Animal Collective, Art Bears, Broken Social Scene, Dirty Projectors, Jaga Jazzist, Robert Wyatt, Arcade Fire, Frank Zappa, Bark Psychosis, The Notwist, Menomena, Pulp, Sigur Ros, Guillemots, Stars, Tim Buckley, Grizzly Bear, Beirut, Lutoslawski, Bjork, The Clash, The Slits, Penguin Cafe Orchestra, Kate Bush, Final Fantasy, Subtle, Deerhoof, Battles, Martyn Bennet, Cinematic Orchestra, Benjamin Britten, Modest Mouse, The Shining, Xiu Xiu, The National, The Microphones, Les Savy Fav, Panda Bear, Sam Prekop, Fairport Convention, Gang Gang Dance, Architecture in Helsinki, Jim O'Rourke, Matthew Barney.
Sounds Like
"The Spolkestra's music is beautiful, eloquent and surprisingly intimate indie pop fully equipped with widescreen sweeps of lush instrumentation and perfectly pitched vocals."
Devil Has The Best Tuna
"Completely infectious...full of glee and wonder, breaking points and build-ups."
Culture of Me
"Yo for an 18-strong art-pop collective! Play-fighting for yr attention like Los Campesinos! scaled up and slowed down for epic demonstrations of dis/affection."
Plan B Magazine
"Pop music mined in the Broken Social Scene vein. Scottish-folkster speed-jazz? Sure. It’s paced for the marathon, and glides in and out of caves in search of brass and freshly cut grass to roll around in."
Nothing But Green Lights
"Fantastic, slightly creepy but just like a Scandinavian fairy tale, soothing and beautiful at the same time."
Fichtenstein
"Some of it doesn't even sound like music."
Marc Simpson, 25, computer programmer, Edinburgh
The Spolkestra are a multicolour art-pop explosion;
A punk orchestra patched together from instruments and genres all over by pomo magpies Jamie Chambers and Duncan Strachan, to make a towering musical Frankenstein with a thunderous beating heart...
The Spolkestra emerged in 2007 from the fertile soil of Scotland's Transgressive North (TN) community; a group of young filmmakers, writers, poets, fine artists and musicians set on doing things their own way. Their debut EP, Open Arms - a joyous celebration of community and collective endeavour - will be released on the TN's netlabel Heretical records on May 4th.
At the bloody core of both TN and Spolkestra is a two-handed yet tightly held commitment to both a progressive art which refuses to alienate its audience and the need to channel art energies into social engagement and outreach.
The Spolkestra are currently curating 'Everything is New', the TN's latest multimedia arts project performed with and in aid of Dalit 'untouchable' children in South-East India. 'Everything is New' will take both album and film form and will see the Spolkestra collaborate with musicians such as Jarvis Cocker, Owen Pallett (Final Fantasy), Jamie Stewart (Xiu Xiu), Bradford Cox (Atlas Sound/Deerhunter) and Margaret Bennett, alongside Scottish writers such as Irvine Welsh, Valerie Gillies and Tom Leonard.
'Everything is New' (the album) will be released in early 2010, and the film (starring Dalit children and narrated by Irvine Welsh) will be released in late 2009.
Live, the Spolkestra are a musical fireworks display; a deafening circus of energies and enthusiasms spilling literally off the stage if it can't hold them.
Follow us on TWITTER and FACEBOOK.
----NEWS----
The Spolkestra are currently working on their next album, Everything is
New, which is to feature special guests including Jamie Stewart (Xiu Xiu), Owen
Pallett (Final Fantasy, Arcade Fire), Jarvis Cocker (ex-Pulp), Bradford Cox
(Deerhunter/Atlas Sound), Margaret Bennett and many more. It should be
released in late 2009.
Sorry bout spamming your page up You know what it's like...it's a jungle out there! :) The big, warm, electro-acoustic sound of the De-Glammafy EP is finally available here Nuff Respekt Ddr
Sorry bout spamming your page up You know what it's like...it's a jungle out there! :) The big, warm, electro-acoustic sound of the De-Glammafy EP is finally available here Nuff Respekt Ddr
Hello how is it going?
Come on tell me.. well let me tell you two quick updates i have just uploaded a new song off of my last ep called "Laughter Missing" i hope you enjoy it like a good coup of hot chocolate and i have a facebook account also so you can find me there as Picke Miranda thank you so much
- folk-pop by picke
After you've finished here, you may like to hear this poem sung on myspace...
Poem 162 of 230, WalkaboutsVerse (please see my blog): TEES TO TYNE: FIRST IMPRESSIONS - SUMMER 2001
Where traditions are not so rare; Sea, country and works scent the air; A multitude of monuments, Planted tubs and patterned pavements.
The longish pedestrian malls; The remnants of defensive walls; Historic buildings are a gauge Of the respect for heritage.
Wheat, rape and pines in the fields; Estuaries guarded by shields; Long sandy beaches and wide scenes; Romantic-ruin go-betweens.
Rivers in parts licked by trees, Or fringed by boat clubs, wharfs, gantries, And crossed by practical delights - Varied spans, forming pleasing sights.
Fine churches headed at Durham; Football kits ad infinitum; Kept castles - one for study; Masonry behind masonry.
And, with moulding-works out that way, It’s somewhere for a longer stay..?
Its been selling faster than we expected, and we currently only have around a quarter of our stock left - so we thought we'd better you all know that if you want a copy then now would be a good time to pick one up! If you buy it from the link above then you're buying it direct from us, the label aren't taking a cut - so its a bit like Fair Trade for struggling musicians.
International mail-order is available, just follow the instructions.
Thank you very much, and sorry for making a mess of your profile. If its any kind of consolation, we don't have a MySpace bot, so I'm leaving these comments the old fashioned way. Three -and-a-half thousand of them. My life is so exciting.
Upload your music now to www.topoftheox.co.uk for a chance to win one of the biggest deals in the business. Open to all genres. Sponsored by SAE, Marshall, StarNow, Zimbalam and many other key industry names. www.topoftheox.co.uk REGISTER NOW