Murder Ballads and Abstract Visuals With Ela Stiles

The last time we caught up with Ela Stiles she’d just released a cassette tape with her band the Rangoons. But the talented Sydney musician and composer continues to produce quality material at a decent clip and in the last two days has sent us across a video for “Five AM” and a cover of British folk singer Shirley Collins “Murder of Maria Marten” taken from her latest cassette Preparation.

Taken from her second album due in mid 2016 on Bedroom Suck, “Five AM” was recorded in India in October. Like her 2014 self-titled debut, the new album is all vocals. Thankfully Ela’s vocals are like an angels.

Preparation is recordings of Ela’s rehearasals at home and includes “Murder of Maria Marten”, a beautiful song about a horrific tale of the 1827 Red Barn murder in Suffolk, England. The story goes that a young Maria was shot dead by her lover, William Corder after the two had arranged to meet at the Red Barn before eloping to Ipswich. Corder fled the scene but was tracked down and brought back to Suffolk, found guilty of murder and hung from a large tree.

They don’t write ‘em like they used to.

Ela launches Preparation at Sydney’s Rag Rag festival this weekend alongside Kitchen’s Floor, Orion, M.O.B., Oily Boys and Aloha Units.

‘Preparations’ is available now on Paradise Daily.

Nov 14 – Sydney – Rag Rag Festival at Marrickville Bowls Club
Nov 15 – Melbourne Great Bike Ride (Melbourne Music Week)
Nov 21 – Hobart at the Grand Poobah