Slow Club at South St Seaport (08/07/09)
The Wave Pictures at South St Seaport (08/07/09)
Photos: Jessica Amaya
Not only is this is exciting news but it also gives me a chance to post these “long lost” pics from the Moshi Moshi showcase at the South St. Seaport this past summer.
Moshi Moshi Records is excited to announce their foray on to North American soil with the spring release of albums from Slow Club (March 30th, 2009) and The Wave Pictures (April 27th, 2009). The much-loved UK indie label has garnered a reputation over the past decade for exquisite taste. Aside from the brilliant aforementioned acts, they have played a significant role in launching, fostering, and participating in the careers of artists and bands including Bloc Party, Hot Chip, Kate Nash, Lykke Li, Florence and The Machine, The Drums, Au Revoir Simone, and Mates of State among many others.
Spring 2010 will see the North American release of indie pop darlings Slow Club‘s full length debut Yeah, So, and a double CD set from lo-fi literary troubadours The Wave Pictures comprised of their two most recent UK releases If You Leave It Alone, and Instant Coffee Baby. Success at home across the sea, a few dates played in the states over the last year, and word of mouth have earned both bands a burgeoning cadre of Yankee fans. Slow Club was recently featured as a Paste “Best of What’s Next,” while The Wave Pictures picked up honors from Spin as one of the “10 Best Albums You Might Have Missed In 2009”.
More of the press release and more photos (including Casiokids) from the South St. Seaport show after the jump.
For Moshi Moshi, the move to release the albums in the United States themselves was the next logical step for the label and bands. As Stephen Bass (one half the duo behind the label, the other being Michael McClatchey) puts it, “We have a love of the American music scene and a history of releasing American bands in Europe (Au Revoir Simone, DNTEL, Tilly & the Wall, The Mae Shi, Mates of State, the Drums). After years of great times visiting the US and bringing our bands over to play whenever possible it finally felt like the moment was right to start releasing records in our favorite territory. !K7 (www.k7.com) seems to be a good fit as a distribution partner, and we are excited to see what people are going to make of our roster coming back the other way.”
Moshi Moshi Records started off releasing 7″ singles in 1998, and over the next five years slowly built a reputation for interesting, slightly leftfield, low-key releases. In 2004 things changed as Moshi Moshi grew from a hobby to a full-time concern. Soon after releases from Bloc Party and Hot Chip (who were discovered by the label, releasing their first album Coming on Strong) established the label as a serious force in the independent community. Continuing to build upon their excellent catalog and roster of musicians, in 2006 the two founders decided to get back to their one-off 7″ release roots, and the Moshi Moshi Singles Club was born. Now some 25 releases later the singles club’s roster makes an impressive list that includes Florence and the Machine, Kate Nash, Friendly Fires, Lykke Li, The Drums, Late of the Pier and Kindness to name just a few. The move to expand to the United States is the next chapter for a label the NME has called “One of the best indie labels around,” and Clash Magazine described as “Possibly the finest UK indie to have grown up over the last 10 years.”
Slow Club at South St Seaport (08/07/09)
The Wave Pictures at South St Seaport (08/07/09)
Casiokids at South St Seaport (08/07/09)
