For Folk's Sake » Jon Hopkins

Album: King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine

For Folk's Sake — Tue, 05 Apr 2011 09:51:43 +0000

King Creosote says he might never put another record out in a physical form. His last few albums have been released in many an unconventional format, from those available to buy at gigs only, to one only available to record at a gig – at a recent Fence Homegame, you weren’t allowed into his gig unless you brought some kind of device to record his latest offering,

Thank God then that we have his collaboration with predominantly electro musician Jon Hopkins to remember him by.

Diamond Mine is a gorgeous album, but blink and you’ll miss it. I’m sure it’s KC’s shortest yet, running at less than half an hour in total. But what it’s lacking in length, it makes up for in sheer beauty. Kenny Anderson’s soft Fife tones are understated and swim effortlessly over Hopkin’s backing, a blend of minimalist electric, atmospheric fuzz and Scottish cafe. It makes for an interesting collaboration and another bow to the many sounds and styles of King Creosote.

‘Bats in the Attic’ is one of the most conventional songs on the album, but conventional is by no means dull. It’s simplicity in melody and Kenny’s sweet singing harks back to his Bombshell days. While KC says the pull of commercial record labels and production got the better of him back then, Bombshell still remains his most successful album and, without a doubt, opened the doors to many to Kenny’s sensational blend of folk and alternative pop. There’s most definitely nothing to be ashamed of there.

The rest of the album flits between this curb of ‘conventional’ and something a little more unusual. But whatever pigeon hole you try and stuff it in, what this album really gives is beautiful folk songs showing off the finest, bone-achingly gorgeous vocals of Kenny Anderson, superb writing and a production that pulls it all together and pushes it over the edge of the safe haven many other alternative folk groups sit. The result is truly stunning.

Words: Gemma Hampson

Editor’s picks… Tallest Man on Earth, The Mountain Goats, This is the Kit, Leisure Society + free MP3s

Lynn Roberts — Sat, 12 Mar 2011 10:56:56 +0000

1.The Tallest Man on Earth‘s 2010 album The Wild Hunt has hardly been off the FFS stereo in the past couple of months. Kristian Matsson is Swedish and of average height with a gift for proper songwriting. There’s no flourishes here, just great tunes, smart lyrics and some lovely intricate fretwork. The Wild Hunt is his second album after Shallow Grave, which was released in 2008.

The Tallest Man On Earth-Little River by Talking Stuff

2. Best band in the world (don’t argue) The Mountain Goats appeared on Letterman last month. Frontman John Darnielle was endearingly delighted to be asked to play. “Any artist who is blase about being on TV, step aside and give us your space, because to us it is really, really, hurt-our-faces-smiling fun”. And Letterman got a swish vinyl copy of the new tMGs album All Eternals Deck. Want.

3. American Laundromat Records have announced the release of Please, Please, Please: a tribute to the Smiths featuring artists including Greg Laswell, Trespassers William and Sixpence None The Richer (Yes! Them!).

Most exciting for readers of FFS will probably be The Leisure Society‘s appearance. The band have some mad covering Skillz, having previously turned their hand to Gary Numan’s Cars and the Beatles’ Something, so I’m looking forward to hearing their version of That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore.

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4. I absolutely love this new video from This is the Kit. The song ‘Treehouse’ is the b-side of last year’s single ‘Moon’, which is available on white vinyl.

5. There have been a tons of free downloads coming our way recently. Here’s our pick…
Three Blind Wolves – Emily Rose

Dry The River – New Ceremony

Sarabeth Tucek ‘Get Well Soon’

King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Bubble

I Can’t by Emily and The Woods

The Folk Artist Twitter Directory

Stephen W Thomas — Thu, 06 May 2010 08:30:09 +0000

Below is our attempt at a comprehensive directory of folk artists currently on Twitter – of course, we aren’t Twitter deities and as such will almost certainly have missed out on certain artists. Let us know if you can think of any tweeting folk musicians in the comments below.

