Album Notes

Australian Chainsaw-folk vigilantes The Crooked Fiddle Band deliver a no-holds-barred mash-up of gypsy passion, bluegrass swampstompers and near metal mayhem. The Sydney based group\'s debut EP was selected as the feature album on Radio National\'s The Daily Planet and has garnered regular airplay on Triple J, community radio worldwide and US college radio. World music mag Global Rhythm has recently featured the band on their Aug-Sept 2008 cover cd.

The group\'s primarily instrumental tunes have led their recordings to be used across various soundtrack projects - films at global film festivals, a documentary on artistic roller-skating, and perhaps the ultimate in unexpected applications: accompanying the Australian Synchronised Swimming Duet team in their Olympic qualifying event in Switzerland.

The Crooked Fiddle Band have recently completed their second EP, Rise, which solidifies the band\'s style - Bulgarian melodies sung with Native American lyrics; Romanian tunes thrashed to their modern limits, with the rhythm section honing their blast beats and trademark acoustic riffery. New directions are explored via a rip-roaring bluegrass workout and a tango that pans back to a dancefloor melodrama. \"We mutate world music to create our own sound\" says guitarist Gordon Wallace \"it\'s like a pig with sharks teeth, fat with plenty of bite.\"

Gigging extensively at festivals, theatres, pubs and underground warehouse parties since the band\'s inception in 2006, The Crooked Fiddle Band will launch Rise in Sydney in November 2008, followed by a national tour early in 2009.

\"...a short fast slab of hardcore gypsy passion...\"
Bradfield Dumpleton, 2007

\"See, anyone who can include \'roots\' AND \'metal\' in their genre... I\'m intrigued. This is great gypsy klezmer with a lot of energy and spice.\"
Zan Rowe, Triple J Radio

\"Wild mash up of styles. Jess is giving the violin a solid workout. Which is a good thing. It deserves a flogging at times that bloody instrument. And a bouzouki in the line up! I\'ll be there at your next show if you shout the ouzo.\"
Richard Kingsmill, Triple J Radio

\"I\'m diggin\' this track! Blending metal and gypsy folkie stuff - just my style! I can imagine that seeing these guys live would be a real treat!\"
Sarah Howells, Triple J Radio