Wed, 30 March 2011
Live music is such a thing to celebrate. Suffolk 'n' Cool was at a remarkable performance during the week. In an unpredictable world it's good to know that your loyal guard cat is paying full attention to the door. Warwick enjoys a bit of afternoon sun on his back.
Jo - Eclectek / Stouffi the Stouves (Lille, France) Ah, such bliss. It has been a little while since we heard from this Suffolk ’n’ Cool regular. Loads of their material is on Jamendo (and therefore freely available). Do check them out www.jamendo.com/en/artist/eclectek
Escape - NEeMA (Montreal, Canada) When Leonard Cohen speaks, people that know anything about music listen. So it’s little wonder that Canadian siren NEeMA is on a sharp ascent. Cohen recently had this to say about the Montreal-based, Lebanese songstress: “in the midst of all the static, a voice of true feeling arises - a rare event!” Hard to argue with, especially once the music reveals itself. ” Cohen also drew the portrait of NEeMA that serves as the album’s cover art. An effortless blend of folk, world, jazz and pop, NEeMA’s sophomore release, Watching You Think. Produced in association with Leonard Cohen and Pierre Marchand. Contributions from Canadian luminaries abound on the album, with Arcade Fire’s Tim Kingsbury amongst others. Born of Egyptian and Lebanese decent, NEeMA’s presence on and off stage is as powerful and charismatic, as her voice is honest and unique. She has traveled extensively, having shared time with the Dalai Lama and Mother Teresa, having worked with street children in Egypt, as well as having had the privilege of working with the Tribal Elders of Wekweti, an isolated First Nation community in northern Canada. She’s playing a string of dates on her way back from SXSW: 03/30 New York, NY @ Joes Pub (Release Party) 04/05 Evanston, IL @ SPACE * 04/07 East Lansing, MI @ Pasant Theatre * 04/09 Traverse City, MI @ Traverse City Opera House * 04/12 Philadelphia, PA @ Tin Angel * 04/13 Washington DC @ Jammin Java * 04/15 Shelburne Falls, MA @ Mocha Maya’s Coffee, Pub, and Music Venue 04/16 Boston, MA @ Red Room at Café 939
Rathole Roadshow This Liverpool event on April 24th. It's a live music gig featuring artists that have been guests/friends of the Rathole Radio show. Dan did one last year and it seems to be becoming an annual thing. This year it features Adnams Artists of the Month, I Am Not Lefthanded In fact, if you like the sound of that, how does the sound of a free EP sound? http://ratholeradio.org/sampler/
Rire Sourire - Bézèd'h (Mulhouse, France) From their latest album Les Illuminés ( on Jamendo) the track is called Rire Sourire. www.jamendo.com/en/artist/b.z.d.h
Big Apple Love - Shayna Zaid and the Catch (NYC, USA) From the debut album by Shayna Zaid and the Catch. The launch party is on Friday night at Crash Mansion in NYC. I’ve had my invitation and would love to be there.
Ice Capades - Will Knox (NYC, New York, USA) From Will’s hugely impressive new EP Lexicon. I know I played a track from the previous album last week but I couldn’t wait to let you hear a new track, especially now that the EP is released and you can get hold of your own copy of the comic book which includes a unique download code. The process is very simple, delivers great quality audio and you actually get a very attractive physical product.
One Size Never Fits - Matt Andersen (Bairdsville, New Brunswick, Canada) New Brunswick, Canada's Matt Andersen has a larger than life showmanship that has been earning him a fervent and steadfast audience wherever he graces the stage. Matt's sprawling blues, roots and rock musical hybrid with his sorrowing and soulful voice and astonishing guitar-playing has sparked a phenomenal buzz on Canada's East Coast and, as of last week, on England’s East Coast too. I met up with him at a gig at the New Crawdaddy Club in Billericay, Essex where he played headline to the very impressive house band The Heaters. The club is fantastically friendly and they have really good guest musicians every Thursday. See what’s coming up at: www.newcrawdaddyclub.co.uk Matt’s performance was so full of commitment that it almost hurt. His stage presence quite remarkable and he is also one of the nicest guys you could wish to meet. My sincere thanks to listeners Daryl and Buzz for putting me onto him. Matt Andersen is a very real, rare, raw talent and career artist -- vital to our musical landscape. www.bustedflatrecords.com/all-artists/matt-andersen www.myspace.com/mattandersenmusic
One Hand On The Night - Marc Farre (New York, USA) Marc has an important show coming up at Joe's pub in downtown NYC. If you can come, please order your tickets (only $12) in advance, as the club likes to see robust advance sales. You can do so by going here: http://tinyurl.com/6dsf5be Marc's newly released EP is a bilingual (English and French) offering of emotionally charged and beautifully crafted songs featuring some remarkable playing from all involved. Available from iTunes and Amazon through his site.
Same Old Story - Rude City Riot (Vancouver, BC, Canada) Another great track from Dan with Rude City Riot. I’ve played them a few times and they always give the show a lift.
