We're so happy to be able to say Mikey Collins has joined the Fika Recordings family. You might know Mike from his time behind the drums with Allo Darlin', or his work at Big Jelly Studios, but now he's finished his debut solo album and will be releasing it with Fika in August.
Today marks the release of the first track from that album - the single is called Sound in Here and it premiered over at Clash Music on Wednesday.
After releasing a pair of playful records alongside of The Wave Pictures, and two albums of folk shanties and old-time calypso with Norway’s folk troupe The Kaniks, Stanley Brinks’ next release for Fika Recordings is back to being a solo affair, albeit with collaborator and long time muse Clemence Freschard alongside Claire Falzon and Helene Nuland.
Stanley Brinks is renowned for his unique anti-folk style: both playful and suggestive, insightful and entertaining.
Brinks was born in Paris, France, in 1973. He studied a bit of biology and worked as a nurse for a while. Half Swedish, half Moroccan, strongly inclined to travel the world, he soon began spending most of his life on the road and developed a strong relationship with New York. By the late 90s he’d become a full time singer-songwriter – André Herman Düne – as part of three piece indie-rock band, Herman Düne. Several albums and Peel sessions later and after a decade of touring Europe, mostly with American songwriters such as Jeffrey Lewis, Calvin Johnson and early Arcade Fire he settled in Berlin. The early carnival music of Trinidad became a passion, and in the early 21st century he became the unquestioned master of European calypso, changing his name to Stanley Brinks. Under this moniker he has recorded more than 100 albums, collaborated with the New York Antifolk scene on several occasions, recorded and toured with traditional Norwegian musicians, and played a lot with The Wave Pictures.
Sweet Fanny Adams is taken from Stanley BRinks' new album Peanuts, out on Friday 11th May, and available on ruby red vinyl, CD and digitally from shop.fikarecordings.com
Artist: Jessica's Brother
Title: Humdinger
Format: Digital single
Cat#: Fika065SG3
Release date: 4th May 2018
Bandcamp | Spotify | iTunes
Jessica’s Brother is the eponymous debut album from London trio Jessica’s Brother, comprised of songwriter Tom Charleston, Jonny Helm (drums, also of The Wave Pictures) and Charlie Higgs (bass, previously of Ramshackle Union Band). Channelling the spirit of the Brothers Grimm to create an otherworldly atmosphere, they weave their motley influences together making a rich and eclectic vision, with nods to Silver Jews, Jason Molina, Nick Cave, Richard Thompson and Neil Young. There are themes of joy, anger and silliness in a carefully crafted world with a colourful cast of characters.
The new single is "Humdinger" is a languid indie folk track, recalling their heroes, Silver Jews. As Charleston explains, it is: "perhaps the one song on the album where the narrator is at ease with himself and the world. Though there are moments where this tranquillity is nudged by outside tremors, so we know this moment is ephemeral."
Jessica's Brother formed in October 2016. Jonny and Charlie worked together in a framing business and had often talked about collaborating in a band together. Fate intervened when Jonny’s girlfriend Jessica introduced him to her brother Tom, and they found a songwriter in waiting. The trio clicked immediately and just nine months later they recorded the album with Laurie Sherman at The Booze Cube in Stoke Newington, with input from Darren Hayman. A few other friends joined them in the studio, including Dan Mayfield (Enderby’s Room), who added a dose of Bad Seeds/Dirty Three vibes on the violin and Paul Rains (Allo Darlin’/Tigercats) lent a hint of country twang on guitar and slide guitar.
Weaving a variety of influences from jangly indie-rock to gothic country and contemplative psych folk, Jessica’s Brother create the sound of a band coming together and getting caught up in the rush of starting something new and enjoyable. The instruments clamber over each other in a small room, with Helm’s distinctive drumming counterbalancing the gothic guitar thrums and wailing violin. Already lauded by the likes of The Guardian (for their first ever gig) and the Saatchi Magazine (for their first single), the scene is set for a bright future.
In June we're putting out the latest album from Freschard & Stanley Brinks! Just like the long since sold out Pizza Espresso, this will be a super limited vinyl run - and once again we're delighted to be working alongside WIAIWYA on it. Listen to Success from the LP now and remember to order your copy before they're all gone...
Our next release is Peanuts, the latest album from Stanley Brinks (aka Andre Herman Dune). Out on the 11th of May, Peanuts is available on ruby red 12" vinyl, digipack CD and digitally from all the usual outlets.
