Amelia’s Magazine | Kirsty Ward: The London Fashion Week S/S 2012 Preview Interview

Kirsty Ward by Kassie Berry
Kirsty Ward S/S 2012 by Kassie Berry.

In the past few seasons I’ve been super impressed with the work of up and coming designer Kirsty Ward. She won’t be taking to the catwalk this season but I still thought I’d do a sneaky catch up interview with her to find out what she’s got in store for S/S 2012. Here goes…

Kirsty Ward by Claire Kearns
Kirsty Ward by Claire Kearns.

How did you come up with your signature look: sculptural boning of organza to create many layered shapes?
It’s something I have been obsessed with since my MA at Central Saint Martins and has evolved since then, check and there’s always a way each season that I want to push it. I probably won’t ever tire of it.

Kirsty Ward S/S 2012
When did your love of the 80s start?
I’m not sure when, and im not sure if its because I was born in 1982 but I like the possibility and forward thinking of the era, it’s when people started to break the mould more.

Kirsty Ward by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs
Kirsty Ward S/S 2012 by Maria Papadimitriou aka Slowly The Eggs.

You can’t bear stud earrings: do you ever feel the physical effects from your love of such big jewellery? Do you take a break from them when you are working or would we find you hunched over a sewing machine with 3 inch earrings dangling dangerously close to the mechanisms?
Haha when I’m working I will generally be jewelleryless – I like wearing teenage boy clothes, with nothing dangling inbetween pattern cutting and sewing. I’m sure there have been some jewellery related accidents as I’m quite clumsy but I cannot think of any specific incidents.

Why do you think that jewellery is so important these days and what can good jewellery offer to an outfit?
Jewellery is great as it can totally make a boring outfit look cool and it’s also not sizeist, so bigger people can wear it too, as not everyone is built for high fashion garments.

Kirsty Ward SS 2012 inspiration girl
You find lots of jewellery components in hardware shops. Do you have any favourite haunts? eg. Have you ever discovered a treasure trove of ancient hardware bits and if so where was this eureka moment?
I tend to favour the great British institutes such as B&Q, theres this online floristry supplier that I love called Micheal dark and my dad is a carpenter so he has lots of fun stuff in his van/tool box. I also like alot of trade only places filled with guys in high vis vests etc wondering what the hell I’m doing in there buying x40 plumbing parts!

Kirsty Ward by Debbie Ajia
Kirsty Ward S/S 2012 by Debbie Ajia.

Are you still collaborating with David Longshaw and if so what can we except from him this season, any insider tips?
Of course he’s my boyfriend, he can’t get rid of me! Well there’s lots of prints (of course) of his beautiful illustrations mixed with some fucked up florals (fucked up in a good way).

Kirsty Ward SS 2012 blue
Why did you decide to forgo a catwalk show this season and instead present the collection on a static stand with a film? What can you tell us about the film?
To be honest as a young designer a catwalk show is far too expensive for me at the moment. I thought it would be far more sensible to meet with buyers and press in an environment where I can talk them through my collection, this way they can see all the details and craftsmanship.
The film will be one word – FUN!

Kirsty Ward SS 2012 inspiration
Last season you’d been watching a lot of Star Wars and that seemed to sneak into some of the dress shapes. Have you been watching some influential movies this season and if so what?
I’ve been watching quite a few shit sci-fi movies – generally the crapper they are the more I will like it, I especially like bad acting and awful special effects. I don’t think it has rubbed off too much in the collection, but we will see in the final lookbook photos!

Kirsty Ward SS 2012 inspiration
This season you’ve been inspired by a “mundane mix of officewear, stationary, menswear detailing and suspended layering.” How can stationary influence clothing?!
It’s more about the stationary being used in the jewellery, its taken over from the hardware of past seasons. 

What new fabrics have you used for the upcoming S/S 2012 season?
Well there’s always a sheer, then there’s a mix of luxurious vs sporty with sand washed silks, neoprene, cotton drills and striped shirting.

Kirsty Ward by Samantha Eynon
Kirsty Ward by Samantha Eynon.

Is music important to you and if so what will you be listening to in the run up to Fashion Week? Any favourites on the decks?
Definitely – I hate working in silence, it puts me on edge. At the moment in the studio were playing: Metronomy, Hot Chip, The Knife, Peaches, Lykke Li, Little Dragon, Yelle.

I’m sure you have loads to do, but what will an average day be like in the final run up to LFW? What will you do to rest and relax?
To be honest my life at the moment revolves around ss12, so if I’m not working on it I’m thinking about it, but as we touched on before I so like to watch the odd shit sci-fi movie.

