Seward: Wind-Up Toy Robots
Having intended to spend my time at The Great Escape in one fashion (ice cream on the delightful beach, beers in the delightful pubs, bands in the delightful venues), I ended up spending it slightly differently: missing all the bands I intended to see, studiously avoiding all cone-holstered gelato desserts, and accidentally DJing at the excellent Recommender-run Blogger Meet Up.
Planning what to do at a music festival is foolish in the extreme, and going with the flow is the only real course of action.
Besides, if I’d followed a plan, I’d never have caught the bewildering, fascinating, confusing Seward, a band who have so little web presence, that I’ve been reduced to posting this incomplete video of the band as proof that they even exist at all.
Instead of describing what a remarkable band Seward actually are, or how they achieve remarkableness, maybe it’s best to describe the moment that their drummer – a man rapt at the array of gentle, subtle noises a drumkit can make – wound up a toy tin robot and let it dance on his snare drum as he continued playing with a string of rusted cowbells.
There are many bands who approach music like Seward. They are all, without exception, shit. They are all indulgent, self-centred, and unkind to their audience.
Seward are the exact opposite: their timing is perfect, their noises are specific and considered, and their purpose may not be defined, but it is rational. The band is lost in the beauty of noise-making, and the path it beats into human consciousness.
Part experience, part music, all brilliant.
MORE: There is no more…
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Awesom band! blow my head off!!!
Got given a promo of this band at The Great Escape, and want to hear more of them as they’re AMAZING.
It’s very unusual to hear something so original in this day and age, and their promo is far too short – a real tease, in fact!
Please post further info if you hear any more about them.
Great site BTW xx
Abi – I only wish I had more information about them. Apparently they popped up on XFM soon after The Great Escape, so maybe there’s a bootleg floating about somewhere (assuming bootlegs still exist, and are even called ‘bootlegs’.)
You may, in fact need to visit Barcelona to see more of them – but that’s a good enough reason, right?
Thanks for your kind words!
Joe
I have seen the band at the windmill in Brixton (London) and in Barcelona twice – they play beatifully. The more you listen to them the more you like them. Yes, please come to Barcelona to see them, they play in several places – and barcelona has a lot to offer.
Cheers
Ramon
…and I hear they are coming back to the Uk in October. Happy to inform when I know
Ramon
CD or Downloads for sale?
somewhere
Ramon: Thanks for the info! They are brilliant live, it’s true. I’m desperate to get over to Barcelona to see them again
Consrelli: They are virtually (and deliberately) anonymous online/offline… good luck!
Their music is amazing. What I can find of it atleast. Thats for sharing. I will watch for them stateside.
Hello one and all. Thanks for your kind words about Seward.. I work with the band and yes we are deliberately avoiding the web at the moment…. though keep your eyes peeled as we will be sending Joe a new video link for a song called ‘Grandma Sleeping with book’ that the guys made last week.
Seward are playing some shows in barcelona over the next few months and we will be returning to the uk for a mini tour in October – again keep tuned to A new band a day as Joe will be the first to know…
As regards releases, the band self released a 12″ ep last year called Home Vol.1 – this was only for sale at Seward shows and we have almost sold out.. if you would like to get a copy Rough Trade records in london have the last few copies…. you can order online from this link:
http://www.roughtrade.com/site/shop_detail.lasso?search_type=sku&sku=352128
or just search SEWARD at the Rough Trade site…
Thanks for your comments and keep an eye on this site as Joe will be the first to know any Seward news…. adios amigos – Terry
[...] I only mention these ludicrous incidents because Catalonia has always seemed so disordered, so alive. And music from the region is often precise and pristine (Seward, of course, excepted). [...]
[...] I only mention these ludicrous incidents because Catalonia has always seemed so disordered, so alive. And music from the region is often precise and pristine (Seward, of course, excepted). [...]
[...] last time this happened, it was Seward who reached through my lugs into my brain, tickled the Parahippocampal gyrus, and ended up as [...]
[...] the last time I could remember my curiosity was prickled in this way was when I heard Seward, about this time last year. And then I remembered I said the same thing about Sturle Dagsland about three weeks [...]
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