LISA PAPINEAU

Lisa Papineau Is the Indie Icon feature in the July / August issue of Indie Mag. You can download the full magazine for FREE or buy in Print HERE

Lisa Papineau sings on this track of Jun Miyake entitled “The Here And After” and well it was danced to on So You Think You Can Dance Season 9.. Go Mimes!

Big Sir will be touring in Europe starting in Namur, Belgium on April 7th, please always make sure to check directly with venues for start times and exact details.

BIG SIR EU/UK Tour 2012
Apr 7, 2012 - Namur, (BE) @ Sergent Pepper’s
Apr 8, 2012 - Berlin, (DE) @ Spirale Kulturzentrum
Apr 9, 2012 - Hamburg, (DE) @ HafenKlang
Apr 10, 2012 - Solingen, (DE) @ Waldmeister e.V. Raum für Kultur
Apr 11, 2012 - Leipzig, (DE) @ Ilses Erika
Apr 12, 2012 - Munich, (DE) @ Ampere
Apr 13, 2012 - Innsbruck, (AT) @ Los Gurkos
Apr 14, 2012 - Bolzano, (IT) @ Vintola 18
Apr 15, 2012 - Molfetta, (IT) @ Le Macerie
Apr 16, 2012 - Copertino, LE (IT) @ I Sotterranei Arci
Apr 17, 2012 - Rome, (IT) @ Locanda Atlantide
Apr 19, 2012 - Trieste, (IT) @ Etnoblog
Apr 20, 2012 - Rimini, (IT) @ Velvet Club
Apr 21, 2012 - Livorno, (IT) @ The Cage Theatre
Apr 22, 2012 - Milano, (IT) @ La Sacrestia
Apr 24, 2012 - Birmingham, (UK) @ The Birmingham Ballroom / The End
Apr 25, 2012 - Manchester, (UK) @ Sound Control
Apr 26, 2012 - Swansea, WA (UK) @ The Garage
Apr 27, 2012 - Bristol, (UK) @ The Croft
Apr 28, 2012 - London, (UK) @ The Old Blue Last - Binnacle Festival
May 01, 2012- Grenoble, (FR) @ Le Ciel
May 02, 2012- Paris, (FR) @ Le Trianon - Night 1 of 2
May 03, 2012- Paris, (FR) @ Le Trianon - Night 2 of 2

CLICK FOR FULL SHOW INFO & UPDATES

Lisa Papineau is one of the many voices and performers who make up the Doug Aitken SONG 1 multimedia installment opening March 22 at the Smithsonian Hirshhorn Museum. According to Hirshhorn deputy director and chief curator Kerry Brougher, “SONG 1” toys with the concept of “liquid architecture”—a constant shifting that transforms museum architect Gordon Bunshaft’s heavy, cement mass into a light, ethereal work of art. The public installation is designed to challenge the boundaries of architecture and redefine the concepts of cinematic and urban space.
Read More at Washington Post
Read More at Design Boom

Rodriguez Lopez Productions and Sargent House have been expanding on dozens of releases over the last few years with the plethora of artists that exists between the two. Connected at the heart by Cathy Pellow, Omar Rodriguez-Lopez and many others, this is a movement of sound and vision that is gaining considerable reputation as progressive minds are evolving even further from their origins. Boris, Fang Island, Native, Zechs Marquise, Le Butcherettes, Hella, there are so many genre defining artists to name that it’s hard to really sum up the label and Big Sir is one group out of the entire whole that we have been anticipating a new LP from the most. 2012 has been a phenomenal year for music culture already and the arrival of the latest Big Sir album, Before Gardens After Gardens, only adds more depth to the shape of this year. Based around the multi-instrumental and vocal work of Lisa Papineau and the Jaco Pastorius inspired tones of bassist of The Mars Volta, Juan Alderete, Big Sir is rooted in as many fields of electronica as they are in heavy doses of jazz, pop, hip-hop and so much more. It’s a sound all its own and genre definition becomes some what meaningless in the emotional power and provocative nature of the music. 2000 saw the release of their self titled debut release on the short lived Mootron Records and the follow up, Und Die Scheiße Ändert Sich Immer, would be released 6 years later to further critical acclaim. Und Die Scheiße Ändert Sich Immer was given the special vinyl treatment on the Sonny Kay and Omar Rodriguez-Lopez owned imprint Gold Standard Laboratories (GSL). Exactly 6 years later we find a new gestation period and a new cycle of life from Big Sir and it feels right on time with the latest Big Sir offering Before Gardens After Gardens. 11 songs and a little under 40 minutes in length, Before Gardens After Gardens is the summation of the last 12 years of the band and what feels like a launching pad for where Big Sir is going to take their sound in the future. The smooth, sonically blissful fretless bass work from Juan Aldrete creates a florescence that saturates itself into the mix. The bass tones pick up in such a frequency and full mode of sound that it knocks the middle and higher register of the wave patterns into the center of the mix. Stanley Clarke, Jaco, Ron Carter, there are only a dozen out of 1000′s bass players who can add this level of emotional quality into the bass foundations and Juan is walking in these steps actively with every record he touches. Adding a nice pair of headphones only intensifies the listen and adds to the perceptual depth of what long time The Mars Volta engineer Robert Carranza added to this LP.

