Little Battles

Minefields

FREE DOWNLOAD: https://shemakeswar.bandcamp.com/track/wake-up-alanis-morrissette-cover

BLOG POST:
http://blog.shemakeswar.com/2015/07/my-alanis-morrisette-cover-is-part-of-the-405s-jagged-little-pill-remake-album/

Wake Up - Alanis Morrissette cover

5 supercharged rerecordings of songs from gloom-pop siren She Makes War's critically acclaimed debut album "Disarm" (2010). Produced by Laura Kidd, mixed by Dan Austin.

Release date: 4th December 2015.

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Laura Kidd aka She Makes War is in a reflective mood, celebrating the fifth anniversary of her critically acclaimed debut album ”Disarm” with an EP and a short winter tour.

“Disarm:15” revisits several audience favourites from her debut, tenderly reworked with the benefit of five years of life, love and touring. As Kierkegaard said, "Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards."

It’s been a busy year for the Bristol polymath, taking in two German tours, a universally acclaimed one-woman show at Edinburgh Fringe (“a charming hour of biographical storytelling and music…perfectly executed acoustic gems” - The List), support tours with Duke Special (UK) and The Levellers (UK & Europe), a 22 date UK headline tour, dates with tUnE-yArDs, Gruff Rhys, New Model Army and Pretty Vicious and the recording of her third album “Direction Of Travel” (due for release in early 2016).

A heartstealing blend of solo a capella looping, riot grrrl inflected indie rock and ukulele melancholy with a spellbindingly intimate vocal capable of melting even the harshest of hearts, She Makes War will visit Birmingham, Manchester, London and her newly adopted home town of Bristol for four special headline shows which will heavily draw from “Disarm” and forthcoming third album “Direction Of Travel". Support on all four shows will come from Eliza Rickman (USA).

Tour dates:

Tuesday 1st December - Birmingham - Sunflower Lounge
Wednesday 2nd December - Manchester - The Castle Hotel
Thursday 3rd December - London - Sebright Arms
Friday 4th December - Bristol - The Louisiana

Tickets - www.shemakeswar.com/disarm-tour

CREDITS:

Produced by Laura Kidd.
Mixed by Dan Austin.

All vocals and instruments by LK except:
Drums - Dan Whitfield // Piano - Cajita //
Harp - Kat Arney // Cello - Nicole Robson

Bass, drums and guitar recorded by Joe Garcia at Joe’s Garage, Bristol.
Harp recorded by Myles Clarke at Studio B, London. Piano arranged & recorded by Cajita, Cello arranged (track 3) and recorded by Nicole Robson at their home studios in London.
Vocals, ukulele, omnichord and keyboard recorded at home in Bristol by LK.
Mixed by Dan Austin at Real World Studios, Box.
Mastered by Dick Beetham at 360 Mastering, Hastings.
Artwork by Laura Ward, layout by LK.

Scared To Capsize (Disarm:15) - She Makes War

Stream in full and get the album! http://www.shemakeswar.com/direction-of-travel

http://facebook.com/shemakeswar
http://twitter.com/warriorgrrl

Management: gordon@stratamusic(dot)com

Under exclusive license to The state51 Conspiracy state51.com

The queen of gloom-pop She Makes War is back with her much-anticipated third album Direction Of Travel, out on 8 April 2016 via The State51 Conspiracy.

Direction Of Travel was recorded in the winter months of 2014/15 in Bristol, Brighton and London. Produced by Laura, mixed by Dan Austin (Doves, Pixies) and featuring guest appearances from Tanya Donelly and Mark Chadwick, most of the instruments were played by SMW with a cast of supporting musician friends including Clive Deamer and Andy Sutor on drums, The McCarricks and Nicole Robson on strings and Cajita on piano.

The songs on Direction Of Travel reveal widescreen ambition, deepening the glittery, grunge-inflected guitar-driven sound of SMW’s back catalogue while exploring new worlds of cinematic orchestration and heartfelt, confessional songwriting. The songs vibrate with sadness but the album’s message is hopeful - we can all become strong enough to reclaim ourselves, to escape from suffocating situations, process sadness and sorrow, and emerge all the stronger for the experience.

