Nathaniel Robin Mann – Scraps 2 CD and book
A long, long time ago, before the highly controversial pigeon whistles project, before joining the ex-Gurkhas of the 1st Naumati Baja Gulmi UK, before he finally disappeared into the Brazilian jungle to make music with Wauja indigenous community of Xingu Province, Nathaniel Robin Mann actually wrote and recorded songs. Like a normal singer-songwriter. It sounds ridiculous now, but it’s true.
To prove it, in 2012, we released a 20-track compilation CD of his early material, including five specially-commissioned studio tracks and an Mbira song set recorded by Sherry Ostapovitch, soundtrack material from his early (pre-Guga Hunters of Ness) collaborations with award-winning director Mike Day, live tracks recorded by Peter Memmer in Madrid, and selected demos from his personal archive. Nathaniel utilises a curious collection of instruments and objects for accompaniment and percussion (phonofiddle, harmonium, ukulele and ankle-bells) to perform a collection of stark folk ballads, North American spirituals and Spanish work songs arranged for voice, meat cleaver and wooden log. At the time, he explained he drew influences from the European and American folk traditions, tipping his hat along the way to everyone from Jacques Brel to Saul Williams, Mike Waterson to Nina Simone. Since the collection was released, Nathaniel has been awarded the George Butterworth Prize for composition and was the winner of the 2018 Arts Foundation 25th Anniversary Award. He was described by the Quietus as “subverting the stolid conservatism that has come to be associated with much of today’s folk music and reconstructing it from the ground up” and by the Guardian as “a beardy folkie”.
The CD sold out almost immediately, but we now have an ultra-limited edition reissue, available from the antigen records webstore and our bandcamp page (where you can listen to the whole thing). It is a professionally replicated, glass-mastered CD in a 24-page, heavy stock reproduction of the original booklet (reduced to 150mm x 150mm). It is limited to 35 copies. You can buy it here
