Steampunk Music

The Clockwork Dolls provided an excellent Christmas present to Steampunk music lovers – a compilation of their complete instrumental collection – and it is gratis!  Literally, follow this link and download it now – I have it playing as we speak, and it has rocketed as one of my favorite Steampunk albums of this year (next year)?  All I can say is “thank you” to the Clockwork Dolls, and make it a point of acquiring their previous works!  Again, the link for the album is: http://theclockworkdolls1.bandcamp.com/album/the-complete-instrumental-collection – and please do enjoy!

Earlier on, I had the good fortune of being contacted by Mr. Biscuit about his musical endeavor, Biscuithead & the Biscuit Badgers!  Being across the pond, in the backwoods of the Southeast, with my pet alligator and corncob pipe, I hate to admit I was unfamilar with their musical stylings.  Taking a quick jaunt to watch the video of their latest production, I quite enjoyed their latest work, The Greatest Show on Toast (which will see its realease soon)!  As they are described…

“…Virtuosic piano, delicious drumming, twanging ukulele, astounding vocals and a tuba, rooting around at the back like a mother elephant, are brought together to beautiful effect by this fantastic quartet.”!

Do indulge in their video, then consider heading over to their homepage, where you can enjoy more of their work!  To do so, please saunter on over to: http://www.biscuithead.co.uk/
(and yes their Facebook link is at: https://www.facebook.com/biscuitbadger?sk=events)

Located this particular work posted Steampunk Empire (by Lt. Sir Alexander Von Gitzinger – my thanks, sir!), which is chock full of Steampunk imagery, including steam-driven trains, Mono-wheels, evil villians in aeroplanes, skyships, and heroes with jetpacks saving a damsel in distress.  Excellent work by this oustanding group!  For more works from the Alkaline Trio, please visit their You Tube location here!

Still attending some pressing circumstances atm, but I do leave this video note card, an visually impressive video by the French musician Mr. Antoine Clamaran.  Though the music may not be to everyone preference, the Steampunk-esque images are quite well done – engines, mysterious scientific experiment, though the ending is a tad more modern than I’d prefer.  Please do enjoy!
To learn more about the gentleman, please visit his website, at : http://www.antoineclamaran.com/

I had been searching out for some graphically intriguing Steampunk videos, when I came across this gem!  Not visually unique, but I did enjoy not only listening to the recreation of classic 80’s songs done “a la ragtime“, but also trying to name them as Mr. Bradlee played them!  To learn more about the talented gentleman, please do visit his website, at: http://www.scottbradlee.com/

Variety is a quality that often adds to the sum of the whole.  As Steampunk slowly but steadily enters the larger conciousness of the general public, more individuals and groups are able to find an outlet for their pent-up skills.  An example of this are the talented gentlemen of “The Cog is Dead”, an up-and-coming group of fellows with an exemplary sound and Steampunk bravado!

In addition to their main website, the have three of the (what I would imagine) are selection from their upcoming album (with a release date sometime in “Spring of 2010”, but I’ll keep an ear out for more information, of course).  They take a very hand-on approach to documenting their album’s progress, with updates (on their website and MySpace), and a cacophony of supplemental items and information at their aforementioned sites.

One of Steampunk perennial dichotomies is its definitition of “Steampunk Music”.  The standard bearer of the most listened to “Steampnk Music” at this point would seem to be Abney Park, but there are plenty of outstanding musical talent with tangents towards Steampunk.  One such musical group is Darcy James Argue’s Secret Society.  Not quite in the mode today’s “small piece band”, the Secret Society consists of eighteen exceptionally talented musicians, led by its “Composer-Conductor-Ringleader”, Mr. Darcy James Argue, a recognized talent in Jazz circles in North America.

My apologies as I’ve been conscripted to attend to pressing RL duties, but I do present the latest performance of Abney Park a the aforementioned San Francisco Wonderland Ball, earlier this month!  Please do enjoy!

In a not-so-subtle salute to our new Teutonic residents, Mr. Amadeus Hammerer and Miss Obscura Benoir, who have recently opened the Brewery, I’ve added Blumchen’s “Ich bin weider hier“. The piece involves a skyship, flying whales, whirlpools, and other Steampunk–esque items (and an illustrative lesson on the importance of secure safety lines topside), so it seemed apropos – please enjoy!

I would imagine that being a musician is always a challenge (the travel to exotic cities, meeting exciting indvidiuals, galavanting and having a merry time after performances) – especially when one belongs to a Steampunk band of entertainers! Nonetheless, I stumbled upon these talented individuals, and had the opportunity to sample a couple of their tunes, and was pleasantly surprised.

Though labeled as a quartet, the group actually has thireen musicians!

Working together since September of 2008, the Clockwork Quartet, they have been featured by in the Guardian, the Chap, and a plethora of other publications who have marveled at their musical prowess, impressive songwriting, and of course, adherence to the Steampunk genre.