Part of my lockdown joy has been immersing myself in the joy of Bandcamp. For those unfamiliar, this is a site for individuals to upload their music (and more), like a virtual marketplace, for direct contact with their audience, selling their wares without having to have a manager, label, contract and the rest of it. But this is a whole lot more than bedroom gurners with dodgy files, many an AW favourite artist can be found peddling their wares, with material often unavailable elsewhere, or only available 2nd hand at crazy prices. (And not a few AW members are also putting music out there as well.) On the first friday of these past few months and, hopefully for a few more, whilst C-19 scourges our world, the fees are waived to stall holders, meaning greater amount goes direct to the artist, should even they charge anything. (To be fair, all prices are negotiable beyond the minimum suggestion; it seems decent to chuck a few shekels in the hats of those who who ask for nothing)
Preamble over, I discovered the Grief Brothers a week or so ago. Confusingly, there are two such bands, there being an american using the same name as well. This is the South Wales Grief Brothers. I liked the cut of their jib on their bc page, and, on listening to the songs: you can stream anything, I was hooked. Plaintive and world weary, americana tinged (cymriana??) songs of experience and regret. Probably pub-rock, should a label be sought, that name being to place them alongside the folk who made and still make fine music from those days: think the Brinsleys, and the legacies of the members of that band to this day. Of course, being welsh, they are less cheerful and more deprecating: think the Saw Doctors waking up in a wet weekend in a deserted, windswept south wales seaside town, broke and with fearful hangovers. But still managing a wry smile.
This is, it seems, their only release beyond a 10 year old contribution to a long forgotten Mekons tribute LP. Fittingly, Jon Langford returns that favour with a guest vocal appearance on one track. Nothing complex in the arrangements and instrumentation, glorious swirling keyboards, a hint or two of steel and some splendid accordion waft in and out of the mix. The sort of music that would excel at a summer festival, possibly in a suddenly crowded marquee, full of people, all new to the band, all there because the skies have suddenly broken outside. But then become entranced.
Oh, and, on receipt of the cd in the post yesterday there came a handwritten note of thanks(on a post it note) from the singer. And a badge.
Tell me your bandcamp discoveries.
Bandcamp Discoveries: The Grief Brothers.
by 8 Comments
I’ve done the same on all 3 first Fridays so far. I started with “Songs From Home” by Jed Grimes which is very nice. Just him & voice recorded into his laptop. In April, as recommended by the Twangster I downloaded that Kim Richey remake album “A Long Way Back”. I’m liking it a lot. Then this month I bought 3; “Nonet” by The Mammals, “Songs of Our Native Daughters” which scored highly in last years Afterword Best Of Poll and “Black Lung” by Rioghnach Connolly. That’s the only one I’ve heard so far and it didn’t sound like I thought it would. I only encountered her a fortnight ago when she was on the Folk On Foot Festival, and was charmed by her Ulster country accent. This album, which I think was made a while back, and possibly reissued, has a bluesy Americana feel to it and I think it will be a real grower
Bandcamp has got to be a good thing. When you read about the absolutely pathetic amounts of money that artists get from streaming sites, this is surely a better way to support artists that you like
Not my favoured style of music but that first track from the Grief Brothers is extremely catchy/melodic in a melancholy vein.
They ought to go far. Maybe they will, with luck and persistence.
Bandcamp is a marvellous thing for both artists and punters. The shipping charges maybe seem a bit high when you’re used to Amazon Prime, but they are not a huge organisation with their own warehouses and underpaid staff. I favour buying lossless downloads right now, anyway.
My current preferred musical style, which I’ll call Brit-Jazz (a very loose description), is well catered-for there. Greg Foat, Nat Birchall, Nubya Garcia, Moses Boyd, The Comet Is Coming, Shabaka & The Ancestors, William Parker, Kevin Haynes Grupo Elegua, Yazz Ahmed, Sons of Kemet, Mammal Hands, Angel Bat Dawid, Matthew Bourne, Ezra Collective, Nérija etc. etc. All there.
Hi @Mike_H
Only name I’m familiar with on that list is Nat Birchall. Would you care to recommend where to start with the rest? Many thanks…
For context, if I was asked to consider Brit- Jazz, it would be John McLaughlin, John Surman, Kenny Wheeler, etc…then on to the ex-Softs…
All on my list are current artists, fairly new on the scene (i.e. within the last 10-15 years). That’s not to say I’d exclude older artists such as Surman, Wheeler, Mike Westbrook etc. I do find McLaughlin’s more recent stuff a bit dull, though.
Nubya Garcia’s “Nubya’s 5ive”, Rosie Turton’s “Rosie’s 5ive”, Sarah Tandy’s “Infection In The Sentence” and Binker Golding’s “Abstractions Of Reality Past And Incredible Feathers” might suit you, being more mainstream than some of the other stuff that I currently like.
Matthew Halsall’s “Fletcher Moss Park” and Alina Bzhezhinska’s “Inspiration” are worth a try if you like the kind of gentle spiritual stuff that Alice Coltrane did.
Maybe give SEED Ensemble and KOKOROKO a go if you fancy some livelier African and Carribean influenced stuff.
Cheers, Mike – much obliged….
Lots of Bill Nelson on there. His usual routine these days is a strictly limited physical release (has now started using pre-orders to gauge how many CD’s to press), then once those have gone, the album goes up on Bandcamp. Also does a monthly archive release.
Have used it only fleetingly – just ordered the revamped 30th anniversary release of Martin Stephensons Salutation Road.
Will look into it more – I didnt realise so many artists were on there
Mojo editor @JohnRMulvey has regularly recommended the music of Tuluum Shimmering – spacey extended…sometimes over an hour…guitar-based mellow psychy noodling based around lesser known 60s/70s classics. He/they? even takes requests – and has just released three tracks based around the Allman’s “Mountain Jam” after covers of stuff by the Byrds, America and the Dead’s “Bird Song.”
https://tuluumshimmering.bandcamp.com/
Not my normal listening – and may well have been mentioned on here before – but ideal just to have it playing away in the background.