Kate Mosh

Dananananaykroyd

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 22:39:00 +0100

...Who
you gonna
call?...

This commonly miss spelt, tongue twisting, Glaswegian sextet started life in January of 2006 when members James (drums) and David (guitar)'s former band ‘Multiplies’ disbanded. Railing against the archetypal Glasgow scenester, seemingly intent on standing stock-still at gigs and exhibiting the least amount of enthusiasm possible.. whilst sporting the haircut du jour, studying Franz B-sides and trying their hardest not to smile.. they started making music again.

The resulting Dananananaykroyd (pronounced dana-nana-naykroyd)) is a raucous, in your face (quite literally at some gigs ) double-drummered assault that they like to brand as ‘Fight Pop’

They thrive on the independence that identifies the truest hub of the Glasgow music scene – the bit that, in their own words, allows bands "to do exactly what they want to do, exactly how they want to do it, and always sound amazing at it, regardless of what London tells everyone is cool."

“Forging a new brand of stutter-rock that grabs you by the shoulders and shakes you until you puke” – NME

“A snarling beast of Black Flag-inspired riffs and positive indie-pop vibing” – Vice

“Genius wobble-punk from the Glasgow six-piece with a solid gold pop heart” - NME

To sample some ‘Fight Pop’ head on over to their Myspace page…

www.dananananaykroyd.co.uk

Debut Single 'Totally Bone' is out now via Moshi Moshi singles. The b-side to which is entitled ‘Hey Giles.’
2nd Single 'Some Dresses' is out now on Jealous.

MP3: Dananananaykroyd -Some Dresses

Hadouken

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 25 Apr 2007 23:56:00 +0100

...You’re not a gangsta
you live with your mum
and you work in ASDA...

Hadouken are: James (singing, Production and rants), Pilau (Tuneless thrashing, Vocals, and hairspray tactics), Alice (Square Synthesis, Keyboards and being late) and Nick (Drums and leader of the anti-weasel movement)

Less hyped than their counterparts The Klaxons, Hadouken mine the same late 80’s and early 90’s musical influences that the music press have chosen to conveniently label as ‘New Rave.’ Mistaking fluorescent clothes and raw energy for a rave revival this labelling threatens to kill off a scene in much the same way as it did early Electroclash.

Leeds based Hadouken, who take their name from a special ‘fireball’ move in the ‘Street Fighter’ computer game, are like a clash of The Streets and Dizze Rascal with a day glo clothing factory. Performing danceable grime, with songs that refer to ‘Indie Cindys’ and girls with Lego haircuts, they ridicule the conventional indie scene with an angry wit.

Their debut track ‘That Boy That Girl’ is being championed by Steve Lamacq on BBC Radio 1, and has been described as a ‘Snarling work of genius’ by the NME.

“It makes me want to smash bottles over my head. In a good way."

To find out more about the band - not much more mind you - visit their MySpace page.. and then take a magic marker to your trainers.…

www.myspace.com/hadoukenuk

MP3: Hadouken - That Boy, That Girl

Video: Hadouken - That Boy, That Girl

WinterKids

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 28 Mar 2007 20:58:00 +0100

...In the middle of the
night she said leave it out,
leave it...

WinterKids are a 5 piece band from a small Countryside Village called Peaslake in Surrey (yes, that’s “Peaslake,” as opposed to CabbageStream or CourjetteRiver) The band, comprised of James Snider – Vocals, Hannah Snider – Keyboards, Bradley Osborne – Guitar, Chris Muldoon – drums and Tom Downer – Bass, say they “write music for all to sing and dance to.”

They’re not wrong.

