Guest post series - Tom Hyland of Electric Swing Circus, Swingamajig and Ragtime Records

Prey silence for TopHat Tom.

Greetings, Tom here from the Electric Swing Circus and Swingamajig Festival here with a guest blog for the one and only Jack the Cad.

So it is April 2016 and where has the time gone? This spring has been a bit of a rollercoaster, but very soon we will have produced a 4000 person festival, and released a new album – note to self: next time don’t try and do both at the same time.

For those who don’t know me, my name is Tom Hyland and I’ve been involved in the world of electro swing for about 5 years now. I play guitar and do a lot of the management for the Electric Swing Circus, based in Birmingham.We tour around the UK, Europe and the wider world with our unique style of electro swing. I also run a record label called Ragtime Records with my partner in crime the C@ in the H@,  and also produce an urban festival called Swingamajig.

Every year without fail I am told both that: ‘Electro Swing is dying’; and ‘this is the year Electro Swing really takes off into the main stream’. So far neither has happened, and I don’t think they will. The scene has developed over the last 5 years and looks massively different to how it did, but I think that is the beauty of it. Things change and adapt and the music and events that are happening now have come a long way from where they were when the scene first appeared.

With two new projects on their way, a brand new album and a new edition of our festival, what are we doing to the reflect these changes?

First, let’s talk about the album: Our sound is distinctive and doesn’t always conform to the expectations of what electroswing should be and I think that comes from our writing process. We come from a really diverse musical backgrounds and all six of us sit in one room and write together so our diversity shows in the songs. We consider ourselves a vintage remix band in that we fuse things that are old with this that are new, but that can be anything. There is a healthy dose of rock in this album which you can hear a little clip on our Crowdfunder video at (00:52)



Ah yes, you spotted it: we have a Crowdfunder campaign. Of course we do! You can preorder a copy of the album as well as securing treats such as limited edition vinyl and festival tickets. Take a look at the link and check it out.

We will be releasing one of the album tracks to coincide with Swingamajig, our one day festival of vintage mayhem and delight, on May 1st in Birmingham. (You should come – it’s honestly the most fun you can have on a bank holiday!) You can find out more here, and read Jack's report from last year here.

There will also be remixes from some fantastic producers: C@ in the H@, Aries, and Father Funk. You can hear a preview of two of the tracks below.



The recording process has been really interesting, we have worked in two studios, one in Wales and the other in Devon. It’s taken us quite a while to get it right;the first three sessions we just re-recorded everything each time, getting it closer but not quite there, however now we’ve settled into a rhythm and are making some great music. It’s been really good to experiment with recording, what works what doesn’t, how to integrate electronics, where they should and shouldn’t be. With a recorded track you can hone in on each part and really get into the details and it has been a lot of fun to explore. One thing that we have worked on is to make sure that we still sound like a live band, a live band that makes you want to dance. Getting the energy and emotion into the music is really important to us and I think we have made it work...

And what’s next? The festival of course. Swingamajig – a show like no other

I’ve always wanted to run a festival; I love the idea of sculpting an event into the ultimate day. Maybe it’s part of human nature: we all think we know how to run a pub, we all think we know how to throw a party. The thing is, I really do know how to throw a party!

After the success of our monthly nights at the Hare and Hounds we were inspired to create something bigger. I wanted to immerse the crowds in the magical feeling that I enjoyed when I first discovered electroswing. I wanted people to feel transported from their normal lives into an exciting and exhilarating environment where the music was just one part of the wonder. The dancing, the outfits, the entertainers and the music all combine to provide that perfect feeling.

No doubt it is a lot of work, but the end product is so joyful and spectacular that even the headache of programming doesn’t dampen my enthusiasm.

The opportunity to work with the team from Shambala festival was too good to pass up and we were honoured to be invited to run our Speakeasy Stage at their yearly weekender. They have also contributed to our work at Swingamajig since 2014 and having their knowledge, experience and dedication to good vibe parties alongside us is invaluable.



So what’s new this year? This might surprise you: there’s not so much electro swing.
Don’t get me wrong, we have some of the best live acts and DJs in the genre playing ( I’m particularly excited about seeing Swingrowers and JFB perform live), but this year there is so much more going on.

