Oliver Mann - 'Dancing'
Oliver Mann first eked on to the scene playing the odd quiet folk show, before his repetoire grew to include showcasing obscure German operas and recreating untrue stories about fantastical things that happen to him in his job as a library clerk. Think the music equivalent of a Victorian-era composer playing Max's interior monologue in
Where the Wild Things Are. Or something.
He's also the brother of feted folk-dude Paddy Mann aka
Grand Salvo. In fact Oliver often joins Paddy on stage to assist in creating the orchestral flourishes that support Grand Salvo's music. While both artists have wildly different attributes - Oliver has an operatic baritone voice and rousting songs of cautious optimism; Paddy sings in a passive lilt about, well, death - there is a similar magic-realism in their amazingly unique subject matter.
Oliver released the album
Oliver Mann Sings independently a few years back which garnered strong reviews but nothing much in the way of radio lay or the like. Independence will do that. On his forthcoming second record
The Possum Wakes at Night, he's done away with some of the more obtuse embellishments without losing his inherent uniqueness. Karl Scullin from
Kes Band plays some ripping lead on a few songs and producer about town Dan Hawkins contributes elsewhere.
Here's a taste from the upcoming record, due from Preservation on September 13. It's about dancing with your partner so vigorously they smash the room up, then joining in. Perhaps. Scullin on lead guitar. More on Oliver's
MySpace..