Telling the Bees

Dalla and Wod in Oxford

2012-01-17T09:27:00.001Z

New Telling the Bees EPK

2011-11-19T09:53:00.000Z

Check out the new Telling the Bees EPK (Electronic Press Kit).

Duotone launch Oxford

2011-10-16T11:59:00.008+01:00

Here's some photos from last night's extraordinary Duotone album launch gig in Oxford (I've got the album on repeat play and it is incredible). Not a TtB gig, but we all played in various other combinations: Colin Fletcher & Jane Griffiths, Wod, and Jane playing with Barney in his string section, the Quintones.

Nomi McLeod performed her stunning aerial show, Owl, to a specially written string piece by Barney. Here she is in the run through.

Here's Colin and Jane during their sound check. Shhh, don't tell anyone, but after eleven years and not a little cajoling from the rest of us, they've finally recorded an album. Think it'll only be availabe at gigs for the time being but I can assure you it's stunning.

Backstage before the gig.

Poet and MC Alan Buckley getting his glad rags on.

What's that you say? Looks like an amazing gig? Well, you can come and see Telling the Bees supporting Duotone this thursday 20th October at Bridport Electric Palace. Details on our website.

We went to Glastonbury, yes we did

2011-10-12T15:27:00.005+01:00

Here's some photos of our trip to play Glastonbury Assembly Rooms. One full car (and that's before the double bass):

Colin looking scary before we went off to rehearse at Factory Studios in Bristol...teacher, leave them kids alone!

Jane, loving having her photo taken (no. 1):

Jane, loving having her photo taken (no. 2) just before the gig:

Monsieur Centime...

Gentlemen prefer hats...

Ready to roll:

The Wytham Harvest

2011-08-29T11:21:00.001+01:00

Our next gig, coming up fast!

Telling the Bees in Bath!

2011-08-04T23:44:00.001+01:00

Telling the Bees will be playing at the legendary Bell pub, Walcot Street, Bath, on Sunday 14th August, from 1pm, as part of the Bath Folk Festival. It's free (donations to magic hat) and last time we played there it was a truly folkgasmic experience for all concerned (we've got the tapes to prove it).

And it'll be a chance to see our spanking new, groovetastic, five piece line-up.

Do come down and add your vibes to what promises to be a most convivial afternoon of post-folk strangery.

The Worship of Trees

2011-06-23T15:21:00.003+01:00

It's always a pleasure to see people in the audience singing along to your songs but now we've had our first cover. Seems like The Worship of Trees has become something of a favourite amongst modern day Druids, as you can see from this recent video, performed by Damh the Bard and friends to a very appreciative crowd. Enjoy!

New line-up

2011-05-14T14:02:00.003+01:00

Well, it's all change in this activated city (as the mighty Hawkwind used to say), and more changes are afoot here in the hive. We're delighted to announce that not only have we been joined by Mr Barney Morse Brown on cello (see previous post), but just this week Jim Penny (currently playing with Andy and Jane in sister-project, Wod) has stepped in to fill the hitherto unnoticed hexagonal-shaped, and indeed concertina-sized hole, in the Bees' sound.

We've only had one rehearsal as a five-piece, but the magic is there and we're all most excited. So, here, as an appetite-whetter, are two recordings made at that rehearsal. They were done with two mics placed in the centre of the room, so you get to hear everything from foot-taps, to string-slaps, to the occasional cheeky remark. The sonically-curious might like to know that the reason why my voice occasionally lurches from left to right is that the mics were arranged in a classic X-Y formation, and are consequently respond rather oddly to my usual bodily gyrations. Good. I'm glad we sorted that out.

Beautiful-rehearsal-demo by andyletcher

Wood-rehearsal-demo by andyletcher

News, gigs and ting

2011-04-12T13:41:00.004+01:00

Things have been a bit quiet, here at Telling the Bees HQ, but the warm spring sunshine is waking us up from our winter torpor and we're ready to take flight again.

So the big and wonderful news is that in the wee hours of yesterday morning, Josie gave birth to Rueben, her second son. Mother and baby are doing well and I'm sure you'll join us in wishing them both well.

This means, of course, that Jos won't be playing with us for some time to come, but we're delighted to announce that Mr Barney Morse-Brown, he of Duotone and Imagined Village fame, has stepped into the breach and will be playing with us this summer. It's gonna be tasty.

Our first gig of the season is tomorrow, at Lougborough University (tickets still available). Then we will be playing friday night, May 20th, at Wood festival and on Sunday August 14th at the Bell, Bath, as part of the Bath Folk Festival.

Not many gigs, I know, but in this alien world of promoters and publicity and managers, getting gigs as an independent band can be a thankless task, especially if what you do is slightly different and can't easily be slotted into tidy categories. So if you'd like us to play at an event near you or think that there's a festival where we'd be welcomed, then do please let us know, or even better, badger the organisers. It makes all the difference, believe me.

Meanwhile, do check out mine and Jane's side project, Wod, a trio for Brythonic dance, on pipes, concertina and fiddle.

It's truly heartening to see that people are checking in here from countries across the world, are sharing our music and getting where we are coming from. Thank you for all your support. We'll keep posting news and stuff here when we have it, but for more up to date info on what's happening in the Bee-related universe, do check out Andy's blog.

Cheerio for now xxx

Andy's blog

2011-02-03T15:30:00.002Z

Andy has just given his blog a facelift - do check it out for musings on music, bagpipes, tune-writing, paganism, shamanism, psychedelics and more.

English & Welsh Diaspora

2010-11-17T12:44:00.004Z

We've just been booked to play at what looks like is going to be a fascinating conference in April 2011. The English Welsh Diaspora conference, held in Loughborough, will be of interest to folkies, pagans and anyone interested in the perennial themes of Englishness, Welshness, landscape and memory. The ever wonderful Ronald Hutton is one of the key speakers, and other performers include Ceri Matthews, Chris Wood and Hugh Lupton. Miss it if you dare!

Not Playing

2010-11-04T20:03:00.001Z

Alas we won't now be playing at Cabaret Clandestino this saturday as Andy is ill with shingles. Sorry to disappoint! xxx

Wedding

2010-10-09T11:51:00.001+01:00

One reason why things have been a bit quiet of late, here at the Hive, is that I've been busy getting married. It was a gorgeous day, all heart, or, as one friend put it, a 'candlepowered wedding.' I wasn't expecting to play but the Bees insisted and so here we are, playing Uncle Tom and Aunt Sally as part of the mini-Catweazle we held in the evening.