Our vintage content is really strong with top swing and rockabilly bands; we have a load of gypsy punk and Balkan folk with bands like Balkan beat Box and the Destroyers; while, on the electronic side of things, there is everything from dubstep (Stenchman) through to Jungle (Aries), and everything in between.

And of course, as always, the music is just one element of the event. There is a cabaret with internationally renowned performers (including ex cirq de soleil), there’s street food, there’s art installations, there’s games and the list goes on. For me this is really important: the whole event is vintage inspired but really broad, whether you are 18 or 80, there’s stuff you will love all day and all night.

Without question, the attendees provide another vital element – I’ve rarely known a crowd so enthusiastic or so very well dressed as an electroswing crowd!



We start the show at 14:00 with a 16 piece big band and it all kicks off from there with workshops and cabaret during the day and DJs by night, finishing up around 06:00!
Check out the full line up here.


Tickets are available from our website for just £25 (which is an absolute bargain!)
http://swingamajig.co.uk/

Well I hope you like the music and we’ll hopefully see you in May. If not, the ESC are going to be hitting the festivals in style this summer so we will show you some of the new material soon.

Tom Hyland

Essay: The Art of Sampling by Chris Inglis, Musicologist

A short while ago I was bumbling around the internets and came across an extract from an academic essay on the subject of electro-swing and its evolution from old-time swing and 90s dance music. I hunted out and read the full thing, and discovered that it had been written by a Musicologist (yes, that's a thing) named Chris Inglis. Now, as regular readers will be aware, my qualifications for pronouncing on the scene are exactly none, so I thought I would get in touch with Chris to see if he was interested in helping me to bring a little actual knowledge to the blog. He very kindly agreed to share the fruits of his researches here.

Chris's post is somewhat longer than you might be used to reading on here, and its certainly a lot more intellectual than anything I ever write (it has references and a bibliography), but I strongly recommend reading to the end.

The author, looking slick

I was pleasantly surprised to be contacted the other week with a request to contribute an article to this blog. Being the only academic to be working within the field of electro swing (as far as I’m aware, and if anyone knows of any others I would genuinely love to be put into contact with them), it is a great opportunity to present my work to a much larger number of people than those who would normally read it. I’m currently working on an extended thesis with the working title of Sampling the Swing Era, specifically focussing on the practice of sampling within the genre, and what you’ll find here will form the basis of one of the chapters found within.

The key aspect of my current research involves determining the specific reasons why artists working within the genre of electro swing, and the vintage remix genre in general choose to work with vintage samples, and the distinct implications that working these samples may have. Concerning music, where many eras of the past have had their own individual style, this no longer appears to be the case. The author Simon Reynolds notes this in his book Retromania, in which he states:

“Instead of being about itself, the 2000s has been about every other previous decade happening again all at once: a simultaneity of pop time that abolishes history while nibbling away at the present’s own sense of itself as an era with a distinct identity and feel.”

[Reynolds, 2011:x]

But why specifically does the music of the past appear to be creeping back into the modern day? Through the use of sampling, a large amount of modern music can now largely be described as simply a reinterpretation of already existing music.

To begin, I’ll very briefly look at two case studies, simply to highlight the incredible importance of sampling within the genre. The first is Parov Stelar, who presents a great indication of this importance most notably through his 2013 album, The Art of Sampling. Clearly, from the very title of this release, Parov Stelar is indicating his fondness for sampling, and this is backed up with the following quote, made in reference to this particular album:

“Sampling is an instrument. You have an unimaginable treasure trove of material that you can use and transform into new things. I play the computer; that’s my instrument.”

[Füreder, 2013]

My second example comes from the band SwinGrowers, and more specifically, their 2015 album Remote. This album in fact features zero samples whatsoever; however this was presented by the record label as one of the selling points, indicating its uniqueness. As the press release states:

“What marks this out is the departure from any use of vintage samples. Instead, every track, every sound is entirely original - the influences have been fully absorbed. If there was ever any doubt that this genre had a future, then this is the rebuttal. “Remote” is nothing less than a game-changer.”

[Freshly Squeezed, 2015]

The phrase “game-changer” in this context is particularly telling.



