Podcast 13 

Hold Fire

Our first track this month comes from Hold Fire.  Based in Brighton, their music inspires the same sense of wellbeing as a brisk walk on the seafront on a sunny day: your heart beats a little bit faster; the colour comes to your cheeks – you’re glad to be alive.

Formed in 2006, Hold Fire have attracted a substantial fanbase, and the interest of a few record companies too. As yet unsigned, they have plenty of material already recorded, with producers Dave Eringa (producer of the Manic Street Preachers) and Ian Davenport (best known for his work with Supergrass). 

They are about to release a single in Japan, and will be playing around the UK in the next few months, so try and catch them if you can.

Their podcast track is Emma Louise.

For more information on HOLD FIRE, visit myspace.com/weareholdfire

Molloy

Blending harmony vocals with squelchy electro bleeps, barbed guitar hooks, and driving 'not-disco' bass lines - that’s the sound of Molloy.

Last summer, their mini-album on Kitty-Yo was Steve Lamacq’s album of the week, and there’s a new single ready to go as soon as they find a label to release it, so keep your eyes peeled for that track, called Gather Round Girls.

In the meantime, have a listen to our podcast track, The Healer.

There are plenty of live dates coming up as well as the new single, so if you like what you heard and would like to know more about Molloy, visit their blog at molloy.vox.com  

Rob Lavers

Sax player and flautist Rob Lavers is a well-travelled session player, with countless live and studio dates under his belt, but with the release of his second album, he is now concentrating on his own material.

Rob’s rhythm section are equally experienced; drummer Laurent Robin has worked with Lee Konitz and Dave Liebman, and double-bass player Zoltan Dekany is a student of Charlie Haden.  Rob describes Jamil Sheriff, the quartet’s pianist, as “a perfectly balanced player”.

It’s important for sax players to achieve a unique sound. Rob’s rich tone on tenor is perfectly complimented by the ethereal sweetness of his flute playing, and his soprano work is beautifully assured on this most stubborn of the saxes - his sound is very definitely his own.

As well as writing for his own quartet, Rob is composing for film, and was recently commissioned to write a score for a documentary by Simon Morris about the New York based conceptual poet Kenneth Goldsmith, which will be premiered in New York.

Rob’s track for the podcast is a swaggering, township-influenced composition called Snolly Guster.

Rob is gigging extensively in Britain and France over the next few months – catch him if you can.  More information can be found at myspace.com/roblavers  

Motion Picture Soundtrack

Motion Picture Soundtrack are an unsigned 4 piece from Canterbury in Kent.

They have gigged all over the UK and Europe, and have previously recorded with Hugh Jones and Dan Austin. We aren’t the only ones who think that they are destined for greater things - Phill Brown (engineer for Bowie, Led Zep and Bob Marley) called them “one of the best bands I have heard this year”, and Steve Harris at XFM said “They could be really big”. They were also picked for the BBCIntroducing tour taking place through April 2008.

Much of 2007 was spent in the studio, making their debut album with Paul Schroeder and Cenzo Townsend at the helm, but in 2008 they are getting out and playing live again, ahead of the album release.

Lead single from the album will be Departure, which we are pleased to have for our podcast.

If you would like to know more about Motion Picture Soundtrack, visit myspace.com/mps