With so many musicians present there were spontaneous sessions happening through the day (the observant acid-folk fan will spot old friend, Sharron Kraus).

And gor blimey, if that isn't Rima Staines bashing out a tune on the old squeeze box, with Huff and Puff, and Jackie Singer from Jabberwocky days.

A quick An Dro in the corridor with Jane, Chris, also from Jabberwocky, and Jim of Red Dog Green Dog fame.

And here I am with the misses, the wonderful Nomi, cats that got the cream - a gorgeous happy day.

All photos by Kate Raworth and her team.
Andy xxx

The Amazing Race

2010-10-07T19:21:00.000+01:00

If you look very carefully you can see Andy playing pipes at 3.25. Watermelon's revenge at 6ish. No one in the UK has heard of this show - think reality, international, It's a Knockout. Without Stuart Hall, Eddy Waring or the Joker.

This is the Kit

2010-10-06T10:01:00.000+01:00

A rare chance to see the wonderful This is the Kit here in Oxford, with our very own Josie Webber in support playing with the equally wonderful, mesmeric and mercurial Zoe Bicat. If that's not enough they'll be joined by Duotone, featuring the looped guitar and cello of Mr Barney Morse-Brown.

Sheffield gig

2010-10-05T12:27:00.000+01:00

We're going oop north me doocks, for an alternative harvest supper at a pub I used to go to back in my student days. Gonna be a cracker.

Restore Gig

2010-10-05T12:09:00.000+01:00

Restore is holding a benefit gig in the Garden Cafe on Wednesday 13th October 2010, 8pm.
Telling the Bees, Mariana Magnavita and Simon Tuke will be playing.

Tickets are £6 (£5 concessions) and will be available at the Garden Cafe beforehand and on the door.
Delicious cafe food will be on sale. For more info go to www.restore.org.uk/cafe.

Please pass this on to friends. We hope to see you there!

Sold out!

2010-10-04T23:17:00.000+01:00

After much rummaging in attics, garage lock-ups, and spare cupboards it seems that we really are out of Untie the Winds. Tempting as it is to limit numbers to the original pressing of 1000 (scarcity breeds demand and all that) and so create a rare acid folk collectable, we ain't that cynical. So we're working on getting a reprint done, and if you're after a copy of our debut album, sit tight, hang in there. It'll be ready soon.

Kerfuffle

2010-09-13T18:15:00.000+01:00

Andy did a guest spot with young folk superstars, Kerfuffle, at the Shrewsbury Folk Festival. You can watch them here:

Watching you

2010-09-08T10:43:00.000+01:00

One of the weird things about being in a band is that outside of gigs you have absolutely no idea who is listening to your music. I mean, we send CDs off around the world, but what happens to them then?

Yesterday I installed a statistics tracker on this blog, really to give us an idea of who, if anyone comes to visit: the blogosphere can feel lonely, like casting bottled messages out into the ocean. As the great Pink Floyd once put it, 'is there anybody out there?'

Now I admit that the amount of info actually tracked is a bit creepy, but it's fascinating to know that in the last 24 hours we've had visits from Milton Keynes, Vienna and California (hello!). It's oddly comforting to know that you are reading this, that our music is getting out there, reaching the people who want to hear it.

So thanks for dropping by. I'll do my best to keep posting.

Andy xxx

Wheatsheaf Gig 20th September

2010-09-07T17:25:00.001+01:00

Monday 20th Sept @ The Wheatsheaf, Oxford

Pindrop Performances Presents:

Eric Chenaux (Constellation Records virtuoso guitarist and song writer)
Telling The Bees (Oxfordian drone folk ensemble)
Dead Rat Orchestra (experimental weird folk)
Braindead Collective (improvised soundscaping, touring new album Smoke & Mirrors)

Ticket link £6 adv (£7 on the door)
http://www.wegottickets.com/event/90711

Eric Chenaux is one of Toronto's most prolific and respected musical iconoclasts, an experimental guitar virtuoso with over two decades of dedicated and diverse service to an artistic community that encompasses postpunk, lo-fi, folk, multi-media composition and performance (chiefly in collaboration with modern dance) and free and improvised music. Warm Weather With Ryan Driver is Eric's third album for Constellation, which has been the conduit for his primary song-oriented solo work since 2006. Building on his fruitful collaboration with piano/synth/melodica player Ryan Driver – whose key role on the new album is signaled by his inclusion in its very title - the new record is without doubt Chenaux's most accomplished and focused work of forward-looking, contemporary balladry.

Plus weird folk outfit Dead Rat Orchestra, Oxford based drone roots ensemble Telling The Bees and experimental improv band Braindead Collective, touring new album Smoke & Mirrors.

Bee Day at Barracks Lane

2010-07-01T09:26:00.000+01:00

Our next gig is coming up soon, a Bee Day at Barracks Lane Community Garden. Should be sweet (arf).

July 10th 2010
BEE DAY AT THE GARDEN - and a SPECIAL EVENING OF MUSIC AND STORIES
After a day of honey tasting, bee keeping workshops and kids activities, (11 am untiil 5) the garden will be hosting what promises to be a delicious evening featuring

6:30pm-8pm
What the Bee Knows - suitable for adults and young people aged 10 or over. not suitable for younger chidlren
Well known story teller Eric Maddern with his provocative look at the roots of our current global crisis, threaded around the story of the bee.
8:30pm: our favourite band, Telling the Bees, will perform songs inspired by folklore, Engish landscape and the politics of protest.

£7/£5. Advanced booking advised, email: barrackslanegarden@yahoo.co.uk or call 01865 236 088.

Cellar photos

2010-06-22T22:48:00.000+01:00

Some great photos of our Cellar gig, c/o the wonderful Kate Raworth, here.

Meanwhile, Andy and Jos are off to Glastonbury - expect to see them jamming somewhere in a Green Field cafe...

Radio 4

2010-06-10T08:40:00.000+01:00

We're gonna be on the radio next week! The programme is called 'Open Mic Night - No Electrickery Required', about Oxford's legenadry Catweazle Club, and we were interviewed for it as that's where we all met.

Programme goes out on tuesday 15th June at 11pm, Radio 4, and will be available on iPlayer for a week afterwards.

