These Go to 11: interviewing The Birkins

This week we are extremely happy at the Blog, because we recover the interview series after another hiatus and, to do the comeback in a proper way, we have one of our favourite national bands answering the questionnaire (can't deny we have a soft spot with them). We are referring to The Birkins! One of the funniest and sincerest interviews we have had, something logical considering how charming and good-natured are this folks, as nicer as their music. Thanks for your time and honesty, we laughed a lot! These Go to 11!

Canarias' finest: The Birkins, islanders of pop 

The Birkins

Daniel Machín, Sergio Miró, Alby Ramírez and Cristina Santana formed The Birkins in 2008 in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. They quickly started to make some noise, as a year later they won the nationwide Heineken Greenspace contest, signing with our beloved label El Genio Equivocado in 2011. Then came their self titled debut album and instantly, we fell in love with their mix of British pop, French chanson, Americana and an intriguing experimental side. Two years later, in February 2013, they released 'Châteaux en Espagne' a new example of classy, diverse and colourful indie pop. Finally, this last September they have launched 'Souvenirs', another gem on a flawless career so far, one where each song shows their care, taste and scope of their idiosincratic way of understanding pop, something you can also see if you have the wisdom of watching them live. Here we go!

 Scarier than Nostradamus's profecies

1. First record that you bought (be honest)
Alby: The first one I got with my own money (I saved for weeks!) was a vinyl of 'The Final Countdown', by Europe, I was 7. You asked me to be honest! (laughs).

Daniel: I was more or less the same age as Alby when I bought my first tapes (yes, I am that old). I bought 6 tapes by The Beatles looking for ‘Yesterday’ because I didn’t know its name at the time.
Cris: I believe I was eleven years old and my mother gave me some money… and I bought a copy of 'Nevermind' by Nirvana. I was in love with Kurt Cobain.
Sergio: My first recollection of a proofed purchase with my own Money is for a VHS, 'The synchronicity concert' by The Police. My player had a poor quality copy of it at home that had already made me decide that I wanted to play drums.

We had to choose the pic, but we'll keep the secret...  

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)
Alby: The first concert I recall attending to was Miguel Rios (big Spanish act back in the 80s) during his Rock ‘n’ Rios Tour, although I may have attended way more before that time and I just don’t remember them. My parents used to take me to concerts from a very early age. The last ones were U2 in Barcelona and Dave Matthews Band in Madrid, both during the same weekend.
Daniel: The first concert I attended to was Suede. The concert started at midnight but we were there by seven p.m. And the last one was Patti Smith, it was a great concert.
Cris: Dani is lying because I know that his first concert was Emilio Aragón, near his house (laughs). I don’t remember my first concert… maybe a concert by Los Sabandeños at Teatro Pérez Galdos’, here in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. The last was one was a week ago: Japoneses Dos here in Las Palmas too.
Sergio: The first one was Luz Casal, and the last one was Asian Dub Foundation at WOMAD Fuerteventura. 

Ejem, ejem better not to comment!

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)
Alby: I guess I have quite a few guilty pleasures, such as Abba, The Bee Gees or ELO. Or maybe I shouldn’t feel that guilty about it, should I? (laughs).
Daniel: I’ve always wanted to make a tribute in one of my songs to the opening credits of “Deep throat”
Cris: I really couldn’t tell.
Sergio: Like Alby, I have plenty of time for Abba and the ELO; I´m also willing to defend a couple of songs by Lady Gaga, but only if you force me to.

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)
Alby: I’m really proud -being a record collector- to have our last album 'Souvenirs' on vinyl as a part of my collection. But collector mode on it could be a copy of Queen’s 'A Night at the Opera' dedicated by Brian May or the box set reissue of Peter Gabriel’s 'So' also by the man himself.
Daniel: A 1966 Lp by The Beatles.
Sergio: I grew up as a proud member of the CD generation, so I don´t think that any of the ítems from my Collection has an Amazing value other than the music that it contains. The whole mono recordings by the Beatles are something to hold on tight to, and also the beautiful editions of  'The complete Motown Singles', of which I own seven volumes (now, if I were to find the long out of print Volume six, that would certainly be a valuable item)

5. Favorite lyrics (not yours)
Alby: 'Living is easy with eyes closed, misunderstanding all you see'. You just can’t fail with The Beatles, right?
Daniel: 'La cobardía es asunto de los hombres no de los amantes' by Silvio Rodriguez, which means 'Being coward is a matter of men, not lovers'. And another one is 'who wants to live forever, when love must die?', by Queen.

Yes indeed, everybody knows...

Cris: ‘True love will find you in the end, you'll find out just who was your friend, don’t be sad, I know you will, but don’t give up until, true love finds you in the end’ by Daniel Johnston. Easy and clear.
Sergio: 'Everybody knows that you've been faithful / give or take a night or two / Everybody knows you've been discreet / But there were so many people you just had to meet / Without your clothes / And everybody knows', by Leonard Cohen; in Spanish I could pick this one by Josele Santiago, from Los Enemigos: 'He debido llegar ya, he debido de llegar. Sí, porque al abrir la puerta allí estaba yo viendo la tele con mi mujer, conmigo y con mi mujer'.

6. Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)
Alby: I’d love to have the chance to speak to Nels Cline, guitarist of Wilco, because I’m a great fan of his playing and his approach to the instrument. But I’d love to have a nice conversation with Dave Grohl too. I think that guy has one of the most brilliant minds in music nowadays and he has such wide knowledge of music that it has to be awesome to share a coffee or something with him while chatting.
Daniel: I would like to have met Serge Gainsbourg and Lucio Battisti. I think they were very good song writers and I think we are like-minded.
Cris: I’d like to know Serge Gainsbourg, drink some whisky and smoke some Gitanes with him.
Sergio: I can´t think of anyone more huggable and interesting than Leonard Cohen.

Saints the great Aramburu painted 

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)
Alby: Spinal Tap’s 'Smell The Glove' (laughs) Nah, just kidding. I really loved Blur’s artwork for their last record. So cool! I don’t have a favorite though.
Daniel: 'Between the Buttons' by The Rolling Stones.
Cris: I really like the artworks of Javier Aramburu, especially the ones for Los Planetas: ‘Unidad de desplazamiento’ and ‘Encuentro con entidades’.
Sergio: I wouldn´t be able to pick a single favourite one. The one I´ve appreciated the most this year is 'Why make sense', by Hot Chip, and for some reason, while I was writing this I thought of 'Abbatoir blues/The lyre of Orpheus', by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds.

May the 'original' force be with you

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both) 
Alby: If books, the Game of Thrones saga (so much fun in those pages), if movies, Star Wars (the original one, aka Episode IV). I saw that movie on VHS when I was 5 and I’m still shocked!
Daniel: 'One hundred years of solitude', 'Cien años de soledad' by Gabriel García Márquez. It’s a book you should read at least eight times.
Cris: Books and movies!!! It’s very difficult to choose! A book: ‘Ensayo sobre la ceguera’ by José Saramago. A film: ‘Les 400 coups’ by François Truffaut.

9. Song (of yours) you are most proud of
Alby: Probably 'Toute cette lumière', from our second album. To me that’s the best example of co-writing we’ve had in the band so far.
Daniel: 'De profundis Clamavi'. I wrote it in 30 seconds.
Cris: 'Chloè'. A sound impact with three chords.
Sergio: In terms of how they ended up being arranged and recorded, all of the above, plus 'Chloè' and 'Arabian nights'.

10. What does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)
Alby: This is not mine, I am copying from Sergio here, but to me it means “asking for favours”.
Daniel: It means creative freedom whichever the style is.
Cris: We do what we want, when we want, where we want… without conditions.
Sergio: There you go, Alby said it for me. To quote the great Kermit the frog, it´s not easy being green, and being indie is not much easier. It´s also good fun, though.

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years? 
Alby: I’d love to be touring the world with The Birkins, still making records and hopefully reaching a wider audience with our music.

Daniel: if I knew it, I’d become a fortune teller and make millions. But I hope we will get better and better, time will tell.
Cris: Touring with The Birkins!!!!

                                                                                                                      Zillion thanks The Birkins!

These Go to 11: interviewing The King in Mirrors

In this week's interview we keep the jangling pop path (gladly) with Rich May, the man behind one of our most exciting discoveries of this 2014 so far, The King in Mirrors. These Go to 11!

Rich May, The King in Mirrors

A kingdom of pop

Hailing from Swindon, UK, the gentle Rich May, previously involved in several bands, began his latest music project in 2012, debuting with a self-titled mini-album in May 2012, followed with EP "Rolling in the Sun" in the summer of 2013. His third release and last to date, came this March with superb EP "Little Voices" out on Take a Nap Records. There's a reason why we love guitar pop like the one Rich and his band offers us. It's the immediacy, the unbeatable hooks, the melodies ringing forever inside your ears, the guitar lines punching you. It's the feeling tunes were made because the artist believed in them and the listener gets there's honesty in every single second of each 3-4 minutes. Here's a king that deserves his pop crown. Here we go!

"Flash a-ah Savior of the Universe" 

Queen's superhero poetry

1. First record that you bought (be honest)

Ha ha... an embarrassing one to start off. The first single I bought was 'Flash' by Queen (because I liked the film when I was young) and the first album was ´Fantastic' by Wham!

2. First and last concert you have attended (be honest too!)

The first gig was The Cure at Wembley Arena in 1989 and the last one was Echo and the Bunnymen in Oxford two weeks ago.

3. Guilty pleasure (song/band you shouldn’t like but you do, yes, it’s the embarrassing question)

There's not too many bands or songs which I'm embarrassed to say I like but I have to admit that I like 'We Built This City On Rock 'n' Roll' by Starship. It always makes me smile and want to sing along!!

