The Epstein are an indie folk pop band from Oxford, England.
Burn The Branches in the bands 3rd studio album coming in Spring 2016.
The album was recorded with Richard Neuberg at Strawhouse Studios in Oxford, and produced and mixed by George Shilling (Stornoway/Frank Turner).
Having toured heavily in Europe, particularly in Holland and Germany, The Epstein have built an impressive fan base on both sides of the Channel. The forthcoming Burn The Branches album sees the band depart from the widescreen country/Americana sound of previous album Murmurations (PIAS), and explore harder edged, atmospheric sounds whilst still retaining singer/songwriter Olly Wills’ undeniable knack for great melodic hooks. Finally Forgive, with its fast paced Texas shuffle and major-key harmony rock is a great intro to the new sonic world in which The Epstein have found themselves. A sonic world that takes in the hard rocking, full throttle approach of acts such as Wilco alongside the lyrical clarity of artists such as Bright Eyes.
Discussing the new single, Olly describes how “Finally Forgive is about breaking free…. from a time, from a person, from a situation. Keep on moving on!”.
The Epstein are an integral part of the ever burgeoning Oxford roots/Americana scene, alongside numerous luminaries such as The Dreaming Spires, The August List, Ags Connolly, The Great Western Tears & Francis Pugh & The Whisky Singers to name but a few!
The Epstein started life back in 2006 when singer/songwriter Olly Wills started playing open mic nights with guitarist Jon Berry under the name The Epstein in the back rooms of pubs in Oxford and London.The band gradually developed into a fully fledged country rock band and recorded their debut album The Last of The Charanguistas (2008) which went on to win the accolade of Editors Choice in Rolling Stone magazine and led the band to a prime slot on the acoustic stage at Glastonbury Festival. Since then the line up of the band has evolved to include producer and keyboard player Sebastian Reynolds and they have grown from being a traditional, roots Americana band to incorporate ambient electronica, Morricone style orchestral backings and sweeping, windswept, widescreen blues. The Epstein strike a perfect balance between pop songwriting and rich, innovative arrangements. The current line up of the band has been completed by the addition of highly respected Oxford based rhythm section Humphrey Astley (bass) and Tommy Longfellow (drums).
Regular touring around Britain and Europe in the last few years has honed this sound as well as the bands live shows and has made them festival favourites at home and abroad.
‘This album is about moving on, about people leaving, about different paths and about moments and how they shape the memories traced in these songs,’ says Jon Berry, guitarist of The Epstein, ‘It’s about how the smallest detail in a story can last longer than the larger surrounds.’
Recorded over 14 months in London, Oxford and Bremen Germany,’Murmurations’ is a departure from the raw, live sound of their previous release and captures the band at their most majestic. As lead singer Olly Wills comments:“We weren’t looking to catch the live performance, which is what we obsessed over in previous recordings. We wanted this to be the style of us in the studio with the time and thought that go into the process. We wanted this to be grand, to be sweeping, to be epic and to be cinematic in scope.”
The Epstein are:
Olly Wills - Vocals & Acoustic Guitar
Jon Berry - Vocals & Electric Guitar
Humphrey Astley - Bass Guitar & Backing Vocals
Tommy Longfellow - Drums
Billy Quarterman - Electric Guitar
Many of these songs came to life during long evenings upstairs in a cottage in a small village close to Oxford. We huddled around a coal fire, drank a lot of tea and made endless recordings on a 16track player. We gathered many, many ideas…. kept a few, discarded most and over weeks and months brought these songs together. My dogs lay on the bed and slept as we recorded vocals, acoustic, electric and bass and we took this to be a good sign.
We tested the songs on the road last year as we toured in Europe and the UK and took great heart in the response that they brought… we played long shows in which we performed both our records back to back and it seemed to work really well. We kept on recording…. a week in a leafy north west London studio, days and nights at Truck Studio near Oxford. We spent a day in the huge live rooms of an old Radio Concert Hall in Bremen, recorded electric guitars in the marble hallway of a friends house, recorded piano in a studio above a theatre in Soho, and added glokenspiel on a January night in London where the temperature outside read -15 and the city was all but shut down around us with the winter chill.
The Epstein’s critically acclaimed debut album ‘Last Of The Charanguistas’ won widespread praise internationally, including the coveted ‘Editor’s Choice’ in Rolling Stone Magazine and BBC Radio 1’s ‘Introducing Album Of The Week.’ The Epstein’s rich cinematic soundscapes have lured many a musical wanderer on an enchanting journey through dustbowl blues, pastoral folk and alternative roots music.
The Epstein have spent the past 18 months touring the UK and Europe and appearing at many summer festivals, including Glastonbury, Wychwood, Innocent, Truck, Canterbury and Cornbury Festivals. They have made regular visits to Germany and to Holland, where they recently appeared at the prestigious Rhythm & Blues Festival in Groningen.
The Epstein have played alongside bands that include Stornoway, Danny and The Champions Of The World, The Travelling Band, ViaRosa, These United States, Absentee, Ox, Po Girl and many many more.