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Big Sir — the longtime collaboration between singer/composer Lisa Papineau and bassist/composer Juan Alderete (The Mars Volta) - announce Spring 2012 EU and UK headlining tour dates in support of their forthcoming new album, Before Gardens After Gardens coming out on February 7th.  Please see complete dates below. In anticipation of this new release, Prefix Mag just premiered another new track called “The Kindest Hour” available to download/stream HERE.

RCRD LBL recently posted the song “Our Pleasant Home” (featuring special guest Cedric Bixler-Zavala of The Mars Volta on drums) which is available to download/stream HERE. Back in December, Big Sir premiered the shimmering pop song, “Ready On the Line” which is available to download/stream HERE.


BIG SIR USA
Feb 20 - Hollywood, CA @ Harvard & Stone w/ Gregory Rogove,  Eureka The Butcher & Sadah Luna, & Devendra Banhart DJ’ing. - FREE SHOW
Feb 27 - Long Beach, CA @ Harvelle’s w/ The Vespertines & C-Gak

BIG SIR EU/UK Tour 2012
Apr 7, 2012 - Namur, (BE) @ Belvédère
Apr 8, 2012 - Berlin, (DE) @ Spirale Kulturzentrum
Apr 9, 2012 - Hamburg, (DE) @ HafenKlang
Apr 10, 2012 - Solingen, (DE) @ Waldmeister e.V. Raum für Kultur
Apr 11, 2012 - Leipzig, (DE) @ Ilses Erika
Apr 12, 2012 - Munich, (DE) @ Ampere
Apr 13, 2012 - Innsbruck, (AT) @ Los Gurkos
Apr 14, 2012 - Bolzano, (IT) @ Vintola 18
Apr 15, 2012 - Molfetta, (IT) @ Le Macerie
Apr 16, 2012 - Copertino, LE (IT) @ I Sotterranei Arci
Apr 17, 2012 - Rome, (IT) @ Locanda Atlantide
Apr 19, 2012 - Trieste, (IT) @ Etnoblog
Apr 20, 2012 - Rimini, (IT) @ Velvet Club
Apr 21, 2012 - Livorno, (IT) @ The Cage Theatre
Apr 22, 2012 - Genova, (IT) @ La Claque
Apr 24, 2012 - Birmingham, (UK) @ The Birmingham Ballroom / The End
Apr 25, 2012 - Manchester, (UK) @ Sound Control
Apr 26, 2012 - Swansea, WA (UK) @ The Garage
Apr 27, 2012 - Bristol, (UK) @ The Croft
Apr 28, 2012 - London, (UK) @ The Old Blue Last - Binnacle Festival
May 01, 2012- Grenoble, (FR) @ Le Ciel 
May 02, 2012- Paris, (FR) @ Le Trianon - Night 1 of 2
May 03, 2012- Paris, (FR) @ Le Trianon - Night 2 of 2 

CLICK FOR FULL SHOW INFO & UPDATES

“The Kindest Hour” will appear right at the halfway mark on Big Sir’s upcoming 11-track album, Before Gardens After Gardens, which makes me think it could be an important transitional song. Singer/composer Lisa Papineau (ME & LP, Air, M83) and bassist/composer Juan Alderete (The Mars Volta, Racer X) create this pretty, eerie (also pretty eerie) tune with help from Heather Lockie and her moody viola playing, which is contrasted by Alderete’s smooth, clean bass. Also featuring Cedric Bixler Zavala (The Mars Volta) on drums and Matthew Embree (RX Bandits) on guest vocals.

Although subdued, Papineau’s melodic singing is of major note here, as it adds dimension to her partner’s muscle and, overall, fills out the otherwise sparse music. The voice and the instrument meet up here and there, eventually creating a watershed of sound that boils over as if you turned the stove off a second too late. The result is something like a cathartic overflow of warmth—thanks, in part, to the blanketing organ—ultimately faced with an icy wash of male-female vocals. “Hour,” which you can stream below, is a compelling audio embodiment of feelings that could be as strongly expressed visually as they are here. Big Sir’s Before Gardens After Gardens will be available Feb. 7 on Rodriguez Lopez Productions/Sargent House.

An interview is one of the most authentic and honest windows into the hearts and minds of the artists and musicians we’ve come to admire. And, in this particular case… an added dose of humility. Logistics and self-deprecating humor aside, there is no better approach towards familiarizing yourself with the music you know and love, than by speaking with the musicians who have created the compositions that their fans have come to hold dear to their hearts. Throughout the years Lisa Papineau and Juan Alderete of Big Sir have created a fan base dedicated to the evolution of their multifaceted sound.

