Pipapelli

Every so often I receive an email from a band that is very different to the usual norm in this case Pipapelli were definitely one of these bands.  I had never heard of a band putting bagpipes through a wah pedal before until now. This is especially unique when you consider this bands influences being blues and Celtic.  None the less this strange mix actually works very well. You can see a strong influence of Led Zeppelin throughout some of their work especially within their track “Black Lagoon”.

Since the release of their album “Critter” in June 2011, the band has obtained a new bassist (who also plays the trombone) and a new guitarist/saxophonist.  To add to this “Critter” has been met with extremely good sales and regularly featuring on radio shows across the USA and even in my very own native country of Scotland.

The band list several TV appearances, playing the 2^nd Annual Highlands Celtic Festival at Black Mountain were they opened for Albannach and Rathkeltair to a crowd of approximately 1500 and the released of their album as their biggest achievements to date. 

Pipapelli are most definitely one of the most interesting bands that I have come to write about in a long time. Their views about the unsigned music scene going back to roots music and starting from there are definitely something I am starting to see from a lot of artists.

The band can be found on the official website, facebook and also their Sound Cloud account.

Songs For the Sleepwalkers - Our Rehearsed Spontaneous Reactions

If you have every read this blog before then you may remember way back in April last year I wrote an article about a young Swedish artist named Andrea Caccese. Since then Andrea has come back with a new name and a new release.

Songs For the Sleepwalkers is the new stage name for this fantastically talented young man.

                             

“Our Rehearsed Spontaneous Reactions” was released 12^th January and includes two of the tracks I reviewed in the previous artist from his EP “Icarus Falling / Set the world on fire”.

I am glad to say that this new release is just as beautiful as the EP was.  I really adore the sheer detail that has gone into every element of his work and the way the vocal beautifully blend into the instrumental arrangements.

If I have one wish for this year it is that Songs For the Sleepwalkers rises to the top. I would rather have his music filling the charts than the rubbish that currently resides there.

In short this album is a testament to Songs For the Sleepwalkers talent and ability to blend beautifully arranged instrumentals with haunting vocals. 

You can access a free stream and also purchase the new release by clicking on the title of album and also visit his official site here.

I hope you all enjoy it as much as I do and wish Andrea every success in 2012 

Jonathan Fastborg

Hailing from Sweden the one man band that is Jonathan Fastborg has been working away since the age of 17 honing his musical skills. Starting out a drummer then expanding his musical talents to guitar and other instruments until finally came the time to start writing his own music.  Fastborg admits he was never one to play covers so the progression from playing instruments to writing his own music was inevitable.  

Usually musicians have some musical influence of sorts and Fastborg is no different, “I don´t have a main source sort of speak. If it´s any good then that’s the inspiration, just bits and pieces.”  In respect of that illusive unique sound everyone seems to be striving for Fastborg admitted he is not unique from other bands but that a search for unique sound isn’t that unique now days. 

When it comes to his music one track sticks out in my mind “Hollywood Romance” This song is simplistically beautiful, the vocals and instrumentals blend perfectly. There is most definitely talent there and I can only see it getting better as time progresses.

Jonathan admits that in the future it would be his dream to be signed to a major record label with the same values as an indie. Now how plausible that is only time will tell but at present he keeps working away making the music that he loves

You can listen to an outstanding live radio performance by Jonathan here

You can also catch up with all the latest news on Jonathan's myspace and you tube pages. 

The Cosmonauts

With main influences ranging from the 60’s right up to modern times with bands including the Beatles, The Clash, Radiohead and Jefferson Airplane, Edinburgh quartet The Cosmonauts are defiantly musically educated.  With such wide taste over many decades their sound is a fine mixture of all and a definitely not something that many bands are doing.

Their story started with Chris and Alan founding the band and meeting Claire through some mutual musical friends.  Their drummer Paul was the last addition after a gumtree advertisement for a drummer.  After a few jams their styles seemed to click perfectly and so the band were created.

The first thing you notice about their music is their distorted sound and then the sound of their secret weapon as it was – the electric cello.  What makes this band unique from the others is defiantly their sound; 

“We have an electric cello in our line up which adds a lot of tone and depth to the music. Also we love doing harmonies which you don’t see a lot of today. As a band we try to reinvent the ‘old school’ 60s sound adding a modern edge.”

