In these me me myspace, facebook, iphone, iLike, i don´t like, omg, lol, like...let´s just say the
00´s desperate search for soul, identity, and melody in a most dischordant world - where can a listener, a lover of fine music go?
Answer: Jazzland records. An oasis of talent, the boundary-breaking Norwegian label.
A place where music comes first and uncompromising artists are there to guide you though it all. Back to music!
2008 heralds the return of Beady Belle. And wow what a return!
Beate S. Lech, ice-queen Jazzland soul smoocher in fine fine form.
A smooth collection of songs, performed, played and produced beautifully by the Beady Belle collective - with special guests Jamie Cullum and India Arie contributing with their unique talents.
A much more warm and organic affair than previous albums nu-jazz flirtations with arctic electronics, this the real McCoy. Beady Belle offering you voice, song, groove, atmo, and most importantly soul in every measure, with a spoonful of blue just to leave you forgetting quite where we you are.
You only have to check the song titles to get clues as to where Beady Belle will take you this time...somewhere on a "Tranquil flight" with "A Touch of Paradise".
The warmer instrumentation is a strong sign too, with ghost elements of blue-grass, multi-layered vocal arrangements, slow grinding grooves, double bass and hand claps.
Here the band are stripped to their most soulful to date. Phew, it´s getting warm in here!
Beady Belle, fronted by the eye-catching Beate S. Lech, with Marius Reksjø (bass) and Erik Holm (drums) have released three critically acclaimed albums to date on Jazzland. "Home" (2001), "Cewbeagappic" (2003), and "Closer" (2005)
All released worldwide, and together with a vast amount of live performance, nu-jazz gigs and festivals around the globe - the band are slowly building up a strong following.
And yes, confidence is high that this new album, with the carrier single "Intermission" (the sultry duet with Cullum) will indeed provide the break they truly deserve!
Radio airwaves certainly need this, CD players, laptops´s and iPod´s even more so... as once again Beady Belle proudly present an exquisite album in the poppier outer limits of Jazzlandia!
Music for music lovers searching for that something special.
From Beady Belle all the way to the listener - expect magic things when you press play!
all in the best possible Jazzland taste.
Nick Sillitoe
About the author:
Brief synopsis, and story so far...
Born London September 1971. Premature, at St. Teresa's Hospital,
Wimbledon to be precise. Music in the blood, Steinway piano in family
sitting room, turned down a place at St. Paul's Cathedral Choir School,
where grandfather Sir Percy Sillitoe sang as a boy, opting instead for
public school and a music scholarship. From 1982-1985 much in demand as
a boy soprano performing major operatic roles with both English
National Opera and The Royal Opera House. In between worldwide tours,
recorded cult choirboy classic "On Wings of Song" for EMI/Classics for
Pleasure, aged 12.
Teenage subversions led to an interest in folk-pop, psychedelia, and
acid house... somewhat at odds with classical pianoforte studies and
A-levels! Nevertheless, first dabbles in vocal samples, synthesizers,
sitars and electronica in early 1990´s, signed to hip London Records
(Internal) with the short-lived but memorable "United Sound System"
hippy-disco collective. Moved from London to Oslo in 1994 to continue
musical voyages with new friends in the north of Norway, notably
technocrat Per Martinsen...releases as "Illumination" on own label +47,
with various licenses in the dance underground and then onwards to
major labels SonyBMG and Universal. Furthermore incessant clubbing,
luxury Café del Mar transglobal Djing, producing, remixing, indeed it
was an intense Illumination remix of Norwegian indie-pop band "Velvet
Belly" that had the strange desired effect in that Nicholas fell in
love with the voice of vocalist Anne Marie Almedal and not too long
afterwards fell in love, love...got married, had children and escaped
to the quietude and coastal harmony of Kristansand, Southern Norway.
Nicholas currently focuses his attention on composing and producing
music for film, television, and commercials, notably with the pleasure
and privilege of working for distinct Norwegian arthaus directors Erik
Skjoldbjærg and Marius Holst. He is still active with the polyphonic
powerhaus of Illumination and it´s alter-ego Chilluminati, last album
releases "The Poppy Rocks" (SonyBMG) and "The Chilluminati remixes"
(Jazzland/Universal), both in 2004. Take a search on google, myspace,
imdb.com, or iTunes to find out more in either English or Norwegian.
Right now, in between scoring two television series currently in
production, he is also co-producing and writing with Anne Marie Almedal
on delightful new recordings for her forthcoming album. Full circle,
with the creative wheel spinning round, Nicholas is coming home to the
sound of muted pedal pianoforte, acoustic guitars, cellos, voice, and
valves, aided and abetted with pencils, manuscript paper, hard disks
and products nicely designed by Apple in California.He mainly works at
"Lydbølgen" studios in a disused factory space with amazing natural
reverbs together with gracious engineer Øystein Aamodt, and regularly
travels between Kristiansand, Oslo and London. Otherwise, a happy
existence at home with family enjoying folk songs and good ambience on
the iTunes, walking on by the forest to the water´s edge, gazing out
towards the North Sea and beyond, wondering... where on earth am I?
(March 2006)
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