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Thu, 24 March 2011
As quirky a selection of fine new tunes as you could ever wish to hear in Suffolk’n’Cool this week with artists from Denmark, New York, Nederland, France, Canada and São Paulo, Brasil. Spring has sprung big-time in the pond next to the Suffolk’n’Cool barn. This week the ground and pond is a-quiver with frogs, singly, in pairs and in full-blown orgies, getting it on. This pair were biding their time before plopping into the water. The picture should be captioned “Hans and Lottie discover that love is a many splendoured thing”
Random Words - Some Community (São Paulo, Brasil) Music often goes beyond melodies, harmonies, arrangements, lyrics, and live performances. There's that one thing that no artist in the world can manufacture formulaically, and that something is energy. This invisible thing that comes directly from the veins, throats, and pores of the musician seeps from Brazil’s most promising indie-rock band, Some Community. Forming in 2009 the five piece that met in Prep School, has been combining delicious songs with an exciting presentation, and will drop a musical bomb on this years SxSW, so get ready. The band consists of Juliana Vacaro who delivers charming and delirious vocals as well as: Veronica Vacaro (keyboards and guitar), Marco Frugiuele (percussion), Gabriela Gonzalez (guitar), and Fernando Fernandes, who brings lead guitar into the mix. This clashing of talent and instruments is augmented and punctuated by an array of casio-tones and melodica (played by all) in arrangements sweet enough to give you a cavity, yet hard hitting enough to knock that tooth right out.
Flower in the night - CALLmeKAT (Hovedstaden, Denmark) Known for her melancholic, melodic pop CALLmeKAT is the moniker of Danish singer, keyboardista and composer, Katrine Ottosen. With her vintage keyboards and a voice that sets her apart from the masses, CALLmeKAT creates music where live samples, haunting bass lines and a broken omnichord dance together under the twilight of the moon. In 2008 CALLmeKAT released I'm In A Polaroid Where Are You? (EP) and 'Fall Down' both of which made the media in her native Denmark fall head over heels, while word quickly trickled across to the U.S. with nods in Billboard, Spinner, and Interview Magazine. Living in New York for most of 2010, Katrine collaborated with Joe Magistro (Prophet Omega, The Black Crowes) to finish her international debut When Owls Are Out mastered by Chris Athens of Sterling Sound, NYC. A hand numbered, limited first edition will be for sale exclusively at CMK shows and at select stores, in 2011, with a proper release date to be determined. March 24 – Rockwood Music Hall 8 PM April 1 – Big Band Cafe, Caen, FR April 2 – Astrolabe, Orleans, FR Sumptuous video for My Sea at: http://youtu.be/03BJ4n8ptSU www.myspace.com/thisiscallmekat
Innocent - Madison Square Gardeners (Brooklyn, NYC, USA) The members of Brooklyn’s Madison Square Gardeners have a long pedigree as backing musicians for artists like Ben Kweller, The New York Dolls and Jill Sobule, to name a few. Teeth of Champions continues their output of, “Twangy pop songs” (Time Out NY) with intoxicating harmonies, yet broadens their songwriting palette, ranging from the screaming telecasters of “Little Bit Of Heart” to the alt-rock influenced “Record Store.” Southern vibes fill “Stand By You” and the harmony laden retro-folk turned guitar rocker “Miracle Mile.” A soulful groove anchors “Innocent”. March 24 – Cleveland, OH – The Grog Shop March 25 – Lakewood, OH – The Avenue Tap House March 26 – Pittsburgh, PA – Brillobox April 1 – Brooklyn, NY – Southpaw April 2 – Boston, MA – Lizard Lounge www.myspace.com/madisonsquaregardeners http://themadisonsquaregardeners.com/ http://twitter.com/gogardenersgo
Safe Creative Added protection in addition to your Creative Commons license: a SafeCreative certificate. Your CC license determines what uses you authorize of your music, SafeCreative protects them. How does it work? The SafeCreative service enables creators and rightholders to register their works and obtain a valid proof suitable to be used on trial, by means of a certificate of registry digitally signed. You can register your albums directly from your admin panel on Jamendo, it’s easy and completely free! From the time of depositing, multiple digital fingerprinting algorithms are used by Safe Creative to absolutely guarantee the identity and integrity of deposited works. The record date is registered with time-stamping technology that Safe Creative redundantly applies to also provide an absolute guarantee of the date of registration: the process is of multiple time stamping; in addition to the timestamp by the Safe Creative server, the whole operation is then repeated and confronted with Camerfirma timestamping service (approved by the Spanish Ministry of Industry). All transactions and registration of works, authorship and information rights are registered and sealed by means of independent auditing services.
