Folk rock star Mark Chadwick is a familiar face as he walks around Lewes, where he made his home 20 years ago.
But he also has a nationwide and international following as the lead singer and songwriter with the ever-popular band, The Levellers, founded with Jeremy Cunningham after meeting in a Brighton pub in 1998.
Finding they had a lot in common and shared similar political views on the state of society, they formed the band and have never looked back, delivering their ‘people’s music’ with commitment and passion at gigs and festivals all over the UK and Europe. The name of the band actually harks back to the Levellers, which was a radical democracy movement founded in England in the 17th century, during the English Civil War.
The group’s appeal has never waned, attracting several generations of dedicated fans, thanks to their super musicianship allied with the powerful and thought-provoking messages they deliver.
Mark is a man with a strong social conscience, a philosophy he shares with his fellow band members, and their songs have always evolved with the changing times, often highlighting the hardships and social injustices that come to the fore.
They’re not lacking in a wry sense of humour, though. One of their best-remembered of their hits is the tongue-in-cheek anthem to drinking, Just The One, which they once played on Top of the Pops fully dressed in tuxedos.
They are currently busy recording a new, much-anticipated album, which is due for release later this year, and Mark invited Town and County along to meet them and see them rehearsing at The Metway, their studio in Brighton.
Buying what was then a derelict factory back in 1994 proved a sound investment for the band as it allowed them to create a self-contained headquarters to happily house their offices, fan club, rehearsal area, bar and well-equipped recording studio, eveything a bnd could need.
They retained the name The Metway, that of the clock manufacturer who originally built the factory, and today it plays an important part on the Brighton cultural scene as the band are strong supporters of local, young and upcoming bands who use the studio and rehearsal facilities.
Moving to The Metway enabled The Levellers to operate on their own terms as far as possible at a time when they were becoming increasingly disenchanted with the mainstream music industry.
“That decision we made helped us to stay close to our roots, to stay in control, avoiding being dictated to or having to rely on outside businesses,” says Mark. “It was a big risk at the time but we stuck to our guns and have managed to succeed outside the major framework of the music industry.
“It was an investment in our future. We make full use of everything we’ve built around us here, it’s given the band a home and we’ve introduced lots of media-type things in the building.
“The Brighton vibe has always been great and ever-changing so it’s the ideal place for us to have our base, but more importantly that means we don’t have any external pressure.”
Although The Levellers made a huge impact on their British and European tours, especially at the major festivals including Glastonbury, they also became weary of the increasingly commercial UK festival scene and decided in 2002 to put on a festival of their own in Devon.
Beautiful Days became an enormous success and continues to this day, still constantly selling out in advance, one of the most popular and talked-about events on the UK summer scene.
The Metway is where the band gets together to rehearse – some members live close by but two travel down from Scotland and Devon. They released their We The Collective album in March last year, featuring reworkings of their best-loved songs, and this was released to critical acclaim, reaching number 12 in the UK album chart.
They are now working on a new album which will be the fruition of two years devoted to coming up with themes that reflect the current state of the world. As Mark says in one of his recent tweets, he is ‘full of all the hope and love for the world’ and is just as fired up as ever about delivering messages he hopes will inspire his many fans.
“I don’t want to dictate to people but I want my songs to inspire, to reflect social change and injustice,” Mark says. “The world has changed a lot over the years since we formed the band but recently we’ve seen the levels of homelessness rising in this country and a divide is starting to show.”
Mark now spends many months of the year touring with The Levellers, but Lewes holds a very special place in his heart. Every time he returns from a trip away, he gets the tour bus or taxi to drop him off near the prison and walks home through the town, absorbing the atmosphere.
He and his wife Lois love their lifestyle in Lewes and believe it is the perfect place to raise children.
“This a really good place for kids,” says Mark. “It’s a brilliant town, with so much history still visable now, all the way from its origins to the present day.
“To me, Lewes is a small market town with a big heart. I love the spirit of it, things like bonfire night for example, although as I’m away so much of the year I don’t have time to commit myself to local events. But I enjoy the vibe.
“Lewes has a real heart – a bit of mystery and magic about it, surrounded by beautiful river valleys, the Downs and the sea.”
Mark is a keen walker, both around the town and in the surrounding countryside and usually has his devoted dog, Popper, by his side.
“She absolutely loves people but hates other dogs and goes absolutely mental when she sees one,” he says with a grin.
“The dogs in Lewes live in fear of her!”