Hero Fisher interview

There is a glint in Hero Fisher's eye as she sips red wine in a Sydney bar. Blonde hair tumbles onto her shoulders and a cheeky smile exudes an instantly beguiling impishness and engaging charisma. It is little wonder she is feeling particularly ebullient today as, a couple of nights previously, she had wowed the same room with the launch of her debut EP; her solo set of live songs receiving a rapturous reception. It's not just the Sydney public that are paying attention either. Last November, Andrew Wyatt invited her to record one of her songs, Break My Heart And Mend It, in Prague with an orchestra he was working with to record his own solo album. Soon, she would head to the UK to perform at the Royal Opera House alongside the likes of Boy George, Jonathan Pierce and Alison Mosshart in a dance production written by Wyatt and Mark Ronson and orchestrated by Rufus Wainwright. "I am so excited about the show," she exclaims. "It's such an amazing mix of worlds, and I feel so lucky to be involved." With her star clearly ascending at pace, it's safe to say that you'll be hearing a lot more from this Sydneysider in 2012.

A perfect English accent suggests that she was not born-and-bred in Australia, yet it also belies her French upbringing. “I ended up in Australia about two years ago because I needed to get away from Paris, which is where I grew up for most of my life. I have got Australian parents and I guess I initially just wanted to see what they had run away from.” And so she ended up in the Harbour City, where she instantly fell in with a creative bunch of like-minded musicians, such as Bobbysix favourites, The Preachers. Friendships were formed. Music was made.

While Hero (which is her real name, incidentally) was happy to nestle in the bosom of Sydney's musical family, initially she found working with others to be a strange experience. “I'd been playing solo all my life, so then I had huge fear of collaborating with anyone and just this fear of having to look someone in the eyes and say, 'This is the reality of the song. It's not that good but we can work it out,' rather than 'Hello everybody, this is me in my perfect state,' which never happens. Having a producer was new to me as well. That was full-on. But it was great and a really good learning experience and I'm so glad that I did it.” The eventual result of such collaborating is a stunning debut EP. “At this point, what I like about songwriting is that I don't feel convinced about anything,” she says of her creative processes. “I'm really enjoying it. I like that I'll come up with some brilliant idea and think 'This is genius,' and then a week later I'll be like, 'No. It's shit.' The songs are at a point where the subject is about letting things flow past you rather than being up against them, being aware that you'll always change your mind and that it's fine to do so.”

Her folk musings are born from a love of some of the all-time greats. As talk turns to her influences, one name continues to crop up. “Bob Dylan is my number one hero. He's my god. He has influenced me so much and I just love how naughty he is. He is a totally mystery. It's impossible to understand the man. I also love Billie Holiday. She's one of my favourite singers and I love how she sings everything right after the beat. There are loads of others... Neil Young, Jeff Buckley, Joni Mitchell.” Mitchell is certainly a good reference point, as would be Laura Marling. Wise yet yearningly poetic lyrics over acoustic guitars and flourishes of strings make for an achingly beautiful listen and one which you would be foolish not to embrace.

You can catch Hero at the Royal Opera House throughout April. For ticket information, and to purchase her wonderful EP, head to http://www.herofisher.com/. 

Interview by Heidi Pett and Bobby Townsend.

The Like - Release Me

With the original line-up featuring the teenage daughters of three music industry veterans, The Like’s debut album, 2005’s Are You Thinking What I’m Thinking?, was well-enough received to make it somewhat surprising that it’s taken so long for them to follow it up. Since then, one member has departed, two have joined and the American four-piece have refined their indie-pop sound a little by adding healthy dollops of 60’s girl group and British invasion influences. Who better then, to produce Release Me, than Mark Ronson?

As one would expect from a Ronson project, potential pop hits are all over this record. Songs like Narcissist in a Red Dress and Catch Me if You Can are ridiculously catchy and perky, as harmonies, handclaps and organs support the fine vocals of the marvellously-named lead-singer Z Berg. However, the most pleasing thing about Release Me is that, beneath the shimmering production, the lovely melodies and the oohs and aahs are some devilish lyrics. These songs may be sugar-coated, but they have a bitter centre. Boys are, more often than not, the cause of The Like’s troubles and a example of the kind of R-E-S-P-E-C-T the quartet demands comes within the very first line of album. “If I could kick his head in…” Berg sings on the vengeful Wishing He Was Dead.

Therefore, as with the likes of Lily Allen, The Like have more depth than you might initially think. With pop music that is sweet and almost impossible not to dance/sing along to coupled with lyrics that give proceedings some nice bite, Release Me is a winner whichever way you look at it.