Regarding the specific role and function that the sampling of vintage music plays within the genre of electro swing, there has been essentially no academic work conducted for this particular genre. However, a genre which has been researched quite extensively is the related genre of jazz rap, concerning artists such as A Tribe Called Quest, and De La Soul, which has been looked into by academics such as Tom Perchard and Justin Williams. Concerning the use of sampling in the genre of jazz rap, Williams has stated that “the fundamental element of hip-hop culture and aesthetics is the overt use of preexisting material to new ends” , and that “borrowing is hip-hop culture’s most widespread, and arguably most effective, way of celebrating itself”.



A number of different reasons behind the use of vintage influences have been presented by the authors conducting research into the genre of jazz rap. Perhaps surprisingly, the argument that seems to appear the most commonly is the suggestion that both jazz and hip-hop music have emerged from the same traditions and creative sources. For instance, a point is made by journalists Janine Adams and Havelock Nelson that “hip-hop is the jazz music of today”. Additionally, fellow journalist Danyel Smith makes the suggestion that jazz has been turned into “some elite, sophisticated music”; one of the ‘high arts’, as opposed to how it would have originally been considered, and that hip-hop is “bringing jazz back where it belongs”. Indeed, Williams lists some of the musical similarites between both genres, including their “origins as dance music, [that they] were largely the product of African American urban creativity and innovation, and [their] shared rhythmic similarities”.

However, a few authors have also suggested that this is not in fact the case, and that both hip-hop and jazz are two distinct, individual genres; therefore jazz rap’s sampling of jazz is intended to serve almost as a juxtaposition. As Tom Perchard suggests, the artists working within the genre of jazz rap are using these samples “precisely because of their distance from them”. It’s also been suggested by Williams that, as Smith suggests jazz is now considered one of the ‘high arts’ of today’s society, hip-hop’s sampling of it is perhaps an attempt to enter that same world, or as he describes, “part of hip-hop’s ongoing struggle for cultural legitimacy”.

Another suggestion for the use of vintage samples within modern music, is the concept of ‘retelling the past’. Hip-hop’s sampling of older genres has been described by author Russell Potter as “re-form[ing] the traditions it draws upon”, and Perchard describes the phenomenon that “traditions are invented and cultural memories mobilized at times of social change or trauma”, drawing parallels with hip-hop’s sampling of older generations’ music. Author Peter Burke goes on to describe how – as the saying goes, ‘history is written by the victors’ – “marginalized cultural groups have been apt to make more of that cultural memory”, and that “this reproduction of memories constructs oppositional historical narratives”. It is certainly possible to see these modern musicians using vintage music as a way of constructing an alternate history, more favourable for themselves.

Before moving specifically onto my own research, I’ll present a few more points made by Simon Reynolds. A question he poses, is whether “nostalgia [is] stopping our culture’s ability to surge forward, or are we nostalgic precisely because our culture has stopped moving forward and so we inevitably look back to more momentous and dynamic times?" Reynolds also suggests that perhaps we are now using more and more vintage samples simply for the reasons of ease and accessibility, stating that “all the sound and imagery and information that used to cost money and physical effort to obtain is available for free, just a few key and mouse clicks away”.

Therefore, within the genre of jazz rap, there are already a large number of suggestions as to why these artists may choose to work with vintage samples. With regards to electro swing, I was keen to discover whether or not these views were echoed by the practitioners of this particular style. In order to do this, I reached out to a number of artists working within the genre, and asked the following question:
“With regards to your music, what do you consider the role and function of using vintage music to be?”

The first artist to get back to me was Nick Hollywood, who says the following:

“Vintage music is a source of inspiration. That’s pretty much the only real common ground. Beyond that; in what way it inspires – either via directly sampling – or by simply providing a musical style template – is completely different from one artist to the next.”

Hollywood’s description of vintage music serving as a source of inspiration for him ties in with Reynolds’ idea that perhaps our culture has stopped moving forward. This implication that vintage music is perhaps of a higher quality than the music of today was in fact quite a common theme throughout many of the responses I received.

