Written by Nadia Sheikh
Produced by Brett Shaw (123 Studios) 
Mastered by John Davies (Metropolis)

Nadia Sheikh - vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar
Rowan Davies - bass
George Gardiner - drums

Special thanks to Harry Acreman (guitar)

IDWK

Nadia Sheikh - IDWK (I Don't Wanna Know)

Ahead of the release of their debut album, ‘Spring Tide’, The Shipbuilders release their latest single, ‘Forest Floor’ via Mai 68 Records on Friday 29th April.
An eerie, psychedelic shuffle that brings to mind the freakier sides of Love and The Coral, ‘Forest Floor’ features a bass-led groove that descends into chaos with an extended outro made up of ghostly, wordless vocals, wailing harmonica and tumbling piano, all blown about by a storm of reverb-heavy guitars and relentless motorik drums.
Speaking of the track, lead singer Matty Loughlin-Day explains “the song sings of an impending storm, prophesised by an old sage and queries whether there is hope left in the town or whether it’s best to return to the land and find safety. Ultimately, the hero of the song is trying to find his best to way to survive on the line between the smug and the damned”

FOREST FLOOR

Don't Wanna Be Alone

Drive Away

Underdogs

AQUARIUS (voice memo)

Normal Life

Improvisations and experimental materials recorded live in Berlin 2022

Where We Come From, Where We Go

Solstice Soufflé

What's The Use (Viego Remix)

Dance, it is said, is the hidden language of the soul, but Monique Barry has given it a new linguistic identity by becoming the voice of dance itself. It all happens in her newest single, which, appropriately enough, is called 'Dance'. It's the fifth and latest in a series of singles by Monique that's slated to culminate in a completed album entitled HAAK. 

From single to single, Monique has been exploring the journey from innocence into experience, building on the theme with each song. She enters this new chapter of her musical search by singing in a soothing foxtrot lilt, with the vocal narrative set in a dance club where her protagonist goes to escape a failing romance. There the atmosphere of comfortable chaos with “no cares at all” is highlighted by crisp percussion, music box twinkling (played on a celeste and serving as the voice of disco mirror balls), and synthesizer tones that hover and soar. Gradually as the hunger for escape evolves into a search for order and safety, Monique lifts the lyrics to the next level with her moody, waltzing delivery, and the music gathers into a whirling cloud of sound, suggesting both safety and release, shadow and light. 

Hailed for her “hypnotic mystique” (eye magazine) and “dynamic vocal range” (The Independent Weekly), Monique Barry has consistently demonstrated a willingness to experiment with musical forms and the aesthetic knowhow to back up her creative instincts. Her previous albums—Moody (1998), Tripping (2003), Carbon (2009), and Wake (2013)—have established a critically appreciated affinity for musical dynamism and innovation. Always drawing on a wide range of experiential and cultural influences, Monique’s inspiration for 'Dance' evolved from a section of Joseph Boyden’s novel Through Black Spruce in which a DJ plays mainstream dance music with native rhythms mixed in as a way of communicating. 

Also making musical waves on 'Dance' are some of Monique’s most trusted and vibrant collaborators: Marc Merilainen on guitar, Alisdair Jones on bass, Emma Campbell on vocals and  Michael Philip Wojewoda, co-producer, drums and mix.

HAAK

Dance

Thanks for stopping by! I'm working on my 5th album, HAAK.  Releasing it single by single in the order the songs will appear on the finished product.  Would love you to follow along on the journey.