Paris based singer-songwriter & multi-instrumentalist. High & hazy pop, reverb-drenched vocals, undulating guitars, weightless melodies, obsession with time.
Maud says of her EP:
“It is all about the beginning and the end: Baptism being the second birth (START), Du Pouvoir dealing with self-confidence and how to find your place in the world (CONSTRUCTION), and À La Fin (literally “At The END”), about what we keep and lose after love has gone. Dans La Nuit is actually the very first song I wrote in French, and has all been written during the night, and dans la nuit, we float, we escape until the next day is coming. The fact that I finally refused to choose between French and English ended up making sense when I signed to HeavenlyRecordings, a double sign from heaven!”.
This month Halo Maud will headline The Waiting Room, London & she is supporting Baxter Dury on his UK & French tour date She is also playing the matinee show for our Heavenly weekend in Hebden Bridge on Saturday 24th February.
Hatchie is one Harriette Pilbeam, a native of Brisbane who has already attracted plaudits at home prior to unsurprisingly picking up wider acclaim from the likes of NPR and Beats 1.
Having played with various friends and bands in Brisbane, Hatchie is her first venture into solo territory, one she is quick to admit is positive, that allows her to make her own decisions, assert herself and make so many positive changes. Her world is a dreamy landscape inhabited by cascading synths, jangling guitars and undeniable, irresistible pop melodies. Sure, prompted by a melody was composed on a whim and completed in a day. As she explains; “All of my songs start with singing. I hear the melody first and then work out the chords I’m imaginging under that and despite not knowing chord names I have a good ear so can kinda figure it out.”
That instinct is abundant on Sure, lush synths envelope alluring vocals that wouldn’t appear out of place in The Sundays and Allvvays songbooks – a gorgeous swathe of pop beauty, an enthralling introduction into the world of Hatchie. The track will be included on a forthcoming EP through Heavenly Recordings that will accompany her debut UK live dates.
Also check out the First single from Brisbane dreampop artist Hatchie.
The addictive and swaggering Beehive is the latest powerful track to be shared from the Mark Lanegan Band’s upcoming new record Gargoyle ( released 28th April on Heavenly Recordings).
There’s a singer with a voice 50 fathoms deep and the consistency of vitrified teak, who has been known to go to extremes in search of a song. Across continents, over oceans, through multiple time zones. From West Hollywood to… Tunbridge Wells. A long way – but Mark Lanegan knows the directions.
Early in 2016, Mark was at home in Los Angeles, working on some ideas for what might turn into his next album. He wasn’t too thrilled by what he was coming up with. Then he got an email from a friend, an English musician named Rob Marshall, thanking Mark for contributing to a new project he was putting together, Humanist. The pair first met in 2008, when Marshall’s former band Exit Calm supported Soulsavers, who Mark was singing with at the time. Now Rob was offering to write Mark some music to return the favour.
“I was like, Hey man, I’m getting ready to make a record, if you’ve got anything?’” Mark recalls. “Three days later he sent me *10 things… !”
In the meantime, Mark had written Blue Blue Sea, a rippling mood piece that he thought might be a more fruitful direction for his new record, and had the idea for a song called First Day Of Winter that felt like an apt closer. “It’s almost always how my records start,” he explains. “I let the first couple of songs tell me what the next couple should sound like, and it’s really the same process when I’m writing words. Whatever my first couple of lines are tell me what the next couple should be. I’ve always built things like that, sort of like making a sculpture I guess. Start with the raw material and let that point me in the direction I want to go. So, once I was pointed in that direction, the music that came from other sources, from Rob, I just went for the ones that helped me build this narrative that I had started already.”
Within an hour, Mark had written words and vocal lines for two of the pieces Rob had cooked up at Mount Sion Studios in Kent and pinged through the virtual clouds to California. Rob’s music fitted perfectly with the direction Mark had been pondering: in essence, a more expansive progression from the moody Krautrock-influenced electronica textures of his two previous albums, Blues Funeral and Phantom Radio. Eventually, Rob Marshall would co-write six of the songs on the new Mark Lanegan Band album. “I was very thankful to become reacquainted with him,”
The remainder of the album was written, recorded and produced by Lanegan’s longtime musical amanuensis Alain Johannes at his 11 AD base in West Hollywood. Everything was done and dusted within a month, unusually fast by Lanegan’s recent standards. Both Blues Funeral and Phantom Radio unfurled at leisurely pace over several months. But this time Johannes had only a fixed window of opportunity due to his ongoing touring commitments as a member of P.J. Harvey’s band. But Mark was sufficiently happy with the material to move swiftly, a reflection of contentment with his abilities as a singer and writer, which have now produced a huge body of work spanning a period of more than 30 years: whether it be his own solo records, or collaborative recordings with others, or going back to his legendary first band, the Screaming Trees.
