely angel, visit the 