A DJ who takes this idea even further is Per Ebdrup of Swing Republic, who states the following:

“Very significant. Many tracks I make in this genre are sample based. The old samples give a great vibe to the tracks. In those days, only the very best musicians were allowed to record, because of the expensive technology. So the quality of the artists is high. Lyrics in 20-30ties are often quite fun which gives the music a happy and light feel.”

Ebdrup’s point that only the best musicians were allowed to record, and his suggestion that the quality of the artists is therefore high, further backs up this idea.

In some cases, there in fact almost seems to be an air of superiority with these various electro swing/vintage remix artists. To take a slight detour away from the artists who I contacted myself, this position is made no more evident than in the duo Goldfish. As Dominic Peters states of their music:

“I think our whole thing is kind of combining the analogue and digital world together. A lot of dance music’s very sterile and very bright and shiny, and we try and rub in a bit of dirt, and a bit of analogue warmth, and real instruments, and bring back the life to dance music.”

[Goldfishlive, 2012]

This suggestion of superiority is demonstrated perfectly in the music video for Goldfish’s track One Million Views:



This isn’t however to say that electro swing musicians necessarily look down upon regular EDM artists. Returning to the artists I contacted myself, Michael Rack of Dutty Moonshine says the following:

“Fun. Just straight fun. Jazz and Swing was an amazing and timeless sound, you could call it the 1st punk music of it’s day for what it went up against. Slapping vintage samples onto basslines and dance beats is a sure win.”

Rack’s fondness for “basslines and dance beats” is perfectly evident here, although it does seem that he still perhaps maintains a preference for vintage music, through his description of the reasons behind its use as “just straight fun”.



A further reason for the use of vintage samples is given by Tobias Kroschel, better known as Sound Nomaden:

“For me music is timeless, that means if you give vintage music a modern twist or put it in the right context people will feel it, even if they're born in a different generation. The great opportunity of using musical themes or samples from old decades is, that you can reach people from age of 16-80 years. It is an amazing experience to see these different generations dancing together on the same music.”

Kroschel’s suggestion that the music is “timeless”, and his reference to his love of seeing “different generations dancing together” is perhaps suggestive that he is leaning towards the ‘same tradition’ theory, in his indication that all people and ages can be reached with this style.



A similar point is made by Luca Gatti, better known as Dr. Cat, who says the following:

“I would say the role is a primary one, in that without those vintage samples the tracks would have a complete different vibe to it, I am not saying the tracks would be better I am just saying the track would not sound as categorized within the vintage remix domain. The function is of endless inspirational importance, not only re connect with the past but springs out in to the future.”

Another aspect I am investigating with my research, is whether to consider electro swing as a continuation of the original swing music, or whether to regard it as a genre in its own right, simply taking influences from the swing era. From this quote, it would appear that Gatti would take the first view, and that electro swing is what swing has now evolved into. This of course also ties in with the ‘same tradition’ theory.

So what we can ultimately conclude is that there are many different reasons for why producers may decide to use vintage samples. The fact that some of these views are complimentary, whereas others are contrasting leaves room for much more research to be conducted, but for now, I will briefly recap the various views presented so far.

For jazz rap specifically, the idea that both genres of music come from the same traditions is certainly an interesting one, and does in fact seem to translate across to electro swing. The music of the swing era evolved out of the jazz of the 1920s, just as electronic dance music evolved out of the hip-hop of the early ‘80s, so there are certainly parallels to be drawn there.

The suggestion however of a juxtaposition of styles can apply too; this point is made clearly by Simon Reynolds in Retromania when he states that “nearly all the most successful mash-ups worked by contrast and collision”. It does certainly appear to be the case with certain electro swing producers that they are making a conscious attempt to combine contrasting styles.

The idea of retelling the past is definitely an intriguing one. The suggestion by Tom Perchard that hip-hop musicians are constructing an alternate, more favourable past for themselves certainly makes sense; and when drawing the parallels we have already seen between hip-hop and jazz; and EDM and swing, this suggestion may possibly still apply.

The suggestion that our culture has stopped moving forward does initially appear questionable, however there does exist ample evidence, supplied by a number of authors to back this up. On top of this, the common suggestion found in many of the artists questioned that the quality of vintage music is higher than that of today seems to suggest that, if not our culture has stopped moving forward, then perhaps our range of influences has.