Next gig!

2010-06-08T10:13:00.000+01:00

Brickwork Lizards + Telling the Bees + Matt Sage. The Cellar Bar, Oxford, Friday June 18th, 8pm, £5.

Eclectic mix of hip hop, north African and Arabic folk, blues and jazz from Brickwork Lizards, plus dark, psychedelia-tinged English folk from recent Oxford Punt stars Telling The Bees. 60s pop and world sounds from Matt Sage in support. Followed by Fresh Out The Box, with resident DJs playing house, garage and electro.

See you there chaps!

Skep Bees

2010-05-26T11:27:00.000+01:00

I spent a very enjoyable day with Chris Parks of Acorn Education last weekend. Chris teaches prehistoric technology and builds Iron Age roundhouses. As you do.

We started with a bit of wattling, then in the afternoon helped him with his bees. He keeps some of them in skeps, as was the old way. The cluster of bees on the outside meant that they were getting ready to swarm. By tapping the old skep we encouraged the swarm to crawl up into their new home.

I risked getting stung and slipped the camera into the new skep. The bees hung together in bridges, selflessly providing their fellow citizens with a way into the new hive. Bees were everywhere, the sound overwhelming and more than a little scary.

I wasn't prepared for the sheer force of the bees. They weren't aggressive, just ferocious. We didn't 'tell' them, but Chris sang to them. It was all rather magical.

Andy xxx

Oxford Punt

2010-05-12T14:46:00.000+01:00

Don't forget the Oxford Punt tonight. We're on at the Malmaison Hotel, 9.15pm. See you down there xxx

Fithfath video

2010-05-10T09:33:00.001+01:00

Here we are playing Fithfath at Oxford's legendary Catweazle Club, just before the Folk Festival...

Website back online

2010-05-05T14:02:00.001+01:00

In all the excitement of May I, erm, forgot to renew our web hosting. Yup, we are a fallible cottage industry alright.

Anyway, sorry if you've been trying to find our website. We are now back online.

Andy xxx

Oxford Folk Festival photos

2010-05-02T19:47:00.000+01:00

Here are some photos of our Oxford Folk Festival gig taken by my soon to be sister-in-law, the marvellous Maddy Mcleod. Rather good, are they not?

A Merry May Morning

2010-05-02T12:12:00.000+01:00

We were all out in force yesterday morning, celebrating the return of summer on Oxford's streets. We were part of a bigger street band that Andy organises, The Whirly Band, formed just for this occasion, playing on the Bodleian Steps at 6am to the assembled crowds. Rude, rumbustious and revellious. Happy May one and all!

Folk festival review

2010-04-27T10:03:00.001+01:00

There's a lovely feature about the Oxford Folk Festival here. We appear at 50mins, with more to come next week.

Gorgeous xxx

Next gig!

2010-04-27T09:31:00.000+01:00

An election night special:

Telling the Bees + Faceometer @ Baby Simple, Cowley Road, Oxford. 8pm, £4.

Go on, vote for us!!

Folk Festival

2010-04-16T11:52:00.001+01:00

And now, getting ready for the Oxford Folk festival gig tonight. Sorry if you ain't got a ticket - friday main stage is proper sold out. Hope to see you there xxx

Catweazle tonight

2010-04-15T16:21:00.000+01:00

We're pumped and primed and ready to play Catweazle (Oxford) tonight. Maybe see you down there for our Folk Festival warm up.

Luvverly xxxx

Spiral Earth Interview

2010-03-11T19:51:00.001Z

A few months ago, those lovely chaps from Spiral Earth came up to Oxford and filmed a video interview with us. You can see the results here, a small insight into how we work together as a band!

And just so everything is clear, the baby ain't mine!

Andy xxx

Ptolemaic Terrascope

2010-02-03T09:30:00.000Z

Just picked up this review from the Wonderful Ptolemaic Terrascope...

Rock and Reel

2010-01-27T16:13:00.001Z

There's a lovely, half-page feature on us in the latest R2 (Rock and Reel) magzine.

We're on facebook

2010-01-15T15:22:00.001Z

I've finally got around to setting us up a facebook page - follow the link and become a fan!

And don't forget to vote for us in the Spiral Earth Awards!

Andy xxx

BBC Session video

2010-01-10T11:52:00.000Z

Here we are...as ever it took ages to get us set up so we did this in one take - but looks OK, I reckon...

BBC Oxford Telling the Bees

BBC Session

2010-01-08T12:42:00.000Z

Weather permitting, we're in the studio tomorrow recording a session for BBC Radio Oxford. We're gonna do two tracks plus an interview, which will go out tomorrow evening (Saturday 9th) between 6 and 7pm on the BBC Introducing show. There'll also be a video online.

Meanwhile, I hope you're enjoying the snow. I'm as excited as a six year old xxx

Poll, Interview & Stuff

2009-12-17T16:08:00.000Z

I've developed a new compulsion which is obsessively to check the results of the Spiral Earth poll (what? you mean you haven't voted for us yet?) every five minutes - and the close is not till February. That's a long time to bite my nails. Seriously though, as the least known of all the bands, and the only band without any PR, management or distribution deals behind us, we are, realistically, the underdogs. Still, last time I checked - ooh, a few minutes ago - we weren't coming last, and I consider that an achievement!

Apologies to anyone who has ordered the CD lately and not yet received it. Our warehouse operatives are working night and day to process your orders - that's Josie, in other words, and the poor woman has not only got a babba to contend with but has also just moved house too. So we'll get them in the post just as soon as we can but please be patient. We're (literally now) a cottage industry, not Amazon.

And finally you can read an interview with me, Andy, here. Enjoy!

Vote for the Bees!

2009-12-14T13:57:00.000Z

Dear Bee-friends,

We're delighted to announce that the new Telling the Bees album, An English Arcanum, has been nominated for Best Folk Album of the Year 2010 in the prestigious Spiral Earth Awards!

The winner will be decided by public vote and as we're up against the likes of Jon Boden and Show of Hands we're urging, you, our fans to take a minute to vote for us here:

Vote for Telling the Bees!

The deadline is 12th February 2010.

You can help in other ways too, by:

*telling your friends
*spreading the word on email lists, forums and blogs
*using facebook, twitter and myspace to create a buzz

We're naturally chuffed to bits to have been nominated and very grateful to you, our fans, for your help and support. Thanking you muchly in advance!!