Kirsty Ward inspiration
No more nipples for S/S 2012: you’ve collaborated with designer Josefine Wing of Mint Siren for an underwear collection this season. What has been the best bit about this project?
It’s good to have another persons knowledge and skills to work with as I didn’t have a clue about the technical side of underwear.

Who is the ideal woman to wear your clothes? Do you think you would ever branch out into menswear?
There’s not a specific example, just someone who likes to have fun with their clothing/jewellery and someone that appreciates the hidden details. I wouldn’t say no to menswear – I often do made to measure pieces for male friends, but who knows about an actual collection!

Where can people get their hands on a piece of Kirsty Ward?
My pieces can be found in China, Japan, Amsterdam, and Italy but In the UK my pieces can be found at Young British Designers, Bengt Fashion and I will be selling select and limited edition pieces on my website (www.kirsty-ward.com)

If you’ve only just discovered Kirsty Ward why not check in with our other blogs about this talented designer (with loads of illustrations):

Kirsty Ward S/S 2011
Kirsty Ward Ones to Watch A/W 2011 Preview
Kirsty Ward Ones to Watch A/W 2011
and another blog about Ones to Watch A/W 2011

You can find Kirsty Ward at the static stands during London Fashion Week.

Categories ,1980s, ,B&Q, ,Bengt Fashion, ,Central Saint Martins, ,Claire Kearns, ,David Longshaw, ,Debbie Ajia, ,Earrings, ,Film. Mint Siren, ,Hardware, ,Hot Chip, ,interview, ,jewellery, ,Josefine Wing, ,Kassie Berry, ,Kirsty Ward, ,Little Dragon, ,London Fashion Week, ,Lykke Li, ,ma, ,Maria Papadimitriou, ,metronomy, ,Peaches, ,preview, ,S/S 2012, ,Samantha Eynon, ,Sci-Fi, ,Slowly the Eggs, ,Star Wars, ,Stationary, ,Structural, ,The Knife, ,Yelle, ,young british designers

Similar Posts:






Amelia’s Magazine | Interview with Laki Mera and review of new album The Proximity Effect

Laki Mera by Abi Lewis
Laki Mera by Abi Lewis.

The Proximity Effect is the second album from Glasgow based Laki Mera, order a band who excel in the creation of their own unique trip hop influenced sound. Focused around the luscious vocals of singer songwriter Laura Donnelly, the album moves sleekly between ambient textures and big folk inspired melodies, plucking the best from the electronic and acoustic worlds to create something utterly new. I caught up with the talented foursome: Laura Donnelly, Andrea Gobbi, Keir Long and Tim Harbinson.

laki-mera-The-proximity-packshot
How do you work together to create music as a foursome?
We write in a few, different ways… Some tunes start more as acoustic tunes written by Laura which are then arranged by the band as a whole – introducing beats and electronic feel. Some tunes start off as electronic ideas, from jams or individually from Andrea or Keir. At any stage of the process though, the collaboration between all of us is what creates the Laki Mera sound.

Laki Mera by Michelle Pegrume
Laki Mera by Michelle Pegrume.

Do you all bring different musical inspirations to the table – and if so what are they?
We have a really wide and varied bank of influences ranging from folk and acoustic music to minimal electronica. To list a few… Beck, Kraftwerk, Aphex Twin, Bjork, Radiohead, Datasette, Zombie Zombie, Bat for Lashes, Portishead, Massive Attack, Advisory Circle, Benny Greb… there is a lot of good music coming out of Scandinavia at the moment – Little Dragon, Efterklang, Lykke Li, Fever Ray

Laki Mera by Evan Smith
Laki Mera by Evan Smith.

What brought Italian Andrea Gobbi to Scotland and what keeps you there? 
I travelled up from London in 2001 and instantly felt attracted by the Glasgow music scene… collaborations were born and I got deeper and deeper into both the indie and folk music scene, both as a musician and a producer engineer.

YouTube Preview ImageFool

Is there anything that you miss about Italy? 
I obviously miss my family and friends, but as far as music is concerned not very much at all, I’m afraid… I’m very happy in Scotland! 

Laki Mera night
What’s best about living in Scotland?
Definitely not the food!

Laki Mera by Dan Lester
Laki Mera by Dan Lester.

