Today, this should be very cool: North London's Natty (plus Aruba Red!) come to Komedia. Natty's spent his teen years producing hip-hop beats for local MCs and then leapt to engineering for the likes of Mos Def, Queen, and Razorlight.
This spawned a bit of free studio time, during which he's developed his own material. He's described as "Soaking up the sounds of artists including Neil Young, Fela Kuti and Bob Marley in his youth, this vast scope of influences can be heard within Natty's own compositions."
Expect an acoustic EP of songs merging reggae, afro-beat, folk, and soul. And expect it to be brilliant. My spotify's borked, so I'll point you at his Myspace for now.
Cost: £10 Time: 8pm Location: Komedia Tickets: here
Communion, organised by Ben Lovett of Mumford and Sons, Kevin Jones of Cherbourg, and producer Ian Grimble, comes from the summer of 2006. It aims to provide a platform for the newest bands on London's circuit. Nights have seen the movement of nu-folk bands Noah and the Whale, Laura Marling, Mumford and Sons, JJ Pistolet and Peggy Sue grace the stage. Tonight, Communion returns to the Prince Albert, now instated as a monthly event taking place on every 4th Sunday of the month. It's responsible for helping the launch of Esser's, The Holloways's, and Example's careers, with an eclectic ethos and sell-out nights. (You can also find them on Twitter @Communionmusic).
Tonight they bring the lineup of Handshake, Holy Vessels, Sam McCarthy, and Ghosts You Echo.
Handshake are lovely, up-tempo quirky folk, getting on the nu-folk bandwagon with a guitar, banjo, harmonica, accordion, fiddle, bass, bodrhran, and drums. Find Handshake;'s MySpace for a listen. We really like them. They're are also on Twitter @HandshakeMusic and Facebook.
Brighton-based Holy Vessels can also be found on MySpace and are currently touring Brighton pubs, next heading to the delightfully yellow Gladstone.
We like Sam McCarthy's cover of Bob Dylan's 'Forever Young' over on his MySpace, and he's done a light little track with Eliza Doolittle. That's rather nice too, and you can find a bit by him on Spotify.
We really like Ghosts You Echo who is less folky and more electronic in places. Perhaps I'm a sucker for synths, and caught up in the release of The xx's album, but she's really interesting. The EP's coming out with Roundhouse Music in May and you can find her on Last.fm
We had a hunt for videos but couldn't find any :( Communion's also bringing out a compilation LP.
Doors at 7pm, It's £4 in advance from Resident, Rounder and We Got Tickets.com, and £3.50 for students.
Sorry all, but Resident's just emailed to alert that Alexander Wolfe is canceled due to illness. Pav Tav meanwhile, is still on!
Tonight there's two free gigs about town; one at The Pav Tav and one at Resident Records. We can't decide quite which to go to at the moment.
At 6pm today ex-Brighton-Resident singer/songwriter/arranger Alexander Wolfe will be celebrating the launch of his debut album 'Morning Brings a Flood' with an in-store session. Likened to Guy Garvey, with songs echoing Elliot Smith, Nick Drake, and in the more raucous moments, Jeff Buckley. "You're in for a treat," say Resident, "We can't recommend the album of his live performance highly enough." He's brought along his cellist too, which should be a bit special.
On the other hand, for more lengthy music, The Pav Tav is holding a free folk pop show downstairs in Pav Tav. Admiral Fallow cites the fairly traditional influences of Tom Waits, Elbow, Low, Midlake, King Creosote, and Springsteen, and brings a clarinet, flute, double bass (and four voices) to the Pav Tav's traditional indie line-ups. Have Tav HQ describes them as "Joyous, heart-filled, orchestral-tinged and beautifully well crafted songs."
Previously they've been toting support in the form of Guillemots' Fyfe Dangerfield, chosen as support with a certain amount of lauding and rave reviews afoot. "Join us on a lazy Monay night with support from the fantastic Aaron King AND Paul Steel," the Pav Tav invites.
