Shout Timber

"East India Trading Company" is the first of two singles to be released this year by Indie Rockers, Shout Timber. The song is the band’s take on travelling through India for the first time and the accompanying video takes us on that journey too!

Released on the 29th October

Directed & Edited by Austin Taylor. - Best In New Music

It’s cold, it’s dark, it’s the end of November. One way to get out of the winter blues is to press play on ‘Rich Man’, the new single from Shout Timber. It’s upbeat full of African vibes and more than enough to blow the cobwebs away, put them somewhere between Little Comets and Vampire Weekend. The track is officially being released on December 10th but you get get a free download alongside ‘East India Trading Company’ now.
Shout Timber are a four piece from London and worked with Tarek Musa who has also been working with Eye Emma Jedi, who previously featured on Tune of the Week with ‘Sin’.
The two tracks released this way compliment each other quite well. ‘Rich Man’ is upbeat and going on the lyrics just a tad extravagant. The rhythm for “East India Trading Company’ comes from a train bell and gives the impression of just enjoying a journey through India. Interesting combination.
Shout Timber are playing a couple of gigs in the UK before Christmas, on December 3rd they play The Water Rats, London supporting Animal Kingdom and on December 4, you’ll find them in Birmingham at the Actress & Bishop, supporting Jaws. - Nessymon

A personal highlight of the day was to catch Shout Timber put on a show with a bit of difference at the Oakford Social Club. Without their drummer, the guys performed delightful reworks of some of their top songs like 'First Love' and soon to be released 'East India Trading Company'. Before they had to dash off I caught up with them and got them to put on a special session of 'Louise' just for Oxjam. - The 405

I had the pleasure of meeting Alex Mankoo and TJ Masilamani from indie pop band Shout Timber at the shoot of their video ‘Rich Man’ to talk about their ambitions, influences and the meaning of life, of course.

How did Shout Timber form?

A: Well, Sam heard me singing The Smiths at school. We were fifteen at the time and I guess not many people we knew liked The Smiths. After our first conversation we decided to start a band and just started jamming. Then when we went to London for uni at UCL we met TJ and Will. We all just meshed together really well so we started Shout Timber.

Shout Timber is an interesting name, how’d you guys come up with it?

A: I guess it kind of came from the movie ‘Breakfast at Tiffanys”. You know the scene where Audrey Hepburn shouts “Timber!” in the middle of the party? It has a nice ring to it. Its sort of our war cry, and the fans seem to like it.

How would you describe your sound?

TJ: Music for a road trip to the French Riviera.

A: I’d describe it as a modern indie pop sound.

TJ: We are really influenced by world music. Instead of sticking to a standard formula, we bring in a lot of ethnic sounds while keeping them catchy and pop based.

Are there any particular bands that influence you?

A: As a band our biggest influences are The Smiths, Wilco, The Dirty Projectors. As a kid, Radiohead was a great influence just by opening up my mind to different sounds.

TJ: Vocally, we are influenced by The Beatles, Fleet Foxes, The Band. We really like harmonies.

A: Our newer songs have been really influenced by African music like Nigerian Afrobeat.

You have recently released your songs as free downloads. What made you decide to release them for free?

TJ: No one wanted to pay for it (laughter). No, but really we want to maxamise the amount of people that listen to our music at this stage in our career.

A: We want to create a community. Right now, that community is more important to us than album sales.

Tell me a little about the inspiration behind ‘Rich Man’. Did it come from experience?

A: Actually, ‘Rich Man’ developed into a satire. Since we are writing it as a young band we look out and see all these established, well off, successful bands and you have ambition to get to that place yourself. At the same time, it is good for us to remember what is really important in life. Like the song says, “…all the money in the world can’t buy you love”. In the video, we each play a distinct character, a stereotype of a wealthy person.

In the video you all have really distinct personalities. Do you think that is true in real life?

TJ & A: Definitely!

A: I think the video reflects exaggerated versions of our personalities. I have the tendency to be the most elitist, Sam is really straight faced and TJ is a bit wacky.

What’s next for the band? Any future plans?

A: ‘Rich Man’ will be released as another free download like ‘East India”. Our hope is that we will start building a little bit more of that community once the songs have been released. By next year, we would like to record a full-length album in the studio and just keep song writing. We’re also playing a bunch of tour dates throughout London and Birmingham.



