“Rock Paper Scissors” is the latest instalment to The Crypt Sessions, performed by the phenomenal Norwegian quartet, Katzenjammer.

After gracing our eardrums with “I Will Dance (When I Walk Away)” from their second album “A Kiss Before You Go” last March, our favourite multi-instrumentalist, all-girl band is back with yet another signature corker. Banjos, mandolins, even a contrabass balalaika (complete with grinning cat face paintwork) all feature within this incredibly contagious fiddle jig. What more could you possibly want?

In fact, scrap that. I’ll tell you what else I want. I’d like the name and address of the place where Solveig found that star-shaped bindi. I’d also like to forget that you’d have to be an über cool pop star to even attempt to pull it off. Ah well…

Check out the video for yourself, I hope you love it as much as we do. You can find it under Season Three alongside many more of our recent musical delights, including Charlene Soraia, Keaton Henson and The Staves.

I defy anyone who can keep their feet under firm control…

Charlotte

Catch Katzenjammer performing at the 02 Academy Bristol on 17th May

Image courtesy of Scenewipe

The band are a four-piece, all-girl outfit of multi-instrumentalists that perform swinging, singing, cowboy-inspired fairground burlesque with all-out riotous, folk, pop & gypsy punk — not forgoing the occasional ballad. The feisty femmes descended upon the UK festival circuit in 2011, leaving audiences enthralled at Glastonbury, Cambridge Folk Festival and Bestival and counting Steve Lamacq in an ever increasing UK fanbase, leading to a string of sold-out UK gig dates.

Katzenjammer are Anne Marit, Marianne, Solveig and Turid, ‘A Kiss Before You Go’ was produced by Mike Hartung (Maelstrom, Jaga Jazzist, A-Ha) in Oslo. The album is a vibrant hotchpotch of Balkan flavours, cabaret clubs, comic strips and straight up Pop. They rip up the rule book good and proper with this boundary defying LP; twelve songs which are as eclectic as they are identifiably Katzenjammer.

Serving up an overflowing stein of Germanic cheer with their eponymous opener, the tone effortlessly moves from melancholic waltz -’Lady Marlene’ – to vaudevillian, honky-tonk knees-up ‘I Will Dance (When I Walk Away)’ the band’s first single, released on March 12th.

Then there’s ‘Soviet Trumpeter’ and ‘Gypsy Flee’ — songs which by their very namesake capture the group’s Balkan essence — and ‘Rock-Paper-Scissors’ – a gusty, below deck fiddle jig which gives the banjo and the mandolin a good airing.

‘Cocktails and Ruby Slippers’ dances along like a not too distant cousin of art-pop movers The Fiery Furnaces or Beirut and ‘Cherry Pie’ is an exercise in Andrew Sisters’ perkiness. ‘Land Of Confusion’, is, rather wonderfully, the Genesis hit re-imagined on tack piano, marimba and sousaphone. But did they plan it like this, you wonder?

“We never plan anything!” laughs Marianne. “That’s why we change instruments; it reminds you that you’re doing something alive and new. We wouldn’t want to play the same sort of songs all the time just like we wouldn’t want to play the same instrument all night every night.”

The journey ends on a quiet yet understatedly epic note with ‘God’s Great Dust Storm’; a spacious, polyphonic gospel number which sees the band strip back the theatrics and go a cappella, rendering the listener in awe of their unified vocal prowess.

“We are interested in new things and new emotions all the time,” offers Solveig. “We like the sweet and harsh. If you like anything in between that then you’ll like Katzenjammer…”

Originally an illustrator and visual artist, Keaton’s move into well known musician was not intended, that was until radio’s tastemakers decided he was the real deal and Fearne Cotton, Zane Lowe, Jo Whiley, and Lauren Laverne have been spinning Keaton’s recent singles regularly. Its not hard to understand why either as one listen to his Crypt Session and you will be falling for his brittle charms. All this mystery has created a feverish following as fans of the elusive Keaton strive to find out more and Facebook groups and Tumblr sites have sprung up, all either pretending to be him or for fans to obsess.