Telling the Bees xxx

Isis Gig this Saturday!

2009-12-02T09:57:00.000Z

Details just in for our gig, this coming Saturday 5th, down at the Isis Tavern.

Xmas at the Isis

Teliing the Bees + Blakes III

7.30-1.30pm £8 advance, £10 on the door. Tickets from wegottickets or the Isis.

Launch & Isis

2009-11-28T10:21:00.000Z

A big thank you to everyone who came to our CD launch last night. Always a treat to play in the Holywell, to see so many friendly faces and to hear people singing along. Thanks for making it a special event.

I'm currently suffering myspace issues (my ratchety old mac can't access it anymore) so haven't been able to update our gig list.

But we're playing at the Isis pub this coming Saturday 5th December. I think tickets are £7/6 but that's pretty much all the info I have (don't even know who else is playing). But do come down. It'll be a corker.

Andy xxx

4 Star Review from Spiral Earth

2009-11-25T20:01:00.000Z

This review just in from Spiral Earth. We is happy!

Kit Williams documentary

2009-11-25T19:57:00.000Z

The Kit Williams documentary, The Man Behind the Masquerade, will be shown on BBC4 on Dec 2nd at 9.00pm. I don't think I made the final cut, though you get to see (ahem!) lots of Nomi, who guests on backing vocals on 'An English Arcanum'. Not to be missed.

Album launch!

2009-11-24T11:51:00.000Z

Tickets are selling fast for our album launch, this coming friday 27th November, at the Queen of Clubs cabaret, Holywell Music Rooms, Oxford. Get yours quick from Wegottickets.

Excited? You bet.

Glastonbury tonight

2009-11-17T11:14:00.000Z

We're getting excited about playing Glastonbury again tonight - always a great vibe. Do come down if you're in the hood.

Nightshift Review

2009-11-10T14:56:00.001Z

Got the following review in Oxford's long-running music zine, Nightshift.

Last time Telling the Bees sent us an album to
review, they were thoughtful enough to enclose a
false beard for us to wear while listening, worried
that they might be too beardy for us. Not that
they should have been overly concerned. We’ve
long been enthralled by Oxfordshire’s rich folk
music scene, particularly those acts, like Telling
The Bees and Sharron Kraus, who come steeped
in the earthy pagan traditions of English folk
with its gothic storytelling and darkly
psychedelic edge.
Telling The Bees are made up of four local folk
scene stalwarts: singer and multi-instrumentalist
Andy Letcher, bassist and guitarist Colin
Fletcher and string players Jane Griffiths and
Josie Webber. They take their band name from
the ancient custom of telling the family beehive
of any notable goings-on lest they get upset and
fly away and, as you’d expect, they’re in that
solid tradition of native folk that has passed
from minstrels into the modern age via Fairport
Convention and more recently singers such as
Seth Lakeman and Kris Drever. In fact one of
‘An English Arcanum”s highlights, the rousing
‘Otmoor Forever’, echoes Drever’s
interpretation of Boo Herwerdine’s ‘Harvest
Gypsies’, with its tale of displaced working men.
Equally, there is a tendency to romanticise a
transient lifestyle, as on the sorrowful love
ballad that is ‘Playing At Gypsies’, but while
some might balk at the rustic storytelling style,
Letcher’s warm, rich voice is as welcoming and
captivating as a roaring hearth in a country inn.
Here he’s superbly backed up by Griffiths’ and
Webber’s sumptuous string arrangements which,
while playing safer than they did on the band’s
debut, ‘Untie The Wind’, add texture and
atmosphere to the songs. Never more so than on
this album’s high point, the closing ‘Apple’,
where they circle ominously round an haunting
lament that would sit well on the best of
Fairport’s catalogue.
Amid the songs there are a handful of
instrumental tracks here to fill out the album,
played on border pipes or fiddle and guitar and
given weight by Webber’s harsh cello thrum, and
it’s an album that rewards repeated visits, much
like a favoured country inn. Sup long and
heartily, good friends.

Dale Kattack

Website update

2009-11-10T14:53:00.000Z

Hiya,

Rima has been busy updating the Telling the Bees website. The new album is being released on November 26th and we're hoping that it will be available from CDBaby by then - if it ain't, please be patient and keep trying!

A x

Common Dance

2009-11-02T13:49:00.000Z

Here's a couple of links to the show, Common Dance, I was involved with last week. It was as beautiful and as inspiring as it looks:

Photos

Guardian podcast

Andy xxx

Sideways through Sound

2009-11-02T12:51:00.001Z

Hello Peeps,

The new album is going to featured on the ever wonderful Sideways Through Sound radio show, broadcast in Australia. Here's the details:

"You will be on the Sideways Through Sound radio show next week, that’s Wednesday 4th November, so shout it from the rooftops!! Tell your friends, post it on your website or MySpace site, Facebook, Twitter, blog it, text it... etc etc etc...

You can listen at 107.3FM (in Sydney) or stream at: www.2ser.com/stream, at 9PM (21:00) hours, Sydney, Australia time.

The show will also be available as a free download to you after transmission only from the Sideways Through Sound website."

Common Dance

2009-10-26T10:18:00.000Z

Andy is appearing this weekend in Common Dance, a piece by choreographer Rosemary Lee, at Greenwich Dance Agency. He plays the part of a piper, mysteriously calling in the different parts of the piece (so no change there). Tickets are selling fast, so act swiftly if you're interested.

The New Album!

2009-09-16T12:12:00.000+01:00

We're happy to announce that the new album is finished and will be released on November 26th (available from our website, CD Baby, and the usual download outlets). It's called An English Arcanum and contains eleven original track of darkly crafted folk. We're pretty chuffed with it, I have to say.

It comes packaged with some stunning artwork by the wonderful Rima Staines, and to whet your appetite, here's the front cover. We'll keep you posted about gigs etc, though as you know, we're lying low while Josie adjusts to being a mother!

More soon,

Andy xxx

Shindig Magazine

2009-09-03T08:48:00.000+01:00

Lovers of all things psych, prog, esoteric, wyrrd and folky could do worse than check out Shindig Magazine, available in all good shops etc etc. I love their dedication to a musical cause that I thought had long been crushed beneath the wheels of a bland, coke-driven, narcissistic music-industry juggernaut. There's a fantastic cover-mount CD of current groovster bands and and article about medieval psych-pixies, Circulus (with the band photo to end all band photos) plus lots lots more.

