A few bits of news from the Missy Higgins side of town.
1. Missy will be in a movie! With Geoffrey Rush and Ernie Dingo, so it has to be cool right? It will be an adaptation of the musical Brand New Dae. Click here for more info.
2. New video for Where I Stood. Very nice. And I hear she's been impressing everyone on her U.S. tour with Ben Folds. Thumbs up!
Ok I haven't been this excited about a show in a long time. My old friend Lenka- who I've blogged about before here, is playing at Oxford Art Factory on Weds night.
If you want to come along- ticks are only $22 and available here. Do it- she's breathtaking live!
Lykke Li's album "Youth Novel" has been on high rotation in my itunes ever since I discovered it last year. And for those who are similarly in love with everything this Swedish songstress does- get ready to put your dancing shoes on. She's just announced two Aus. sideshows- in Sydney and Melbs.
Ok so they're not until next year- but hey, it is October already. Surely it will be January in no time!
Browsing through the upcoming Sydney gigs I noticed a pretty face with a name I didn't know. That name was Emiliana Torrini. As a featured artist on liveguide I thought I'd better look into this a little more- so I checked out her myspace.
It's so rare these days to come across an album that you like STRAIGHT AWAY. I find I generally purchase an album and it has to grow on me. This was not the case with "Me and Armini". From the acoustic innocence of "Birds" to the pop beat of "Big Jumps" this album pulls on a vast assortment of influences and yet flows seamlessly. I can already tell it’s going to be one of my favourites of the year.
The dark and edgy "Gun" is the stand out track for me. The intro resembles the catchy electronic riff of M.I.A.'s Paper Planes- and yet teamed with Torrini's breathy vocals the song takes on less of an urban feel. It's like something you'd hear in a Tarantino film- that slow motion scene where someone has just been shot and the world is falling into chaos...
Gig dates:
16 Nov Brisbane Powerhouse QLD 17 Nov Metro Theatre NSW 18 Nov The Forum VIC 20 Nov Fly By Night WA
On a sidenote- I'm sure I've heard Big Jumps before- maybe on an ad? Any ideas?
For those Sydneysiders looking for something a little more raw than the goings on at OAF tonight Melbourne based Lilith Lane will be at the Hopetoun to showcase her new self-titled album.
Having only had a quick listen to her MySpace tracks I will spare in depth review at this stage- only to say her style is dark, edgy and very soulful.
Not strictly all women in this video- but I was trawling through Kate Nash's MySpace and found this adorable video. It was made by the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players and written about going on tour with Kate. Too cute!
I caught Kate at the 930 Club in DC back in April and was thrilled to find she's as gorgeous and talented live as her recordings. Unfortunately we just missed the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow, total bummer since they look as though they would have been a bit of a spectacle!
I at first wondered why a place as indie as Oxford Art Factory would be showcasing some pop princess called "Lady Gaga". My only knowledge of this "lady" was that my brothers girlfriend likes her- which usually means she's some sort of Nova 96.9 pop/rnb thing that I probably don't want to know anything more about (don't worry, Stacey knows we have very dissimilar music tastes. I still love her).
Nevertheless I felt inclined to find out a little more about this girl. What I discovered was surprisingly refreshing for the pop-electro scene. This is a girl who, as per her official bio, has been gigging in New York clubs since the age of 14.
If there's anything that garners respect for me, it's someone with the talent to write their own material, and play an instrument or two. Again according to her bio, she "who wrote all of her lyrics, all of her melodies, and played most of the synth work on her album, The Fame". Although I don't particularly love her hit song "Just Dance", maybe it's just I'm not a big fan of the genre, I'm still very interested to see her show. She has been known to "strip down to her hand-crafted hot pants and bikini top, light cans of hairspray on fire, and strike a pose" in past concerts.
Hark... it's a lark is all about stopping to hear the birds sing.
The birds being all those talented female singer songwriters that are gracing our stages and magazine pages in these times and ages.
No hidden womens supremacy agenda. Just music. And girls.
Just listen...
Just support...
MP3s and video are provided to showcase new artists. Please support the artists by buying their work. If you are an artist/band/management/record label and would like an mp3 taken down please contact me at harkitsalark@gmail.com.
