The Cellophane Flowers

If all this week’s talk of The Stone Roses reunion has left you a tad bored then maybe it’s time to check out some different metaphorical flora in the form of The Cellophane Flowers instead.

The Cellophane Flowers make driving, quirky pop and their songs reflect an eclectic array of influences ranging from tribal drumming to West Coast alt-rock to the noir recesses of 1980s shoegaze. Though bustling with ideas, the band leaves the sublime vocals of Italian-born singer Francesca Corradini, to do their metaphorical talking and breathe life into their compositions. The band are currently working with producer Dave Allen – who has previously worked with such luminaries as The Cure, Depeche Mode, The Human League and The Charlatans – on their forthcoming album Staring At The World. This builds on the critical success of last year’s If I Was A Girl EP, which earned them appearances on the Beeb’s airwaves and numerous radio stations in the US.

The two tracks from The Cellophane Flowers’ new Freeze Me single came out of the If I Was A Girl EP sessions. The title track’s penetrating rhythms and hook-laden guitar lines pull you straight in as the melody-laden verses build to a crescendo and drag you kicking and screaming into the chorus. T’other track (Belinda – downloadable here for nowt) truly showcases Francesca’s voice, and the hard-hitting chorus highlights the band’s heavier influences. If Freeze Me evokes Throwing Muses with a groove, then Belinda recalls Sonic Youth gone ska. Sound good? Then check out the photos below, have a listen and let us – and them – know what you think. - www.anegativenarrative.com

Hailing from Pordenone in the northeast of Italy, Francesca Corradini is the lead singer and guitarist of The Cellophane Flowers. Currently in the middle of recording an album, she popped by our office last Tuesday for a quick chat and an exclusive photoshoot.

Dressing her in the likes of Diesel, Valentino and Firetrap, our creative director Paul was channelling an androgynous vibe, one of the key trends popular with the likes of Alexa Chung, Agyness Deyn and Lou Doillon. So how does this work with Francesca’s usual look? “I like to wear loud clothes on stage,” she explains. “We try to stick to black, orange and red because they are our band colours.”

As well as sticking to Francesca’s failsafe stage outfit; dresses, we also experimented with oversized tunics, leather-look leggings and capped sleeve T-shirts. Often using accessories to finish off her look, Paul layered up with bold chains and bowler hats. - www.secretsales.com

Please see video - UBRTV

Our third female Emerging Icon to be restyled at Secresales.com HQ is Francesca Corradini, lead singer of The Cellophane Flowers.

The Cellophane Flowers play catchy quirky pop music inspired by 80s indie music such as The Smiths and Joy Division. Lead singer Francesca has a singing style that has been compared with Lily Allen - but with an Italian accent!
Paul Davis, Creative Director of Secretsales.com, decided to play on Francesca's current androgynous look and followed that theme through most of the shoot.

Scroll down to see Francesca's photos, and check out the video of the shoot HERE... - www.unsignedbandreview.com

Review of single Belinda:
The Cellophane Flowers have been grabbing a lot of attention recently and quite rightly. The female fronted London quartet have been creating eye opening music and 'Belinda', although softer than their norm, is no exception.

The verses have a slightly funked up bass feel to them, leading to a far more rockier chorus. While the music has a heart warming feel to it, the lyrics disregard that by having a slightly sinister feel to them, how else can you explain the chorus repeating "When I saw her lately, under the ground". Lead singer, Francesca Corradini's vocals fit beautifully into the song, almost teasing the listener with the story with a mix of innocence and guilt.

With a new album due out hopefully later this year, expect to hear a lot more from The Cellophane Flowers if this track is anything to go by. In the meantime, they are playing at the Pure Festival at the Islington Garage on 25th September. - www.roomthirteen.com

Introducing the latest Virgin Red Room house band - Cellophane Flowers!

Cellophane Flowers explain all about their Italian, Brazilian, Australian, Maltese influenced band - and make the odd smutty joke.

Things they like? Drinking, partying, playing gigs, being in a band, trashing other people's hotels, crying themselves to sleep.

