Kitty, Daisy & Lewis return with their new album, three years on since their hugely acclaimed Smoking In Heaven. Described as “a gift to those of us who still believe in magic” (The Observer), the trio have used those three years wisely, building a new 16 track analogue studio in a derelict Indian restaurant in Camden Town, resulting in an album and a sound all of their own making. With new space and equipment, the band knew they could take their third album to another level, with the songwriting, instrumentation, styles, production and sound.
An early fan, Mick Jones of The Clash, was keen to get involved as producer. He spent four months rehearsing in their home and is moved to describe the album in cinematic terms:
“When Graeme Durham (A Passage To India - David Lean 1984) steps off the S.S. Orion in the mid 60's he has no idea that he along with Ingrid Weiss (The Sound Of Music - Robert Wise 1965) would spawn such ingénue. Kitty (Darling - John Schlesinger 1965), Daisy (The Outlaw - Howard Hughes 1943) & Lewis (King Creole - Michael Curtiz 1958) embark upon a remarkable journey engendering the transportation of an opera house over a mountain (Fitzcarraldo - Werner Herzhog 1982) culminating in the making of their third album Kitty, Daisy & Lewis The Third. Utilizing many forgotten recording techniques this magical, heart-warming record really does produce a “feeling of wonder” (Zabriski Point - Michelangelo Antonioni 1970).”
"With Mick on board, it was the first time we have worked with a producer," says Lewis, "Just having someone else in the room meant we could start bouncing ideas off other people and that was great." "Our song writing has definitely changed over the three years," adds sister Kitty, "Through life experience and expanding our musical influences, we have now incorporated more of our musical loves into our music. "And we had more gear to play with," says Daisy, "16 tracks, rather than 8, gave us the chance to use different production techniques and expand on our ideas in the studio".
Kitty, Daisy & Lewis The Third was recorded and finished in the summer of 2014 and sets them apart, embracing a spread of influences from blues to disco, but always sounding unmistakably Kitty Daisy & Lewis. The stories in this album resonate with moods and melodies that touch you in ways that are both uplifting and unnerving. With three different writers and multi-instrumentalists in the band, each track is a sparkling gem that reflects a different facet of experience.
Kentish Town siblings Kitty, Daisy & Lewis are a group of highly talented and original musicians who play more or less anything they can lay their hands on. Their musical references and skills are rooted in the old tradition where songs and music are handed down, played and enjoyed at gatherings of family and friends. From a very young age Kitty, Daisy & Lewis’ performances have been blowing away and inspiring audiences, building up an impressive fan base from the likes of Amy Winehouse (RIP), Chris Martin and Eagles Of Death Metal to Dustin Hoffman and Ewan McGregor. They have had worldwide success with sold out tours and have opened for Coldplay, Razorlight, Richard Hawley, Jools Holland among others.
At their packed live shows there’s no compromise when Kitty’s howling harmonica solos backed by Daisy’s solid rhythm on a battered snare-drum and Lewis’s snapping guitar work drive crowds into a Southern Evangelical frenzy. The trio jump from one instrument to another, which range from piano, lap steel, banjos, ukulele, accordion, xylophone, trombone to name but a few. Joining them on stage are former Raincoats drummer Ingrid Weiss on upright bass, Daddy Grazz on acoustic guitar, and legendary Jamaican trumpet player Eddie “Tan Tan” Thornton.