Sweatshop - De Staat (Nijmegen, Nederland) It all started as a one man project by the Dutch singer, musician and composer Torre Florim. As a graduating project from his Music Production studies he wrote, played and produced the stunning debut album ‘Wait For Evolution’. Though before it was even released, De Staat was already a full grown band. Since then – early 2009 – the band established itself as the most exciting new rock band that Holland had to offer in a very long time. Their concerts got unanimous rave reviews. Their stage reputation grew so fast that within a year the band played festivals from the likes of Sziget, Pinkpop, Lowlands, Dour and took on the acclaimed John Peel Stage at Glastonbury. A couple of years later, when De Staat went to record ‘Machinery’, this time with a full band in tow, the options were much bigger. The challenge was to define the sound through the contributions and interaction of each member of the band. Not only would the album be a team effort instead of Torre recording by himself at home, with nothing more than two cheap mics, one dusty old laptop and one beginners guitar (the one’s that come with a small amp and a bag included). They also have some expectations to live up to, they have to prove all the fuss around them was well-deserved. Fortunately ‘Machinery’ meets all those expectations. The album is described by the band as a "gut-inducing slab of psycho funk." It's a dark sonic adventure that takes the listener through underground caves of blues, funk and electro where halal butchers, serial killers, whistleblowers, rats and sweat-covered bodybuilders cross paths. 24 MAR 2011 PANCHO'S Chicago, IL (USA) 30 MAR 2011 CHARLATAN - ALBUM RELEASE Gent (BE) 1 APR 2011 AB BRUSSEL WITH CHAPEL CLUB AB Brussel (BE) 6 APR 2011 BARFLY CAMDEN London (UK) 7 APR 2011 THE DEAF INSTITUTE Manchester (UK) 8 APR 2011 BODEGA SOCIAL CLUB Nottingham (UK) 9 APR 2011 THE LOUISIANA Bristol (UK)
Wicked - Fresh Body Shop (Nantes, France) Jamendo From the album Bring Me Down. I can’t actually find a lot about FBS. If you discover something, let me know and we’ll put it in this space ;) [ ] www.reverbnation.com/freshbodyshop www.jamendo.com/en/artist/freshbodyshop
Battle Royale - The Balconies (Ottawa via Toronto, Canada) Ottawa by way of Toronto's own, The Balconies broke from their time in the studio to play 3 sets at this year's Canadian Music Festival. Later this month they will play at JunoFest. The band has been holed up in a Toronto studio with well-known producer Jon Drew working on a 7 inch they will release in the spring and their full length album. We last heard from The Balconies a while ago on SnC 183. Since then they’ve released a rather fine video for that track at: http://youtu.be/Gxoo91od9kY and we’ll be looking forward to hearing the new recordings. http://myspace.com/thebalconies http://twitter.com/thebalconies
Cog in the machine - Will Knox (Williamsburg, New York) Will Knox has a new album releasing on Friday called Lexicon my copy just arrived – in the form of a comic book, with a download code. It’s very frustrating but I’m saving listening to it until I can give it my full and undivided attention.
Last Dance Mine – The Problems (Brooklyn, NYC) A rich and engaging blend of roots rock, pop, country, alternative, and even a splash of punk. That's the way lead singer and songwriter Frank Caiafa likes it. "We hate being pigeonholed into one category," Caiafa explains. "Because of this band's ability to play whatever the songs demand, the songs take on a life of their own." That dynamic fueled the creative process behind ‘Powder Blue Bone’, The Problems' second full-length independent release following the success of their self-titled debut in 2001. But whereas the first album was written and recorded in a short span of time, ‘Powder Blue Bone’ was a project three years in the making, with all sorts of twists and turns along the way. “My original concept was for more of a 'rock' record, bringing in friends and musicians that would help in that direction,” Caiafa recalls. A serendipitous meeting with Eddy Goldberg and Kate Kilbane, however, convinced Caiafa to reconsider his plans. “It became apparent quite quickly that those songs and that concept just weren’t in the cards,” he says, “so I wound up scrapping or rearranging almost an album’s worth of material to then fit into a more rootsy arena.” www.cdbaby.com/Artist/TheProblems
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Wed, 16 March 2011
Lots of interesting music and the Adnams Artist of the Month in this week's show. I went over to Southwold to record the AOTM interview yesterday. I bleak, murky and cold day but very atmospheric over the marshes at Blythburgh. I'm sure that it is the absence of clutter that makes the landscape of east Suffolk so attractive. Minimalism writ large (but in subdued tones).
Time To Kill Time - The Elwins (Toronto, Canada) Ontario independent pop act The Elwins are a part of a vital practice of D.I.Y. pop eccentrics whose '60s swoon-worthy melodies unabashedly ignore current trends in indie music. A trio that sounds more like four or five reminds one of exactly what can be very good about rock and roll; simplicity and solid songwriting backed by some naturally talented young musicians makes The Elwins a true gem among other independent artists. Their forthcoming album promises to take everything loved about the EP and live performances and turns things up to 10, taking it beyond anything we’ve heard from them thus far.