Trekstock 2009

When music and charity mix, it often amounts to little more than ego-massaging pomp; Bono and Eddie Vedder getting all dewy-eyed as they hold hands at centre-front of stage and set about saving the world by singing Neil Young covers while Madonna adopts her 37th African child. Thank goodness then for the delightful Trekstock, which just gets on with raising money without such self-congratulation.

Trekstock began in 2006, when London-based good egg, Sophie Epstone, needed to raise some dosh to embark on a trek to Everest in support of Teenage Cancer Trust. To do so, she put on a small, fundraising gig. Since then, the events have grown in size and support for the cause has become widespread, with a number of celebrities happy to show get involved. Beth Ditto, Katy Perry (below), Mischa Barton, Kings of Leon, Agyness Deyn, Klaxons, The Mighty Boosh, Jarvis Cocker, Russell Brand, Albert Hammond Jnr, Kate Nash (below), The Horrors, Radio 1's Chris Moyles, Zane Lowe and Alan Carr all wear their Trekstock badges with pride. Trekstock has, thus far, raised thousands of pounds for Teenage Cancer Trust.
On May 13th, the charity returns for its fourth year of fundraising gigs with a launch night that sees Mark Ronson and some famous mates play at Proud in Camden, London. The supercool night will also mark the launch of a new range of Trekstock clothing and accessories, designed by Will Broome, Kate Moross, Laura Lees and Tatty Devine. If you can spare a few quid and want to get along to support a fantastic cause, then get your ticket to the gig from seetickets.com. As with previous events, it is sure to be an insanely cool night, as the young, talented and beautiful do their bit to help out the six teenagers a day that are diagnosed with cancer in the UK. If you are a facebooker (and who isn't nowadays?), then why not join the group?

The Zutons - You Can Do Anything

THE ZUTONS
You Can Do Anything

The Zutons are perhaps best known for the fact that Amy Winehouse once sang one of their tunes. But while Mark Ronson and Winehouse’s cover of Valerie may have caused it to spend 100 weeks in the Top 100 Radio Airplay Charts, the five-piece is in no way a one-hit-wonder by association. Indeed, with two quality albums already under their belts, the Brits now prove their longevity with a third effort.

While there is no wheel reinvention here, You Can Do Anything sees The Zutons doing what they do best, which is belt out catchy pop befitting a band that hails from the same city as The Beatles. Other English influences shine through too, like the T Rex-style glam rock of Always Right Behind You. Frontman Dave McCabe’s vocal is deliciously strained as always and his wordplay is witty and observant. What’s Your Problem is oddly joyful considering that impending violence is at the heart of its subject-matter, but then The Zutons have always enjoyed pairing dark, sinister lyrics with unabashed pop. For instance, Family Of Leeches and Bumbag both deal with social disharmony and Freak is the depressing tale of a male prostitute, yet all these stories are enveloped in massive choruses, big hooks and Abi Cornish’s perky (if basic) saxophone accompaniment. It’s an interesting juxtaposition.

With its sheer vivacity, You Can Do Anything is comfortably an equal to The Zutons’ previous two albums. The misery of modern Britain never sounded so fun and, happily, it seems there is life after Valerie for these chirpy Liverpudlians.

Mark Ronson, Version

I reviewed the new Mark Ronson album for Drum Media. Here's what I thought:MARK RONSON
Version
Sony/BMG

You’ve probably already heard the funky version of Radiohead’s Just that has been doing the rounds for a while. Well, indie DJs everywhere will be overjoyed at the news that the man responsible, Englishman Mark Ronson, has released a whole album of indie covers.

These aren’t lazy re-hashes either; they’ve been given a total shake-up, resulting in a tasty mix of jazz, hip-hop, pop, samba, funk and motown, and, as a producer and DJ of some acclaim, Ronson has called on a few industry pals to lend their voices. While some collaborations miss the mark; most notably Robbie Williams’ wishy-washy vocal on a directionless Charlatans cover, and pointless Maximo Park and Kasabian tracks which feature the original artists, for the most part this is a slick and interesting experiment.

Highlights include Lily Allen’s cheeky take on Kaiser Chiefs’ Oh My God and a complete revamp of Britney’s Toxic, which features a verbal tirade by the late, great Ol’ Dirty Bastard. Elsewhere, Ronson plays the dangerous game of covering The Smiths, yet his brooding, Massive Attack-style reworking of Stop Me If You’ve Heard This One Before is little short of majestic.

In spite of these fine moments, this album is fairly disposable, and once the novelty wears off you won’t really have cause to revisit Version very often. But Ronson certainly deserves credit for the quality and integrity of these recordings. Considering the unmitigated disaster that this type of project could have been, short-lived fun is a pretty good result.