Winterkids remind me of what I liked about ‘Dogs Die In Hot Cars’ from a few years back, they have a kind of home counties naivety and charm, creating witty and simplistic lyrics that bound along on a wave of jangley indie pop. They seem to be running the operation on a shoe string out of their dad’s garage, and like Dogs die In Hot Cars they may only glimpse a peak at the big time, which would be a shame as there music is inspired. ‘Tape It’ is an infectious jaunt of a track, it struts and bleeps in all the right places with a chorus that spirals round and round like a spinning child, all flaying arms and buckling at the knees, leaving you feeling woozy and staggering sideways afterwards. James Snider howls vocals with the exuberance and knowing of youth while Hannah Snider plays a mean xylophone.

The UK indie press, keen to be the first to catch the new Arctic Monkeys has conveniently labelled them the new Pulp. Which, quite frankly, they are not. Ok, so they have a bit of an art rock thing going on, fair enough, but they are several stones throws away from the dark intensity of Jarvis Cocker both lyrically and musically. Winterkids are, if anything, the infectious, breezy and uncomplicated counterpart to Pulp, and they are all the better for it.

They romance early 20’s angst with a swagger and style that suits the ‘Skins’ generation more than the early 30’s art school types that Pulp aspired too.

Winterkids debut album ‘Memoirs’ is out soon and the band will be playing at this years SXSW festival in Austin, Texas if you’re state side and want to check them out.

If you’re in the UK then head on down to the Buffalo Bar on the 11 May.

"Reminiscent of the Buzzcocks at their most bustling" - NEW YORK DAILY NEWS

"expect to hear it soundtracking televised teen trauma by 2007" - NME

"plinks along like the Cure on the happy pills" - THE FLY

MP3: Winterkids - Tape It

MP3: Winterkids - Brainwashed Since 17

Video: Winterkids - Tape It

Emmy The Great

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 22:08:00 GMT

...i'll think of this and
I will cry, perhaps i'll
drop my toast...

Emmy The Great is the heroine of London's anti folk scene, with a whistful charm akin to being slowly buldegoned to death by a cute lamenting, and mildy unhinged, art student. Hiding behind the twang of an acoustic guitar these odes to youth culture pull no punches and behind their cutesy charm lies a darker passion.

"I will pour whiskey on your grave" sings Emmy to a dead lover, whilst whisking the deceased's father of to the bedroom to deal with the confusion of grief between the sheets. Her lucid way with words manouerves itself across you body like a creeping mist, each line another wave of the odinary yet tinged with a raw emotion.

Born Emma-Lee Moss in Hong Kong, as a child she emigrated with her family to London. She has collaborated with several other artists, namely Johnny Flynn, Jeremy Warmsley and Helen White. She has also supported Martha Wainwright, Mystery Jets, Tilly and the Wall, Jamie T and Kimya Dawson, and can be seen on the upcoming Camden Crawl tour in April.

"Honey voiced angel of British Anti-folk." - NME

"Emmy simply has a great voice — one that just lulls and droops over her guitar" - The Stypod

www.emmythegreat.com

MP3: Emmy The Great - Edward is Deadward

Dragonette

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 21:12:00 GMT

...kissed
the boys and
made them cry...

Spurned on to record music in the wake of the Canadian shaming that was Nickleback, Dragonette are a duo, (assisted by drummer Joel Stouffer and guitarist Will Stapleton) who make sharp, sardonically witty electronic pop music.

“We met at a festival,” says Martina “I was the only chick on the bill, and I was singing what we affectionately call ‘tampon music’… You know, singer-songwriter, Ani Di Franco, Lilith Fair, Jewel-type music… tamponics!”

Dragonette skipped past the normal route of gritty bar gigs and fell into the music industry at the deep end. Their second-ever show was supporting New Order at NYC’s Hammerstein Ballroom, followed by a massive US tour supporting Duran Duran. “I’ve had a crowd of 15,000 people in the palm of my hand” says Dan. However the Duran Duran fan base refutes this claim in Blogs posted after the event, “This ******* terrible band from Canada opened… It was fronted by a slut wearing panties, and she was singing songs about Jesus and sex” wrote one reviewer.