Reynolds’ other suggestion that vintage samples are being used more as a result of the ease that now exists to obtain them does indeed make sense. Whilst it is unlikely that artists are using vintage samples primarily for the reason of ease of accessibility, – they are almost certainly being used entirely for artistic purposes – the fact that it is now much easier to do this definitely helps out, and allows for a much wider use as well.

As I’ve suggested, there is perhaps a level of superiority present amongst electro swing and vintage remix artists, which would then of course translate across to the samples they choose to use. By demonstrating their knowledge and use of obscure and vastly unknown sample sources, these artists are simultaneously presenting to the world their uniqueness and merit as a musician, on top of their ability as a producer itself.

The suggestion made by Tobias Kroschel of using vintage samples as a way of bringing different generations together is certainly a very satisfying idea. From my own experience attending various electro swing events, I have witnessed many times that this is indeed the case; it is entirely common, and not at all surprising to find people of all ages enjoying the music together at these events.

Finally there is the suggestion that electro swing is the natural extension of swing music into the modern day, which of course ties in with my first point about the genres being part of the same tradition. I myself would definitely subscribe to this theory; my main argument being that jazz music has always been about experimentation, and in this sense, simply trying to repeat the styles of swing exactly how they would have sounded up to 80 years ago goes almost against the very ideals of jazz music itself.

By bringing in aspects of electronic dance music, these artists are experimenting with what can successfully be achieved within the genre; and within the style of electro swing, it would appear that they have indeed achieved success.


Bibliography
Burke, P. (1997). Varieties of Cultural History. Cambridge: Polity Press.

McAdams, J. & Nelson, H. (1992). ‘Hip-Hop Puts Fresh Spin on Jazz’ Billboard. 22 August 1992.
Freshly Squeezed. (2015). Catalogue. http://freshlysqueezedmusic.com/catalogue.html [accessed May 2015].
Füreder, M. (2013). In: Buhre, J. An interview with Parov Stelar. http://electro-swing.com/2013/webzine/interview/an-interview-with-parov-stelar/ [accessed May 2015].
Goldfishlive. (2012). Goldfish Outdoor (Official Aftermovie). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i526FcEHeU0 [accessed May 2015].
Perchard, T. (2011). ‘Hip Hop Samples Jazz: Dynamics of Cultural Memory and Musical Tradition in the African American 1990s’ American Music. 29 (3).
Reynolds, S. (2011). Retromania: Pop Culture’s Addiction to Its Own Past. London: Faber and Faber.
Smith, D. (1994). ‘Gang Starr: Jazzy Situation’ Vibe. May 1994.
Williams, J. (2013). Rhymin’ and Stealin’: Musical Borrowing in Hip-Hop. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.

Swingrowers return - 'Remote' - Album review

Swingrowers new album ticks all the boxes

Back in February a band for whom I have a serious soft spot - Swingrowers - released their second full-length album, the follow-up to Pronounced Swing'Grow'ers A great deal has changed with the band since those early days. Way back in the mists of 2012 they consisted of just three members - Loredana, the singer; Alessio, the gypsy guitarist, and Roberto, the producer. Now they have strengthened their numbers with two new members, Ciro Pusateri on sax and clarinet, and Davide Rizzuto on violin and keyboards.

New line-up, new album, new approach

One of the main features of the electro-swing sound is the use of vintage samples, indeed, it is often incorporated into definitions of the genre. In recent times I have been noticing more and more artists using the same samples over and over (seriously, one more 'Swing, Swing, Swing' or 'It don't mean a thing' remix and I swear I will cry). The reactions of some producers is to get digging and to unearth some more obscure swing tunes to plunder. The Swingrowers, interestingly, have opted for a completely different approach - to do away with vintage samples altogether. Instead, each track on the album is 100% original material.




Now, I always make a point of listening to any album I am sent before reading the PR blurb, and the first thing to say is that I didn't notice the lack of vintage samples. My first impression was very much positive - The record opens with the first single off Midnight, which was released around Halloween of 2014. It does a very successful job of combining spooky sound effects with a haunting melody and a gentle 100 bpm walking bassline. From this sinister starting point the release takes a sultry tour through various takes on the vintage remix sound. Baby Lone is is pretty sedate as vintage remix goes, and is perhaps more of a showcase for the talents of the band - Lore's seductive tones and gypsy guitar, violin and clarinet solos, with a bit of scratching thrown in for good measure.

