Magic Arm
https://www.facebook.com/magicarmmusic
Magic Arm released Outdoor Games in 2007, a collection of home-recorded songs by singer/songwriter Marc Rigelsford, he recorded the EP himself in his Manchester bedroom. The layered harmonies and lo-fi crafted sound captured the attention of Ed Droste from Grizzly Bear who wrote on his blog:
‘Two Things I Love’ My dog and This new band “Magic Arm” out of the UK. “Incredible music”
Marc claims that he only started making music as Magic Arm in order to help out a film-maker friend who needed some soundtrack music, quick smart. In truth, Magic Arm has spent years painstakingly forging his sound. He plays all the instruments (drums, keyboards, guitars) himself, and has laboriously taught himself how to use Pro-Tools and such, in order to create music that, refreshingly, defies easy categorisation.
“I’m literally trying to write pop music but it never comes out that way. There’s always a dark edge to it.”
After the release of the EP, which received great acclaim from the press, Magic Arm locked himself away to write for four months, and then spent a further six months in the studio to put the finishing touches to ‘Widths and Heights’, and his debut album, Make Lists, Do Something.
“Now and then, a record comes along which you can’t ignore; a record which really does sound like waves of lysergic happiness lapping against your cerebral cortex.” – GUARDIAN GUIDE
Magic Arm went on to win the BBC introducing stage at Glastonbury and was one of a handful of artist chosen to play at SXSW festival 2009.
A series of festival performances, support slots with Grizzly Bear in Hyde Park as part of the serpentine sessions and KOKO, as well as tour slots with fellow loop pedalists Final Fantasy, Beirut and Tune Yards, and Samuel Beam of the much loved Iron & Wine hailed Marc “the master of the loop pedal” and in this lies the secret of Magic Arm’s enthralling live solo performances.
Since 2009, Magic Arm has been recording at home and touring Europe, supporting Camera Obscura on a 6 week European tour followed by two solo tours of his own.
The follow up album Images Rolling was released June 2013, moving away from the more electronic sound of his debut LP, 'Images Rolling' has taken on the natural reverbs of the vast part-derelict three-storey house, coming over as an altogether warmer and more comforting entity. Take infectious opener 'Put Your Collar Up'; classical sounds are thrown off centre by detuned pianos and woozy synths that move with hip hop bounce. Elsewhere 'Warning Sign' recalls the ambience of Mercury Rev's weirdly magical off-kilter daydreams whilst 'Lanes' sweeping strings and the merry-go-round waltz of 'Great Life' give light to Rigelsford's new method of exploration in writing songs on a piano rather than a guitar for the very first time. From entry point to its end 'Images Rolling' is a restless, fearlessly ambitious, yet understated and articulate piece of work. No-one could ever accuse Rigelsford of making music that fits into any pigeon-shaped holes, but with this record he's certainly found a musical home. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.
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