I’ll apologise at the start for the lack of updates from me for the last month. Hectic doesn’t even come close to summing up the last few weeks. There was the end of exams, followed by trying to earn some quick cash, followed by one amazing loved up week in Ibiza, then graduation. It’s been tiring. Anyway, enough of the excuses. This compilation has been finished for a couple of weeks but I just haven’t had time to upload all the tracks, which meant I couldn’t let share it with you all.

Onto the music.

Here we’ve got a compilation of tunes, mostly quite summery and breezy, and with often folk influences, although I don’t really want to limit its breadth to just that. Folk is the soundtrack to my summer (that and some fucking awesome tunes that have been slamming my stereo since Ibiza but more on that in my next electro post), it just lets me sit back and relax in the sunshine during a period when looking for jobs or contracts is the reality I’m now entering. Oh, and yes there are quite a few bands here with pretty damn ridiculous names, I like them, but that doesn’t make them any less ridiculous.

Some of these bands are on the cool smaller labels like Moshi Moshi or Young & Lost which are both doing an amazing job of finding very talented new bands to come through that are accessible and yet just slightly outside mainline pop, with lyrics a little more clever, emotions a little deeper or sweeter. Yeah I love them just a little bit. Also, as ever I have to tip my hat to Derek over at GWFAS, and Matthew at Songs, by Toad for finding a few of these.

Florence you can imagine strumming and serenading from the corner of a bar, with her all jazz/blues-styled singing and blues guitar strumming that have strong folky roots. She is aggressive as much as hypnotic.

Emmy The Great sings whimsically at times and pointedly at others along with soft drums and a variety of instruments from guitars, to violin to what sounds distinctly like a xylophone. She is a modern blues raconteur and yet still a sweet girl-guitar combo.

Marina and the Diamonds sings to an offbeat tune in a way that reminds me of early Regina Spektor. Piano - tick, unusual vocal melodies - tick, and yet she offers something new to pique your interest.

This track from Drew Helsinki reminds me of a raw Jamie T, with a little more of a raggae rhythm to it. Once you get through the opening short vocal rambling you get through to a chirpy summer tune that even brings in some claps later on in case you managed to forget the smile that has found its way to cover your face, which is pretty odd when you actually listen to the lyrics.

Jay Jay Pistolet has created a ballad, with a sad drone of vocals, reminiscing on a past friend and recanting her story from an outside admirer. Delicate and enchanting.

Noah and the Whale have been featured here on TBW on more than one occasion as leaders of the supposed new folk movement in London. This song is more of a ballad than some of their other tunes and doesn’t contain the usual change of pace - but still stands as a beautiful song in its own right.

Slow Club have created cutesy twee folk pop that reminds me of Noah and the Whale, with harmonising duet vocals and a simple guitar melody. They have kept to simple melodies and stripped down structures, but have mastered it and created cute chemistry.

Kid Harpoon first appeared on my radar from friends that were loving Jamie T’s rise to fame last summer. He has come a long way from those rough demos that were kicking about back then. He has honed his skills on piano and guitar but the tunes have stayed along that dark folky indie theme and live continues to impress all who see him.

Thos Henley creates defines the hazy, dreamy, happy folk that is defining my summer, with other songs utilising the traditional folk accompaniments of accordians and eukaleles. This song sounds like Thos is singing about a rural english country idyll where we all want to be able to escape to, even if that may be along the Thames…

Kimya Dawson has found a lot of fans recently off the back of the Juno soundtrack, but that was not before time. She is apparently “anti-folk,” but I’ll take that to be her often politically charged lyrics, as “Like Giants” sounds very much like folk to me, and awesome folk, if at a little quicker pace than it would traditionally be. She describes a magical mystery world of ginats and lemmings and bettering one’s world view. It is a world I want to find myself in.

Frank Turner defines post-punk after his move into folk after the demise of his band Million Dead. Here he turns my ideas of folk being based on rural or imaginary idylls on its head to sing about averse to everything that that world holds dear. But singing it with smooth melodies over gentle strumming and a harmonica juxtaposes the two worlds of city and village dwellers perfectly.

Lucy and the Caterpillar’s music is dreamy nostalgia, and yet imaginative and upbeat. It is cute, very cute, but she manages to wash that down with a melancholy tone that lift her way above the cute popstars that are finding success at the moment in the charts.

Kay Kay and his Weathered Underground have created a true mish-mash of a sound here. Parts sound like they’ve been stripped from a victorian fair or circus, and with that pulls some distant memory of something from the Beatles magical Mystery Tour, but with a vocal  melody that almost branches into Oasis, and then a ending tha could have come from a Cat Empire song. I never thought those three would get into on song that sounds even remotely fluent, but it seems I have been proved wrong and happily so.

Tahiti Boy leads what is basically a french collective of chaotic musicians that somehow come together. Their songs keep some of this chaos as thy change pace, but keep the adoration flowing through. I really don’t know how to describe this lot, but listen to “1973″ and get on their myspace to see how varied the music of one band/collective can be.

