This Is The Kit (the lovely Kate Stables) has long been a favourite of ours. Her debut album Krulle Bol – released through Microbe – is one of my favourite albums ever, a thing of absolute beauty. Last night was spent at her single launch at Kick The Plug, which provided me with a chance to hear some new songs from her forthcoming album- and absolutely gorgeous they were too. Her new single Moon is out on Monday through the good souls at Need No Water, and her forthcoming album Wriggle Out The Restless will find it’s way to our ears on October 18th, via Bristol’s Dreamboat Records. I for one could not be more excited about this. Beyond her amazing recordings, This Is The Kit is a phenomenal talent live. Don’t take my word for it, you can catch her at Rachael Dadd’s EP launch this Sunday at The Luminaire, tickets here. Here’s the homemade video for Moon (which includes other favourites of ours- Rachael Dadd & Rozi Plain on clarinets, and Frànçois Marry of Frànçois And The Atlas Mountains on trumpet). Click here to grab the Moon 7″.
It’s time for the second installment of music filmed live at Rachael Dadd’s house! This time, River Swimmers from her forthcoming EP Elephee – which is available to pre-order here for only £5. Each CD comes with a handpainted cover, created using a linocut made by Rachael. Her EP launch takes place at The Luminaire on September 5th, with support from The Mariner’s Children and This Is The Kit. Awesome. Tickets are available for this very special show right here. You can watch Part 1 of the video series here (Elephants Swimming), and there will be a new video each Monday. Enjoy.
This weekend was spent amongst the smiling/soaking faces at Green Man Festival. It’s only right that I offer out some love to a few of the bands that really made the weekend something special…
Mountain Man
These three phenomenally talented voices are rapidly becoming one of my favourite sounds. Their debut album Made The Harbour (out through Bella Union) is a raw, heartfelt masterpiece and catching them live again only reinforces my love for everything they do. Tomorrow they set off for a UK tour with The Low Anthem, followed by dates with Jonsi, all coming to an end on September 15th at The Troxy with The Felice Brothers. Check their Myspace page for all the dates. An especially, er, special night will be their date at the beautiful St Giles In The Fields church in London on September 2nd. Expect to find me there sporting a permagrin and wiping away tiny tears of immeasurable joy. Here’s their gorgeous new tune, Play It Right…
Sam Amidon
I was lucky enough to catch Vermont-raised Sam Amidon back at Shh! at the start of the year. He was playing with the insanely talented Nico Muhly, who’s responsible for the incredible string arrangements and piano parts on Sam’s latest album I See The Sign (released through the brilliant collective of Bedroom Community). At Green Man, Sam continued his theme of playing with jaw-droppingly incredible musicians – this time in the shape of a drummer who’s name I tragically missed, but a man who brought as much to the set as Sam himself. As well as some incredible beats, he also managed to simultaneously play bass with his neck by using a contraption that I will never understand, but now want more than anything else in the entire world. Ledge. As if Sam’s set wasn’t great enough already, I had Mountain Man stood behind me singing harmony parts from the crowd. Great show.
Top marks for having the best promotional video I’ve ever seen too…
Beirut
What’s not to love about Beirut? A perfect band for the Friday night, made all the more awesome for the band’s genuine surprise at the response they got from the audience. Everyone loves Beirut, and everyone is right to. Here’s the band playing Nantes as part of La Blogotheque’s brilliant Take Away Shows…
Joanna Newsom
Responsible for one of my favourite albums of recent times, Joanna Newsom’s set was nothing short of absolutely perfect. This was always going to be a given. Her drummer Neal Morgan was especially incredible. His debut album To The Breathing World (out through Drag City) is well worth a listen – purely vocal arrangements and drums, (which might admittedly look bad on paper, but to pull this off is testament to just how awesome he is). Not a million miles away from something like a slightly more sparse Dirty Projectors. Which is no bad thing in my book. I kinda regret saying “an epic downpour of rain would be amazing for the end of Joanna’s set” – I was totally wrong, wet is bullshit, but a gorgeous new arrangement of Peach Plum Pear brought about a phenomenal ending to the weekend. Here it is from ‘back in the day’…
In celebration of Rachael’s forthcoming EP ‘Elephee’, we’ve been over to Rachael’s house to film a selection of beautiful live songs. A new song will be available each Monday up until September 13th, when Elephee will be officially released. The EP itself is a collection of home recordings, so filming this at Rachael’s house seemed like the best possible place. Elephee is available to pre-order now, on limited edition CD with each cover hand painted using a linocut created by Rachael. Talented hands. You can order yours now from our shop. So, here’s the first song from Rachael’s House – Elephants Swimming - the first song from Elephee. Enjoy.