The Proximity Effect is named for a studio technique – what does it mean and how was it used in the making of the album?
Our album The Proximity Effect was named after the interesting combination of the audio technical term ‘proximity effect‘ and the philosophical meaning behind how people react when in the proximity of other people, how people interact in the proximity of each other and how important these connections are. The actual meaning of the technical term proximity effect… well, it is simply a way to describe how microphones react to the relative closeness of the sound source you are recording… say for instance how a softly spoken lyric would come through when spoken directly into a microphone (i.e. with your lips touching it). 

Laki Mera by Sarah Jayne Morris
Laki Mera by Sarah Jayne Morris.

I haven’t heard the first album, how does the new one differ? 
The first album was a production which took several years, during which studio electronic music experiment and song-writing took their time to develop! The outcome was a very deep-layered production with a much calmer and reflective feel about it. The Proximity Effect still has moments of pause and reflection but it’s a much more direct record, based around tracks that were born playing live rather than in the studio… Most of the electronic music production on this album was inspired by the tracks and not vice versa. 

Laki Mera
How do you ensure that you retain an organic feel to the music when applying so many electronic textures?
Retaining an organic feel to the music is very important to us as we are well aware that electronic music can become too sterile and repetitive if not handled properly. We have a good mix of acoustic and electronic elements to the band and when working on the electronic arrangement we use many analog synths such as Korg Sigma, Korg MS10, Roland Juno 106. We also create our own sounds from samples of real sounds. Also, when playing live we ‘play’ everything rather than relying on pre-recorded loops as so many electronic acts do. This is more fun (if a little tricky sometimes) for us and more interesting for an audience to watch.

Laki Mera by Joana Faria
Laki Mera by Joana Faria.

You recorded some of the new album’s songs in turf house in a small Highland village – what lay behind the decision to decamp? 
We recognised that there was a bit of a difference between the tunes on the album and we wanted to embrace this. We made the decision to spend a week in a remote part of the Highlands to concentrate on the more acoustic, song-like tunes on the album. We felt that the hustle and bustle of our city studio did not provide the right kind of environment to properly capture the more sensitive feel of tunes such as Reverberation, Double Back and Solstice. We needed somewhere with a more quiet feel and a slower pace. 

YouTube Preview ImagePollok Park

Does living in Glasgow influence the sound of the music?
Glasgow has always been a very musical city and I think that’s partly why we have all been drawn there. With its long, dark winters and brooding, grey skies it definitely lends itself well to writing dark, introverted tunes!

Laki Mera laura donnelly
What else does everyone do when you’re not involved in Laki Mera?
Andrea & Keir are both sound engineers, Keir is also a piano teacher. Laura works on graphic design and art projects and Tim has recently completed a masters in Social Ecology.

Have you got any collaborations in the pipeline? 
We’re working on it, so watch this space…

YouTube Preview ImageOnion Machine

The Proximity Effect is out now on Just Music.

Categories ,Abi Lewis, ,acoustic, ,Advisory Circle, ,Andrea Gobbi, ,Aphex Twin, ,Bat for Lashes, ,Beck, ,Benny Greb, ,bjork, ,Dan Lester, ,Datasette, ,Double Back, ,efterklang, ,Electonica, ,Evan Smith, ,Fever Ray, ,folk, ,Fool, ,glasgow, ,Highlands, ,Joana Faria, ,Just Music, ,Keir Long, ,Korg MS10, ,Korg Sigma, ,Kraftwerk, ,Laki Mera, ,Laura Donnelly, ,Little Dragon, ,Lykke Li, ,Massive Attack, ,Michelle Pegrume, ,Onion Machine, ,Pollok Park, ,Portishead, ,radiohead, ,Reverberation, ,Roland Juno 106, ,Sarah Jayne Morris, ,Sarah-Jayne, ,Scottish, ,Social Ecology, ,Solstice, ,Tim Harbinson, ,Trip-Hop, ,Zombie Zombie

Similar Posts:






Amelia’s Magazine | Interview with Laki Mera and review of new album The Proximity Effect

Laki Mera by Abi Lewis
Laki Mera by Abi Lewis.

The Proximity Effect is the second album from Glasgow based Laki Mera, order a band who excel in the creation of their own unique trip hop influenced sound. Focused around the luscious vocals of singer songwriter Laura Donnelly, the album moves sleekly between ambient textures and big folk inspired melodies, plucking the best from the electronic and acoustic worlds to create something utterly new. I caught up with the talented foursome: Laura Donnelly, Andrea Gobbi, Keir Long and Tim Harbinson.

laki-mera-The-proximity-packshot
How do you work together to create music as a foursome?
We write in a few, different ways… Some tunes start more as acoustic tunes written by Laura which are then arranged by the band as a whole – introducing beats and electronic feel. Some tunes start off as electronic ideas, from jams or individually from Andrea or Keir. At any stage of the process though, the collaboration between all of us is what creates the Laki Mera sound.