After releasing a pair of playful records alongside of The Wave Pictures, and two albums of folk shanties and old-time calypso with Norway’s folk troupe The Kaniks, Stanley Brinks’ next release for Fika Recordings is back to being a solo affair, albeit with collaborator and long time muse Clemence Freschard alongside Claire Falzon and Helene Nuland.
Stanley Brinks is renowned for his unique anti-folk style: both playful and suggestive, insightful and entertaining. Brinks was born in Paris, France, in 1973. He studied a bit of biology and worked as a nurse for a while. Half Swedish, half Moroccan, strongly inclined to travel the world, he soon began spending most of his life on the road and developed a strong relationship with New York. By the late 90s he’d become a full time singer-songwriter – André Herman Düne – as part of three piece indie-rock band, Herman Düne. Several albums and Peel sessions later and after a decade of touring Europe, mostly with American songwriters such as Jeffrey Lewis, Calvin Johnson and early Arcade Fire he settled in Berlin. The early carnival music of Trinidad became a passion, and in the early 21st century he became the unquestioned master of European calypso, changing his name to Stanley Brinks. Under this moniker he has recorded more than 100 albums, collaborated with the New York Antifolk scene on several occasions, recorded and toured with traditional Norwegian musicians, and played a lot with The Wave Pictures.
Artist: Jessica's Brother
Title: All The Better
Format: Digital single
Cat#: Fika065SG2
Release date: 16th March 2018
Spotify | Bandcamp | iTunes
Jessica’s Brother release their second track, All The Better, following on from their well received debut Overnight Horror at the start of the year.
Channelling the spirit of the Brothers Grimm to an otherworldly atmosphere, rich in jagged, uneven, perfect harmonies, All The Better is a hushed, eerie folk song. It explores the melancholy and optimism of breaching adolescence and the limbo before adulthood; a simple tale of growing up.
There are themes of joy, anger, silliness. The characters change, the instruments clamber over each other in a small room. Their shared influences include Silver Jews, Jason Molina, Richard Thompson and Neil Young.
All The Better is their second single, following on from Overnight Horror from the tail end of 2017. A full length album is due in the summer.
The single artwork comes from Tom’s sister, the eponymous Jessica [Jessica Jane Charleston].
Jessica’s Brother first started playing together in October 2016 when Jonny Helm (drums, also of The Wave Pictures) asked Charlie Higgs (bass, previously of Ramshackle Union Band) to come and play some songs written by Tom Charleston (Jessica’s Brother). The trio clicked immediately, and just 9 months later recorded the album with Laurie Sherman at The Cube and with Darren Hayman. A few friends joined them in the studio, including Dan Mayfield on violin (Enderby’s Room) and Paul Rains on guitar and slide guitar (Allo Darlin’ / Tigercats).
On the 16th of May we're hosting Steven Adams & The French Drops, following the release of their new album Virtue Signals on Hudson Records.
Support comes from Mammoth Penguins. Advance tickets are available for £10 from wegottickets.com/fikarecordings.
Steven Adams & The French Drops on tour: Wed 2nd May - Castle Hotel, Manchester Fri 4th May - The Cluny 2, Newcastle Sat 5th May Fulford Arms, York Sun 6th May - The Shakespeare, Sheffield Wed 16th May - Boston Music Room, London
Artist: Math and Physics Club
Title: Lived Here Before
Format: 12" album on heavyweight pale blue vinyl
Cat#: Fika063
Release date: 26th January 2018
Bandcamp | Spotify | iTunes
Math and Physics Club’s fourth studio album, Lived Here Before, sees the band stretching confidently into new territory while featuring all the carefully constructed pop handicraft we’ve come to expect from these Pacific Northwest lads.
Working from a makeshift studio in the wilds of Snohomish, Washington, with fabled grunge producer Chris Hanzsek (Soundgarden, Green River), the band recorded eleven songs over four days in the company of Douglas firs and Swainson’s Thrushes.
Longtime fans will still recognise the band’s upbeat sound set against often bittersweet storytelling, but there’s also a darker, more world-weary undercurrent that feels earned with the passage of time, or perhaps as a reflection of the “times” themselves.
The lead track ‘Threadbare’ sets the tone with its Shins-esque beat and close-up intimacy, followed by a powerful push-me-pull-you between the verses and choruses, sweet and sad.
‘The Pull of the Tides’ evokes bands like The Ocean Blue and The Softies and sets up one of the album’s more subtle tracks, ‘Like Cinnamon,’ which flips the dynamic between music and lyrics with its brooding backdrop.
