#186 – Tiny Ruins

This evening I’d like to talk to you about Tiny Ruins, the performing name of Hollie Fullbrook. She’s originally from Bristol and emigrated when she was little to New Zealand. In a recent 6music interview she said how this probably influenced her songwriting, on account of the stark difference in surroundings and the isolation of Wellington, her new home.

In between the talking, she played one of the most impressive live sessions I’ve heard in a while.

#159 – Luke De-Sciscio

I’ve said it before and no doubt I’ll say it again, but we get loads of music through email. We enjoy listening to (most) of it, but this one has stood out more than most. Luke De-Sciscio hails from Bath and describes himself as modern-day troubadour. He certainly does sing about heartbreak and love in all of its various guises. He does so with a voice that recalls Jeff Buckley, Damien Rice, Anthony Hegarty and Jason Mraz among others. If you are a fan of any of these guys, then he’s well worth five minutes of your time.

#153 – Kae Sun

Kae Sun is a Toronto-based, Ghana-born songwriter. He’s been making some small waves back in his home country, but it’s about time everyone heard about him. He’s got a soulful, slightly gravelly voice that shines through the songs, which are sensitively written stories. The fact that it’s all acoustic gives the songs an authenticity; they’re enormously easy to relate to.

#126 – Blackbirds

Blackbird, the Beatles song written by Paul McCartney in 1968, is one of my favourite songs by the Liverpool foursome. So when I saw that a guitar group had turned the two minute song into one that is over ten minutes long, I approached it with a certain amount of skepticism. I needn’t have. It’s become a whole different song, where they’ve taken the original and turned it into a theme for a piece that circles the original, only occasionally dropping back into it. Sadly, my words cannot do the song any justice. So you should listen to it and admire the virtuosic playing of the two sets of Australian brothers, Slava & Leonard Grigoryan and Joseph & James Tawadros. It’s a stonker.

Band Of Brothers – Blackbird [Buy]