1.
“Rich” sounds like the kind of melody that should be played on some worn out old porch in the South. You can imagine a lively little tribe slapping the knees of their dusty overalls and tapping the wooden floor with leather boots and bare feet. One would be wielding a big, cracked stand-up bass; at least two would have interesting facial hair, string instruments, and a deep knowledge of traditional folk from America and Ireland. The females would have pretty braids in their hair. A dog would be lying in the dust by the bottom step. A little puddle of mud would be building under the side of her mouth, where drool meets dust. She’s an old dog, probably named Lady.
But the thing is, “Rich” takes that melody into a different world. It sounds like a slightly old-timey Hot Sugar production, and it lives in an odd, quirky little space that has no obvious signs of electronics, but is also clearly not an organic concoction. Except for maybe the purring.
So what kind of man makes this music?
“Cosmo Sheldrake is a master looper, multi instrumentalist, who played jazz and classical piano from the age of four, and regularly performs on banjo, loop station, keyboards, double bass, drums, didgeridoo, penny whistle, sousaphone and more. An inspirational singer and improviser, he draws on numerous and disparate musical traditions from Mongolia to West Africa, blues to classical and folk to Balkan brass. Cosmo is a composer and a producer and has written music for film and theatre. Based in London and Brighton, he runs vocal improv and beatboxing workshops, youth empowerment and wilderness camps.”
As if that was not interesting enough for you, his dad is Rupert Sheldrake, and he sometimes sings in his own language, which you can see in the video below.
Here is Cosmo Sheldrake waiting for his laundry:
