Cuculi Records

12/06/2024

🐠 THIS FRIDAY: 'Fishes' - Something Sleeps 🐠

On Friday 14 June, we're excited to release 'Fishes', the first single from Something Sleeps' debut album.

Fishes was written during a bout overwhelming OCD that left one band member unable to leave the house. Getting the feelings out & the words on paper was the inadvertent first step of the recovery process.

With seamless harmonies and sweeping strings, the song creates a soothing antidote to the strange, restless feeling of being underwater that anxiety can produce. Pre-save below/in bio 🐠

https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/somethingsleeps/fishes

07/06/2024

Experimental dronefolk project WoodFolk's debut EP Oak is out today!

Oak takes the listener on a winding, unpredictable journey through glitchy, ethereal electronic layers, broken open into moments of dark beauty and compelling storytelling. The EP features impressive guest collaborations with Martin Simpson, Lucy Farrell (Furrow Collective) and Claire Vine (Hands of the Heron).

There's a tangible, personal quality to the whole EP, embodying an oscillation of hope and grief as it contemplates the stature and destruction of the incomparable oak tree.

Listen everywhere, link in comments

06/06/2024

☀️ Greenbank Street Party ☀️

This Saturday our favourite pub The Greenbank Pub Easton is hosting a street party with Matter Wholefoods to celebrate their joint tenth birthday!

We’ll be doing a little Cuculi Presents takeover from 17.00-18.30 with sets from Roland George Harrad, Beth Roberts & Suzi Macgregor. There’s music outside from midday, including a ceilidh and an ambient jam hosted by Cove, and then a party in the pub til late.

See you there!

05/06/2024

We're so happy to see Fritillaries getting a lot of love for her new single, including a feature article in Bristol24/7 🌙

'Harvest Moon' (out now) is the first single from upcoming EP 'Thank God I Have The Songs', and features Hannah Pawson's assured 60s-esque guitar sound underpinning her layered vocal harmonies and Robo Elliott's soft focus strings.

Next single 'As The Rain Falls' will be out on 21 June ahead of the full EP on 26 June 👀

Pre-orders for the EP are open now on Bandcamp, and tickets for her St Ambrose launch gig are onsale via Headfirst.

30/05/2024

Cuculi Presents an evening with Bristol-based songwriter Fritillaries in St Ambrose Church on 28 June to launch the release of her new EP 'Thank God I Have The Songs', bringing a selection of guests along from the Cuculi family to join her onstage.

Support from beloved local cello + trumpet duo JOW

'Thank God I Have The Songs' launches a new era of Fritillaries as a solo project, and was recorded at The Roost studio in East Bristol with producer Rowan Elliott (Tamsin Elliott & Tarek Elazhary / Solana / Hands of the Heron). The 6-song EP explores themes of loss and acceptance; at its centre, a trilogy of songs flow seamlessly into each other as shimmering strings layers build up around tender lyrics expressing all the contradictory feelings of grief.

Tickets start at £10 from Headfirst https://hdfst.uk/e107613

28/05/2024

CONGRATS to Fritillaries on the release of her new single 'Harvest Moon' - out now! https://open.spotify.com/track/2B2MDiibdE3SHYL7XpbwZO?si=b4ad50cd8f90488c

Here it is, the first music I’ve released in almost 2 years. It felt absolutely impossible last year to release anything amidst so much grief and illness. And then I met with .music ( ) late last year with the longest album and a new EP in my head and voice notes but no energy or confidence to do anything with it. It was like a lightbulb went off in my head and suddenly things came together: I chose a date, recorded with her and in their studio down the road from me and now it’s here. I’m so grateful to them.

Listen on Spotify - https://open.spotify.com/track/2B2MDiibdE3SHYL7XpbwZO?si=R10FjwmxSym4hZRMKTnCmg
Bandcamp - https://fritillaries.bandcamp.com/album/thank-god-i-have-the-songs

This picture is of my nan, always cycling always advocating for the climate and human rights even at the end of the evening when we were all dropping off to sleep. She had the biggest heart and I miss her everyday. This song is for her and anyone who needs to recover.

I’d love to know what you think xx

13/05/2024

Folks - the time is NOW to help Hands of the Heron finish making their new record!

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/hands-of-the-heron-album

13/05/2024

At Cuculi gigs, our stage is a living room where listeners can immerse in the sounds of some the UK's most exciting alt-folk and contemporary classical artists. We welcome everyone into our spaces, and there's nothing like the collective hush of a hundred people all focusing on the same musical moment at once.

Which is your favourite venue that we host music in?

Image of Georgie Ward by William Lane Photography

10/05/2024

OUT NOW: WoodFolk - 'Tiny Moss Valleys' ft. Lucy Farrell

Following the release of their first single last month, we’re pleased to announce that WoodFolk’s second single 'Tiny Moss Valleys’ is out now, featuring Furrow Collective's Lucy Farrell.