The journey of Peggy Sue is a great lesson to bands who occasionally feel hemmed in by the geographical constraints of their early days; playing the same damn venues to the same, familiar audiences. Peggy Sue - the band who, recently signed to Wichita Records and this week released a brave, complex and beautiful debut album, 'Fossils and Other Phantoms' - once consisted of Rosa Rex and Katy Klaw, and traded as Peggy Sue and the Pirates. They seemed to play in Brighton constantly; bringing amateurish, good humoured folk to a band of amused but slightly perplexed punters.
For every moment that their two, perfectly calibrated voices soared, there was another where one drummed clumsily on the back of a stool while the other warbled about being Superman. For those of us who fell totally in love with them back in the early days, their lack of seriousness and musical skill wasn't problematic at all, and an early tide of interest led... nowhere fast. Something - their own ambition, in retrospect - stopped them from recording an album, and instead they added a drummer, began building their reputation nationally, and began crafting more complex, dark songs which counterbalanced their quirkiness and personal chemistry with heavy, heady lyrics about skin, bones, and broken relationships.
All of this has culminated, finally, in their new LP. It's brave not just because the band have come so far from their early days, but because there's not a thing about their sound they haven't worked on. Their arrangements are richer and more confident, their lyrics more beautiful, their old songs ruthlessly jettisoned in favour of newer tracks. In many ways they're an unrecognisable band, having long transcended the likes of Jeffrey Lewis who once inspired them.
Having been unsatisfied, then, with the role of local heroes, Peggy Sue have rowed out further and created real, substantive waves. They're back in Brighton tonight, however, and you can catch them at the perpetually wonderful Resident Records. It's free, and they're onstage at 6.
Sometimes, through a weird twist of geography, economy and fate, areas - big cities like Seattle or smaller communities like Fife - begin to buck and thrive with creativity. Sometimes it's because of a liberal atmosphere, and other times the lack of one inspires friction and inventiveness. Often it's because a scene is merely self-supporting, and often because it's associated with factors which enable it to thrive - like, for example, a really great music department at a local university, or an arts body that funds creativity.
Lots of the above factors are evident in the North Texan city of Denton, and while the much-celebrated Midlake have been the most obvious beneficiaries of the town's cultural productivity (their singer, Tim Smith, is a vocal advocate of the area), there are a bunch of other artists who also benefit from the cheap housing, vibrant music scene, and excellent arts institutions nearby.
One such is Bosque Brown, a band fronted by the talented young singer-songwriter Mara Lee Miller, who moved to Denton at the age of 18 and, having developed her talent there - and having earned the early patronage of Damien Jurado - is making a name for herself as a quiet, thoughtful and inventive folk singer. Often acapella, and possessed of a voice which recalls Simone White or Chan Marshall, Miller is playing The Freebutt tonight, and it has the potential to be one of those surprising, out-of-nowhere shows which sends tingles down the spine.
Back when all I could think about was music, Steve Malkmus knew that sound was keyed in, whether intellectually or rhythmically, to our ordinary everyday lives - the city is built with bricks and sound, the hum of cars and car radios, the clap of feet on pavement. "The gum smacks are the pulse I'll follow if my Walkman fades", he sang. There are only a few moments in an ordinary day when some kind of music isn't playing in my head. Increasingly, that music is composed by Newcastle's Beth Jeans Houghton.
Which is ironic, because Beth's weird, wonderful songs run counter to the notion that music, as embedded in our daily lives as it is, is an ordinary thing. Her songs - and Beth herself, if you take her interviews as evidence - inhabits a creative world which is winningly magical. It isn't the wistful, wide-eyed universe of a Bat For Lashes, but rather an arch, colourful terrain which seems to owe more to Cindy Sherman or Tony Hancock than it does Kate Bush.
