Artist info

Genre

Electronic, Indie

Tags

Panda Bear DJ Koze The Books Indie Bedroom Pop

band members

Edward Francis

Influences

Panda Bear, DJ Koze, The Books

Website

edwardfrancis.bandcamp.com

Bio

Having harboured aspirations of being a jazz saxophonist, studying improvisation at school and university, it was the textural pop of acts such as Panda Bear and The Books that set him off track. Taking an interest in songwriting, Edward began revisiting instruments learnt earlier in his life, such as the guitar and piano as well as running a choir. Gradually, through exploring composition over playing, music making became more laptop focused, and the saxophone became a sampling tool rather than the sole outlet for musical expression. This is reflected in the first single, and title track from the EP ‘Braver’ to be released on ZERO THROUGH NINE.

Edward has spent a lot of time playing as part of different instrumental ensembles, but more recently, his music making has been production focused. It was after escaping to Berlin in 2012 when this idea really took over. In 2013 Edward wrote/recorded/mixed and released This City, featuring fellow Berlin dweller, Phia, and Hose Rock Love Song. Since then, he has turned to the home studio as his main outlet for musical expression.

From Berlin, Edward has relocated to Alice springs, where he is currently teaching music to Primary School kids. Now inspired by more electronic acts, such as DJ Koze, Caribou and Kieran Hebden, Edward is re-arranging and re-recording some of the songs that were first conceived in Berlin, while continuing to generate new material. It is within these recordings that we find the Braver EP, split between two opposing cities, both in spirit and sound.

Featured Artist

2015

13

Apr

Edward Francis

( )

Alice Springs, NT

Edward Francis is a young Northern Territory-based multi-instrumentalist who produces wonderful genre-bending electronica from his bedroom in Alice Springs. His captivating songs are layered with emotive harmonies, rich sonic textures and distinct flourishes of saxophone. He's destined for greatness. All hail the King in the North!

Read Interview

Tell us about your music. How did you develop your sound?
The music I make as Edward Francis feels like a culmination of the different music projects I have been involved in throughout my life. All of the music I have been involved with making informs what I do now. Whether it's being a guitarist and playing dodgy covers in year 8, running a pop mash-up choir in Northcote, or playing saxophone and composing for instrumental ensembles, all of these experiences have contributed to the sounds I am making at the moment. Producing songs in a bedroom, and recording instruments into a laptop allows you a huge amount of freedom to experiment and play around with sounds. You basically have unending amounts of time to add and takeaway layers of noise in order to try and find a combination that works for you. It is something I find very liberating musically.
 
What’s your greatest source of inspiration for making music?
I get inspired by experiences of music or performances that are able to completely immerse you. It could be listening to the beautiful slow builds of a Nils Frahm track that you listen to in your bedroom with the lights down and a glass of wine, or a marathon dance session at Rainbow Serpent to Super Flu and Marcel Dettmann. Sometimes this experience happens when you go to a particularly good live show or performance and sometimes it happens when you put headphones on and listen to something you’ve heard a hundred times before as you ride your bike home late at night. Having these type of experiences always makes me want to make more music and in doing so to try and to create some kind of immersive experience for others. 
 
What can punters expect from an Edward Francis live show?
I am currently working on my first live show as Edward Francis for the Wide Open Spaces Festival at Ross River in May. The process of translating the songs I have produced into a live performance is an interesting one as the tracks weren’t created with live performance in mind. The show currently involves just me with lots of live looping of saxophones keyboards and lots of percussion samples. Im excited to make it happen, but I can’t definitively tell you what to expect. I can guarantee that I will be there, on a stage, and I’m gonna be singing for you. 
 
What’s the best advice you’ve been given and who was it from?
The best advice I have had came from one of my saxophone teachers at uni. He told me it doesn’t matter what type of music you make, just make music you are passionate about and try to do it as well as you can. 
 
