Labelship

 Rad Orchestra are an acoustic/electric band. An eclectic, genre defying music somewhere between, folk, funk, desert blues, blues and soul. They create ‘hypnotic tunes with strings’ with vocals, ngoni (string instrument from Mali), violins, viola, acoustic and electric guitars, mandolin, electric bass and percussion.

Rad Orchestra’s collective experience runs deep, broad and long across many musical areas, ranging from the late ‘70s Paris/New York New Wave scene to recording an album in New Orleans with producer and arranger Allen Toussaint, countless traditional Irish (and other) folk sessions, covers gigs in workingmen’s clubs in the northeast, performing Handel’s Messiah in Addis Ababa and Azerbaijani orchestral music in Baku and London. Other encounters live or on record have included Langer & Winstanley, Robert Palmer, Sly & Robbie, Gerry Diver, Sandie Shaw and many others…
In 2016 the band contributed to the score of the award-winning feature film Still, starring Aidan Gillen and directed by Simon Blake.

Frontman Max Rademacher made several albums between the 80s and early 2000s under the moniker "MAXIM RAD".

The Hamburg born London resident formed RAD ORCHESTRA in recent years with a great lineup of musicians from the London session scene. The self-titled album is the band's debut and is slated for its release on 30th November 2018 

 Soup Review are songwriting duo Chris Delamere and Mario D’Agostino, two friends who came together over their mutual love of recording songs in their bedrooms to write DIY pop songs which walk a fine line between silliness and sincerity, high concept and novelty, folk and anti-folk.
Their debut album ‘From the Bed to the Settee (And Back Again)’ is a scrapbook collection of songs about everyday joys and frustrations, about friendships and recipes, disastrous parties and quiet nights in, as well as flights of fancy through boringly familiar landscapes. They tell stories through goofy wordplay, sharp observations and loving pastiche. They’re casting a critical eye on the great gumbo of life.
Much like ‘Half Man Half Biscuit’ before them, Soup Review is observing the road well-travelled and leaving lengthy Trip Advisor reviews about the potholes they find.
They walk a tightrope between silliness and sincerity, between The Mines of Devoutium, a cowboy ballad about a sinister monk spy, and Telegraph Hill, a postcard detailing a miserable day out in South London.

Listening to their debut record almost feels like taking a Megabus to where the strange becomes familiar and the familiar is a goofy joke, as they tentatively try to put a finger on some of the common experiences of their generation.
Imagine Soup Review as the “Morriseys of Morrisons” (minus the shitty stuff), or as Lennon and McCartney farting around in the waiting room before their CBT session, they’re like Stars in their Eyes on SSRIs.
Join them on a journey From the Bed to the Settee (And Back Again)!

 Singer / Songwriter duo Roods & Reeds – releases debut album on 01^st June 2018! 

The Loom Goes Click is a beautiful assembly of folk songs embedded in jazzy harmonies and an inspired world of instrumentation. 

Dagmar Lauschke and Leonard Poppe from Hamburg have been performing since 2016. They are finally set to let the world know about their magical songwriting skills.
The album title "The Loom Goes Click" is a musical hint, reminiscent of the rhythm of a clattering loom. The band name “Roods And Reeds” refers to the roods that were used in pre-industrial England by weavers and tailors to measure fabrics and ribbons. Reeds are still being used in textile looms today.

The groovy tracks, interwoven guitar melodies and voices of their songs are timeless and pay tribute to the culture of traditional songwriting.

Traditional songs alongside original compositions and fine musicianship are the components that make this album a calming and delightful listening experience.

Texan songwriter Ash Gray returns in the New Year with his second solo album Chicken Wire. Having relocated over the past decade from Austin to Sheffield via New York City, Ash is, in the truest sense, a troubadour, falling in with likeminded folk wherever he ends up.

Nowhere is this better exemplified than on Chickenwire. Ash recruited friends from the Sheffield music scene to lay down the basic tracks, later inviting musicians from back home in Austin to add their own touch. Ash then collaborated with noted Austin producer Chris ‘Frenchie’ Smith (Meat Puppets, Datsuns, Dandy Warhols etc) on the final mix. The end result blends country and bluegrass with untertones of psych, rewriting the grand Austin tradition of the ‘cosmic cowboy’.

