The Soldiers

Lore & Background

Signed to CPW Productions Warner Bros. Records, the trio consists of Ryan Idzi, Richie Maddocks and Gary Chilton. Their first national interview was with The Sun, with a free download of the lead song "Coming Home" from the debut album Coming Home. The song was written by Jake Hook, Nick Patrick and Jeff Chegwin. It was delivered as a free download for 48 hours through The Sun website as a promotion for the forthcoming album. Proceeds from the single were donated to The Army Benevolent Fund. The Soldiers were also featured in Big Sing 2009, hosted by Aled Jones from London's Royal Albert Hall, with special guests also including Bryn Terfel, Ruby Turner, Amy Nuttall. The show was broadcast on BBC TV on 25 October 2009.

In Their Own Story

The forest is thick with the smell of wet rot and old diesel. The boy crouches behind a rusted fence, watching. Three Soldiers walk the road in a loose triangle, rifles slung low, boots crunching gravel that no one has swept in years. A dog barks somewhere behind the treeline. The lead Soldier stops. Turns. The other two stop almost in unison, like a single organism splitting into three heads.

The boy holds his breath. The lead Soldier's rifle rises an inch. The dog barks again, closer now, and the Soldiers break into a jog, boots pounding, the grey of their uniforms blurring against the grey of the overcast sky. The boy waits until the sound of their boots fades into the white noise of the rain. Then he moves. Not running. Never running. Just moving, the way water moves around a stone, finding the gap, the crack, the one inch of space that the grey figures did not think to fill.

Reader's Guide

The Soldiers have released four studio albums: Coming Home (2009), Letters Home (2010), Message to You (2011) and the self-titled The Soldiers (2012); and two compilation albums: Best of The Soldiers (2011) and Greatest (2013). Members: Sergeant Major Gary Chilton lives in Andover, Hampshire and joined the Army in 1984. He served in the Gulf War and is Band Sergeant Major of the Army Air Corps. Staff Sergeant Richie Maddocks was born in Oldham, Greater Manchester, and attended South Chadderton Secondary School where he played in the school band, and the Jazz band, plus various lead roles in school plays and concerts. He joined the Army at the age of 16. He is also a Gulf War veteran and is Drum Major of the Minden Band of the Queen's Division. Corporal Ryan Idzi (born 1985) was born in Caerphilly, Wales, and is of Polish ancestry. In 2007, he appeared in season 4 of the UK The X Factor, auditioning with "Lean on Me". He reached the "Bootcamp" stages of the competition. A member of the 1st The Queen's Dragoon Guards, he has served in Afghanistan and Iraq as a member of the 20th Armoured Brigade.

Did You Know?

• The Soldiers' debut album Coming Home was released on 26 October 2009.
• The lead song "Coming Home" was written by Jake Hook, Nick Patrick and Jeff Chegwin.
• Proceeds from the single were donated to The Army Benevolent Fund.
• Corporal Ryan Idzi auditioned for season 4 of The X Factor in 2007.