Not being content with a bit part on Casualty and doing voiceovers for Ikea, Johnny Flynn is being promoted as the poster boy of the current folk resurgence going on in England. Touring with his four piece backing band, The Sussex Wit, which sums up his clever lyrical style rather well, and with his debut critically acclaimed album A Larum out now on Vertigo Records, he is one of those leading the movement along with Laura Marling and Noah and the Whale.

This Submarines song doesn’t exactly fit with the folk and acoustic sound of most of the rest of this mix, but I have been loving its upbeat, foot-tapping summer perfection and just need an excuse to share it. It may have a political message about how we should not follow the easiest but the best path, but it is just so damn catchy.

The Swedish Lykke Li has been dominating the music blogs for quite a while now, and that is due to her daunting talent. It’s apparently pronounced lu-key loo for those struggling. She is what pop was designed for, with her album, Youth Novel, coming out in June that sounds like Feist’s should have. Delicate, clever, pop music, packaged to perfection.

01 Florence and the Machine - Girl with 1 Eye
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
02 Emmy The Great - Secret Circus
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
03 Marina & The Diamonds - Simplify
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
04 Drew Helsinki - I Wish
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
05 Jay Jay Pistolet - Holly
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
06 Noah and the Whale - If I Die Tonight (live)
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
07 Slow Club - Biology Hearts
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
08 Florence & Kid Harpoon - Going Down
[Florence MySpace] [Kid Harpoon/MySpace]
09 Thos Henley - Summer on the Thames
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
10 Kimya Dawson - I Like Giants
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
11 Frank Turner - The Outdoor Type
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
12 Lucy & The Caterpillar - Beans On Toast
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
13 Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground - Hey Momma
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
14 Tahiti Boy And The Palmtree Family - 1973
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
15 Johnny Flynn - The Box (Live)
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
16 The Submarines - You Me and the Bourgeoisie
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
17 Lykke Li - Breaking It Up
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]

You can also download the whole mix as a zip file:
Summer days through the folkish haze

I will say right upfront now that I won’t be making any updates for the next 5 or so weeks as I am travelling around the Middle East. Off in about 24 hours and cannot wait - as per last year’s travelling if anyone has any thoughts on where I should go in particlular in Iran (hopefully), Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Egypt and possibly Israel then please let me know - post a comment - it would be much appreciated.

I will be picking up my emails, albeit sporadically, but any new music I am sent I will listen as per usual, there will just be a slightly longer backlog than normal.

Either way, enjoy these tunes in the meantime.

Moby has announced a competition which will allow one lucky fan to direct his music video for track ‘Ooh Yeah’. The winner of the competition, as chosen by Moby himself, will win $10,000 prize money and have their video used as the official music video for ‘Ooh Yeah’. Details of the competition can be found here: http://www.mobygratis.com/competition.html.

-Lauren Razavi

If ‘Trying Got Us Nowhere’ were a painting, it would depict a richly-coloured Caribbean sunset over a beach of dancing tribal men – it’s beautiful, spiritual and utterly unforgettable.

Elika string together haunting vocals and well-crafted electronic sounds to create harmonious and memorable songs that are completely listenable. The depth of sound, lyrics and emotion throughout this artsy and original EP make it an applicable soundtrack to any life, situation, time or thought. Each song is a little electronic event tinged with a twinge of indie, giving it an edge and a wider audience.

Songs like “The Whip” present trancelike melodies with a fantastic rockier underlay, while “They’ll Hate Us” explores a darker level, making comparisons with bands such as Nightwish and Within Temptation tangible. ‘Trying Got Us Nowhere’ is one of those fantastic records that will surprise you with something new in each song as you journey through it.

Elika are a band bursting with potential and individuality, and are refreshing enough to appeal to any number of different genres. If you appreciate talent, layers, and something a little out of the ordinary, pick up a copy of this EP right now.

[MP3]Elika - Let Down
[MP3]Elika - The Whip

Rating: 8/10

http://www.elikamusic.com/

http://www.myspace.com/elikamusic/

-Lauren Razavi

Wow - what a fucking week this has been.
Finished my last exam at Edinburgh University ever last Monday and it has been pretty much brutal since then.
The eggs, flour, ketchup, beer, cider, honey, sandwich fillings and pretty much any other liquid substance you can think of came out in force…mmm…tasty.

Yup - good times
But I couldn’t get through a post on here without some relevant music, so here you go:

LCD Soundsystem - All My Friends
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
Justice Vs Simian - We Are Your Friends
[Buy] [Justice] [Simian]

The first major night came on Wednesday with the last Itchy Feet of the year. For those that don’t know, Itchy Feet is a night that travels the UK with a bit of a swing/50s feel to it. DJs and a live band in The Five Aces made for an awesome night. Shamefully my camera broke so no pics from me, but there are plenty on good ole’ facebook which I’ve stolen a selection from (thanks guys).