Magpie Eggs - Moddi (Sneja, Norway) Raised on the blustery, remote island of Senja in northern Norway, the land of the midnight sun and eternally dark winters, the bipolar land’s influence is evident as Pål Moddi Knutsen describes his music “as a huge band session, with noise and loudness, [while also being] so fragile and discreet that you might want to sing along in order to help it continue.” The quietly intense acoustic guitar, smoldering strings, and the haunting Norwegian-accented voice of Moddi began with his mother’s accordion, a stolen mandolin, a worn acoustic guitar, and a passion. After writing “Magpie Eggs” in 2006, he knew he was going to make an album he could be proud of. The expression ‘to be eating a magpie’s egg’ speaks to one’s ability to fight for something they do not believe. The song’s fluid melody, poetic lyrics, and erupting strings are definitive of Moddi’s music. His debut album, Floriography, released in 2010 in Norway on Propeller Recordings, has captivated audiences across his home country, prompting his “urge to share things with people who do not share [his] same passport color.” It is releasing elsewhere on April 11. http://twitter.com/moddimusikk
Marley footage Out of the woodwork has emerged some early footage of Bob Marley, shot in Jamaica by Esther Anderson, in 1973. The footage is, essentially, Super 8 format home movie material and the impression gained from the BBC video is that it has no sound. Esther says that she was making a movie to be shown in US colleges, and that may well have been her intention. I have no idea whether that ever happened or not. I certainly never saw the film crew she refers to on tour. She says she was instrumental in introducing Bob to Rastafarianism and was managing him on the 1973 tours. I remember seeing her around the Island studios in Basing Street but, as far as I can remember, generally not at gigs in the UK and certainly not on the US tours that I worked on. Chris Blackwell dealt with strategic management with Benjamin Foot taking main responsibility for tours. I worked closely with Ben, road managed and took care of the sound. I very clearly recall being responsible for much of the day-to-day functioning on those tours and staying stone-cold sober was the only way of holding it together. Oh well, I suppose we all remember things differently. If you’re in London on Saturday, Esther is showing the footage as "a film in progress" at the National Film Theatre 1 at 11am tickets are £3 or £4.50 depending on where you look! Full story on the BBC site at: www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-12748659
Dream-State Eternal - The City Music Project (Philadelphia, USA) The City Music Project began as a pairing of the prodigious songwriting and lyrical abilities of Fank Cervantes and the rich musical and rhythmic sound-scapes of Adrian Palashevsky AKA Golden Spiral. The project, a well-balanced hybrid of electronic and traditional musical components, is meant to be danced to and experienced live. Comparable to sounds of Thievery Corporation, Gorillaz, Pretty Lights, and MGMT’s Oracular Spectacular, TCMP’s live performance integrates vocals, instruments and studio/performance-based production hardware and software. It also incorporates elements of video art, live dancing, and lighting, along with cameo appearances from a number of different guest musicians involved, “giving the audience a transcendent experience,” describes Palashevsky. The City Music Project released their self-titled EP (including this track, Dream-State Eternal) in April 2010, followed by a successful run of shows in their hometown of Philadelphia which showed the duo’s potential together. Their full-length album Visual-Audio is set to be released in April, one year after the release of their EP. Live shows: 03.23.11 R Bar New York, NY 03.26.11 The M Room Philadelphia, PA www.facebook.com/thecitymusicproject
Making Myths - Team Genius (Brooklyn, NYC) DREW HERMILLER : Vocals, Guitars, Keys, Harmonica CHAD HERMILLER : Bass, Bells, Inspiration SCOTTIE D : Percussion and Dreams ERIN GRIFFITH : Keys EMMA FIRTH : Vocals, Guitar, Mandolin CHRIS HUDIK : Bass REBEKAH ALLEN : Trumpet, Accordion ELIZABETH ALLEN : Sax, Keys, Bass, Bells, Cello, Flute, etc. Team Genius will be releasing a series of 4 albums (3 EPs and an LP) starting in April. Catch these clever Brooklyn kids at the Paper Garden Records SXSW showcase on Friday, March 18th at Uncorked (900 East 7th St) or one of their other SXSW or NYC shows.
Note from Daryl Ramage We are ... huge fans of the most amazing bluesman I've ever heard. Matt Andersen is from New Brunswick, Canada and has recently won the solo category at the 2010 International Blues Challenge in Memphis. He is a huge bear of a man, huge voice, huge talent and the nicest guy you'll ever meet. I write to you today because I see on Matt's website that he is playing at the Crawdaddy Blues Club on March 24 in Billericay, not that far from you I believe. I can not say enough good things about this man. Look up some videos on youtube (here's a good one http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7lCHfnHb5Uw) and get on down to the Crawdaddy Club to see Matt. PS: Say hi to Matt and have a pint for me too, would you. www.myspace.com/mattandersenmusic
Devil's Bride - Matt Andersen (Bairdsville, New Brunswick, CA) New Brunswick, Canada's Matt Andersen has a larger than life showmanship that has been earning him a fervent and steadfast audience wherever he graces the stage. Matt's sprawling blues, roots and rock musical hybrid with his sorrowing and soulful voice and astonishing guitar-playing has sparked a phenomenal buzz on Canada's East Coast. Matt Andersen is a very real, rare, raw talent and career artist -- vital to our musical landscape. For more info on Matt and his music catalogue go to www.bustedflatrecords.com.
Boats but not the Ocean (Swept Away) - I am not Lefthanded (London, UK) The instrumental version of the track that caught the attention of Martin Wilkinson to earn I am Not Lefthanded the title of Adnams Artist of the Month for Feb 2011 and I’m delighted. We don't play pop music, we don't write music for art's sake, we don't represent any movements, we're not hip, we're not cutting edge, we don't dress to be cool. We manage ourselves, we write our own songs, we do our own recordings, we shoot our own videos, we design our own covers, we run our own website. We're not generally negative people. Oh yes, and we're not lefthanded. Fiercely independent, mostly-Irish but currently London-based, I Am Not Lefthanded are known for their homemade, quirky videos as much as their lyrical, evocative music. Described as sounding like ‘Natalie Merchant fronting Death Cab for Cutie’, they’ve toured around the UK and Ireland alone and with Duke Special, The Rumble Strips and The Answering Machine. In 2008, they released their debut mini-album, Yes Means No, on fast-rising UK indie Letterbox Records. Receiving airplay on London, Irish and Scottish Radio, as well the lead track Long Goodbyes, featuring on the soundtrack for ‘Cruelty’. They’re currently launching their follow-up EP, Time To Leave on an unsuspecting world... Kathryn - Vocals/Guitar/Piano Daniel - Vocals/Bass Benji - Drums The band are recording their new album live online. You can watch them write, rehearse and record at www.iamnotlefthanded.com/studiodiary.html A lot of their music is available on Jamendo at www.jamendo.com/en/artist/I_Am_Not_Lefthanded
Note from Dubamix I'm Greg (aka Dubamix). Thanks a lot for your show, i'm glad that you like my music ! Here is an approximate translation of the french text you can find on my web site (in attachment, you'll find a release of "Mix A Dub" album by dub-connection, if you want to understand better my project) : Result of an anarchist revolt and visceral love for dub, DUBAMIX was born in 2003. It's Dub reggae music inspired by roots music (Jacob Miller ...), as well as the electro dub of today (High Tone, Kanka ...). It's inspired too by classical composers as Haydn, Bach and Dvorak. The particularity of Dubamix is to incorporate extracts of politicians speeches (such as Sarkozy, the french president). Thus, Dubamix places them face their contradictions and oppose to them an anti-capitalist, anti-fascist message. Acting Dub - Dubamix (France)
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Wed, 9 March 2011
Suffolk’n’Cool 262 features previews from a few of the bands that will be playing Canadian Music Week in Toronto from today (9−13 March) and SXSW Music in Austin, Texas (March 15−20). Sadly I’m not at either festival this year but I did get down to the dock in Ipswich last night (the local equivalent of St Tropez) in time for a spectacular sunset.
