The Vagaband: new album

red rooster - vagaband photoshootThe Vagaband have released Medicine for the Soul on their own label Eggsong Recordings. The self-produced title is the follow-up to their much praised debut Town & Country and will be released on CD, gate-fold vinyl and download.

The Norfolk-based, UK 8-piece are at the forefront of the region’s vibrant roots scene and in 2013 were listed in The Alternate Root’s poll of Top 20 New Roots Bands of Europe. Equipped with a rich array of instruments (pedal steel, flugelhorn, mandolin, marxophone, clarinet) this roots-rock album incorporates folk, vaudeville, victoriana and filmic instrumentals – drawing from both sides of the Atlantic (Calexico, Beck, Townes Van Zandt and even early 70’s Pink Floyd).

There’s a time to dance, a time to die” announces the band in ‘The Whistling Song’. It is this central theme that underpins the album and is explored throughout. Both celebratory and reflective, the initial optimism gradually gives way to darker tales inhabited by drunks, dead-end seaside towns and troubled souls – ‘Cisco Wine’ and ‘A Different Drum’ being key in the sombre finale. The centre piece of the album is title track, ’Medicine For The Soul’ – an ode to late Texan songwriter Townes Van Zandt with cinematic arrangements reminiscent of Floyd’s ‘Atom Heart Mother’, The Beatles’ ‘I Want You (She’s So Heavy)’ and Radiohead’s ‘Karma Police’.

A quirky addition to the album is ‘Gabrielle’. Penned by 90’s Alt Rock duo Ween, this unique take on the song is an accurate representation of the band’s energy-charged live sound. After a summer touring Europe and the UK festival circuit, the band play a number of shows throughout late 2014/2015 in support of the new album.

Artists’ website: http://thevagaband.co.uk/

‘The Whistling Song’ – official video:

Media quotes for Town & Country:
“Stunning” Q Magazine
“Breathtaking… haunting” americanrootsuk.com
“Masterly” Americana UK
“Exceptional… a rich concoction of Americana, swing, ragtime, blues and rock” Folk Radio UK


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