The Shard

by WILLIAM DOYLE

ARTIST: WILLIAM DOYLE
TRACK: THE FACADES
LOCATION: THE SHARD

Listen HERE

The name for London’s tallest building was coined in reference to its tapering, jagged shape that resembles a splinter of glass.

The Shard is a 95-storey office block that forms the hub of the Shard Quarter estate development. A glittering, looming showpiece for the area’s redevelopment, it was designed by the internationally-renowned Italian architect Renzo Piano. He was inspired by images of London’s church spires in the paintings of 18th-century Venetian artist Canaletto, along with the site’s location on the banks of the river [and stated that the building would appear as though “a bell tower of the 16th century, or the mast of a great ship”.]

Completed in 2012, the tower is a vertical city containing a hotel, offices, shops, bars and restaurants. An open-air viewing gallery on the 72nd floor marks the highest point open to the public.

BIOGRAPHY

Dorset-born William Doyle formerly performed as East India Youth – a name derived from the area of East London where he lived when he started writing and recording music.

His debut album ‘ Total Strife’, was released in 2013 by Stolen Recordings, and brought him to wider attention when it was nominated for the 2014 Mercury Music Prize and for ‘Independent Album of the Year’ at the 2014 AIM Independent Music Awards. Signing with XL Recordings in 2015, he released his second album ‘Culture of Volume’, which received critical acclaim, including a glowing 5-star review in The Guardian. Taking a hiatus from the East India Youth moniker since 2016, Doyle has continued to release music under his own name, including the 2016 ambient album ‘the dream derealised’, which was created and recorded as a means of focus, during a period of anxiety, panic and dissociative episodes called ‘derealisation’.