It's available on streaming platforms & Bandcamp, where pre-orders are now open for the full OAK EP ahead of release on 7 June: woodfolk.bandcamp.com/album/oak

Producer Luke Spurgeon explains that "the idea for the EP began when I was walking in Wales and noticed the miniature world within an oak tree." Farrell’s haunting voice takes us down into that world of 'deep cut sylvan canyons… tight grass grooves, fallen acorn cups and steep dugout burrows'. Around her voice, layers of uncompromising drones build and then drop abruptly into a dreamy, Radiohead-esque sequence.

There's a gorgeous video to accompany the track, also created by Spurgeon: https://youtu.be/G0GU4HIEL1A?si=aSpQtZ2IjWACt0nS

09/05/2024

Last night was absolutely glorious 🙌

HUGE thanks to Fran & Flora for such an incredible, visceral and moving performance. They deserved every single ounce of their standing ovation at the end. If you get the chance to see them on their UK tour, you’re going to be blown away!

Thanks to the wonderful Cirenne for opening the night, and to for making everything sing in the exceptional acoustic of St Ambrose.

We’ll be back there on 28th June with Fritillaries as she launches her new EP - who’s coming?

08/05/2024

Tonight! Don’t miss the incredible Fran & Flora in the stunning setting of St Ambrose church - mesmerising Klezmer & Eastern European melodies reimagined with experimental electronic elements by this virtuosic violin & cello duo, with support from Cirenne 🙌

7.00 - doors
7.30 - Cirenne
8.45 - Fran & Flora

Tickets: hdfst.uk/e102796

06/05/2024

Our intimate gatherings are a space where artists and audiences intertwine in a dance of creativity and connection. What makes our gigs feel like home to you? Share your thoughts below! 🏡💫

Image by William Lane Photography

03/05/2024

It’s Bristol Folk Festival this weekend and two projects from the Cuculi family are playing as part of an incredible line up!

Friday - Hedera at Bristol Folk House, 19.00

Sunday - Hands of the Heron at St George's Bristol Glass Studio, 20.00

bristolfolkfestival.org for tickets

01/05/2024

Tag a pal you want to bring to one of our next Cuculi shows!

Next up - 8 May: Fran & Flora + Cirenne @ St Ambrose

Image of Spindle Ensemble by William Lane Photography ✨

29/04/2024

We've been so constantly blown away by the level of musicianship we've seen at our shows over the last two years.

One of our highlights was 2023's summer series in St Ambrose Church - stunning, intimate, immersive shows featuring t l k, Kathleen Frances, Rachael Dadd, Hands of the Heron, Spindle Ensemble and Georgie Ward.

We love this shot of Georgie captured by William Lane Photography, as she filled the resonant space of St Ambrose with her exceptional compositions for piano & synth.

Who else has a favourite moment from St Ambrose?

26/04/2024

Coming up on 8 May - Cuculi Presents Fran & Flora at St Ambrose Church (Bristol), with support from Cirenne.

With their long-awaited second album Precious Collection named The Guardian Folk Album of the Month, cellist Francesca Ter-Berg & violinist Flora Curzon create an otherwordly blend of Klezmer, contemporary classical and ambient electronics which we can't wait to experience in the atmospheric acoustic of St Ambrose.

Cirenne is an intriguing collaboration between two exceptional local musicians: violist Caelia Lunisss & trumpeter Celeste Cantor-Stephens, who'll open the night with a set of playful and evocative compositions.

Tickets via Headfirst Bristol: hdfst.uk/e102796

Video credit: YIKHES (lineage) - Fran & Flora

24/04/2024

We've loved reading through all your feedback from our shows! Our audiences always bring their most generous selves and it creates the most amazing atmosphere.

Comment below with your favourite Cuculi show!

Image by William Lane Photography

16/04/2024

Victor Herrero & Mikey Kenney - Fiddle and Voice (The Greenbank, Bristol, 12 April 2024)

This gig was beyond all our expectations - from fiery, rapid rhythmic flair to sublime melodies lingering over unpredictably suspended chords, it contained every degree of emotion & articulation. The musicians were clearly as captivated by the ever-evolving sounds as the audience, and it felt like a truly co-created space. Both Victor & Mikey are the kinds of players who already sound like a whole orchestra with just a single instrument each, so the sound they improvised together were extraordinary. We're so thrilled to have hosted one of their debut gigs, and strongly recommend checking them out while they're briefly touring the UK.

Huge thanks to Robo Elliott for making it sound beautiful, to Beth Calverley for sharing two moving poems inspired by previous Cuculi events, and to The Greenbank Pub Easton for having us back. All photography by William Lane Photography, who has such a talent for capturing the arc of music as it travels through the bodies & faces of performers.

Next: Fran & Flora at St Ambrose on 8 May, with support from Cirenne.

