Ebb - Confess

Erin Bennett is the front women of the music group Ebb an “Art Rock”group of five women and one guy who spend their time writing their own music and telling their own stories. We appreciate her taking some time to share her words with us.

Q How did Ebb get started? What was the common thread that brought the band members together?

Well, its a bit of a long story, to be honest. I suppose the shortened version would be: In 2005 Dog, Kitty, Suna and Nikki were touring the US in their band MT-TV. I met them all in Alabama where I was living at the time, (I am originally from Texas.) We became instant friends and I joined their crew as a tech and soundy. In 2008, MT-TV returned to the UK and their bassist, Amanda, drummer, Jo and I formed an alternative/rock trio called Syren. I had been in a relationship with Jo pretty much since meeting the group. Syren toured the UK and Europe from 2008 until 2010 and then went into the studio to record our 2nd album. In the meantime, Dog, Kitty, Suna, Nikki, and the rest of MT-TV were living communally in Scotland working on various other projects, like filming, having given up music….or so they thought.
In 2012, Jo, to whom I’d been married, died unexpectedly of a rare type of Breast Cancer and Syren instantly ceased to be. Amanda was too distraught by the loss of Jo to carry on in music and I was intrinsically left with no band and nothing to focus on in my time of immense grief. But only a few months after Jo’s death, friends of mine in a band called Hawkwind, reached out asking if I’d be interested in opening for them at The Queen’s Hall in Edinburgh. But I had no band, right? So I appealed to Dog to come and play bass with me, thinking we could do an acoustic set. In Dog’s words, he saw it as an opportunity to give me something to concentrate on and help me out of the pit of my grief which was truly killing me. So he built a band around me recruiting Suna and Nikki on backing vocals and keys respectively and getting a local drummer to sit in for that specific gig.
In doing that one show, Dog, Suna and Nikki found the potential to heal from the sudden end to their musical past and knew also that it would be a great form of rehab for me. So we started writing and rehearsing and found a permanent drummer in Anna who Dog found at Napier University in Edinburgh studying for her BA in popular music. In 2015 Kitty joined the band, having previously been our mixer. Since 2016 we’ve worked and toured endlessly to find our place in music as a band. We’ve gone from performing simply under my name with all the others effectively being a backing band, and playing power-pop and heavy rock. We released two albums under the ‘Erin Bennett’ banner, but when the worldwide lockdown happened in 2020 we put our heads down and really focused on what type of music we wanted to make. What type of music made us feel, ya know?
We were lucky with the lockdown, in as much as, we all live communally in Scotland in an old hotel we’ve done up. Eventually, and quite organically, we settled on what we do now, which is being described as art/prog/rock; and rebranded, essentially, to form ‘Ebb’ which was initially short for ‘Erin Bennett Band’…but now stands as a metaphor for our movement away from our past and into our future as new people and new musicians. Our debut album ‘Mad & Killing Time’ which we released on November 1st, 2022, is the result of being locked down together in Scotland for 18 months and I believe, in this album which has received some stellar reviews, we have found ourselves as artists, musicians and as a band.

Q How does the band writes its music, there seems to a lot of elements are they usually the product of one person or a collaborative effort?

It really depends. A lot of the time, I will write a song on an acoustic guitar and bring it to the band. We will all get together and add our own ideas to the piece with Dog, who produces all of our stuff, having the overview to add or take away anything that doesn’t ultimately serve the song and the emotions behind it. Sometimes, though, Dog, Nikki, and Anna will be jamming and a musical piece is written that I then write a tune and lyrics for. And then there are also times when we are just messing around in rehearsal and something grows. So I guess it truly is a collaborative effort. Because even if I go and write a whole song from start to finish on my own and bring it to the band, everyone is affected by the song differently. And Dog’s job is to take everyone’s individual emotional reaction to a song and polish it into something that can be universally absorbed and understood and that happens to always come out as art/prog. So without everyone in the band, the music we put out wouldn’t be what it is.