The band recently played a hugely successful gig at The Liquid Rooms last month as part of The Big Stooshie Charity Event and as a result of this performance they managed to secure themselves a slot at the next festival being held in Fife in May 2012. 

In regards their biggest achievement the band responded with;

“I think our biggest achievement as a band so far is getting our music out to a lot of people and them actually liking it!! We feel that our calibre of songs is our strength and so far we’ve managed to get a gig at the Barrowlands which will no doubt be our biggest achievement. This is in October as part of SAVIFEST”

Discussion then turned to their opinion on the unsigned scene and their opinions on it as a band that is part of it;

“There are a lot of good unsigned bands out there, we find that it’s all about who you know…and it’s pretty tough for everyone to get noticed and your music played. For us it’s about our music and hope that with the development of online sites for promotion, it’s helping everyone reach a wider audience. “

The Cosmonauts are such an interesting band who have achieved quite a bit they have their ambitions firmly set on the future and one main want from their career. This was made very clear in their an answer;

“Honestly…signed to a major label and touring the world!! Making amazing albums that can stand up to the great bands of the past. “

 

During their upcoming performances the band will be using the gaps between each to record their upcoming debut album. An album for which I cannot wait to hear -if their current recorded tracks are anything to go on.

The band has the following live dates coming up and a potential mini tour in September after their album is recorded.

11^th August – Jam House Open Auditions - Edinburgh

30^th September – Aikmans RGMUSICON Festival – St Andrews

2^nd October – Legends RGMUSICON Festival – Anstruther

21^st October – Glasgow Barrowlands – SAVIFEST

You can check the band out and see any other live shows or news on their Facebook page here 

Liquid Fuse

Without a doubt my favourite genre of rock music has to be 80’s style rock n roll and anything trying to be a modern equivalent I almost always love. So it was in delight when I was contacted by Liquid Fuse, who are just that a good old 80’s style rock n roll band.

Hailing from Brighton, England the band consist of Joe 'Enrique' Wareham, Jamie 'JNR' North, Lee 'Leeroy' Bentley, Dan Kelly and Dwight Brady. The band was originally started in 2007 by twin guitarists Jamie and Lee, but it was the addition of vocalist Joe when things really started to kick off. Soon after Joe, bassist Dan and drummer Dwight were recruited and the bands line up was finally completed in March 2010.

The band takes their influences from some of the greats like Guns n Roses, AC/DC, Van Halen and Joe Satriani.  They also take influence from modern bands like Buckcherry, Audioslave, Rage against the Machine and Avenged Sevenfold.

“Each one of us has different tastes in music, but we are brought together with a mutual love for Rock ‘N Roll. Hip Hop, Metal and Funk all play a big part in influencing us as individual musicians.”

Liquid Fuse has played some impressive gigs in their career so far including the Kemptown Carnival in Brighton, Purple Turtle (London), Barfly (Camden) and the O2 Academy in Islington.  On discussion regarding their live shows one stands out in the bands mind the most;

“Ultimately, our EP launch party on 30^th June at The Volks (Brighton seafront) has to take the biscuit. We put on 3 other great bands and then we headlined with probably the best performance we’ve ever delivered in front of some new listeners but mostly our own fans. It was really touching to have so many people come and support us, and it was very rewarding to be able to give back a great show and evening.”

The last time I spoke to the band a few months back their EP was in the early stages so was astounded to hear back so soon that it was completed. Naturally the band was extremely happy with their end product and even stated it was their greatest achievement as a band so far;

“This would probably be our recent EP release. It was recorded in May and considering the time we had (two days) we think it turned out pretty awesome. On top of that, we literally did everything ourselves and out of our own pockets; we designed an EP cover, promoted it, sorted out copyright and digital distribution. It was a massive achievement for us. We threw an EP launch gig, which became a proper Rock N Roll party, the icing on the cake!”

When I first heard their title track "Loaded Gun" from the EP it instantly reminded me of the beginning of a Motley Crue track but this band are no run of the mill copy act they are so much more. Their musical influences are clearly present within their music but they take an old genre of music and blend it with their own unique attitude and produce a truly amazing product.