You can download the single 'Rich Man' for free http://soundcloud.com/shouttimber/sets/rich-man/

http://shouttimbermusic.com - Glass Magazine

hout Timber deliver intelligent, upbeat, melodic indie pop, subtly flavoured with Indian heritage and bona fide class with a free download release of 'Rich Man' & 'East India Trading Company'.

Playing on two sides of an ever-existent and more than ever culturally relevant conundrum: rich and poor, happiness and unhappiness “All the money in the world no it can’t buy love” 'Rich Man' follows a character who has everything but is still unhappy, exploring the idea that joy derives from the people in our lives, and not from the all the stuff we own.

Influenced by the makeshift, joyous vibe of a lot of African music (that sounds like it was recorded with one room mic), Shout Timber wanted 'Rich Man' to draw from that musically but have a satirical lyrical edge that played on the ‘first world problems’ mindset.
Read more at http://hangout.altsounds.com/news/154648-free-download-shout-timber-rich-man.html#7DL2RwovMzuix1zA.99 - Altsounds

Nombre: Shout Timber

País: Londres, UK.

Álbum: Rich Man SINGLE (Independiente, 2012)

Suena como: Tokyo Police Club, Vampire Weekend, Bombay Bicycle Club, Dog Is Dead.

Sonidos: indie rock, indie pop, indie surf. - Radio Alterno

Nombre: Shout Timber

País: Londres, UK.

Álbum: Rich Man SINGLE (Independiente, 2012)

Suena como: Tokyo Police Club, Vampire Weekend, Bombay Bicycle Club, Dog Is Dead.

Sonidos: indie rock, indie pop, indie surf. - Radio Alterno

Over the last couple of days we at Sound And Motion have had a look through all of the tracks we’ve featured in our podcast and, while we’ve featured upwards of a hundred fantastic songs, we somehow managed to find fifteen we liked most of all.

So, here is our pick of the Sound And Motion Podcast, the top fifteen of 2012. - Sound and Motion Mag

Over the last couple of days we at Sound And Motion have had a look through all of the tracks we’ve featured in our podcast and, while we’ve featured upwards of a hundred fantastic songs, we somehow managed to find fifteen we liked most of all.

So, here is our pick of the Sound And Motion Podcast, the top fifteen of 2012. - Sound and Motion Mag

O Shout Timber é uma banda inglesa que foge em seu som das concepções plenamente classudas pré-concebidas a respeito de quem vive por lá. É impossível fugir da referência Afropop do Vampire Weekend do começo ao fim, porém de uma maneira mais melódica e étnica. Já tendo trabalhado com instrumentos de sopro e utilizado de uma percussão menos impulsiva é que o Shout Timber revela duas novas canções.

Com um EP de três faixas lançado sob a alcunha de First Love, o grupo agora apresenta criações novas que devem integrar um futuro disco. As faixas Rich Man e East India Trading Company deixam um pouco de lado o romantismo e investem em hits propícios para um verão dançante. - Monkeybuzz

O Shout Timber é uma banda inglesa que foge em seu som das concepções plenamente classudas pré-concebidas a respeito de quem vive por lá. É impossível fugir da referência Afropop do Vampire Weekend do começo ao fim, porém de uma maneira mais melódica e étnica. Já tendo trabalhado com instrumentos de sopro e utilizado de uma percussão menos impulsiva é que o Shout Timber revela duas novas canções.

Com um EP de três faixas lançado sob a alcunha de First Love, o grupo agora apresenta criações novas que devem integrar um futuro disco. As faixas Rich Man e East India Trading Company deixam um pouco de lado o romantismo e investem em hits propícios para um verão dançante. - Monkeybuzz

Shout Timber took a trip through India and turned their journey into a musical journal on 'East India Trading Company', the first single from the group this year. A video using footage from their trip shows the bright breadth and width of the people and places across the eastern nation.

The merry, bop-along single, produced by Tarek Musa (Jethro Fox, Eye Emma Jedi), is out 29th October. - Middle Boop Mag

Shout Timber took a trip through India and turned their journey into a musical journal on 'East India Trading Company', the first single from the group this year. A video using footage from their trip shows the bright breadth and width of the people and places across the eastern nation.

The merry, bop-along single, produced by Tarek Musa (Jethro Fox, Eye Emma Jedi), is out 29th October. - Middle Boop Mag

In many post-colonial situations, it’s hard to know where British culture ends and Indian culture starts. The young group of gents above, Shout Timber, have capitalised on this melange of societies and produced a really quite enchanting new single called “East India Trading Company”.