Her musical palette - she is a young, female, folk singer - may seem familiar at first glance, but she has practically nothing in common with the likes of Laura Marling, Emmy The Great, Florence Welsh et al. First, her voice is more interesting - an effortless, husky hum which recalls 70s icon Bobbie Gentry, and her music is informed by deeper, darker, more esoteric strains of folk, country and progressive rock; by the likes of Tunng, Pentangle and Melanie.
Her imagination is, shall we say, vivid. Her press-pack makes for colourful reading - the biographical details are too long to print here in full, but here's a sample picked at random:
"Until one day, she was on a family holiday with her albino wolves in buttermere in the Lake District. During a dispute about the severe lack of chewing tobacco Beth left the yurt and went for a late night trot around the serene lake. not serene for long though.... She soon heard a splishing and a splashing in the darkest corner of the lake. She carefully began bare-footing along the waters edge to take a closer look at the commotion. As the sun rose golden over the nearest mountains, the waters began to swell and curdle, and three delightful heads appeared. Seeing three boys rise from the lake, Beth stared in disbelief as they emerged to show their glorious furry hind-quarters and scintillating hooves. 'Jesus on a bike' she cried as the half men, half goats trotted gleefully towards her".
You get the idea, I hope. Beth is playing the Komedia tonight with hotly rated folkies Stornoway, and her own 'Hooves of Destiny', of course. It really is an unmissable chance to see one of the most colourful, creative songwriters on these fair Isles. Highly highly recommended - if only for the inter-song banter, which is likely to be worth the entrance price alone (a tenner, since you asked).
TWISTED FOLK PRESENTS STORNOWAY AND BETH JEANS HOUGHTON Komedia Brighton 10 Feb 2010 - 19:30, £10.
Nancy Elizabeth at the Prince Albert brings some guitary folk to Brighton. Yes, perhaps we're hardly in an drought but tonight's curious. With folk and post-rock influences it's strangely similar to Feist's gentle and delicately - almost weak - vocals with less xylophone and a lack of drums. At times the harmony's almost choir-like - and occasionally pulls in a mix of European gypsy songs, choral a cappella and North African music - references which I've stolen from last.fm but explain the occasional choir-like consistency. It's varied, and definitely worth a walk to the Prince Albert and a couple of pounds. Have a listen. (She's also on Facebook)
She's supported by Brighton-based Mary Hampton with a gentle, soft but clear voice. This is better described by Eliza Carthy who distinguishes the above far better than me, calling her "terrifying and gorgeous, epic and tiny, unusual and strong." Have a listen.
You can find this event listing on last.fm and a map here. Tickets cost £7 via allgigs.co.uk, which I reckon is really rather worth it.
Melting Vinyl evenings at The Basement are a little bit well known for good, and just a little bit hip, evenings (namely as "the region’s leading purveyor of innovative and experimental performance"). Tonight is the second year of Melting Vinyl's (who we've written about before) annual showcase of talent from France called 'VIVE LA FRANCE" and it all sounds genuinely fantastic. I am quite excited.
Bigger than last year's the festival showcases contemporary emerging French musical talent from the country’s innovative labels, and also celebrates Brighton based French performers, ‘The French Connection’. The event is produced by music promoters Melting Vinyl, in association with France's London music office: ‘Bureau Export’ and the largest French Cultural magazine: ‘Les Inrockuptible’s. All wonderful, and Lisa Li-Lund looks lovely, so we must go.
Here is some quoted goodness about them each individually:
Lisa Li-Lund Not only member and sister of Herman Dune, Lisa Li-Lund has worked with the likes of Jeff Lewis and Zombie Zombie alongside a highly successful career as a solo artist. Come in from the cold and embrace the heart-warming and playful indie-folk indie-folk sounds of one of Paris' most creative artists - namely, Lisa Li-Lund, Hugh Coltman & Hamilton Yarns.
Hugh Coltman Critically acclaimed in France, charismatic singer-songwriter Hugh Coltman was recently nominated for ' La Prix Constantin' (France's equivalent of The Mercury Music Prize). Having inhabited the same circles as Coco Rosie, and compared to Andrew Bird, this intimate performance will be very special indeed.