One thing is evident from Liquid Fuse their passion for their music is very much alive and burning. The band has worked so hard, and deserves to get as much recognition as possible.  The band also seems to have the same view as a lot of musicians I speak with regarding the state of the unsigned scene at present;

“Some life needs to be injected into the scene – there are too many promoters who don’t really care about the music or promote well, too many sub-par bands who don’t put on a good show or promote well either, and too many gigs end up being just a few people standing around. A lot of this music is just the same generic stuff that you’ve heard a thousand times before, it gets boring! The unsigned music scene needs to be grabbed by the balls and given a good squeeze – we should be bringing it back to life and remind people that there’s nothing like a great live gig.”

The band’s debut EP entitled ‘Loaded Gun’ is available NOW and has already received some rave reviews and got some radio play in Brighton and London radio stations.

You can contact the band on their Facebook page here 

Mik Banner

One movement within the local scene which is providing more and more unsigned artists with not only a place to hone their live skills but also a platform for exposure is the humble open mic night.  Every place from the smallest town to the biggest city usually has at least one on the go, Kilmarnock is no different. Open mic nights gave Mik Banner the start he needed; playing covers of his favourite artists then helping him progress to writing and playing his own material. Mik is still a usual fixture at most of the open mic nights within Kilmarnock with a handful of other local acts who meet up and manage to put on a fantastic show every time along with the other participants  that  get up to perform.

As for musical influences when you listen to his music there are two main sounds that come through;

“Alterbridge and Creed definitely form a major part of my sound, I love the way they entwine their guitar and vocal parts to sound bigger as a whole. In addition, I listen to a lot of Mumford and Sons, and Newton Faulkner, so they occasionally find their way into my own material”

I would defiantly consider Banner as part of the new wave of acoustic artists coming through from the Ayrshire scene. 

When the dreaded question of uniqueness came up within interview Banner commented;

“I don’t think there is a lot of ways you can be unique any more. There are only twelve notes in the chromatic scale, so any chance you have of writing something new is quite slim. However, I think that using the guitar tunings I use and the vocal melodies make me sound somewhat 

different from other singer/songwriters.”

Banner recently played as part of them Kilmarnock Fair Festive held at Centrestage theatre playing to just under 100 people along side some other acts and even a Broadway act. This accomplishment although good is not Banner’s best within his musical career. He stated that managing to accumulate enough written material for his debut album was his best - a very humble view of achievement.

Discussion then turned to the unsigned music scene and where he sees himself in the future Banner stated that;

“I think there are areas within Ayrshire where new and unsigned music is greatly appreciated, and new talented individuals and bands are as well. Hopefully, once my album is recorded, I’ll continue along the path I’m walking at the moment, attending new open-mic nights and getting gigs, hopefully with a bigger profile and fanbase each time.”

Banner is definitely on his way to becoming a very well known local artist.

 With his song “Homecoming” even getting the thumbs up from another well known artist,  in the shape of Mechanical Smile.

Mik Banner is playing at the butterfly and the pig in Glasgow on Sunday the 14^th August, after which he hopes to be booking more live shows .

You can hear some of Banner’s recorded tracks on his facebook page here and on his reverbnation page here.

Stuart Newman

“Well, it started out the same way people do, learning an instrument. Then I wanted to buy some software to layer things, and experience what that was like. I kept on, then kept on some more, and eventually made the decision to pursue things. I felt I could offer something and could become something different.”

A familiar answer to an even more familiar question....How did the band first start?

Unlike the question or indeed the answer there is nothing too familiar about Stuart Newman. His vocals provide a strangely haunting sound that blends perfectly over his raw and stripped back sounding music.  You could compare him in ways to his influences which include Simon and Garfunkel and REM and a good few more, but Newman manages to make his sound very fresh.

In regards uniqueness from other artists Newman responded simply with;

“I approach things differently, make different decisions and I’m not afraid to try things out creatively. So far, people seem to agree. I also use the power of saying 'No'. I know what I want to do, and my reasons behind doing things. I think this helps me approach being more original.”  

