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Jesca Hoop - Live in Manchester, UK - 2010 (IA)

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From the Internet Archive (IA) this is Jesca Hoop live at Band On The Wall, a venue in Manchester, England, back on Monday 24th May 2010. This is what the Manchester venues website had to say about Jesca prior to the gig - Jesca Hoop was born in Southern California to strict Mormon parents. She grew up singing traditional folk tunes in four-part harmony, but soon broke away from this background, becoming a homesteader and working with children. As a nanny for Tom Waits and Kathleen Brennan’s three children, Hoop gained both musical experience and notoriety; Waits said of Jesca, 'Her music is like going swimming in a lake at night'. Following exposure through radio station KCRW, Jesca toured with Polyphonic Spree, Mark Knopfler, Andrew Bird and Elbow – with Guy Garvey also dueting with Hoop on her (then) latest acclaimed album Hunting My Dress. In addition to this we can add (from Wiki) As a result of meeting Tom Piper, the touring manager of the band Elbow, Hoop moved to

A Couple Of Good Ones: Murder Shoes - Rissy

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Murder Shoes - Nineteeneightyone. Bio -  Sometimes, it really does boil down to who you know. Shortly after Derek Van Gieson first moved to Minneapolis, he met fellow guitarist Chris White through an ex-post-hardcore-punk pal. For a year or so, Derek and Chris stockpiled hundreds of songs. The songs ran the gamut of 60s pop/garage nuggets, gothic folk, chaotic post-punk, 80s funk and R&B, country/western, shoegaze, rockabilly, and surf.  It could have been a real hot mess, but Derek brought Tess Weinberg in to the picture and she tied the whole thing together with her sultry cross-genre vocals. They further refined their sound as a trio and just when they thought they had it figured out, bassist Tim Heinlein and drummer Elliot Manthey brought the volume, power, and muscle. Inside of a year as a quintet, Murder Shoes recorded and released three EPs, a full length album, and went on tour. After many adventures in the studio and live, the band has refined the eclectic nature of th

Sunday Alternative: Sin Cos Tan - ALXA - Jade The Moon - Sweet Mix Kids ft. Pikachunes

Sin Cos Tan - Ten Years (single from Smile Tomorrow Will Be Worse -EP). Background - Finnish synthpop duo Sin Cos Tan shares new single ‘Ten Years’, a new EP is also set for a release in October. Synth-pop duo Sin Cos Tan have already three albums, a host of packed-out festival appearances and a big dose of musical experience. Finnish duo consists of 2 already established musicians: producer-DJ Jori Hulkkonen (who has previously put his magical producer hands on works also with Tiga, Pet Shop Boys´ Chris Lowe, Jose Gonzalez...) and Juho Paalosmaa, songwriter and vocalist also from Villa Nah who released one of the best albums of 2010 ‘Origin’. 
The Sin Cos Tan duo received huge international critical acclaim for their self-titled debut album and hit single “Trust” back in 2012, including a nomination for ‘Critics Choice of Album of The Year’ at the Finnish Emma-Awards. The boys chose not to rest on their laurels and released only 10 months later their successful follow-up album ‘Aft

Saturday Songs: August Wells - The Sea Birds - Angus C Crowley

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August Wells - Come On In Out Of That Night. Background Info - 'Come On In Out Of That Night' is the new single by August Wells and was released on September 4th on FIFA ('Forever In Financial Arrears') records. A musical project formed in New York by Dublin native Ken Griffin (Rollerskate Skinny, Kid Silver and Favourite Sons) and New York pianist John Rauchenberger, August Wells teamed up with the Cork based independent label earlier this year for the release of the sumptuous 'Here In the Wild' single and that partnership continues for what is the perfect follow up.  'Come On In Out Of That Night' once again has the deep lilt of Griffin's voice combined with the sound of Rauchenbergers piano arrangements, add to that Louis Schwadron (Radio Head & Grizzly Bear) and Griffins uplifting brass arrangements which are accented by fat choruses contrasting with the deep twisted vocal. The result is a an elegant three minutes of lustrous music tin

Friday Five: Liphemra - Peru - Little Death - The Noted - Apothek.

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Liphemra - 'did u cry'. Background - Los Angeles based Liphemra (comprised of Liv Marsico, Trey Findley, Miles Gray, Chris Parise) have just dropped their first official release 'did u cry'. Both dark and hypnotising in it's repetition, the track manifest an aesthetic unrivalled by any other project coming out of LA right now. "You break up... Never talk again. You just want to know if they cried." - Liv 'did u cry' teases an up-coming EP by the same name which is set for an early March release via LA-based label Future Gods . A wonderfully powerful background sound, gives way to Liv Marsiso's emotionally charged vocals, that dance above the ever changing soundtrack. A real alternative that works so well. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Peru   (the band) - I Need You. Background - Great music can take you places.  So, perhaps it’s appropr

Double Delights: $omeone feat Kite - Lydia Schubert

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$omeone feat Kite - Hollow. Those background words - When the music producer, $omeone, recently signed on Gotta Records, meets the sensitivity of the genius vocalist named Kite. Kite is an award-winning Liverpool-based, Cumbrian-born songstress. Her debut EP ‘The Bed of The Brook’ was released in 2011 and led her on to play festivals such as Radio 1’s Big Weekend, Kendal Calling, Solfest and Ireby as well as gaining her a spot to play across the pond at Dewey Beach Music Conference in Delaware. Her first single ‘The Water’ was self-released in 2013 and has had extensive radio play including BBC Cumbria, BBC Merseyside and BBC Radio 2 as well as having been playlisted by BBC 6 Music’s Tom Robinson. Since her trip to the US in 2012 Kite has been working closely with Brooklyn-based collective Mason Jar Music (Feist, Wood Brothers, Josh Garrels, Alicia Keys) . Lot's of recognition and words of praise, already written for Kite here in the UK, and on the strength of this song, it

Another Genre Mix: Before The Flood - herMajesty - Still Parade

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Before the Flood - I Can't Wait For You. Background words - Before the Flood's 2nd LP (Hole in the Sky - 2015) is heavy on vocal harmonies, layered strings and deep percussion and bass. Electronic elements and synths add to the rich, and at other times ethereal soundscapes BTF creates through a long-awaited and eclectic 14 song journey. BTF's style and performances are constantly evolving but they continue to draw comparisons to Wilco, The Shins, The Weakerthans & Skydiggers. Before the Flood formed in 2005, and the line-up has fluidly performed with between 4 and 7 members.  The backbone of the band has been strong, diverse song writing and rich, textured arrangements. Bars Wire and Wood (2008) had two singles (the title track & The Halls) that charted on college radio across Canada. Over the last seven years BTF has been honing their craft performing through Southern Ontario - with 14 appearances at The Legendary Horseshoe Tavern (Toronto), 15 at The Moonshi