From: https://paperphoenixink.com/2024/11/14/interview-with-erin-bennett-of-musical-group-ebb/

The Byrds - Eight Miles High

On December 22, 1965, the Byrds recorded a new, self-penned composition titled “Eight Miles High” at RCA Studios in Hollywood. However, Columbia Records refused to release this version because it had been recorded at another record company‘s facility. As a result, the band were forced to re-record the song at Columbia Studios in Los Angeles on January 24 and 25, 1966, and it was this re-recorded version that would be released as a single and included on the group’s third album.
The song represented a creative leap forward for the band and is often considered the first full-blown psychedelic rock recording by critics, although other contemporaneous acts, such as Donovan and the Yardbirds, were also exploring similar musical territory.  It was also pivotal in transmuting folk rock into the new musical forms of psychedelia and raga rock.
During his time with the Byrds, McGuinn developed two innovative, experimental, and very influential styles of electric guitar playing. The first was “jingle-jangle” – generating ringing arpeggios based on banjo finger picking styles he learned while at the Old Town School of Folk – which was influential in the folk rock genre. The second style was a merging of saxophonist John Coltrane‘s free-jazz atonalities, which hinted at the droning of the sitar – a style of playing, first heard on the song “Eight Miles High.”
“Eight Miles High” is often cited as the first psychedelic rock song, as well as a classic of the counterculture era. “Of course Eight Miles High was a drug song. It does refer to the altitude of that flight, but it was a deliberate double entendre.” —David Crosby. McGuinn’s groundbreaking lead guitar playing on “Eight Miles High” saw the guitarist emulating free form jazz saxophone as influenced by John Coltrane, and in particular, Coltrane’s playing on the song “India” from his Impressions album. It also exhibits the influence of the Indian classical music of Ravi Shankar in the droning quality of the song’s vocal melody and in McGuinn’s guitar playing.  The song’s subtle use of Indian influences resulted in it being labeled as “raga rock” by the music press.
According to Roger McGuinn: “Eight Miles High has been called the first psychedelic record. It’s true we’d been experimenting with LSD, and the title does contain the word “high”, so if people want to say that, that’s great. But Eight Miles High actually came about as a tribute to John Coltrane. It was our attempt to play jazz.”
“We were on a tour of America, and someone played us the Coltrane albums Africa/Brass and Impressions. It was the only music we had, for the whole time on the bus. By the end of the tour, Coltrane and Shankar were ingrained.”
“There was one Coltrane track called India, where he was trying to emulate sitar music with his saxophone. It had a recurring phrase, dee da da da, which I picked up on my Rickenbacker guitar and played some jazzy stuff around it. I was in love with his saxophone playing: all those funny little notes and fast stuff at the bottom of the range.”
“The previous year, 1965, we’d been on a trip to England. It was our first time on a plane, and I had the idea of writing a song about it. Gene asked: “How high do you think that plane was flying?” I thought about seven miles, but the Beatles had a song called Eight Days a Week, so we changed it to Eight Miles High because we thought that would be cooler. Some DJs did the sums and realized that, since commercial airliners only flew at six miles, we must have been talking about a different kind of high. And all the stations stopped playing it.”  From: https://m100group.com/2021/06/09/innovation-with-the-byrds-eight-miles-high-ideo-and-david-kelley-neo-demarcoian-banter/

The Neptune Power Federation - Emmaline

The Neptune Power Federation – Le Demon D’Amour: The Australian hard rockers return with this, their fifth album. I reviewed their last album, “Memoirs of a Rat Queen”, and found it to be an enjoyable, if not entirely addictive slab of rock n’ roll. I have to admire the rather ridiculous names, (band members have names like, “Jaytanic Ritual” and “Search and DesTroy”), costumes and larger than life persona. You know what? The accompanying blurb says that love songs have been commandeered by “soft rockers, bed wetters and the introvert crowd”. This is an album that seeks to reclaim love songs with a little more…ahem…balls, if you will. Very much in the spirit of the late 70’s and early 80’s, can The Neptune Power Federation accomplish this mission?
It is pretty fair to say that on average, my preferences are for music of the heavier variety, but I do have an abiding affection for hard rock as my entry into the more subterranean tunes. As such, my youth was spent listening to my dad’s AC/DC, Queen, Rainbow and old Judas Priest records, and that is very much the blueprint for the music contained within. These are big, bold anthems, with hook-laden chorus’ and sizzling guitar solos. The clean female vocals from lead lung-abuser, “Screaming Loz Sutch” add a whole element to proceedings, with her voice having a really impressive range and some real power. Whether on the power-balladry of “My Precious One”, or the funk-rock odyssey of “Baby You’re Mine”, her delivery is at a career high.
In between the hard rock skeleton, there’s still plenty of pleasing approaches here that mark the out as their own thing. Some lovely keyboard flourishes here and there, but essentially the star of the show for me is the inventive guitar work, which manages to produce riffs in abundance, along with some solo work that weaves its way into the memory. There’s plenty of grit to be found here too – “Emmaline” could easily have been a Danko Jones number, with a stack of swagger and some particularly fuzzy axe work. Closer, “We Beasts of the Night” has all the overblown strut of a prime Meatloaf number, is none the worse for it.
So, what to make of this album as a package then? Well, in many ways it’s an album that can feel a little out of time, but there really aren’t any bands producing material like this anymore, certainly with the confidence and arrogance that The Neptune Power Federation do. It’s pretty infectious, that’s for sure – whether that be due to the simple but effective song writing, or just the delivery I’m not sure, but then again pure rock n’ roll transcends in depth serious analysis: the essence is surely, if it feels good, it is good.  From: https://avenoctum.com/2022/03/01/the-neptune-power-federation-le-demon-damour-cruz-del-sur/

