Seven questions with... Joel Pike aka Tiny Leaves

If there is one album I am excitedly waiting on ... it is "A Good Land, An Excellent Land" by Tiny Leaves on Futuresequence.

I caught up with Joel via Twitter ... and asked if he'd answer my wee blog interview. I am delighted that he said yes.

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1) Who are you and what do you do?
I'm Joel and I compose & perform music as Tiny Leaves.


2) What are you working on at the moment?
A rewrite of a stunning track for another artist & the beginnings of my next project.


3) Who inspires you?
- Name an artist or artists who has / have inspired you.
Sufjan Stevens' music changed my life.

- Name a place that has inspired you.
Wales & the Borders. I find something special about Wales that I can't quite put my finger on but I know I feel inspired and more whole around its skies, mountains & beaches. I've also become very fond of London's vibrancy & determination!

- Name some "thing" that has inspired you.
A photo on my kitchen wall by Ansel Adams '1942 - Yosemite Valley, Clearing Winter Storm'.


4) What drives you to do what you do?
A belief that we are all made to be intensely creative, to release something unique and of real beauty and worth upon the earth.


5) What values do you wish your creativity to express?
Hope


6) What role does community play in what you do?
Writing music is quite a solitary experience and almost always done alone but I find great energy in collaborating with others across the arts. I couldn't sustain the creative pursuit without the support and belief of others. My wife is my greatest ally and we're part of a local church community who have been a huge source of encouragement in my music.


7) What is next for what you do?
After being in the wonderful South East of England for a decade, I'm relocating back the Borders, taking a more full-time role with Tiny Leaves and embarking upon the next project as well as welcoming the arrival of baby number three. I'm really excited about how the surrounding landscape will impact my music and the thought of spending a lot more time composing, in real daylight hours is awesome. I'll be working on developing the music for live sets with gigs coming up in the Autumn. Did I mention I have an album coming out on June 25th, released by Futuresequence called "A Good Land, An Excellent Land" ?!

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Thanks Joel! When you get back to the Borders ... maybe we can grab a coffee or something?

Tx

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*U*P*D*A*T*E*


Tiny Leaves - Abraham from Andreas Theophanatos on Vimeo.

I thought I'd share this wonderful video ... and give you a taster for Tiny Leaves' sound. Enjoy.

Two recent releases on weareallghosts ... Scott Lawlor and Cousin Silas

Two recent releases on my wee netlabel ... both wonderfully longform ambient pieces.

First up we have ... "like a pelican of the wilderness" by Scott Lawlor ...

It is an utterly beautiful piece … full of light. It is the soundscape for a truly open space. There is, however, an air of mystery … a sense of the unknown that underpins this space.

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We then have the 7th dronescape from Cousin Silas ...

I've never liked the tag 'chill out music' ... I've always considered it a lazy term ... but today, after experiencing a wonderfully chilled out experience, I can happily call this dronescape 'chill out music'.

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Enjoy ... Tx

Loving ... Preserved Sound

Today I received codes to some of the albums from Preserved Sound ... a fab wee record label from Krakow, Poland; that specialises in my kind of awesome: ambient, instrumental, neo-classical and acoustic music.

According to the blurb on their website - http://www.preservedsound.com/ ...

Our philosophy is simple: to release limited editions of handmade albums from ambient, instrumental and acoustic musicians. Buying records is about more than just the music (although this matters very much to us too), and Preserved Sound hopes to make products that will be cherished far longer than their digital counterparts.

This is a label I can get behind ... with a roster that includes Endless Melancholy, New Century Classics and Vitaly Beskrovny amongst others ... I don't think that's particularly hard.

I'll be posting on their releases over the next month or so ... but, in the meantime, check out their music over on their Bandcamp page and if you like what you hear ... do what you can to support truly great independent music.

http://preservedsound.bandcamp.com/

Tx

Seven questions with ... Gareth Schott, the man behind Sink \ Sink

Following on from yesterday's review of Sink \ Sink's latest album "A Lone Cloudburst" ... I thought I'd find out a wee bit more about Gareth Schott ... the man behind the band.