Check it out - join the Shindig revolution!

Andy xxx

Spank Review

2009-09-03T08:44:00.000+01:00

This review of Untie the Wind just in from the good folk at Heathen Harvest - not sure about the Beatles comparison, but we're happy someone really gets it.

BTW, we're in the studio today, mastering the new album. Expect an announcement soon. Excited? Damn right we are.

Andy xxx

Rima and Tui

2009-09-01T11:48:00.000+01:00

Like many people out there, I think I suffer from a kind of temporal disphoria, the feeling that I belong in another time. Well, there are a few delights to being in the modern world, one of which is the interweb, without which we would never have found Rima Staines, the wonderful artist who designed the cover for Untie the Wind. Believe it or not, during that entire collaboration we never physically met. I found Rima, by accident, on myspace, and we did everything by phone and email. Such is the modern world.

But just this week, while on my summer holiday ramblings through the SW, I caught up with Rima, and her fella, Tui, in a sheep field not far from Chagford. Tui is an artist in his own right, making exquisitely crafted music on his laptop, under the name Orla Wren. They live in a beautifully converted, magic truck, all filled with puppets and clocks and feathers and stones and things. It's like sitting in a fairy tale. We drank tea, ate copious biscuits and chatted for hours about art and music and lifestyles and, you know, this and that. Very hard to leave and come back to the city (how DO we put up with street lights that turn the sky the colour of Mars?).

Both Rima and Tui, being the peripatetic hermits that they are, are notoriously camera-shy, but I managed to catch a shot of them in their delightful home, which manages to solve the dilemma of how to belong in the here and now, when all the while you'd rather be back then...

Oh, and did we say? Rima is currently working on the artwork for the new Bees album...

Andy xxx

Kit Williams and the Golden Hare

2009-08-21T10:03:00.000+01:00

Like many people of my generation, I've been a long-term fan of the artist Kit Williams, ever since his treasure hunt, Masquerade. I've spent many happy hours gazing at his pictures (published in The Bee on the Comb, Out of One Eye and Engines of Ingenuity). His work is delightfully English, pastoral but with a dark puckish streak running through it. Always there is the sense of a riddle or a secret, just out of reach, that, if only one had the key, would unravel marvellously.

Well, last summer I was lucky enough to meet Kit Williams and to view his current collection. To cut a long story short, my partner ended up modelling for him, and we were both invited to take part in the forthcoming BBC 4 documentary, The Man Behind Masquerade. Here are some photos to give you an idea of what to expect!

We were also lucky enough to have been invited to the preview of his retrospective in London, which, in true Kit Williams style, lasted just one day. I must confess that it was rather full of London arty types - not grubby folkies at all - and we were just on the point of leaving when, lo and behold, a plinth was wheeled in, on top of which was a perspex box, covered in a cloth.

Surely, no? We looked at each other in amazement, hardly daring to speak.

And then, yes! There it was! The Masquerade Golden Hare! It's whereabouts have been unknown for the last twenty years since it was bought by an anomymous buyer. Quite quite extraordinary to see it, something I've dreamed about since I was a child. And, quite possibly, the only time it will be put on public view. I feel very blessed.

And, here's a conincidence, the opening track of the forthcoming Bees album is called, Saddle the Hare, which is partly inspired by one of the pictures in Masquerade. Nice how things turn out.

Andy xxx

Bees News

2009-07-29T17:05:00.000+01:00

Dear Bee Friends, here's the latest news from Hive central:

1) New album to be released in mid-November
As you probably know by now we are taking some time off from gigging so that Josie can have her baby (who is due to put in an appearance sometime soon!). However, when they've all had time to land we'll be back in November with a new album! We've just been mixing it and are very pleased with the results - eleven tracks of darkly crafted folk, continuing from where 'Untie the Wind' left off. Watch this space for details of the title and track listing, and a sneak preview of the album cover.

2) Your help needed in viral marketing
(No - nothing to do with swine flu...) We're currently taking bookings for 2010 and we're asking our fans for help in promoting us! We have a wish list of festivals we'd like to play next year (including Bearded Theory, Moseley, Green Man, Glastonbury, Secret Garden, Beautiful Days, Shrewsbury etc etc). Many of them have internet forums or places where fans can suggest bands they ought to book. So what we're asking is, if there's somewhere you'd like us play, maybe you could set up a thread on just such a forum, or drop the organiser an email, or even just blog a review of our album or our live gig - anything really to generate a 'buzz' (aaarrgghh - dreadful word, dreadful pun, but you know what we mean). The more chatter there is, the less likely we are to have our promos chucked in the bin with a 'Telling the who?'. Any help is very appreciated (it's the fans what duzz it) so thank you in advance.

Catch you in the autumn!

Telling the Bees xxx

Big Green Gathering Cancelled

2009-07-28T07:53:00.000+01:00

As you probably know by now, the Big Green Gathering has been cancelled due to intolerable pressure from police and the local council. Word is that this was a concerted attempt by the authorities to break the festival - read more here and here.

Whatever the reasons, I'm pretty pissed off. The Big Green is an unmovable feast in my calendar - a chance to hook up with activists, radical free-thinkers, green techno-shamans, artists and tribedelic musicians - the whole delightful, inspiringly ramshackle Green circus. My summer holiday too.

Doubtless the festival will be bankrupted by this. One can't help wondering if there was a long term strategy at work here - legalise the free festivals but gradually strangle them with bureaucracy. Soon the only festivals will be corporate brand fests. It stinks.

Andy xxx

Radio 4 Play

2009-07-25T09:23:00.000+01:00

I'm quite sure it has nothing whatsoever to do with us, but next Friday, 31st July, at 2.15pm Radio 4 are broadcasting a play called 'Telling the Bees.'

Afternoon plays range from the quite good to the truly dreadful but it'll be interesting to see how a playwright tackles the folklore. If, like me, you're gonna be at the Big Green Gathering, you can listen again online for a week.

Andy xxx

New Bee needed!

2009-05-28T17:42:00.001+01:00

As some of you may know, Josie is expecting a baby in August. We're looking for someone to dep for her over the next six to twelve months, for the gigs she can't do. We're not necessarily looking for a cellist, but you should play a mid-low range instrument - accordion, for example, but try us. If you play more than one instrument, so much the better.

