It has been quite a summer for London band Hey Negrita. First they found themselves performing at some of the most prestigious festivals, including Glastonbury. Then they supported The Beach Boys in Germany. Now they are just finishing their own tour of the UK, which has seen them promoting their third album You Can Kick. To cap it off Hey Negrita were also featured in a music documentary alongside The Alabama 3, Little Feat, Willard Grant Conspiracy , and others called We Dreamed America.
So, how did this London based foursome start to play Americana? Maybe it can be explained in part by the lead singer and chief songwriter Felix Bechtolsheimer moving to Florida. He hooked up with an old muso who had played with none other than Gram Parsons and Little Feat. Taking in the experience and the local bar and music scene, he became quickly absorbed in all things Americana.
During this time Felix began writing material that appeared on Hey Negrita’s first album We Are Catfish in 2005. It told of his battle against heroin addiction. When he moved back he brought his new found influences with him. Hey Negrita was born. By the time their second album The Buzz Above was released in 2006, Felix was writing about another life experience, the break up of a relationship.
With You Can Kick Hey Negrita dish up another dose of gritty defiance in the face of numerous adversities. Yet they strut through the album with a refreshing blend of honky tonk, country, rockabilly, and good old rock ‘n’ roll. There are some dark lyrical recesses but the songs are so well written that they just ooze life. They will immediately transport you to a basement bar full of life’s wreckage. It is a scene played out with Hey Negrita’s music providing the perfect backdrop.
Hey Negrita have been through a recent roundabout of change and now consist of Felix on lead vocals, Matthew Ord’s bluegrass guitar, Paul Sandy on upright double bass, Neil Findlay on drums and Captain Bliss on harmonica. They laid this album down in a lightning ten days before it was mixed by Eric ‘Roscoe’ Ambel of Steve Earle and Yayhoos fame. Between them they have produced a raw, vibrant, earthy record encased in great harmonies, contagious melodies, and all things Americana at its best.
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