I'm glad I did ... because I found out one of the musicians in the band - Micah Templeton-Wolfe - records under the pseudonym Stray Theories ... whose album "Even Though I Sleep" is one of my all-time releases. I hope he'll agree to be interviewed too ... sometime soon.

Anyway ... here's what Gareth had to say:

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1) Who are you and what do you do?
I am Gareth, I write and record as sink \ sink an ambient shoegaze band from Aotearoa, New Zealand. While I never work alone, I drive the process writing and recording material which I then often build up in collaboration with other artists I respect and admire. I enjoy the freedom of not having a conventional band and being forced to have the same instrumentation from start to finish on each song. My only vice is the cello and I have a permanent cello player in Catherine Milson, who is wonderful to work with.


2) What are you working on at the moment?
Well, we have literally just released our second album, 'a lone cloudburst' on tape via Already Dead Tapes (US) and digipak via Susy Records (Peru), which was recorded second half of 2012 and mixed first half of 2013 by Sean Erin Lynch, a New Zealand musician. We are excited to see how people respond to the album. I am also involved in a spoken word project as Cautionary Tales for Children with sink \ sink's original singer Jamie Dryden, a Scot, who writes and performs spoken word pieces about life in Glasgow. We are aiming to release an EP of these soon. sink \ sink's next project is a soundtrack piece that is hopefully going to be used by NZ filmmaker Julia Reynolds for her latest short film. We are kind of helping her out at this stage helping her clarify what she wants for her film. Hoping to persuade her that she wants our music!


3) Who inspires you?
- Name an artist who has inspired you.
Kevin Shields is an obvious one given our style of music for his independence and unique approach to music. Loveless has never lost its impact for me.

- Name place that has inspired you.
NZ inspires me daily. It's my adopted country. It's a country where you can do anything. There aren't people blocking you or holding you back. I have been my most creative here more than anywhere else I have ever been. It's a get on and do it culture.


4) What drives you to do what you do?
I have always had songs in me, but I have always been in bands with other people. People that I have felt the need to please, musically at least. With sink \ sink I am only answerable to myself and how far I can take the sound I seem to have developed for myself, which other people identify immediately as sink \ sink. Now it is a matter of how far can this go, where can I take it. People are so kind and seem to really like what we do, not on a massive scale, but a more personal level that really makes it worth it.


5) What values do you wish your creativity to express?
Movement away from showmanship, performance, ego. Allowing others to come in and be themselves, letting the material develop with the input of others, without stifling that or controlling it. We always strive for beauty and emotion ultimately.


6) What role does community play in what you do?
Everything, it is immediate and it is a connection. I give and take support from so many people without whom I probably wouldn't have the drive to keep doing what I do. I have been so fortunate to work with so many lovely and talented people from Kim and Callum on the first sink \ sink album, both of whom I continue to work with in different forms to Micah Templeton-Wolfe aka Stray Theories whose work I so admire that I have a hard time believing he is willing to work with someone as lo-fi as me.


7) What is next for what you do?
Who knows? We will see how the new album is received and then go from there. There is never a plan or concept when I sit down to write, it is usually improvised over the course of a few hours then knocked into shape from there. What that is going to sound like is anybody's guess.

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Thank you Gareth!

Tx

http://alreadydeadtapes.com/adt/portfolio/ad078/

Loving... DODOnotes from DODOcase

I really like this idea ... DODOnotes from DODOcase ... a notebook specifically designed for the iPhone.



According to their blurb ... the DODOnotes is

...completely made in the USA using traditional craft techniques, the interior of DODOnotes features 30 tear-out pages of Mohawk's Superfine paper — known for its smooth texture, consistency and uniformity. The classic book-like exterior features DODOcase's quality bookcloth with a unique die-cut tray to nest the iPhone. A colorful elastic strap holds the device in place and when the phone is out it can be used to store other loose items such as business cards, cash, and a pen or stylus.

I really like the idea of carrying a notebook with your iPhone. I know you can use the iPhone to take your notes ... but there is nothing as easy or satisfying as scribbling a quick note.

As discussed before, I carry a Filofax Flex Slim with a Muji Passport notebook ... along with my iPhones. I use the notebook for collecting all my thoughts ... before processing them on my iPhone. The DODOnotes is a nice alternative to carrying this wallet.

Tx

http://www.dodocase.com/products/dodonotes-for-iphone-5

Loving... "A Lone Cloudburst" by Sink \ Sink

I admit to being notoriously behind-the-curve at times. I only recently got ’into’ 80s bands like Dead Can Dance, Cocteau Twins and His Name Is Alive ... you know, the stalwarts on the seminal 4AD label.

It was to this label and, in particular, Cocteau Twins that my mind went when I first listened to "A Lone Cloudburst" by Sink \ Sink.

I admire the work of Sink \ Sink and was over-the-moon when Gareth Schott contacted me to tell me they had a new release about to go public. Their previous album had set me up nicely and I was slightly worried that this follow-up wouldn't quite meet the very high bar set. I was wrong, very wrong.

"A Lone Cloudburst" by Sink \ Sink is an utter delight. Their sound has evolved in such a manner that the seams between ambient, post-rock and neo-classical are truly invisible. Each track is wonderfully unique ... providing the listener with a varied and engaging experience.

What sets this album apart is the ethereal vocals of Ylva Krantz ... her tone & expression fit perfectly with the tracks presented. A cross between Liz Fraser, Lisa Gerrard & even the sadly missed Trish Keenan from Broadcast ... Krantz’s vocals are an absolute delight ... and so so right for this album.

Emphasising whilst simultaneously complementing Krantz’s vocals is the backing instrumentation. The musicianship of Gareth Schott (music) and Micah Templeton-Wolfe (piano / synths) is apparent when you take the time to consider the walls-of-sound that are presented by the group. Guitars (acoustic and electric). Cello. Glitchy sounds. Piano. Synths. They all work together to create such beauty. There is a post-rock / shoegaze vibe that underpins the whole release - tracks like “Submerged” remind me of My Bloody Valentine and Sigur Ros (which is always a good thing) ... but there is also a lo-fi aesthetic that comes through too ... tempered, in parts, by Catherine Milson’s cello. Her tone is exquisite and her ’just right’ approach is worthy of commendation. Her playing is always just right ... never too much and never inconsequential.

The album kicks of “cherished” ... a soundscape of sheer beauty. Glitchy sounds and guitar introduce Krantz’s more decipherable vocals ... before Milson’s cello comes in and takes the track forward. What an opener!

From there we move to “fade away” ... a more lo-fi acoustic guitar number that has some truly heartbreakingly beautiful vocals and a deliciously melancholic air. Schott’s guitar playing is worthy of note here ... especially when a layer more sustained electric guitar is introduced.

“A distant backdrop” is a shorter instrumental track that opens with a guitar drone and a field recording of rain hitting of a roof before opening up nicely. Milson’s cello is, once more, an absolutely delight ... her lilting, gentle playing really sets the scene for this relaxed piece. Which is complemented with some Sigur Ros-style guitar and ambience. This track is utterly beguiling ... worthy of a dark room and an audiophile hi-fi.

“Submerged”, as mentioned above, is more MBV. A dark, guitar-orientated wall-of-sound with some beautiful vocals from Krantz and some equally beautiful cello from Milson. What makes this track is the slow, methodically paced percussion ... it really brings the track together before the track morphs around the 2min mark ... with less distortion, more acoustic guitar and cello, and no percussion.

“Lämna dörren öppen” is a mysterious track which is sung in a language other than English (I'm sorry, I can’t place it ... it feels Scandinavian / Northern European). This track is where the Cocteau Twins and Sigur Ros meet. It is deeply engaging and wonderfully immersive ... it envelopes the listener in a warn, worn blanket of sound.