So: if you get what we do; can play with sensitivity and groove; can commit to rehearsing regularly; are prepared to travel to gigs (some of them even paid!); and ideally live near Oxford, then we'd love to hear from you.

Get in touch and send us an mp3 or a link to where we can hear you play.

Look forward to hearing from you,

Telling the Bees xxx

Hurdy-gurdy festival

2009-05-11T17:43:00.001+01:00

Andy will be playing with gurdy maestro, Cliff Stapleton, at the one and only Hurdy-Gurdy festival this weekend, in Youlgrave, Derbyshire.

If you're passing or want to know more about this wonderful instrument, then do pop in.

More May Morn

2009-05-05T08:55:00.001+01:00

May Morning 2009

2009-05-04T11:52:00.000+01:00

As is now traditional, we were out with the Whirly Band, a scratch band of all-comers, playing on the streets of Oxford at 6am to celebrate the coming of spring. In case you missed it, see Bill's video here:

Videos

2009-04-20T21:47:00.000+01:00

We've had these here videos done, shot during our recent Rotunda gig. By a stroke of coincidence, all the tracks are from the new album - a sneak preview in other words. Enjoy x

Oxford Recording

2009-04-09T09:50:00.001+01:00

Last day recording today in this particular session. All songs are now down, ready for the creative stuff, fairy dust and overdubs. Last night we did the final song of the album, the full moon shining in through the window. Quite magical.

And here are some photos of what we've been up to.

Back in the Rotunda!

2009-04-08T09:59:00.000+01:00

After the success of our Rotunda gig the other week we're chuffed to bits to going back there on May 2nd. This time we are supporting local poet, Alan Buckley, who will be launching his first collection, Shiver, published by Tall Lighthouse. Believe me when I tell you that blood has been sweated over these poems - he's very good indeed.

There'll be performances by the Kate Garrett band, and two other top quality local poets, George Roberts and Joe Butler. Stephen Hancock will MC. Promises to be a corker.

Rima

2009-04-08T09:50:00.000+01:00

We thought you also might like to know that Rima is on board to do the artwork for the next album. Even now her pencils are twitching and ideas starting to gel...

Oh, you want to know what the album will be called? Well you'll just have to wait now, won't you...

Recording!

2009-04-08T09:40:00.000+01:00

We're back in the recording studio this week, this time decamped to a friend's house in Oxford while they are on their hols. We can announce that there will be 11 tracks on the album - so far we've recorded ten of them, we're doing the last today. Then there's overdubs, mixing and mastering - all of which take an age but are the fun bit, without the tension and release of getting a good take. But the process has gone really well and we're sure you'll like the results. So here, to tantalise you, is a screen dump of one of the songs - can you work out how it will sound...?

BTW - the DAW software we use is called Ardour. You won't read about it in the music tech mags because it is open source which means it is entirely FREE - it is supported by Mac OSX and Linux. It does everything you'd expect of Pro Tools, Logic etc, and latest version supports MIDI and VST. And Colin is now a listed developer too. How cool is that?

The Mulberry Tree

2009-03-17T14:01:00.000Z

Everything is gearing up nicely for this weekend's Oxford Folk Festival - we're playing on Saturday night on the Cornbury Stage at 7.55pm, directly before Kris Drever. More info here.

But we thought we'd tell you about a gig coming up on March 27th. At present you'll only be able to get tickets on the door, so do come early to avoid disappointment. Here's the blurb:

The Mulberry Tree presents:

An Evening of 100% Acoustic Excellence in the delightful venue of The Rotunda, 44 Iffley Turn, Oxford, 8pm Friday March 27th, £7/5

Featuring:

Telling the Bees
Darkly crafted lyrics underpinned by driving mandolin, cinematic strings and haunting English bagpipes. Inspired by English folklore and the politics of protest, their music evokes an England of rustic charm and savage beauty. TtB recently supported Jon Boden & The Remnant Kings and will perform at the Oxford Folk Festival.

This is the Kit
A rare chance to see this fabulous Paris-based band, featuring singer-songwriter, Kate Stables, and multi-instrumentalist Jesse Vernon (Moonflowers, Morning Star). Their debut album, Krulle Bol, produced by John Parish, is a work of beauty, featuring the classic 'Two Wooden Spoons' and 'Birchwood Beaker'. Not to be missed.

Branch Immersion
A new-comer to the acoustic scene, Branch Immersion combine dextrous guitar picking with fierce lyrics and a political bent. In the tradition of Drake, Renbourn and Jansch, their artful music will draw you in.

Bring your own booze and a cushion to sit on. Decor by Groovy Su - chai will be served. The first happening of the year!

www.grovehouse.info
www.myspace.com/branchimmersion
www.myspace.com/thisisthekit

Tickets selling fast!

2009-03-05T16:31:00.000Z

If you were thinking of coming to our Jericho Tavern gig this coming Saturday, March 7th, supporting Jon Boden and the Remnant Kings, then it would be worth buying tickets in advance as they are selling fast. It will probably sell out. We're on at 8.30pm sharp, so get there early to see our full set. Tickets £12 from Wegottickets.

See you there!

Fancy a bit of French?

2009-02-24T11:35:00.001Z

If you're in the Glastonbury area on Saturday March 14th and fancy a bit of French and Breton dancing, Andy will be playing with Cliff Stapleton - edgy trance music on bagpipes and hurdy-gurdy. Maybe see you there!

Last FM

2009-02-12T11:30:00.000Z

We've finally got round to joining Last FM where you can listen to the album in full, love, scrobble and shout to your heart's content xxx

Glastonbury gig confirmed!

2009-02-05T17:38:00.000Z

Our gig in the Glastonbury Assembly Rooms was one of our favourites of 2008, so we're delighted that they've asked us back! Support slots from the golden-tongued Brythonic Bard, Nathan Lewis Williams, and an unplugged Ten Ton Tongue (that's Emma Harper & Becky Forsyth).

Do spread the word and we'll see you there.

Excited about our gig

2009-01-08T15:32:00.000Z

Getting excited now about our gig with The World is Not Flat, a delightful duo who don't get to gig often given what as they are separated by the Atlantic Ocean. Should be a corker of a night down Oxford's legendary Jericho Tavern. See you there!