Laki Mera by Michelle Pegrume
Laki Mera by Michelle Pegrume.

Do you all bring different musical inspirations to the table – and if so what are they?
We have a really wide and varied bank of influences ranging from folk and acoustic music to minimal electronica. To list a few… Beck, Kraftwerk, Aphex Twin, Bjork, Radiohead, Datasette, Zombie Zombie, Bat for Lashes, Portishead, Massive Attack, Advisory Circle, Benny Greb… there is a lot of good music coming out of Scandinavia at the moment – Little Dragon, Efterklang, Lykke Li, Fever Ray

Laki Mera by Evan Smith
Laki Mera by Evan Smith.

What brought Italian Andrea Gobbi to Scotland and what keeps you there? 
I travelled up from London in 2001 and instantly felt attracted by the Glasgow music scene… collaborations were born and I got deeper and deeper into both the indie and folk music scene, both as a musician and a producer engineer.

YouTube Preview ImageFool

Is there anything that you miss about Italy? 
I obviously miss my family and friends, but as far as music is concerned not very much at all, I’m afraid… I’m very happy in Scotland! 

Laki Mera night
What’s best about living in Scotland?
Definitely not the food!

Laki Mera by Dan Lester
Laki Mera by Dan Lester.

The Proximity Effect is named for a studio technique – what does it mean and how was it used in the making of the album?
Our album The Proximity Effect was named after the interesting combination of the audio technical term ‘proximity effect‘ and the philosophical meaning behind how people react when in the proximity of other people, how people interact in the proximity of each other and how important these connections are. The actual meaning of the technical term proximity effect… well, it is simply a way to describe how microphones react to the relative closeness of the sound source you are recording… say for instance how a softly spoken lyric would come through when spoken directly into a microphone (i.e. with your lips touching it). 

Laki Mera by Sarah Jayne Morris
Laki Mera by Sarah Jayne Morris.

I haven’t heard the first album, how does the new one differ? 
The first album was a production which took several years, during which studio electronic music experiment and song-writing took their time to develop! The outcome was a very deep-layered production with a much calmer and reflective feel about it. The Proximity Effect still has moments of pause and reflection but it’s a much more direct record, based around tracks that were born playing live rather than in the studio… Most of the electronic music production on this album was inspired by the tracks and not vice versa. 

Laki Mera
How do you ensure that you retain an organic feel to the music when applying so many electronic textures?
Retaining an organic feel to the music is very important to us as we are well aware that electronic music can become too sterile and repetitive if not handled properly. We have a good mix of acoustic and electronic elements to the band and when working on the electronic arrangement we use many analog synths such as Korg Sigma, Korg MS10, Roland Juno 106. We also create our own sounds from samples of real sounds. Also, when playing live we ‘play’ everything rather than relying on pre-recorded loops as so many electronic acts do. This is more fun (if a little tricky sometimes) for us and more interesting for an audience to watch.

Laki Mera by Joana Faria
Laki Mera by Joana Faria.

You recorded some of the new album’s songs in turf house in a small Highland village – what lay behind the decision to decamp? 
We recognised that there was a bit of a difference between the tunes on the album and we wanted to embrace this. We made the decision to spend a week in a remote part of the Highlands to concentrate on the more acoustic, song-like tunes on the album. We felt that the hustle and bustle of our city studio did not provide the right kind of environment to properly capture the more sensitive feel of tunes such as Reverberation, Double Back and Solstice. We needed somewhere with a more quiet feel and a slower pace. 

YouTube Preview ImagePollok Park

Does living in Glasgow influence the sound of the music?
Glasgow has always been a very musical city and I think that’s partly why we have all been drawn there. With its long, dark winters and brooding, grey skies it definitely lends itself well to writing dark, introverted tunes!

Laki Mera laura donnelly
What else does everyone do when you’re not involved in Laki Mera?
Andrea & Keir are both sound engineers, Keir is also a piano teacher. Laura works on graphic design and art projects and Tim has recently completed a masters in Social Ecology.

Have you got any collaborations in the pipeline? 
We’re working on it, so watch this space…

YouTube Preview ImageOnion Machine

The Proximity Effect is out now on Just Music.

