Stornoway

STORNOWAY
(written in the style of the Brighton Source)

NEW FOLK FOURSOME ON QUIRKY GIGS AND OPERA SINGERS


Curious facts, strange body contortions and a tap dancing drummer are just some of the charms that Stornoway promise to offer at their 'good value for money' performances. With their debut album released May 24th, will we witness such magic at this year's Great Escape?
Having founded in December 2005, Stornoway have spent the past five years working on their sound, describing themselves as 'faux-pop-soul with a hint of South African turf'. With their inspiration spanning from acts such as Gorky's Zygotic Mynci and Ry Cooder, their influences form a broad palette of ideas. A spot on BBC's Sounds of 2010 list suggests that Brian Briggs (Vox, guitar), Jon Ouin (keys/strings), Ollie Steadman (bass) and Rob Steadman (drums) are tipped to be the next big names in folk-pop.


New single 'I saw you blink' captures the brave and magical aesthetic of the Wild Beasts and combines it with the dreamy nostalgia of the Drums. Add a dash of light summertime folk and infectious songwriting and you have Stornoway – ironically named after one of the coldest places in Britain.


Their colourful coming-together makes for interesting reading. Vocalist and guitarist Brian met Jon whilst studying ducks – yes ducks - at Oxford University. As if that doesn't sound exotic enough, Jon spent his degree attempting to decipher poems in 'cyrillic' – a Bulgarian language from the 9th century. “The qualifications aren't so useful for us these days”, confirms Brian.



Brian and Jon met the rest of the band through auditions. Bassist Ollie was still at school when he replied to their ad, and remains to be. “I'm currently busy carrying out harzardous chemical experiments and doing my final exams”, explains Ollie. But he's not the only nipper in the group. “After I joined the band I forced my younger brother Rob to play the drums [for Stornoway], so he hasn't really had the chance to learn to read yet...”. Rob was only fifteen when he joined the band, and had to be sneaked into their pub gigs in the bass drum.


But don't let the mischief fool you, they are certainly a cultured bunch. “If we could add another member to the band for a day it would be Farinelli (an 18th Century Italian contralto) so I could have a creepy sing-off”, Brian states enthusiastically. They come tumbling back down to modest Earth though when Ollie tells us that Lord of the Ring's Bilboe Baggins would be his dinner party invitation of choice.


The band have recently signed with label 4AD, so what's their next venture? Jon answers: “next week we set sail on our Highlands and Ireland tour, which will include our first visit to Stornoway!”.


Do not panic boys and girls, Stornoway will hit Brighton's shores on May 14th for the Great Escape Festival. We can't wait.

Weekend antics

Friday 


Stornoway got back to me with my questions answered which is great, and I'll be popping up a feature interview with them in a few days time! During the day I broke my Bingo virginity (working on my granny chicness) and amongst the biddies I won £2.50! Get in. Then the evening got ridiculously bad when the hostess of my Ann Summers booking thought it was no biggie to go through my bag! At least I earnt £95 and got 3 more bookings out of it! 




Saturday


I decided to get dolled up in my nice new Lipsy skirt and hit Ryde to watch Marc play at Wight Rock with the Moutts crew. I started the evening with a ridiculous tummy ache. Boo! But bar lady Debbie gave me a free Jagermaster saying it gets rid of them. Actually true, it worked! Was a pretty cool night, though I wish I took up Marc's offer to perform Rifles by BRMC with him - bottled it! 


Sorry, there's no pictures where we both look sober. Finished off the night with moaning about my heels and tucking into pepperoni pizza. Oh yes.

Me and Anneka

The crew!

Marc and Moutts (whose queer on the beer and "LOVES LA ROUX". 

Because everyone needs to know!

Sunday


Today I met up with Pastey and Spencer (the bromantic couple) and we walked from Binstead to Seaview and back (About 10-12 miles!). We sat in this tiny wooden house made for birdwatching (I have pretty exciting sundays) and checked out this suicide-style note in the back of a nature book. Odd. Then we wondered off for a spliff amongst 5 foot grass and aggressive swans! Whilst on the beach I also ordered 2 ice-creams before realising I had no money. Not embarrassing at all. We even bumped into James Cordon with some hot blonde woman on a secluded beach! Would have asked him for a piccy but to be honest he just doesn't tickle my funny bone. Been sat on my ass since getting home from the 3 hour voyage with a Lady Grey watching Holly Willobooby. Uni work can wait! 

Basic cheese. 

Spencer, not looking baked at all. Fully.

People can be pretty intimidating..

I'm off to make an Ovaltine, climb into some snuggly jim-jams and watch series 8 of Family Guy; Whoop!
Hic x

Granny Chic or Granny Creep?

Brew of Lady Grey tea. Quilt-making. Doctors. Buying daffodils for that 'Spring feeling'. Emmerdale. Making plans to go to Bingo tomorrow... Granny Chic or Granny Creep?


