Top 10 2014

So here is my top 10 bands/artists for 2014! These may well be older bands but just ones I have discovered in the past year :)

10. Blazin' Fiddles:

The name sums them up perfectly!


9. VAMM:

Three ladies who bring their own backgrounds and taste together to build one fine musical soup!


8. Ross Ainslie:

The piper from Treacherous Orchestra really does know what he's doing, and he doesn't need a huge band to back him up either, he is just as talented working on his own!


7. Steamchicken:

Listen to 'There ain't nobody here but us chickens'. Done it? Your welcome.

6. All Blacked Up:

This Morris Dancing group have released two albums and both are really great to listen to, fully of bouncy dance tunes, it is simple but really effective and definitely puts a smile on my face.


5. Matt Quinn:

Funny chap with great box playing skills, I only wish I could play the box half as well. 'No More Wabbits' from the 'Banquet of Boxes' collection and 'Katie the Conqueror ' are fantastic and fun!


4. Red Shoes:

Amazing music and amazing people. Very soft gentle music to help calm and relax you. perfect with a bottle of wine after a stressful day!


3. Monster Ceilidh Band:

A great bland of folk, electric and rock this band has some great albums that really get you in the mood to party. 'Red Jack' is an amazing tune that instantly makes me want to hit the clubs no matter what time of day it is.


2. Bartram, Brookes and Weatherall:

I discovered these through the March edition of Froots magazine and I can't explain why but after reading the article I was intrigued so decided to invest in their album. I was very pleasantly surprised and taken with them. Their older, traditional style has been nicely balanced with being catchy and entertaining. 'The Campernero', 'John Barleycorn' and 'Lavender Trousers' were on repeat on my play list for days!


1. 3 Daft Monkeys:

I have only heard two of their albums so far but getting the others is my top priority when I am finally in paid employment again. I first reviewed them for FATEA with tunes like 'The Tale of the Laziest Pirate' and 'World on its Head' from the album 'Of Stones and Bones' really roping me in. This folk/rock/indie style moves away from the traditional elements to have their own take on the genre. The story lines and comedy elements of the tunes are what really rope me, that and the tunes and entire sound is just amazing.

DFTBA

Motivation

First of all a quick note to say that my review of Blazzin Fiddles has been published in the latest EFDSS magazine, so do check that out!

Secondly this blog post is more just for me to get my thoughts down in writing. I'm also curious if anyone views the world in quite the same why I do and puts the same pressure on themselves.

Life is still taking me odd directions; I've been put on a work experience placement in a job centre.

I was curious about how this was going to go, but my advisor told me that most people who do these placements ends up getting a job, just because so many job advisors are there to help, so we will see. Typically though my placement has been different as our slightly bizarre manager decided he didn’t just want us filing and the like, he want us to actually learn something so set us a project.

This project has actually been very fun to do and I noticed that even though this is an unpaid placement I've enjoyed it a lot more than my previous job working for a children’s website. The manager is a very enthusiastic person and keeps telling me and the other lad on placement that the only thing that stops you from accomplishing anything is you.

Now as I have briefly touched on before, my motivation has been rock bottom lately, and blogging has been one of the areas to take the hit, but encouragement from my family and wonderful lady is helping me to 'get over it' as it were, so hopefully I will be able to start committing better.

I have also been thinking a lot about the psychology behind why I act the way I do sometimes when looking at things like working and hobbies etc I take a very hard stance on myself.

Many years ago now I used to do the sport fencing and it was one of my hobbies and I was reasonably good at it, I did okay in competitions and I was certainly one of the best in my club at the time, but I remember shortly before I left to go to University something changed in me, I became terrified of competition. I don't just mean competing I mean any kind of competition. As soon as my mind made this switch everything then appeared as a competition, either against other people or against myself.

In school doing Philosophy I was arguably one of the top of the class if not the top, so it hit me hard when in Uni I was upstaged by others. This may sound very... immature at this point but keep in mind that this was all subconscious and striving to be the top is a very normal, very human emotion. I gradually started taking the attitude that people will always be better than me so I stopped trying, I think it could be part of the reason (although there were certainly other factors which I won't go into) why I didn't get the grade I could have in the end.
This all affects me now as very failed job application and every week being on JSA is me failing in this competition against myself.

I also find that everything has to go somewhere, be part of some bigger plan. In Uni I joined the radio station and found a passion for this. In my first year it was just a fun hobby but by second year I was working towards it as a career path. Then when I developed a love for folk music this slotted into this plan as I could do a folk music radio show as well as debate shows which had stemmed from my Philosophy degree. See, all connected, hobbies have to fit in to the master plan or they are not worth doing (at least in my subconscious).

I'm trying to learn to play the melodeon and it is proving to be very difficult and is taking a long time, so another hit to my esteem. Playing the box is not connected to my overall plan but is a very important side quest (lol video game speak), I firmly know the level I want to reach and it is a very slow process and I may not even get there. Sadly I just don't have that musical flare (my sister does though. She is pitch perfect and can easily pick up instruments. Curses...)

I did pick a really hard, very competitive industry to try and get into, and then have selected a very narrow niche. So unsurprisingly I am struggling to break into radio and every month that passes with not even the slightest chance is breaking me. People tell me it’s not the end of the world, I can just get any job and keep looking in radio. Now this is true and I accept that, but subconsciously it doesn't matter, I am still failing, bottom of the competition board as it were. The fact is I am not particularly exceptional at anything, just average or good, but so are a lot of people, so unless I get really lucky I'm going to remain in this cycle, and that is frustrating.

People tell me I put so much pressure on myself and that I need to appreciate the things I have accomplished, and the fact I am good at things. For me though it doesn't really work like that, I am proud to have reviews published on bright Young Folk, Fatea and EFDSS, but they are just stepping stones towards that final goal and so aren't worth celebrating. If anything they act as a reminder that I am close to my goal but not there yet, I am stuck just out of reach.

Does anyone else look at the world like this? Or am I just weird? :p

DFTBA

I'm still here!

It's been a long time since I have posted here so I think its time I get the ball rolling again.

The mean reason for my absence has been reviewing for three publications plus a full time job simply stole all of my time away. Allow to me give you some updates on my plans and where things are headed.

Review wise I am still reviewing for Bright Young Folk, Fatea Magazine and EFDSS so this takes up a large portion of my free time.

Luckily I'm going to have more free time as I found before Christmas that I was being made redundant. The past few weeks have been spent desperately trying to get another job before having to face the horror of going back onto JSA and sadly I am now out of time and will be signing on. Hopefully not for long though!

I have recieved a few messages with people interested in me reviewing their work on here including The Men With Strong Arms and Scarlet Starlings. Both of these will be coming up in the fext few weeks as will a long promised exploration of how artists can develop the sound of the music over time. This will be particularly using the work of my good friend Ange Hardy as a case study.

I should also extend my congratulations to Ange as she won Female Vocalist of the Year in the Fatea awards, very well deserved!

There is also a new Fatea Showcases currently available, this collection is called 'Chemistry' and for those who don't know what the Fatea showcases are, it is a collection of songs that have been reviewed over the season as a way of promoting the work of the artists inspire us! It's completly free to download and can be found here:

http://www.fatea-magazine.co.uk/

In other news I am still slowly getting there with my melodeon, sadly with everything  else on my mind I just simply don't give it the hours but I hope to make the most of my time out of work to make some progress here.

I have had a couple of job interviews already although I did not get through afterwards which is a shame. Anyone who has been on JSA before knows how soul destroying it can feel!

Of course if you have any work you want reviewing do send it in to me at paul.rawcliffe1@gmail.com

DFTBA

Never Mind the Boc

This one is a little late, but for me was worth it!

Never Mind the Bocs is a lovely welsh band on their second album together and it is definitely an album worth listening too. The Brownings (each band member is a Browning) adds their own extra zest to the band with button accordions, wind instruments, strings, bodhrán and drums making up the talent tree of instruments.

Never mind the Bocs have opted to remain much more traditionally founded, going with generally slower paced and calming styles of music over rock or folk dance styles. Their latest album release, ‘A Moon to Hang Coats On’ consists of 16 lovely sets that mix up vocal songs and pure instrumentals.

Their music is very diverse, which is wonderful for those who like their music constantly changing and surprising. For example early on in the album we get ‘The Wren’ a beautifully sung song that helps to calm the listener followed immediately by ‘Full Catastrophe Living’ which is then an instrumental track staring squeezeboxes that go through some faster paces that will get your foot tapping more.

