Listen Lisse

Listen Lisse pronounced (Lease) is otherwise known as Lisa McKendrick. She grew up in New Zealand in a small town near the West Coast and started playing guitar at a young age by learning Eric Clapton riffs.After finishing art school as a painter she moved to London in 1998. In 2002 Lisa started to write her own music and played at local open mic nights in London. In 2004 she played her first solo gig at the Betsty Trotwood under the name Listen Lisse.Listen Lisse released a series of home recorded EP's including the songs "Raise Me", "Fabricate", "Fields of Fire" and a cover version of "Pass This On" written by The Knife.In 2006 Eddie from Rosa Alchemica started playing live with Lisa playing their first gig together in August 2006.In 2006 Lisa recorded her first album "It's Not You". This was released independently in June 2007. It's Not You is an album which is written and recorded by Lisa McKendrick and mixed by Gary Sansom who also plays bass on "Dirty Streets" and who programmed the drums on "Devils Gaze" and "Fabricate".Recent gigs this year have included opening for Richard Swift (Secretly Canadian) at a Barfly "Rough Trade" night at the Enterprise in Chalk Farm. Then in Berlin Listen Lisse supported The Meanwhiles as part of their European tour."Wake me up When Xmas is Over" is a Listen Lisse song about Xmas released with label Filthy Little Angels as part of a compilation - Tis the Season to be Filthy.When listening to the music we find a range of vivid colours and enigmatic raw vocals with seductive and hunting lyrics, sometimes sentimental sometimes of rage, unique beyond limits and intense, very intense, brutal but sincere.“I wanted the music to retain it’s human quality and that meant leaving in a lot of little errors that would otherwise be taken out but without compromising on the quality of the recording. I focused a lot on the performance of the songs making sure that the singing was as eager and intense as when I first wrote the song. This meant getting myself mentally prepared before recording and also recording while being alone in my studio in Hackney, which to me was important in order to capture the aloneness that can be felt in the music on that album.” - Lisa McKendrickListen Lisse continues to perform in London either as a duo or solo playing gigs in London and sometimes in Berlin. Listen Lisse are currently working on material for a second album which will be released in 2008.some Previous gigs...31st October @ ZMF Club, Poplars and Rocks, Berlin30th October @ RAW Tempel, Berlin2nd August @ Leonards London, Clerkenwell15th July @ Hope & Anchor, London1st July @ The Fidlers Elbow Camden, London5th June @ Cafe 1001, Brick Lane11 April @ Biddle Bro's, Murder Mile, Hackney31 March 2007 @ Enzian, Berlin14 March 2007 @ Hope & Anchor, Upper Street, LondonTo see more previous gigs....(more gigs)Some reviews:"The sound is remote and distant but you are drawn close to hear it's intimacies. There is no ice queen here to trick and decieve for the sound has it's own magical qualities that will tempt, bequile, enlighten and you will stay a while to listen, whilst the sound will stay with you." - Biddle Bro's. 2007"Most of the songs on "It's Not You" clear the five minute mark. The epic "Fabricate" clocks over 11. None of them sound a second too long. Listen Lisse's songs feel they've been lived in like a favourite jumper. There's a couple of holes in it, but there's too many memories and too much character to do anything other than wear it again" - FATEA 2007“Listen Lisse returns with her delicate guitar sounds complimenting her laid back voice.” -The Spitz, June 2005“There is some kind of delay on the guitar so that she can pick out guitar lines over the dying sustain, and it reminds me a little of Durutti Column. Lisse conjures some captivating moments.” Posted by: Jiltedbarfly, 25 January 2005TO CONTACT LISTEN LISSE DO SO AT [email protected]
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