Spiral Earth's top ten albums

2008-12-24T16:14:00.001Z

Delighted to report that, along with records by The Levellers, Spiers and Boden and Seth Lakeman, our 'Untie the Wind' made it into Spiral Earth's top ten albums of 2008! Read the full line up here.

Meantime, wishing you all a peaceful Christmas. We'll see you in the New Year for more, much more.

Love,

Telling the Bees xxx

Jon Boden support!

2008-12-19T16:31:00.001Z

Happy to announce that we've been booked to support Jon Boden and the Remnant Kings at the Jericho Tavern on Saturday March 7th. Jon will be launching his second solo album, Songs from the Floodplain, which is, I'm told, a concept album of 'deeply resonating folkapocalyptica'. Well, quite. Should be an unmissable night - love to see you there.

Andy xxx

English Acoustic Collective

2008-12-18T11:23:00.000Z

As you may know, Andy was guest tutor on the English Acoustic Collective summer school this year (July 2008). The indefatigable Matt Coatsworth recorded many of the sessions that took place there and is gradually posting them online here. Part of the ethos of the school is to encourage experimentation so these are not polished studio recordings. But they communicate some of the feel and atmosphere of the course, which is nothing if not extraordinary.

Exmoor

2008-12-12T23:17:00.001Z

We had an intense but rewarding week on Exmoor, recording five new songs in total. The old Telling the Bees magic was working and we found new and surprising arrangements arising spontaneously out of the creative furnace.

It's a very wonderful thing to do, to go off to the countryside for a week with no other distractions. We've found a good way of working too - doing live takes until we've found one we're all happy with, then finishing it with the minimum of editing. To maintain that level of concentration is quite demanding, so it's wonderful to be able to walk out of the door and be in inspiring countryside, delightful walks in every direction.

Five songs is very nearly half an album, but don't get too excited just yet as we'll need at least two other recording sessions and a lot of mixing. But suffice it to say that we're well chuffed with what we've done, and can't wait for you to hear it too.

Meanwhile, here are some photos...

Exmoor and beyond

2008-12-04T14:47:00.000Z

We played a cracking gig this week at a new acoustic night here in Oxford, called the Potting Shed. Watch out for more stuff happening there - it's an intimate venue with great acoustics.

Meanwhile we're off to Exmoor again to start work on the next album. Yup, that's right, we're getting it together in the country with a car-load of food, instruments, recording tat and a dog (essential, we think, to the recording process). Untie the Wind took nine months from start to finish but we're hoping that this will be a bit quicker. We'll try and keep you updated on our progress but we may not have internet connection down there. Watch this space!

So they will bring me honey

2008-11-11T17:35:00.000Z

As you may have read in the papers last week, there was a beekeeper's demonstration in London a few days ago protesting at the lack of research being done upon the plight of bees. Bees are suffering from an unknown illness causing the complete collapse of colonies. No bees means no pollination, means no fruit and veg, means no us. Naturally this is a cause that concerns us, as all round lovers of the bees, greatly. You can read more about the demo here.

On a happier note we played a little gigette last night at a poetry reading - Hear the Word - at which we were all given a jar of local honey. Andy, meanwhile, was given this rather lovely book about the Life of the Bee. Lovely gifts, thank you. The keen-eyed among you might be interested in the other books on Andy's shelf...

Bees at the Gardener's

2008-11-06T18:36:00.000Z

Happy to announce that we'll be playing an acoustic set at The Gardener's Arms, Plantation Road, Jericho, Oxford, on December 2nd. Not sure, yet, who else is playing or how much it'll be, but we can tell you that the backroom of the pub is, erm, bijou, so get there early!

Going mad in Dorset

2008-11-06T18:32:00.001Z

As promised, here are the gig details for Andy & Cliff:

Saturday 15th November - French Dance with Cliff Stapleton & Andy Letcher. Hauntingly original music on pipes and hurdy gurdy.

Salway Ash Village Hall (nr Bridport).
Dance class at 7.30pm with Rab Lamb.
Bar, homemade snacks.

Tickets £6 advance (from Fruits of the Earth, Bridport)
or £7 on the door.

Free download!

2008-10-31T16:43:00.000Z

We're happy to announce that from November 1st, and for a three month period only, you'll be able to download our song, Wood, free of charge! The song has been included on the new FATEA showcase bandstand session along with tracks from other up and coming folk bands, known and not so known.

Enjoy and do please spread the word!

Andy xxx

Abbie Lathe

2008-10-31T16:27:00.000Z

We played in the unfamiliar surroundings of Oxford's Jacqueline du Pre building last night, supporting the ever-lovely Abbie Lathe. A short set but an attentive and appreciative audience and a great sound. Colin and Jane had to work hard as they're in Abbie's band too...Thanks to everyone who came and to Abbie for having us.

Andy Letcher & Cliff Stapleton

2008-10-27T21:30:00.001Z

I did a beautiful gig with Cliff Stapleton in the depths of Somerset at the weekend. In this side-project to the Bees we play bagpipes and hurdy-gurdy for French and Breton dancing (bourrees, schottisches, hanter dros, that sort of thing), a dronetastic pairing.

Cliff is an old hand at this having played with Blowzabella back in the early days and more recently with (the much missed) Primaeval. We've written all the tunes between us and we delight in simple tunes, played over and over so the music starts to get trancey. It's what people did before electrickery - organic trance on rasping instruments of hoof and horn. We played for at least two hours and still they were calling for more.

We were playing in someone's house, a converted studio loft, all decorated with greenery and drapes. Here's a photo of us setting up - you'll have to imagine the room full of dancers! We're playing again soon in Dorset - if I can find out where I'll post it up here.

Andy xxx

Glastonbury gig

2008-10-14T08:46:00.000+01:00

Here's some photos from our recent Glastonbury gig. We had a lovely time, great venue, great audience. Nathan runs a very fine acoustic evening with his Fabulous Furry Folk night, so if you're near Glasto we urge you to go.

Abbots Bromley

2008-09-15T10:35:00.000+01:00

Andy went to see the Abbots Bromley horn dance again this year. As ever it was captivating, moving and inspiring. Here's some pics to prove it.

Bellowhead & other tales

2008-09-15T10:27:00.000+01:00

It's been a bit of a quiet summer for the Bees (summer? was there one?) as we've all been lying low or doing other things.