Martina also wrote and sang lead vocals on a recent Basement Jaxx track, “Take Me Back To Your House”, and at the time had no idea that it was to be a single. Suddenly she was in the video cossack-dancing in front of a tank driven by Stalin!

As for the name…“Martina called her iPod that,” says Dan. “I saw it plugged in on her computer, and I thought ‘Wow, that word looks ******* cool.’ Then we post-rationalised it and said it was about this female-fronted male power band. It’s a fire-breathing dragon, but it’s a chick!”

“A dragon in stilettos,” says Martha.

To hear some ‘witty electronic pop’ visit their websites here…

www.dragonette.ca
www.myspace.com/dragonetteband

Dragonette release their first-ever single, ‘I Get Around’ on 30 April with the album following on 16 July.

The band are set to appear in a Breaking Acts feature in the Sunday Times Culture Section on 11 March.

MP3: Dragonette - True Believer

Diane Birch

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 8 Mar 2007 23:33:00 GMT

...I wish
I could
pushrewind...

What the world needs now, in the already overcrowded female music genre, is another pouting classically trained pianist.

No?

Not to be confused with other pouting classically trained pianists that frequent Jungles, Diane is waiting in the wings for her turn at Stardom in 2007.

With a list of influences that range from Beethoven to the Sisters of Mercy, taking up Nina Simone and The Cure on the way also, Diane lets her varied taste radiate from her piano playing.

Diane had a diverse upbringing growing up in Zimbabwe, South Africa, Australia and then Oregon and Los Angeles. Diane studied "Suzuki" (an ear training method, not a motorcycle) in classical piano, giving her the ability to play completely by ear without reading a note.
As her tastes became more diverse she began to cultivate her own unique style of piano playing. However, despite composing and playing gigs, Diane was completely unaware she could actually sing.

“I begun to realise I could sing, but it took me a while to work out that I was good enough to be taken seriously”… “I remember seeing the faces of people who thought I was 'just' a pianist with their mouths hanging open.”

Diane continued to play in LA's most up-market hotels and bars by day, whilst winning fans and impressing the music industry by night. She certainly impressed one diminutive pop genius with her barside performance, causing Prince to invite Diane back to his house to jam with his band.

'Diane has a voice and songwriting ability that will connect with truly global audiences. One of 2007's strongest new finds' – Music Week

‘Its not often that something completely bowls us over but in the first week of this new year Diane Birch has done just that’ – The Downloader

Diane recently performed her first London shows to unprecedented reception and acclaim. She is currently unsigned and is busy writing and recording new material.

www.myspace.com/dianebirch

MP3: Diane Birch - Rewind

Video: Diane Birch - Sweet River Tree

Plastiscines

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 3 Mar 2007 15:01:00 GMT

...Viva
la revolution
!...

A burgeoning new Paris scene is embracing live music in a big way.

Setting themselves up as the saviours of French rock, young bright things across Paris are meeting to express themselves, and now they are coming here to show us how it’s done.

With an explosion in numbers of live venues in Paris, France has birthed a new generation of young French rock acts, of which Plastiscines are leading the way.

It was at a Libertines concert in 2004 that three high school mates from the Paris suburbs, Zazie, Marine and Katty, met Louise, who had just traded in her harp for a bass. The quartet had barely been formed when it was spotted by Maxime Schmitt, Kraftwerk's producer, who promptly took them under his wing. Not long after EMI also realised their potential and signed them up to the Virgin Label In France in October 2006.

This just-out-of-school all-girl pop rock band composes short jumping numbers with a tart taste similar to the B-52s and the exhilarating energy of the Slits. With a sound reminiscent of all their many inspirations, the Ramones - The Kinks - Stooges - Libertines - Cramps - Buzzcocks - Television - The Clash - White Stripes, and with obvious similarities to Blondie and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs they are not far from being The Strokes of France, albeit a female one.

