New Mick Harvey Album

Mick Harvey returns with his second enthralling 'solo' album, Two Of Diamonds out on Mute on 23rd April, preceded by a download only single, Out Of Time Man, on 9th April.

Encouraged by the very positive critical acclaim and the audience reaction to the live shows for his 2005 LP One Man's Treasure, Harvey - internationally renowned arranger, producer, multi instrumentalist, film soundtrack composer and co-founder of The Birthday Party and Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds - has created a further wonderful collection of classic songs. For the eagerly awaited Two Of Diamonds, the redoubtable Mick Harvey is this time accompanied by his solo band, featuring Rosie Westbrook (double bass) and fellow Bad Seeds' James Johnston (organ and guitar) and Thomas Wydler (drums). Guest musicians on two tracks also include Rob Ellis from P.J. Harvey's band (piano/drums), who has also toured with Mick, and Julitha Ryan (piano) from Melbourne instrumental band Silver Ray.

"It's a very different thing when you get into playing live in the studio," says singer Mick Harvey of Two Of Diamonds. "The last record (One Man's Treasure) I did all by myself, building it up bit by bit. This time most of the tracks, not all of them, but most of them were recorded live in the studio. The addition of the double bass was really perfect for what I was trying to do. It gives an amount of room... a lot of space for things to get really quiet and leaves a lot of room for the singing, so I'm not fighting against a lot of electrified instruments."

Two Of Diamonds, mostly recorded at Harvey's Grace Lane studio and Atlantis Studios, Melbourne, features an eclectic collection of songs which Harvey has chosen to interoperate in his own distinctive and emotive style. Some are original Harvey compositions (the dream-like 'Blue Arrows' and the graceful 'Little Star'), and, as with 'One Man's Treasure' these are combined with more obscure classics, sometimes stemming from the pens of well known enigmatic songwriters. What once again unites this timeless material is Mick Harvey's deeply personal connection with every song included on Two Of Diamonds. The recorded interpretive work of Nina Simone and Johnny Cash, two of Mick Harvey's favourite artists, still inspire him to grasp the essence of his elected material and make it his own.

On Two Of Diamonds Mick Harvey seeks to bring the songs to their most emotionally powerful level. The arrangements are kept as straightforward as possible, and in a deceptively effortless manner, he and his band succeed in their aim. Two Of Diamonds is another Mick Harvey record passionately delivered straight from the heart. Harvey and his band will be presenting Two Of Diamonds live throughout Europe from late April 2007. Play your cards right and be there.

LIVE DATES

Saturday 28th April - All Tomorrow's Parties, Minehead, Somerset, UK
Monday 30th April - Teatre Xesc Forteza, Palma de Mallorca, Mallorca, Spain
Tuesday 1st May - Congress Palace, Alicante, Spain
Sunday 27th May - Bush Hall, London, UK

http://www.mickharvey.com

The Horrors "Strange House" (2007) [iTunes Link]

2007 highly anticipated debut album from The Horrors, the most exciting and divisive band to emerge in 2006, They crashed out of Southend with a thrilling and amphetamine-wired take on '60s R&B and Garage Rock. Strange House sees the band put their Post-Punk aesthetic into overdrive, referencing everyone from The Birthday Party through to The Cramps, and managing to sound like no-one else around at the moment. Including the singles ‘Sheena Is A Parasite’, ‘Death At The Chapel’, ‘Count In Fives’ and ‘Gloves’, the album is described by Vice as "12 songs of snarling, violent, anarchic ,Garage Pop that makes 90 percent of the new bands in the world suddenly irrelevant."