A Hawk And A Hacksaw

Key tracks:

Zozobra
GaDJe Sirba
Maremaillette
Kertesz
The Man Who Sold His Beard

Label: The Leaf Label

Description:

Rolling Bavarian folk, full of the energy of raucous evenings at the Bierkeller and sinister nights in the Balkan countryside.

Hailing from Albuquerque, New Mexico, Jeremy Barnes, formerly of Neutral Milk Hotel, and touring drummer with Broadcast teams up with Violinist Heather Trost forming A Hawk And A Hacksaw.

“The Way The Wind Blows” conspires to create a wonderfully rolling Bavarian folk atmosphere, full of the energy of earlier work but with a firm focus on the recently developed folk influences. The mood changes frequently, moving from raucous evenings at the Bierkeller to the more sinister feeling of being alone in the Balkan countryside at night.

We start our selection with a pick from 2007’s album with an authentic snippet of Gyspy folk “Zozobra". The pace is unnerving like a clumsy get-away scene, the instruments fall into each other in a frenzy followed by the sense of imminent danger until finally it runs out of breath. “Gadje Sirba” features a brass section with a minimalist drum accompaniment evoking imagery of a Romanian village enjoying a fiesta on the streets. Our final choice comes from the eponymous debut. “Maremaillette” is a shining example of the bands earlier output. Electronic splinters cut through a catchy piano riff before a comparatively gentle accordion joins in the foray the whole thing takes you to familiar territory that almost leaves you with a smile on your face.

Their latest album "Delivrance" like their last features the authentic and enthralling sound of Budapest’s Hun Hangar Ensemble and is taking their more euphoric Eastern European folk sound into the further into mainstream and the critics heart’s.

Releases we represent:

A Hawk And A Hacksaw | Album | The Leaf Label | 2004
Darkness At Noon | Album | The Leaf Label | 2005
The Hun Hanger Ensemble | Album | The Leaf Label | 2007
The Way The Wind Blows | Album | The Leaf Label | 2006
Delivrance | Album | The Leaf Label | 2009

Quotes:

For "Delivrance":

"Délivrance is a booze-stained postcard with unusual postmarks and "wishh you were here" written in bold on the back" 8/10 NME

"Drawing on various Balkan strains the results blend klezmer, polka, gipsy folk music and various forms into a dizzy whirlwind of dance music" The Independent

"The gloriously sprightly energy of Délivrance is so ebullient and full of character that by the time it's over you feel like you've caught a glimpse of the type of joyful festivity that always feels most rewarding after a long journey." 7.8 Pitchfork

"one hell of a street party" **** Top Of The World, Songlines

"A Hawk And A Hacksaw are doing entirely their own thing, and that should be applauded, loudly" 9/10 Clash

"evocative, aromatic delights. A triumph of ensemble playing" The Wire

**** Uncut

“their most confident yet…rich, hugely rewarding” Metro

"vivid and rich throughout" Artrocker

"Music like this, as intelligent as it is irresistibly danceable, is a genuine treasure" 4/5 The Skinny

For "The Way The Wind Blows":

“First-class folk” The Guardian

“Ambitious, ethnically rich… ‘God Bless The Ottoman Empire’ could be George Harrison’s ‘Within You Without You’ snaking through an ancient Turkish bazaar” 4/5 Uncut

“A glimpse of a different kind of music, one that’s both unexpected and unfamiliar, and yet richly rewarding. Magnificent” Dotmusic

“Music that starts in Eastern Europe, then stomps through every tradition nearby… a passionate affair” Stool Pigeon

“A captivating ragbag mixture of styles that blends Barnes’s meandering, vaudevillian songlines with plangent melodies of violinist Heather Trost” The Daily Telegraph

For earlier work:

"An invigorating journey, a caravan of cavorting musicians, careening through the countryside, stopping only to play festivals and funerals." Stylus

"Vivid, diverse and faintly trippy.". UNCUT

"Bleak and evocative." Observer Music Monthly