Born and raised in the US, Ash began travelling to the UK at the end of the 90s, where he formed punkgrass outfit The High Class Family Butchers with future members of Menlo Park and Kings Of The South Seas, doing brisk business at the forefront of the London alt.country scene. Winding up in NYC, he took the guitar job in legendary biker band The Cycle Sluts From Hell, before forming the psych-pop ensemble Ash Gray & The Girls, releasing the acclaimed album Born In The Summer. Later retracing his Yorkshire roots, he finally released his debut solo album Once I Got Burned in 2014. Most recently he’s been helping facilitate the musical twinning of his hometown with the city of Angers in western France.

Live looping indie pop phenomenon PHIA has released her new EP The Woman Who Counted The Stars.

The five tracks are brimming with layers of glitter and grit and herald the arrival of a bold new sound for the Melbourne singer-songwriter with the crystal voice. Pulsing drums and intergalactic Juno synths, fuzz guitar and vintage Casio keyboards can be heard as a result of a new sonic vision by Phia and her collaborator and partner Joshua Teicher who produced the album. It sounds lush and raw and is emotionally affecting. 

The title track is inspired by the life of astronomer Vera Rubin, the scientist who faught adversity in her field and uncovered the first compelling evidence for dark matter.

The Woman Who Counted The Stars is a rapid fire follow up to her debut album The Ocean Of Everything which was released on Labelship in 2016. Now PHIA offers up what's next: A sparkling constellation of songs showcasing her powerful lyricism and musicality. 

The full throttle, experimentally inclined rock-duo Cinema Cinema from Brooklyn releases their fourth full-length album Man Bites Dog! 

Wailing guitars, abstracted and fragmented riffs, terrifying vocals from another dimension and loud loud drums transfigure the concept of raw. Born and raised in NYC, six-string slinging beardo Ev Gold and his drummer cuz Paul Claro are Brooklyn-diehards to the core. Consequentially this album was captured in Gowanus at the legendary studio of Martin Bisi. Just two days into the recording process, the band's work was thwarted by a break in. Gear was stolen, including all the band's guitars. Recording continued with borrowed instruments and a new sense of purpose; the raw, primal, intense music created was profoundly influenced by these circumstances. 
Widely known for their breathtaking live-performances to this day Cinema Cinema has played 400 shows across 9 countries, did 7 tours alongside Greg Ginn & The Royal We, worked with various SST Records projects and played 50 shows with Black Flag in 2014. 

"Since 2008, experi-metal punks Cinema Cinema have jacked up the amps to ear-bleeding-loud levels, destroying DIY dives across the boroughs and beyond with their distorto-drenched post-grunge and damaged-funk assault.”
THE VILLAGE VOICE

OVERDRIVE AMP EXPLOSION - the band of Swiss independent mastermind Stephan Bruelhart releases a new EP! Bounds is the fourth publication of the shoegaze rock quartet from Fribourg.
The band formed in 2004 to do a one-off gig at the legendary " Bad Bonn Kilbi" festival, where they unexpectedly found themselves amidst an international lineup of their heroes. Back then the band went under the moniker 'Drowsy Pop'. With the release of their first studio album Intervals they changed it to the somewhat deceptive name Overdrive Amp Explosion. In 2008 they released another album; Blanks which turned out a worthy sequel and once more defined their sound.
In 2011 a split vinyl EP was released in cahoots with Lucerne power rock formation Easy Tiger, which gave a first indication of the band's change to a more cutting sound and a more vocal-centric attitude.

Joey Molinaro from Pittsburgh releases his forthcoming full-length album Awash.

Logging nearly a thousand performances in five years of twisting and warping minds in different cities, Pittsburgh-based experimental black metal/ solo grind violinist Joey Molinaro’s stomping and ferocious playing is inescapable.
Acoustic or electric, Molinaro executes the spirit and function of hardcore punk and Appalachian folk with vocals that haunt like a preternatural voice from beyond the pale. 
Torrential boot-stomping and fiddle playing that pushes the boundaries of musical experimentation.

The music is otherworldly but exciting and accessible as there is nothing between performer and audience but a fiddle, a voice, and a wooden floor. Joey is currently touring Europe on his motorcycle.

A new sound by Australian songwriter and Reykjavik resident Pete Uhlenbruch, aka Owls Of The Swamp.
In an exploration of his inner self and the metaphysical nature of life, Labelship releases Meteorite. The growth of his musicianship is evident as he shifts from acoustic-based albums to a more lush atmospheric sound with warmer, emphasized vocals. The EP is set to release on November 4.Following a transformative period in Peru where he used the medicinal visionary plant, Ayahuasca, Uhlenbruch knew he had to express how the event influenced him. “My experiences there had an immediate and life-changing impact, similar to how a meteorite would shift the landscape of the earth,” Uhlenbruch says. After returning home, he took vocal lessons for two years and changed his approach to recording, giving himself more space for adjustments in sound and performance both as a person and a musician.