Things you should like? Cellophane Flowers definitely do not work in a bank. - Virgin Red Room

This is a band that does a relatively commonplace thing, but does it in a very individual and distinctive way. They strike a good balance between an inviting stylistic familiarity, and a slightly raw edged creativity that keeps the listener alert: every aspect of the way their melodic and entertaining songs are arranged is nuanced and made their own.
Singer Francesca Corradini, has a good voice, but doesn’t rely on rock and soul histrionics to let us know that: she just lets her phrasing and inflection fall into the sense of the lyrics, and once she has our attention, she lets her relaxed timbre and subtle accent do the rest. With such a sexy, charismatic voice to get behind, the rest of the band don’t have a difficult job, but they stay resolutely creative.
Utilising a range of textures from across the landscape of rock and guitar pop, sometimes verging on the heavy (although not quite metal heavy), the arrangements are continually varied, and rely at least as much on timbre as they do on harmonic and melodic elements. Their atmospheres are warm, driving flows, with choruses that envelop the listener and carry them away on a flood of bittersweet emotion.
My favourite tune is the title track: ‘If I Was A Girl’ is informed by an angular, funky, Joe Jackson-esque bass riff punctuated by a heavy backbeat chop from the guitar, and has by far the most effective melody of the EP, which is saying something. This is a truly likeable, accomplished and entertaining record. - www.oliverarditi.com

The first thing to say about the Cellophane Flowers is that they’re a good bit rockier than many of things you’ll be used to finding on this website. But they draw on all manner of influences, of which folk is one, so here we go.

ShaunShaun McCoy: This London-based quartet fashion together meaningful, dreamy, powerful vocals with bits of indie, punk, folk and psychedelic grandeur. There is a very fine guitar sound driving through the centre of their 5 track EP. Solid bass lines and neat drumming also add their weight. Singer Francesca Corradini is a strong presence, turning from angst-ridden tones to a more optimistic plane. The standout track is Yes I Am – a heady mix of Stooges-esqe grunge raised to the fore by Francesca’s powerful driving voice, creating as much nervous tension as a David Lynch film. If I Was A Girl is a shimmering, tight musical combination finished off with a vocal reminiscent to a fine Italian red wine.

JRutherfordJames Rutherford: As a genuinely international group (with band members hailing from Italy, Australia and England), it’s little wonder that The Cellophane Flowers have a wide range of influences and on this evidence, it serves them well. Catchy hooks, pacey beats, rocky in places, poppy in others and at times quite funky, the EP is an enjoyable journey and shows signs that they could make an impact as an indie/pop band, I don’t think they’re going to trouble the folkies though. The one major reservation I have is the longevity; the occasional listen is fine but if over played it can become a little sickly. That said, it’s probably perfect for the charts.

parkerIan Parker: This isn’t strictly folk, or indeed mainly folk, as you’ll immediately notice when they funky vibes of their indie-rock sound first fill your speakers. They’ve included all manner of sounds in their final product, and poured it all into a polished, marketable sound. While Freeze Me is a more basic indie rock song, If I Was A Girl is far more interesting, with its reggae vibe and pop grooves. Count Me In goes off in yet another direction, borrowing from the more melodramatic moments of 80s pop. It’s well worth the listen, just to see where they’ll go next.

Check out the Cellophane Flowers for yourself here. - www.forfolkssake.com

A-M-A-Z-I-N-G "If I Was A Girl" EP

So I knew they were awesome live so why am I still amazed by their EP "If I Was A Girl"??????

The Cellophane Flowers despite their cultural mix bring together a grand sound like no other. Francesca, Nick, Luca and Ian have managed to bring sparks, total ACEof a pop-indie flow to their fans. You can't not like them, can't say you won't be a fan...they force you to be..and you will be!!

Ian Gorden from Line That Best Fit calls their EP "a musical CV" && I think they got the job. "Yes I Am" the first song on their album is total better tempo White Stripes - screw the White Stripes it's The Cellophane Flowers! Francesca's melodious voice can handicap a room, paralyze and hypnotize with its beauty.

Visit their Myspace for contact details and more information on the band, gigs and of course to hear their art!!!
- www.wiredradio.co.uk

See the Noisettes announcing the five bands nominated for best rock act! - www.onlinemusicawards.org

Frank Skinner - Absolute Radio - Frank Skinner - Absolute Radio

Based in London but with members coming from all over the place, The Cellophane Flowers have been firmly on our office playlist since their debut EP ‘If I Was A Girl’ landed earlier in the year. Combining psychedelic sounding pop and folk with a grittier guitar noise that you might expect. Still unsigned, they’re definitely ones to watch for 2011.

