ZWOAAVIERZG

The Great Park

Five of the all time favourite albums from The Great Park alias Stephen Burch.

Lambchop 'Is A Woman'
Josh T. Pearson 'Last Of The Country Gentlemen'
Bonnie Prince Billy 'Ease Down The Road'
Blind Willie McTell 'Atlanta Twelve String'
Damien Jurado 'And Now That I'm In Your Shadow'

Lover o Lover

So, from just looking at this list, which kind of music would you expect from Stephen?
Yep. You're close. :-)



"...this is a journey, a misadventurer's odyssey; it's vivid, it's elemental and the wounds are exposed. The road is pitted and merciless, stark and unyielding. The engrossing imagery will draw you in and repeated listening reveals new musical and lyrical nuances." (Nigel Johnson)

Portugal

Stephen Burch is an English songwriter currently based in Germany.
He began making music whilst living on a remote farm in rural Ireland - using acoustic guitars, the family's piano, brooms and chains. His lyrical, narrative songs bear the influence of the fields of County Cork and the old streets of Berlin. Images of persecution abound, songs of urgent travel and a search for home - the unifying theme is that of grave drama within 'The Great Park'.

I do wrong

Stephen has played over 150 concerts each year for the past several years - touring Germany, The Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria, Poland, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, Italy, Denmark and the UK. He has released over 12 albums on the DIY label Woodland Recordings, a compilation through the German label Timezone, has provided music for several films and his songs have been covered on releases by Liz Green, The Sons of Noel And Adrian, Thirty Pounds of Bone and others.

When I was away

He likes rooms with echo, train journeys, trams and girls on bicycles.

Enjoy The Great Park always somewhere near you...

Homepage

For Vorarlberg take a closer look here...

Ländle-Live

EINUNDVIERZIGEINHALB

Something different for a change, seen on another website. (https://blog.tape.tv/2012/11/konzert-fotografiethe-moment-after-the-show/)


Ever wondered what artists look like after their shows? Swiss photographer Matthias Willi answers these questions in his new album/book The Moment after the show with pics of some well-known faces that sometimes really look worn out. Except for Kid Rock, of course. :) You can find some of them on his website -  the other pictures there are also something to check out: http://www.matthiaswilli.ch/photography.html. I hope your browser doesn't start acting crazy after you had a look at the photographs - mine does! So I'm off...enjoy!

OANAVIERZG

Will And The People

Will and the People are more than just a band. They are a way of life. Living, rehearsing, being together, who are on a journey beyond the realms of conventional popular music. Will and the People have percolated into the gaps of the live music scene in the UK with their own unique sound, honest and fresh…

Lion in the morning sun

The band have naturally created their vibrations through a shared vivacity for all types of music… Though they will proudly state their main influence as being Bob Marley and his Wailers, the sound they make is thoroughly theirs, eloquently glistened and scattered with tones from many corners of song world.

Yellow

“Our music seems to have become a security for some people, which tells us we are doing something right and it is worth pursuing confidently as we are… there is nothing better than knowing it effects people… except maybe watching them dance in the moments… we know that love is to share”

Salamander

On top of this the band are just completing the final preparations for the release of their second album ‘Friends’, with the single Holiday a fantastic up beat song with a honest ska groove.

Holiday

With constant requests to come and play in various countries including Italy, Germany, Romania, Brussels, Switzerland, France, there just arn’t enough days in the year. Believe me, if they could, the band would be playing a gig in a different city, different country everyday.

(Taken from their homepage) :-) Hope they don’t mind.

VIERZG

Loosegoats

At LastFM

Sweden – a country where moose and bear greet each other.

And it produces a large amount of great bands.

Loosegoats is a Swedish lo-fi rock group formed in 1994 by Christian Kjellvander, Johan Hansson, Jens Löwius and Mårten Löfvander. They released their first mini CD, Small Lesbian Baseball Players, in May 1995.

Days Of Black (Nights Are Lights)

The group disbanded in 2001.

They reunited in 2009 for three gigs and released a new album in 2012.

By some standards it would be fair to call it a proper comeback. But when Loosegoats released their first album since 2001 it felt more like a reunion with a dear old friend.

Disdialogic

With “Ideas for to Travel Down Death’s Merry Road” Loosegoats starts exactly where they ended in 2001. The musical base is still alt-country and Americana. But the atmospheric soundscape is so packed with strong pop melodies that “Ideas for to Travel Down Death’s Merry Road” most of all is this year's best soundtrack to a trip down the highway.

Drift From The Tracks

So...get on your road trip.

NEUNUNDDREISSIG

"Ezra Furman is a guy you want to know all about. That's why when the Internet was recently invented (ca. 2008?) Ezra snapped into action and began his two-year preparation of his blog. On this blog he will include every single thought that crosses his mind, all the songs he likes, all the bands he likes, all the songs he makes up, and everything he writes including poems prose and grunts.Basically it's just about music and poems. Probably just music actually."

 

 

 

Maybe that short introduction has already raised your curiosity. Ezra Furman does not usually perform solo but with his band, the Harpoons, which formed in 2007. And you probably know one song quite well: Take off your sunglasses. It was released with the harpoons and includes a slightly off-tune harmonica which becomes even more off-tune live.

Albums so far include

Banging Down the Doors (2007)

Inside the Human Body (2008)

Mysterious Power (2011)

The Year Of No Returning (2012)

In The Year Of No Returning, Ezra goes solo and shifts easily between rock, heartbreak tunes and sugary pop, sometimes even within one song. And the thing that really caught me is his voice. Maybe not all the songs are gems, but some are really worth listening to.

For something raw, check out That's when it hit me.

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde  is angry and intense,
Sinking Slow - starts real slow, develops into an epic piece with 60s borrowings, and the new single Are you gonna break my heart offers haunting music, lyrics and of course THE VOICE.

And that's it already. Maybe I'll be able to write something more elaborate after Christmas. Until then, just some suggestions. ^^

ACHTADRIESSG

My Heart Belongs To Cecilia Winter

Be honest. How many indie bands from Switzerland do you know?

Lovebugs?

Truth Is

Favez?

Closet Astronaut

Or

My Heart Belongs To Cecilia Winter

Eighteen

2006, Thom Luz, Betty Fischer and Kusi Gerber met in Zürich. They started to perform together and soon found their own sound.

In 2010 they released their first album “Our Love Will Cut Through Everything”, bringing up comparisons with Arcade Fire or Death Cab For Cutie.

I'm in love with a mountain

Playing in front of “a junkie and a dog” wasn’t enough for them. They started touring through France where the album was a great success.

In 2012 they have now released their second album Midnight, Midnight.

Departure and Arrival

Scott Matthew visited them in the studio and took part in their song “Battle Cry”.

Emotions, love, hate, life, death – everything comes together in this wonderful piece of music. Check it out.

SIEBA-UND-DRIESSG

The Wilderness of Manitoba

Canadian 5-piece folk band. Here is a sample of a great performance from their new EP:
Forest City love


They toured a lot last year in the US and UK, also earning a standing ovation at the 'End of the Road' festival. Lots more touring and festivals in Europe this year. Often upbeat, folk-indie with wonderful music and harmonies, surely one to watch out for in the near future. Here is their newest release from their album (Island of Echoes, out soon in Europe), out now in US/Canada!

'Echoes'


Here is also the full performance from our beloved KEXP radio:

Let the music speak for itself :)

Enjoy and let's hope there is more to come from these guys...