4. Most precious music item you own (collector mode on)
My 7'' of 'Lee Remick' by The Go-Betweens. I bought it at a record fair in the early 90's for £50. I'd never heard the song before but luckily, I loved it when I played it!!

Robert Forster: gifted pop mind working here

5. Favorite lyrics (not yours)

'We went into a club, bouncers got no brains, he said both of you are barred, I had to set him straight, I said listen Jack, don't you know, I'm a star' - Robert Forster (The Go-Betweens - Twin Layers of Lightning). Also, 'The Seabirds' by The Triffids. David McComb was an amazing lyricist / songwriter / singer.

6. Musician/s you would like to meet (should be alive, for obvious reasons, but you can choose a dead one too)

I would have to say Robert Forster, although I have met him before (briefly) at the Cobden Club in London when he and Grant McLennan were playing an acoustic album launch in 2002. Unfortunately, I lost my cool and told him he was my hero. He was very polite and said 'It's always nice to bump into your heroes on the stairs'. We had a short discussion about upcoming tour dates before I fled, embarrassed! I'd also like to meet Edwyn Collins or Andy Partridge.

West Australia on the sleeve,
majestic pop on the inside

7. Favorite artwork album (not yours)

The Triffids - 'Born Sandy Devotional' (great album and great sleeve artwork). The sleeve is an aerial view of West Australian town Mandurah and goes perfectly with the sound of the songs on the album.

8. Books or movies? Depending on your answer recommend us one (trick: you can choose both)
I'm not a big movie watcher and as much as I love reading I always seem to just read about music (far too music obsessed for my own good).

9. Song (of yours) you are most proud of:

I'm proud of quite a few of the songs that I have written for The King in Mirrors and with my previous band Baby Train. It's hard to single out a song that I'm most proud of but I'll go with 'Little Voices' from our recent EP.

10. What’s does it mean indie for you? (yes, the “serious question”)

Good question! For me, indie means a band or label that's making/releasing songs themselves because they love and believe in what they're doing, regardless of whether it will sell. Too many bands who play middle of the road guitar rock (often on major labels) are labelled as indie and I don't understand why.

Mr. McAloon (not Gandalf going pop)

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
In ten years time, I'll be just into my 50's (gulp). I'd love to be like Paddy McAloon and have long white hair and beard and release the occasional great album. That's the plan, although my wife might not be so keen on the long white hair and beard!! :-)

Zillion thanks Rich & The King in Mirrors!

"A Thousand Violins", the love for music

A Thousand Violins (Mil Violines, Spanish original title)- Kiko Amat

A novel? A biography? A compilation of essays? Yes, yes, and yes. But "A Thousand Violins" is much more than that. It is one of the most engaging love letters music has ever received. If, like me, your passion (obsession, an important part of your life) is music, this book is for you. This should be the last line of my review, but I can resist it. Thanks for the book, Kiko Amat.

This is an emotional work, because music is made of emotions, seeks and produces emotions in everyone of us. And because is the most powerful mean of human expression, it helps to define us. It define us. I agree with Amat, beware of the people who are "not interested in music", or the people that are ok with any "kind of music", able to listen everything".

Therefore, "A Thousand Violins" is a romantic book too, as Amat gives music such an important role in life. I completely agree with him, but it is really? The patronised, manufactured, advertised products that the industry sells as "the-next-big-thing", the standardisation of music styles, the importance of image and trends (indie being exploited as well), the pathetic behaviour of the industry in front of the technological changes, only interested in maintaining the bigger piece of the pie... There are too many issues that contradict Amat's wonderful vision of music today. But I repeat, I do agree with him. Music has that potential, and despite all the obstacles it faces, it keeps resisting, and being able of meaning so much for many many people.

Of course, as it is structured and developed, "A Thousand Violins", is also a very personal book. In the vein of Nick Hornby's "31 Songs" but way richer, Amat deconstructs part of his life through music. Through songs and groups. And how they influenced, marked his personal experiences and his memories. It is not a music book, but one of a "writer as a human being in love of his favourite songs". About a "life raised on music". 

And that brings me to the most striking thing of this book. Despite this is Kiko Amat's life and opinions, it profoundly connects with me (and I would dare to bet that he will do also with you). In a way is how it is written, propelled by his immediacy and feeling of proximity. But it is basically a matter of passion. Doesn't matter we don't share the same opinions (male music? uggh) tastes (not a mod fan), or that we strongly (Dylan) disagree in some artists. We are moved (inside, inside) by music. 

I laughed (destroying Queen, Abba, Phil Collins, etc), shed a tear (the R.E.M. chapter), and enjoyed the ride all along for its almost 300 pages. And if that makes sense, I felt encouraged to keep writing about music (this blog, for example). "A Thousand Violins" invites to write your own book. Because we all have one. Inside of us. Thanks again, Kiko Amat. Let's "Talk About the Passion".

SCORE: 8,5/10