Introduce yourselves

The Cellophane Flowers are Fra, Ian, Luca and Nick. We’re London’s most fragrant psycho-pop band and we’re busy right now pollinating London with the news of our new ‘If I Was A Girl’ EP.

Whereabouts in London are you based? Sell it to us

Herne Hill. What’s great? Well, The Half Moon is now finally gearing itself up to be a seminal live music venue again. A very cool music scene roundabouts Brixton and Herne Hill. Brockwell Park on a sunny summer’s day. Breakfast. On the down side it’s rather hilly.

Where are you from originally, what does London do better?

Fra’s from Italy, Luca’s from Australia, Ian’s from Brazil and Nick’s from Suffolk. We all try hard to play up to our national stereotypes but what London does better than anywhere else in the world is that no one notices or cares where you are from.

What London location has been the most significant for The Cellophane Flowers so far?

This is a hard one, there are plenty to choose from. We play most of our gigs around Camden, but it would have to be King’s Cross, home to our rehearsal nest and second favourite London breakfast.

What do you reckon you sound like?

Ask a million people, you’ll get a million different answers. We say psycho pop, but some of the comparisons we get in our reviews are frankly bizarre! We have a real pop sensibility in how we pump our music out, but we throw in elements of prog, alt-rock, surf, folk, you name it. The results are as varied as our backgrounds.

Give us your most awesome reason for why we should check you out rather than every other new band out there?

Because we’re good. Very good. We’re as fed up as the next person with watching dull people churning out dull music in dull venues to impress a few mates. We try to make our performances an event, play music for the head and the heart. Particularly with our Cellophonic Club nights, to get some different things going on. Not everyone’s going to love what we do, but we’ve got as

far as we have so far on the back of people finding out about us and really getting into what we’re doing, coming to see us again and again, or helping us out with the skills they have – the video for example was made on the back of a genuine love of what we’re doing. And the singer’s fit.

What’s your favourite London venue and why?

We love playing at Camden Proud Gallery, but Koko is our favourite.

What other new London bands / artists should we be checking out?

We love a girl called Anna Calvi who we happened to see at Punk last year. We can’t wait to see

her again!

And finally what’s your London secret?

Herne Hill. An anonymous village in the patchwork quilt of villages that is London. We even wrote a song about it – Village Metropolitana.

The Cellophane Flowers play Glasswerk at The Monarch on Tuesday 30th November. For music and more live dates check out their myspace. - www.londonist.com

It’s fair to say that The Cellophane Flowers are a worldly band. They hail from around the globe yet it is London where they’re currently determined to conquer. Ahead of a string of gigs in the capital, we caught up with the band to learn more about them.

MTTM: You hail from varying corners of the world – do you think that your different nationalities and heritages help to inspire you musically?

The Cellophane Flowers: Oh yes totally, we all come from very different backgrounds and this inevitably affects the way we sound and the way we write. Francesca’s from Italy, Luca’s from Australia, Ian’s from Brazil and Nick’s from Suffolk. We all try hard to play up to our national stereotypes… but at the end of the day the great thing about London is that no one notices or cares where you are from!

MTTM: What’s more important for you – the UK or American music industries?

The Cellophane Flowers: We seem to be putting a lot of effort in the UK industry, which is the one close to our hearts. However we do get great feedback from the States, having been reviewed by Spin magazine and played by many radio stations over there in the last few years. We can’t wait to go tour the States!

MTTM: You’ve got quite a few London gigs coming up, is there one you’re most excited about?

The Cellophane Flowers: We are excited about all of them! It will be great to play The Social with Club Ugly on the 24th May. We like Club Ugly and they have supported us since the very beginning of our journey 5 years ago; it’s a free night and the music is always quirky and different. We highly recommend it. We also can’t wait to play with Bloody Awful Poetry at The Enterprise on the 17th June. Bloody Awful Poetry is probably the best promoter in London at the moment, we play with them often and they have always put on great nights.

MTTM: You’re currently working with Dave Allen who has worked with some incredible musicians. What’s it been like working with him?