As with all things, there are two sides to the story. ‘Drown Me Out’, ‘In Cold Blood’ and ‘Alone’ combine an unabashed love of 90s alt-rock with the gothic undertones of Sisters Of Mercy and early Echo & The Bunnymen. ‘Time To Be Unkind’ (featuring Mark Chadwick) and ‘The Best’ blend melancholy ukulele, cello and piano with a tearstained lead vocal and killer harmonies to deliver the bittersweetest Dear John letters to their anonymous but undeserving miscreants. At the bursting heart of the album sit ‘Stargazing’ and ‘Paper Thin’ (featuring Tanya Donelly); the former unashamedly sharing Kidd’s lowest point - “I don’t believe anybody any more” - and the latter contemplating a period of personal reflection and ultimately redemption – ‘All this is ours…let’s do amazing things with good hearts.

’  ‘I came up with the title Direction Of Travel a few years ago after hearing the phrase many times on trains while I was travelling to gigs, and it’s such a fitting name for this collection of songs. Life truly is about the journey, not the destination, so we should make it as bright and brilliant as we can. My nomadic, lonesome lifestyle has shown me the only direction of travel is onwards, no matter what the world throws at you. 2014 proved to me that I can weather many storms, and once the healing process had begun I was able to trust and love again.’

At the end of 2015, She Makes War teased listeners with the release of 5 track EP Disarm:15, which received praise from the likes of The Line of Best Fit, Gigwise and Songwriting Magazine. Laura has also received support from BBC 6Music’s Lauren Laverne and Tom Robinson and has toured with the likes of tUnE-yArDs, Gruff Rhys, Nadine Shah and Suede.

www.shemakeswar.com
facebook.com/shemakeswar
 twitter.com/warriorgrrl

“She’s ace” - Lauren Laverne, 6 Music

“The emotional resonance of Elliott Smith colliding with the barbed vigour of Sleater-Kinney” - Gigwise

"Why just sing songs, when you can build worlds?" - The Quietus

She Makes War - Drown Me Out

WATCH THE VIDEO:
GET THE FREE DOWNLOAD: http://shemakeswar.com/paper-thin

http://facebook.com/shemakeswar
http://twitter.com/warriorgrrl

Click here to find out more about the song: http://blog.shemakeswar.com/2016/03/paper-thin-free-download/

CREDITS:

Produced by Laura Kidd. Mixed by Dan Austin.
Engineered by Laura Kidd at Knowle Rocks.

Ukulele, keys, omnichord and vocals - Laura Kidd 
Guest vocals - Tanya Donelly - bellyofficial.com 
Cello - Martin McCarrick 
Jingles - Mister Benji

FREE DOWNLOAD

She Makes War feat Tanya Donelly - Paper Thin - FREE DOWNLOAD

Watch the video! https://youtu.be/FWpK90LNu3E

Get the album! http://www.shemakeswar.com/direction-of-travel

http://facebook.com/shemakeswar
http://twitter.com/warriorgrrl

Produced by Laura Kidd.
Mixed by Dan Austin.
Mastered by Dick Beetham.
Engineered by TJ Allen at J&J Studio, Bristol.
Written and performed on bass, guitar, keys and vocals by Laura Kidd.
Drums by Andy Sutor.
Artwork by Alex Bertram-Powell.

SHE MAKES WAR - Cold Shoulder (Radio Version)

She Makes War announces new single “Stargazing”, out 11th November 2016

Contact: hello@mybigsister.rocks for interview/PR requests and gordon @ strata music .com for management enquiries.

"The emotional resonance of Elliott Smith colliding with the barbed vigour of Sleater-Kinney” - Gigwise

She Makes War, Bristol based doyenne of gloom-pop, multi-instrumentalist and visual artist, is set to release new single “Stargazing” on 11th November 2016 via The state51 Conspiracy, supported by 10 tour dates throughout the month.

Following singles “Drown Me Out” and “Cold Shoulder” / “Paper Thin”, which received radio support from BBC 6 Music’s Steve Lamacq, Marc Riley (airplay plus a live session), Lauren Laverne & Tom Robinson and Radio X's John Kennedy, this beautiful song will be the final release from third solo album “Direction Of Travel”.

“I don’t believe anybody any more”, Laura states with clear-eyed vulnerability, at peace with the idea of choosing to stay alone and creatively focused after a year of misfires and misfortune, family health scares and shock bereavements. Stripped back acoustic guitar and layered strings set the scene for her sugar-sad vocals to gracefully accuse “You said we had time, you don’t know you lie”.