Categories ,Abi Lewis, ,acoustic, ,Advisory Circle, ,Andrea Gobbi, ,Aphex Twin, ,Bat for Lashes, ,Beck, ,Benny Greb, ,bjork, ,Dan Lester, ,Datasette, ,Double Back, ,efterklang, ,Electonica, ,Evan Smith, ,Fever Ray, ,folk, ,Fool, ,glasgow, ,Highlands, ,Joana Faria, ,Just Music, ,Keir Long, ,Korg MS10, ,Korg Sigma, ,Kraftwerk, ,Laki Mera, ,Laura Donnelly, ,Little Dragon, ,Lykke Li, ,Massive Attack, ,Michelle Pegrume, ,Onion Machine, ,Pollok Park, ,Portishead, ,radiohead, ,Reverberation, ,Roland Juno 106, ,Sarah Jayne Morris, ,Sarah-Jayne, ,Scottish, ,Social Ecology, ,Solstice, ,Tim Harbinson, ,Trip-Hop, ,Zombie Zombie

Similar Posts:






Amelia’s Magazine | An interview with The Magic Lantern

Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson.

Still Corners are as elusive as they are beautiful, malady but I managed to track down songwriter and keyboardist Greg Hughes to answer a few finely tuned questions. Delve into the enigmatic Still Corners world…

Who are you?
We’re ghosts, viagra approved but if you close your eyes and listen carefully to the music you’ll find out who we are.
 
still corners by sandra contreras
Still Corners by Sandra Contreras.

You’ve managed to create an impressive amount of hype already… have you intentionally pursued press or has this just come about of it’s own accord? ?
We mostly keep our heads down working as hard as possible. However the press has been fantastic and we all feel very lucky and happy that people are enjoying the music and shows. It’s a wonderful feeling.

?Would you like to stay independent or you would you like to sign to a major label?
We’ve always been a DIY band and we don’t use producers – I record it all and we do all our own artwork. These are things that major labels usually like to have a say about and that probably wouldn’t work very well with our ethos.

You have said “Everything is handmade”  – what does this mean in practice?
That means that all our output is created by our little circle of friends. I have a little studio where I do the recordings, then we rope in friends and like minded artists to take photos and help with the artwork. It’s just that we have a very definite idea of everything, a vibe of how things should be. So it’s just easier to do it ourselves, to take what’s in our heads and make it a reality.

Your stage shows are characterised by a wash of deep colours that hides your faces… how did you decide upon this feel, and how important is the look and ambience of your performance? ?
We’re not actually trying to hide or anything, we just don’t think that what we’re doing on stage is all that critical to observe. We like to use projections because we think they are beautiful to watch and they bring more out of the music. Projections are best seen in the dark so we usually turn the lights down to create an atmosphere, maybe something you don’t always get in your typical smaller venue.

What is it that so appeals to you in the creation of such a woozy atmosphere?
?Whether recording or playing live we want to go off into another world, something we see in our heads and feel in our hearts. We want to make our audience feel something.

YouTube Preview Image

Wish is just beautiful. How was the video made??
Thank you. Lucy Dyson made that video for us – she came up with the idea and filmed it all on 16 mm film which lends a sort of dreamy washed out feeling to the visual quality of it.  We shot it all over 2 days on a nice summer stretch of green in London. 

What inspires the lyrics to your songs??
The English countryside, a sunset, a romance, films of yesteryear, a photograph, a painting, a story, lying in the grass watching the stars, the little moments of life.

What has been your gigging highlight of the year and why?
?We recently played in a castle in Berlin and in the most incredible opera house in Toulon in France. The people, places, and response was amazing – both definitely stand out moments for us.

Are there any other up and coming bands that you recommend that we check out?
A band we think are just magical are Twin Sister, and they are lovely people as well. 

?What are your plans for 2011? Can we expect to see you at any festivals?
We hope to have a single out with Sub Pop early this year and we’re working on a full record for release mid-next year so fingers crossed we’ll find a nice home for it!
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson.

I discovered Still Corners when they supported Our Broken Garden late last year. The band are as elusive as they are beautiful, adiposity but I managed to track down songwriter and keyboardist Greg Hughes to answer a few finely tuned questions. Delve into the enigmatic Still Corners world…

Who are you?
We’re ghosts, visit web but if you close your eyes and listen carefully to the music you’ll find out who we are.
 
still corners by sandra contreras
Still Corners by Sandra Contreras.

You’ve managed to create an impressive amount of hype already… have you intentionally pursued press or has this just come about of it’s own accord? ?
We mostly keep our heads down working as hard as possible. However the press has been fantastic and we all feel very lucky and happy that people are enjoying the music and shows. It’s a wonderful feeling.

