04 October 2021 - 0 Comments

Rose Hobart is proud to announce the reissue of Jay Clarkson’s 1999 masterpiece Kindle, available on vinyl for the first time. Clarkson is one of Aotearoa (New Zealand) most singular songwriters, with a history that includes membership of The Playthings and The Expendables, both groups who released records with the legendary New Zealand label Flying Nun, as well as subsequent solo albums, along with her bands Breathing Cage and (now) The Containers.

For the songs on Kindle, Clarkson approached lyric writing differently – for a number of songs, she used what she has called the “open a book at random and point your finger” method to get her creativity flowing, borrowing (with adjustments) from Graham Greene and Thomas Merton, amongst others, locating evocative potential in found language and then expanding outwards. Elsewhere, Clarkson’s songs are sparked by people and events that coincide with her everyday life, or they become more philosophically reflective, as in the hypnotic Wheeling, where a repeating, intricate web of guitar underscores a song reflecting life’s dualities and circularity.

The album’s sound world is deep and dappled, with clacking drum machines (loaned to Jay by Robert Scott of The Clean and The Bats), richly wound guitars, and humming keyboards all providing a perfect setting for Clarkson’s astonishing voice, which is at once generous and wry. Clarkson has previously reflected upon the “transitional headspace” she was in while writing and recording Kindle, and that certainly seems to have informed the emotional complexity of these songs and performances – it’s an album of grace and wisdom.

Clarkson's is one of the many exciting acts that will be performing at The Others Way Festival, on November 12. Clarkson will be joined by her band The Containers whose membership includes Mike Dooley (Snapper, Toy Love, Pop Up Toasters), Alan Haig (David Kilgour & The Heavy 8s, The Chills, Verlaines) and Tenzin Mullin (Suka). The boutique multi-venue music festival will once again be held across Auckland's Karangahape Road precinct and will feature some of Aotearoa's best emerging and established musical stars.

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