Interview: Bryn Williams - Four Kicks

From being in Welsh rock band Calfari to being in one of North Wales’ most popular wedding bands, Bryn Williams is an incredibly experienced singer. Here’s a short interview with the frontman from Anglesey.

What was the thing that got you into music?

Listening to loads of different bands and having a go at writing my own songs.

Who are your musical influences? 

Alter Bridge, Ray Charles, Foo Fighters.

What is your favourite song to play live? 

Dancing in the Dark by Bruce Springsteen. Tune. 

What do you enjoy most about playing live? 

The buzz of the crowd and the energy in the room! A good crowd makes a good gig!

What do you feel is the hardest thing about being a wedding musician? 

The amount of songs to remember and sing!

Do you have any stand-out gigs that you've played in the past? 

Maes B, Looe Music Festival, and playing at Reading & Leeds Festival.

If you could create and attend a dream gig with 3 acts, dead or alive, who would they be and why? 

Michael Jackson, Ray Charles and Queen.

Watch Bryn in Four Kicks’ promo video below!

Top 5 Wedding Photos So Far

In these strange times, many businesses and sectors have been adversely affected by the ongoing situation. We are currently working through a large number of bookings rearranging bands for new wedding dates in 2021 and beyond, helping clients to ensure that they get their first choice bands where possible.

In this week’s blog, we’re taking the opportunity to look back at some of the best photos from weddings that our bands attended last year. All of the work our clients, our bands and ourselves are putting into making sure that first-class entertainment is available for rearranged weddings is worth it to capture memories like these - they’re just a bit delayed, that’s all!

#5 - Uptown Beat

Kate & Max’s Wedding
Chateau Rhianfa, 2019.

We start off with a great action shot in the phenomenal setting that is Chateau Rhianfa. The mix of the modern lighting and technological set-up of the band contrasts the fantastic period style of the Chateau, and the view through the window is so amazing, it really makes this one of the most unique stages.

#4 - Three Strikes

Natalie & Gethin’s wedding Bodnant, 2018.

A fantastic shot with Three Strikes in the background here - and rightly so! Natalie and Gethin look fantastic in this photo from their wedding back in 2018. The black & white of the photo accentuates everyone’s style in a way that presents a photo that is undoubtedly classy.

#3 - The 1965

Bethan & Emlyn’s wedding
Caer Rhun Hall, 2019.

This picture by Gerallt of GGJ Photography captures a special moment between Geth from The 1965 and a curious member of the crowd. These types of photos are fantastic to look back on, as they are not only capturing the memory of the wedding, but the memory of the budding guitarist (not Geth!).

#2 - Four Kicks

Llio & Gary’s wedding
Caer Rhun Hall, 2019.

This crowd photo taken by Bryn, the lead singer of Four Kicks captures a truly natural reaction to the entertainment provided. The wide variety of expressions is what really makes this photo, with some people totally unaware it’s being taken, and a few people are definitely aware!

#1 - Sound City

Charlotte & Elgan’s wedding Tower Hill Barns, 2019.

If you’ve been following our social media pages, you’ll know that this is probably our favourite photo of all time. Taken by Willo Photography, this photo encapsulates everything we stand for. The image shows Geth from Sound City rocking out with Bride, Charlotte, and it truly captures the spirit of the evening.

The Function Hub - North Wales Wedding Bands

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thefunctionhub/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/thefunctionhub/

Venue Spotlight: Tros Yr Afon

Tros Yr Afon in Penmon on Anglesey is the host to a number of glamorous weddings each year. An incredibly picturesque location, Tros Yr Afon has accommodation on site and includes a spacious courtyard for outdoor gatherings, as well as a lawn that is perfect for a tipi or marquee reception. Our bands The Swing, Four Kicks and Sound City have all played at Tros Yr Afon to a fantastic crowd each time. Take a look at the video below of Sound City bassist Geth joining in with a game of Limbo with the crowd.

Playing in a tipi or a marquee is often something our bands do, with so many wonderful locations suited for that type of wedding reception situated in North Wales. A very intimate setting for your reception, a tipi gives the evening a rustic feel and feels quite homely. A marquee is fantastic for larger parties and the space inside gives a lot of creative allowance in the decoration.

The space in front of Tros Yr Afon’s main building allows for civil ceremonies and partnerships to take place in the sunshine that sometimes makes its way to North Wales. When the sun does arrive, it gives you an amazing scene with the Tŷ Mawr manor house and the flowers in the garden adding an enormous amount of character and colour to your wedding day.

We at The Function Hub have worked closely with Jen and James at Tros Yr Afon to ensure that our clients’ entertainment for the night goes without hitch. If you have booked, or are thinking of booking Tros Yr Afon as your venue you can rest assured that The Function Hub know the venue and the team well.