The Cellophane Flowers: It’s an amazing experience working with Dave. We are currently busy recording and mixing our debut album, Staring at the World, and we are planning a release just after the summer. Dave has blown our minds, his ideas and approach have helped us to explore a new musical territory. We are so excited about this album, we know it will be unbelievably good!

MTTM: Your music has been described as ‘retro’, ‘quirky’ and ‘ecclectic’. How would you sum up your sound?

The Cellophane Flowers: We say psycho pop, but some of the comparisons we get in our reviews are frankly bizarre! We have a real pop sensibility in how we pump our music out, but we throw in elements of prog, alt-rock, surf, folk, you name it. The results are as varied as our backgrounds.

MTTM: How do you go about the song-writing process?

The Cellophane Flowers: It depends. Most of the times Ian or Fra come to the studio with songs they have written and we play around with them together. Other times songs just come out from jamming in the studio. There are no rules!

MTTM: Where in the world would you most like to tour?

The Cellophane Flowers: We could probably give you four different answers, let’s say we wouldn’t say no to any offer! We would love to tour the States though.

MTTM: What else have you got planned for 2011?

The Cellophane Flowers: We have just gone live with our new website www.thecellophaneflowers.co.uk, which was one of the goals we had this year, together with the album. We are also planning to make a new video with our friend producer Thomas Stimson who did the video for our single If I Was a Girl, if you have not seen it yet please do! You can find it on youtube. This guy is amazing! Once we have picked the first single out of the album, we will start working on this. - www.morethanthemusic.co.uk

When it comes to quirky, summer pop, no one does it better than The Cellophane Flowers. This foursome are not to be missed, with a sound as varied and eclectic as their background, the future looks nothing but bright for this talented quartet.

Italian front woman Francesca Corradini commands vocal duties in this hit-making machine. Her voice gives the band’s brand of sunny pop a distinctive and instantly recognisable edge. Teaming up with Francesca’s considerable talent is Ian Sumner, bringing his guitar, brazen with attitude, all the way from Brazil. Polar opposites, Egypt and Suffolk, are where you’ll find drummer, Nick Guy’s roots and rounding off this veritable pick ‘n’ mix from all corners of the world, is Australian-Italian-Maltese bassist, Luca Napolitano.

Last year saw the band release their critically acclaimed EP If I Was A Girl, a record striking a dam near perfect balance between seething attitude and sunshine coated pop. The five-song effort was the fruit of the quartet’s labours alongside Oli Wright, whose previous endeavours include the likes of Mystery Jets and Jarvis Cocker. This bite size sample of The Cellophane Flowers has gained the colourful bunch airing on radio stations both in blighty (both BBC Radio 1 and 6) and the US, right from New York to San Francisco.

Expect to hear a lot more from The Cellophane Flowers in 2011, as the band’s much anticipated debut album is set for release later in the year.

http://www.thecellophaneflowers.co.uk/ - www.morethanthemusic.co.uk

When the ‘If I Was A Girl’ EP came out last year the critical acclaim for the release and for The Cellophane Flowers themselves was wide and deep, and rightly so as their intriguing, engaging, and at times wrong footing indie pop showed there was some unique creativeness still alive in the genre. Whilst working on their debut album Staring At The World with notable producer (The Cure / Depeche Mode / Human League / The Charlatans), the multi-national quartet have released the new single ‘Freeze Me’ as not only a teaser for the forthcoming release but also a nudge to those already aware of them to not forget their enticing sound. Guitarist Ian Sumner says in reference to the recording of the album “It’s a great experience working with Dave,” and added “Working with Dave has blown our mind, the ideas and approach has helped us to explore a new musical territory.”

Whilst waiting in growing anticipation for the album fans can enjoy a duo of tracks taken from the ‘If I Was A Girl EP’ that as well as bringing great joy show a band destined to inspire and break down limits in any direction they choose.

‘Freeze Me’ immediately beckons the listener closer with the guitar opening which gently strolls in being joined as the chords flow by simple and effective rhythms. Everything breaks into a wider smile musically as Italian vocalist Francesca Corradini lets her emotive tones flow. She has a voice that demands attention without imposing, her voice bewitching. As the track develops the drums of Nick Guy become more insistent and Sumner lets his guitar sing behind and around Corradini’s captivating voice creating crescendos and swells that can only please.

