Stornoway

by Alex on 19 March, 2010

Stornoway have newly signed to 4AD and their pastoral pop-folk and crystalline four-part harmonies have been getting a lot of attention with references to them being the Mumford and Son of 2010.

Their single I Saw You Blink is released on 22nd March with a very catchy title track and a wistful reminiscing Gondwanaland on the b-side.

Brian Briggs, Stornoway’s lead singer and songwriter, shows an almost effortless ability to segue deft lyrics that are narrative masterpieces with artful pop stylings. His bandmates; Jonathan Ouin (keys/banjo/electric guitar/cello), Rob Steadman (drums) and Oliver Steadman (bass / electric guitar) are all party to further embellishing this traditionally simple love song into a pop classic in-waiting.

Perhaps because of their scientific backgrounds, all four of the band delight in experimenting with unusual instrumentation and production methods and in ‘I Saw You Blink’, the song’s title is percussively transmitted via morse code, within the recording, using a güiro (the notched gourd commonly found in Latin American rhythm sections).

The Oxford folk outfit will release their debut album, Beachcomber’s Windowsill, on May 24.

Zorbing