The "Paris Calling" compilation is the first studio album by this French live scene, and a number of artists (Second Sex, Hellboys) featured on the album will be troubling festivals up and down Britain this summer. The interest in playing shows in Britain is seen as a direct reaction to the struggling French Radio, whose quota system, which governs the stations, states that 40% of all songs played must be in French. Thereby stifling the amount of airplay English singing French acts can get.

Plastiscines release their debut single ‘Loser’ and album ‘LP1’ on February 12 and they play the Borderline on May 4.

“The explosive ‘Shake and Rake’ elegantly delivers rock'n'roll in high heels that is chic and torrid” – Because Music

To hear forthcoming French single ‘Loser’ and ‘Lost in translation’ head on over to their MySpace page here

For more photos and the video to loser visit their EMI ecard…here

MP3: Plastiscines - Loser

Video: Plastiscines - Loser

Uffie

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 3 Mar 2007 14:18:00 GMT

...Uffie's
shoutin Uffie's
banging...

The self crowned queen of minimalised rap, who found a world-wide audience through MySpace, is neither shouting nor banging. Her style is pared down, deconstructing rap conventions by virtue of an almost whispered staccato delivery.

Uffie, real name Anna-Catherine Hartley, was influenced by the big beats of the South, growing up in Miami she moved to Paris to pursue a career in fashion.
For one of her fashion events, she booked French DJ Feadz and the two hit it off immediately. When Feadz and fellow producer Mr Oizo needed a vocalist for one of their new projects they invited Uffie to perform vocals, the song ‘Pop The Glock’ was the combined result.

In 2006, she debuted with the singles ‘Pop the Glock’ and ‘Ready to Uff’, released on French electro label Ed Banger Records (The people behind French electro stalwarts ‘Daft Punk’) Two more new tracks from Uffie, ‘Hot Chick’ and ‘In Charge’ became available through online MP3 blogs in July.

The 18 year old potty mouthed chanteuse, behaving like the kid sister of Princess Superstar or the great grand daughter of Peaches, has drawn much attention for the song “ready to uff” which consists of little more than a tirade of repetitive expletives.

“To me it’s just ******* powerful... I just say what girls think but are too scared to admit”

Uffie could be the next M.I.A (the Sri Lankan Mercury Prize nominee) if all goes well or the next Jentina (famously disastrous rapping failure) if all doesn’t go well. Jentina was lambasted by the rap community for lyrics not dissimilar to Uffie’s and went from being EMI’s one to watch and NME’s “best thing since the Sugababes” to being unceremoniously dumped by her record label and owning a MySpace page with one friend on it.

You can check out Uffie’s much more visited MySpace page here…

www.myspace.com

Uffie is working on an album due out in 2007 and promises a wider repertoire than her previous four letter word monologues.

MP3: Uffie - Ready To Uff

MP3: Uffie - Pop The Glock

Operator Please

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 22:07:00 GMT

...We'll bring the chips
and fizzy drink you bring the
PARTY TIME!...

All of them barely 16 - 18 years old apiece, this band of upstarts mix of raw energy and DIY Punk ethic has attracted a fanatical following down under.
Drawing comparisons across the board to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and the B52s, their rise from nowhere is meteoric and global success is merely a formality now.

Brisbane based five piece Operator Please began life as a band in the depths of the Elanora high school music block preparing for the schools annual battle of the bands competition back in 2005. A competition they only entered because they were tired and fed up of watching “the cool kids conducting a popularity contest”

After winning the said competition in front of a phenomenal crowd of 15 and walking away with a box of doughnuts, the band were, in their own words, “made as permanent as a permanent marker”

Earlier this year they posted a few tracks on MySpace and the international
music industry soon came knocking at their gold coast door. The youngsters were immediately flown to New York to showcase in front of a conglomerate of labels, finally signing with EMI for Australia and New Zealand and making a UK deal with uber-cool indie label Brille Records (home of The Knife, Good Shoes and Whirlwind Heat)

A stint of tour blogs on Youtube has boosted interest in them worldwide, but with an official website currently in the making Operator Please have only this to say at present:

“We like lots of things from kitties to cheese but most of all we love each other.