Secret Friend - And Ever

Secret Friend is the nom de plume of Thailand-based songwriter and recording artist Steven Fox. Formed in 2012, Secret Friend’s first album, Time Machine, was recorded in Los Angeles with Linus of Hollywood (a/k/a Kevin Dotson) producing, and Willie Wisely and Kelly Jones on vocals. The follow-up, Sleeper, takes Secret Friend in a different direction – a fusion of acoustic guitar-based pop melodies with electronica and psychedelia production. The album features guest artists including Bradley Dean Whyte, Jones, Linus of Hollywood, Steve Eggers, Wisely and Wyatt Funderburk.  From: https://bigtakeover.com/news/album-premiere-blue-sky-by-secret-friend

Secret Friend is a new all star collective that includes Willie Wisely, Kelly Jones, Linus of Hollywood, and Roger Joseph Manning Jr. Organized by Australian songwriter Steven Fox, Time Machine is rooted in classic 70’s singer songwriter pop. Wisely has a cadence like James Taylor here, but the rich melody and backing make the opener “Who Am I?” a sure-fire hit. “Starting Today” is another gem with sweet harmonies, and “Never Before” has subtle strings and lyrically falls into Gilbert O’Sullivan territory. Wisely’s “Oblivious” is a note perfect pop ballad and Kelly Jones “He’ll Never Know Me” is the jazzy answer to the narrative. Each musician helps make this LP a success. Foxs’ songwriting is very much like Andrew Gold, albeit with a modern POV. Many great songs here — it makes my Top Ten list for 2013 easily! A delectable slice of adult piano pop heaven.  From: https://www.powerpopaholic.com/2013/01/charlestones-secret-friend.html

Beth Orton - Central Reservation

When Beth Orton released her debut album, Trailer Park, it revealed a singer-songwriter with not only raw acoustic sensibilities, but it also offered a snapshot of London’s vibrant electronic scene. The album offered Orton a chance to explore her newly found voice, express her love of folk, and tip her hat to the landscape she had grown up in.
"I had an entire life before I became a singer, but around about the time I found out I could sing, I was very drawn to singer-songwriters like Joni Mitchell and Nick Drake," Orton recalls. "But I was also going out clubbing. I was part of a whole world here in London that had nothing to do with folk music. For me it would have felt disingenuous to make a purely folk record."
The immense success and positive reception of that debut gave Beth the confidence she needed to step wholeheartedly into the genre on her follow-up record, establishing herself as one of the great modern folk singer-songwriters.
Central Reservation, released in 1999, is an all-in, strings-laden album featuring guitar, bass, violin, cello, viola, and even a traditional Greek lute known as a bouzouki. With stunning keys and some deeply intimate themes, Central Reservation was a sublime counterpoint to the macho musical landscape of the nu metal and hip hop of the time.
With guest appearances from Ben Harper, Dr. John and Ben Watt, Central Reservation is a beautiful, steady album, perfect for those moments when you just need to turn the dial, the lights and your nervous system down and tap into the soft, subtle, poetry of this wild human life.  From: https://www.abc.net.au/listen/programs/doublej-classic-albums/beth-orton-central-reservation-mel-bampton/103688134

Grant Lee Buffalo - Lone Star Song

Grant Lee Phillips once said that he originally intended Lone Star Song to be about conspiracy theories concerning the assassination of John F. Kennedy, but he got a little carried away with the events of the Waco Siege and the song evolved. A lot of the lyrics can be interpreted as both:

"They had him nailed up to a T with a T for Texas."
- JFK was the first Roman Catholic US president. He was assassinated in Dallas, Texas.
- David Koresh was believed by his followers to be the second coming of Christ, therefore being revered as the human embodiment of the Messiah.

