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Music | Sarah Birch (bandcamp.com)
https://books.apple.com/gb/author/sarah-birch/id911393790
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Sarah Birch
Swansea based songstress Sarah Birch enraptures audiences with her songbird voice and melancholic, yet joyful folk melodies, blending traditional acoustic forms with an infusion of Electronica, Orchestral and World instruments.
Sarah Birch is a Zambian born, British Alternative-Folk artist who has found her new home as a native of Wales, residing here for the last 20 years after a few years in London. Best known as a member of festival favourites Lost Tuesday Society, (BBC Wales A- Listers, and was one of the first bands to play the new Swansea Arena in 2022)
She has now joined Swansea folk collective ‘Dark and Twisties’ alongside some of Swansea’s best Kate Ronconi, Sarah Passmore, Danny Killbride and Huw Rees. After two rehearsals the group have already embarked on a run of shows and look to record their debut album in the coming months.
Birch began her solo career in 2019 with the sublime debut album ‘The Ballad of Peter and Jane’ where she collaborated with a host of renowned musicians from the scene in her home city of Swansea, as well as being joined by the esteemed Mavron Quartet, to create an epic, genre bending, gracefully eloquent concept album which went on to be nominated for the Welsh Music Prize that year. The album released on Death Monkey Records and was produced by Dave Milsom.
“Excellent songs and a beautiful voice” (Adam Walton, BBC Radio Wales)
Championed also by Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens, Sarah Birch was placed on his list of Swansea artists to watch in 2021. Birch also played the showcase festival FOCUS Wales in October 2021, where she supported internationally renowned Harpist Catrin Finch at St Giles Church in Wrexham, before heading back to play Swansea Fringe Festival later that same month, supporting the critically acclaimed Scott Matthews at the Perch in Swansea.
2022 saw a much-anticipated return and follow up release to the celebrated ‘The Ballad of Peter and Jane’ in the form of what was to be a new EP ‘Old Money New Money’. The EP was released for exclusive download only and will be turned into a full album at some point soon.
Praised for both her lark like vocals and strong alternative pop sensibilities; Birch has developed a unique blend of traditional folk with more modern influences including synths and sampled beats in some her recorded music. Ultimately the ethereal melodies and often heartbreaking lyrics are what makes her brand of music stand out and stay with you. Her live performances are often more stripped back, atmospheric and mesmerising with accompaniment from the incredible musicianship of fellow band mate Kate Ronconi (LTS, Rag Foundation) as well as Joel Morgan and husband James Morgan (King Goon).
Throughout her career as a musician Sarah has never shied away from the chirpy disposition and engaging draw which makes her such a charismatic live performer. With stints presenting local drive time radio station music shows, there was also an early life fork in the road dilemma, which could have seen her running away to join the Circus!
Life has been colourful for Sarah Birch after graduating Middlesex University with a BA (Hons) Performing arts degree and following for the most part, a creative path. From auditioning for the job of ‘Ring Mistress’, writing and performing physical theatre plays in London, playing at Glastonbury to preparing to entertain crowds at Reading festival. It was here that Birch met the legendary Brit Pop mogul and Creation Records boss, Alan McGee, who had taken an interest in her fledgling band Cookie and came to chat, while she was at the time, awkwardly manoeuvring herself onto a pair of stilts dressed as a Spanish senorita. Not the way she had imagined meeting such a respected and influential industrial idol.
Since living in Swansea and performing several incredible shows with Lost Tuesday Society (Paolo Nuttini, Misha Paris, Pete Doherty. Performances at Nozstock, Green Man, Kendal Calling and Shambala festival) She has also been involved with Sound Board Magazine (a local mag dedicated to championing The Welsh Music Scene) Been a radio DJ, has run a youth music group and worked in Education. She currently helps to organise the annual Swansea Fringe Festival and other events around the city.
(She turned down the job as ‘Circus Ring Mistress’)
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