 Nalle
(Finnish for a small bear, generally a teddy bear, and named
after a childhood toy of vocalist Hanna Tuulikki) are a folky
psychedelic trio based in Glasgow, Scotland. They comprise
Finnish-English vocalist Hanna Tuulikki (vocals, kantele, flute), Aby
Vulliamy (viola) and Chris Hladowski (bouzouki, clarinet). Nalle
combine improvisational song structures with unusual instrumentation,
sometimes with a decidedly Celtic influence. Tuulikki's vocals have
been compared to those of Joanna Newsom and Bjork. All three band
mambers have also been involved with Scatter (Pickled Egg).
Additionally, Aby Vulliamy and Chris Hladowski are members of The One
Ensemble [Of Daniel Padden] (Secret Eye, Brainwashed), which also
shares members with Volcano The Bear. Nalle have been playing together
since summer 2004. The debut album "By Chance Upon Waking" is available
on Pickled Egg. A collaboration with the One Ensemble (Secret Eye) is
also in the process of being mixed by Hans Joachim Irmler of Faust. A
new full-length Nalle album is scheduled for release on Locust Music of
Chicago in March 2008. Secret Eye has also prepared a limited
tour-only Nalle release to coincide with this trip, which was booked by
Secret Eye: myspace.com/secreteyebooking [1]
"Everything comes together on Nalle's debut to produce some of the
best music I've heard in years. The instrumentation is wonderful and
Tuulikki's voice, which falls somewhere between Bjork and Austria's
Gustav, are absolute perfection. I can't get over just how amazing this
record is. Nalle's debut is easily the best thing I've heard in 2006
thusfar, and I reckon it's going to be hard for anything to come close
to it. The highest of recommendations." (Foxy Digitalis)
"...individuality banishes lazy comparisons to others...." (The Wire)
"Though
this tripped-out trio are based in Glasgow, their sound is quite
otherworldly. Vocalist Hanna Tuulikki sounds like Bjork's little sister
baked on some kind of pleasant and slightly scary psychedelic pixie
dust. She also reminds me a bit of Joanna Newsom, she plays kantele,
and flutes. Aby Vulliamy adds viola, and Chris Hladowski, bouzouki, and
clarinet. They also make very different music together in Scatter and
The One Ensemble (of Daniel Padden). Here they make sounds that recall
Six Organs of Admittance, Islaja, John Fahey, Faun Fables, and a few
others. Has the feel of some sort of magical sacred folk music from
several different regions of the world played at once; while being very
personal and utterly idiosyncratic." (Dream Magazine)
LINKS
http://www.myspace.com/nallemusic [2]
http://www.locustmusic.com [3]
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ua5M_GOY4k [4]
http://www.secreteye.org [5]
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 Black Forest/Black Sea
The duo of Jeffrey Alexander and Miriam Goldberg.
They play free-form music that draws from folk
traditions. They formed the band in April of 2003 in Providence, RI. In
January 2008, they relocated to Pittsburgh, PA. Miriam primarily plays
cello and sings, while Jeffrey primarily plays guitar, although both
also employ various electronics, omnichord, live sampling tools,
strumstick, and whatever they can get their hands on. Since forming,
they have toured extensively in the US and Europe, from Savonlinna to
Sicily, Riga to Reykjavik and Portland to Portland, performing more
than 200 concerts in 18 different countries.
BF/BS have toured with Fursaxa, Christina Carter (of
Scorces,
Charalambides), Gravenhurst and in Poland with the Magic Carpathian
Project. They have also collaborated on recordings with Kemialliset
Ystavat from Finland, Fursaxa, Christina Carter, Glenn Donaldson (of
the Jewelled Antler Collective), Gravenhurst from the UK, ES from
Finland, Stefano Pilia from Italy and German psych-folk duo Fit and
Limo.
Before forming this new project, both Jeffrey and Miriam were members of the
acid-folk group Iditarod (1996-2003). the Iditarod (BlueSanct / Secretly Canadian,
Elsie and Jack, Time-Lag and Camera Obscura labels) toured extensively in
the USA, Canada, and Europe and have been featured
repeatedly in magazines like the Wire, Broken Face, Mojo, Rockerilla,
Copper Press, Magnet, Dream Magazine, Ptolemaic Terrascope and Rolling
Stone. They performed at the 5th Terrastock Festival in Boston,
where a 5x7" box-set was released featuring the Iditarod, Sonic Youth, Bardo
Pond, Stone Breath and Charalambides. BF/BS also operate the SECRET EYE record label and they solely
organized the TERRASTOCK SIX festival, as well.
blackforestblacksea.com [6]
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 Evening Fires
Evening Fires [6] (myspace [7]) consists of central PA residents Jason Britten, Kevin Moist, Nathaniel Rasmussen, and Ben Wentz (sometimes also the vocal talents of Julie Greer, and the clawhammer banjo rhythms of Dave Sandy). They bring a wide range of sounds to their shows, from spaced-out analog synth drones, to tribal Appalachian guitar ragas.
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