The magical song ‘Belinda’ accompanies ‘Freeze Me’ on the release. It is an uplifting song with a hybrid summery calypso–ska kind of groove in the verses before giving way to a satisfying indie rock sound. The bass of Australian-Italian Luca Napolitano is a wonderful rumbling growl whilst the voice of enchantress Corradini again with its alluring, magnetic fascination is glorious.

Musically though The Cellophane Flowers are hard to pin down, which is refreshing in itself, there is an 80’s feel to their sound. There are traces of Throwing Muses certainly to them enhanced with the quirky pop of Whale and in a way also Daisy Chainsaw, certainly vocally for the latter; all are apparent flavours but the resulting sound is all The Cellophane Flowers exclusively and very appetising it is indeed.

‘Freeze Me’ is a wonderful and delightful release to bring more fans in and to abate the wait for their debut album, one that many will after this release be anticipating even more eagerly.

http://www.thecellophaneflowers.co.uk/

- www.ringmasterreviewintroduces.wordpress.com

Francesca Corradini is a musician, leading singer of The Cellophane Flowers. She lives in London, England, United Kingdom.
DS: How did you hear about Dailysingle? What are you expecting from being on the front page?
Francesca Corradini: I came across it through a friend who mentioned it, I like it as it’s a very different site. I want to spread the word about the band I am involved with, so people can check us out.
One of our tracks has a coda about hiding away in a box, but I am too tall to actually do that.
DS: What are the most memorable years of your life and what happened to make them so memorable?
Francesca Corradini: The last five years have been quite crazy for me, since I started playing with my band The Cellophane Flowers. In particular the past five months have been great, recording our debut album “Staring at the World” with producer Dave Allen, who has worked with some outstanding artists including The Cure and The Human League. It’s a dream come true!
DS: Where were you born and where do you live now?
Francesca Corradini: I was born in Pordenone, a small Italian town near Venice. I moved to London six years ago, I was meant to stay only for one summer but I am still here! I live with the rest of the band in Herne Hill, South East London.
DS: How would you best describe yourself?
Francesca Corradini: This is a tough question. Whatever I think I am, I always find people perceive me in the completely opposite way. I’m told that this is because I spend so much time looking at the mirror. Everyone will agree one point though; I am very spontaneous, I can’t hide my emotions very well.
DS: What are the must-haves in your daily wardrobe?
Francesca Corradini: Everything. I like clothes a lot, so I tend to have a lot of them, which could be a problem when you live in a tiny place. A classic outfit would be wrecked tights with an oversized shirt or jumper on top. And vegan boots.
DS: Who do people tell you you look like?
Francesca Corradini: When I cut my fringe I get the Karen O a lot. But that’s about it really. I used to have a double in my town as a teenager, quite scary. She was called Francesca too…might have been something to do with the mirror again.
DS: What is the compliment you most frequently get?
Francesca Corradini: I don’t like it when people tell me that I ‘m tall. They think it’s a compliment, but I have always hated being tall. I want to be small!
DS: How did you end-up being a musician?
Francesca Corradini: I have always loved music since I was a child. Singing has always been my main passion, and I love writing songs.
DS: Can you tell us more about your job?
Francesca Corradini: Our slave master / employer is called The Cellophane Flowers. We write songs. We play gigs. We record albums. We meet lots of interesting people and have a good laugh together. It’s the best place to be.
DS: Let's talk more about you and your tastes. Any hobbies? What do you like to do in your free time? Any thing you like and recommend?
Francesca Corradini: I like going to flea markets and taking home as much rubbish as possible. I love art and craft, I love making things, just for myself. My tastes are, er, personal. In particular I like making boxes. One of our tracks has a coda about hiding away in a box, but I’m too tall to actually do that. I truly love animals, I don’t eat or wear animals.
Francesca Corradini
DS: What is a typical week for Francesca Corradini?
Francesca Corradini: Go to the studio with the ‘Flowers. Rehearse for our next gig. Write new songs. Play gigs. Go to gigs. Speak on the phone to my Italian family!
DS: Some quick questions: What is the first thing you do in the morning?
Francesca Corradini: Brush my teeth.
DS: What is your favorite word?
Francesca Corradini: Favorite word: toy. Least favorite word: okey dokey.
DS: What it your favorite quotation? Or make your own for posterity...
Francesca Corradini: I feel have to quote Bill Hicks and say: “It’s just a ride”
DS: What is your favorite "drug"?
Francesca Corradini: Whisky and music are my favorite drugs! And Bill Hicks.
DS: What magic power would you like to have if you could choose one?
Francesca Corradini: I would like to be able to freeze in a moment, which is also the topic of our single “Freeze me”.
DS: If not yourself, who would you be?
Francesca Corradini: I would be Mary Poppins. Wouldn’t it be great? But I’m clumsy so I’d be an unintentional badass with my umbrella.
DS: What is in store for you? Any key projects for the next months? Anything you want to share? Can our readers help you with anything?
Francesca Corradini: The main thing now is getting the album completed and out. Then we’ll work on getting one or two videos – hopefully we’ll get to work with our friend Thomas Stimson again, he produced the video for ‘If I Was A Girl’, which was great fun. I struggled to keep the boys out of my wardrobe though.
DS: Anything you want to add to close this interview?
Francesca Corradini: K - www.dailysingle.com