We think he is amazing and have filmed three intimate sessions to share with you and for you to share with your friends. We have a feeling that pretty soon Keaton’s obscurity will be a mystery in itself.

Originally an illustrator and visual artist, Keaton’s move into well known musician was not intended, that was until radio’s tastemakers decided he was the real deal and Fearne Cotton, Zane Lowe, Jo Whiley, and Lauren Laverne have been spinning Keaton’s recent singles regularly. Its not hard to understand why either as one listen to his Crypt Session and you will be falling for his brittle charms. All this mystery has created a feverish following as fans of the elusive Keaton strive to find out more and Facebook groups and Tumblr sites have sprung up, all either pretending to be him or for fans to obsess.

We think he is amazing and have filmed three intimate sessions to share with you and for you to share with your friends. We have a feeling that pretty soon Keaton’s obscurity will be a mystery in itself.

These three sisters from Watford bring warmth through their friendliness, talent and most importantly beautiful music. As soon as the harmonies were rising up through the room smiles sprung up all around and the transformation was complete.

If you haven’t heard about them already, you will do soon. The Staves grew up on a diet of Motown, Buffalo Springfield, Simon and Garfunkel to name a few. Shared music through family sing alongs, squabbles and car journeys. These days, thankfully, they are sharing their voices with the world and what voices they are.

On tour as we speak with Crypt Session fav, Michael Kiwanuka, a second E.P. imminent and their debut album to come in the summer. Sit back and enjoy, The Staves.

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The band are a four-piece, all-girl outfit of multi-instrumentalists that perform swinging, singing, cowboy-inspired fairground burlesque with all-out riotous, folk, pop & gypsy punk — not forgoing the occasional ballad. The feisty femmes descended upon the UK festival circuit in 2011, leaving audiences enthralled at Glastonbury, Cambridge Folk Festival and Bestival and counting Steve Lamacq in an ever increasing UK fanbase, leading to a string of sold-out UK gig dates.

Katzenjammer are Anne Marit, Marianne, Solveig and Turid, ‘A Kiss Before You Go’ was produced by Mike Hartung (Maelstrom, Jaga Jazzist, A-Ha) in Oslo. The album is a vibrant hotchpotch of Balkan flavours, cabaret clubs, comic strips and straight up Pop. They rip up the rule book good and proper with this boundary defying LP; twelve songs which are as eclectic as they are identifiably Katzenjammer.

Serving up an overflowing stein of Germanic cheer with their eponymous opener, the tone effortlessly moves from melancholic waltz -’Lady Marlene’ – to vaudevillian, honky-tonk knees-up ‘I Will Dance (When I Walk Away)’ the band’s first single, released on March 12th.

Then there’s ‘Soviet Trumpeter’ and ‘Gypsy Flee’ — songs which by their very namesake capture the group’s Balkan essence — and ‘Rock-Paper-Scissors’ – a gusty, below deck fiddle jig which gives the banjo and the mandolin a good airing.

‘Cocktails and Ruby Slippers’ dances along like a not too distant cousin of art-pop movers The Fiery Furnaces or Beirut and ‘Cherry Pie’ is an exercise in Andrew Sisters’ perkiness. ‘Land Of Confusion’, is, rather wonderfully, the Genesis hit re-imagined on tack piano, marimba and sousaphone. But did they plan it like this, you wonder?

“We never plan anything!” laughs Marianne. “That’s why we change instruments; it reminds you that you’re doing something alive and new. We wouldn’t want to play the same sort of songs all the time just like we wouldn’t want to play the same instrument all night every night.”

The journey ends on a quiet yet understatedly epic note with ‘God’s Great Dust Storm’; a spacious, polyphonic gospel number which sees the band strip back the theatrics and go a cappella, rendering the listener in awe of their unified vocal prowess.