And playing music.

And playing shows.

And you.”

“Operator Please is what would happen if the Pixies and the B-52s had an Australian lovechild” – Attack and Conquer

To sample some more of their music , head over to their MySpace Site…

www.myspace.com/operatorplease
www.operatorpleaseband.com

'Just a Song About Ping Pong' double 7-inch single is out in the UK now through Brille Records.

The 'Cement Cement EP' featuring 'Get What You Want' is out in Australia through Virgin Records on February 24.

MP3: Operator Please - Just a Song About Ping Pong

MP3: Operator Please - Get What You Want

Video: Operator Please - Crash Tragic

St Vincent

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 20:34:00 GMT

...Sleep while
I slip poison in
your ear...

St. Vincent is the solo project of singer-multi-instrumentalist-composer, Annie Clark, described as an 'ethereal marriage of Jeff Buckley and Bjork'

23 year-old Annie has been seen opening for such acclaimed and diverse acts as Television, Jose Gonzalez, and is currently supporting Sufjan Stevens all across Europe.

An inventive and versatile guitarist, Annie has played with avant-garde composer, Glenn Branca, and is a member of symphonic pop spectacle, The Polyphonic Spree.

Songs like “Paris Is Burning” and “Your Lips Are Red” showcase her wonderfully infectious and evocative lyrics, tinged with dark romance and sweeping eerie undertones. ‘Paris is burning’ is a carefully constructed epic that imagines a wartime waltz as the French capital descends into beautiful chaos, swirling and jaunty guitars are punctuated by Annie’s sweet voice as the song descends into a spinning 50’s fairground ride.

Her live shows see her utilising her signature instrument, a miked woodblock beneath her feet that amplifies ever stomp into a driving bass beat. She also alternates her singing between a regular microphone and a Copperphone to achieve a nostalgic and atmospheric air to her vocals.

To sample some of Annie’s music, head on over to her MySpace page below, or read about her adventures on tour with Sufjan Stevens on her blog…

www.myspace.com/stvincent
lovelettersofstvincent.blogspot.com

St. Vincent’s debut album, Marry Me, is due out in early 2007.

MP3: St Vincent - Paris Is burning

Kate Nash

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Thu, 25 Jan 2007 21:38:00 GMT

...I wish that you knew
when I said two sugars,
actually I meant three...

Described as the “Garageband Lily Allen” and "like John Lydon and Joni Mitchell hanging out in a bus shelter,” Kate Nash is a girl on the rise.

Swamped with press attention of late, she has been hyped as Lily Allen’s natural successor. Despite some obvious similarities, the whimsical approach to lyrics and self deprecation for instance, her musical style could not be further removed.

Gritty sparse rhythms and synth bass replace Allen’s pop sensibilities, aligning Kate in a far more quirky neo electro folk camp. Debut release ‘Caroline’s a victim’ bears no real comparison to Allen’s ‘Smile.’

19 year old Kate Nash could have side stepped music entirely, auditioning at the Bristol Old Vic in February 2006 as an actress. Failing the audition, and breaking her foot falling down some stairs on the same day, led her to be bed ridden for three weeks. She has her parents to thank for launching her music career as they bought her a guitar to pass the time, causing her to write and record on her laptop.

Kate’s lyrics have a rambling yet poetic nature that reflects the everyday banality of teenage life. Whether they are about dancing at discos and eating cheese on toast, or having someone check out her bum, Kate captures the essence of the normal and somehow makes it beautiful.

Sensing a kindred spirit Lily Allen got hold of one of Kate’s demos and backed it wholeheartedly by placing it in her MySpace top 8. “Apparently she’s always bigging me up, which is really nice” says Kate.