Mike (my boyfriend) stated today that I have the mind of an octogenarian (apparently that means an old person but to me it sounds like a librarian with 8 arms). He's probably right, but I'm not bitter and twisted yet. And when I'm physically old I plan to have a blue rinse and throw a number of cats from my well kept front garden amongst the petunias. Though I did lure a cat into my house once out of boredom.... perhaps I'm on my way.


Maybe these stressful times of recession and economic pessimism are causing us to retaliate and seek an easier lifestyle. After all that is definitely the medicine my life needs right now to get rid of the M.E nonsense! (I  just wrote 'nonsense', an octogenarian I must be). 


None the less, I plan to even this out over the weekend by selling lots of Rampant Rabbits tomorrow night and getting utterly bungalowed in Ryde Saturday night. I think that balance makes me middle aged. 


Hic x

Cedric Bixler Zavala - In the drive-in seat.

Cedric Bixler-Zavala is not a name that rolls off of the tongue - which is almost representative of the bands that he has been involved with. As a vocalist, guitarist, lyricist, songwriter, drummer and bassist, he has it covered. He is most recognised as the front-man for At the drive-in (ATDI) - an American post-hardcore band that thrived between 1993 and 2001. 

Bixler-Zavala sings his surrealist lyrics with incredulous animation. He exercises his eclectic vocabulary in conjunction with his masterful band-mates who employ Latino and experimental rhythms.

Following the break-up of ATDI in 2001, Bixler-Zavala founded experimental band The Mars Volta. From his major roles in both acts, we can judge that he is the bringer of magic to these cult bands. Having also been involved with De Facto (dub-reggae) and The Fall on Deaf Ears (post-hardcore), we can know that his imagination is limitless. With Bixler-Zavala telling Drowned In Sound magazine this June that an ATDI reunion “might happen”, we can only hope he will receive his much deserved and delayed appreciation.

Suggested links;

“Cosmonaut” from the album “Relationship of command”.
- courtesy of ‘Big day out TV’.

“Napoleon Solo” from the album “In/Casino/Out”.

Pete Doherty. Musician under a media shadow.

Pete Doherty; Face of the Libertines and Babyshambles, and thought by as many to be a drug-riddled waster who famously asked on stage: “Where’s my band?” As messy as his lifestyle may be, it is hard to deny the great British grit and humour that his lyrics convey. Whilst interviewing several fans in order to understand his appeal, his “emotional and personal lyrics” came across as his most popular charm, displayed on works such as “For Lovers”. 

Can music fans be so hypocritical as to champion the Beatle’s acid infused “Sergeant Pepper” and not the Libertines’ coke influenced yet inspirational “Up the Bracket”? With Carl Barat “too busy” with his solo project for a Libertines reunion, is it time that the limelight shifted back to Doherty with a positive edge for a change? Yes, the media have continuously caught him using illegal substances. But if we can accept other great musicians through the haze of drug abuse (Jimi Hendrix, Kurt Cobain, Sid Vicious) then what should make Doherty exempt?

Suggested listening;

The Libertines - Time for heroes from the album “Up the Bracket”, 2002.

Pete Doherty featuring Peter 'Wolfman' Wolfe - For lovers, 2004.

HA

The Banker wants a poem

I'm currently filling in my Dead or No Deal application!

Besides wanting to know everything about my life and what my kitchen sink is like, they want me to write a snappy 4 line poem. 

Ideas are MORE THAN APPRECIATED!

Bloody hell.

Words I've found that rhyme so far... 

Banker/Wanker/Tanker/Danke

Deal/Meal/Keel/Veel/Feel

Noel/Mole/Soul/Hole/On the dole

Money/Honey/Funny/Sunny

Reminder: Bring sunglasses to shield from eye-battering bright shirts sported by Mr Edmonds.

Elizabeth Fraser: A lost voice?

Yes. I can hear you all crying out, “Who?”. Fraser is a Scottish vocalist, lyricist and front woman of the ambient-alternative band Cocteau Twins. Between herself and her band-mates - Robin Guthrie and Will Hegie - the band produced eight albums before disbanding in 1998.

Fraser’s vocals are unmistakable; Popmatters.com describes her voice as a “soft siren”. She delivers complex melodies with delicate beauty and powerful gusto almost all at once. Her lyrics however open interesting debate - they are almost impossible to decipher.

Fraser’s work does not end with Cocteau Twins. She has recorded with Massive Attack on several occasions, contributing her vocals to hits such as “Teardrop”. Fraser has also expanded her talents into movie sound tracking, working on Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers. She also performed with composer Craig Armstrong for the soundtrack to Cruel Intentions, in which she surrenders a spellbinding piece named “This Love”. Fraser’s trademark techniques should heralded as a unique contribution to music.

Recommended listening;

Cocteau Twins - “Heaven or Las Vegas” from the album “Heaven or Las Vegas”, 1990.