What Australian track would you play to cheer up someone who was crying?
We Won’t Cry by Archie Roach 
 
What Australian track would you play to someone to make them cry?
Keep Me Close by Brightly. I am a sucker for a well written love song. One that speaks of love as a kind of complete, hyper-real and all encompassing state of being. And if you happen to listen to that song at a particularly vulnerable time, you may find tears falling out the front of your face. Brightly’s track Keep Me Close did that for me. Charlie sings the song so beautifully and lovingly that it transports you back to when you had that feeling, or digs up the feeling from somewhere still inside you. Catch them at the right moment, and I am sure it could make others weep. 
 
You’re the DJ at a party. The dance floor is pumping. What Australian track do you put on next?
That Was A Loving House (Uone Remix) - Worlds End Press. I have spent a number of evenings dancing like a maniac at World’s End Press shows. They have uploaded a bunch of pretty excellent remixes of their tracks. Uone’s remix of That Was A Loving House is most excellent and will keep the party rolling. 
 
What was the last local gig you went to? How was it?
It was the 3rd annual “Blacken The Globe” Metal festival in Alice Springs. Despite not being in possession of a faded black t-shirt emblazoned with the gothic text of a band name, I attended and really enjoyed the event. It’s what I like about a place like Alice, people are open to attending gigs of all styles and are going to them with an open mind. 
 
Tell us about the bands or people in the NT music community that inspire you.
I have only been living in Alice Springs for about 15 months, but have been impressed by the arts and music scene in town. The Bush Bands Bash was a seriously inspiring event. Seeing excellent and passionate bands from remote communities across Australia and watching how their music brings people together is a pretty special thing. And there’s the women who run Desert Divas. They are a bunch of talented singer songwriters in their own right, that dedicate their time to mentoring young woman and encouraging them to find their voice and perform in front of crowds. I find it inspiring to see people using their music skills to contribute to their communities.  I also don’t think I could live somewhere that didn’t provide a dance floor outlet, so I’m grateful to have met Kyran Smith and Ollie Ollino. Together, these guys form the DJ collective “Cutlery”. Cutlery supply Alice Springs with top quality disco/house and techno parties. Ollie (AKA Brother Moonbug) is pretty much Alice Springs go-to dance floor provider here, and he kills it every time. 
 
What are your plans for 2015?
I plan to be in Alice Springs for the rest of 2015 and to put out some new tracks before the years end. I will be working on my live show pretty heavily also and look forward to playing some shows back in my hometown of Melbourne at some point. Nothing is set in stone, so the plan is just to keep working hard and to stay excited about generating new work. 
 

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Review

Mistaken For Grandeur

Edward Francis

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Review by Dom Alessio Dom Alessio

17 Jul 2015

Triple J
40

One of my favourite tracks from the Braver EP. It's pieced together in such a wonderfully playful way. It's basically a sonic playground.

One of my favourite tracks from the Braver EP. It's pieced together in such a wonderfully playful way. It's basically a sonic playground.

Review

Braver

Edward Francis

Play now Add to Listening Queue Download now"
Review by Declan Byrne Declan Byrne

19 Feb 2015

Triple J
45

heard this the other night on home and hosed and that meandering sax got me hook, line and sinker. the song is beautifully muddled and disjointed then slowly comes together over the 5 mins. big fan.

heard this the other night on home and hosed and that meandering sax got me hook, line and sinker. the song is beautifully muddled and disjointed then slowly comes together over the 5 mins. big fan.

Review

Braver

Edward Francis

Play now Add to Listening Queue Download now"
Review by tommyfaith Tommy Faith

18 Feb 2015

Triple J
50

Early contender for song of the year, this one is GORGEOUS. The lyrics are sentimental and intimate while they actually belie the raw energy of the track. Sure, the sax is massive but the beat itself drives hard.

Early contender for song of the year, this one is GORGEOUS. The lyrics are sentimental and intimate while they actually belie the raw energy of the track. Sure, the sax is massive but the beat itself drives hard.

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