T
he Cellophane Flowers from London write songs that keep you humming all day long. Their music, they call it "psycho-pop," is like a bouquet full of surprises - you never know what you'll get. But like candies from an arcane store their tunes are always a discovery. Plus they have a lot of interesting things to say. The group is currently in the studio to record their first full album and they were kind enough to answer some questions. Interview by Willi Mühlhausen.

When was the band formed? What is the line-up?

The four of us first played in a room together in 2005. We have Luca on bass and occasional keys, Nick on drums and occasional chimes and keys, Ian on guitars and occasional keys and Fra on vocals, acoustic guitar and occasional keys.

As a group, musical influences may change on a daily basis - but is there a band/artist the whole group can agree on?

Yes, there are plenty of bands that none of us like. Agreeing on one band that we all like, hmmm. There are some that we will all think are at least ok, but none that we all go crazy for. We’re coming from different angles, and for us the best thing about being together is that we don’t do GroupThink.

In a recent interview you revealed that your band name is about a "world of manufactured beauty" - but it's also a line from a Beatles song: Lucy in the sky with diamonds. Do we need more sense/sensuality and less immediacy?

Yes yes yes! And we want it now! This is a really good question. We certainly get a little frustrated sometimes when we see a review that complains about an intro to a song being too long, because the poor souls have to wait half a minute before they get the chorus. I know we like to make our choruses big, but come on guys!

I’m not sure we’re the best guys to speak to if you want sense, but if we have a manifesto it’s that if it’s not different, don’t do it. Simply slapping a brand new brand every three months on the same tired old stuff – whether it’s the latest boil eruption from X-factor, or the same ‘homemade’ identikit chicken breast served up at your local gastropub – it just won’t wash forever. We may wear our influences on our sleeves, but we’re doing something different. I’d rather give up on doing anything than take part in the Great 21st Century Cloning Experiment.

You've released several EP's already - what is it like to release records and presenting them to an audience?

We’re our own harshest critics, so releasing a record feels like a relief. We want people to have a reaction to our music, even if they hate it, great, it means that there’s something else they love. Live gigs are the best though, you get that immediate reaction. And that really helps us improve the songwriting, improve the songs, make sure we don’t get stuck up our own arses. But hey, we want to keep on doing this so we’re happy as long as each release gets a bigger audience and gets more people loving the music. We’re like a shark, we need to keep moving.

You're recording new songs - tell us about it. Will it be a full-length album (on vinyl, too?) Who's gonna produce it?

Yes, a full and proper real album. The only rule we’ve got is it’s got to be under 45 minutes. So it will fit on vinyl…hopefully we’ll do a vinyl release too. We’ve got ten songs down already, most of them new. We’ll probably end up with another three or four recordings and then chop it down to the best tracks.

But we’re loving what we’ve got so far, so that’s going to be tricky. But any excuse to keep working with Dave Allen, who’s producing it. He’s worked with some heavyweight bands, including all of The Cure’s seminal albums, The Charlatans, The La’s…his impact has been indescribable, and occasionally indecipherable. We tend to take our influences from all over the place and while we’ve managed to get that working together live, he’s really managed to make the recordins all sound coherent, an album in the true sense of the word. But if he says “let’s do that one more time” one more time…

I’ve never bought into this indie or sell-out dichotomy. If the deal’s a good one, we’ll take it. But whoever we work with – and this applies to anyone – they need to believe in what we’re doing. And we’re not stupid enough to think that belief comes walking through the door with a promise and a smile.