“A blend of shimmery lo-fi soundscapes, lullabic vocals and sparse instrumentation has already marked her as a breed apart” - Hot Press

“Kate Nash knocks spots of the competition” - NME

“Fresh, honest and experimental” - Vogue

MP3: Kate Nash - Merry Happy

MP3: Kate Nash - The Shit Song

MP3: Kate Nash - Caroline's a Victim (Tapedeck Remix)

Video: Kate Nash - Caroline's a Victim

Air Traffic

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 10 Jan 2007 21:08:00 GMT

...Your
face my
place...

Air Traffic are: Chris Wall (Vocals, Piano, Guitar) David Ryan Jordan (Drums) Jim Maddock (Bass) Tom Pritchard (Guitar)

One of many bands tipped to be the ‘Artic Monkeys of 2007’, Air Traffic are among the few actually living up to the hype.

Originally from Bournemouth, this piano-led, indie-rock quartet got their name from the air traffic control signals that they would pick up while they were rehearsing in abandoned industrial units next to an airport.

They released ‘Just Abuse Me’ which was declared “the hottest record in the world” upon its release last July by DJ Zane Lowe. Currently supporting Snow Patrol the band is also being championed by the likes of Steve Lamacq & Jo Whiley, plus they have been hotly tipped by NME, who likened the band to “Supergrass covering Little Richard”

Since their signing earlier this year to EMI the band has spent much of the summer hidden away recording their highly anticipated debut album at Rockfield studios in Wales.

2007 will see further UK tours, their first tour dates in Ireland, Europe and the US plus their first official single release and their eagerly awaited album debut.

To hear ‘Just abuse me’ and ‘Never even told me her name’ visit their MySpace page…

www.air-traffic.co.uk

Air Traffic release a new single ‘Charlotte’ on Feb 26th and are touring extensively throughout February including a performance at the NME brats show.

MP3: Air Traffic - Charlotte

Video: Air Traffic - Never Even Told Me Her Name

George Pringle

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 5 Jan 2007 20:22:00 GMT

...I'm going to
kick that indie witch in
the tits...

Once you pop you just can’t stop.

No that’s not Keira Knightley gone mad with a marker pen, its Georgina Pringle, and she is about to be huge.

Probably.

With a rising MySpace fan base and shed loads of quirkiness 2007 could well be her year.

George Pringle is a girl from SW10, currently studying in Oxford, where she used to sing with Oxford based band ‘ this town needs guns.’ Nowadays she can be found creating metaphor-strung monologues over laptop tracks composed in her bedroom. Her homebrew of shoegazing poetry (referencing anything from Audrey Tatou to Sonic the Hedgehog) and electronica has seen her MySpace page rack up fans. Drawing inspiration from M83, Bjork, Patrick Wolf and The Kills, her songs are defined loosely as ‘Blogtronica’, a diary styled train of thought set to minimal musical accompaniment.

"I know who Mogwai are too, darling" is a scathing attack on the indier-than-thou scene. She pours scorn on those who “Wear a dead granny’s dress to the indie discothèque” whilst also lamenting a kidnapping whereby her hair was forcibly dyed black to the tunes of Belle and Sebastian.

Despite the fact she's only uploaded a few demos to MySpace and played 4 gigs, which she does as a twist on karaoke, she alerted the attention of PiL’s manager who flew from LA to see her. Her photo friendly face has adorned the pages of NME and Loud & Quiet magazines, plus she features in a forthcoming Guardian article highlighting women who are all tipped to make it big in 2007.

"Leftfield glitch-folk with bite”

“Anyone who can say the words "Belle and Sebastian" with such transparent disdain has to be worth a listen”

"Her performance was a lot like a joke that everyone gets but you. But from what I saw, she was hot, so I forgive her."

MP3: George Pringle - Kill Her If You Can Loverboy

To read ten facts you didn’t know about George Pringle, and hear some tracks, visit her MySpace page…

www.myspace.com/georgepringle

Mika

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Wed, 3 Jan 2007 14:33:00 GMT

...Why don’t you
like me? Why
don’t you like me?...