From speaking to Newman he is easily the most honest and transparent artist I have ever spoken with when it comes to his music. In comparison to some unsigned artists of our generation he has a totally different perception of the old “music industry owes me a living” view.

 “I ‘released’ my first album ‘Single But Defective’ online, as a free download. In fact, all my music is currently on free download. Try it. Share it. Tell your friends. I’ve made it super easy to download and sample what I’m about. My website shows you everything. Music, videos… it’s all there. You can see straight away how I do things. The music world owes me nothing. If I’m to be an artist of note, I must prove beyond doubt any talent I have. So I will continue to try to do this. But it’s fair to say that my ambitions are as big as they could be

The achievements of unsigned artists mostly depend on their ambition. Due to such ambition held by Newman, he has created some amazing opportunities for himself.  Not only has he had airplay of BBC Radio 6 but he has also very much applied to DIY ethic to his career and mailed t shirts around the world for free.

 Single But Defective - Stuart Newman by stuarttnewman

In regards the music industry at the moment and specifically the unsigned music scene I expected Newman to be rather vocal on this subject and he did not disappoint;

“I think the entire industry is going through big changes. The old are fighting to keep that, the new are trying things. I think as an unsigned artist the weight is on you. The previous infrastructure is crumbling. That needs to re-establish itself. I think it’s partially a waiting game, but you need to prove yourself as much as possible in as many ways, before people take any notice. It’s a tough road”

Newman defiantly has something very different and quirky going on and as a result I am hoping big things will come to him in the future. It is so refreshing to speak with musicians who are down to earth and have no qualms about being brutally honest.

You can download and check out all of Stuart Newman’s material on his official website here.  I highly suggest you do.

Mechanical Smile

There has been a bit of a buzz within the Ayrshire scene at the moment and it all surrounds one band from Kilmarnock. That band being Mechanical Smile. Made up of Dawn Marshall, Garry Irving, Nic Pilmer and Murray Baxter, they describe themselves and their sound as;

“'Two guys, two girls from Ayrshire, combining rock, pop and grunge, creating a melodic and pulsating sound that will blow you away!'

The band have had a busy 2011 so far with a line up change in January and a mini German tour in June after winning the University of the West of Scotland exchange competition. The tour was made up of three dates in Plettenberg, including the main stage of the Immecke (Irock) Open-Air Festival. Mechanical Smile has also been extensively playing gigs within their home town of Kilmarnock, across Ayrshire and within Glasgow promoting their new EP “Sleep and Silence”. Add to these accomplishments their track “Leap of Faith” being chosen personally by Craig McGee (Warner Chappell Scottish Scout / BBC Radio 1 A&R Zone) to be played by Ally McCrae on his BBC introducing show within the A&R zone segment. This accomplishment was then added to even more by McCrae expressing his positive review of the track as ‘Huge’ – all this while they were still in Germany on tour.

The interesting thing about Mechanical smile is their unique selling point of having a female lead, something not that common within a certainly male dominated local music scene.  Marshall however takes this in her stride and shows everyone she can certainly possess the same -if not a higher- level of stage presence and musical passion as her male counterparts.  When you speak to the band about their music and their opinion on their local scene you can see the band “family” dynamic being very much present within Mechanical Smile. The band is extremely supportive of one another including their individual musical influences and ideas.  This in turn leads to their unique and somewhat mixed up style of music where you can hear all the different musical and personal influences throughout the songs.  An opinion agreed with by the band;

“The fact not many rock bands are female fronted that can also play guitar and write songs make us unique but now also there are two girls in the band makes it quite unique. Two guys and two girls that play music that is fresh and new. Not many people find easy comparisons to our sound. The good thing about our band is we all have very different musical tastes and influences, and for some strange reason we don’t really draw on specific  bands for influences when writing songs although bands we all like are Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins and Silversun Pickups.”

On the subject of the local unsigned scene Baxter commented;

“There are so many unsigned bands out there that are amazing, but I feel the smaller towns could do much more for these bands, as there isn’t really a music scene unless you are in Glasgow, and it’s hard to break into the ‘in crowd’ in Glasgow.  It’s all about who you know, which is hard for new bands etc.”