Akron/Family

Angus and Julia Stone

Asthmatic Kitty (Label)

Brian: FFS’s Mixtape-Making Owl

Broadcast 2000

Caitlin Rose

Cherbourg

Colin Meloy (Decemberists)

Damien Rice (PR Account)

Dev Hynes (Lightspeed Champion)

Divine Comedy (PR account)

Efterklang

Emmy the Great

Fanfarlo

FFS (Official Account)

Kurran & the Wolfnotes

Laura Marling (PR account)

Lisa Hannigan (PR account)

Lisa Mitchell

Lissie

The Living Sisters (PR account)

Local Natives

The Low Anthem

Midlake

Monsters of Folk (PR account)

The New Pornographers

Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy)

Peggy Sue

Rebecca Taylor (Slow Club)

Rufus Wainwright (PR account)

She & Him (PR account)

St. Vincent

Sweet Billy Pilgrim

The Swell Season (PR account)

The Swell Season (Glen Hansard)

WIN: A pair of tickets to Shhh… feat David Thomas Broughton, Sam Amidon, Dan Michaelson & the Coastguards

Lynn Roberts — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 13:32:58 +0000

There’s nothing better than a gig with a quiet audience where you get to hear great music without any blutered punters inspiring homicidal notions you didn’t know you were capable of.

Well the lovely chaps at The Line of Best Fit and The Local are giving you a chance to spend your Saturday at just such an event. They’re offering up a pair of tickets for their ““all day celebration of quiet music” on this Saturday 23rd January at Cecil Sharp House, Gloucester Avenue, Camden NW1.

The line up includes David Thomas Broughton, Sam Amidon, Dan Michaelson & the Coastguards, Jon Hopkins and the Tim & Sam Band.

The chaps behind the event say: “Shhh… is standing up against the noise mongers of the world and hitting back with an all day celebration of quiet music… you can be guaranteed a perfect listening environment for some of the finest artists around.”

So if you’ve got this Saturday free in the capital and want to be in with a chance of winning a quiet day out, email win@forfolkssake.com with the subject line “shhh”. Or, if you’re an exhibitionist, reply in the comments section below.

The winner will be picked at random at 12 noon tomorrow (21st January).

Words: Lynn Roberts

TLOBF announces Shhh… gig with Dan Michaelson & the Coastguards, Jon Hopkins, David Thomas Broughton and more

Lynn Roberts — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 18:23:51 +0000

Music website The Line of Best Fit has announced it is to host an “all day celebration of quiet music” in London in January.

The gig at Cecil Sharp House in Camden will feature Jon Hopkins, Dan Michaelson and the Coastguards (a particular FFS favourite, see our album review here), David Thomas Broughton and more.

Sounds perfect to us.

The full line up is:

Jon Hopkins www.myspace.com/jonhopkins
David Thomas Broughton www.myspace.com/davidthomasbroughton
Sam Amidon www.myspace.com/samamidon
Dan Michaelson and the Coastguards www.myspace.com/danmichaelsonandthecoastguards
Revere www.myspace.com/reverelondon
Sam and the Plants www.myspace.com/samandtheplants
Felix www.myspace.com/mybeautifulfelix
Oh Ruin www.myspace.com/ohruin
Grasscut www.myspace.com/grasscutmusic
Andreya Triana www.myspace.com/andreyatriana
Emit Bloch www.myspace.com/emitblochcountry
Fanni Risberg www.myspace.com/fannirisberg
Dry the River www.myspace.com/drytherivermusic
Tim and Sam’s Tim and Sam Band with Tim and Sam www.myspace.com/timandsamstimandthesambandwithtimandsam
Arch Garrison www.myspace.com/archgarrison
Spencer McLean www.myspace.com/spencermclean
Andrew Vincent www.myspace.com/andrewvincentsongs

Tickets cost £12.50 (that’s 73.5p per act, fact fans) and are available from SeeTickets.

Words: Lynn Roberts

For Folk's Sake » Jon Hopkins

Album: King Creosote & Jon Hopkins – Diamond Mine

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