“last call sounded” - starts off low and subtle ... a drone greets the listener ... a drone that piqued my interest ... before it is joined with a shoegaze-style wall-of-sound enhanced by glitchy sounds and Krantz’s sublime vocals. This track is very Cocteau Twins ... a swirling head-rush of a track.

“nobody knows” - is gracious and elegant ... a slowburner that brings the full group together nicely ... guitars, cello, vocals, synths ... they all simply work together in such a display of harmony that it would be amiss not to be moved by the sound presented.

The penultimate track - “before” - is equally gracious and elegant ... with vocals that, at times, remind me of Trish Keenan from Broadcast. This is a deliciously ethereal and ambient track ... that is a real pleasure to consume.

The last track - “deep grey skies” - features acoustic guitar, Templeton-Wolfe’s subtle piano playing and more haunting vocals from Krantz. It is a fitting end to the whole release ... especially when it builds in intensity after a minute or so in. It is very much an exercise in light and shade ... and richer as a result.

I do not have a stand out track as they ALL stand out to me. I believe this album will stay with me for some considerable time ... it will not be coming off my iPhone anytime soon. In fact, I am tempted in buying the tape version and resurrecting my old Sony Walkman.



I must take time before I finish to acknowledge the efforts made with the tape release. The artwork and design are first class and have made me consider tape releases with weareallghosts. I found it very inspirational ... which is fitting considering how good the music is.

I would heartily recommend this release especially to fans of lo-fi and post-rock.

Tx

http://alreadydeadtapes.com/adt/portfolio/ad078/

What I listened to in May 2013

In May I really got into the new Star Trek soundtracks ... Michael Giacchino has skills!

I fell in love with "Zion" by Hillsong United and "Beautiful Things" by Gungor ... and found the soundtrack to Ralph Bakshi's "Lord of the Rings" cartoon on Rdio ... Leonard Rosenman knows how to pen a good soundtrack.

Tx

June 2013's calendar / wallpaper

I took this photo of the exterior of the Zaha Hadid-designed Riverside Museum in Glasgow and, for whatever reason, never got around to publishing it. Not sure why ... but thought your device would like some awesome architecture.

Usual flavours are below.

Tx

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iPhone with Calendar + iPhone without Calendar
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Evernote just got more awesome ... with improved emailing features

Evernote just got more awesome!

They have introduced some features that vastly improve your experience when emailing articles to it.

First off ... you can add a 'to do' reminder:

Indicate a note is a reminder by adding ! in the subject line. Add !tomorrow to set a notification for tomorrow, !dayofweek (i.e. !tuesday) to be notified on that day, or pick a specific date using the format !YYYY/MM/DD.

Secondly ... you can add the article to a specific notebook:

Add @notebook name to the end of the subject line.

Thirdly... you can add tags:

Add #tag name at the end of the subject line. This feature works with existing tags in your account.

Please Note: You do need to follow this order: subject, reminder, notebook name, tags.

Lastly ... you can add text to the note:

To add some text to an existing note, put a " +" at the end of your subject line and we'll place the body of the email into the most recent note with that title.

These enhancements have made my Evernote experience better ... and it is a delight to see true improvements implemented in a tool I love.

Good job Evernote!

Tx

UPDATE - My journey with the Filofax Flex Slim

I recently posted about my new journey with the Filofax Flex Slim wallet / notebook. After a working-week's worth of use my observations are two-fold:

1) Carrying it everywhere (as it's intended) means that I am more likely to 'collect' incoming information and actions. In this regard, it is working.

2) I replaced the Flex notebook with a Muji Passport-style cahier. The pockets at either side of the wallet will hold a pocket cahier-style notebook. The Muji ones are slightly smaller than Moleskine ones ... both fit and both work. I have a couple of Muji cahiers that I'll use - they are cheap at 95p each ... and they fold flat. The inability to fold flat was the main issue why I replaced the Flex notebook - I couldn't open it flat without breaking the spine.

We'll see how things progress but my initial impressions ... even after having to change the notebook ... has been very positive.

Tx