Bands have been destroyed by indie deals where the band carries all the costs and all the risks while the label does bugger all, and bands have been destroyed by major labels who change the music you make and still get you to carry all the costs. But you might get a ride in a limo in-between. Steve Albini’s always good for an opinion on this subject - http://www.negativland.com/albini.html, but there are two sides to every story. It’s all about having your eyes open, your legs crossed and your backs against the wall.

You've stated that the organic feel of your music would be perfectly suited to vinyl. Compared to CD, what is so different about a - www.feevah.com

Trying to define the ever-evolving sound of The Cellophane Flowers is difficult. Even when on stage at Club Ugly one is never sure whether these guys sound more like the Cocteau Twins, Fleetwood Mac or something very post-grunge. Eventually it is better to stop worrying and just let the swirling noise surround you. The track below is perhaps the band on a lighter day, pared down and affecting...

http://www.uglynephew.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=7&Itemid=10
- Ugly Nephew

"Female-fronted slightly offkilter driving pop from London."

Check out Twitter here:
http://twitter.com/freshnet

Listen to the Podcast (23 March 09) here:
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/6music/trintro/trintro_20090323-1431a.mp3
- Tom Robinson

"Francesca’s voice is indescribably delicious and her styling is tasty and unique." - Review Posse

What's to plug? ‘Off-kilter pop’ – what does it mean exactly? Crud’s own experience of feeling off-kilter is having a storming headache and a dry, bitter taste in its mouth after consuming copious amounts of alcohol the night before. At a push it might even inevitably lead to a quiet night in watching ‘Gardener’s World’. But that’s about as ‘off-kilter’ as it gets – but for the likes of Cellophane Flowers it means drafting in band members from several corners of the globe and tickling out the kind of skewed and breezy riffs more commonly associated with songs about cross-dressing persons called Lola. Fronted by deliciously dew-eyed, Italian sort, Francesca Corradini, the band’s eccentric pop-art brew has already been drawing favourable reviews from 6 Music. A Neopolitan Clare Grogan: what more do you people want?
- CRUD MAGAZINE

Based in London, but featuring members from all over the world, including a female Italian lead vocalist, a multi-instrumental Australian and a guitarist from England; The Cellophane Flowers are avant-garde pop personified. This week sees the release of their debut EP entitled If I Was A Girl, which is an energetic and optimistic affair, confirming the bands position as enthralling newcomers. Opener Yes I Am contains a heavy, brooding guitar riff, not too amiss from from that of early shoegaze Cure songs, and draws comparisons to that of Sonic Youth, with Francesca’s quirky vocals being comparable to that of Kim Gordon. As stated on their myspace, their influences are far ranging and non-containing, allowing for a dense and progressive sound, shown best on EP highlight Freeze Me, which could easily have fitted in on Yeah Yeah Yeah’s fantastic critically acclaimed Show Your Bones. Each song is carefully crafted, no strings attached pop, with each track coming in at under the four minute mark, making for a restless and invigorating experience. Jovial title track unashamedly exposes their pop influences, containing a funky, reverb-laden guitar riff, not too dissimilar to that of genius songstress PJ Harvey. With a unique style, and inspired musical offerings, The Cellophane Flowers are definitely one to watch over the coming months. Any readers from London make sure to check out their EP launch tonight at Peter Parkers Rock and Roll Club.
- Crack In The Road

This is an EP that really wants you to like it from the moment you see the sleeve. It screams “Hey, I’m friendly, we could hang out and play Swingball!” First off you get a really endearing picture of a smiling jukebox as the sleeve art, and then the CD itself is pretending to be vinyl. It’s beautiful packing, it really is, and to an old cynic like me, filled me with a sense of foreboding – I was bound to be let down after such a charming opening.

But, happily, it wasn’t to be. Inside is a collection of rather lovely indie-rock – and don’t let the term put you off; yeah, I know it summons up hideous images of Coldplay and Travis and Scouting For Girls, but please don’t worry on that account. It’s nothing like that shit. This is bubbly-yet-darkish stuff by people who clearly know their New Order from their Smiths, and is all the better for it.