Side two’s opener, ‘Dear Madeline,’ is vintage Math and Physics Club with intertwining guitars and soft brushes beautifully set against one of the band’s more poignant vignettes.
The mood shifts to agitation with ‘Take a Number’ which paints a more insidious type of darkness, fueled by its dueling guitar riffs and percussive flourishes. The album’s title is also pulled from one of its lyrics.
The album closes in characteristic economy with ‘Drive to You’ which features an arrangement stripped down to simply two guitars and a lilting melody, accented with subtle organ. It’s a fitting end note that reaches back to the band’s earlier days and leaves us feeling a bit more sweet than bitter, which seems just about right.
Math and Physics Club currently hails from Seattle and Olympia and other parts of the Pacific Northwest. They appeared to burst onto the scene in 2005 with their debut EP Weekends Away that garnered international attention, but in reality the band had been taking shape in the hearts and basements of childhood friends Charles Bert (vocals) and James Werle (guitar) since the mid-1990s. Never in a hurry, it took nearly a decade before they found Ethan Jones (bass), Kevin Emerson (drums), and Saundrah Humphrey (violin) to complete the lineup, but it was worth the wait.
By 2007, parenthood left less time to devote to the band for several members. They still managed to release a third EP ‘Baby I’m Yours’ in the fall of 2007, but only played a few shows in 2008 and none in 2009. Saundrah left the band during this time and moved to Denmark, and later Kevin also officially left to focus on his writing career (though he has continued to record with the band).
In 2016 they released a retrospective (“In This Together”), a collection of the previous 10 years of EPs, b-sides rarities, all available on vinyl for the first time, and their first release with Fika Recordings.
"Folks smitten with the jangle at the core of C86 and the output of Sarah Records will likely be chuffed, and the songs here are so well-conceived that comparisons to the Go-Betweens or Robert Scott’s work in The Bats are right on the money. But hey, if these comparisons leave you stumped, it’s a safe bet that if you dig The Shins and/or Luna, you’ll like this, too." The Vinyl District [A-]
"MAPC's strongest set of songs to date. Put it all together and it's the best record the band has done and some really fine indie pop" All Music [4/5]
"the core of this band's genius are songs that meld endearing melodies with lyrics that hit home, and the eleven songs of Lived Here Before are the strongest overall statement the band has made to date. They have always had the knack for concise and interesting expressions, whether sweet or bittersweet, and are not shy about interjecting self-deprecatory humor. However, the added years have provided a well-earned depth of experiences to layer into the sweet-sounding confections. The result is an album that is richly rewarding for any indie pop fan." When You Motor Away
"Marblemouth sounds like a slowed-down Bluetones and there’s some lovely little Smiths-esque riffs on the poppy Threadbare. The initial utters of love hit a peak on Broadcasting Waves with lyrics like, “I built a radio tower to signal your heart”" NARC [3/5]
"light and airy with lyrical themes that are wistful and nostalgic with plenty of bittersweet lyrics about regret and disappointment. The Go-Betweens may be the most obvious comparison but there's something very-Real Estate about the guitar on tracks like "The Pull of the Tides"" Collective Zine
"The first thing I notice about the new songs is that they carry a softer tone, almost akin to early Death Cab stuff" Austin Town Hall
Artist: Jessica's Brother
Title: Overnight Horror
Format: Digital single
Cat#: Fika065SG1
Release date: 29th December 2017
Bandcamp | Spotify | iTunes
We're pleased to announce that we've added Jessica's Brother to the Fika Recordings family!
Jessica’s Brother first started playing together in October 2016 when Jonny Helm (drums, also of The Wave Pictures) asked Charlie Higgs (bass, previously of Ramshackle Union Band) to come and play some songs written by Tom Charleston (Jessica’s Brother). The trio clicked immediately, and just 9 months later recorded the album with Laurie Sherman at The Cube and with Darren Hayman. A few friends joined them in the studio, including Dan Mayfield on violin (Enderby’s Room) and Paul Rains on guitar and slide guitar (Allo Darlin’ / Tigercats).
There's a single out now to give you a taste of what to expect from them in 2018, but if you're a fan of Silver Jews, Jason Molina, Richard Thompson or Neil Young, we think you'll find something to love in their gothic country.
Tom Charleston describes Overnight Horror as “a fever-dream about the corruption of greed and the ill-fated pursuit of material over family and friends. It is a dark story, told by a delirious man who’s left haunted by what he’s done”.