Labelship presents a fine debut record abound with luscious layers of harmonies, rambunctious vocal percussion and vivid pop sensibilities. It is now available as CD and digital download worldwide!
The Ocean OF Everything is an album of raw and affecting lyricism, powerfully woven into the hypnotic sound of an instrument made of wood and metal: the African kalimba. 
Phia aka Sophia Exiner graduated from the esteemed Victorian College of the Arts with an honours degree in improvisation. She developed a passion for telling stories and found a proficient way of composing velvet harmonies and emotional vocals. At times she includes guitars, drums and guest vocalists on stage, unrolling the orchestral soul of a live performance. Every show is different and there are always new details and facets in Phia’s music to discover. On the album she also introduces minimal beats, subtle guitar lines, synth sweeps and bass. 

Steel City Rhythm are an 8 piece outfit from Sheffield UK, playing their own unique blend of up-tempo, politically conscious Reggae music. Mixing in heavy Dub breaks, blazing brass lines, Funk grooves and soaring vocals. Steel City Rhythm’s infectious sound gets people on their feet and moving.
Over the last year Steel City Rhythm have taken stages around the UK by storm with a trademark high-octane live show which is guaranteed to leave audiences sweaty and satisfied! Sharing the stage with top acts such as Rebelation, Hollie Cook and Dreadzone, as well as making high profile appearances at Tramlines, Boomtown Fair and a headline slot at Northern Green Gathering 2014  Steel City Rhythm have become one of the fastest growing favourites of the festival and party circuit.
Their debut album Free Love & Fighting is now available on Labelship as CD, download and stream.

Current Space is the second EP release by Swiss songwriter Stephan Bruelhart, aka Lonesome Station. It is now available as 10" vinyl and CD, and digitally as download and stream. 

The music with its tentative vocals, guitar lines, loops, minimal beats, samples, supported subtle by piano / synth sounds has been recorded on-the-fly, in an intimate, un-produced way.

The direct and uncompromising sound has become the staple of the family father, teacher, Overdrive Amp Explosion frontman and songwriter from Fribourg, a town in the vicinity of the legendary Bad Bonn concert venue and festival ground where Bruelhart and a few other Labelship artists first met.

Blue Bright Ow Sleep by Frogbelly and Symphony, is now available as CD , vinyl and digital.

The Brooklyn NY and Sheffield UK based quartet fronted by Liz and Tom Hanley is now presenting their first full-length album! Blue Bright Ow Sleep was produced by Martin Bisi (Bill Laswell, Sonic Youth, Swans, Dresden Dolls) and tracked in the fabled BC studio in Brooklyn. It was thereafter mixed at the Laundry Rooms Studio in Sheffield.
A strictly limited edition of personalised vinyl albums has successfully been sold through a pre-order campaign. The picture "Heavenliest Buddies" envelops "Blue Bright Ow Sleep" courtesy of Philipp Schewe.

on CD, 12" Vinyl and digital

There’s a sense of searching and mystery nestled in the music of Owls of the Swamp.
The atmospheric indie-folk project of Australian singer-songwriter Pete Uhlenbruch.

ATLAS acts just like the soft voice of reason. “Garden” is an airy, dream-like waltz that lends simple yet elegant guitar phrases. It feels just like a heartbeat, one that shows Uhlenbruch’s ability to create a grandiose and angelic landscape of sound. “Shapeshifter”, a rhythmic lullaby, is a soft and breathy sing-a-long. “The Hypnotist” tells the story of a haunted relationship between a hypnotist and his estranged lover. Cascading piano melodies and ghostly backing vocals from Irglová and the subtle production of Thorisson add a surreal and otherworldly dimension to this memorable song. “Shelter” shows Uhlenbruch’s ability to turn a pop song on its head with his combination of haunting vocals and his prudent reflection: no matter where we set up our home, one day we’ll have to pack up and move on.

