MUMFORD & SONS
Ted Dwane, Country Winston, Ben Lovett, and Marcus Mumford
www.myspace.com/mumfordandsons
“Mumford & Sons are folk rock band which formed in London. The band is made up of Marcus Mumford (vocals, guitar, drums, mandolin), “Country” Winston Marshall (vocals, banjo, dobro), Ben Lovett (vocals, keyboards, accordion), Ted Dwane (vocals, double bass). The band formed in late 2007, rising out of London’s folk scene with other artists such as Laura Marling, Johnny Flynn, Jay Jay Pistolet and Noah and the Whale.
The band have often supported Laura Marling at concerts, while their association with Noah and the Whale can be traced back to St Paul’s School, Barnes and King’s College School, Wimbledon. Mumford and Lovett attended King’s College School alongside Noah and the Whale bassist Matt Owens, while Marshall attended St Paul’s School along with Charlie Fink, lead singer of Noah and the Whale.
The band’s debut album, Sigh No More, was released in the United Kingdom in October 2009, and February 2010 in the United States.”
Mumford & Sons is my new obsession. I like to think of them as a British Avett Brothers, substituting that twangy Carolina bluegrass for a little rollicking Celtic banjo. Mumford & Sons’ music is fresh and exciting and spirited in a rare, inexhaustible way. I so look forward to watching this band succeed. – EJR
—
KATE NASH
Kate Nash
http://emilyjramey.com/2010/04/27/kate-nashs-my-best-friend-is-you-review/
“Kate Nash (born 6 July 1987) is an English singer-songwriter based in London. She had a UK #2 hit “Foundations” in 2007, followed by the platinum selling UK No. 1 album Made of Bricks.”
She’s cute and red-headed. She curses like a sailor, but her indie pop lyrics are clever and outrageously quirky, her beats irresistible. She’s 22 and British and plays piano. Try NOT to love her. – EJR
—
EMILY LONG & HER BAND
Emily Long
http://www.myspace.com/emilylongrocks
“Emily Long is a gut-belting rock songstress making her debut with When I Was In Love With (out Spring 2010). With an impressive voice – confessional and towering, Long carries her anthemic melodies over a thick, driving band. Upon first listen, it’s obvious that Emily is a child of the ‘80s who probably spent countless hours singing Pat Benatar, Blondie, The Runaways, Queen and maybe some Joy Division into a hairbrush. (There’s even a fitting cover of The Concrete Blonde’s “Joey” on the album.) What’s also very evident is how fresh, and edgy When I Was In Love With feels. Long, a Tucson Arizona native who now residing in Brooklyn, explains, ‘When I Was In Love With is a record about the nostalgia and emotional upheaval you feel not only when romantic love is lost, but when a particular chapter in your life is closed.’
Long however, is not another female singer/songwriter in a room of shoe gazers in a Lower East Side club. Allowing her soaring voice to turn raw when the emotion calls for it, she thrashes her head of fiery red hair around and slams her hands on the keyboard in front of her. A CBGB-type crowd is more suitable. On the album opener ‘Anyone Else,’ she details, ‘I wanted the dynamics musically to follow the dynamics emotionally of falling in and out of love quickly.’ While on the hard rocker ‘Blackout,’ Long attempts to piece together the previous night’s activities. Showcasing her dynamic talent, Long ends the album with a sparse, moving piano ballad called ‘Cry Some More.’”
These guys are glam rock at its absolute finest. Emily Long & her Band radiate heat and blistering emotion in a live setting, blasting heavy, dynamic punk fusion with a vehement magnetism. There are not enough bands like this in the world. - EJR
—
PEARL AND THE BEARD
Emily Hope Price, Jeremy Styles, and Jocelyn Mackenzie
http://www.myspace.com/pearlandthebeard
“Pearl and the Beard is three voices, one cello, one guitar, one glockenspiel, one melodica, several drums, one accordion, ninety-six teeth, and one soul.
Former strangers Jocelyn Mackenzie, Emily Hope Price, and Jeremy Styles were united in the great city of New York. Each had migrated there from a far corner of the nation with naught but food in their pockets and money in their bellies. Each had the same true love. Since then the three have nested, and their unique brand of brightly melodic songcraft continues to blossom of its own accord.
Pearl and the Beard loves you the way you’ve always been.”
I first saw Pearl and the Beard at a SXSW showcase at a dive-y basement venue. They blew me away. I’m not going to lie – I expected something different from three of the goofiest indie get-ups I’ve ever seen, but I am never one to deny being pleasantly surprised. Pearl and the Beard is a trio of exceptional musicians and unflinching optimists. Their light-hearted romance and twinkling refrains are irresistible… a little pretentious, perhaps, but they’ve got the songwriting chops to back it all up. Give ‘em a chance to brighten your day. They can’t help it. – EJR