Introducing the man who sang the orbit chewing gum jingle (for which he got paid £45)

With the weight of Music industry hype weighing heavy on his shoulders Mika is destined to be the voice of 2007.
A songwriter, performer, producer and orchestrator, this self-taught piano virtuoso with a staggering four-octave range just has to be heard. Straddling a line somewhere between the Scissor Sisters, and Freddie Mercury, his intimate first person and third person storytelling is the freshest sound around.

Mika grew up in Beirut in the middle of a war, his father was taken hostage and held at the American embassy in Kuwait, forcing a move to Paris and then finally to London. It was here, with the help of a “terrifying” Russian music teacher, that he found his musical desire, catapulted onto the stage of a Richard Strauss opera at only 11 years old. At 19 he nearly abandoned music leaving home to study for an academic degree at The London School of Economics. He quit on the afternoon of the first day and enrolled at The Royal College of Music two weeks later.

A welcomed, and retrospectively essential, early record deal saw him pitted against the music industry: “The bosses would try and twist me into a direction that went totally against my nature. Basically, they wanted me to follow whatever was popular at the time. And at the time what was popular was Craig David, so my depression was pretty deep.”

Mika’s myspace site has generated an incredible 650,000 plays in less than 6 months, he has been named the best new talent in the BBC's Sound of 2007 music poll, and to top it all download single ‘Grace Kelly’ has gone straight in at Number One on the iTunes singles chart.

‘he is going to be a huge star’ - Rob Da Bank

‘he’s pops new saviour’ – i-D magazine

‘a glorious new pop star’ - Observer Music Monthly

‘jaw on the floor performance’ - NME

To hear some Mika simply turn on your radio or visit the websites listed below:

www.mikasounds.com
www.myspace.com/mikamyspace

Single ‘Grace Kelly is physically released on Jan 29, the album ‘Life in Cartoon Motion’ follows on Feb 5.

Mika embarks on a nationwide tour in February and will play a sold out show at KoKo in London on Feb 22.

MP3: Mika - Lollipop

MP3: Mika - Grace Kelly (Pull Tiger Tail Remix)

Lucy And The Caterpillar

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Sat, 25 Nov 2006 12:41:00 GMT

...I could be singing
this for hours and hours
and hours...

Emerging from her pupa with quickening pace, Lucy is a music industry butterfly in the making.
Having recently supported Get Cape, Wear Cape, Fly and with a raft of XFM sessions under her belt, Lucy and her Caterpillar have been winning audiences over across the country.

The caterpillar itself is not actually an invertebrate but in fact her pet name for her trusty miniature acoustic guitar, on which she strums folk hinged pop songs extolling the virtues of kit kats and alcohol.

Lucy Conroy, the diminutive 19 year old singer songwriter with a penchant for even more diminutive guitars, is Burnley’s brightest star. Drawing comparisons with Regina Specktor and hailing herself as a cross between Vashti Bunyan and Destiny’s Child, Lucy in reality has a style all of her own.

Her MySpace page, adventure blog and website, all but scratch the surface of Lucy’s youthful exhuberance and quirky outlook on life. Effortlessly bittersweet and delivered with a healthy dose of self deprecation Lucy packs a heartfelt and unpretentious punch. At a recent gig she decide to perform a Cher cover, only to stop mid way and ask the audience what the lyrics were.

Lucy recently performed a showcase at ‘In The City’ following with a single ‘Red Red Wine’, which was released on Nov 6. Head on over to YouTube to witness her no expense spared video for ‘Red Red wine’, costing a hefty £4.99 (the price of the bottle)

Go here to read all about Lucy’s adventures in the not so wide world of music…

http://lucyandthecaterpillaradventures.blogspot.com

www.lucyandthecaterpillar.co.uk

You can also catch Lucy live on BBC 6 Music on 28 Dec and at the Water Rats on 7 Feb.

