ARTiST: Bat For Lashes
TiTLE: Fur And Gold
LABEL: Echo
GENRE: Indie
TiME: 45:21 min
SiZE: 56,9 MB
BiTRATE: VBRkbps
RiP DATE: Sep-09-2006
RELEASE DATE: Sep-11-2006
WEBSiTE: www.batforlashes.co.uk
Track List:
01. Horse And I 03:05
02. Trophy 04:01
03. Tahiti 03:39
04. Whats A Girl To Do 02:59
05. Sad Eyes 04:16
06. The Wizard 04:17
07. Prescilla 03:34
08. Bats Mouth 04:25
09. Seal Jubilee 04:44
10. Sarah 03:57
11. I Saw A Light 06:24
Release Notes:
Dummy Magazine: June 2006
Someone once told me that one of our shows
transported them back to their childhood," remembers
Natasha Khan, the Brighton-based brains, beauty and
voice behind Bat For Lashes. "They said they spent
the whole night crying having these nostalgic,
elated, yet kind of sad childhood memories. I think
our music evokes that slightly unstable,
fantastical, nocturnal side of childhood. When
you're a child, you have these dreams; you live in
this world between reality and subconcious. People
at our shows become elated, but in a really sad
way."
It's understandable. Bat For Lashes make a noise
that demands to be described as ethereal,
otherworldly and weird. For example, as well as
blubbering, some of their shows have audiences being
encouraged to make swooshing sea noises that
progress to howling. "People are quite up for
delving into a bit of magic," says Natasha.
Such eccentricities have inevitably seen comparisons
drawn to both Kate Bush and Bjork. Yet, while both
are undoubtedly inspirations, this is music that is
unquestionably unique. Littered around Natasha's
quivering, high-pitched vocals are echoing pianos,
drum machines, harpsichord and guitars. Indeed, all
sorts of instruments contribute to this "unique,
textural, atmospheric experience". Meanwhile, the
lyrics have a spiritual quality. See the quite
beautiful debut single The Wizard. "It's about the
wrestling, animalistic part of making love," Natasha
explains. "The wizard is like a voodoo energy that
comes along. He's the leader. If you surrender
yourself to the dark, love-making energy, then it's
all good!"
All this otherworldliness is born of childhood
summers spent in Pakistan with a deeply religious
father. They were full of experiences that have made
Natasha "sort of naively religious" and "interested
in really superstitious stuff". She tells stories of
being in a cave lit up by fairy lights. The people
she was with claimed a bad spirit had taken away the
light after a power cut, then celebrated when it
came back on. "From an early age I believed in the
power of the unseen and the power of the unsaid,"
she says. "That there's things in the darkness that
can come and affect your life. Now, as an adult, I'm
trying to get back that place of wonderment, longing
for a dialogue with something outside myself."
Make no mistake: Bat For Lashes will take you
somewhere else. All they ask is that you make some
swooshing noises
Words: Hamish Macbain