Marta Jaciubek- McKeever - piano and vocals
Cris Derksen - Cello
Diona Davies - Violin
Joy Mullen - Drums
Influences
Trees, goddesses, Jack Daniels, snacks and dance parties.
Sounds Like
“If Charlie Chaplin wrote songs with Bjork to
be the soundtrack for a Tim Burton film, their
collective musical result would come close to
resembling the goodness, timelessness and
otherworldliness of e.s.l.”
-- Denise Sheppard, music journalist (Rolling
Stone, Amazon.com)
E.S.L. are a band of gypsies, performing uniquely
orchestrated songs inspired by everything from
polish cabaret to Neil Young to the Beastie Boys
and Velvet Underground, to name a few. Their
chemistry translates into magical live performances
that range from roaring gypsy-punk dance numbers
to heartbreaking ballads. The Vancouver-based
group was formed in 2005 when Marta Jaciubek-
McKeever (Polish-born pianist and singer of Girl
Nobody fame) and Cris Derksen (half-Cree cello
superstar) found musical kinship in each other; Joy
Mullen joined on drums (The People Verses) soon after and fiddleplaying
gypsy heartthrob Diona Davies (Po’ Girl,
Carolyn Mark) eventually
rounded out the quartet.
E.S.L.’s music takes listeners all over the emotional
map, from the whimsical silent-movie-esque “Prove
Me Wrong” to the lush cello sounds and vocal ache
of “Side By Side” to the traditional Polish stylings of
“Czarne Oczy” (which translates into Black Eyes)
The group combines a playful songwriting style
with the incredible chops and melodies to keep the
music unique and interesting, both for themselves
and their listeners. As far as the credentials are
concerned E.S.L. is one of those rare projects when
respected musicians come together to challenge
each other in brand new ways: both Marta J-McK
and Diona Davies have been classically trained
on their instruments since the age of four, as was
Joy Mullen, who studied performance and jazz
drumming. Cris Derksen recently graduated from
UBC with a Performance Degree in Cello and has
been a session musician for such established acts
as Kanye West and Tanya Tagaq.
In February of 2006, E.S.L. released limited edition
EP Hawks House to much critical acclaim.
Since then the band has been featured on APTN’s
“Beyond Words” showcase and on full rotation
on CiTR. The group was also honoured by being
invited to perform at this year’s Dawson City Music
Festival. With plans to record a full-length album in
the January of 2008, the girls are keeping busy with
their other musical projects and are looking forward
to working with Jericho Beach Records in the new
year.
I've been listening to side by side for three days straight. So beautiful. Thank you. Also very excited to play a show with you ladies next month. Warm Regards
Just thought you should know, i haven't been able to listen to ANYTHING but Eye Contact for days now... It's a sickness really. That is all, good day to you. :)
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