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Mr Rascal

Let it Roll

About Me


Here's what the peeps have been saying about Let it Roll...
TIME OFF REVIEW
"The debut release for Brisbane’s Mr Rascal (aka Christian Duell), ‘Let it Roll’ is a surprising accomplished slice of slightly surreal singer-songwriter/pop-rock. Comprising a barreling rhythm, lilting mandolins, guitars and unobtrusive organ – in addition to Duell’s charming upper-register croon and notably well-constructed melodies – ‘Let it Roll’ is a rather remarkable introduction for a new artist and bodes very well for Mr Rascal’s impending full-length A Pocket Full of Smoke. The equally impressive B-sides (a pair of demos) only reinforce the notion that we could be witnessing the birth of something significant here." Matt O'Neil, Time Off
"SINGLE OF THE WEEK (Rave Magazine)
MR RASCAL – Let It Roll (Independent)
The word ‘balladeer’ has picked up some horrible, bland connotations since some horrible, bland musicians like Blunt and Adams made a killing from conning suburban retirees out of their pokies dollars under the guise of dreary ballads. With their debut single, Brisbane’s Mr Rascal do their utmost to restore some nobility to the once great title. Or rather, he does his best. Mr Rascal is actually just local chap Christian Duell and whichever of his musically-inclined buddies he happens to be sinking a beverage with when the recording light comes on. That members of The Gin Club, At Sea and the Stanley Street End (Duell’s other band) make up this ramshackle group brandishing harmonica, violin, keys and banjo amongst the usual realm of guitars and drums gives you an idea of the sonic territory Mr Rascal has crawled from. While it does contain a strong element of Rascal croon, Let It Roll is kicked from ballad to pop-country status via a perfectly manly choir’s backing vocals, and is adorable in a chugging melodic fashion. The B-side demos Hands Tied and The Schoolyard release the throttle a touch, successfully revealing Duell’s acoustic minstrelic side. Keep your ears scanning for sounds of Mr Rascal’s forthcoming debut album A Pocket Full Of Smoke, because moments of quiet beauty like this need to be treasured. Winnah." Simon Topper, Rave Magazine:
"For all its "confessional" aesthetic, American indie folk rarely seems to get as intimate as this material from Brisbane, Australia's, Christian Duell. Moving between clean acoustic guitars, melancholy lyricism, and shanty-style melodies (which count as rocking out), Duell's stuff truly resonates." CNET.com Editor's review.
"Looking for good, new music together with someone else is always a challenge but when the 'Mr. Rascal' song, 'Let It Roll' came on, we both smiled and said, "Yeah!". These guys have a subtle sarcasm that's almost humorous at times. The vocals are unique and really good at the same time and the writing is slick without being overly dollhouse. I really like what I've heard so far. It's great when you run into something new that makes you sit up and smile." CNET User review
| Introducing Mr Rascal |
Mr Rascal was invented as a pseudonym for the bleeding soul of Christian Duell. Having moaned the loss of past bands, past acquaintances and past loves, a long and lonely winter ensued during the year of 2006 where emotions subsided into memories and memories into songs.
Half way through 2006 Mr Duell emerged from the slumber of bedroom musing as Mr Rascal, armed with a handful of melodies and some stories to tell. From humble beginnings, Mr Rascal has evolved into somewhat of a social meeting place for a vagrant select. Having built a steady repertoire that combines "confessionary gospel" with a "ramshackle barnyard grumble" Mr Rascal has put the strength of some time on the road and the spirit of a pool of creative minds to good use.
Over the last 6 months however, Mr Rascal has in one form or another been pre-occupied with the recording of their debut album ‘A Pocket Full of Smoke’, due for release in May 2008. Drawing on the strength of ideas and layering that comes through collaboration, ‘A Pocket Full of Smoke’ features a horde of instruments and sounds ranging from bagpipes, to trombone, pedal steel guitar to opera singing.
The first taste of the album is the single ‘Let It Roll’. 'Let it Roll' is quite simply a song about getting on with life. The song begins with rumbling percussion, moaning vocals and haunting mandolins and ends with a dramatic outtro chorus that features an army of ‘wohs’ that subside into a delicate bluegrass arrangement. While 'Let it Roll' is a lavish musical affair it is delivered with a punch that resonates with the simplicity of a gospel song.
‘Let it Roll’ the single is available in a limited edition, handmade digipack, featuring two extra tracks, ‘Hands Tied’ and ‘The Schoolyard’ from independent record store across the country and can be ordered via paypal at www.myspace.com/misterrascal . The single is also available for digital download from www.itunes.com and www.emusic.com.
Please email Martin McDonald at [email protected] for any band enquiries.
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My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 8/7/2006
Band Members: Christian Duell- lead crooning |
Chester Wiltshire- lightning licks |
Yuri Koscov-Koscov- prolexic consultant |
Scott Maynard- percussion |
Mikey Nix- official chef to the stars |

