Pics on Tour

Pictures from our concerts, from others concerts, from moments we want to share
Pics on Tour, Sound & Video

One more crazy night in Ipswich

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It will probably be an habit for us, but every time we play in Ipswich (Suffolk, East Anglia), it has a special taste. This last gig was in the Library, that was opening that night specially for the event (and serving drinks too!)

We had met last June Gwendal Moel, a “local” breton singer and got the brilliant idea to guest him on some “kan ha diskan” (traditional way of singing, with 2 singers), and it was …. beyond any of our expectations, really wild and crazy, and the audience really responded to the music. Really cool and up-lifting night!

We even took the chance to record the song with him on the day after, so that soon, we’ll release another studio version. I’m personally very blessed to have found Gwendal, you can potentially sing with anyone, but in my perception, it is still something a bit “personal”, it creates a connection. It’s a magical feeling to forget it was the first time we were singing together (on stage, we had a couple of rehearsals).

Enjoy this video if you haven’t yet…

§ Simone

Musicians' Diary, Pics on Tour

Greetings from England !

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So, we’ve arrived in England last Friday, and we had an “acoustic rehearsal” in Hadleigh (Suffolk), and, well, it still sounds good! (this video has been posted on Facebook, but you still can access it)

Astrakan Project acoustic 1932 in Hadleigh Folk Club

… and in London, we performed with other bands from Brittany. We’ll soon have some pictures and even some video, and it was nice to see again Urban Kelt lovely team.

Simone Alves & Urban Kelt Bunney
Happy to see Bunney from Urban Kelt again!

We also had the great pleasure to be at BBC Cambridge for a lovely interview with Sue Marchant, you can stream it here until the 11/10/2014 (we appear around 10 minutes at the beginning!)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0273vst

Astrakan Project BBC Cambridge Sue Marchant
Simone & lovely Sue Marchant – you can’t say they don’t seem to have fun!
BBC Cambridge Sue Marchant
Yann & Simone by Sue Marchant

What’s up for today? Yann is practising Irish tunes on this rainy day (well, yes, it’s raining!)

Last but not least… we have our albums. Well, not all of them, the promotional edition only, so we can keep on getting ready for the release…[drum rolls!] … October the 23rd for New Moon! We are very happy with the way the artwork artwork came through the manufacturing process, the quality is really lovely, we definitely made the right factory choice + they are super nice and supportive with us!

Thank you all for your lovely support !

§ Simone

Musicians' Diary, Pics on Tour

Our music through the eyes of an Angel

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What we love about our musician’s life is the amazing people we get to meet. Last July in Portugal we met a very sweet photographer, a lovely person, the kind of person anyone loves at first sight. Only when we came back we realised she was also such a talented photographer…

 

It was breathtaking to discover her amazing work. We had never imagine someone would so powerfully translate our rough music threw pictures. It almost felt like someone had captured our souls and spirit and put it into a picture everyone could see.

Like the idea we have from our music, it’s not sweet or pleasant in the way you would expect it. We’re blessed we can use Maria João Arcanjo’s amazing pictures on next album cover! We can’t wait to see it!

Like her page and find out about her amazing work here: http://www.facebook.com/MariaJoaoArcanjoPhotography (and you may share from there)

PS: copyright Maria João Arcanjo – all rights reserved: None of my images should be reproduced or used,electronically or printed, in its all or partially, without my written consent. NO DOWNLOADS. But you can SHARE them within facebook.

 

 

 

Pics on Tour

Passing along our Music passion to next generation!

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While reviewing some pictures we have on our hard-drive to see if we could use some of them for next album booklet (What? There will be a booklet? Hum…. ), I just got a hand back on a couple of pictures taken last month in Portugal, during a little “atelier” we had been invited to lead for young children.

Those experiences are always very rewarding, children generally don’t have expectations other than having fun. But when it comes to traditional music, it has a very special taste. Traditional musics are people’s music, often unwritten, sometimes with little access to main media such as tv or national radios, they only exist because they are passed along from generation to generation.

In Brittany, children will generally participate to fest-noz (breton ballroom), try to dance, maybe stay for a while at the front row with their little elbows against the stage… although in most of cases just run around and have fun. One thing is for sure, the music they will have heard for years will be their music, it will resonate as being part of who they are forever. Not because it’s a fashion or because it supposed to be “good” music. No. Just because it’s what they have experienced.

§ Simone

PS : if you watch carefully the pictures, you might even guess which one is our little son!

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Pics on Tour, Sound & Video

Back from the Road to Albion Tour #1

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6 days in the UK and 4 gigs, a great time for us! We played in East Anglia (Colchester, Norwich and Ipswich) and then in London, and above all we discovered other ways of touring and organising as a band. In France, we like things to be really organised, planned ahead, whereas in the UK, at least when it comes to organise concerts, people are so much more relaxed! We have to confess… it really fest good! It really felt good to be taken seriously as self-produced band, it really felt good to be able to organise things with short notice, it really felt good to be welcomed and supported by lovely people (including the members of the lovely band Kiss The Mistress).

It was all good!

For the first time…

  • We “rented” a hall in which we organised our own concert (Norwich)
  • We played 3 gigs in a row with the same band as support act (yes!)
  • We took the ferry to play on the same evening (Colchester)
  • We performed with an amazing beautiful bellydancer, Helen! Oh yes…

And if you want even more of this ambiance, our friend Ginette did this short video {enjoy!}

Meeting and performing with Helen was a very powerful experience, a treasure that we’ll keep among our nicest memories.

Did you guess what I’m already busy with? Of course, putting together another UK tour! (and dear reader, if you have any suggestion, a place you know, a venue, a festival, please, let us know, after all we are making it happen together, right?)

§ Simone

Buy Astrakan Project debut album

Pics on Tour

Street colours in Marseille

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What we really love about playing in places we haven’t been before is the unexpected discovery. We love to stay one more day to ramble around, get the ambiance of the place. Since we were playing 2 days in Marseille, we had plenty of time to enjoy the colourful and creative atmosphere of this city (South of France). Paintings and colours everywhere, and Monday was fun since all shops doors were closed – first one is the front door of Equitable Café where we played: