Pepi Ginsberg has graced us in the past with albums RED, East is East, her Brooklyn Ladies Choir, and now returns with a new team called Companion. Having given us a listen to their singles “20th Century Crime“, “Blue Movie” and “Only” ahead of their self-titled release; Pepi, Kirk Schoenherr, Anna Thorngate, Amy Carrigan, and Tim Lappin present us with an exclusive multi-media collection of Georgian choruses, QVC dolls, a Dylan cover, BBC wildlife captures of the lyre bird's magical mimicry and more.
Pepi:
Female Chorus of Gori, Georgia
I have just never heard or seen anything like this. Ever. And the video is totally weird to boot. Everything on youtube by this choir is unbelievable. They achieve things vocally that I can't even begin to comprehend, and I love watching it. So often in American music we think of the voice as this singular emotive channel but here we see it used in a group to make the sum greater than it's component parts. It feels good to think about singing in a more democratic way, it's inspiring when you have three voices to work with in a band, like Companion does.
Kirk:
Active Child, “Hanging On”
I love the way this video juxtaposes the natural landscape of a stream and woods with Active Child's moody, electronic “Hanging On”. The organic setting heightens the fragile emotional friction of the song and forces you to ask questions about the characters fishing in the stream. Regardless of any narrative, this video is beautiful and haunting.
Anna:
Mike Rowe on QVC – Mike vs. Doll
Tim:
Blake Mills covering Bob Dylans Heart of Mine
This was the first time I heard Blake Mills and it blew me away. The arrangement of this classic Bob Dylan tune starts with so much space and as it unfolds, it shows you what a great and expressive guitar player he is. He gets pure emotion out of the guitar. Couldnt stop listening to this for a few months.
Amy:
The Lyre Bird by David Attenberg
As somewhat of a mockingbird myself I was taken by the vocal dexterity of the Lyre Bird. The camera shutter is the tip of the iceberg, wait for the chainsaws!
Companion's self-released self-titled comes out February 5.