By his own admission, as a young man Mark Lanegan used to drive himself crazy when it came to writing songs. Then again, the younger Lanegan lived a crazy life. He grew up in the small Washington State farm town of Ellensburg, in and out of jail for various offenses– aged 20 a doctor told him he would be dead by 30 unless he addressed his alcohol intake. Lanegan would joke that his subsequent hard drugs addiction saved his life. He saw more violence in the Screaming Trees than in any correctional institution: the band he joined in 1984 whirled around a vortex of sibling strife as its songwriting brothers punched their way through a succession of progressively more engaging albums, until 1992’s Sweet Oblivion brought the Trees a modicum of commercial success to match the respect they had earned among Seattle scene peers like Nirvana.
His latest offering, titled Gargoyle. While sharing roots with its two predecessors, there’s a significant up-shift in the swaggering powerlode of such keynote songs as Nocturne and Beehive, while the lyrics’ tonal palette is more varied. Beehive, for instance, is a thrilling replicant biker anthem, riffed up and reverberant to the hilt, but you can sense Lanegan’s eyebrow arched throughout as he intones “Honey just gets me stoned”, or the priceless couplet, “Hanging down from above/Everywhere I look it’s a bummer.” The album title comes from a lyric in Blue Blue Sea – “Gargoyle perched on gothic spire” – and was chosen for its hint of self-deprecation.
“I don’t know if ‘whimsical’ is the correct term,” laughs Mark, “but it seemed fitting. I’m most proud of the songs that are atypical to stuff that I’ve done in the past. So I really like Old Swan, because it’s an expression of positivity, which is completely anti-anything I’ve done before!” He laughs. “Y’know, I haven’t played this record for too many people yet. I played it for Greg Dulli, who played on some of it, and he was like, ‘Wow, I had to listen to it twice – it sounds like he’s having a good time…’ So for that same reason I like Beehive, and Emperor…”
Emperor is more startling still: a psychedelic music hall ditty, featuring Josh Homme on backing vocals and heavily redolent of the Kinks.
“Oh, I love the Kinks,” says Mark. “I listen to the Kinks probably every three days or so. I also love that song because Josh is singing on it, and I always love singing with him. But really, I like all three of those songs because they’re… I guess ‘light-hearted’ is not the right term, but just less dark than what I’m normally doing. And there’s nothing wrong with that either, but for some reason those three came out that way and I’m more psyched about them.”
Old Swan is Gargoyle’s perfect finale: a pulsing incantation, an epic hymn to the life that’s lived – and She who provides it. The lyric feels like Lanegan’s most personal – even spiritual.
“Clean/Through the eternal/Through dead seasons/Sail to the sun/My mother and my queen/Honest and serene.”
There’s a chuckle from the author of these words as he hears them read out loud. It’s been a long journey travelled, not always easy, but in 2017, at the age of 52, he’s got the look of permanence about him. Like that gargoyle on the gothic spire.
“Clean, through the eternal…” Mark Lanegan? With his reputation?
Mark Lanegan takes the S-bahn to meet Alain Johannes, Jack Irons and Josh Homme in Iggy-ville. Channeling the former Stooge over a razor bounce, Lanegan bellows his disgust for the man at the top. If there ever was a voice that could topple giant empires, it’s this one.
Mark Lanegan is an American alternative musician and singer-songwriter. Born and raised in Ellensburg, Washington, Lanegan began his musical career in 1984, forming the grunge band Screaming Trees. He now has a career as a solo artist.
Having been rattling the DIY scene with their distinctive distortion,The Wytches If you are just currently getting familiar with Fat White Family, The Growlers and Blood Red Shoes the band have been busy casting their spell far across the county touring frequently after the release of their debut LP “Annabel Dream Reader”, which was released via Heavenly Recordings.
The Brighton via Peterborough trio have made their trademark heavy guitars and raw recordings that go some way to capture the DIY power of their live shows. The live to tape production favoured by the band can’t help but transport you to those dark, thrashing toilet venues where only this kind of music can be conceived.
Lauded as being one of the highlights of last years Reading and Leeds Festival, with a superb frontman in Kristian Bell their album was recorded entirely on tape in just two days.
To celebrate all hallows eve they released a brand new track and suitably spooky video, feast your eyes on ‘Double World’…
Two versions but one tune. ’Double World’ and ’Double World (Sludge Version)’ were released digitally through Heavenly Recordings on October 31st.
About the track, lead singer Kristian Bell explains, “We recorded the track a few months ago but felt it was quite different to the direction we’re going in with the writing for the next album so we thought it would make for an interesting Halloween special.”
The release coincided with their Sold Out Halloween party at Hackney’s MOTH Club which has kickstarted their UK Tour. Both tracks were recorded in Kristian’s Garage, and ‘Double World’ comes with a suitably Lo-Fi and eery video directed by Wytches own Mark Breed.