 Sleep And Silence EP by mechanicalsmile 

The band has also played what is seen as the “holy grail” of venues to most unsigned bands this being the legendary King Tuts.  They played as part of ‘The Harder they Fall’ tour with London bands Hopeless Heroic and Fearless Vampire Killers, where I found out from talking to Baxter that they were in fact moved up the bill due to their large amount of pre sales. This impressive fate has now led to them being invited back to play on 5^th October supporting support Young Legionnaire which is sure to be a most victorious King Tuts return for the band.

Mechanical Smile are due to release their new single 'Take Me To The Otherside' on August 15th via iTunes, Amazon Play.com and many other credible online music stores. The track will also be available to stream for free on Spotify, and the brand new music video, produced by Joshua Aaron Porter will be available to view on Youtube. A video which they invited all their fans and friends to be part of.

If this past year has been anything to go by, Mechanical Smile has got an amazing rest of 2011 and a perhaps even most amazing 2012 coming their way. I could not personally think of a more deserving or hard working band for it to happen to. 

Simon Torstensson

                           

There are times in life where I discover that one little musical gem that catches my attention. This could be from randomly browsing my local record store, from hearing an artist live that up until that point was unknown to me or from a random email sent to my inbox. In this instance this gem was in the form of Swedish singer/songwriter Simon Torstensson.

Torstensson’s music is a mix of soulful acoustic tones and stripped back good old fashioned rock n roll. His vocals are adapted perfectly to each of the styles he plays and all this from someone who describes himself as “not a very good musician. I'm mostly just very stubborn!”

Like most musicians Torstensson has a long history with music; “I started making music about 6 years ago. Back then it was mostly just me and my friends who liked to make covers when we were drunk. But after a couple of years I began to write more seriously and try to make music that meant something to both myself and others.”

Torstensson is not only a recording artist but he has also added writing a musical to his credentials.  When asked about this interesting addition to his talents he explained; “My classmates and I actually wrote a musical with just our own songs about a year ago. It was a pretty small gig, but we rocked the ass of every single one in the audience. All 45 of them.”

As an unsigned artist himself, Torstensson will have more insight than most about the unsigned music scene at the moment; “I think there's a lot of really great unsigned bands and artists out there. A couple of them are friends of mine. I myself prefer to go to concerts at small clubs and such. Where they let you get on stage and sing along with the band! That's really awesome!”

Being an artist that is just starting out and building up his stage presence and music catalogue people could mistake Torstensson for someone who has unreachable big dreams and ideas about his future. The stark reality is something much more humble ; “In the future I will hopefully be on stage somewhere. I'd be happy if I had like a hundred fans who would follow me around on tour”.  


With such down to earth goals  Torstensson is a breath of fresh air from the norm. Instead of having empty dreams of fame and fortune he would be happy with a small loyal fan base to share his music with. 


Just like his music his aspirations are honest and stripped back, I hope for big things for Torstensson and with the talent he has already I can see this improving even more through the years ahead of him. 

Colour Cells

                                

One band that seems to be a permanent fixture within the Ayrshire music scene now is Colour Cells. It’s hard to imagine them not being a band and part of the scene but like most bands now a day’s Colour Cells formed out of previous bands demise. They first formed when doc and gee started writing new songs together after the demise of their previous band The Kush with an instrument change from drummer to guitarist for gee and the recruitment of their old bassist from the previous band the line up was nearly complete. The only space left was for a drummer this was filled by doc’s good friend Andy from The Hunky Dorys.

        

Colour Cells take their music influences from such bands as Gomez, Tame Impala, Radiohead, The Who. The sound they produce within their music reminds listeners of a time when music was about good old rock and roll and not about how the front mans hair style looked. The guys are down to earth with their music and in their live shows which I personally have had the pleasure of putting them on twice they are interactive with the crowd and make the whole affair very casual and laid back.

Not only are Colour Cells now a solid feature within the Ayrshire music scene but they have also had the experience of playing in London in February 2009 in their biggest gig to date supporting Alabama 3 in Dirty South. An experience summed up by them in the following way;
“12 hours on coaches and subways in a blizzard. It was awesome!”