Influences: Big Star, Paul Kelly, Jeff Lang, Harry Manx, Gaslight Radio, You Am I, Tim Rogers, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, The Beatles, Bluebottle Kiss, The Gin Club, Neil Young, Bob Dylan, The Band, Elliot Smith, Teenage Fanclub, Arcade Fire, Jose Gonzalez, Hank Williams, Ice Cream Hands, Even, Carry Nation, Nancy Sinatra, Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks, Nick Drake, Simon and Garfunkel, Television, The Rolling Stones, The Shins, The Underground Lovers, Crow, Drop City, Cat Power, Kings of Leon, The Thrills, Queen, The Go Betweens, The Easybeats, Dan Brodie, The Clash, The Pixies, Crowded House, BB King, The Decemberists, Nick Cave, Yo La Tengo...
Sounds Like: Click here to download the Let it Roll single from Itunes

1. Let it Roll (single) / 2. Hands Tied (demo) / 3. The Schoolyard (demo)
Click here to order a copy of the Let it Roll Single digipack:
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Mr Rascal April 2008 update

Welcome to to the latest Mr Rascal update. It might have been a while between updates but the Rascal troupe has been steadily rolling on. This update is basically all about our first single 'Let it Ro...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Wed, 23 Apr 2008 08:50:00 PST

Rave reviews!

Howdy all, At the risk of blowing our own trumpet we are mildy extactic to say that Let it Roll has scored the gong of single of the week in rave magazine this week. Hats off to all and sundry who wer...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Wed, 26 Mar 2008 07:56:00 PST

Time Off Article

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Posted by Mr Rascal on Mon, 18 Feb 2008 04:11:00 PST

Thanks

A big thank you to you kind folks who came out to help us launch our first single Let it Roll at the Troubadour last night. A special mention must go to Dan Parsons and his highly talented band and M ...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Thu, 14 Feb 2008 07:05:00 PST

Let it Roll Single Launch

Dear friends of Mr Rascal, It is with great pleasure that we share our latest Mr Rascal news: Mr Rascal Press Release February 2008 After six months of solid toil in and out of the studio the first sa...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Sun, 10 Feb 2008 10:54:00 PST

Rics next Tuesday night

Howdy folks, There's an air of something (I think its excitement or a post Christmas stench of some kind)...because our debut album is in its final stages of finalism! We had an opera singer lay down ...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Thu, 03 Jan 2008 01:52:00 PST

Mr Rascal December 2007 update

Hello all,Welcome to the December update of Mr Rascal!GigsOne last plug for our gig tomorrow night, Friday 7th December at the Zoo. We're playing at 8:30&doors open at 8pm and tix are about $10..maybe...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Thu, 06 Dec 2007 07:06:00 PST

Mr Rascal update November 2007

It may have appeared that the last few months have been a little quiet for Mr Rascal. After wrapping up a successful fly-by tour of Melbourne in August, the band has been busy recording the bones to t...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Thu, 15 Nov 2007 02:02:00 PST

Recording Update 2

Howdy folks, Well the second batch of recording has come to a close and we Rascals are about to jet set off to Melbourne early in the morn so here's recap of the recording action since we last wrote l...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Wed, 05 Sep 2007 03:21:00 PST

Mr Rascal recording update 1

Greetings all, With day three of recording now in the bag I feel it too much of an occasion not to document_ So here's a wrap up of proceedings thus far. Its been a deliberately steady start to the pr...
Posted by Mr Rascal on Wed, 29 Aug 2007 03:18:00 PST