Not a pitch, but a place for the work to land. Three decades at the kit, from theatre pits to festival stages, in a dark, editorial frame.
Gail James has three decades behind the kit - recording, touring, theatre work, festival stages, and arenas. The work already had weight; what was missing was a place to hold it.
The site gives her a presence that feels owned, not assembled - a first impression on her own domain, shaped around the player rather than the platform.
The page opens with Gail mid-strike, then gives the work room. A short lede, a clear profile, and a set of credits hold the scale of the career without turning it into a sell.
Audio and video sit inside the page as chosen moments, ready when the visitor is. Nothing autoplays, nothing crowds the frame. The structure stays spare so Gail's playing can come forward.
A near-black frame, warm neutrals, and a single restrained accent - enough atmosphere to hold the photography, without turning the site into a performance.
The site was built as a single hand-written page - no template, no CMS, no borrowed profile page. It sits on Gail's own domain, shaped around her material and simple enough to keep moving.
The build stays light on purpose: static HTML, custom audio and video handling, Vercel hosting, and a setup she can own without handing the work back to a platform.
| Source | Hand-written HTML, version-controlled on GitHub |
|---|---|
| Hosting | Vercel, auto-deployed on every commit |
| Domain | gailjamesmusic.com, registered at Porkbun |
| Search | Verified in Google Search Console; sitemap submitted |
| Audio | Stems re-balanced, optimised and enhanced in Logic Pro |
| Media | Audio plays off the page; film loads on press |
The audio needed the same care as the page. Gail's stems were taken back into Logic Pro and re-balanced so the drums sat forward - the kick and snare carrying the weight they have in the room.
"Let the performance lead. Let the platform disappear."
Studio note · 2026
The site is live on Gail's own domain - fast to update, simple to maintain, and built without dependence on a borrowed platform.