Cwtch

Review of Cwtch

2011-12-20T12:14:00.001Z

Oliver Arditi: News and reviews

Cwtch – Beyond Transgression
Electronica/chill-out
Self released, 2011, DD EP, 26m 10s
Name your price
cwtch.bandcamp.com

"I’m not sure what Marie Craven is sorry about. Without overcoming my innate laziness and conducting a proper analysis of the lyrics, it’s hard to say whether she’s expressing regret, making an apology, or meditating on the nature of transgression. In fact the title is a little ambiguous itself: does it refer to a transcendence of the terms of transgression, or a violation of surpassing seriousness? Either way, bracketing this release with two versions of its title track makes her mournful declaration a key aspect of its meaning, and the structural linchpin of its narrative arc.

And irrespective of all that, let’s be clear: with this EP, she and collaborator Paul Foster have nothing to apologise for. Craven’s undramatic but deeply expressive vocals have a rich physicality that comes both from technique and experience; they are perfectly adapted to the cool, liquid electronic soundscapes of Foster’s production methods. Textures are built up from layers of synth pads and sequences, using sounds that consistently favour the warm and soft over the harsh or distorted, but have been carefully, creatively tweaked in detail, to give them a subtle, very human glitchiness.

‘Beyond Transgression’ has a moderately heavy drum part, and ‘Unhaiku’ (for example) develops a breakbeat after its extended mellow intro, but in neither case does it come off sounding like dance music. You could certainly dance to much of this, and through a big system some of these tracks would be irresistible, but for me the meanings of this music are in its atmospheres, and with its central focus on regret, there is a strong sense of sadness. That it stops short of tragedy is largely down to the optimistic onrush of its beats, that tell us there is a future, and it’s not to be feared. This is a beautiful piece of work."

Beyond Transgression by Cwtch

Beyond Transgression

2011-08-28T01:22:00.000+01:00

New 5-track EP from the longtime duo of electronic musician Paul Foster in Wales and vocalist Marie Craven in Australia.

Vocal trance ambient melodic idm post rock. Echoes of Boards of Canada with a distinctive inflection.

Name your price download (includes free). Made to share...

Beyond Transgression by Cwtch

Olive Walls - single release

2011-01-30T08:16:00.002Z

'Olive Walls' is a new Cwtch single and music video just released. A dark tale of kidnap, isolation and sexual discovery. No, not really, its nice...

Cwtch is the musical duo of Paul Foster (aka Dementio13, music and production) and Marie Craven (aka Pixieguts, vocals). Lyrics on 'Olive Walls' are from a poem by Lynne DeSilva-Johnson.

A dark, atmospheric, lo-fi video to the track...

Cwtch '04:10' is released

2010-10-30T10:59:00.000+01:00

'04:10' is a 6-track, alt-post-trip-rock release by Cwtch, the duo of Pixieguts (Marie Craven, vocals) and Dementio13 (Paul Foster, music and production). Guest collaborators VFSix, Sal Boca, Titee and Reconsiderate join the mix.

Listen/Download

01 Take Me
02 Between Clouds (VFSix Remix)
03 Disembark (Alternative Version)
04 What You Get (Original by Sal Boca)
05 Wanna Play (Paul's Wall Mix)
06 Look Away

Cwtch 'be.ep' is released

2010-01-31T11:33:00.012Z

New 7-track release from the duo of Wales-based music producer Paul Foster (Dementio13) and Australian vocalist Marie Craven (Pixieguts): Cwtch - be.ep. Unique blend of styles from drum n bass to trip-hop, experimental pop and post-rock, with musical references like Squarepusher, The Who, Cocteau Twins, Cabaret Voltaire and Nightmares On Wax.

Listen/Download

01 Wanna Play
02 Between Clouds
03 Not In Your World
04 We Are Animals
05 City To City
06 Disembark
07 Between Clouds (extended version)

Lyrics on the track 'City To City' are by TRavvy.

Cwtch named in Top 5 albums of 2009

2009-12-10T09:03:00.020Z

Our debut album release as Cwtch earlier this year has been named in Phlow magazine as one of the Top 5 Creative Commons album releases of 2009, as selected by radio presenter, musician and writer Greg Healey of Dandelion Radio.