Deep Sea Diver - Heifervescent (Southport, UK) Heifervescent is the never ending, ongoing, infinite, perpetual, and all those other words that mean a seemingly long time, music project of Andy Doran. Starting way back in the 90s, Andy was singer/guitarist with alternative rock band Monkeyland for about 6 years, followed by a spell of mixed media experiments, then the band called Cannula for about a year or two, and finally a solo project under the name of Heifervescent, from which there are currently four albums of material.The Heifervescent music is downloadable under the Creative Commons license. www.jamendo.com/en/artist/Heifervescent
CMJ discounted “ticket” reminder You have just a few days left to save up to 50% on badges to this year’s CMJ Music Marathon & Film Festival, held October 18 to 22 throughout New York City. Thousands of bands to see, dozens of films to watch, and countless amounts of radness to be had. You might well be busy later in the week, so get to it today.
Persian Blue - Bert Jerred (Oswego, NY, USA) Bert Jerred writes and records original music in his home studio. This “studio” consists of one room, a Fostex MR-8 (CompactFlash version), an inexpensive Nady microphone, and a desktop PC. In addition to writing and singing original lyrics, Jerred plays (or programs) all instruments and provides his own backup vocals. Since 2002, when he began experimenting with songwriting and home recording, Bert has released over 350 original songs for free under Creative Commons licenses, primarily through Jamendo.com. Bert’s music can also be licensed through Jamendo and JinglePunks. www.jamendo.com/en/user/bertjerred http://bertjerred.jamendo.net/
The Dead - Jordan Reyne (New Zealand and Hamburg, Germany) From her album “How the Dead Live”. If you heard Jordan Reyne featured on the show at the end of last year, you’ll remember. She’s just one of those artists. She is also artist of the month for October 10. As some of you may have heard, my co-investor pulled out of the album project half way through, and we are somewhat stranded. Any help you can offer is hugely appreciated. Even if you are broke too, just putting the word out by sharing the link on your social networking pages would be fantastic. www.indiegogo.com/jordanreyne-newalbum
Hole - The Big I Am (Liverpool, UK) Taking their name from what Liverpool mothers say to their kids when they get a bit above themselves as in ‘don’t you come the big I am with me lad’ and not a reference to God as some people have believed, The Big I Am have not looked back since forming in October 2008. Quoted as being ‘subtle, melodic and mysterious and sounding like Peter Gabriel and Steve Reich having an acoustic jam somewhere’
Soundwaves Amplify the Coast - it's a Suffolk thing The Soundwaves Ultimate Bands Contest has been launched for 2011 and project organisers are hoping to secure a wealth of new talent. Entrants will take part in heats before a grand final in September. The finalists will benefit from industry masterclasses and have the chance to record their songs in a studio. Past winners of the Soundwaves contest include Framlingham singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran – who is currently riding high in the iTunes charts with his latest EP – and Felixstowe-based rock band Stratosfire, who were the 2010 winners. Sophie Hargraves, Soundwaves project manager, said: “We are passionate about music and local talent and do everything we can to make it happen for aspiring youngsters. “We are always on the look out for the stars of tomorrow. We know we can play a part in providing valuable experience, contacts and exposure – all the ingredients to achieve your dreams.” She said Soundwaves was also keen to establish links with the county’s music festivals to give young talent a bigger stage. One of the heats has already happened but there are two more on Saturday, March 19, at Martlesham Community Centre, and Saturday, April 2, at Leiston Film Theatre. The final will take place in September and will be headlined by rock band Brigade, fronted by former Framlingham schoolboys Will Simpson and James Plant. The competition, supported by Suffolk Coastal District Council, is open to any artist living in the area, aged between 13 and 26, or bands with at least one member living in the district. All entrants must be unsigned and have three original songs they have written. To enter the competition, or to find out more about the Soundwaves project and masterclasses, bands and artists can email suffolksoundwaves@hotmail.com or contact Soundwaves on 07903 017838. http://suffolksoundwaves.co.uk/
Heart Attack - Lovett (NY, USA) The diverse nature and production of Lovett’s two latest music videos display their artistic range and creative momentum. Whereas Lovett’s first music video for “Eye Of The Storm” was epic with a cgi-laden narrative that took approximately one year to produce, “Heart attack” was made in one week with the straightforward theme of party, fun, and action. “Heartattack” is the second single off this debut album Highway Collection set for release on March 15th. The album includes contributions from bands as diverse as The Avett Brothers, The Mars Volta, and Cursive to Spiritualized and The Sonos Quartet. Keep on eye on Lovett and his all-star carnival band this year at SXSW as they are sure to spice up the festival with memorable shows and a parade of surprises. The circus is coming.