If you have any photos or videos of your own from a wedding at Tros Yr Afon featuring one of our bands we’d love to hear from you! You can send them to our email address: info@thefunctionhub.com



Yr Hwb Adloniant / The Function Hub

Cartref bandiau priodas Cymru. The home of Wedding Bands North Wales.

Tros Yr Afon

http://www.trosyrafon.com/

Interview: Sara Lois Jewellery

We recently spoke to Sara Lois, a jeweller based in North Wales that has recently turned her attention to the wedding industry. Read on to see what it’s like being a wedding supplier in North Wales.

Tell us a bit about yourself and the services you provide.

I am a multi-award winning Welsh Jeweller based on the Llŷn Peninsula in North Wales. I create bespoke, contemporary jewellery, with a focus on engagement and wedding rings.

Having graduated from a Product Design degree, I take a digital approach to the design process - Promoting true traditional jewellery craftsmanship and skill in combination with modern techniques such as Computer Aided Design and 3D printing.

With a purposeful disregard for trends, my items are contemporary, simple, understated and timeless in design. My work is defined by clean lines and an ethos of less is more. Each item is designed and hand finished from the finest quality precious metals and gemstones by myself, making every item that leaves my workshop unique to the wearer. I aim to grab the attention of those looking for something that little bit out of the ordinary - That element of bespoke which expresses perfectly an individual style or celebrates a special event or memory.

The upmost care is put into the making of each item to ensure high quality, remembering that the value is not entirely in the materials but also in the history and story the item represents.

When did you start your business?

I started creating day to day silver jewellery in 2012 however shifted focus towards the wedding industry a couple of years ago.

What inspired you to start your business?

With a degree in Product Design and a Masters in Business, setting up a design and manufacturing business was inevitable. Jewellery is my passion!

Having gained experience working in jewellery design and manufacturing companies in Cardiff, Swansea, Worcester and The Cotswolds I had built up a wealth of knowledge and skill. Knowing that this kind of digital bespoke service was limited in North Wales in comparison to larger cities brought me back home.

What are the benefits for couples in using your services?

By commissioning me to create your wedding rings couples would be receiving items that are truly one of a kind, made bespoke from scratch for them.
No other person in the whole world will have even tried your rings on! That's something you can't say if you purchase from a generic high street retailer.
As everything is created bespoke you can tweak the design to be exactly what you're after. Want the ring to be a certain width? Want a specific colour gemstone? Want personalised engraving? No problem!

What are some of your favourite gems and materials to use?

I have to say platinum is my favourite metal to work with, it is considered the top metal to go for and has a nice weight and a natural bright colour to it. I love when a client asks to design something a little out of the ordinary, for example wants a coloured gemstones rather than a diamond as their central engagement ring gemstone. I do have a bit of a soft spot for blue/green coloured gemstones such as sapphires or tourmalines. I'm very keen this year to research more into the availability of recycled metals and ethical gemstones.

What are the best things about the wedding industry in North Wales?

The wedding industry in North Wales is great! Everyone is so friendly and knows each other, it's like a little community. I've been lucky enough to be asked by other suppliers to participate in joint photo shoots which has been a great opportunity to collaborate with others.

You can find Sara on:

Her Website - https://www.saralois.com/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/saraloisjewellery/

Instagram - @saraloisjewellery

Interview: Dei - Sound City and The 1965

Meet Deian Elfryn - The drummer for our weddings bands Sound City and The 1965. Dei is an accomplished and experienced drummer based in North Wales. Get to know him with this interview!

What was the thing that got you into music?

Music that my mum and dad would listen to at home. I latch on to different rhythms, and watching other drummers in shows and pantos.

Who are your musical influences? 

A lot of things - from Fleetwood Mac to early Guns & Roses.

What is your favourite song to play live? 

Freedom Grains by Stonehouse, loads of rhythm on the toms, then it kicks in to solid rock in the chorus. 

What do you enjoy most about playing live? 

The energy, the buzz. I lose myself in another world when I play. The reaction of the crowd is always a plus.

What do you feel is the hardest thing about being a wedding musician? 

Waiting around and having to suffer being with the rest of the band for the night!

Do you have any stand-out gigs that you've played in the past? 

Glastonbury, Shepherd’s Bush Empire, Echo Arena, London O2, SXSW Texas

If you could create and attend a dream gig with 3 acts, dead or alive, who would they be and why? 

Foo Fighters, Queen and Lionel Richie! (A bit of cheese is fine sometimes!)

Watch Dei in Sound City’s promo video below!

Isolation Sessions

Our bands have been busy creating content during the lockdown. Our ‘Isolation Sessions’ videos have been viewed over 13,000 times in total on Facebook making them some of our most popular videos ever!

