We’ve covered the music of Mark Timmins several time here at WTD, most recently ‘Vulnerable‘, a song from a new project based around old maps which we called

“as sincere as it is self-aware, trying to live a better, simpler life of candour while bemoaning the current habits of pride and shame”.

Mark was kind/brave enough to take on our Mystery Mini Mix challenge, so scroll on down to hear the songs our prompts kicked up.

Song from who you consider the most overrated band of all-time

Bob Dylan – Girl from the North Country

Perhaps this is an odd choice for this category, as Bob Dylan is not a band, and technically speaking he is not overrated, in that the praise and accolades lavished upon him are indeed justified. He is a brilliant songwriter who has had a lasting influence on countless musicians. But the quality of his music has often been obscured for me by the excessive amount of bullshit spoken about him. I’ve had too many infuriating conversations with misty-eyed romantics who say they want to talk about music, but actually just want to spit out meaningless, hyperbolic, sound-bite style cliches about “Dylan, man, Dylan.” But behind all the poorly expressed adoration of the blind devotees, the music is still there, speaking inexorably, and with such captivating poignance, about all the things that make the human experience seem worthwhile. This song is one of my favourites.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CeMa7cQyJPc
Song that sounds like the bottom of the ocean

Emma Ruth Rundle – Oslo, Part 1

I’m a huge fan of Emma Ruth Rundle’s solo work. It’s dark and brooding, heavy and earthy in a comforting way, like curling up and covering yourself from head to foot with a thick woollen blanket. I’m not totally sure why I thought of this song when thinking of the bottom of the ocean. Maybe it’s something about the hypnotic, repetitive guitar riffs that constantly fold back in on themselves that speak to me of deep ocean currents. Or maybe it’s the fact that the song is absolutely drenched in reverb and delay, like all of Rundle’s solo work, that gives it that watery feeling. It could also be the power of association that draws a connection for me between the sea and Rundle’s music (her debut solo LP was titled “Some heavy ocean” after all). Whatever the case this is a beautiful song, and the perfect soundtrack for any deep sea expeditions you may be taking in the near future.

Song that brings out your inner cowboy

Corb Lund – Hair in My Eyes Like a Highland Steer

I really enjoy a lot of country music, often a lot of the more melancholic style, where the songwriting focuses on the minutiae of everyday life in a way that tends to reveal bigger mysteries than the content might at first suggest. But when it comes to leg-slapping, yee-haw screaming cowboy fantasies it’s got to be Corb Lund every time. I’ve seen him live once, and it was one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. His band, The Hurtin’ Albertans, are incredibly tight and the music came across with blistering energy. When they played this song I danced with such ferocity that my cowboy thigh-slapping move resulted in bruises the next day.

Song without words

Carlo Domeniconi – Koyunbaba Op.19

Before I really got into singing and writing my own music I studied and played classical guitar pretty intensely for a number of years. This is a piece that I always wanted to learn but just never got around to. This is a very beautiful interpretation of it.

Song from your hometown

#1 Dads – Camberwell

I come from a very small town in rural Australia … it’s not known for producing a whole lot of music. I know a couple of people from my town doing some interesting musical things, but as far as I know none of it has resulted in a finished product made openly available to the world yet. So for this category I’m going to cheat a little bit and provide a song from my home country (hometown, home country … close enough right?) that really reminds me of home. My Dad discovered this song and recommended it to me, and from the very first listen I was totally captivated. The song has this lovely, languid resignation to it, like being driven around half-hungover in the back seat of an old car on a brutally hot Australian summer day. The triumphant saxophone solo at the end is so unexpected and joyous, it leaves a big smile on my face every time I listen to it.

Song you’d play upon reaching the summit of Everest

John Cage – 4’33”

Music is a wonderful companion, capable of enriching the experience of being alive in infinite ways. But I also believe there are times when there is nothing more appropriate to do than simply be and experience the moment in which we find ourselves in its unadulterated entirety. If I should ever find myself on the summit of Mount Everest, I want to know what it sounds like to be on the summit of Mount Everest. Thus, for this category I have chosen John Cage’s 4’33”. The piece calls for respect for silence and the rich world of sound that constantly exists around us if we take the time to stop and listen to it. From what I’ve seen though of the dangerous overcrowding of inexperienced expeditions on Everest, I would be very surprised if anybody managed to get a full four minutes and thirty three seconds to truly enjoy the sounds of the mountain, sky and wind.

And for those of you who are too lazy to click individual links, here’s a Playmoss mix that requires a single tap:

Check out the Mark Timmins Bandcamp and Soundcloud pages to explore his music, and be sure to give him a follow on Facebook to keep up-to-date with future releases/thigh bruises (maybe).

The post Mystery Mini Mix: Mark Timmins appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Tracklisting:

1. prairie creek redwoods state park, ca – bedbug
2. See the World – Kidsmoke
3. Motion | Sickness – Good Good Blood
4. Downtown – Gabriella Cohen
5. Automatic – Kyle Morton
6. Throwing Roses – Eva Foote
7. vildt+sødt – Eugenia
8. Dicktations Forever – Dicktations
9. Fallen Robin – Wild Leaves
10. Palms – Native Other
11. Not Your Prey – Squirrel Flower
12. Luna – Akira Kosemura
13. Made of Gold – Albert af Ekenstam
14. She Floats – Van-Anh Nguyen
15. Dead Radiance – Ego Death
16. Sponge State – Sløtface
17. Black Mass – Wooden Maria
18. Float – Silver Liz
19. glass machines discovering water – Corvus B.
20. Longshot – The Furious Season
21. The Same Chords – Tiger in My Tank
22. Let’s Go to the Beach – Sophie Longshaw
23. Blue Moon – Many Voices Speak
24. One Footed – MAH KEE OH
25. Country Room – Static Animal
26. The Ground Before Him – Drowning By Numbers
27. Refugee – Cameron James Henderson
28. down (kenny) – ever
29. Strange Tones – Youceff Kabal
30. Don’t Let Love Go By – Golden Suits
31. Sit and Stare – Tiny Dinosaurs
32. Settle Down – Dark Mean
33. telegraph ave. – Betty Becky
34. WEN – glider
35. Nicholas – Holiday Oscar
36. Lyse Striber – True Strength
37. Careless – Stationary Suns
38. Vulnerable – Mark Timmins
39. On & On – Reuben Hollebon
40. Recoiled – William Ryan Fritch
41. Lonely Girl – Praything
42. Drinking the Same Water – Katie Spencer
43. Get It Right – Magana
44. Cheer Up Free Your Mind – Jenny O.

That was October 2016, and if you like what you see/hear, why not check out the other months too?

The post October 2016 Roundup appeared first on Various Small Flames.

Timmins is currently working on a series of songs based around old maps from the German school system in the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s, and while the inspiration may seem a strange one, there are actually interesting parallels to be drawn between the two. As he explains:

“I see a strong connection between maps and songs…both take the infinite chaos of the world and shape it into something comfortingly comprehensible. Thousands of kilometres of rugged coastline represented with a simple line; an extended period of intense emotion reflected in a few minutes of organised sound. A map or a song can only ever be a shadow of the complex beauty that inspired their creation, but under the right circumstances they can shape a new reality with its own intrinsic beauty.”

‘Vulnerable’ is the latest single, what Timmins describes as “a call to emotional honesty and integrity.” As such, the song is as sincere as it is self-aware, trying to live a better, simpler life of candour while bemoaning the current habits of pride and shame. This is all backed by gentle-yet-technical guitar work which swells with a pleasing repetition.

“Walking numb and reckless through the trees
What’s the good in imperfection
Callous hearts are not anomalies
How we selfishly crave affection

But we’re so afraid to cry
Woohoo-ooo
I don’t want to live a lie
Let me be vulnerable this time”

You can find all of the songs on the Mark Timmins Youtube page.

The post Mark Timmins unveils new song, ‘Vulnerable’ appeared first on Various Small Flames.

The May Roundup mix below contains a track from every artist we featured during the month (apart from Sharon van Etten and Noah Gundersen, sorry!), so plug your headphones in and enjoy some new music. Click the artists’ names in the tracklisting below to be taken to the post in question.

Tracklisting:

1. No More Sad Songs – Elvis Depressedly
2. Catchyalater – Frog
3. The Day Draws Near – The Washboard Abs
4. Every House is On Fire – Island Eyes
5. Forever – Boosegumps
6. Open Casket Hidden Meaning – Molly Drag
7. The Arp – Aidan Knight
8. Atheist Money – Adam Stafford
9. Lynx – The Tarantula Waltz
10. Milo – Young Jesus
11. Slow Dark Water – Furnsss
12. Aubrey – Debris Slide
13. Foreign Hands – Aisha Badru
14. I Need Never Get Old – Nathaniel Rateliff & The Night Sweats
15. Outside the Pale – Samantha Crain
16. Home – The Modern Folk
17. Staggers and Rise – Small Houses
18. Yannina – Jake Houlsby
19. To the Black Horizon – Mark Timmins
20. Heart – Bobby’s Oar
21. Bling – Bells Atlas
22. And You Meant the Sea – Ruth & Trudy
23. Party – Lake Michigan
24. Growing Leaves – Gay Angel
25. On and On – Zee Town and the Dog Boys
26. Travel Map – Hip Hatchet
27. Zoa – Batte Ave.
28. The Bird – Kathryn Joseph
29. …Until They’re Called – Old Earth

May 2015 Roundup from Wake The Deaf on 8tracks Radio.

The post May Roundup – A Mixtape appeared first on Various Small Flames.

“Rather than telling full stories, Timmins’ words instead come off as a stream of consciousness, a man alone and thinking, spilling words that he wishes he could share with those that need to hear them.”

Timmins is back with some new songs which continues this raw, finger-picked sound. Darker than anything on Six Songs, ‘To the Dark Horizion’ is as ominous as the title suggests, the restrained guitar providing a delicate frame upon which sit the haunting vocals which return to the prophetic phrase of the title. It’s the kind of defeated, sad mixture of plea and warning that is no doubt echoing around the UK after yesterday’s election – a belief that while we don’t have the answer, it can’t be what is happening.

“Imperfect dreams of an imperfect mind,
Time to pack up, take what’s left of mine
to the black horizon”

There a few more songs on his Soundcloud page, so head there if you want to hear more. Also, be sure to check out Six Songs if you haven’t already. Mark also does some great drawings so head on over to Tumblr to have a look at those.

The post Mark Timmins – To the Black Horizon appeared first on Various Small Flames.

The songwriting and style is very personal, the sound capturing an unsettling mixture of anger, sadness, frustration and hope that make the whole thing seem like a late night lament. Rather than telling full stories (as the recently featured Doug MacNearney does, for example), Timmins’ words instead come off as a stream of consciousness, a man alone and thinking, spilling words that he wishes he could share with those that need to hear them.

You can listen to the EP on the Mark Timmins Soundcloud or Bandcamp, and keep up with his musical and artistic progress on Tumblr. There are some lovely looking handmade EPs (see below) availble for the very reasonable price of €4 via Bandcamp so have a look at those.

The post Mark Timmins – Six Songs appeared first on Various Small Flames.