Andy just made his debut with folk supergroup, Bellowhead, standing in on pipes at the BBC Prom in the Park in front of 40,000 people. It was, he says, surreal...He's also playing pipes in a new duo with hurdy-gurdy maestro, Cliff Stapleton (an original member of Blowzabella), playing for French dancing.

Josie is getting ready to record an album with her funk-rock band, The Conscripts.

Meanwhile Colin and Jane, after a well-earned break, are gearing up to tour with Abbie Lathe before then recording an album with Lisa Fitzgibbon.

So it's busy busy.

But fear not, Bee fans. We're getting excited about our gigs in Oxford and Glastonbury (the latter with US folk nightingale, Pamela Wyn Shannon) and are in the process of organizing more.

And - get this - we start work on the next album in late December. Watch this space! So, see you all soon!

Woven wheat whispers

2008-07-18T09:54:00.000+01:00

Woven Wheat Whispers are no more, ground between two stones. So sorry if you've tried to download the album from there. You can still download from CD Baby and, hopefully soon, from iTunes.

But hey, don't you want the actual album so you can see Rima's exquisite artwork?

Four winds

2008-07-18T09:48:00.000+01:00

Well, the summer, of sorts, is with us and having played the last of our current gigs we've been rather scattered to the four winds. Colin and Jane have been away on a long-needed holiday and Jos is about to take hers. Andy, meanwhile, has been on his annual troubadelic trip to St Chartier, the glorious French pipe and gurdy festival. We're in the process of arranging more gigs for the autumn and beyond - if you know somewhere we can play that will at least pay petrol then do get in touch - and there's mutterings about starting work on the new album. Watch this space!

Spiral Earth Review

2008-07-18T09:46:00.000+01:00

Cor blimey, we got this 'ere lovely review from Spiral Earth. Cheers chaps.

The debut album from Telling The Bees who formed in 2007 around the songwriting of Andy Letcher, his songs of 'darkly crafted folkadelia' are brought to life by the assembled talents of Josie Webber, Jane Griffiths and Colin Fletcher. Andy Letcher is the pre-eminent authority on English bagpiping and the magic mushroom, what a combination...

Folkadelia is a gloriously enthralling term, hinting at untold depths with a nod and a wink, beckoning you into a secret world of mystic sensuality, yet it can all fall flat if it fails to deliver the whole experience. You can't unlock the gates without being prepared for the come down when they close, true psychedelia has that element of melancholy that is the flipside to the euphoria. Without that counterbalance it's just a pastiche. Untie The Wind has that chill of winter air blowing across it's beautiful surface that makes it truly resonate on all level's of the heart and soul.

We all get a polaroid moment of an albums sonic profile, for me with this album it's Cello and English Border Bagpipes, they carry that torch of melancholia through the glades and greenwood that make up this album. And it is Wood, in all it's forms, that is a central theme here; whether in the material that willingly gives itself up to become the instruments that make the music we love, or in the rage of a land ravaged by mankind's so called progress. Songs that delve so deep into the Greenwood that they invoke memories of other times held together by customs we have lost.

Telling The Bees have created a heady soundscape of pagan earthiness 'On the footpaths and byways of England you are never alone' (Quietly Raging). Yet it is not an off-with-the-fairies noodling desire for a better place, it has a darker, angry heart, in the past Letcher has put action to words in anti-road protests 'on the motorways and carriageways of England you are always alone'. These are songs that delve very deep, they repay repeated listening.

There are many points of reference within this album, their MySpace list of influences includes Vashti Bunyan, Espers and the wonderful Ozric Tentacles, if there is one influence that stands out for me it's Comus, their shade haunts the deepwood of Untie The Wind; the drone of a deeply bowed cello set against an insistent fiddle conjures an edgy sense of unease that sets the spine a tingling.

Untie The Wind is an album of sensual, powerful songs. It's one of those rare things these days, an album that has many secrets, you can only unlock them if you take the time to really listen and submit yourself to the experience; Turn on, tune out, and listen to the voices of the trees...

Iain Hazlewood

Summer solstice

2008-06-24T14:32:00.001+01:00

As is traditional, Andy was up Windmill Hill (Avebury) for the summer solstice sunrise, hanging out with various hedge-priests, philosophers and Dongas ('Waiting for the Dawn' was written about two previous solstices). Gawd bless the British weather - it was pissing with rain with no sun to be seen at all. In the photos, Donga Steph (of the Mordekkers - with the brolly), Matt Watkins, aka Dr Syntax, with the hat, and Graham Harvey.

Blowout

2008-06-24T14:27:00.000+01:00

When we're not playing with the Bees, each us has a variety of other musical projects on the go. Josie plays with funk rockers, The Conscripts, while Colin and Jane play with just about everyone from Matt Sage to Lisa Fitzgibbon. But here's some video clips of Andy in hardcore bagpipe mode, playing with Becky Price at this year's Blowout festival.

Vashti Bunyan

2008-06-11T11:31:00.000+01:00

Heard a great Radio 4 interview with Vashti Bunyan about her gorgeous album 'Just another diamond day'. You can listen again online for a week, but will need to download BBC iPlayer.

Yurt

2008-06-09T23:32:00.000+01:00

We played a gorgeous gig in the Barracks Lane Community Yurt last night (I think it's a measure of quite how good a community is, whether it has a yurt or not). The line up was The World is Not Flat; Alan Buckley; Joshua Knight and our good selves. The audience were a delight, attentive, appreciative, and good hecklers too. Thanks to Annie for organising and to Kate Raworth for taking these extraordinary photos. More at her website.

Well Wishing

2008-06-06T11:20:00.001+01:00

A good friend of ours, Stephen Hancock, set out on an adventure this Wednesday - three months hitching round the holy, and unholy, sites of Britain. He started with a farewell breakfast at Binsey Well, one of those delightful - dare I say, magical? - corners of Oxford. Binsey was once renowned as a pilgrimage site, Britain's Lourdes. Now it is a bit sad, down at heel. But breakfast in the sun was a lovely way to start the day and to bid Stephen good journeying. Catch up with his (guaranteed-to-be) crazy adventures at his blog.

Download 'Untie the Wind'!

2008-05-31T10:23:00.001+01:00

We're happy to announce that you can now download our debut album, 'Untie the Wind', in high quality mp3 from those purveyors of fine underground folk, Woven Wheat Whispers. And all for a measly six of your English pounds.

Now, that's what we call a bargain!