Heightening the drama, the show stealing, Bond-esque strings were arranged by Andrew Skeet (The Divine Comedy, Imogen Heap), recorded at The Levellers’ studio in Brighton by Matthew Twaites (Mystery Jets, Electric Soft Parade) and performed by Nicole Robson (Bat For Lashes, Rhodes) and Simon Goff (Hope and Social, And The Wiremen).

Album “Direction Of Travel” was produced by Laura and mixed by Dan Austin (Doves, Pixies), featuring special guest appearances from Tanya Donelly (Belly, Throwing Muses), Mark Chadwick (The Levellers) and Clive Deamer (Portishead, Radiohead). Listen in full at www.shemakeswar.com/direction-of-travel.

November's 10-date “Stargazing” tour runs the whole gamut of She Makes War’s acclaimed, arresting live performance, kicking off with four solo shows supporting The Wave Pictures, two unplugged acoustic previews at a tiny 10-seater cinema in Bristol and three “An Evening with She Makes War” special events in Birmingham, London and Bristol featuring solo and full band sets. The gigs round off an exciting year of touring (with The Brian Jonestown Massacre, Carina Round and Duke Special) and festival appearances, including slots at 2000 Trees, Are You Listening?, Beautiful Days, Dot To Dot, Handmade, Sounds From The Other City and Greenbelt.

NOVEMBER 2016 - visit www.shemakeswar.com/gigs for ticket links

3rd - Manchester - Deaf Institute, supporting The Wave Pictures
4th - Halifax - Arden Road Social Club, supporting The Wave Pictures
5th - Sheffield - Plug, supporting The Wave Pictures
8th - Leeds - Brudenell Social Club, supporting The Wave Pictures
16th - Bath - Komedia, supporting The Wave Pictures
19th - Bristol - Flicks Kino, unplugged acoustic preview (doors 3.30pm)
20th - Bristol - Flicks Kino, unplugged acoustic preview (doors 3.30pm)

An Evening with She Makes War (solo and band sets), support from Luckless (NZ)
22nd - Birmingham - The Sunflower Lounge
23rd - London - The Islington
25th - Bristol - The Louisiana

Direction Of Travel

She Makes War - Stargazing (radio edit)

From the second album by gloom-pop solo artist She Makes War. Get the full album on a pay-what-you-can basis from http://shemakeswar.bandcamp.com/album/little-battles.

Exit Strategy

Time To Be Unkind

Slow Down Sunshine

Alone

http://www.shemakeswar.com - the blistering new single from She Makes War.

I want my country back
From unelected liars, hypocrites and sleazy hacks
I want my country back
Their irresponsible delusional agenda makes me mad

So let’s make Britain great
Get your fake news from the Daily Hate
Close your eyes - let them feed you to the wolves
You deserve it

I want my country back
But they’re crying over something that we never had
Compassion’s not a fad
When you’re running for your life you’ll wish we still banned hunting

All the years that I’ve lived in England I’ve never felt so ashamed

So let’s make Britain great
Get your fake news from the Daily Hate
Close your eyes - let them feed you to the wolves
You deserve it

I want my country back
Stop blaming refugees and immigrants for what you lack
They’re taking all the flack
While the Tories cut the NHS - let’s give them a slow clap

If you believe that all Muslims are terrorists you deserve to have your job “stolen” from you

So let’s make Britain great
Get your fake news from the Daily Hate
Close your eyes - let them feed you to the wolves
So let’s make Britain great
Get your fake statistics from the Daily Hate
Close your eyes cos I’ve had enough of you
You deserve it

Single Master

SHE MAKES WAR - I Want My Country Back  - FREE DOWNLOAD

http://www.shemakeswar.com
http://twitter.com/shemakeswar
http://facebook.com/shemakeswar

Single listen/buy: http://www.shemakeswar.com/devastate-me
Get the album: http://www.shemakeswar.com/brace-for-impact
Tour dates: http://www.shemakeswar.com/gigs

Produced by Laura Kidd at Joe’s Garage and J&J Studios, Bristol.
Engineered and mixed by Dan Austin, mastered by Dick Beetham.
Guitar, bass and vocals by Laura Kidd, drums by Dan Whitfield.

SHE MAKES WAR - Devastate Me

http://www.shemakeswar.com/undone

Bristol based producer and creative indie powerhouse She Makes War releases her new double A side single ‘Undone \ London Bites’, from forthcoming album ‘Brace For Impact’ (released 5th October). The songs will be made available online in two stages, with ‘Undone’ on 14th and ‘London Bites’ on 28th September. Analogue music fans are invited to order gorgeous hand packaged vinyl-effect CD singles direct from the artist via Bandcamp.  

The deliciously brooding ’London Bites’ details Laura’s move to London aged 18 and the sorry realisation the people you hold close don’t always have your best interests at heart. Informed by her first boyfriend she couldn’t - and shouldn’t - sing, Laura sends wise survival tips back in time to embolden her younger self to dream as big as the potential of London’s gold-paved streets. “Hold your head high / pull your lips wide / make your mind keen / keep your teeth clean” - words to live by.

SHE MAKES WAR - London Bites

"And Peace" is the final album from She Makes War - a brand new eight track retrospective featuring fan favourites from all four SMW albums, released to draw a close to the project before indie rock producer Laura Kidd moves forward into 2020 with her new project.

The digital version of this album is pay-what-you-want with all proceeds in December 2019 donated to Trussell Trust, working to end UK hunger and poverty. You can also buy limited edition CDs, hardback lyric books, tees and hand typed lyric sheets from http://shemakeswar.bandcamp.com/album/and-peace

Laura says: "The songs in this collection were chosen from YOUR online votes – I sneakily asked you what your top three SMW songs were, counted them up and set to work, recording stripped back, intimate versions of the top tracks at The Launchpad and sending them off to be beautifully mixed by Steve Kilpatrick. Before moving on to new pastures, I wanted to create this collection to honour the people who have been a massive part of this whole project – YOU. 

I’ve been playing some of these songs live for a long time now, and having got to know them back to front and inside out over the 571(ish) gigs I’ve played under the SMW name, it was fun to create these new versions. I hope you enjoy listening."

Produced, recorded and performed by Laura Kidd.
Mixed by Steve Kilpatrick.
Mastered by Chris McCormack.

And Peace

Delete - She Makes War

"And Peace" is the final album from She Makes War - a brand new eight track retrospective featuring fan favourites from all four SMW albums, released to draw a close to the project before indie rock producer Laura Kidd moves forward into 2020 with her new project.

Buy limited edition CDs, hardback lyric books, tees and hand typed lyric sheets from http://shemakeswar.bandcamp.com/album/and-peace

Laura says: "The songs in this collection were chosen from YOUR online votes – I sneakily asked you what your top three SMW songs were, counted them up and set to work, recording stripped back, intimate versions of the top tracks at The Launchpad and sending them off to be beautifully mixed by Steve Kilpatrick. Before moving on to new pastures, I wanted to create this collection to honour the people who have been a massive part of this whole project – YOU. 

I’ve been playing some of these songs live for a long time now, and having got to know them back to front and inside out over the 571(ish) gigs I’ve played under the SMW name, it was fun to create these new versions. I hope you enjoy listening."

Produced, recorded and performed by Laura Kidd.
Mixed by Steve Kilpatrick.
Mastered by Chris McCormack.

Scared To Capsize

Dear Heart

Cajita's 2016 remix of "Stargazing" from the album "Direction Of Travel". Get the free download from https://shemakeswar.bandcamp.com/track/stargazing-cajita-remix

Stargazing (Cajita remix)

Watch the video: http://youtu.be/Q5hzO-s2LA4
Download the album in full here: http://shemakeswar.bandcamp.com/album/disarm

Slow Puncture

60 second podcast created for the Akimbo Podcast Fellowship course.

My podcast series is coming soon...sign up at http://shemakeswar.com/tothefuture to get updates on that plus my new musical project xo

220320 John The Poet

230320  Local Birds

This afternoon I recorded one of my favourite guitarists, Charlotte Hatherley, for my upcoming podcast series. She was absolutely great, and when we got to trading stories about exciting musical people we'd nervously got to meet I shared the one where I had a beer with Paul McCartney in an airport bar. Listen on for more...

60 second podcast created for the Akimbo Podcast Fellowship course.

My podcast series is coming soon...sign up at shemakeswar.com/tothefuture to get updates on that plus my new musical project xo

240320 The day I had a beer with Paul McCartney

250320 Tired voice ramble

60 second podcast created for the Akimbo Podcast Fellowship course.

My podcast series is coming soon...sign up at shemakeswar.com/tothefuture to get updates on that plus my new musical project xo

270320 Applauding the NHS

Now making music as Penfriend! http://penfriend.rocks

Listen to my back catalogue and get free songs at http://shemakeswar.com

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