In this blog post, we have compiled all the videos released so far so that you can listen and watch them all in one place.

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‘Footloose’ (Kenny Loggins) by Four Kicks

It all started with Four Kicks’ rendition of Footloose by Kenny Loggins. Our most popular Isolation Session to date, it really paved the way for the rest of our videos and motivated our musicians to get creating. 

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‘I’m a Believer’ (The Monkees) by Three Strikes

Next up we released a duet featuring Sam and Sion from Three Strikes. This acoustic version of I’m a Believer by The Monkees received a lot of love over our social media profiles and features a very special guest! 

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‘All The Small Things’ (Blink-182) by The Fuse 

A pop-punk anthem from the boys in The Fuse. This session features that tight close harmony you hear on a lot of Blink-182 tunes performed authentically by one of our newest additions to The Function Hub.

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‘Superstition’ (Stevie Wonder) by Sound City

“Wash your face and hands” was the message from Sound City in their rendition of the Stevie Wonder classic Superstition. This session includes a huge guitar solo from Nathan - be sure to check it out below if you haven’t already! 

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‘Ti (Si Hei Lw)’ (Frizbee) by Four Kicks

Our first Welsh language Isolation Session sees Four Kicks perform the Frizbee tune ‘Ti (Si Hei Lw)’. The song is a high-energy sing-along classic of the Welsh pop music scene and showcases our bands’ bilingual performance capabilities. 

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We are currently working on a number of Isolation Sessions that will be released over the next few weeks, so keep an eye out for them on our Facebook and Instagram pages.

https://www.facebook.com/pg/thefunctionhub/

https://www.instagram.com/thefunctionhub/

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Venue Spotlight: Portmeirion

Portmeirion is a very popular venue to get married at in North Wales, and it is a venue that our bands head to very often. The former site of ‘Festival No.6’ has a number of different places on site to have your reception, it truly is a magical setting for a wedding. 

Since 2018, The Function Hub bands have played at Portmeirion over 10 times, and we’ve attended the wedding fayre at Portmeirion numerous times.

The wedding fayre at Portmeirion brings a number of wedding suppliers from North Wales and beyond together to show couples the best we have to offer. Every single type of supplier is in attendance from hair stylists to photo booths. Portmeirion’s wedding fayre is a showcase of local talent, but also shows couples the network of suppliers they have as a venue to ensure that every single part of you wedding is covered and under control.

Hercules Hall has accommodated a number of our bands including The 1965, Three Strikes, Sound City and Uptown Beat. It is a room that is grand in name and grand in stature. Watch the video below to see The 1965 at Hercules Hall, Portmeirion.

Portmeirion is definitely a venue that we know well. If you are considering or have booked Portmeirion as a venue you can rest assured that The Function Hub works closely with the team at Portmeirion to ensure that your entertainment for the night goes without hitch.

If you have any photos or videos of your own from Portmeirion featuring one of our bands we’d love to hear from you! You can send them to our email address: info@thefunctionhub.com

The Function Hub

The Home of Wedding Bands in North Wales

Portmeririon

https://portmeirion.wales/

Interview: Priodas Fach Gymreig

We reached out to Heledd at Priodas Fach Gymreig, a wedding planning service that is quite new on the scene, but already very popular in certain circles. Read on to see what it’s like being a wedding supplier in North Wales.

Tell us a bit about yourself and the services you provide.

My name is Heledd, and I started the business ‘Priodas Fach Gymreig’, which means ‘Little Welsh Wedding’. I plan weddings and special events in North Wales. 

When did you start your business?

Officially in November 2019, but I’ve been planning events for a number of years by now.

What inspired you to start your business?

I love planning events, and I am very lucky to receive the support of local businesses. Also by planning friends and family’s weddings and doing that successfully. This inspired me to become a qualified wedding planner and start my own business. 

What are the benefits for couples in using your services?

When you have a wedding planner it removes elements of stress, time and cost for the couple that’s getting married. 

What is your favourite part of a wedding day to plan and why?

I enjoy the entire process really! But if I had to pick one part, it would be the ceremony. The ceremony is always a very special and emotional part of the day. 

What are the best things about the wedding industry in North Wales?

The amazing locations and venues. Also, there are so many talented suppliers in North Wales - a lot of whom have been very supportive of me since I started my business. 

What is your favourite thing about planning weddings as a whole?

I really enjoy looking for suppliers and the perfect venue for the couple that’s getting married. It is amazing being there on the day and seeing the couple so happy on one of the most important days of their lives. 

You can find Heledd on:

Her Website - https://www.priodasfachgymreig.co.uk/

Instagram - @priodasfg