Maple Leaves

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'Glasgow boy-girl four piece are a likeable, unashamedly perky lot'

Up-and-coming boy-girl four piece Maple Leaves, who here launched their debut EP ‘Golden Ether’, move to that gentle, bookish indie-pop beat – all bittersweet lyrics, chiming piano and warm harmonies – with which Glasgow has become partly synonymous.

Despite boasting three instrument-swapping lead singers and songwriters who pass an acoustic guitar between them baton-like when taking the mic, they stamp their stuff with an impressive singularity of identity, imbued with weaving, wordy melodies borrowed from the folk tradition, voiced with particularly pleasant, trilling mellifluousness by chief vocalist Anna Miles.

The quartet’s bobbing, chirpy demeanour recalls Saturday morning kids TV presenters; their summery, if sometimes saccharine sound is similarly, unashamedly perky – check out the winsomely groovy song ‘Kirsty’, and their new EP’s title track for proof. They definitely know how to craft a tune do Maple Leaves - ...this thoroughly likeable lot could go far. - The List

Maple Leaves: 'Achingly sweet indie-pop with girl-boy harmonies.' - The Scotsman

'...As with all good compilations, you need to start with a bang. Or in Maple Leaves' case a massive aural hug. The Glasgow trio...produce summery, three-minute folk-pop songs that pay homage to their heroes, The Shins, and should kick off [T in the Park] in sun-kissed fashion.' - The Sunday Herald

Maple Leaves blend folk sensibilities with what seems to be genuine happiness to create a kind of easy listening that isn't cringeworthy - quite an achievement in itself. The trio hail from Glasgow, so are not Canadian - a fact the band feel the need to state, presumably due to overwhelming inquisition surrounding the name - but their affinity, if only by name, with an object that naturally flows in the breeze serves as the perfect moniker to their bright and charming style. - The List

Twee: a word which packs an incredible punch in certain musical circles. Whether that punch is one to the pus of the purveyor or to the ears of the listener depends on the quality of the tunes being pedalled (girl with ukulele and owl-patterned woolly jumper: I’m looking at you.) Thankfully, Glasgow’s Maple Leaves remain as yet unbattered.

“To the uninitiated, I would probably describe our music as melodic, literate, indie-pop,” vocalist Anna Miles says. “I know a lot of people in bands who are bothered about the twee-pop label, but it doesn't bother me hugely. We all love great storytellers and melody makers like Magnetic Fields, Joni Mitchell, The Shins, Sufjan Stevens and Jens Lekman.”

The three-piece, made up of Miles (a Geordie who moved to Glasgow a few years ago) and Julian Corrie (a Surrey lad better known to some of us as Miaoux Miaoux) concurrently on vocals, piano and guitar and Graeme Thomson on drums, released their first EP, Golden Ether, on Glasgow’s Bubblegum Records last month.

Produced by the steady hands of Jamie Savage at Chem 19, the former T Break band were more than pleased with the outcome.

“We experimented with various extra instruments on the record, from Wurlitzers to accordions,” says Anna. “There's always something cool lying about you can try, and they're always open to suggestions about how to add an extra layer you'd never have thought of before.”

The halls of Chem 19 are not the only piece of Scottish music history now associated with Maple Leaves – Godfather of Twee, Stuart Murdoch, had also offered his stamp of approval within a year of the trio’s formation.

“Stuart first contacted me to be a part of God Help The Girl after coming across our demo for our first song,” Miles explains. “He asked me to come and audition for one of the tracks, as he really loved our demo. I love Belle and Sebastian and Stuart has been kind enough to give me some feedback on our songs, which has been really helpful. He is always very positive and supportive.”

So supportive that the video for Golden Ether’s title track was made by Murdoch’s documentary film-maker wife, Marisa Privitera and was similarly wholesome.

“It was quite odd walking down the road singing to myself and throwing paper planes. We're really happy with the video though and have had some nice comments, especially about Julian's Saturday telly style jumper. He has quite a range of them.”


Okay, so they do wear snazzy jumpers, but with songs this warming we’ll let them off. To find out more about Maple Leaves and their potentially woolly range of merchandise, check out their upcoming shows, of which Miles promises there will be many.

“We're going to get writing and recording for what we hope will become our first album as well,” beams Anna of their plans for 2011. “We have enough material for one now so it's just working out plans for getting into the studio. Exciting times!” - The Skinny

Having adorned the T Break stage after just three months of being and armed with the sort of summery melodies and harmonies that leave you with no choice but to sing along, who else could storm future Mercurys Award shows but Glasgow triad Maple Leaves?

Not every three-piece can make such a big, voluptuous sound, and it’s their sheer musicality that does it for me every time. Having been spotted so quickly in their careers, and with an eagerly anticipated EP due for release this autumn, this is a band capable of taking us back to the roots of music, much like Belle & Sebastian once did. - Under the Radar/The Scotsman blog (09/09/09)

It's unusual for a six month old band to make waves in the music industry's oceanic depths, but T in the Park (TITP) darlings Maple Leaves are perilously close to stirring up a storm.

Despite their numerically-bereft framework, the Glasgow trio of Anna Miles, Julian Corrie and Graeme Thomson sure drum up a helluva racket, albeit a melodious one:

"Being just a three-piece, we make a lot musically out of little, swapping instruments where necessary," explains Miles. "We've been commended for writing songs that are unashamedly melodic and accessible. They don't lack complexity but, where some bands maybe over-complicate things, we find there's nothing like a good harmony and a summery melody to fill a room with good feeling."

This simple approach is what makes their music so easy to embrace, with Miles counting their influences as, "fantastic storytellers like The Magnetic Fields, The Mountain Goats, The Shins, The Dodos, The National, Belle and Sebastian, along with the people in our lives who we know and love. Oh, and sushi. Definitely sushi." - Scotsman.com (Claire Sinclair - 14/09/09)

MAPLE LEAVES are possibly one of the newest bands ever to play T in the Park, this being only their sixth gig, but you could never tell given how nerveless and assured they are performing their simple, feelgood pop songs. Despite their moniker, Maple Leaves are from Scotland but try telling that to the three middle-aged Canadian tourists who rocked up to the T Break tent halfway through the set decked in red and white jester hats and bomber jackets emblazoned with "Toronto Maple Leaves", clearly expecting to find a taste of home. - The Pop Cop (13/07/09)

With their dreamy girl-boy vocals and penchant for colouring their songs with flute, piano and acoustic guitar, Maple Leaves are guaranteed to put the spring into anyone's summer. - The Pop Cop (July 2009)