Video: Lucy And The Caterpillar - Red Red Wine

Bat For Lashes

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 10:20:00 GMT

...Heaven
is a feeling I get in
your arms...

Imagine the combined voices of Bjork and Tori Amos trapped in the body of Lilly Allen and you’re halfway into the world of Bat For Lashes.

Brighton based Natasha Khan, who is Bat for Lashes, matches all three of these contemporaries on eccentricity.

Her journey into music apparently began whilst working as a nursery school teacher, when, in a dream she had a visitation from a black horse. The horse, on arriving at her window ledge, escorted her away into the night.
The resulting song ‘Horse and I’ is the opening track on her debut album entitled ‘Fur and Gold’.

Bat For Lashes’ live shows, with accomplices Ginger Lee and Abi Fry, are made up of thunderous marching band drums, desert guitar, ballet school piano, harpsichord, sub-bass snarls, hand-claps and naive beats. Natasha immerses herself in a dreamlike world on stage characterising herself somewhere between a feral forest creature and a child playing dress up. Covered in war paint and sporting an Indian headdress it comes as no surprise that she was a performance artist before turning her hand to music.

Her debut single, ‘The Wizard / I Saw A Light’, was self released in May as a 7” and instantly sold out. The song itself comes across like a sweeping post modern version of Kate Bush’s Wuthering Heights, all electronic resonance and otherworldly whispered vocals.

Bat For Lashes create an evocative and enchanted nocturnal realm transporting you into a world mid way between sleeping and waking. Recurrent themes of natural forces and animal kingdoms, rugged English cliff tops and engulfing oceans are juxtaposed by the energy of rough urban living and teenage bedrooms.

Natasha describes her music as “like a gun that fires wolves” and cites ‘weather phenomena’ and ‘childhood Halloween parties’ as among her greatest influences.

For more details you can visit the Bat For Lashes website:

www.batforlashes.co.uk

MP3: Bat For Lashes - The Wizard

MP3: Bat For Lashes - What's A Girl To Do?

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Someone Still Loves You Boris Yeltsin

noreply@blogger.com (Unknown) — Fri, 20 Oct 2006 08:50:00 +0100

...Oregon girl
with your lips and
your curls...

SSLYBY are John Robert Cardwell (vocals) Philip Dickey (Drums) Jonathan James (bass) and Will Knauer (guitar), where their affection for the 75 year old reclusive and infamously unsober ex soviet leader comes from is anyone’s guess.

The band released their debut album, Broom, which was recorded in an attic, originally in March 2005. They posted a few MP3’s on their incredibly lo-fi website and shortly after the blogging world quickly propelled them to internet indie stardom.

“Internet fame doesn’t make sense to us,” says Philip Dickey, “I don’t think our lead singer has an e-mail address.”

Someone still loves you Boris Yeltsin claim to be the third best band on their street, not knowing who the other two are I can’t really compare, but this modesty is further apparent in their music. They cover similar ground to bands such as ‘The Shins’, with beautifully heartfelt songs delivered with a schoolboy yearning.

It comes as no real surprise after listening that in fact all the songs contained on the album were written for one particular girl – a former girlfriend of drummer/vocalist Philip Dickey. He says about the Band “We want to write songs that you know no one else can come up with – a song that really matters to one person” Judging by the amount of web attention the band are drumming up it appears to be working.

As for Boris Yeltsin himself my favourite quote is from US deputy secretary Strobe Talbot who said, during the Clinton years, that “Yeltsin was so drunk when he arrived in the airport in September 1994 that he could barely get off the plane. The same night Yeltsin was staggering around in his underpants shouting for pizza”

To find out more about SSLYBY check out their very non commercial website here

Their album ‘Broom’ gets re-released on October 24, with extra tracks. You can listen to clips from the album at the website above.

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