His last album Go with River (2011) was received as “one of the sleeper hits of the year” (Timber and Steel) and “new folk music at its best” (Sony Ericsson Music Blogger). There is no doubt that location has played an influential role in the development of Uhlenbruch’s sound. His debut album Smoky Bay (2007) was an ambitious concept album that sought to capture the strange coincidences, connections and charismatic characters that shaped his experience living in Iceland. Uhlenbruch’s deeply embedded Wanderlust has also led him to perform extensively throughout Australia, Germany, Iceland, the UK, Poland and the Czech Republic. His arresting yet personal live performances have led to tours with artists such as Žamboši (CZ), Myrra Rós (IS) and Svavar Knútur (IS) as well as supports for Machine Translations (AU), Old Man River (AU), the Paradise Motel (AU) and Jens Lekman (SE).

as limited edition 12"vinyl!

Martin Bisi, the producer/engineer of much essential music of the last 30 years - Sonic Youth, Swans, Herbie Hancock’s Rockit, The Dresden Dolls - releases his own (LP).
A  journey through time and the solar system, with operatic mermaids and chanting animist practitioners. A crash course in post-punk sound anarchy, avant gardist doom and freak lucid dreaming. 
Martin Bisi has been at a crossroads of indie, punk, avantgarde, noire/cabaret rock, and the electronic music since the early 80's in New York City. At a recording studio he started in 1981 with the help of Brian Eno, Martin Bisi has realized albums by Sonic Youth, Swans, Material/Bill Laswell, Boredoms, Dresden Dolls, Cop Shoot Cop, John Zorn, Africa Bambaataa, Herbie Hancock's Rockit, White Zombie, Foetus, Helmet, Unsane, Serena Maneesh, US Maple, Jon Spencer's Boss Hog and countless other indie, experimental and post-punk records.

Ex Nihilo is Latin for “out of Nothing” or “from nothing” and a reference to the creative process. Whether by the individual, society or evolutionary/divine forces.
A darker tone dominates the record compared to his last couple releases, with an exploration of the psyche and catharsis. The ritualistic sensibility (reminiscent of his 1988 album Creole Mass) is conveyed with a shift to more repetitive drumming and repetitive chant-like vocals.
The chaos of sound and group vocals is inspired in part by the upheavals of the financial crisis, including street protests in the sonically impressive glass canyons of lower Manhattan and the drama of the times and New York City in general. 

Stephan Brülhart, 38 year old frontman of Swiss band Overdrive Amp Explosionbegan to do a series of solo shows in early 2012 under the name Lonesome Station. Using just a loop pedal and his acoustic guitar his songs are minimalist, atmospheric and raw. The EP brings forward these qualities as it has been  consequently made without post production, overdubs or further embellishments.
It comes across rather like a radio show or house concert – seamless as one take. The song writing has been mostly  influenced by artists like Bradford Cox and Nick Talbot. However Brülhart isn’t replicating but rather reinventing his musicianship as a timid and yet fragile singer of his own world.

 Steve Allen, 29, front man and singer songwriter of the folk punk band has developed his style over many years on the circuit in Peterborough and then Sheffield when he moved to the city in 2003.  His genre was at first hardcore punk as guitarist and then drummer and later experimented with looping and percussive guitar.

Steve and his love of learning new music and instruments is self taught in bass, drums, mandolin, Charango (string instrument from Chile) and he took his guitar to a new level.  And an unusual array of instruments were used in the production of this album including a quality street tin, pan lids, a coin jar and flight case; which he recorded on his own, largely in his flat in Meersbrook, Sheffield,  with some guest musicians and backing vocalists to assist.
One should never pigeon-hole a band to a particular genre of music, and Wreck the Place is no different.  Yes it’s a punk/folk band with plenty of gypsy influence thrown in which ensures a vibrant and joyful feel to some of the songs and even an earlyLevellers sound with the violin.  But the lyrics are poignant for the man on the street; as this man has something to say and he sings them with melodic clarity.  Tracks such as ‘Orwell’s Dream’ and ‘I’m not a racist but’ truthfully expose the plight of those living within our society today.

 Liz Hanley – The Ecstasy of St. Cecilia

out 19/08/2013 Labelship / Brokensilence / Shellshock

“I don’t worry about how all these kinds of music fit together in my life; it’s just a part of who I am...”

That's how Liz Hanley gets to the point in an article of The Boston Irish Reporter. In fact, it is quite an achievement to be so positively recognised for a slightly genre-bending debut within the Irish traditional community. In collaboration with guitarist / mandolinist Jefferson Hamer and Eamon O'Learyon Banjo and Bouzouki this contemporary miscellany of Irish folk traditionals came into being as a journey through many eras and regions. Appalachian – Celtic influences and a touch of pop musical airiness affiliate homogeneously with the versatile compositions of Irish songwriters. This album gives traditionalists as well as the 'all and sundry' listener a rewarding insight into the Irish soul and its most astounding attribute of a tradition passed down for centuries.