"His disciples with artillery they held the fort inside."
- The "disciples with artillery" are JFK's secret service agents. Right after JFK was shot, one of them jumped onto the limousine and tried to regain control of the "fort inside."
- Koresh's "disciples" firmly believed that Koresh was the second coming of Jesus Christ, and therefore believed that God was speaking through him. God wanted them to stay in the compound, so they stayed to defend the 'fort? with ample ammunition.

"And by the time the story broke down at Dealey Plaza."
- JFK was shot in Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas, where "our story broke."
- The first message from Koresh is relayed over KRLD Radio in Dallas on February 28, 1993, the day the compound was first raided by the ATF.

"We'd already covered the smoke, read the TV guide."
- It seems that just as soon as these incidents occurred, the media had already broadcasted "smoke," or disasters, across the nation, on TVs, radios, newspapers, etc. So all one had to do was "read the TV guide."

From: https://www.songfacts.com/facts/grant-lee-buffalo/lone-star-song

"For me Texas exists in in this sort of mythological way, and what I was writing about was largely Texas the myth, the Texas I've come to know through movies and recent events in history. I started writing that song focusing on the JFK assassination and all of the weird conspiracies that surround that assassination. All of it begins to sound very myth like. I started it from that point, and then maybe two or three weeks later this thing happened in Waco that I'm sure you're familiar with (the David Koresh-Branch Davidian-FBI holocaust) so the song sort of took a different direction at that point. I sorta wanted to talk about two stories within one song but all of it is a sort of a myth, or a collage of myths. It wasn't long after the Waco incident that I heard it emerged on television, that there was a sort of a television drama that came out, and soon the OJ Simpson story will be told - in many ways it's being told right now, but a dramatization will feature. I'm just perplexed by that. It's so important in America, America is such a dreamland." Source: Things Grant Always What They Seem, Rave Magazine, December 1994

From: http://www.homespunarchive.com/comments/mjm.htm

BraAgas - Mi Suegra

BraAgas is an all female quartet created in 2007 after the split-up of the band Psalteria. The first two albums were hard to define genre-wise. “The first album called No.1 was a mix of everything – medieval and folk songs as well,” says Katka Göttlich (Katerina Göttlichova). The four members of BraAgas have been playing for a long time. In addition to the previously mentioned Psalteria, the musicians played in other bands. “Our experiences from other bands have merged here – for me and Karla it was the Psalteria band, for Beta it was Gothart. Michaela had been sometimes the guest in different groups (e.g. Krless) before BraAgas originated,” says Göttlich.
The fact that the band was formed by professional musicians helped them record albums immediately and also with touring. Live playing is one of those things BraAgas can do really well. Their third CD, Tapas, is the result of their live concert art. The band won the music competition Česká spořitelna Colours Talents at Indies Scope Festival organized by Indies Scope Records and the Colours of Ostrava Festival supported by Česká spořitelna. The recording of an album was part of the Česká spořitelna Colours Talents prize. “The second one called No.2 – Media Aetas was purely medieval and the album Tapas has already nothing to do with ‘medieval times’. It’s an album containing songs which we have discovered and adapted and also those few ‘hits’ which we’ve taken the liberty to modify; those that the listeners of world music will definitely recognize.“
The four musicians play mostly ethnic instruments and historical replicas. Many guests helped them at the studio and there were also some electronic elements. Thanks to the electronics, a new modern sound was developed for Tapas, which was produced by David Göttlich and Petr Koláček. Tapas includes songs from various parts of Europe, including Spanish, Balkan, Nordic and Italian sources, originally dating back to anywhere within a thousand year time span, interpreted in a very modern way. Current members include: Katerina Göttlichova on lead vocal, cittern, guitar, bagpipes, shawms; Alzbeta Josefy on vocal, davul, darbuka, duf, riq; Karla Braunova on vocal, flutes, recorders, clarinet, shawms, chalumeaux, and bagpipes; and Michala Hrbkova on vocal, fiddle, cittern.  From: https://worldmusiccentral.org/2017/01/09/artist-profiles-braagas/