Hummingbird - Imaginary Cities (Manitoba, Canada) It is Canadian Music Week as the spring splurge of big showcase festivals gets underway in Toronto tonight. Manitoba band Imaginary Cities are going to be supporting The Pixies for the entire North American leg of their Doolittle Tour 2011. This will be their first tour in support of the album, Temporary Resident released a couple of weeks ago. They’re also playing at at CMW in Toronto with shows tomorrow and on Friday. Then they head down to SXSW in Austin, TX for shows at the Canada Blast BBQ on 16th and on 17th at Parish Underground then they’re out on the Pixies tour. www.twitter.com/imaginarycities www.facebook.com/IMAGINARYCITIES Manitoba Music There’s been a lot of ink spilled about Manitoba’s frozen soil producing hot music. We don’t think it’s really that cold here, but there is a long history of great acts coming from this Canadian prairie province, The 2011 Manitoba Music compilation features 20 diverse songs from some of most innovative and exciting artists the province of Manitoba has to offer: world class music fro‘m the centre of Canada. Diverse iscertainly what this album is featuring tracks from the likes of singer/songwriter Ruth Moody (The Wailin’ Jennys), rock poet Greg MacPherson, roots troubadour Scott Nolan, hip-hop trailblazer Wab Kinew, award-winning folk act Don Amero, and folk/pop maverick JP Hoe; alongside up-and-coming indie rockers Les Jupes, The Details, Royal Canoe, and Hope Atlantic, and songsmiths James Struthers and Del Barber. Manitoba Music has a state-of-the art resource centre, a dynamic website, a comprehensive series of industry workshops, a far-reaching market development program, and the only Aboriginal music program of its kind in the world.
Can't Remember That - Lou-is (Brooklyn, New York, USA) `Described as “New York's most endearing and quirky troubadour.”
AMPed Great to have Ro Cutler presenting the AMPed show this week. I’ll be there from Monday with show 274
Welcome to the Circus - Skittish (Minneapolis, MN, USA) Conceived as the third full length album in 2008, band-leader Jeff Noller worked overnight shifts in a factory to buy studio gear and a house in which to build his dream studio. Close to completing work on this more rock-based album, the recession hit hard; taking the job, the house, and current girlfriend from the already struggling artist. Timelines, street dates, and master plans shifted and these lifestyle tectonics led to the creation of a second, more folky, dark, and experimental side to “The Perfect Shade of Green.' This year Skittish will be playing at SXSW and touring nationally in the fall. We’ve got plenty of feathers in our respective caps from the 5 years that we’ve been together: With our unwavering DIY ethic, we built a home studio, self-recorded a professional quality double-album, built a website, made videos, got press, toured nationally, and scored licensing deals all in a matter of a couple years. www.sonicbids.com/skittishmusic
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Wed, 2 March 2011
The music this week is trawled from London Los Angeles, Chicago, Brooklyn, Nashville and Copenhagen and a fine catch it is too. There was a strange light this afternoon which is admittedly, slightly enhanced in this week's pic, taken just outside the barn. Oh, and one bit of late news the Tawny Owls are getting very interested in the nest box that is built into the barn again. Must be that time of year ;)
Alignments Bend - Anchorless (Copenhagen, Denmark) Anchorless is a 6-piece band out of Copenhagen forming late 2009. Starting out with just a single song on MySpace in December to show for themselves, the band has definitely not been wasting time. Within it’s first year of existence the band has embarked on a European tour, including shows in Germany, France, Luxembourg, Austria and Czech Republic. The band has released a 6-song EP on vinyl via PonyRec (Alcoholic Faith Mission, Marybell Katastrophy) and is furthermore giving it away as a free download with the idea of spreading the music as much and as fast as possible. The EP is licensed under Creative Commons and can be distributed freely as anyone wishes. From Kasper Find Rasmussen at Pony Records at www.ponyrec.dk/release_030.php
Naked - The YuYa (London, UK) After first meeting at a fancy dress wedding which ended in tragic circumstances, the duo of Constance and Eliseo formed The YuYa and decided to write about happy moments of acute sadness, disappointment and twisted emotions. Described as having influences which are untraceable but refreshing The Yuya have already branched out of the UK with gigs in countries such as Senegal, Gambia, Holland, Spain, Belgium and Italy where they recorded their debut album which will shortly be released. Since returning back to the UK in September, the duo have gone on to perform at Ronnie Scott’s and the Chelsea Arts Club to name but a few. With 2011 already shaping into a bigger and better year for them, you can keep up to date on their progress and find out more at:
Alone on a train - Leila Broussard (Los Angeles, USA) Acclaimed LA-based 21 year-old songwriter Lelia Broussard has been selected by Rolling Stone for their “Do You Wanna Be A Rock & Roll Star” Contest.” Announced recently, Lelia is one of sixteen unsigned artists chosen by the editors of Rolling Stone. Voters can rate the bands by going to http://www.rollingstone.com/choosethecover and eight artists will be eliminated by March 16th with only eight artists proceeding to the next round. The final round will see the last two artists compete in a battle of the bands on stage at the Bonnaroo Music Festival with the ultimate winner being the first unsigned act to ever appear on the cover of Rolling Stone. Oh, and there’s a recording contract with Atlantic up for grabs too - if she decides that she wants it. Lelia who just finished an appearance at the Hotel Café in Los Angeles is supporting her fourth independently released record, MASQUERADE. A deluxe edition CD version with bonus tracks (as well as the original ten tracks in the November 2010 digital release) will be available on April 5th through various independent record stores and on-line retailers in the United States. www.myspace.com/leliabroussard www.facebook.com/leliabroussardmusic
Todd Murphy, The Jazz Lawyer, posted about record deals this week. Strongly worded, very clear and, I think he’s right on the money. WHY DO ARTISTS STILL WANT A FUCKING RECORD DEAL? I don’t get it. Not a day goes by that I don’t get 5, 6, 7, or more calls or emails asking me to shop an artist’s demo to record labels. My response? What fucking planet have you been living on for the past two years?
