Advent Blog – Day Six – First Aid Kit

Phew….! I nearly fell asleep without writing this. That would have been a cardinal sin in blogging world. Luckily as I was about to drift off to sleep recovering from the weekend my mind flitted over what lies ahead for this week at The Old Queen’s Head and I realised how much I was looking forward to the First Aid Kit show we have here tomorrow (Monday 7th December).

First Aid kit are from Stockholm, which is in Sweden, which along with Norway and Denmark ( & maybe Finland??) forms what is commonly know as Scandinavia. If anyone can clarify the Finland aspect to this paragraph I would be most grateful.

Anyways, First Aid Kit are sisters Johanna and Klara Söderberg, who although both still in their mid to late teens, make a glorious narrative style of folk not a million miles away from Bright Eye’s & Devendra Banhart.

First Aid Kit

They first rose to prominence when they released the Drunken Tree’s EP in 2008 on The Knife’s label, Rabid Records in Sweden, and a video of them performing a cover of Felt Foxes ‘Tiger Mountain Peasent Song’ surfaced on the Internet.

This brought them to the attention of Wichita Recordings, home of amongst others Bloc Party, Conor Oberst, Les Savy Fav, Los Campesinos, Simian Mobile Disco and The Cribs.

With a full UK release for their last EP and many tours under their belts, they now grace The Old Queen’s Head for an exclusive live playback of their debut long player The Big Black and The Blue, which will be released in the UK in Jan 2010.

Being able to put on shows like this is one of the many reasons I love my job of promoting & booking a music venue. I really love this band, and it will be amazing to see them perform such an exclusive show in such an intimate environment!

I am not the only person that thinks they are great – this is what the critics say:
‘Hottest Acts of 09’ The Sun
“Blessed with the voices of plaid-clad angels” The Guardian
“Narrative folk so charming and wise that it’s easy to forget they’re still teenagers” Dazed & Confused
“Beautiful, Appalachian country meets 50’s pop” The Fly
“Drunken Trees showcases the sisters’ angelic voices and their way with a melody” Metro
“Sweet, lovable and infectious” Plan B

You can listen for yourselves here

This track ‘Hard Believer’ is a favourite of mine….

First Aid Kit
Monday 7th December
The Old Queen’s Head
Doors 7.30pm
£6 entry – No Advance Tickets.