Rachael Dadd
Spark Illuminate / The Holly And The Ivy
British folk singer Rachael Dadd takes the holly and ivy as the central theme of her Christmas single, released as part of the Snowflakes Christmas Singles Club, and pressed on snow white vinyl. In pre-Christian times, the holly and the ivy were symbols of the male and female sex. When christianity arrived, the holly and ivy were given new meaning, the holly symbolizing Jesus and the ivy Mary. The holly and ivy, that keep their colours in the winter, became a Christmas decoration, and are the reason why green and red are seen as the colours of Christmas. Rachael covers the 19th Century English carol ‘The Holly And The Ivy’ on the B-side of her single and uses that carol as an inspiration for her original on the A-side, the poetic ‘Spark Illuminate’. With just her beautiful voice and a prepared piano (a piano that has its sounds altered by placing objects on or between the strings), Rachael creates an atmopshere of stillness and intimacy, to warm your heart during those cold days of Christmas.
Rachael Dadd is a contemporary folk singer and multi-instrumentalist based in Bristol, England and on the Japanese islandof Mukaishima. She is married to Japanese experimental musician ICHI, with whom she also regularly performs, live and on record. Rachael debuted in 2004 with the album ‘Summer/Autumn Recordings’. The album was followed by a string of releases on labels like Broken Sound, Talitres, and Japanese labels Angel’s Egg and Sweetdreams Press. Over the years, Rachael has played festivals like Glastonbury, End of The Road, Green Man, Wilderness and No Direction Home and toured the UK, Europe and Japan several times, alone or with acts like This Is The Kit, Rozi Plain and Alessi’s Ark. Besides as a singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist, Dadd, who is a graduate from art school, is also a practicing and exhibiting artist.
SNOWFLAKES CHRISTMAS SINGLES
7"
Oh! Gunquit
High On Xmas / Dont Believe In Christmas
Recorded on the hottest day of an extremely hot London Summer, Oh! Gunquit deliver two Christmas party anthems on this 45, blending surf guitars, rumble drums and a wailing sax with lyrics about, well, what else than partying at Christmas – a bottle of wine, some good music and nice company is enough to get 'High On Xmas'. On the flipside, the fivesome breathe new life into The Sonics' garage rock classic 'Don't Believe In Christmas' – out goes the organ, in come guitar, sax and trumpet, with singer Tina's cool vocals finishing it off. The single is part of the Snowflakes Christmas Singles Club, edition 2018, and comes on snow white vinyl.
Oh! Gunquit came together when vocalist/trumpetist Tina and guitarist/vocalist Simon became neighbours and frequented the same sweaty cellar dance nights around town. The two formed the band with the idea to create a vibrant blend of new-wave vicious psych-surf, garage-punk, exotica & rock ‘n roll. The unusual name of the band was inspired by Maine harbour town Ogunquit (which means 'beautiful place by the sea' in the indigenous Abenaki language), known for its late 19th Century artists colony, and by the idea of all guns quitting. Based inLondon, Oh! Gunquit, known for their high energy and spectacular live shows, is as cosmopolitan as their city is, with members from Italy, USA, Colombia, Spain and the UK.
SNOWFLAKES CHRISTMAS SINGLES
7"
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