Tag: Maribou State

Single Review by William Ruben Helms
Initially formed as an ambitious octet that played at the London Jazz Festival and other venues across London featuring founding member and creative mastermind Leo Appleyard (guitar, music), Agne Motie (vocals, lyrics), Duncan Eagles (soprano sax), Piers Green (alto sax), Hoagy Plastow (tenor sax), Paul Jordanous (keys) Holley Grey (bass) and Chris Nickolls (drums), the London-based act Urchin has evolved to become the solo recording project of its founding member and creative mastermind. 
Last year, Appleyard took a break from his life as a gigging musician and relocated to Melbourne, Australia, where he took in the city’s renowned music scene — in particular house, disco and modern jazz from the Fitzroy and Brunswick districts. Unsurprisingly, his most recent EP, Take Time, which was released earlier this year is a reflection of the time he spent in Melbourne, soaking up a new scene while drawing from the likes of acclaimed British acts like Bonobo, Maribou State and The Cinematic Orchestra. The EP’s latest single “Night Light” is a breezy and up-tempo dance floor friendly track centered around strutting Nile Rodgers-like guitar, a soaring and infectious hook, thumping beats and atmospheric electronics. Sonically, the song bears a resemblance to When the Night-era St. Lucia, as it’s indebted to 80s synth pop — but with a clean, modern sheen.

 

 

Single Review by William Ruben Helms

 

Ronald Kaufman is a Los Angeles, CA-born and based producer and multi-instrumentalist, who began his solo electronic music recording project Kauf after his early experimental rock bands split up and a return back to his hometown. When Cut Copy‘s Dan Whitford released Kaufman’s critically applauded As Much Again through Whitford’s highly-regarded indie dance/indie electronica label Cutters Records, Kaufman quickly received international attention; in fact, Kaufman has toured with the likes of Cut Copy, Maribou State and others — and he’s remixed the work of Poliça, The Big Pink and Public Service Broadcasting and others.

His forthcoming full-length debut Regrowth reportedly will explore the small fractures that come about within one’s closest relationships — the ones that have long been there but have either been willfully ignored or conveniently missed until you recognize that you should try to repair it before it shatters to pieces before your eyes. And as a result much of the material also explores the related themes of denial and doubt but with a sense of hope — that you can actually get things right if you’re truly honest with yourself and about your motivations. The album’s first single “Through the Yard” sonically bears a resemblance to Zonoscope-era Cut Copy as the song possesses an ethereal tropicalia — shimmering synths are paired with sweaty, tropical beats and Kaufman’s plaintive and yearning vocals. In some way the song feels like a sweaty and lingering fever dream; the sort of fever dream that at its core possesses a palpable sense of regret and doubt.