Ruarri Joseph fans will be pleased to hear that Ruarri is returning in October with his fourth studio album ‘Brother’. To celebrate the release (29 October 2012 in the UK) a teaser track from the album ‘Anyway’ is available as a free download below. Ruarri will also be on tour in support of the release throughout October (all dates below).
In the past Ruarri as always opted for the lo-fi approach to recording his albums, literally from his shed converted studio. ‘Brother’ was written more with the band in mind as the album’s focus was on friendship and companionship which doesn’t lend itself to recording in isolation. The desire to create the album followed the loss of a very close friend which saw friendships around him strengthen through their collective grieving. “A bunch of our mutual musician friends got together to learn his songs and songs he loved and we all got on stage and played at his wake, Last Waltz style.” It was after this tender send-off that Joseph realized the next album would be a group effort. “I worked with a band on this album, rather than doing it alone. I wanted ‘Brother’ to be a communal record for us all to sing to. “Brother isn’t an elegy. It’s a celebration”. The album captures the chemistry and bond that the band all share although they are all from different musical backgrounds…it was important that they ‘all felt part of it’…“Brother isn’t an elegy. It’s a celebration”.
Originally born in Edinburgh, the nomadic Joseph found his song-writing roots in the Southwestern Pacific. A move to New Zealand followed his parents’ divorce, and the young Ruarri found himself coming of age in Dannevirke (population 6,000), an isolated, rural farming community. At 17 Joseph packed his suitcase and moved back to the UK and settled in London, where he met his future wife. At 25 Joseph released his debut album ‘Tales Of Grime and Grit’ through Atlantic Records, and shortly after leaving Atlantic in favour of independence in 2008, he formed his own label ‘Pip Productions’ through which all his subsequent LPs have been released.
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