An English chap who goes by the name of Mais Um Gringo, earlier this year took himself on a journey of musical discovery around Brazil. What he uncovered was a fascinating and vibrant variation of exciting new styles and genres which changed greatly from region to region and upon his return he did the smartest thing he possibly could… he put together a compilation.
The 2CD ‘Oi! A Nova Musica Brasileira’ is one of the most interesting world compilations I’ve heard in a very long time and this very haunting piece of modern Brazilian folk ‘Cara De Bronze’ by Siba E Roberto Correa is a particular highlight for me. The song calls out to the violeiro (guitar player) who spends the whole night searching for the perfect song.
These boys first came to my attention around the time of the first Broken Sound Podcast where I played out a free taster tune called Lost & Lonely. I’ve kept my eye on the band’s steady progress since then and just had to give them another mention upon hearing this month’s epic new single Fever Rising. It’s nothing less than a 3 minute monster, with a bass riff that has a very bad attitude, laden with hooks and drops of euphoria worthy of any classic dance record all of which highlights how versatile and mature the songwriting is. It’s an early taster for the band’s increasingly anticipated debut album which I can’t wait to hear, nor can I wait to see them live.
A couple of weeks back, Bella Union showcased some of their newest signings over at one of my favourite London venues, Union Chapel. Bella Union have been responsible for some of my favourite records- their incredible roster includes such awesomeness as Peter Broderick, Fleet Foxes, and Alessi’s Ark (the latter of which opened up this night with what I think was my favourite gig of hers to date). They’re a phenomenal label who’ve had some hugely successful releases, but always retain the feel, passion and love of a small indie. This is probably because they are. Bella Union is 2 people pouring their hearts and souls into everything they do. It’s a beautiful achievement. On their site they write “Our reason for being here is simple. We are a Home.” Bella Union is exactly that.
A real highlight for me on this particular night was the first UK show from Mountain Man – a (mainly) acappella americana/folk trio from Vermont. Three of the most beautiful voices you could hope for. Tight harmonies are totally my bag, and Mountain Man have this stuff completely nailed. Their set opened away from the stage, up in the rafters of the Union Chapel, with a different voice on each side of the room. Amazing. They then continued their set on the stage, completely unplugged, and equally amazing. They’ll be back in the UK for a tour starting on August 25th, and are also playing at Green Man and End Of The Road. Three cheers for Bella Union, three (perfectly harmonised) cheers for Mountain Man.
I’ve been meaning to write about Crystal Fighters for aaaaages. A band we’ve caught a few times now and always absolutely loved. Paul just passed me over this AMAZING stop motion video for their new single In The Summer (out since Monday through Zirkulo). The song is, of course, also the balls. Head over to their Myspace page to download the Tek One remix for free. Crystal Fighters first came to our attention last year with their single Xtatic Truth (through the amazing Kitsune). They’re brilliant live, go see for yourself at The Secret Garden Party on July 24th.
These are my favourite shoes in the whole world. They belong to Anika, of Anika In London, and they have seen an insane amount of amazing gigs. Well gigged shoes=a pair or ears you can definitely trust. Anika puts on incredible shows, makes brilliant drawings, music videos, takes photos, and lots of other awesome stuff. Check it all out here. Last night I was at her show at The Black Heart in Camden, and a damn fine night it was too. Joe Innes was on absolute top form, and Kat Burns of Forest City Lovers played a stunning solo set – so much darker than when with her band, and absolutely beautiful. Her voice is totally perfect, and her guitar looping goodness was a gorgeous touch.
Headlining, was a band who’s name seems to be cropping up more and more of late, and rightly so – Ghost Bees. Twin sisters Sari and Romy Lightman are on to something very special. There are occasional reminders of Joanna Newsom, a perfect merging of contemporary and more traditional folk, incredible arrangements, and some really amazing lyrics and harmonies. Their debut album Tasseomancy is an absolute triumph, it’s out through Youth Club Records – you should definitely check it out. Tonight they’re at The Luminaire, supporting the brilliant Timber Timbre. See you there.
Last Wednesday was spent on The Tamesis Dock for the latest installment of God Don’t Like It/Moonshine Jamboree’s brilliant summer shows (every Wednesday in case you were wondering – go go go). I was there to catch Liz Green, who was absolutely stunning as always. An awesome surprise though came from Laura Hocking. This was my first time catching her and she was phenomenally good- her band are brilliant players, and her lyrics and voice are really something else. To see what I mean check out the acapella of Loves Of A Girl Wrestler on her myspace page. Nice to see she’ll be playing with another favourite of ours, Lulu And The Lampshades at 93 Feet East on 11th June. Definitely worth getting down to.
