The Recommender

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Today’s recommendations pick up three very lovely, but oh so varied, bits of rather left-field newness.  It’s all good though, so we hope you enjoy them. As always, let us know your thoughts on all three and don’t forget to score us if you have a Technorati or a Del.icio.us account, as that’s only going to serve us in a million great ways. Right, enough blagging and onto the blogging…

KATIE STELMANIS

Oh the life of a music critic! Attempting to put into words a description of the style/sound/influence of new artists that drift past our speakers sometimes becomes an impossible task. Well, Katie is one of those nightmare crossings. She’s quite like nothing that’s ever existed, a quality worth praising on it’s own in these homogenized times! NME Magazine called her “Coming-of-age nerd opera“! The Rock Sellout Blog listed her as “what Kate Bush might sound like if she collaborated with a robot and a ghost“. Beat that! Toronto-born Katie’s clearly jam-packed with a thousand influences and brings a unique operatically-trained voice to the songs, with her warbling, delicate china-teapot vocals. Piano melodies and left-field accompaniments play out behind her, like a slow Patrick Wolf construction. There’s also a definite nod to Brighton’s favourite spirit sherpa, Bat For Lashes. Haunting and other-worldly, it won’t be for everyone, but for us she’s gorgeously mesmerising with her inventive and original songs. We hope that after paying her your time that you too will get just as hooked.

Find her here:       Myspace

Hear her here:      KATIE STELMANIS – IN MY FAVOUR (ysi)

THE HUNDRED IN THE HANDS

It seems that this New York 2-piece are a in fact some sort of reincarnation. Jason Friedman was previously found fronting the band The Boggs. Whilst rehearsing away from the other band members he’d found a new sound that he preferred in the shape of session/touring singer, Eleanore Everdell, who had previously done work for TV On The Radio. Now able to take up more of a partnership, rather being the sole creative and fronting force, he allowed this new sound to turn into the THITH. You will find more of a foot-stomping beat, with sampled sounds and sharp, angular guitar riffs. It’s more electronic than The Boggs and once Eleanore’s softly spoken vocals drift in you will find that the picture is completed. It’s part Yeah Yeah Yeahs with a Bloc Party pace. Before you wet your pants though, its early days for this new being that’s excitedly taking shape, as only one single is floating around. Thank Brooklyn, rather than Buddhism for this reincarnation, but either way this particular incarnation has a bright future.

Find them here:      Myspace

Hear them here:     THE HUNDRED IN THE HANDS – DRESSED IN DRESDEN (ysi)

THE ROPES

Are we already looking at a Grunge revival? There I said it. It’s out there. Here’s an example. Yet another 2-piece from New York that is made up of a male multi-instrumentalist and female bassist/singer, so comparisons to The Ting Tings will bounce around, but there are obvious differences. It’s more Lo-Fi and less pop, although the slower pace lends a nicer, dreamier quality to the sound. Frontwoman, Sharon Shy, comes across a little like Nico from The Velvet Underground, with her breathy, almost spoken-word singing, whilst also having Nico’s stunningly gorgeous looks. There’s a touch of the pretty Emo music Billy Corgan used to hand out. There’s no missing the fact that they share his melancholy madness too, (and here’s the Grungiest element), singing about moody suicides and aggressive taunts, such as “you can all go fuck yourselves” and “Life doesn’t mean a thing to me“, but all is forgiven as the tunes are strong. Yeah it’s message is Grunge, but it lacks the usual energy so often found in that genre. However, hormonal, stroppy  teenagers will no doubt plug right into it.

Find them here:       Myspace

Hear them here:       THE ROPES – BE MY GUN (ysi)

We hope that was as much a delight to read and listen to as it was for us to hunt and deliver it? We want to end on a question – any of you readers come from Brighton? If so, we would love to find out, as we have some special news for you lovely residents. Drop your details in the comments…
Mike