The Archies, Abba, Betty Boo, Belle and Sebastian, BMX Bandits, Blur, James Burton, The Bay City Rollers, Blondie, Beck, Jacques Brel, The Brunettes, Beachwood Sparks, The Cardigans, David Cassidy, Johnny Cash, Graham Coxon, Camera Obscura, The Carpenters, Glen Campbell, Isobel Campbell, The Divine Comedy, Jackie DeShannon, Neil Diamond, Fabienne Delsol,
Eels, Freakwater, Flamin Groovies, Dana Gillespie, Bobbie Gentry, Astrud Gilberto, The Field Mice, Adam Green, Girls Aloud, Richard Hawley, John Hartford, Emmylou Harris, Benny Hill, The Housemartins, Hello Saferide, The International Submarine Band, Kenickie, The Kinks, Kris Kristofferson, Kylie, Carole King, The Lovin' Spoonful, The Lemonheads, Julie London, George Michael, Sergio Mendes and Brasil '66, The Monkees, Mike Nesmith, Ricky Nelson, the 1910 Fruitgum Company, The Pet Shop Boys, The Pooh Sticks, Gram Parsons, The Partridge Family, Pink Martini, Bic Runga, The Raveonettes, The Raspberries, Saint Etienne, The Style Council, The School, Super Furry Animals, PF Sloan, Scud Mountain Boys, The Shangri-las, Dusty Springfield, The Smiths, Del Shannon, Teenage Fanclub, Tracey Ullman, Twinkle, The Velvelettes, The White Stripes, Clarence White, Scott Walker, Wilco, Mary Weiss, Dionne Warwick, Tammy Wynette and not forgetting Green Day and Nirvana.
Sounds Like
We apparently sound like (and all these are genuinely what other people have said) the Beautiful South, the Monkees, Isobel Campbell, Josh Ritter, Neil Diamond, Alex Chilton, The Smiths, The Wedding Presnent, Cinerama, Tullycraft, The Velvet Underground, Lou Reed, Richard Hawley, The Housemartins, Magnetic Fields, Belle and Sebastian, The Pooh Sticks, The Go-Betweens, Middle-aged pub rockers, Pulp, Bert Weedon, Velocity Girl, The Monochrome Set, The Coral, Divine Comedy, The Buzzcocks???, The Byrds (after Gram Parsons left), Madness.
Hear for yourself by downloading our free single "Before you change my mind" from here
What can I say about the Foster Kids?
Two of them are parents now, one of them has got a Double Bass, two of them have been on TV quiz shows, one of them once drilled through his or her thumb, one of them has rockstar dad, three of them have been to Australia and one of them has an allotment.
Most of all they've got each other.
If you failed to catch them at either of last year's big two festivals (the Mattishall Beer and the Harleston Fringe) what have you been missing?
Just about the finest pop ensemble to come out of Earth Studio's rehearsal rooms, the first band to play live on Bernie's future radio show, the country's second sexiest five piece and to top it all they play their own instruments. In 2008 the Foster Kids will only be playing festivals featuring the word tracks (they are now playing the Harleston fringe again so that mucks that up).
Listen to the selection of musical delights above...
And if you haven't got one of these here myspace thingies and you would like to contact us you can do so via thefosterkids@hotmail.co.uk
What the people are saying about "At Home With The Foo Fighters"
"It's great to see The Foster Kids getting so many tracks down in one go - and the new album has all the clever lyrics and quirky songs you'd expect from the band." BBC Norfolk Introducing
"It gets better every time I listen to it"
Emma from Pocketbooks
"Do we have to listen to this again?" Ian's girlfriend
"Highly recommended for fans of BMX Bandits, Teenage Fanclub, and The Beautiful South" The Very Most
"Hockering is hardly the Brill Building but it just goes to show that good songwriting can emanate from the most unexpected of places. It's the HQ of the Norfolk five-piece who have produced this worthy addition to the canon of boy-girl indie-pop. We are talking Belle and Sebastian territory here, with much of that combo's ear for melody and offbeat lyrics. Half the Girl also recalls The Beautiful South in their pomp and Folk Singer the swagger of Richard Hawley. Guaranteed to put a smile on your face."
Eastern Daily Press
"I love your quirky sound!...really enjoyed it...like a breath of fresh air for me to be honest. (I get a lot of heavy rock and indie)...a bit like a cross between The Beautiful South/Housemartins and the Coral" Bob Stewart KLFM
“Whatever happened to the good old fashioned light and frothy three minute pop song? It looks like The Foster Kids have been rounding them up for an album more than capable of livening up any party. There's the obligatory focus on teen angst and jingly jangly guitars. Vocal duties switch between Gillian and Ian for that boy girl thing. Jackie De Shannon to Dion if you like. There's also a touch of the Richard Hawleys about the album, which is never a bad thing. Life doesn't always come from the school of hard knocks there's fun to be had out there. Highschool romances an all.” FATEA magazine
"He sounds like Mark Knopfler and a little like David Bowie" Jason's mum
"Such a brilliant title for their debut album, and such a nice album to debut with! The Foster Kids are one of those bands who are great _because_ they are not perfect, and I adore their friendly attitude and their half-jangly melodies. This is music that makes me happy, makes me smile and makes me feel that good feeling inside. I'm constantly reminded of The Go-Betweens when I hear their songs, and the two have several similarities. The album has several really good songs and an atmosphere that makes me want to hug the people who have made it! Their myspace has links to several places where you can buy the album, and if you want it the easy way, itunes has it." Eardrums musicblog
"I’ve got an amazing disc in front of me that begs to be talked about: the new album by the Foster Kids! It’s called At Home With The Foo Fighters, and it’s thirty-seven minutes of jangly, chirpy pop bliss. (And hey… they are huge Monkees fans, so they get an immediate hall pass from us).
Falling somewhere between the better moments of the Pooh Sticks, the less spastic Tullycraft songs and a more spacious Velocity Girl with a heavier slant on the male vocals, Foster Kids are all about the twinkly guitars and the call-and-response lyrics tossed back and forth between lead singers Gillian and… Ian.
Irony? Check.
If the term “single” weren’t nearly meaningless in 2009, I’d tell you that this album was chock full of them. From the slowly catchy drawl of “Did You Ever Say I Love You Baby?” all the way back to the best country ballad that Tammy Wynette never sang in “Half The Girl”, you’ve got tons of absolutely perfect pop platters that are timeless and seemingly effortless. Besides, the band is tight… and the spelled out lyrics in the bridge of “Heavy Petting” are nearly too cute for comfort. But only nearly. Retrolofi.com
"They already have an album out on Letterbox Recs entitled 'At home with the Foo Fighters' which seems to have more to do with UFOs than Dave Grohl as their sound is a boy/girl duetting country tinged indiepop which references The Wedding Present/Cinerama for sure. 'Outcomes and objectives' successfully combines 3rd LP VU with The Beautiful South...lovely feel, great players, nice ironic lyrics dealing with the crass poetry of mundane everyday existence. Belle and Sebastian meets The Byrds too...Good band!" bugbearbookings.com
THE PLAYGROUND presents Filthy Electro Trash on Saturday 14th Novmber. Come along and celebrate with:
Punks Jump Up (KITSUNE)// Punx Soundcheck (KITSUNE)// Steed Lord// Gobsausage// Glass Diamond// TOY TOY// The Education// Mr. Beasley// Ben Osborne// DJ Darkorse// Circa Burlesque- Little Bo Freak// Chrys Columbine// Slinky Sparkles and Straightola (VJ Set)
2's UP, it's ma fuckin birthday... TONIGHT! Free Limited Edition Print (1/50) and an 80min mix cd (1/150) to the earliest arrivals...
NOTE THAT WE ARE STARTING AT 9 THIS MONTH, TO MAKE ROOM FOR THE TREMOLO BEER GUT (all the way from Denmark) AND BIG NED (all the way from the black lodge).
Angie releases her second solo album 'Eat My Shadow' in Australia tomorrow!
We have a very special deal for you all, JB Hi-Fi are offering a SIGNED, TWO DISC edition of Angie's album.
The
first disc contains the full 12 track album, the second disc contains a
5 track EP of Angie covering some of her favourite songs, including
tracks by The Smiths, Australian Crawl, Laura Veirs and others.
On top of that we're offering a beautiful Angie Hart tea-towel (dishcloth to you Americans!) as part of the deal. Be quick!
Come see us at the marquee in norwich on Friday October 30th - a halloween gig and we'll be previewing songs from our new album.... DO IT (come on, I don’t wanna have to cut you)
AND come see us at www.twitter.com/bearsuit band to follow what we're up to at the studio today....
Just dropping by to say Hi and see what you’re up to and how you are doing.
As always, wishing you well. Stay positive, productive & purpose driven.
Peace
Michael
THE PLAYGROUND Vs Noise Of Art will give you a big Halloween bash on Saturday 31st October featuring
Man Like Me// My Tiger My Timing// My Toys Like Me// Trash Fashion// The Midi Midis// Glitches// The Teeth// Kindle// Gene Serene// DARKORSE-DJ set/// Rack ‘n’ Ruin – DJ Set// Afro Punk-DJ set// Slinky Sparkle// Chris Columbine// Little Bo Freak and Lydia Darling// Noise of Art’s “Dance of the Vampires” with They Came From The Stars and I Saw Them Vs Les Hommers DU Train// Ben Osborne -DJ set// Immaculate Extremists// Overlap// Your Mum// MOTH and more
“You're unlikely to attend another event in London like this so our advice is to get your ticket sharpish.” DJ Magazine, 2009.
Online Now!
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