?Would you like to stay independent or you would you like to sign to a major label?
We’ve always been a DIY band and we don’t use producers – I record it all and we do all our own artwork. These are things that major labels usually like to have a say about and that probably wouldn’t work very well with our ethos.

Still Corners by Karina Yarv
Still Corners by Karina Yarv.

You have said “Everything is handmade”  – what does this mean in practice?
That means that all our output is created by our little circle of friends. I have a little studio where I do the recordings, then we rope in friends and like minded artists to take photos and help with the artwork. It’s just that we have a very definite idea of everything, a vibe of how things should be. So it’s just easier to do it ourselves, to take what’s in our heads and make it a reality.

Still Corners by Alison Day
Still Corners by Alison Day.

Your stage shows are characterised by a wash of deep colours that hides your faces… how did you decide upon this feel, and how important is the look and ambience of your performance? ?
We’re not actually trying to hide or anything, we just don’t think that what we’re doing on stage is all that critical to observe. We like to use projections because we think they are beautiful to watch and they bring more out of the music. Projections are best seen in the dark so we usually turn the lights down to create an atmosphere, maybe something you don’t always get in your typical smaller venue.

What is it that so appeals to you in the creation of such a woozy atmosphere?
?Whether recording or playing live we want to go off into another world, something we see in our heads and feel in our hearts. We want to make our audience feel something.

YouTube Preview Image

Wish is just beautiful. How was the video made??
Thank you. Lucy Dyson made that video for us – she came up with the idea and filmed it all on 16 mm film which lends a sort of dreamy washed out feeling to the visual quality of it.  We shot it all over 2 days on a nice summer stretch of green in London. 

What inspires the lyrics to your songs??
The English countryside, a sunset, a romance, films of yesteryear, a photograph, a painting, a story, lying in the grass watching the stars, the little moments of life.

Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson.

What has been your gigging highlight of the year and why?
?We recently played in a castle in Berlin and in the most incredible opera house in Toulon in France. The people, places, and response was amazing – both definitely stand out moments for us.

Are there any other up and coming bands that you recommend that we check out?
A band we think are just magical are Twin Sister, and they are lovely people as well. 

?What are your plans for 2011? Can we expect to see you at any festivals?
We hope to have a single out with Sub Pop early this year and we’re working on a full record for release mid-next year so fingers crossed we’ll find a nice home for it!
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson.

I discovered Still Corners when they supported Our Broken Garden late last year. The band are as elusive as they are beautiful, what is ed but I managed to track down songwriter and keyboardist Greg Hughes to answer a few finely tuned questions. Delve into the enigmatic Still Corners world…

Who are you?
We’re ghosts, patient but if you close your eyes and listen carefully to the music you’ll find out who we are.
 
still corners by sandra contreras
Still Corners by Sandra Contreras.

You’ve managed to create an impressive amount of hype already… have you intentionally pursued press or has this just come about of it’s own accord? ?
We mostly keep our heads down working as hard as possible. However the press has been fantastic and we all feel very lucky and happy that people are enjoying the music and shows. It’s a wonderful feeling.

?Would you like to stay independent or you would you like to sign to a major label?
We’ve always been a DIY band and we don’t use producers – I record it all and we do all our own artwork. These are things that major labels usually like to have a say about and that probably wouldn’t work very well with our ethos.

Still Corners by Karina Yarv
Still Corners by Karina Yarv.

You have said “Everything is handmade”  – what does this mean in practice?
That means that all our output is created by our little circle of friends. I have a little studio where I do the recordings, page then we rope in friends and like minded artists to take photos and help with the artwork. It’s just that we have a very definite idea of everything, a vibe of how things should be. So it’s just easier to do it ourselves, to take what’s in our heads and make it a reality.

Still Corners by Alison Day
Still Corners by Alison Day.

Your stage shows are characterised by a wash of deep colours that hides your faces… how did you decide upon this feel, and how important is the look and ambience of your performance? ?
We’re not actually trying to hide or anything, we just don’t think that what we’re doing on stage is all that critical to observe. We like to use projections because we think they are beautiful to watch and they bring more out of the music. Projections are best seen in the dark so we usually turn the lights down to create an atmosphere, maybe something you don’t always get in your typical smaller venue.

What is it that so appeals to you in the creation of such a woozy atmosphere?
?Whether recording or playing live we want to go off into another world, something we see in our heads and feel in our hearts. We want to make our audience feel something.