 Latest tracks by COLOUR CELLS


When asked about the bands future Doc revealed that the band are going to be focusing on

“Recording, writing, rehearsing, more gigs, back to London, just go with the flow really. No big plans for world domination. I hate to see bands get built up too soon and then they disappear. We've still got a lot of material in us. “

In regards the local music scene at the moment the band felt that
“There are some great bands and performers out there who are producing and distributing their own material to a high standard. It feels like there is a scene kicking off just now and it's a good time to be involved. Hopefully more venues next year will be the push it needs. ”


The final thoughts when talking to Colour Cells were ones of reflection, when asked what their biggest achievement was as a band since forming their answer was simple and full of honesty and gratitude to others.

“Although we've come a long way since 2008 it's still early days with the band. We can only measure our success just now by our live performances. there's definitely been more interest in us this year in particular, Wrecked Chord Records and The AMA have been really supportive and we do feel part of a new emerging Ayrshire scene. “


Colour Cells currently have only have 2 songs recorded and are working on more in order to complete their first release.


The band will also be playing the Ayrshire Music Association launch night on the 8th October along with some of Ayrshire finest artists.

The guys can be checked out on their myspace page at
http://www.myspace.com/colourcells

Their recorded tracks can be heard on their Sound Cloud page at the link below
http://www.soundcloud.com/colour-cells

Reclaimed Review on Glasgow Music

So I wrote a review a good few months back for Glasgow Music and I have now realised its been kinda put into the stored file per say so I have reclaimed it and going to put the whole thing on here below, Enjoy





THISFAMILIARSMILE - Red Wine

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Since the release of their 2008 EP "What kind of monster am I ?" Glasgow/Ayr four piece ThisFamilarSmile have been on a fast track to success.Not only have they gained a massive fan base but have toured the UK and parts of Europe playing festivals and general shows.

Their latest offering is their new single "red wine" from their new debut album "Ribbons,Regards and The More Machine" which is out later this year.

The song includes all the usual complexed melodies expected from the band with well blended vocals and the outstanding passion that seems to be in all their songs. Essentially ThisFamilarSmile are a band who put a new spin on an already saturated genre of music and have managed to keep a sense of individuality about them.

With rave reviews from publications like Rocksound the band are sure to be very successful in the future and with the release of their album later this year I can only imagine their popularity growing even more.

http://www.myspace.com/thisfamiliarsmile

As Darkness Falls

If praise should be given to a band for great accomplishments in 2010 so far it should be Ayshire five piece “As Darkness Falls”.

The band was formed in February 2009 after competition of line up, by bassist David Crossley and drummer Jamie Dobbie following the demise of their previous band “Illegal Eye”. With the addition of guitarists Scott McCallum and Craig “DJ” Brown they produced 5- 6 tracks but were still without a vocalist. After a two year search and countless failed try outs, David Leggate contacted the band and after a few practice sessions was immediately offered the gig.

As uniqueness in bands go vocalist David Leggate admits that

“We have our own unique sound that comes together from every individual, with a mixture of the heavy end and our melodic harmonies catchy choruses and the fact that we're not trying to be a specific style or sound.”

This unique sound comes across very strongly within each of their songs taking influence from such great metal band as Pantera and Metallica amongst other genres and bands. These influences mixed in with impressive song writing and passion for their own music results in something truly enjoyable listening.

Within the scene of unsigned bands “As Darkness Falls” are considered fairly new and yet despite this they have managed to create an impact. They have played support to such bands as Glasgow metallers “Bleed From Within”, and prog-metal band “Enochian Theory”

The bands biggest achievement this year though has to be winning the “Best Newcomer Award” at the Scottish Alternative Awards in last month. After four months of public voting they were awarded the title over such bands as Make my Day, Bronto Skylift and The Darien Venture.

Whatever the future holds for “As Darkness Falls” if this year so far is anything to go by it shall be very successful.

The band are currently recording their debut E.P. which will consist of 6-7 songs, but currently have older demos available online via MySpace.

“As Darkness Falls” are currently booked and confirmed to perform at Killiefest in Dirty Martini's on April 10th.

As Darkness Falls can be found at the following sites:

http://www.youtube.com/user/asdarknessfalls09

http://www.myspace.com/asdarknessfalls09