The mix of English songs and Welsh language, along with the previously mentioned variety in music makes this band the staple for people flirting with folk or new to the genre as it examples a whole range of what folk can be all in one album.

‘Tom Fahey’s Wall’ and ‘Fi Wela Ynys Cynon’  are amazing songs with not only perfect lead vocals but also excellently harmonised backing vocals which with the very fairy tale style of music accompanying makes for great listening. To me, many of tracks like ‘Barton Island’ and ‘Y Dyn Heb Fochyn’ even conjure images of the Welsh mountains.

My absolute favourite on the album is ‘The Discomfort of Lloyd George’, partly for the hilarious name, and secondly because of the high squeezebox emphasis (it is of course where my own musical abilities are rooted) but also the rhythmic almost Morris dance style that I know many dancers would love.

A great album, I'm going to locate a copy of their first album too!

DFTBA

Lazibyrd

Today we have my review of Lazibyrd

This is another duo, consisting of Sharon Martin (Fiddle) and Tom Chapman (Guitar) who work together harmoniously to give us a fine example of today’s English Folk. Sharon Leads the vocals, supported by Tom.

They open their album ‘Under the Sky’ with a brilliantly catchy song called ‘I’m Alright Jack’ which does a great job of drawing you in to hear more. It’s like Pringles. I’d describe the method of singing as being slightly rap/ slightly skat/ jazz but with an action folk instrumental that fits like gears.

After the attention grabbing start, the album then settles into slightly softer songs, but they do not lose any sense of grip, ‘It’s the Little Things’ in particular is the kind of song that will blow you away and would be perfect for one of those happy life montage scenes in cheesy films.

What is interesting about Lazibyrd is the lack of emphasis in their songs. Usually bands with vocals have that pushed into the front with the instruments used as a pedestal to then hold those vocals up on. With Lazibyrd however it doesn’t quite come across like that. Yes there are vocals, powerful vocals, and yes this is over a musical background, but there is more unison. The music is not just to support the vocals; the vocals draw attention to the music too, which is nice to see.

In regards to the playing of music there seems to be more of an emphasis on the guitar over fiddle, but that’s possibly because Sharon leads with vocals. The playing is a great balance as there isn’t this problem of over playing that some guitarists do in an attempt to get noticed.

‘Half of One Whole’ is a particularly heart warming song that almost lead to me typing the cheesy line of how these two musicians work so well that the absence of either one would be ‘half of one whole’, they are not two musicians they are one whole as Lazibyrd. Of course I would never write anything that cheesy.

Overall the album has a good mix of the fast exciting (‘Fly Away’)and the slow moving (‘Run to the Dawn’) and they are musically a great pairing.

I expect to see much more from Lazibyrd to come as this ship has clearly only just set sail.

DFTBA

Red Shoes review

Apologies all for the lack of recent posts, my computer had a brief moment of crazy but seems to be under control again now.

This week I will be reviewing a couple of folk bands and I will be doing a compare and contrast of Ange Hardy’s ‘Bare Foot Folk’ with her earlier album release ‘Windmills and Wishes’.

My first entry though is Red Shoes and their album release ‘All The Good Friends’

The duo already have already had a fair stretch on the folk scene with their debut album ‘Ring Around The Land’ and have now returned with this new release.

The album kick starts with a song called ‘Red Coat Ride’ which is an anti-hunting theme that cleverly uses strong percussion along with confident booming vocals and guitar. To me the percussion is a particularly nice touch as it ‘clomps’ along almost like the sound of hooves during horse riding.

The vocals of Carolyn Evans are very forcefully, pushing the message and story of the songs to you in a way gets you to listen carefully and grabs your attention. That isn’t to say her vocals can’t be soft though as the soothing song ‘Hidden Name’ and ‘River Rea’ then shows us very early on.

As for Mark Evans we get his acoustic abilities featuring behind in every song acting as the perfect counterpart to Carolyn. Their musical matching is shown particularly well in ‘Sunday Afternoon’ and the foot tapping ‘Swansong’ (Also has brilliant backing vocals).

The big sell for this band is the feeling that is portrayed through the music, ‘Blackberry Way’ is arranged both musically and vocally in such a way that you have to notice it. For Red Shoes there is no such thing as background music, they will always be the centre of attention when playing or being played.

DFTBA