YouTube Preview Image

Wish is just beautiful. How was the video made??
Thank you. Lucy Dyson made that video for us – she came up with the idea and filmed it all on 16 mm film which lends a sort of dreamy washed out feeling to the visual quality of it.  We shot it all over 2 days on a nice summer stretch of green in London. 

What inspires the lyrics to your songs??
The English countryside, a sunset, a romance, films of yesteryear, a photograph, a painting, a story, lying in the grass watching the stars, the little moments of life.

Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson
Still Corners by Nicholas Stevenson.

What has been your gigging highlight of the year and why?
?We recently played in a castle in Berlin and in the most incredible opera house in Toulon in France. The people, places, and response was amazing – both definitely stand out moments for us.

Are there any other up and coming bands that you recommend that we check out?
A band we think are just magical are Twin Sister, and they are lovely people as well. 

?What are your plans for 2011? Can we expect to see you at any festivals?
We hope to have a single out with Sub Pop early this year and we’re working on a full record for release mid-next year so fingers crossed we’ll find a nice home for it!
The Magic Lantern by Darren Fletcher
The Magic Lantern by Darren Fletcher.

When Jamie Doe of The Magic Lantern contacted me about reviewing latest single Cut From Stone it was a no brainer to ask for an interview. The Magic Lantern are friends of Gabby Young and Other Animals, sildenafil but they’ve been busy forging a sound that is uniquely their own, so it’s time to get the low down…

Aside from having a great name, what else is special about The Magic Lantern?
The Magic Lantern: I’m glad you like the name for starters! Well, I guess what’s makes us special is the combination of different music that we meld into a sort of chamber music sound. Our other less musical claim to specialness is our group capacity to demolish chocolate during rehearsals – it’s scary!

Who are you all? And what are your other lives outside the band?
The Magic Lantern: Well there are five of us; Jamie Doe on vocals, Fred Thomas on percussion, Lucy Railton on cello, Dave Shulman on clarinets and Phil Stevenson on guitar. We all do quite different things outside of the band. Apart from Jamie everyone else works as professional musicians in different capacities. Lucy’s been playing a lot on tour with contemporary dancer Akram Khan. Fred plays in a number of bands from blues in Sister Mary and the Choir Boys to world music with Ladino singer Mor Kabasi. Dave plays a lot of klezmer music and in a great band called The Gadjo Club. Phil plays jazz and lots of Brazilian music and funk. Apart from music we’re all really into David Attenborough documentaries so they’ll always be on the tour bus or put on after a late rehearsal.

Magic Lantern by Andrea Peterson
The Magic Lantern by Andrea Peterson.

How did you get together and come up with your sound?
Jamie: Fred and I went to school together in Birmingham then Fred went to study music in London and I went to Bristol. I started writing songs in Bristol and when I finished studying I decided to move to London and try and put a band together. I hooked up with Fred who was playing a lot of jazz and he seemed to know all these super cool musicians so we just started hanging out and I moved into this house full of musos from different backgrounds and the band slowly took shape above a north london post office.
Phil: Musically a lot of us came from different backgrounds. Jamie’s a singer songwriter but listens to a lot of jazz. Dave plays a lot of klezmer and gypsy music so he’s got a really interesting clarinet sound. Both Fred and Lucy are really into contemporary classical music and chamber music and iIthink that’s been a huge influence on how the songs develop from simple folk songs into chamber group meets jazz improvisation sound. Myself, I’m really into funk and african music and I think I’ve brought that kind of groove to some of the tunes. So it’s a real melting pot and I think we just keep on getting better at making a really unique sound around these great tunes that Jamie writes.

YouTube Preview Image

What are the limited edition hand made copies of the single Cut From Stone like?
Jamie: Well when we decided to release the single ourselves, it gave us a lot more scope to think about exactly how we wanted the single to look and feel. We knew that for the hard copies would mainly be for fans who came to gigs so we wanted to make them something special. Also, now that everyone downloads music from the internet, iIthink it’s kind of important to fetishise the product, you know, get back to craft, to something that people want to hold in their hands and that they can see the work that’s obviously gone into it. For that reason we didn’t just want to go to a printer and get them done. Instead we decided to work with some friends of ours, Ollie Hamick and Nicky Peart, who designed some stamps and stencils.
Lucy: Each CD then had three individual stamps and a hand painted stencil along with a hand printed and folded insert. We only made 150 and we’ve only got 8 left so I think people liked them – but it took about a week to make them all! I don’t know what we’ll do for the album yet – I can’t bear to think of it right now… But it’s going to be fun.