“We are interested in new things and new emotions all the time,” offers Solveig. “We like the sweet and harsh. If you like anything in between that then you’ll like Katzenjammer…”

Katzenjammer play The Scala on March 22nd

www.katzenjammer.com // www.facebook.com/katzenjammerne // @katzenjammers

The band are a four-piece, all-girl outfit of multi-instrumentalists that perform swinging, singing, cowboy-inspired fairground burlesque with all-out riotous, folk, pop & gypsy punk — not forgoing the occasional ballad. The feisty femmes descended upon the UK festival circuit in 2011, leaving audiences enthralled at Glastonbury, Cambridge Folk Festival and Bestival and counting Steve Lamacq in an ever increasing UK fanbase, leading to a string of sold-out UK gig dates.

Katzenjammer are Anne Marit, Marianne, Solveig and Turid, ‘A Kiss Before You Go’ was produced by Mike Hartung (Maelstrom, Jaga Jazzist, A-Ha) in Oslo. The album is a vibrant hotchpotch of Balkan flavours, cabaret clubs, comic strips and straight up Pop. They rip up the rule book good and proper with this boundary defying LP; twelve songs which are as eclectic as they are identifiably Katzenjammer.

Serving up an overflowing stein of Germanic cheer with their eponymous opener, the tone effortlessly moves from melancholic waltz -’Lady Marlene’ – to vaudevillian, honky-tonk knees-up ‘I Will Dance (When I Walk Away)’ the band’s first single, released on March 12th.

Then there’s ‘Soviet Trumpeter’ and ‘Gypsy Flee’ — songs which by their very namesake capture the group’s Balkan essence — and ‘Rock-Paper-Scissors’ – a gusty, below deck fiddle jig which gives the banjo and the mandolin a good airing.

‘Cocktails and Ruby Slippers’ dances along like a not too distant cousin of art-pop movers The Fiery Furnaces or Beirut and ‘Cherry Pie’ is an exercise in Andrew Sisters’ perkiness. ‘Land Of Confusion’, is, rather wonderfully, the Genesis hit re-imagined on tack piano, marimba and sousaphone. But did they plan it like this, you wonder?

“We never plan anything!” laughs Marianne. “That’s why we change instruments; it reminds you that you’re doing something alive and new. We wouldn’t want to play the same sort of songs all the time just like we wouldn’t want to play the same instrument all night every night.”

The journey ends on a quiet yet understatedly epic note with ‘God’s Great Dust Storm’; a spacious, polyphonic gospel number which sees the band strip back the theatrics and go a cappella, rendering the listener in awe of their unified vocal prowess.

“We are interested in new things and new emotions all the time,” offers Solveig. “We like the sweet and harsh. If you like anything in between that then you’ll like Katzenjammer…”

Katzenjammer play The Scala on March 22nd

www.katzenjammer.com // www.facebook.com/katzenjammerne // @katzenjammers

John-Paul Jones was born in Cardiff in 1978. His mother’s family ran arcades in the local fun fair on the beach at Rest Bay, Porthcawl. His Welsh speaking father, an RAF man, changed the family’s fortune when he designed a slot machine that can be found in amusement arcades to the present day.

The first in his family to do so, Jp got a degree from The Chelsea College of Art in London.

But in the classic style assumed by British singer songwriters since ‘the swinging sixties’, Jp ‘s career in fine art was waylayed by his infatuation with popular music. Influenced by the voices of the day, Jeff Buckley, Van Moririson and David Gray, he began writing songs.

His first band, Morrocco, gigged around London from 2001 to 2003. Then, in 2004, with members of the then defunct Morocco, he formed ‘Grace’. The band got signed to EMI and released the album ‘Detours’ in 2006. A year of touring the UK followed, but the band split by 2008 and Jones embarked on a solo career.