If there was a word like “onomatopoeia” that described music that sounds like its title, then Gargoyle would be a pretty perfect example thereof in relation to Mark Lanegan. His voice is like weathered stone, its form eroded by the years, and yet more beautiful still in its own damaged, broken way. This is his 10th solo album, and while his later career has never quite reached the heights of 2004’s masterpiece Bubblegum, his voice and songs continue to be amongst the most compelling music has to offer.
Halifax band The Orielles have been around the block for a little while now, they have done things the right way with countless live shows, circuiting etc. etc. But now they have finally released their debut single and we are glad they did.
‘Sugar Tastes Like Salt’ is glorious 8 minutes of sprawling, experimental, and most importantly enjoyable music. At 8 minutes you may wince, but the use of disco beat and proto punk posturing means this track keeps your feet shuffling throughout. ‘Sugar Tastes Like Salt’ feels like it belongs mid-way between an ESG demo and A Certain Ratio, with a dash of The Chameleons on the side.
Not only do they have a stellar debut track out but they also have a tour and have announced their signing to Heavenly Records – we couldn’t recommend a better label for them to belong too. Take a listen to the track below.
The Orielles debut on Heavenly Recordings single ‘Sugar Tastes Like Salt.’ Produced by Marta Salogni. The Orielles are Sidonie B Hand-Halford, Esmé Dee Hand-Halford and Henry Carlyle Wade.
So, we all trust Heavenly Recordings right ? They were quick to recognise Swedish singer-songwriter Lea Emmery’s innate ability to pen soaring evocative guitar driven pop as she produced demos under the name ‘Kid Wave.‘ The result was a deal with Heavenly, Kid Wave became a band and they released their debut album ‘Wonderlust’ a fabulous collection of songs and our album of the year in 2015. So it’s safe to say that we f**king loveKid Wave and will yield to no none in our deeply held view that Lea is among one of the finest songwriters to emerge in recent years .
The good news is Kid Wave are back, and their latest tune ‘Everything Changes’ is a spectacular return. It’s the sound of a band stepping up to the next level It also sounds like an artist brimming with confidence and ideas, it’s shimmering, wistful, evocative life-affirming and moving. The mark of a great songwriter is their ability to communicate feelings and atmosphere to display real emotional intelligence and also produce tunes that aren’t genre specific. Seriously ‘Everything Changes’ could work just as well if it was performed acoustically, electronically, sung in a tin bath or covered by Springsteen in a huge arena show, to rows of swaying iPhones. It’s that good. KidWave are that good, and that’s one thing that won’t change, certainly not if Lea continues to write songs of such quality.
The newly anticipated King Gizzard album “Flying Microtonal Banana” due out February 24th, Listen to two new songs . Peep the behind-the-scenes zine, and get tickets for their forthcoming US headlining tour! The limited edition Flying Microtonal Banana zine, assembled by King Gizzard’s creative guru Jason Galea and featuring photographs from Sub Lation (aka Jamie Wdziekonski), documents the making of Flying Microtonal Banana, from the instruments and recording sessions to early sketches of album art and music videos.
The unstoppable King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard are incredibly prolific with their output. It feels like only yesterday they were touting one album now they have another on Heavenly Recordings: Flying Microtonal Banana out on February 24th. And from it they have shared ‘Sleep Drifter’ a tumultuous and spellbinding new single.
The latest album was recorded in the hometown of East Brunswick in Melbourne, Australia and has all the notes you’d expect to hear from a KGatLW track. It is dreamy in parts and nightmarish in others, thumping and caressing with psyche flourishes and a rock and roll backbone. Firmly seen in ‘Sleep Drifter’
Talking about the creation of Flying Microtonal Banana Eric Moore of the band said “Earlier this year we started experimenting with a custom microtonal guitar our friend Zak made for Stu. The guitar was modified to play in 24-TET tuning and could only be played with other microtonal instruments. We ended up giving everyone a budget of $200 to buy instruments and turn them microtonal. The record features the modified electric guitars, basses, keyboards and harmonica as well as a Turkish horn called a Zurna”
The back story behind Amber Arcades is almost as fascinating the music. It’s essentially the solo project of multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter Annelotte De Graaf, who by day works as a legal aide for Syrian refugees in her native Utrecht. Prior to that, she sat on United Nations tribunals dedicated to war crimes. Clearly well versed on humanitarian issues, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that her debut, Fading Lines, is one of the most quietly unassuming yet inherently beautiful records to grace our speakers in years. But then even the story of AmberArcades eventually signing to revered UK independent Heavenly Recordings is shrouded in more luck than judgment. An occasional flatmate of De Graaf’s secured a job with the label and handing them a demo on the off chance someone might listen to it. Which might seem preposterous on the surface yet would have been an even bigger travesty had these songs not been heard in the first place. Nevertheless, eventually signing in January of this year, we’re here now with arguably among the finest debut releases of 2016, An artist to watch.
The Fat Angel Sings 