Louis Prima - Angelina
Louis Prima - Sing, Sing, Sing (with a Swing)
[Buy] [Homepage] [Wikipedia]

Now into the dance and electro nights at the Caves which were fucking beautiful. First up was Spaced with Cagedbaby on the decks. Huge night. Awesome succes. There is no live recording of their set from friday, but here is Global Guest Mix of theirs from 21-04-2007 (thanks to UMP3).

Cagedbaby - Disco Biscuit
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
The Presets - Are You The One (Cagedbaby Mix)
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]

Saturday night we were all back to the caves for the last RIP with Freestylers on the decks. Took a bit for everyone to get back up for it after the afterparties of the night before (and yeah Penny Blacks for that breakfast pink at 7am), but it all went off with a bang and everyone hit their groove well before the Freestylers came on. They destroyed the floor as expected. Awesome. Again no live recording, but here is their live set from Future Sound of Breaks on 28-03-2008.

Freestylers - Painkiller
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]
Pendulum (feat. Freestylers) - Fasten Your Seatbelt
[Buy] [Homepage] [MySpace]

We then had Goldrush for two nights in GHQ and EGO. Awesome? Yes, but photos are on facebook. They aren’t all fit for a public blog…

I know this has been my first update in over a month. Finals have been ridiculously busy, but rest assured I have plenty of stuff to get up here in the next few days. Stay tuned.

On Friday night I saw Sam Amidon and Valgeir Sigurðsson at St. Barnabas’ Church in Soho; unobtrusively nestled into the dirty back-streets – from one angle it is disguised as a town house – it provided a beautiful and interesting setting for the music.

Sam Amidon was the big draw for me, and he rendered beautifully his reworked traditional American folk songs. He was accompanied by four other musicians, including Valgeir on bass, the others sharing duties on bassoon, cello, violin, accordion and banjo. They expertly played the sensitive arrangements written by Nico Muhly, which really added an extra dimension to the set, and reaffirmed my reverence for the genius young composer (New album Mothertongue is released on Tuesday). Shame he wasn’t there.The excellent new-folky David Thomas Broughton, another friend of Sam’s, sang on a couple of songs, at the same time performing unfathomable actions to accompany his words. ’Twas bloody great.

Valgeir was good too, although I hadn’t really heard the music beforehand, so I didn’t find his songs as affecting as Sam’s. I’ll give them a further listen though. My friend said that he felt the music - elaborately conceived, electronically inflected instrumentals mostly from the album Ekvílibríum – was better suited to the candle-lit chapel than Mr. Amidon’s.

Anyway, the point of this post is to say that music in churches is good, better in fact than music anywhere else. I recommend this gig in St. Pancras’ Parish Church, (put on by the cool people at Miles of Smiles) at which the aforementioned Mr. Broughton plays… I will certainly be in attendance, and I’m looking forward to some more ‘liturgical dancing’…

My name is Lauren and I’m the newest walrae to haunt these parts. I’m based in Norfolk, England and my city of Norwich produces some pretty great music. I’m privileged enough to be located near some fantastic venues, such as Norwich Arts Centre, Wensum Lodge Music House, and the Queen Charlotte pub. We get some great underground folk and indie, and so much of this unsigned talent goes unnoticed by the rest of the world. Thus, my hope here is to show you some of that fantastic talent!

I approached The Blue Walrus to start writing because Tim had noticed Alex Sheppard, who is an indie gem from Norwich, whose career I’ve been following for quite some time. Alex is an amazing musician and a particularly good lyricist and she’s gaining increasing recognition now that she’s relocated to London. Now at uni in London, she’s hanging out with Carl Barat and Zane Lowe, which has made me feel quite privileged to have been the first person to ever review her! You can listen to some of Alex’s music on her myspace page (see below) and her first album ‘Fairy Lights & Lairy Nights’ can be bought at any of her gigs, or you can email her directly to get your hands on a copy. It’s one of the best albums I’ve ever bought.

Another fantastic little band from Norwich is Adelaide’s Cape. They mesh folk and indie sounds together, and strangely enough, it really works. Adelaide’s Cape is the sort of band that imprint themselves on your brain; from just one listen, you’ll be humming their ditties for days. They play gigs around Norwich, and are currently recording some new tracks. You can visit their myspace page here to have a listen. They currently have no material for sale, but an EP release has been announced for this summer.

One band that I have to mention, though not local to me, is Bonnie Dune. This Los Angeles-based band is currently unsigned, but they ooze talent and potential. Frontman Justin Wilczynski has recently been on MTV’s TV show ‘Kaya’, which is how I discovered Bonnie Dune. They’re really worth a listen; think an American version of The Kooks, but with smoother edges.

That’s all for now folks. Happy listening :).

-Lauren x

Links:

Alex Sheppard: www.myspace.com/alexsheppard

Adelaide’s Cape: www.myspace.com/adelaidescape

Bonnie Dune: www.myspace.com/bonniedune