A Hawk and a Hacksaw | |
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![]() Heather Trost and Jeremy Barnes of A Hawk and a Hacksaw, performing in 2009 | |
Background information | |
Origin | Albuquerque, New Mexico, U.S. |
Genres | Folk |
Labels | The Leaf Label L.M. Duplication |
Members | Jeremy Barnes Heather Trost |
A Hawk and a Hacksaw is an American folk duo from Albuquerque, New Mexico, currently signed to L.M. Duplication. The band consists of accordionist Jeremy Barnes, who was previously the drummer for Neutral Milk Hotel and Bablicon, and violinist Heather Trost. The music is inspired by Eastern European, Turkish and Balkan traditions, and is mostly instrumental. They have released six albums and have toured internationally. The first four albums and an EP were released on The Leaf Label and afterwards on their own label L. M. Duplication.
While Barnes lived in Chicago, he found himself in a Ukrainian area with many people from Eastern Europe and began to develop an interest in Romanian folk music. [1]
The band's self-titled first album recorded by Barnes in the south of France, was released in 2002. [2] [3] It provided the soundtrack for the documentary Zizek! , directed by Astra Taylor, which features Slovenian cultural theorist Slavoj Žižek. [4] In March 2005 the band released their second album Darkness at Noon , recorded in England, the Czech Republic and New Mexico. It was during the recording of this album that Barnes met Trost and that the band became a duo. [5]
In 2005, the band met Zach Condon of the band Beirut and gave his bedroom recordings to the small independent label, Ba Da Bing Records. They also played on the first Beirut album, Gulag Orkestar . [6] The band's third record, The Way the Wind Blows (released in 2006), was partially recorded in the small Romanian village of Zece Prăjini, and features members of the brass band Fanfare Ciocărlia. In 2007, they were awarded a grant by the CMN branch of the UK Arts Council, which enabled them to do a collaborative tour of the UK with the Hungarian folk group The Hun Hangár Ensemble, coinciding with the release of a collaborative EP. [7] Barnes and Trost lived in Budapest for two years. [8]
Délivrance was recorded in Budapest, Hungary and released in 2009. It includes collaborations with a number of Hungarian folk musicians, including Ferenc Kovács, Balázs Ungar, and Kálmán Balogh. [9]
In 2010, Barnes and Trost started their own label, L.M. Duplication, and released their fifth album, Cervantine , in February 2011. [10] It features guest performances from Stephanie and Chris Hladowski. [1]
A Hawk and A Hacksaw have appeared at the Roskilde Festival, the Green Man Festival, Pitchfork Music Festival, [11] the Calgary Folk Fest, Wellington Arts Fest (N.Z.), among others. They have also toured with Wilco, Calexico, Andrew Bird, of Montreal, Beirut and Portishead.
They were chosen by Jeff Mangum of Neutral Milk Hotel to perform at the All Tomorrow's Parties festival that he curated in March 2012 in Minehead, England. [12] They performed a new and original soundtrack to Sergei Parajanov's 1964 classic; Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors . [1] In 2013 they released the soundtrack as You Have Already Gone to the Other World .
The name "A Hawk and A Hacksaw" is a reference to the book Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. Don Quixote was written in 1605. This quotation comes from William Shakespeare's Hamlet probably written in 1600; I am but mad north-north-west: when the wind is southerly I know a hawk from a handsaw. The original quote was changed from "Handsaw" to "Hacksaw" to reference the Aksak meter that is prevalent in Balkan and Turkish music. [13]
In the original Don Quixote, Cervantes contrasted black and white rather than a hawk and a hand-saw. The Tobias Smollett translation, however, reads, "...therefore, let every man lay his hand upon his heart and not pretend to mistake an hawk for a hand-saw; for, we are all as God made us, and many of us much worse." [14] Barnes explained the name as "when I was starting [the band], I felt like – and I still do feel like - Don Quixote". [13]
Jeffrey Nye Mangum is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who gained prominence as the founder, songwriter, vocalist and guitarist of Neutral Milk Hotel, as well for his co-founding of The Elephant 6 Recording Company. Mangum is characterized for his complex, lyrically dense songwriting, exemplified on the critically lauded album In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, as well as for his public image as a recluse associated with his extended periods of musical inactivity and minimal press interaction. An article published in Slate described Mangum as the "Salinger of Indie Rock."
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Jeremy Barnes is an American musician. He plays accordion, percussion and other instruments. He has been a member of the bands Neutral Milk Hotel, Beirut, and A Hawk and a Hacksaw, and is a co-creator of the record label L.M. Duplication. Influences on his work include music from Eastern Europe, Turkey, and the Caucasus.
The Leaf Label is a British independent record label based in Yorkshire, England. Initially an electronic music label, releasing mainly instrumental music, the company's approach now features artists spanning jazz and post-punk.
Beirut is an American band that was originally the solo musical project of Zach Condon. Beirut's music combines elements of indie rock and world music. The band's first performance with the full brass section was in New York, in May 2006, in support of their debut album Gulag Orkestar, but performed their first show with Condon, Petree, and Collins at the College of Santa Fe earlier that year.
Gulag Orkestar is the debut album of Beirut. It was recorded in 2005 in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Gulag was a Soviet government agency administering criminal justice, while orkestar is the Serbo-Croatian word for "orchestra".
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Darkness at Noon is the second studio album by A Hawk and a Hacksaw, released in 2005 on The Leaf Label.
The Way the Wind Blows is the third studio album by A Hawk and a Hacksaw, released in 2006 on The Leaf Label.
A Hawk and A Hacksaw and the Hun Hangár Ensemble is an EP by A Hawk and a Hacksaw and The Hun Hangár Ensemble released in 2007 on The Leaf Label. A 20-minute bonus DVD was released with the CD, titled An Introduction to A Hawk and a Hacksaw. The DVD documents two years of touring by original band members Jeremy Barnes and Heather Trost with live footage, as well as a behind-the-scenes look at their travels across Europe.
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Délivrance is the fourth full-length studio album by A Hawk and a Hacksaw, released in 2009 on The Leaf Label.
Heather Trost is an American violinist and singer.
Cervantine is A Hawk and a Hacksaw's fifth studio album, and the first to be released on the new label, L.M. Dupli-cation. The album's sound stands out from previous recordings, drawing a stronger influence from Greek Romani music, and the mariachi that had surrounded the group in New Mexico.
The Rip Tide is the third studio album by the American indie folk band Beirut, released on August 30, 2011.
You Have Already Gone to the Other World is A Hawk and a Hacksaw's sixth studio album with the subtitle "Music inspired by Paradjanov's Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors". It is a concept album which is written as a retrospective soundtrack for the 1964 movie Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors by Sergei Parajanov.
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Forest Bathing is the seventh studio album by A Hawk and a Hacksaw. It was released April 13, 2018. Prior to its release, the song "A Broken Road Lined With Poplar Trees" premiered on Under the Radar's website.
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