133 Results for : starkly

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    Little Soft Shoe for a Lot of Hard Ladies
    This acoustic debut album was recorded in May of 2011. In the past, Toby and His Train Wrecks have been through many incarnations, playing to packed crowds in northern Illinois. The songs, while at times very funny, often deal with that point where sarcasm and typical emotional distance are no longer effective defense mechanism at which we avoid the world at large. On 'Stand-Up Comedians Are Not My Friends' Toby Grace sings 'I got my sense of humor from Bill Hicks L.P.s/When it comes to my sense of humor, it's pure Bukowski/And when it comes to why you're not around, baby that's all on me/Because I spent my days getting fatter, and watching the TV' In many ways, it sets the tone of this darkly comical acoustic work, which is filled with starkly naked performances and uniquely self aware of his own neurosis and character flaws. On 'Storybook Romance' Toby details the experience of a man dealing with the pain of rejection and watching his true love find happiness with another man, through graphic detail. We also get a taste of Toby backed by a full band, with the inclusion of two fully produced demos for other album tracks. 'No Kissing On The Lips' gets a Rolling Stones meets Okkervil River style makeover including a rather beautiful string arrangement and an insanely catchy bass riff in the chorus. Overall, A Little Soft Shoe For A Lot Of Hard Ladies is a first look at a powerful new literary voice in the independent music realm.
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    • Price: 19.90 EUR excl. shipping
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    Long Spun Thread
    Gabe Levine has roots in the Montreal music scene, where he led experimental-country act Sackville (1994-2002) and was a founding member of avant-Yiddish collective Black Ox Orkestar (2000-2007), both affiliated with Constellation Records. Now based in Toronto, his music continues to experiment with folk forms and traditions, blending them with creative songwriting and striking arrangements. 'Levine arranges his group like a wayward laboratory where each member adds subtle creations of sound to the ongoing flow. The result is at times starkly beautiful, but just as often icily transfixing, stalled in slow motion.' (NME) New disc Long Spun Thread is the fruit of a year-long collaboration between singer-songwriter Gabe Levine and producer Sandro Perri (well-known for his own songwriting as well as his electro project Polmo Polpo). Levine and Perri have gathered some of Toronto's finest improvising musicians for an album of intricate, folk-inflected experimental pop. Blending Krautrock beats, woozy soul keyboards, fingerpicked guitar, fragile harmonies and soaring strings and horns, each of these ten songs creates it's own sound-world to flesh out Levine's introspective and elliptical songwriting. Inspired by artists as diverse as Curtis Mayfield, Caetano Veloso, Michael Hurley and Arthur Russell, Levine and Perri combine classic song-forms with layers of sonic inventiveness, creating a music full of circular movement, wandering melodies and infectious rhythms. The players on Long Spun Thread are some of the most creative on the Toronto scene, comfortable in folk, jazz, experimental, improvised, and indie pop contexts, drawn from bands like Canaille, Muskox, Charms, Timber Timbre, Steamboat, Piege, Not The Wind Not The Flag and others. Their sensitivity, energy and inventiveness infuse Long Spun Thread with a joyful, community spirit, complementing Levine's songwriting and Perri's production. Long Spun Thread will be available online (all major sites), via mail-order and in selected Canadian independent stores on October 1, 2010. For more information: gabelevinemusic@gmail.com CREDITS Produced and mixed by Sandro Perri Featuring: Gabe Levine (vocals, guitars), Jesse Levine (organ, rhodes), Mike Smith (bass, string arrangements), Jessica Moore (banjo, vocals), Jay Anderson (drums), Brandon Valdivia (drums), Sandro Perri (synths), Julia Collins (violin), Mika Posen (viola), Nick Storring (cello) and Jeremy Strachan (flute and sax). all songs by Gabe Levine recorded by James Anderson at 6 Nassau (Toronto) additional recording by Sandro Perri mastered by Harris Newman at Grey Market (Montreal) album artwork by Anna Silverstein © 2010.
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    • Price: 20.89 EUR excl. shipping
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    Tykhana
    Multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter Patrick Jered is based in Amsterdam, Holland. He is rather camera-shy and steers away from publicity in general. After many years of making electronic 'tape recorder' music for his own amusement, Patrick discovered Leonard Cohen and Joni Mitchell, and finally realised that all he really wanted was to write good songs that touched people. He tested out his song writing by releasing a 5-track EP entitled 'Prozac Poetry'. Spurred on by good reactions, he released a full-length CD called 'The Idle Singer of an Empty Day' (under a different artist's name) on the now defunct indie label TrebleYoo. 'Idle Singer' was essentially just guitar and voice, and was recorded with the simplest equipment on a single rainy afternoon in Amsterdam. Those were the days of lo-fi! It was technically flawed, but it captured something that captured people, and picked up some good reviews along the way. The CD established a small, but intensely loyal following around the world. It pops up on e-bay now and then...if you're interested. Inspired by trips to India and the Middle East, Patrick set about recording the CD 'Tykhana'. He felt that the simplicity of his guitar/voice recordings could be augmented by some eastern shading, coupled with minimal electronics and the odd scatchy, trippy beat. While remaining essentially acoustic and minimalist, Tykhana fuses instruments as diverse as Mellotron, Turkish Cümbüs, electric mandolin, and kemanche, to create a starkly unique setting for the songs. All instruments were played by Patrick and the whole CD was recorded, produced, and mastered by him in his home studio.
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    • Price: 15.28 EUR excl. shipping

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