Lulu and the Lampshades

I love Lulu and the Lampshades, and I cannot believe I have only just discovered them.

The Lampshades were recommended to me by a friend and I am yet to see them live, although I have watched numerous YouTube videos of them and had a good chuckle to myself. Fun is at the heart of their music - they play with all kinds of strange and wonderful objects and makeshift instruments, bashing, hitting and clapping. The amazing thing is, they make it sound really good. The two singers in the Lampshades team - Luisa and Heloise have whimsical voices that melt together in harmony, impressive considering their music is often so close to being a cappella.

This music is pop-folk at its most inventive. Their influences seem to come from all over the place, at times they sound similar to the chirpy Puppini Sisters and often quite like Peggy Sue. They sing about all things, weird and wacky and apparently the majority of their songs Luisa writes while cycling.

There are so many great songs to choose from (all on YouTube). Their first single, 'Feet to the Sky' comes with an adorably quaint video. My favourite though is the simpler 'You're gonna miss me when I'm gone' featuring just Luisa and Heloise, oh, and they trusty cups of course. I found myself humming the tune all day.(Learn the cups here: http://img442.imageshack.us/img442/2997/lulumiss.jpg)

Lulu and the Lampshades play on Friday 11th June at LOOK STRANGER! on Brick Lane. My intention was to write about them after the gig, but I'm hoping that my pre-review will encourage a few more people to go along.

Check them out on: http://www.myspace.com/helouisamusic