New single ramps up the tempo

The second single, That's Right is the third song on the record, and it takes things up a notch or two. Not only is the tempo a bit on the gutsier side, so is Loredana's vocal. Its also the first track to have more of an electronic than organic feel, with programmed synths that must be the audio equivalent of what a slinky falling down a well looks like. I can really see this track getting a dancefloor bouncing. The reason you are reading this review now, as opposed to say, last week, is that the single was released on 6th April, along with the video below. Filmed at the London's amazingly gorgeous Rivoli Ballroom, its a feast for both eyes and ears.





As the album progresses Stay Swing uses a driving bassline to get the feet tapping and to provide a foil for further solos from the excellent musicians in the line up. In typical jazz style there is something of a call and response motif, with one instrument posing a question and another providing the answer. There's also a fabulous piano riff and a definite hint of Parov Stelar to the sound. One thing that really stands out on this album is the musicianship, something which really comes to the fore in Frank with a dark piano rhythm that helps to emphasise the pumping beat, and violin twiddles (technical term) that are so reminiscent of Stephane Grappelli that I initially believed them to be samples of that virtuoso's recordings.

Too Many Reinhardts

One of the most interesting tracks on the album is the collaborations with London's own rappers du jour Too Many T's. If you have read this blog before you will certainly have come across their name. Django's blend of relaxed hip-hop beats, virtuoso gypsy guitar and witty lyricism tells the story of the imagined sibling rivalry between Django and his brother DiAngelo, ending, inevitably in a 'soundclash to the musical death' and a 'post-musical bloodbath' which sees both brothers losing their hands. Always be nice to your brothers, kids.





The track that most makes me want to sing along is Chiovi, which is, incidentally, the only track on the album on which Lore sings in her native Italian. I do think it comes across that she is more comfortable singing in Italian rather than English, and I think I would probably prefer if they stuck to Italian, though in this international scene I can understand why they have chosen to include so many English lyrics. Its long enough ago that I completed my degree in Italian that I can't really translate for you, but the song's house-y beat, bright horns and Lore's joyous-sounding vocal make this one a stand-out track for me.

Swingrowers mix it up

From here on the party tunes come thick and fast: Breakout's
bassy brass and dark, bubbly synths, noodly (technical term) sax solos are pretty infectious; Enjoy the moment seems to reference Ray Charles's famous Hit the road Jack! and makes it hard not to follow the instruction in the title. The most infectious track is certainly Fancy, which combines the oompah rhythm of a Balkan brass section with a heady basskick, bright melodies and a pretty vocal to make a real head-nodder.

Sexy Swing

The final track of the album, Why? takes things into the realms of brushed cymbals, melancholia and a bluesy love song, which seems to round off the offering nicely. Swingrowers have, with this album, cemented their position as one of the most interesting and innovative electro-swing groups on the scene at the moment. The whole album is a fascinating exploration of the various meanings of the ever evolving electro-swing genre. It might not be rammed full of dancefloor stompers, but it is a great listen and many of the tracks have excellent remix potential, as evidenced by the fabulous remixes from Swing Republic and Jamie Berry that make up the rest of the That's Right EP.








The label describe this record as a 'game changer'. I'm not sure that I would go that far, but what it does do is show that the scene need not be reliant on sampling if the quality of the musicianship is good enough, and will surely encourage other artists to consider taking the same route.

SwinGrowers take the Rebel Colonies by storm

For the last few weeks the SwinGrowers have been touring the USA and Canada. Despite lots of travelling and plenty of gigs, they took the time out to have a chat with me. I have been interested to see how long it would take for electro-swing to really take off in the States, especially given the rise of EDM (ptui!) and the debates it has provoked both in the States and in the wider dance music world. The reception these guys get should provide a good barometer or litmus test. [Jack the Cad - bringing you not one but two clichéd metaphors to choose from] 

For those who don't know them the SwinGrowers are an Italian outfit, consisting of DJ/producer Roberto Pisk, vocalist Loredana, and manouche guitarist Alessio. They hail from Sicily, but have been touring hard. Their album "Pronounced Swing Grow'ers" came out last year and was one of my top 5 releases of the year.