Right at the outset In Bodenstown Churchyard puts a tint of bleak ecstasy on the sonic canvas.
Hanley sings about composer Thomas Davis' figurative encounter with Wolfe Tone who iconically stood for the Irish Rebellion in 1798. Her foot pushing down on the sustain pedal of a grand piano she sings into its body as the rebound of her voice trembles the strings and suggests the cavity of a cathedral.
The anti-war ballads My Son Tim and Bonny Light Horseman as well as Isle of St. Helena emblematise the records of the political lament in the Napoleonic era.
A set of refreshing jigs, by name April’s Fool andI Ne’er Shall Wean Her, composed by contemporary American accordion player Jimmy Keane, then transition into the murder-ballad Johnston which originates in the English folk tradition and in its execution parallels old-time American variations.
The a capella ballad Dark Horse on the Wind derives from more recent events of the Irish conflict throughout the last century. It was penned by Dublin composer Liam Weldon whose musical works have always tributed the struggles of the poor and the disadvantaged for a better life.
The concluding last fourth of The Ecstasy of St. Cecilia then comes along a bit less morbid and dramatic, but somewhat more personal and narrative. On Sanctuary Hanley's former professor, long time friend and mentor Mick Moloney accompanies her on octave mandolin and vocals. The coal-miners ballad by Vincent Woods and Mairtin O'Connor feastfully peaks in a fulminant horn arrangement and takes the listener to Arigna on the border of Roscommon and Leitrim.
After a traditional set of the reels Crooked Road to Dublin / Considine's Grove this elaborate debut comes to port with a contribution of Liz's father Andy. On Southwind he fiddles and recites alongside her daughter and completes The Ecstasy of St. Cecilia warmheartedly.

Elizabeth Mary Hanley grew up in Boston MA. Her Irish roots have always played an important role in her upbringing but she really hit her musical stride when she moved to New York City to attend NYU and study classical violin. The 27 year old resident of Brooklyn feels at home in many genres and is also a committed member of rock band Emanuel & the Fear and theatrical post-punk ensemble Frogbelly and Symphony. Despite being often on the road with those groups she is in constant touch with the Celtic music scenes of both her hometowns. You can frequently find her in one of the many Seisiúns sharing tunes and songs. Using her fiddle and her distinctive voice Liz Hanley understands how to dive into the depths of her being and interpret her music in a heart-rending way.

http://lizhanley.bandcamp.com/

https://soundcloud.com/liz-hanley

 Outroads – I am happy, 3^rd studio album, from Sheffield

 Labelship / Brokensilence / Shellshock, out Aug 19th

The weird thing about this long-established Sheffield band is the fact that you struggle to find an aspect about them that isn't obscurely normal. The group of up to nine musicians around songwriter and frontman Geoff Walsh have been holding together for more than 10 years. Passionate common people with a great talent to share the oddities of being in a rock band with the ups and downs of everyday life. Over the years and three albums Outroads has established a profound relationship between the music and the daily grind. I am happy turned out to be a body of reference for all those, whose lives got in the way. Outspoken and tragic, inevitable, honest and mature, but never too serious. A natural paradox.The acme of non – Rock'n'Roll* delivers a contemporary status report of a whole generation of outstandingly talented and artistic individuals, who happen to have their lives together. Never mind this very peculiar disarray, these Sheffield lads and lasses have created a soundtrack that sounds as elemental as no one wants to, but a lot have tried hard to be.
With americana ingredients ranging from blues to folk and country Walsh's raspy voice narrates in a distinctive northern English terminology. The band backs up playfully and gives this stoutly earthed album an enchanting and cheerful appeal. Instruments like piano, accordion, violin and slide guitar as well as multiple backing vocals can be heard, but never overload the sometimes quirky, sometimes minimalist song structures.           

If you ever get a chance to attend one of the rare Outroads live shows, you might be reminded of the heartwarming sound an old Jaguar XK. An engine – like band. The lyrical simplicity and soulful musicality certainly links to Johnny Cash and the 'Boss'. The music comes across coarse and lusty like a gypsy party. The band recorded I am happy mostly with an odd 16 track hard-disk recorder from the nineties. Then the tracks got mixed in a studio in Hamburg, Germany where the album got picked up by the local label Labelship.  Outroads are currently planning to play a few selected shows in September and October. Please check upon dates on their websites.

http://outroads.bandcamp.com/