Interview with King Eider!

Hello People,

So the other day I was listening to a band doing a 

session for BBC London, I was captivated by their

combination of folk and rock as well as their

brilliant use of the violin and horn.

King eider are a five piece 'Edinburgh-based folk-blues band'

who use three part harmonies to create haunting and 

atmospheric music. They have been compared to the soulful

acoustics of Ben Howard and the foot stomping wildness of Arcade Fire. This is one of their latest songs 'Drink Me Dry'

And so I did what I do with bands that I listen to and love;

I got an interview with them!

Without further ado here is my interview with...

King Eider

1. Could you introduce yourselves and your instruments?

Reuben Tighe - Vocals,Guitar, Harmonica

Sam Chapman - Vocals, Drums,

Lucy Frankel - Vocals, Violin

Josh Casali-Bell Linemann - Vocals, Keys, Horn

Sam Palmer - Bass Guitar

2.Who are you influenced by and how did you discover 

your "sound"?

Our influences span a spectrum of genres and decades. 

Lucy listens to a lot of traditional country and bluegrass. 

Reuben takes influences from his mothers CD collection of 60's blues and rock and roll. Sam brings in more modern influences 

such as Arcade Fire and The Wild Beasts. We share our music

taste so that all of them influence our music 

to some degree.

3.When did you form as King Eider - what made you choose 

the name?!

We formed Early 2012, and were originally named "Zopa and the Shakes" (after Reuben's middle name). After deciding a name change was in order, we decided on King Eider. We were in an ale pub drinking a beer named "YellowHammer", (also the name for a bird native to the UK) and decided we liked the name. Since this was already a popular band name, we decided to research all other UK bird names. It transpires that the King Eider duck is a bird which migrates to the lake district every year, which is home to Reuben, Sam Chapman, and Josh, so the name seemed a good fit!

4. Describe your music in five words.

Hmmm....

5. What is the weirdest thing that has ever happened to

you before/after a gig?

Some one from the front row recently took his top off and 

attempted to lactate onto Lucy's shoes. That was pretty weird,

and somewhat aggressive...

6. State a fact that people don't know about you.

Two of us have Science PHD's

7. What are the top 4 songs on your playlist right now?

Wild Beasts - this is our lot

The Whitest Boy Alive - Islands

Supertramp - Bloody Well Right

Grizzly Bear - Ready,Able

8. What is the first album you remember buying?

 The first album which really had a musical impact on me was Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, self titled album. Peter Green still remains a big influence on me, the man is a genius.

9. Modern or Vintage Clothing? 

 No clothing is best.

10. What are you plans for the future?

After making the most of our album release, we intend to 

record a 4 track EP. We have been working on some new material

which we are excited to record, and intend to release it

some point early next year. Stay Tuned!

If you like the sound of King Eider then you can head to their

website here and check them out.

So long for now,

Poppy xx

Part II of Interview with Tenterhook

Good Morning (just) Everyone,

How was your weekend? Good,

I hope? 

Today I have Part II of my interview with

Tenterhook! In case you missed the first half,

click here to read it now.

6. In 4 words describe your music.

Ambient folk pop rock

7. What is the weirdest thing that has ever happened whilst performing or before/after a gig?

I am yet to play a show so hoping to see some odd things on the road later this year.

8. Have you got strange hobbies/habits?

I talk to myself a lot. People think I am very strange when walking down the street but I just seem to do it naturally without much conscious thought.

9. Brick Lane or Portobello?

I was brought up on portobello and love it there. Many on my songs were written when I busked there in my old band when I was 16.

10. Lastly, what are your hopes for the future? Are you playing any gigs soon?!

I am putting out an EP at the beginning of summer and going to do a small UK tour in support of that release. However at the moment I am concentrating on my first show which is on the 23rd of April at the Servant Jazz Quarters in Dalston.

Tenterhook's first show is now SOLD OUT!

Good Luck to him and I hope he enjoys it.

If you would like to listen to some of Tenterhook's 

songs, head over to SoundCloud where you can listen

to 'Stereo'. 

Have a nice day,

Poppy x

Ps. My next interview will be with a Swedish band who

sung a jingle for a recent Christmas advert,

any ideas who? 

Part I of Interview with Tenterhook

Hey Everyone! 

Today, I have Part I of my

interview with Tenterhook. A 19 year

old singer/songwriter called Archie

 from Portobello in

London. 

~~ Click here to listen to his  ~~

beautiful song "Stereo" 

1. Could you please introduce yourself

and your instrument?

I am Archie, I am 19 and I play guitar and piano

2. Where do you call "home"?

London

3. How did you come to chose the name Tenterhook?

I thought the name had a ring to it. I have been using

 various musical aliases and tenterhook was the name

 I felt most creative with.

4. How long have you been in the music business?

As I am only 19 probably only 6 months or so. I have always been

 in bands and written with friends however nothing serious and on

 the whole what I was doing was pretty poor.

5. Where do you find inspiration for your songs,

especially Stereo?

As all of the best songwriters know; in order to write a great song you

 need to write about something close to your heart. My main aim is to 

capture the emotion I am feeling at points in my life both lyrically and melodically. 

The story and meaning behind stereo is something I am not proud of and 

as of yet no one has grasped the true meaning behind the song and 

in some sense I would like to keep it that way.

19 year old Archie Faulks

Not only does he write beautiful songs but 

he also featured on XFM's Great X-Pectations

page, So make sure to watch out for him in the

near future! 

If you're interested in seeing Tenterhook live,

he will be playing The Great Escape Festival

on the 8th May 2014 (tickets can be found

here)

Part II of this interview will be available within

the next few days,so be sure to 

check-in again soon.

Lots of Love, 

Poppy x

New and Upcoming Artists #FourFavourites

                                               

NEW UPCOMING ARTISTS:

These are my top artist discoveries of the year (so far), 

take a look:

Banks

This singer has a soft, R&B inspired voice, 

if you enjoy Lorde and Lana Del Ray, then this 

is definitely one for you. As well as having a 

stunning voice, she has also featured on many 

magazine front pages for her dark, mystical 

beauty. This is her new song "Waiting Game".

Amber Run

This band are relatively new and unheard 

of, I found them a few months back with their 

song "Noah". Their music is filled with harmonies, 

soaring choruses and preppy beats. For the lovers

of Mumford & Sons,I guarantee you'll love them! 

This is their new single "Heaven".

Warpaint

Warpaint are an emerging band that are

lined up to play all the big festivals this

year (including Coachella!). This all girl

Indie Rock band are releasing their self-titled 

second album this year. So, here is their latest 

single "Love is to Die".

Luke Sital-Singh

He is an absolute star; Luke Sital-Singh 

has been compared to the likes of Ben Howard

and Jeff Buckley. His songs are filled with

slow melodies, beautiful lyrics and delicate 

notes. He is one to watch in the new year! 

Please take a look at all these amazing artists, 

you might find one you like? 

Have a lovely weekend!

Until the next post, 

Poppy Valentine x

Music to my ears.....

Hia Peeps,

As you may have noticed, one of my previous posts had a 

slightly different layout ot all the other ones - this 

means that I've posted from my mobile (for some reason 

it doesn't let you edit font, etc?!) 

Moving on, I have started to create Songlists; once a week I'll scan a list of 5 or 6 songs to a post - these songs will

 be my pick of the week!Let me know if you 

find something new?!

Here are two: 

Week 1 ^

This Week ^

(TIP: Click to enlarge if font is too small!)

Hope you're all wonderful! 

Poppy Valentine x