Despite classical training as a child and flirtations with various bands in the 1980's, Neil is still at the beginning of his musical journey, developing his own style whilst establishing a positive reputation. His first CD release under the Geigertek name is called "The Garden". Initial responses and reviews have been very positive with the music being described as ambient, atmospheric, and filmic, with an underlying classical feel on some of the pieces. "The Garden" was released leading independent music label AD Music.
The musical influences will be quite obvious to many listening to Neil's work. He happily and enthusiastically cites as his main influences people such as John Foxx, Mike Oldfield, Isao Tomita, Giorgio Moroder, Tangerine Dream, Gary Numan, Jean Michel Jarre, Klaus Schulze, Ultravox, Kraftwerk and Enigma, as well as the great composers of the late 19th/early 20th centuries, such as Ralph Vaughan Williams, William Walton, Frederick Delius, Benjamin Britten, Gustav Holst and Pyotr Tchaikovsky, indeed the very music he listens to when not writing or recording himself.
Neil advocates the use of modern technology for the creation of music. His personal recording "studio" is of contemporary design and build, setup around a computer-based system, using VST synthesizers and effects units. Hardware and cabling has been kept to the absolute minimum to ensure a clutter-free environment within which to work - more details of his studio can be found HERE. When creating music, as well as the obligatory compositional skills, Neil also believes production to be as important, aided by skills and techniques learned from UK electronic composer, David Wright. He also looks to the production techniques of the late German producer, Conny Plank, and Plank's ardent belief in the enormous possibilities of electronic music, the creation of stunning electronic soundscapes, blended with conventional or natural sounds, or by using traditional sounds in unconventional ways, such metal containers or other industrial objects as percussion instruments, or with the use of a sampler, as a unique tuned instrument.
Neil's other passion is the Paranormal. He is a working clairvoyant and he and his partner Anne have been involved in a field of paranormal research known as Instrumental Trans-Communication (I.T.C.). More details on this can be found HERE. Neil has made a number of TV appearances associated with his invovlement in the paranormal, not least a feature on BBC1's "Inside Out", details of which can be found HERE, an appearance on Living TV's "Jane Goldman Investigates" which can be seen in the Video Gallery HERE, where he spoke about I.T.C. and his work. He has also written related articles for a number of magazines and other publications.
In recent years, Neil has become an urban explorer, seeking out old abandoned, and often derelict, buildings, factories, hospitals and railway stations, exploring them and photographing what he finds. It is a pastime that isn't without a little risk, but the end result is often worth the planning and organisation that's required. Neil has a micro-site for his "adventures in to urban exploration" which can be found HERE.