With the two having such a diverse creative output that extends far outside of their album releases, Lisa and Juan always seem to give the time needed to Big Sir for stages of growth in the bands legacy to continue and 2012 marks the next cycle. The ethereally haunting vocal and synth work of Lisa Papineau along with the sea of effects bassist of The Mars Volta Juan Alderete utilizes combine for a compositional mastery in which the sum is greater than the parts. With this Los Angeles dynamic duo’s third full length album, Before Gardens After Gardens, set to release on February 7th of this year via Rodriguez Lopez Productions / Sargent House, Big Sir has created an authentic and diverse harmonious experience bound to have you yearning for more. When we received the album from Sargent House and dove in together, it felt like love at first sight.

Sound Colour Vibration was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to speak with Big Sir and get a firsthand look at the creative dynamic behind this band and their insight regarding a shared passion for music enriched with Los Angeles tradition, trust and mutual respect for one another, the influence of fearless whip-cracking manager and Sargent House matriarch, Cathy Pellow, creative contributions and unique signature musicality of fellow artists, and the strong camaraderie setting the foundation for their beautifully cultivated sound. Ladies and Gentlemen… It’s our pleasure to present to you Sound Colour Vibration’s exclusive interview with LA band, Big Sir.

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Big Sir, the longtime collaboration between singer/composer Lisa Papineau (Air, M83 collaborator) and The Mars Volta’s bassist Juan Alderete, will release a new effort on February 7 via Rodriguez Lopez Productions /Sargent House. The album, Before Gardens After Gardens, is a collection ethereal prog-rock numbers, as evident on this premiere of “Our Pleasant Home.” The track features The Mars Volta singer Cedric Bixler-Zavala on drums, and is buoyant and eclectic – a marriage of noises that somehow creates something beautifully cohesive. - Emily Zemler

Stream or DL : Big Sir - Our Pleasant Home

Big Sir the long time band of Lisa Papineau & Juan Alderete have a fantastic new album called Before Gardens After Gardens coming out on RLP/Sargent House on February 7th. You can stream or get a Free Download of the track Ready On The Line  HERE . We have the CD and some new merch now available for Pre-Order HERE and we are offering a great Deluxe Bundle for only $30. To find out more about the Album and all the special contributors that played on it go HERE.

Big Sir, the Los Angeles-based project of vocalist Lisa Papineau (ME & LP, M83, Air) and The Mars Volta bassist Juan Alderete, will release their third album, Before Gardens After Gardens, in February. The two composers’ articulate, electronic-tinged blend of R&B, jazz, and hip-hop falls somewhere between Papineau’s acoustic solo work and Alderete’s forays into prog-rock as part of The Mars Volta.

Before Gardens After Gardens’ first single “Ready on the Line” spikes Papineau’s exquisitely harmonized Bjorkian voice with whistles, chimes, and mechanical claps. The subtle background heartbeats, reminiscent of Timbaland’s early work with Aaliyah, anchor the buoyant track, which otherwise threatens to float away on Papineau’s upper range, especially when she screams, “Get so high!” Stream it or download it below.

Big Sir – “Ready on the Line”

Before Gardens After Gardens is out February 7th on Rodriguez Lopez Productions / Sargent House. The album also features contributions by The Mars Volta’s Cedric Bixler-Zavala, RX Bandits’ Matthew Embree,  bassist Jonathan Hischke, and Beastie Boys producer “Money” Mark Ramos-Nishita.

Cgak at it again, check out the Remix / video of Lisa Papineau’s Out for a Swim. - He plagarized the video made by Sven van der Hart. This track is also on the Don’t Sleep Remix album HERE

The AFI Fest, which takes place November 3rd - November 10th 2011, will be hosting two screenings of the documentary “Pina” about the late German choreographer Pina Bausch directed by Wim Wenders. The film features the song “The Here And After”, co-written by  Lisa Papineau (ME & LP , Big Sir) and Jun Miyake. The news comes as Pina was today named a nominee for the European Film Academy’s Documentary for 2011.

Make sure to reserve tickets here for the screenings on November 5th and November 7th.

PINA - Dance, dance, otherwise we are lost - International Trailer from neueroadmovies on Vimeo.

Big Sir will be playing some special shows on the West Coast to debut new songs from their upcoming album and some classics. We will be announcing the full details soon. For now we can officially announce September 30th Show at the Bootleg in Los Angeles. Juan Alderete, Lisa Papineau and Cedric Bixler Zavala = Big Sir line up for this show. Make sure to come support and hear the incredible new songs. We can’t wait! 

Here is a live Video from the Reel to Reel: An Evening With Tyler Bates held at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles on August 15, 2011. Lisa Papineau (Me&LP, Big Sir)  sings her song White Tide, accompanied by Bates and string section. 

Guitar: Tyler Bates 
Vocals: Lisa Papineau
Drum Kit: Brian Cachia
Violins: Mark Robertson, Alyssa Park, Joel Pargman, Mia Matsumiya, Amy Wickman
Celli: Vanessa Freebairn- Smith, Tim Loo

(Source: sargenthouse)