14/04/2024

12/04/2024

Introducing: WoodFolk 🪵

FFO: Lankum, Stick in the Wheel, Cinderwell

We’re very excited to share ‘Before The Land Was Cleared’, the haunting debut single & video from new experimental dronefolk producer WoodFolk, featuring Cuculi artist & co-founder Claire Vine. Above shuddering layers of harmonium, electric guitar & percussive sounds, Claire’s voice soars, lamenting the destruction of old forest, and then warps and loops back on itself as the song descends into a glitchy, dystopian breakdown. This is the lead single from an upcoming EP featuring a raft of incredible guests - more details to be announced soon.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A4V2AEKO78

woodfolk.bandcamp.com/track/before-the-land-was-cleared

https://open.spotify.com/album/323Z36lbBFzniNLvRz30qO?si=Jyg4pwrtQpS_ei9CWdT8uw

11/04/2024

BRISTOL - we come to perform for you courtesy of ! We will be performing at the Greenbank tomorrow night, 12th April.

This tour is a collaboration between myself and Spanish guitarist . It sees our styles and traditions come together in improvised conversation alongside passages of our own solo material.

Our first concert in Liverpool last night was an enormous success. There was electricity flowing through my fingers, this musical conversation is so very charged. Thank you to all who were present.

A few comments from folks who were there:

“What an amazing evening of music. Absolutely blown away”

“I was right on the edge of coping with the intensity of the music. Powerful stuff from Mikey and Victor”

“A night to remember”

“Warms my heart and raises the vibrations of my soul”

TICKETS:
https://www.headfirstbristol.co.uk/checkout/cuculi-presents

06/04/2024

Big congratulations to Fran & Flora as 'Precious Collection' is named Folk Album of the Month by The Guardian!

"Ter-Berg and Curzon never smother the folk origins of their influences but explore them kaleidoscopically, exploding the potential of their colours and patterns through their instruments’ long bows, plucks and scrapes." https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/apr/05/fran-and-flora-precious-collection-review-hidden-notes

We're thrilled to be hosting them in Bristol on Wednesday 8 May. Don't miss their performance in the very atmospheric setting of St Ambrose Church, with support from innovative emerging duo Cirenne. Tickets onsale now via Headfirst Bristol: https://hdfst.uk/e102796

05/04/2024

One week to go!

On Friday 12 April, Cuculi presents Victor Herrero and Mikey Kenney - Fiddle and Voice at The Greenbank Pub Easton. We're beyond excited to host these two absolute masters of their craft as they share original songs inspired by their respective traditions, especially in such a beautifully intimate & familiar space.

Our event is once again Editors' Pick over on Headfirst Bristol, who say: "Cuculi continue to push folk geographies to breaking point pairing Spanish troubadour guitar gaucho Victor Herrero with the majestic trad fiddle of Mikey Kenney. Totally enthralling FFO: Andalusian Leonard Cohen, Lorca, Robbie Basho, Vinicio Capossela, Devendra Banhart."

Endless to the Headfirst crew for supporting grassroots & independent music. Tickets onsale now: https://hdfst.uk/e106012

01/04/2024

On Friday 12 April, Cuculi presents Victor Herrero & Mikey Kenney - Fiddle and Voice at The Greenbank Pub Easton, Bristol.

This remarkable pairing features two of Europe’s most exceptional instrumentalist-composers exploring a shared space between their respective traditions and personal songcraft to create something both rooted in heritage and dazzlingly new.

As a child, Victor Herrero studied Gregorian chant with Benedictine monks and began a deep study of Andalusian guitar that has led him to form collaborations both in his native Spain and across the world - not least including this highly original duo with Liverpool-based fiddle player & songwriter Mikey Kenney. A virtuosic and irreverent performer, Mikey’s playing is as much informed by his deep grounding in English & Irish traditional music as his relentless curiousity for a good tune from anywhere.

Tickets on sale now via Headfirst, at three tiered prices:

General - £13
Community supporter - £16
Low income - £10

We ask that those who make more than £25k per year consider opting for Community Supporter as this allows us to subsidise low income tickets.. We consider low income to apply to those who earn less than £15k per year, but we don’t ask for any proof.

29/03/2024

We’re SO excited to host the wonderful at St Ambrose Church in Bristol on 8 May as part of their upcoming album launch tour. Their gorgeous new single ‘Nign’ is out today and we’re having the best time listening to it and imagining their strings and voices in the unreal acoustic of St Ambrose…

Don’t miss this one - tickets on sale via link in our bio ->

26/03/2024

Sunday 💜

It was a real privilege to host Loris and the Lion for their first Bristol gig, and Ben Gibson & Finn Buchanan for their first EVER duo gig, at another sold out night in The Orchard Coffee & Co. They both gave such evocative, skilful performances, totally holding the room in thrall.

It’s always such an affirmation to witness the transformation from a full room of excited gig-goers to captivated, silent listeners. We believe so strongly that this is the kind of gig that artists deserve, especially when you’re playing somewhere for the first time. Big love to both bands and Robo Elliott on sound for a beautiful evening.

Next up: & Mikey Kenney - Fiddle and Voice at The Greenbank Pub Easton on Friday 12 April. Two big characters in a fairly small room - tickets are going to fly out for this. Don’t say we didn’t warn ya!