Bees News

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

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

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!

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

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

May Morning 2009

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: