Big low
{{ infobox MusicAL artist | Name = Big Low | Img = | Background = group_or_band | Origin = Australia | Genre = blues, Folk | Years_active = 2000–present | Label = Smoked Recordings | URL = http://www.biglow-online.com/ | Current_members = Dan Tuffy
Michiel Hollanders
Marc Constandse }}
Big Low are a Netherlands based Australian blues/folk band comprising of 3 members.
The Band
Central to Big Low are the semi-autobiographical songs and stories of Australian ex-pat Dan Tuffy, currently resident of the Netherlands. Lying somewhere between atmospheric folk/pop and ragged bluesy cabaret the Big Low sound is ornate, cinematic and deeply personal. A host of other-worldly instruments such as the bandoneon, tape effects, cajon, kora and darboukashift the focus away from your regular singer/songwriter fare towards shores far more exotic and adventurous. With a penchant for the strange and beautiful they will waltz you down the road less travelled to a destination that is utterly mesmerising.
History
Dan was born and raised on the north coast of New South Wales where he worked on a cattle station and played in a handful of local country bands as a teenager before leaving the land and heading south to Tasmania to study botany. In 1985 he played some of the teenage tunes he’d written about birds and fish (as you do) to a weird little band called Wild Pumpkins at Midnight. They were so charmed they asked him to join up. A string of record releases and international tours followed as the ‘Pumpkins’ relocated first to Melbourne, then to London and later to Amsterdam in a career that spanned 13 years, 9 albums and tours of the UK, Europe, the Baltic states and eastern Europe.
Present day
Tuffy now lives in Holland with his wife and two kids but has he really settled down? Certainly long enough to have found & recruited two astonishing multi-instrumentalist virtuosos (Michiel Hollanders & Marc Constandse) for Big Low, establish the Smoked Recordings label and get a studio up and running. Also long enough to have produced 2 Big Low albums and 2 EP’s, all of which have received praise bordering on hysterical in Europe and all of which are soon to be released in Australia. He has also produced albums for several other artists and is the manager/bass player of a Balkan music outfit (Parne Gadje) who have also recorded 3 albums and have just signed a European deal with Rough Trade. Settled ?...it don’t look that way.
Personnel
- Dan Tuffy (electric & acoustic guitar, contra bass, banjo bass, vocals)
- Michiel Hollanders (dobro, velofoon, banjo bass, singing saw, vocals)
- Marc Constandse (cajon, darbuka, kora, psycho drums, vocals)
The lineup has not changed since the band's beginning in 2000.
Discography
Albums
Title |
Year |
|---|---|
Ghost hunt migration |
2003 |
No Tears in paradise |
2006 |
EPs
- 3 songs for 10 bucks (2002)
Singles
Title |
Date |
|---|---|
Ti Tree Bush Mix |
2006 |