Between now and Christmas we’ll be asking some of our favourite new bands and artists to share their musical highlights from this year.
First up are The Paper Shades, an acoustic folk duo we were lucky enough to stumble across earlier this year.
The Paper Shades – Top 5 Picks
1. Lucy Rose: Middle Of The Bed. If you like your fragile female vocals then Lucy Rose will be right up your street, she’s a fine songwriter too. We particularly like this bittersweet song released in August. She’s definitely ‘one to watch’.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=adBPg8Zdp2g&w=640&h=360]
2. Ryan Adams: Ashes & Fire. We’re long time fans of Ryan Adams and this song is the title track of his recently released album, which sees him return to a more acoustic setup. Adams has an incredibly versatile voice and is a master at great melodies. This song showcases both of those strengths at their best.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nk4OKZKv6tI&w=640&h=360]
3. Fleet Foxes: Sim Sala Bim. Fleet Foxes are one of our favourite bands so we were eagerly awaiting the release of their second album ‘Helplessness Blues’. We weren’t disappointed. Every track is great but this has to be one of our favourites. We were lucky enough to see them perform this live, harmonies just don’t get any better than this. In fact, we loved this song so much we’ve covered it (we just hope we’ve done it justice!).
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4RPQR0Hh0Kw&w=640&h=360]
4. Saturday Sun: Seagull. We came across Saturday Sun whilst gigging last year, they are a quite superb Dorset band, still currently unsigned. This track is a personal favourite of ours with it’s floaty, delicate contemplative quality. You can download this and other great tracks for FREE at their website. Here’s wishing these guys the success they deserve in 2012.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZksHIJGjTU&w=640&h=360]
5. Admiral Fallow: Dead Against Smoking. We discovered this song just the other day via ‘Songs From The Shed.’ Since buying it, it’s been on repeat in the car for the last week! We love this song because it manages to evoke so many emotions in just one song. The flute and clarinet riff is beautiful and from the sound of the video these guys are great live too.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnc0Cq9aE4A&w=640&h=360]
The Paper Shades are long term friends Sarah Dollar and Jon Rixon, their music combines delicate guitar work, haunting harmonies and honest, heartfelt songwriting. Aside from checking out their picks, make sure you also take the time to check out their excellent debut self-titled EP.
[soundcloud url=”http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/27235133″]