The tour has seen them drop in on Speakeasy Electro Swing Montreal, the longest running electro-swing night in North America, and other venues in San Francisco, New York and a host of other glamourous places.The first thing I wanted to know was how they have been getting on in the land which gave us swing music in the first place. "Everything is going great!" they tell me enthusiastically. They say they have been shown fantastic hospitality, great support from the promoters and a lot of pampering. Montreal has been the highlight so far: " There is a big electro-swing crowd there, and the whole audience was there to see the SwinGrowers. In any case, the cities where we have been have all been great because each one is different from the other and because they are all completely different from home. Here, everything is a surprise." 

North Americans, in the eyes of lots of Europeans, have taken a while to really appreciate dance music, so I wanted to know how audiences have reacted to their sound. Happily, it seems they have been well received. "We have had nothing but  positive reactions! At the end of every show people we get loads of compliments. There are parts in the show where people go crazy: when Pisk sings with the vocoder, or during Alessio's solos, or when Loredana gets the audience dancing." They must have done something right as their New York show sold out.

And how do the crowds across the water compare to those in the UK? Favourably, it would seem: "The U.S. audience is giving us lots of feedback. It is an interactive audience that receives and then gives it back. If we wanted to compare the U.S. and the UK crowds, we can say that they are very similar! Both warm and active. The only difference perhaps is that in the UK we are always inside of Europe, so we can say that we are "at home", whereas in the U.S. and CANADA we are on the other side of the ocean, so people are really excited to find the Italians on stage!"

We can see what they are talking about in this fantastically cool little video of Lore doing her thing in Tompkins Square Park in the NYC.




At the time of writing they have two gigs left in North America: Toronto on Friday 26th April and 27th April in Detroit. Having said that, they also promise further dates to be added, so keep an eye on their Facebook page if you are in that part of the world. 

One thing I forgot to ask them... when will you be back in the UK guys?

Sam and the Womp - you heard them here first!

It's official - electro-swing has hit the big time. On Sunday evening it was confirmed that Sam and the Womp's single 'Bom Bom' (also featured on the Barcardi advert at the moment) is the UK's new official number one single, having deposed Rita Ora from the top spot.

Those of you who have been reading this blog since the beginning will remember that I included them in the post on Bands a few months ago. I don't want to brag tooo much, but yes, you heard it them here first, ladies and gents!

Sam and the Womp are not what one might call typical of the electro-swing scene, and they would probably not class themselves as such - indeed I seem to recall that on their old Soundcloud page they described their style as Jewish-Gypsy Dub, whatever that might mean. The sound, as you probably know by now, is one of unbridled fun - brash brass and, of course, big wompy noises, and that is enough for me to claim them for my preferred genre. I can not verify this, but I am told that Sam (of the Womp) used to play with Molotov Jukebox... can anyone confirm this?! You can certainly hear that they have the same influences, especially in the trumpets...


I see this as a very important moment in the progress of the genre to the mainstream... yes, I know that there was that Gramaphondzie song a few years ago, but that was what I might call commercial house with some swing, but these guys start from the balkan end of things, which to my mind is a significant difference. I feel that the sudden and unexpected popularity of 'Bom Bom' is a symptom of the growing popularity of electro-swing in the wider public, thanks, no doubt to the massive festival presence this summer from people like Caravan Palace, Madam Electrifie's Discoteque and the Swingrowers. A friend who was at Boomtown Fair said the electro-swing stages and tents were rocking, and I have seen it suggested that royal bum-flasher Prince Harry and his toothy cousin Eugenie were seen dancing to the Electric Swing Circus at WOMAD...

Once again, I should acknowledge that the Fabulous Miss Fox has once again shown remarkable prescience: she was the first to recommend the Correspondents to me, and  Molotov Jukebox and Sam and the Womp. Her knowledge of unsigned bands is remarkable, and comes from a love of live music - without her, you would not be reading this blog!

Lots of Love

Jack