Craig Armstrong featuring Elizabeth Fraser - “This love”, from the album “The Space Between Us”, 1998.

Jack (Of all trades).

Jack White; one half White Stripes, part Raconteurs, part Dead Weather. The mainstream media would barely know his name to quote. Voted by Rolling Stone as the 17th best guitarist in the world, he claims that he achieved it by “playing the guitar like a drummer” to Living.Scotsman.com.

With drummer and ex-wife Meg White, he has made blues so relevant and accessible for all ages. Influenced by blues legends such as Willie McTell, his inspiration is unmistakable, with simple but always effective guitar riffs and lyrics.

We must be informed that he is Jack of all trades; singer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and producer are all applicable titles. The White Stripes are on hiatus while White drums with his current project Dead Weather alongside Allyson Mossheart -formally of the Kills. Behind the drum kit we still hear his signature song-writing standards, abstract and humorous lyrics, catchy rhythms and rough-edged production values. Continuously creative, White promises to keep offering us quality blues-rock for a long time to come.

Suggested listening;

White Stripes - You don’t know what love is from the album “Icky Thump”, 2007.

Dead Weather - Treat me like your Mother from the album “Horehound”, 2009.

Bjork: Not Oh So Quiet as you thought.

Bjork is a recognisable face - known to millions for “It’s oh so quiet” - but mocked by many. Is it time for people to open their ears, and take in her Icelandic charm?

Bjork’s back catalogue holds a widely cinematic essence. Especially notable works include alternative love-song ‘Hyper-ballad’ in which she sings of throwing herself over a cliff - alongside her cutlery.

Also to note is the song “Bachelorette”; a theatrical yet overly inviting song with sweeping orchestral movements and poetic lyricism. With “It’s so quiet” almost acting as a leitmotiv for Bjork, many music fans aren’t aware of the dark, captivating compositions that she has written, composed, produced and performed on. In fact, Interview magazine describes her music as “so extremely—defiantly—original, that attempting to explain it or analyse it would seem almost misguided”.

So much of her skill remains to be discovered by music lovers. So I ask of you; if her adventurous wardrobe has ever put you off your recommended Bjork dosage, now is the time to overdose.

Recommended Listening;

Bjork - Play Dead from the album “Debut”, 1993.

Bjork - Hyper-ballad from the album “Post”, 1995.

Babes of the BNP are ugly on the inside.

Here goes; The BNP are a shameful political party.

Yes, I admit immigration is a problem. But it is not a problem we should shut ourselves away from. The problem for the BNP seems to stand at the economical difficulties that they find it brings, alongside their hurt pride. Am I being neive to take the idea of immigration right back to the start? Britain - that same Britain that the BNP argue to represent - is a Christian community. Is it Christian to 'Reject all asylum seekers who passed safe countries on their way to Britain'? Or how about the idea that the BNP wish to offer those of foreign decent who live in Britain a 'generous grant' to leave permanently?

As a wealthy country we should seek to help those who are less fortunate. Immigrants do not risk the dangerous journey to move to Britain on a whim. They are escaping from war. They are escaping from dictatorship. They are escaping from immoral laws and painful deaths. Who are the BNP to think that we can turn those in need away?

A little while ago I came across a blog ironically named 'Babes of the BNP' on blog site Viceland.com. It interviews full-time mum Rebecca, wife of a BNP politician. She's asked questions such as 'Who do you dislike more, muslims or jews'. She decides on the latter. She is also asked whether she thinks the 'vicious rumours' about Griffin being gay are true or not. The next 'babe' to be interviewed is Jo, and she is asked who she dislikes most, Muslims or Hindus. She replies;

"Muslims. They're the ones who've got the most attention, they're the ones who are kicking off about things the most. They're more in the public eye as trouble makers".

Well excuse me for being bias in the fact that I'm not racist - but what a ridiculous statement. Do any of the below people look there of Hindu decent? Crime and trouble is not dependent on religion or ethnic origin.

The BNP are proud to be British. I'd be a lot more proud of them if they gave help to those in need.

Let me introduce myself

HI.

WELCOME.

Let's get the "eh, what's with the title" thing out of the way. I've had hiccups for ten years. Quite a nice fact to bring out at a quiet party. Don't worry they're not like "Hic-pass the-hic-HP". More like 10-20 an hour. It's just my diaphragm getting social.

I've had two blogs in the past (sorry I neglected you, keyboard). So this is my 3rd time lucky. This one is a KEEPER. Probably because I thought of a better title this time than Tina Edwards.

I'm keeping this to write about lifestyle, music, fashion, events, and tit bits which may get my goat or I reckon need bringing to light.

In case you don't know me, this is the lady herself:

Whilst I move over pieces that I think may be worth visual consumption, I shall hope something interesting happens so to some celebrity so I have something to inspire my 1st (technically 2nd) fresh blog. Fingers crossed Cheryl Cole chips a nail or something equally devastating...

Till then, hic.