A chance meeting with Pretender’s singer Chrissie Hynde rather scuppered Jones’ plans. The two songwriters, whilst on a trip to cuba, wrote the songs that would be released as ‘Fidelity!’, to critical acclaim in The States, and see the pair tour north America as ’ JP, Chrissie and the Fairground Boys’.

In February 2011, Jones entered the studio with veteren producer Victor Van vugt, and recorded his
long awaited solo album ‘Cariad’ under the name ‘Son of Jack’.

Jone’s versatile voice, range and propensity for lush vocal arrangements, combined with his
melodic, soulful ,pop songwriting skills make for a compelling debut, well worth the wait.

Here at The Crypt, we’re work hard to bring you fresh and exciting artists.

I thought it would be fun to share my personal top 10 wish list with you all. We’d love to know yours…

• Nada Surf
• The Polyphonic Spree
• Eels
• Rival Schools
• Ryan Adams
• Jesse Malin
• Queens Of The Stone Age
• Billy Talent
• Seasick Steve
• Weezer

Mikey x

Blessed with a rare and uncompromising talent, Shonas a proper artist and (if theres any justice in this world) shes set for greatness. Her songs are dark and lustrous, intimate and burlesque think Kate Bush in seamed stockings, locked in an ambiguous clinch with Tom Waits on a velvet chaise-longue. Set against Matthew Gests virtuoso piano accompaniment, La Fosters god-given voice will give you goose bumps and leave you begging for more. Good job, then, that she and her band are recording their debut album as we speak.

Blessed with a rare and uncompromising talent, Shonas a proper artist and (if theres any justice in this world) shes set for greatness. Her songs are dark and lustrous, intimate and burlesque think Kate Bush in seamed stockings, locked in an ambiguous clinch with Tom Waits on a velvet chaise-longue. Set against Matthew Gests virtuoso piano accompaniment, La Fosters god-given voice will give you goose bumps and leave you begging for more. Good job, then, that she and her band are recording their debut album as we speak.

Blessed with a rare and uncompromising talent, Shonas a proper artist and (if theres any justice in this world) shes set for greatness. Her songs are dark and lustrous, intimate and burlesque think Kate Bush in seamed stockings, locked in an ambiguous clinch with Tom Waits on a velvet chaise-longue. Set against Matthew Gests virtuoso piano accompaniment, La Fosters god-given voice will give you goose bumps and leave you begging for more. Good job, then, that she and her band are recording their debut album as we speak.

Blessed with a rare and uncompromising talent, Shonas a proper artist and (if theres any justice in this world) shes set for greatness. Her songs are dark and lustrous, intimate and burlesque think Kate Bush in seamed stockings, locked in an ambiguous clinch with Tom Waits on a velvet chaise-longue. Set against Matthew Gests virtuoso piano accompaniment, La Fosters god-given voice will give you goose bumps and leave you begging for more. Good job, then, that she and her band are recording their debut album as we speak.

Shameless opportunists that we are, we hounded Matthew and his outstanding guitarist, Luke Brighty, to do a session for us while they were here. Watch them perform and youll see why we were so eager to have them on. Matthews bittersweet melodies sound like instant classics to us, while his lyrics are every bit as intricate and playful as Lukes amazing finger-picking. Talent will out, and these guys should go the distance.

Shameless opportunists that we are, we hounded Matthew and his outstanding guitarist, Luke Brighty, to do a session for us while they were here. Watch them perform and youll see why we were so eager to have them on. Matthews bittersweet melodies sound like instant classics to us, while his lyrics are every bit as intricate and playful as Lukes amazing finger-picking. Talent will out, and these guys should go the distance.

Shameless opportunists that we are, we hounded Matthew and his outstanding guitarist, Luke Brighty, to do a session for us while they were here. Watch them perform and youll see why we were so eager to have them on. Matthews bittersweet melodies sound like instant classics to us, while his lyrics are every bit as intricate and playful as Lukes amazing finger-picking. Talent will out, and these guys should go the distance.