Road - The Damn Choir (Chicago, IL, USA) A "mixed but not mastered yet" version of Road. It will be interesting to hear the fully mastered version when it is available. The Damn Choir's use of guitar, cello, keyboards, vocals and drums, along with Gordon Robertson's introspective lyrics, create songs that range from meandering and melancholic to pulsing and vengeful. Personally, I think it resonates with the emotion of life without getting you down at all. The effect is one of relentless optimism. Gordon Robertson - vocals & guitar Katy Myers - Cello Ryan Farner - Drums Steve Stokes - e. guitar 6 person Choir - Vocal. Jack McClain - Percussion “This is dark pop music—depressing lyrics to pop music”
Blood on my Hands - Dynamite Walls (San Diego, CA, USA) A sonic embodiment of the bright San Diego sunshine in which the band was formed, Dynamite Walls brings the world their first major label LP Chemicals after six years of working hard and playing harder. Tom Pritchard with Alex Blundell (guitar), Eric Pritchard (drums), Paul Kimmel (keys), and Allan Bates (bass) built a strong following in the San Diego scene, playing at venues like The Belly Up and The Casbah and in Los Angeles at Spaceland and The Viper Room. Determined to hit the road, they converted an “obnoxiously large” airport shuttle bus to run on veggie oil, recorded The Blinding Lights LP, and toured the country. Says Prichard, “We called it ‘the piece of shit death trap’ as there was basically no brakes and it broke down a lot. In this bus we became one with our mission. We met so many great people, played a ton of cities, and the bus was always the rolling after-party. It signified a lot about who we are. It was a lot of work, (try getting used grease late at night in New Mexico!), but it was from our own hands. We loved it, we hated it – such is life.” The band’s sophomore full-length is a diverse mix of influences resulting in indie rock that’s polished enough for a good hook and rough enough to keep you interested. www.facebook.com/dynamitewallsband (with free download of the track) http://twitter.com/dynamitewalls
Oyster Stout from Adnams I’ve really been enjoying this fabulous brew. Fergus, the head brewer points out that the mini-casks need special treatment: “This is a live, cask conditioned beer with yeast in. The shelf life will be less than 5 weeks as it as a live product, similar to what you would get on tap in the pub.” It tastes, feels and behaves just like a good beer from the pub. But please, keep using the pub. We are losing far too many and unless they are used they will be gone, as will the interesting breweries. http://cellarandkitchen.adnams.co.uk/page/adnams-beers
Let Back - A House for Lions (Los Angeles, CA, USA) Daniel Norman, now songwriter, vocalist, and guitarist of A House for Lions, moved to Los Angeles four years ago to pursue the Tinseltown dream that is all too familiar. Finding acting less artistically satisfying than he’d hoped, Daniel spent some time in Berlin with friends to escape the LA scene and clear his head. While walking through a park, the melody for the first track on the record, “Let Back”, stuck in his head and it never left. That is when the first inkling of A House For Lions was born. The song is about wanting to build something of consequence while facing an uncertain future and though that’s how most great dreams start, the future for A House for Lions now looks bright. It’s hard to believe that I Want Us To Be Remembered is A House for Lions’ first release. The band’s debut EP is the kind of indie folk rock that can make even the coldest heart melt. www.myspace.com/ahouseforlions www.facebook.com/ahouseforlions www.twitter.com/ahouseforlions
Cirque du Lune (part 2) - Azoora (Gothenburg (Sweden, Essex and Hertfordshire - UK) John Purcell from Azoora sent me a really interesting track from the new Azoora album. “A bit different this time, Ben and I have knocked up a few instrumentals. Don't worry though, Paul hasn't left the band or anything. He's just a very busy boy these days what with the little 'un and his uni coursework to contend with. So while we wait for new songs Ben and I have been keeping ourselves busy in the meantime. You can download free from: www.23seconds.org/056.htm The track I sent you is called Cirque fu Lune (part 2). And yes we know the first couple of bars are suspiciously similar to a certain well known piece of classical music (clue's in the name). Call it artistic license. ;) The full band will be back with a new release (of proper songs again) this summer. In fact we are recording one tomorrow. :) In the meantime there's six other tracks on the Instrumentals release to check out. (I'm not sure what you call a release with 7 tracks on it though, too short for an album, too long for an EP).” One more bit of useless trivia about it, towards the end it features a very unusual instrument called a Cracklebox, check one out on youtube: http://youtu.be/EO96lK0Fvx4
