Good .0 He may be a globe- traversing, pop sprite who gifted us one of the finest pop songs of the summer in ‘Black and Gold' but Sam Sparro still has time to don his wellies and get down
and dirty with the best of us. David Pol ck reports
h dear. It‘s not like the summer hasn‘t
Sam Sparro. aka 25-year-old singer Sam Falson. whose ‘Black and (iold~ will be remembered as one of the sleekest anthems of 2008. but more or less the first thing he says in interview prophesies an imminent slide downhill. Quite literally.
‘Where am l'.’ I‘m on a tour bus on my way to the Isle of Wight. to Bestival. I‘m playing at midnight tonight. it‘s going to be very rainy apparently. I‘ve got my wellies. but fortunately I‘m going to be in a tent.. Two days later this went tip on his MySpace blog: 'l)A.\t.\'Y \\'hat a crap load of” rain! We were all set for our lirst show in a while and our last festival of the season. But due to torrential rains which turned the whole event into a complete swamp our stage started sinking and we had to pull the show.‘
Oh dear. indeed. We can only hope the experience won't spoil l‘alson‘s summer: alter all. he's crammed more into the last few months than many people manage in their lives. ‘l've been doing a lot of festivals in liurope.’ he says. ‘and I‘ve just spent the last l‘our weeks in LA. doing promo and working in the studio. and Australia's been really receptive to what I'm doing as well. Yeah. I've been very. very busy.’
From the gasp in his voice during that last sentence. he might actually have been
later on. It’s no surprise that l‘alson has succeeded in these three locations: he was born in Sydney. raised in l.os Angeles. and lived in London for a time during his late teens. He now keeps homes in both LA and London. although his speech pattern is largely Australian. with a little linglish thrown in. His interest in music also dates just as liar back as the accent. ‘I guess it runs in the bloodf he says. ‘because I‘m the titth musical generation in my l‘amily. my grandfather was a great jit/l trumpet player. my dad sang gospel. so I was always around it. I think my parents would have loved me to be into something a little more practical. but 1 always knew I wanted to make music.~ His first paid singing gig was at the age ot I].
been one long string of achievements tor
dancelloor
glad to find himself with a night ol’l~
xv MARKS THE spar
Hi List,
Sisters are doing it for themselves to such a degree these days I don’t even know where to start when it comes to lady sounds. Assist me, please, in sifting the wheat from the chaff amongst the music of the fairer sex.
Baz, Leith.
Girls. as you clearly well know Barry, just want to have fun. Just ask freaky 808 pop legend Cyndi Lauper when she turns up at Carling Academy (16 Oct) — as good a gig as any to start this female-formulated pop Odyssey with. Next stop: Glasgow's OMU. for child—actress turned Rilo Kiley frontwoman turned rock'n‘roll solo star Jenny Lewis (18 Oct). and then straight onto jazzy Gallic chanteuse Camille's show at ABC (20 Oct). stopping off briefly to highlight the joyous sway of Scots troubadette Eddi Reader who makes an appearance at Perth Concert Hall (14 Oct). The only thing more chic and ornate than Alison Goldfrapp's ice cool. winsome electronic pop is her wardrobe. so you can’t really lose when she pulls up at the Corn Exchange (5 Nov). Norwegian garage rocker Ida Maria claims to prefer wearing nothing at all. although it's doubtful she'll get away with that kind of behaviour at Oran Mor (7 Nov") or Cabaret Voltaire (8 Nov). even if she is likely to raise most other kinds of hell. Conclude v-vith the breathy electronic disco stylings of former Moloko singer Roisin Murphy back at ABC (27 Nov).
as part iii a choir on the soundtrack to [‘8 soap (iv/feral [Ins-print and he was already producing what he describes as ‘avant garde clectro—pop‘ at the age oi lb.
‘l was really into Bjork at the time.‘ he says. ‘and then I took an interest in old-school jazz and tank. although when I tried that style it all just sounded like it had been done before. then when l was about 3t. l started blending both styles together. and it all came together l‘rom there.‘
In many ways. Sam Sparro is the bold onstage alter ego of the more reclusive l‘alson. llis uncle gave him the nickname when he was lo. although in many ways. the character is still a work in progress. Album tracks like 'Sally‘ and "l‘oo Many Questions' were written during his l'unk and soul phase. inspired by artists like Stevie Wonder. The Roots and lirykah Badu. whereas the breathless disco ht) le (it ‘Black and Gold is a result ot l-‘alson‘s rediscovery of pop,
‘l‘or a long time.’ he says. ‘pop‘ was a dirty word. After the late ‘)()s it stood for something that was very cheesy and insincere. btit I‘ve learned to rediscover the ton in it lately. People like Hot (‘hip and 'l‘imbaland have all the right ingredients for the best pop music: it's got to have great melody. great production and great lyrics. 'l‘hat‘s what I aim l‘or. anyway.‘
ABC, Glasgow, Tue 23 Sep.