How did you hook up with jazz vocalist Emilia? What was the process of working with her like?
Fred: Emilia’s a really good friend of ours from the jazz scene, and she’s an amazing singer. When we went into the studio we realised that there were a number of backing vocal parts that would be great to get a female voice on and we couldn’t really think of anyone better than Emilia. Working with her was a breeze, she’s a great musician and was able to come in and knock out an album’s worth of pitch perfect backing parts in a day.
Jamie: Around the corner from the studio we recorded in is this amazing Italian restaurant called Corelli’s – we took her for lunch there as a thank you!

Magic Lantern by Andrea Peterson
The Magic Lantern by Andrea Peterson.

What is the F-IRE Collective? can you tell us a bit more about it?
Dave: We joined the F-IRE collective last year through Fred our percussionist, who was invited to become a member. In essence, it’s a really diverse community of musicians from all sorts of different backgrounds from circus to electronica, free-improv to classical composition. The uniting factor is probably a real interest in rhythmic expression and in supporting creative music. It’s a pretty loose collective but everyone’s very supportive of each other.
Jamie: We’re also members of The Hectic Eclectic which is a group of musicians and songwriters who all met at one time or another in Birmingham. Now spread around the country we still get together and collaborate on different projects whenever we can. One of the main members, Triple Rosie, have just opened a cafe called Railroad in Hackney, which is awesome and where we’ve started putting some nights on.

Why has it taken so long to release your next single? What have you been up to?
Jamie: Well I guess it has taken a while. The thing is we recorded our album over the end of 2009 and the beginning of 2010 and then we had a bit an issue getting it mixed because we wanted our friend Leo Abrahams to do it but he’s pretty busy and wasn’t able to finish it all off until these last few months.
Phil: We took the decision that it was worth getting it done really properly and waiting and then releasing things when they were finished rather than rushing stuff out. It also worked out as Lucy was travelling quite a lot through the year playing with Akram Khan so we obviously wanted to wait until she was here before the release. The waiting has been really good though because we’ve had longer to work on our sound, write some new material, go on tour, play in Sweden with Little Dragon – all these things have really strengthened what we’re doing and how we do it. So I’m happy with where we are and all the exciting things that 2011 holds.

the magic lantern by karolina burdon
The Magic Lantern by Karolina Burdon.

What instruments do you play and how do you manage the swapping around when you are on stage?
The Magic Lantern
: Normally Jamie sings and sometimes plays acoustic guitar, Phil plays electric guitar and cavaco which is like a little Brazilian ukelele. Lucy plays cello, Dave plays a bass clarinet as well as a normal B flat clarinet and Fred normally plays a sort of percussion drum kit. The swapping kind of happens as a result of which songs need which vibes. Fred sometimes plays the guitar or cavaco and Phil is forever changing to different guitars and then having to change the tunings between them which takes quite a long time on stage. We’ve got a few songs where Dave has to change between clarinets and he’s pretty protective of them so that’s not always seamless. I guess the stages we normally play on aren’t exactly Wembley sized so we always seem impossibly squashed in and when we have to swap or change instruments between songs it can get pretty hairy. We haven’t had too many disasters yet but it certainly feels like a matter of time….

Plans for next year? Festivals, tours etc? where can we see you?
Fred: We’re pretty excited about next year. The album’s going to be coming out, probably in May followed by a UK tour. Maybe one day we’ll also get to do a soundtrack to a David Attenborough documentary!
Lucy: We’re doing a residency at the Green Note in Camden (ticket info here) through out January, February and March which is going to be great. We played there a few times last year and the atmosphere was amazing. It’s tiny, but when everyone’s crammed and listening its a special feeling.
Jamie: We’re also really excited to be playing at the Southbank Centre (more info here, it’s FREE) in February. I think we’ll probably play a few festivals in the summer; there’s nothing confirmed yet but probably Secret Garden Party, Green Man and a few others, we’ll have to wait and see!

Categories ,Akram Khan, ,Andrea Peterson, ,classical, ,Cut From Stone, ,Darren Fletcher, ,Dave Shulman, ,David Attenborough, ,F-IRE collective, ,Fred Thomas, ,Gabby Young and Other Animals, ,Green Man, ,Green Note, ,hackney, ,Jamie Doe, ,jazz, ,Karolina Burdon, ,Leo Abrahams, ,Little Dragon, ,Lucy Railton, ,Railroad, ,Residency, ,Secret Garden Party, ,Sister Mary and the Choir Boys, ,Southbank centre, ,The Gadjo Club, ,The Hectic Eclectic, ,The Magic Lantern, ,Triple Rosie

Similar Posts: