Stornoway, A Band On The Run - From Genre

Fuel Up (on Later With Jools Holland)

Stornoway are a band running from genre.  Genre has it's gifts and it's hindrances.  It can help people understand your music, it can help people who like similar bands discover you, it can help critics classify you. OK well that last one may not be a plus side but lets face it people like to classify stuff.  Be it types of South American tree, umbrella or in our case new bands. 

Stornoway have recently thoroughly disowned the folk labels that were thrust upon them from everyone from the BBC to the NME.  But why have they been pigeon holed into the wave of new folk artists?  Well because their debut album Beachcomber's Windowsill is undeniably folky, that's why.  I mean come on even the album name is folk to the hilt!  The production on the album is reminiscent of the Fleet Foxes and the parallels between contemporaries like Noah & The Whale, Sons of Noel and Adrian and Mumford & Son are their in the instrumentation; featuring songs with banjo riffs a-plenty in We Are The Battery Human,  fiddles in The Coldharbour Road and delicate acoustic guitars in The End of the Movie.  Stylistically they range between folk and the more raucous tracks like Watching Birds. 

I Saw You Blink (Official Video)

So this begs the question, what is folk music?  Well what does it bring to mind for you? For some when they hear the word folk they think traditional English folk music (which personally leads me to think of Morris Dancers and Maypoles), others think 60s folk revival.  Well the dictionary definition is as follows:

Folk

• plural noun 1 (also folks) informal people in general. 2 (one’s folks) one’s family, especially one’s parents. 3 (also folk music) traditional music of unknown authorship, transmitted orally. 4 before another noun originating from the beliefs, culture, and customs of ordinary people: folk wisdom.
  — ORIGIN Old English.

So then does modern folk music fit this definition?  Can we call Laura Marling and Mumford & Sons etc Folk?  Well no because we know who wrote their songs, they did.  Is their music traditional?  Well what's traditional? (Lets not go there right now we have enough on our hands with 'Folk'!)  Are they transmitted orally?  No.  We listen to their records.  So is anyone folk?  Arguably not by definition, no.

Zorbing (on Later With Jools Holland)

But who cares?  Stornoway like Marling and the Mumfords are all influenced by folk music, among many other genres.  So we should let Stornoway off with not wanting to be stereotyped as one of these new folk bands.  And their record has something none of the other bands have on theirs.  A Kazoo (on Watching Birds).

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Go listen to the album The Beachcomber's Windowsill now, available on spotify here.  They're also part of my nu-folk spotify playlist, along with a load of other great bands, which can be found here.

Interview with Shane Beales

Liverpool based Singer-Song writer Shane Beales has just released his 4th EP Heavy Clouds describing it as "honest melodic music".  He released the EP for free, and recently played a set for BBC Radio Merseyside. In 2006 he began Project52 which saw him write, record and release a song a week for a year and Muzikreviews.com described him as ‘Quite the up and coming artist’. In this interview I asked him about how he went about writing the EP and what spared him on. 

So in the beginning, what made you want to write songs?

I grew up in a musical family and everyone was writing their own songs so as youngest child, it just seemed the thing you did when you were old enough!

Who influenced you as you began writing?

I used to live in Melbourne and there is a folk pop band called “My friend the chocolate cake” and their lead singer David Bridie was a huge influence when I first started. Simple piano songs – beautiful!  Also Radiohead, Ben Folds and Dave Matthews band plus of course, Jeff Buckley.

What do you say your muse is, what inspires you when you write?

I am inspired singing about hope, change and being confrontational! (hope I don’t sound too much like a politician.)

What’s you’re instrument of choice parts of ‘Heavy Clouds’ seem piano led, while other tracks are definitely guitar led?

Both I guess – quiet and loud! Most of my songs lend themselves to either one or the other, though I used to happily play piano for hours on end without getting blisters, which is more than I can say for the guitar.

When you come to write a song do you find you always approach it in a similar way? Do you have a formula?

My only formula is to trust my instincts, I tend to write quite quickly and later rue all of my mistakes!

Do you find your approach to writing a song like ‘Across the Sea’ differs from writing a song like Crunch?

Yes  - the lyrics for across the seas were very much tied in with the music from the beginning – whereas I had the idea for The Crunch initially just instrumentally and had to find some lyrics just in the nick of time before it was time to record the vocals.

You released ‘Heavy Clouds’ as a free download, why did you do this?  Do you think artists should have to give away there music for free?

I released it as free download for promotional purposes to reach new listeners and also to question what monetary value music deserves. Why is 79p a track is the right price for a download or £10 for a CD?  

Do you think it’s a necessity with how today’s music industry works? I don’t believe it’s absolutely necessary to give music away for free, it should be a decision made on the merits of each project. I would hope people don’t feel that they are forced to give music away.

Your new album ‘Heavy Clouds’ is available now, what can listeners expect from the EP?

Heavy, sometimes musically, sometimes lyrically, confrontational and ultimately uplifting. With a variety of sounds and entry points…

How would you describe your music, genre wise?  Your latest release, Heavy Clouds, seems quite rocky.

Alternative singer-songwriter I guess, It’s honest melodic music from the heart. Sometimes aggressive, sometimes gentle, always sincere.

What's coming up for you, any gigs or recording?

In August I’m moving to London, promoting Heavy Clouds EP and preparing for an album is next. Also playing with my wonderful band!

You can download Heavy Clouds for free at Heavy Clouds.com, You can also find out more about Shane on his Myspace and Site.  Heavy Clouds is also being sold as a Remastered Limited Edition on CD with super artwork for £9)

Hustle & Cuss by The Dead Weather

Hustle & Cuss live at Coachella 2010

Hustle & Cuss is the first release from The Dead Weather’s Sea of Cowards follow up to last year’s Horehound, which debuted less than 10 months ago.  You can download the track for free here on DW’s site.  Instantly recogniseable as The Dead Weather, Hustle & Cuss is more funky than anything on Horehound, when I first heard it I was immediately reminded of the Black Keys whose songs have a similar dirty groove to them.  Sea Of Cowards is due for release on the 11/10th May.

For Fans of: Black Keys, White Stripes, The Kills.

'Kentucky Pill' by Johnny Flynn.

'Kentucky Pill' is the lead single from Flynn's  new album 'Been Listening'.  This catchy mandolin driven track with its uplifting trumpet riffs make a perfect sonic background for Flynn to sing his vivid and imaginitive lyrics over.  From the first roll of the drums and boom of the bass the song hearlds something new, the mandolin reminds me of west african music, this shows Flynn is making music with influence far beyond its country/folk roots.  I can't wait for the album in June.  

Also part of my 'Nu-Folk' spotify playlist - here.

Seth Lakeman at the Liverpool Urban Centre, 7/4/10

When I was asked if I’d like to review Seth Lakeman’s gig at the Liverpool Contemporary Arts Centre I jumped at the chance, having heard of the Mercury Prize nominated Folk Singer, but never getting the chance to listen his music I was interested to finally hear him.  I hadn’t heard his music before so I checked out his albums before the show, I’d like to be able to say I was impressed.  Even more so I’d like to be able to say my opinion was changed by his performance.  But I can’t.  When listening to his albums it struck me that something was missing.  I couldn’t put my finger on it.  But having stood just 5 feet from him during his set I realised what it was that was missing.  While he played a confident set with varied material I felt throughout the set that there was a spark missing that let the songs down.

Guy infront of me at the gig in a stupid hat.

The evening began with support acts that were comfortably similar to the headliners style  with The Kevin Critchley Outfit playing in a similar vein to Lakeman’s own brand of slightly rocky English folk.  They opened with an energetic set, with songs from their debut album Scars. With a depleted band, just guitar, violin & cello instead of their normal 5 piece the KCO performed a confident set, engaging and joking with the crowd between songs. They were followed by Dan Donnelly who played a solo set accompanied only by his loop pedal, which he used to create his own backing using the body of his guitar for percussion and layering several guitar parts up to create songs like ‘Cigarette’ and ‘Diamonds in the Road’.

I went for a sit down at the back half way through

Lakeman’s set began with a track, ‘The Hurlers’, from his current album Poor Man's Heaven.  He then announced that he was releasing his next album Hearts and Minds on June 14th before playing the title track. He played several more new tracks during the rest of the evening.  Throughout his set Lakeman switched between violin and guitar and while I felt he lacked a certain spark of conviction in his voice his fiddle playing made up for this. He was ably supported by his band and while his particular brand of contemporary English folk may not be my cup of tea, I can easily appreciate its appeal to so many of his fans.  His songs are well crafted and he and his band played a dynamic set, changing the tempo of the evening several times, slowing the mood right down only to bring things to a peak announcing ‘I hope you don’t mind another hoedown’ and ending the set with ‘Poor Man’s Heaven’ before returning for an encore with an up tempo ‘Race To Be King’.
While Seth Lakeman might not be to my taste he was certainly interesting to watch live and he kept his audience’s captivated throughout.

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This review was written for liverpoolacoustic.co.uk

Watchman - Peggy Sue

or 

Peggy Sue - Watchman from Brittney Bean on Vimeo.

My Band of the month, easily.  I heard about Peggy Sue about six months ago, I'd seen a few videos on Youtube and I knew there was an album in the works.  But I didn't pay them too much attention at the time.  But by accident they have become one of my favourite bands.  I was watching the Local Natives in Manchester last month and to my surprise Peggy Sue were the support act.  They have an energy on stage that's captured on their new album admirably.  Watchman is one of these tracks, the interplay between frontwomen Rosa Rex & Katy Klaw is attention grabbing.  The main refrain "I only came here to see you see me" is infectious.  The album as a whole reaches similar peaks with songs like Yo Mama & Matilda.  While Peggy Sue are part of the Nu-Folk vanguard they offer up something unique.  They have a raw edge, almost punky, sound which sets them apart from the others.  The album Fossils & Other Phantoms is availble now and is also on Spotify here.   Good Summer listening.

Also part of my 'Nu-Folk' spotify playlist - here.