Listen/Download

To celebrate, we have released the album for pay as you wish download at our Bandcamp site. One-click album download or single tracks as you please in just about any format you could possibly desire: http://cwtch.bandcamp.com

Cwtch - City To City [Single Release]

2009-08-24T14:10:00.015+01:00

Voice Marie Craven
Production and music Paul Foster
Lyrics Travvy

"This is electronic music as close and personal expression, where Paul Foster's gritty synth textures and beats act as a foil to the vulnerable beauty of Marie Craven's vocals"
- Greg Healey (Analogue Island) reviews Cwtch

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD

Cwtch reviewed by Analogue Island UK

2009-08-09T14:14:00.008+01:00

Review by Greg Healey, Analogue Island Show, Penwith Radio UK, 9 Aug 2009

"I was going to begin this review with a glib comment about the origins of the two protagonists who make up Cwtch (pronounced Kutch), Paul Foster and Marie Craven; something along the lines of Welsh wizards and Aussie Pixies: Paul Foster is the Welsh electronic artist Dementio13 and Marie Craven is the Australian singer Pixieguts. Perhaps, I thought to myself, it might be a good way of expressing the fact that these two musicians live on opposite sides of the globe. But, as I listened to their album, such ribald introductions seemed inappropriate.

Here's why: Cwtch's eponymously titled debut album is rich in musical detail and layered with an emotional content deftly and subtly expressed. This is electronic music as close and personal expression, where Paul Foster's gritty synth textures and beats act as a foil to the vulnerable beauty of Marie Craven's vocals. A wistfulness threads its way through the album, treading lightly as it goes, never collapsing into self indulgence. This is an album of tight musical control, where each sound has its place and tracks are never allowed meander on to pointless conclusions. Cohesive and mature, it is clear that, despite their geographical separation, Marie and Paul have developed a working relationship that is intimate and rigorous, one which demands only the best from the material they produce. To focus on the mechanics of this collaboration is, however, to do a disservice to this project. Cwtch have produced an album of uneasy beauty, one that, while being a delight to listen to, has the capacity to move the listener quietly and in surprising ways.

From the urgent arpeggio driven explorations of modern neuroses in Fragility, to the slow marching melancholia and musings on mortality (or not) of Of Worms, you will find an album whose intent is both oblique and articulate. This journey from clarity to opacity serves to make this an album that functions on many levels and invites the listener to stop and think.

One track to hear now: Fragility"

Cwtch Album

2009-04-12T10:33:00.017+01:00

LISTEN/DOWNLOAD

"You’ve got to hear it, which is why I’ve given over some of my February show on Dandelion Radio to previewing four of their tracks. I could have played something from the new Von Bondies album, more from the Future Of the Left live album, of some of those Diplo remixes he’s put out. But I thought it was more important that you heard what Cwtch were doing..."
- mark whitby, dandelion radio

Cwtch launch and preview at Dandelion Radio

2009-02-03T18:11:00.000Z

Preview by Mark Whitby, Dandelion Radio, 2 Feb 2009

"If you’ve heard my Dandelion shows before, chances are you’ve heard the members of Cwtch both together and separately, but never before as Cwtch. As Dementio13 and Pixieguts, they delighted us last year with mountains of electronic sound such as ‘Clearview’ and ‘Pixiegraf’, topped off with Pixieguts’ trademark vocal lines, by turns bewitching, enticing and eerie. Like getting drained slowly and left for undead by the most beautiful vampire you ever met.

Because Pixieguts lives in Australia, and Dementio13 does his stuff in Cardiff, Wales, Cwtch are emblematic of a time in which, following the gradual breakdown of barriers such as social class, technology and actually being able to play over the last few generations, now presents geography as no problem either. I don’t know if they’ve ever met or if they ever plan to meet, and I like the fact that this is utterly insignificant.

Dementio13 has been doing some of the most exciting electronic stuff of recent years whatever he’s turned his hand to (I’d highly recommend last year’s ‘Blacklung Mixer’ album), and Pixieguts adds that further dimension of both sound and space that allows the stuff to reach into spectral areas that even he doesn’t get to alone. It’s like a sonic magician with an assistant that sounds pretty one moment, the next is sawing herself in half.

But I’m conscious that my descriptions get nowhere near describing what the music of Cwtch is like. You’ve got to hear it, which is why I’ve given over some of my February show on Dandelion Radio to previewing four of their tracks. I could have played something from the new Von Bondies album, more from the Future Of the Left live album, of some of those Diplo remixes he’s put out. But I thought it was more important that you heard what Cwtch were doing, and I didn’t want to leave it to just one track.

So you can hear ‘Something’, ‘Of Worms’, ‘Prose & Poem’ and ‘Carnival’ on the February show. You can hear loads of other great stuff too, but even if that weren’t the case, you should listen just to hear these four songs because they’re excellent.

As usual, the show is streaming at various times throughout the month at www.dandelionradio.com and you can find out exactly when by checking the schedule on the website. To find out more about what Dementio13 and Pixieguts are doing, or have been doing, check out:

www.myspace.com/dementio13
www.myspace.com/pixieguts

And let Pixieguts introduce you to even more great stuff, go to http://pixiespalace.ning.com and find yourself in a music world with such an embarrassment of musical riches and great artists that I’m chiding myself severely because I know there’s stuff on there I haven’t discovered yet. I’m going there now. So should you, right after your visit to Dandelion Radio."