What it most reminds me of, to be honest (and, sadly, probably inadvertently obscure) is the criminally underrated Tabitha Zu, lead singer Francesca Corradini’s voice having that hard-yet-soft quality that also made TZ vocalist Melanie Garside’s solo album so good, even though nobody ever heard it. Too often these days indie vocalists make the mistake, in trying to make their voice into another instrument (an art perfected by the wonderful Mike Patton), making it into a really dull one; a second rhythm guitar or something, just rising and falling with the music and, half the time, making you think they could have saved a fortune and ditched the singer. Ms Corradini doesn’t fall into this trap, her voice rising defiantly from guitar crescendos and soaring majestically over bass and drums (as opposed to drum’n'bass, obviously) breakdowns.

The more I listen to it, the more I’m also getting echoes of some of the great female-fronted pop music of the eighties. When people think eighties pop, they always think Wham! and the like, when really they should be thinking Martha And The Muffins, The Mobiles or The Passions. There’s a lot of The Passions in this band, whether deliberately or not, and to this aging hack, that’s a wonderful thing that there should be more of in music.

They’re not breaking any boundaries or creating any new genres, but that doesn’t seem to be what they’re about. What they ARE doing is great, solid, affecting songs in a genre rapidly forgetting that these things are important. While many of their contemporaries are drifting away into some kind of leafy sludge, they’ve actually remembered that music should move people in ways that don’t just consist of “to and from the bar,” and that songwriting is actually an art, rather than just something the member with the best vocabulary can do in their spare time when they’re not posing for magazines.

If there’s any justice, they’ll go a long way. As long as they can get themselves noticed about the tide of mediocrity that surrounds them; although on the strength of this EP that shouldn’t prove too difficult.
- www.freqzine.net

London based band The Cellophane Flowers comprises the collaboration between Francesca Corradini (vocals – guitar), Ian Sumner (guitar), Luca Napolitano (bass), Nick Guy (drums). Some have attempted to catalog the band’s unusual sound as “whimsy pop,” “psycho-pop,” and “avant-garde pop personified” – if you put a gun to our heads and forced us to draw comparisons, we might refer to early Sugarcubes, Cardigans, The Cure, Love and Rockets and Ida Maria, but the reason we chose to profile this act is because their sound was not easy to pin down and yet not so outre that we were not immediately infected by its appealing song structures and refreshing instrumentation.

Francesca Corradini’s voice is both charismatic and winsome (and perhaps therein lies the comparisons to that Icelandic breakout band). The guitar play has the serpentine atonality and yet anthemic throughline reminiscent of Pixies’ Joey Santiago, and the rhythm section thumps down iron anchor grooves that help this rock harder than typical Thursday night club fare.

Check out the video for the lead off single “If I Was Girl” below.


Francesca shared some highlights from the recording of the new album: “A highlight was playing with the toys in the studio – for [the song] Freeze - me feeding a vintage Moog through analogue delay and phaser, writing the parts live as we recorded them, and then realising that as much as we loved the sound, we’d have to include the rest of the track on the recording. Or charging back and forth at a theramin for Yes I Am, pretending to talk intelligently about when to time the “wooh wooh wah” sound and whether that should come before or after the sustained “weeehehehehe”. Fra dancing with a robot mask on didn’t really help…”

When asked what motivates them, Francesca replied: “Because we all love music – indeed we look forward to dedicating our lives 100% to what we love the most (which translates in telling our bosses to f… off. Music is the only thing that keeps us alive.”

The band has just released its EP “If I Was A Girl” that can be found at Itunes, Amazon, Spotify and all the other major digital distribution channels.

- http://musiczeitgeist.com

"Swirling sounds and classy tunes that tap you on the shoulder as you shower."

Nero Meyer Egglesbrucker III - Nero Meyer Egglesbrucker III

"Italian-born singer Francesca Corradini coos like Lily Allen, if the pop tart had been raised on the Mediterranean."

http://www.spin.com/articles/spin-picks-more-undiscovered-bands-worth-listen
- SPIN Magazine

"A band from London who's members add even more international flair..." - Matt Murdock - WFNX-FM Boston