Toby Hayes has never made a secret of his disdain for the attendant baggage of the 'singer-songwriter' tag. He's dubbed his output as Shoes and Socks Off 'stubbed toe blues', the self-effacing implications of which are obvious, and his own bio once noted that 'it started as a joke'. That Shoes and Socks Off has grown beyond just Hayes and his guitar since its inception is evidence of his affirmative action on removing the project from the domain of the wet and self-obsessed, and with Miles of Mad Water , his fifth full-length [...]
It's been nearly two years since Shoes and Socks Off , aka one Toby Hayes, released a full-length record. And so it's very, very (very) pleasing to announce that on May 14th, Miles Of Mad Water will be available via both Big Scary Monsters and Father Figure Records. Lead single Tork Sport brings Hayes' oft-professed (but not so often easily heard) Radiohead influences to the fore, its skittering beats and gorgeous swells overlaid by the man's characteristic oblique/tender lyrical tradeoffs. The track's an [...]
So, this week ends with a massive extravaganza of Toadliness, but it does look like it'll be relatively quiet along the way as there doesn't seem to be that much else around until the weekend. Which is actually alright, sort of, because it gives me a chance to get my shit together in advance of a very busy weekend indeed. Quite how we're going to sort the logistics of getting half the bands in Edinburgh to and from Anstruther on Sunday I don't know, but I am sure we'll manage somehow. Anyhow, in the meantime there [...]
Last time we covered Dad Rocks! , or Danish/Icelandic singer, guitarist, trumpeteer, father, and general all round good guy Snævar Njáll Albertsson, it was in restless anticipation of the imminent release of his debut full length Mount Modern . We have to wait until November 8th for that particular pleasure, but until then, it's worth heading over to Dad Rocks!' bandcamp , and getting your hands on his Big Scary Covers EP, which features four lovingly-crafted covers of some of the best acts [...]
So, after the chaos of the Festival, we are back to normal service here in Ides of Toad HQ (which looks suspiciously similar to Song, by Toad HQ and bears a more than passing resemblance to Song, by Toad Records HQ). Actually, I thought I managed to get myself horribly waylaid by the Festival, but it turns out I have most of the Autumn's lineups already filled and ready to go, with only a few gaps here and there. This level of organisation rather shocks me, I have to confess, but I am sure I will find some [...]
20 million people are affected by the recent floods in Pakistan and it is said that it will take three years for the country to fully recover. At least six million people have been left homeless. The UNHCR is appealing for $120 million in donations over the next four months to provide shelter and assistance to Pakistan's flood victims. There is currently a shortage of cash for aid agencies in the region. Music site Fractions Of One have teamed with 13 bands from the UK and Ireland to release Get Set Go , [...]
Shoes And Socks Off 's fourth album in just over eighteen months, although first to get a proper release rather than produced to order, finds Tobias Hayes still sounding like he's been caught pondering his lot in his bedroom. Intimately recorded with little apparent concession to gleaming hi-fi, his songs seem, at times, like uncomfortably personal confessions. It can be quite difficult to judge albums like this. Whatever the singer emotes, you're still pretty much left with just vocals and guitar to wrap a few hundred words around unless you want to start quoting lyrics at length and [...]
Ask someone to name their 'interests' and the majority of people will say 'music'. This, as we all know, is an incredibly broad answer though and of course the level of 'interest' can vary drastically from one person to the next. From casual daytime-radio listeners to 1960's American-folk vinyl collectors; both would profess to an 'interest' in music. A good way of gauging just how hardcore someone's musical fandom is would be to ask them one simple question; 'What's your favourite record label?'. This one, simple question will instantly let you know the kind of person you're dealing [...]
The ever prolific Tobias Hayes is back. After the unfortunate demise of Meet Me In St Louis and his departure from Shield Your Eyes, he's been busy racking up solo songs under the guise of Shoes and Socks Off . Having produced nearly 50 songs, these are all going to see the light of day on a new 3CD collection called Don't Blame Yourself, It's In Your Blood , which was released last month on Big Scary Monsters. However, that's not all, he's readying a new album called Robin Hood Waiter Champion Have-Not (great [...]
Meet Me in St. Louis were one of those bands that everyone seemed to love a few years ago but I never managed to get into. I didn't dislike them, but the odd songs I did hear never really clicked. I always assured myself that I'd get round to giving them a fair listen eventually, but once they called it a day, they just fell by the wayside. Shoes and Socks Off on the other hand I have made time for, and I'm very happy that I did. Consisting only of Tobias Hayes, frontman of MMiSL, the project is [...]
Shoes And Socks Off covers EP Shoes And Socks Off has released 'Pipeton' a 6 track, free download EP of covers: 1. Lounge Act (Nirvana) 2. Not Ready Yet (Eels) 3. You Said Something (PJ Harvey) 4. Wolf At The Door (Radiohead) 5. Tame (Pixies) 6. To Forgive (Smashing Pumpkins)
This is just going to be a short one because I'm tired. Ex- Meet Me In St Louis singer and amazingly bearded man Toby Hayes has gone all acoustic with his solo project Shoes And Socks Off . In between playing bass for Shield Your Eyes , Toby has pick up an acoustic guitar and created a bunch of tracks that share the same kineticism, the same nervous energy, as MMISL's Variations On Swing but covered with a wash of pathos and sentimentality. They are actually really pretty in places. Toby's vocals sounds as strong as ever, [...]
Crack In The Road
Song, by Toad
nialler9
The Line Of Best Fit
GoldFlakePaint
Another Form of Relief
Indiependent Music
funfunfun
Stream: Neil Young and Crazy Horse – Americana