Hamilton Yarns (with a fabulous name) Brighton's Hamilton Yarns are made up of members from both sides of channel. One if this festival’s French Connections and one of Willkomen Records' own, they make "music through the looking-glass, mapping in sound odd fragments of a parallel universe" - The Wire.
No reserved tickets, it's first-come-first-served - and FREE (as we always joyfully exclaim over these things). We reckon this is definitely one of the better things going on this month - and a little bit different from all the others. It starts at 8pm, and we plan not to be late.
One for the kids today. Most people are won over by animals such as Gruffalos and Aardvarks, and so if I was small (well, 6 months - 5 years) I would much like to go to this. It's a musical cacophony of 'fun musical activities' including singing, dancing, musical story-telling and instrumental jam sessions run by UK Aardvarks. It's quite Brighton-esque (depending on your view of the brighton-esque of course) focusing on musical influences of rock, pop, indie, folk and blues.
Class locations vary - today's class is in Hove with varying times from 10am-1:45pm, and other classes are held in Hove (wednesday), Patcham (Thursdays) and Brighton (Fridays). Find the list on the UK Aardvarks site.
Each class is 45 minutes and costs £4.40 for a drop in - and half-price for attending siblings over 6 months, or free for the under 6 month child variety. If you want to attend email emily@uk-aardvarks.co.uk or phone 07886 927081.
Alternatively if singing isn't your thing take the family T-Shirt making at the Brighton Museum.
A horribly late one today, apologies. We aren't doing a massive write-up for this one because we've been distracted by holiday cheer. However, a great gig to get yourselves to today is The Hornblower Bros at the Freebutt. You can find their myspace here.
Lots of nice things from good people:
"Put a smile on your face ...very uplifting" Steve Lamacq
"Completely irresistible!" Marc Riley
"Charmingly shambolic" The Guardian
"They occupy a genre that is entirely their own" BBC.co.uk
Doors at 7:30 with a smile. £4 advance so we reckon £6ish on the door.
Brighton's live music scene may attract a steady stream of international talents, but it's propped up on a network of local bands who, occasionally, are more than capable of outshining the bands they invariably end up supporting. One such giant-killing may be on the cards tonight, where Brighton's excellent Guided By Lights support Thomas Dybdahl at The Freebutt.
Up in Norway Thomas Dybdahl is one of the country's biggest pop stars, attracting huge affection for his warm-hearted but gentle folk-pop, which draws evenly from the likes of Jeff Buckley and Nick Drake. His broad-appeal is understandable: Dybdahl is as relentlessly melodic and soppy as the anodyne likes of Damien Rice or David Gray, but manages to combine his low-key classicism with rather more charm. Today's gig at the Freebutt, if Dybdahl's previous UK shows is anything to go by, will have the same celebratory warmth, for his UK fans seem to replicate his countryman's enthusiasm.
Guided By Lights aren't dramatically dissimilar in terms of their musical palette - here too we find acoustic guitars, violins and delicate folk-pop. But there's something more ambitious and unconventional going on here - there's a hint of The Cure's Robert Smith in Adam Bones's hiccupy, skittering vocals, and the juxtaposition of his odd, appealing vocals with the clever, Pogues-tinged arrangements are really pleasing. They sound, unlike Thomas Dybdahl, like they've been through the wringer a few times, and have come out tuneful, rich, but somehow wonky. In short, I think they're worth a look.
IMPORTANT! The Freebutt is at risk of effectively shut down by the council! We love the venue and brilliant bands they put on! Please sign the petition to save the Freebutt here: here
Bored of Brighton brings you one thing to do a day in Brighton, telling you what's on. Bands, pubs, clubs, music, art, and the peculiar.
It's lovingly written by Claire and Jonathan. Let us know what your favourite bits of the city are - send us an email to boredofbrighton@gmail.com. We'll be very happy to hear from you.
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