Glitch Shake - Pet Ghost Project (Brooklyn, NY, USA) Hailing from the Pacific Northwest, Justin Stivers started the Pet Ghost Project musings as a basement recording experiment around 2003. With comparisons to Neutral Milk Hotel, Animal Collective, Pavement and Tortoise (to name a few), the band has successfully carved out an endearing niche in a dark corner of the musical world that is entirely theirs. Once a member of The Antlers (bassist on Hospice), Justin has recorded and produced 6 albums to date. Acquiring the help of fellow multi-instrumentalist Justin Gonzales, along many other talented Brooklynites, has only further broadened the palette and expanded upon the raw, unbridled soundscapes of Pet Ghost Project. Pet Ghost Project retain a rare quality seldom found in the creative world these days. A passion for art that requires significant sacrifice, a gamble to win, a constant struggle against time itself. For the listener though, it is evident that the sacrifice is worth the reward. With the help of a few other Brooklyn multi-instrumentalists, the pair crafted an album that is more urgent and mature than anything Pet Ghost Project has released to date. These songs hit you with equal parts noise, texture, ambience, and unexpected left turns, all while remaining highly melodic and memorable. 4/9 - Brooklyn, NY @ Littlefield (The Brainwave Festival) www.facebook.com/petghostproject http://petghostproject.bandcamp.com/album/shelf-life http://twitter.com/petghostproject
Animal - Kopecky Family Band (Nashville, TN, USA) The Kopecky Family Band has released a limited edition, hand-assembled split 7” vinyl with friends, and Seattle locals Ivan & Alyosha on February 4 2011. Animal and I Was Born to Love Her feature on the two-track release. Both bands have long been vinyl enthusiasts and thought it the ideal time to offer their friends and fans a limited edition piece of music to not only listen to, but to keep as a creative addition to their music collection. The artwork was designed in-house by Kelsey Kopecky, and the vinyl was lovingly packed and assembled at Kopecky Headquarters. Kopecky Family Band is readying themselves for a busy 2011 after achieving much in 2010. The band kicked off the year at SXSW in Austin, wowed locals and industry execs at Next Big Nashville, and floored the likes of Bob Boilen at CMJ in New York. A solid work ethic and collaborative approach to songwriting resulted in two EP releases in the second half of the year - The Disaster and Of Epic Proportions. The band is now back in the recording studio and plans to release a brand new EP in April off the back of another stint at SXSW 2011where their showcase dates are: Wed 16th - 5.30pm - Paste Magazine Party @ Stage on Sixth Thurs 17th - 3.00pm - Mannatt Showcase @ The Blind Pig Thurs 17th - 4.55pm - Schubas Day Party @ The Yard Dog Thurs 17th/18th - 1am - Next Big Nashville @ Maggie Mae's Fri 18th - 3.30pm - Home Slice Pizza Party @ Home Slice Pizza Sat 19th - 4.00pm - The Deli Mag/MuseBox party @ Lipstick 24 On their way to Austin they’re playing dates in Cincinnati, NYC (Piano’s in the Lower East Side), Philadelphia, Greenville SC, Nashville and Memphis TN, Springdale and two dates with Ivan & Alyosha in Fayetteville AR and Tulsa OK. www.facebook.com/kopeckyfamilyband www.myspace.com/kopeckyfamilyband http://twitter.com/kopeckyfamily
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Tue, 1 March 2011
Here's part of one of the current batch of spam comments to Suffolk'n'Cool. I'd strongly advise NOT going to any of the urls. I simply don't have the time to go through and delete the number of comments that I'm getting, apparently from Eastern European spammers. I've had moderation switched on to spare you the tedium of reading pages and pages of spam. None of them ever get through to being posted. You'd think that would put them off, wouldn't you, but does it? Hell no. Today, for example has seen 160 very long comments identical to this one, containing nothing but urls posted to 160 different show episodes. They have to be deleted in groups of 4 or so. You can see that it takes quiet a time, every day. To be honest, only a few genuine comments get made anyway. This may be due to the very small "Comment" button that used to be on the site or perhaps I haven't prompted enough. I'm sure that every other podcaster and broadcaster will agree with me that getting comments and feedback from listeners is enormously encouraging. I know that I'm very, very grateful to everyone who has taken a few minutes to drop a comment in the shownotes. Thank you. I'll have a look at alternative ways of enabling comments and proper discussion on the site using a tool that filters out the spam. I'm thinking that perhaps a Wordpress blog for the shownotes would be the answer since it has a good anti-spam system. But then I've got to move over 5 years of pretty comprehensive shownotes from here to somewhere else. If you can suggest any simple solutions that can be applied relatively easily, I'd love to hear from you. Unless you are supposedly selling replica watches, fake degrees or Ugg boots ;) You can contact me by email to peter[at]suffolkandcool[dot]com Thanks so much for your time, we'll get back to the music tomorrow. Catch you then. Peter
Category:general
-- posted at: 6:49 PM
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