Plush

At present there is more than one artist under the name Plush. They are: 1) Liam Hayes who records under the title of Plush is based in Chicago, USA. he is a singer, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter. At present he has released 5 full length albums, "Three-Quarters Blind Eyes" (1995/9), More You Becomes You (1998), Fed (2002), Underfed (2004) and Bright Penny (2009). Fed was re-released on Broken Horse in 2008 and received glowing reviews in Uncut, The Guardian (five stars in each) as well as NME, Plan B, Mojo and Q. the new album will be released sometime in early 2009.

1) Liam Hayes who records under the title of Plush is based in Chicago, USA. he is a singer, guitarist, pianist, and songwriter. At present he has released 5 full length albums, "Three-Quarters Blind Eyes" (1995/9), More You Becomes You (1998), Fed (2002), Underfed (2004) and Bright Penny (2009). Fed was re-released on Broken Horse in 2008 and received glowing reviews in Uncut, The Guardian (five stars in each) as well as NME, Plan B, Mojo and Q. the new album will be released sometime in early 2009.

2) An acoustic rock band based in Cape Town, South Africa. Rory Eliot is lead vocalist and plays rhythm guitar, Chas Smit was lead guitarist and backing vocalist. Together they were described as "so unbelievably tight that they sound as though they are one masterful musician, playing two guitars, with four arms and one almighty voice".

On September 18 2005, after a gig that formed part of their national tour for A Few Blinding Views, Chas Smit was killed when he was hit by a speeding car. Rory was quoted by the Daily News as saying, "He was like a brother to me. I am not sure what the future holds for me, or for the band. I will have to think about it and what Chas would have wanted."

Memorial services took place in Pietermaritzburg, Cape Town and London.

After a 6 month sabbatical and reflection period, Rory has found the need to continue the musical journey he started over a decade ago. And so has begun his new career, alongside Ben Peters a former drummer with Plush performing as Rory Eliot and continuing with the promotion of both his albums, This charismatic duo have stunned crowds with their rhythmic cohesion and perform both old Plush favourites and Rorys latest compositions to roaring approval. Rorys successful acting career has lent itself to his superb showmanship with his audiences and he has toured nationally and internationally with theatre productions. Rory, again with Ben, is campaigning for SADD (South Africans Against Drunk Driving) with Brenda Voss of Wandering Star Projects and they are touring the country in an effort to educate students of the perils of drinking and driving.

In 2007 the group gained national momentum with a new release 'When Grace Grew Tall' shooting to the number one position on 5fm's Hi5@5 where it remained for four weeks. The band's song repetoire increased and drew sell-out crowds in South Africa and went on to have a successful tour of the United Kingdom in August, 2007.

In 2011, Plush will release an album of their latest songs. After years of hard work, Plush is poised to create an even wider current which fans both old and new will be swept it. Through the highs and the lows, it is comforting for fans to know that the dream hasn't been lost...it's "merely been reshaped".

Plush have released 2 full albums, "All That Is Should Be" (released March 9 2004) and "A Few Blinding Views" (released August 5 2005, Us Productions). The song "Today" achieved massive success in South Africa and features on both Albums. The first album is arguably more acoustic than the second.