The single, the first of Shout Timber’s 2012 releases, is melodic, soft, beat-driven, and a little crashing, all at the same time – much like I imagine a moment walking the streets of India itself is. (I’ve only been as close as Nepal, but the definitely fits the sound.)

The key to what makes this song so welcoming is the subtle vocals – the strong English music influence in the colourful song set up – after all, if you captured the indian atmosphere too completely, it would end up too overwhelming for repetitive listening.

The video for the song is made up of footage that the band shot when actually travelling through India, and features some beautiful shots.

Drawing as much influence from their love of vintage American literature and cinema as they do the melodies and honest lyricism of The Smiths, harmonies of The Beatles and the afro-rhythms of Vampire Weekend…

….this is Shout Timber, and I like where the young band is heading. - A Thousand Guitars

In many post-colonial situations, it’s hard to know where British culture ends and Indian culture starts. The young group of gents above, Shout Timber, have capitalised on this melange of societies and produced a really quite enchanting new single called “East India Trading Company”.

The single, the first of Shout Timber’s 2012 releases, is melodic, soft, beat-driven, and a little crashing, all at the same time – much like I imagine a moment walking the streets of India itself is. (I’ve only been as close as Nepal, but the definitely fits the sound.)

The key to what makes this song so welcoming is the subtle vocals – the strong English music influence in the colourful song set up – after all, if you captured the indian atmosphere too completely, it would end up too overwhelming for repetitive listening.

The video for the song is made up of footage that the band shot when actually travelling through India, and features some beautiful shots.

Drawing as much influence from their love of vintage American literature and cinema as they do the melodies and honest lyricism of The Smiths, harmonies of The Beatles and the afro-rhythms of Vampire Weekend…

….this is Shout Timber, and I like where the young band is heading. - A Thousand Guitars

O verão está chegando e com ele, diversas fotos, comerciais, matérias e filmes retratando a estação mais animada do ano. Mas, sejamos sinceros, nem todo mundo passará um verão de comercial de cerveja curtindo na praia e andando de banana boat, só que não por isso os próximos meses serão menos divertidos.

Selecionamos algumas das faixas lançadas em 2012 que podem fazer sua trilha sonora nesta temporada. Não por coincidência, essa é também uma das listas com mais artistas brasileiros que já fizemos e ainda vem acompanhada de nomes já muito conhecidos como Two Door Cinema Club e Local Natives, novidades como a Kotki Dwa e Shout Timber e projetos paralelos como o de Baio. Confira mais de uma hora dos sons mais divertidos lançados no ano.

Não esqueça de conferir também nossa lista mais recente de cinco bandas para embalar suas férias e a anterior, que fizemos para as férias de Julho. - Monkeybuzz

O verão está chegando e com ele, diversas fotos, comerciais, matérias e filmes retratando a estação mais animada do ano. Mas, sejamos sinceros, nem todo mundo passará um verão de comercial de cerveja curtindo na praia e andando de banana boat, só que não por isso os próximos meses serão menos divertidos.

Selecionamos algumas das faixas lançadas em 2012 que podem fazer sua trilha sonora nesta temporada. Não por coincidência, essa é também uma das listas com mais artistas brasileiros que já fizemos e ainda vem acompanhada de nomes já muito conhecidos como Two Door Cinema Club e Local Natives, novidades como a Kotki Dwa e Shout Timber e projetos paralelos como o de Baio. Confira mais de uma hora dos sons mais divertidos lançados no ano.

Não esqueça de conferir também nossa lista mais recente de cinco bandas para embalar suas férias e a anterior, que fizemos para as férias de Julho. - Monkeybuzz

Shout Timber deliver intelligent, upbeat, melodic indie pop, subtly flavoured with Indian heritage and bona fide class with their release of their new single East India Trading Company.

Shout Timber are set to perform at the Old Blue Last in London this Sunday. - The Mad Mackerel

Shout Timber deliver intelligent, upbeat, melodic indie pop, subtly flavoured with Indian heritage and bona fide class with their release of their new single East India Trading Company.

Shout Timber are set to perform at the Old Blue Last in London this Sunday. - The Mad Mackerel

Shout Timber deliver intelligent, upbeat, melodic indie pop, subtly flavoured with Indian heritage and bona fide class with a free download release of Rich Man & East India Trading Company. - God is in the TV Zine

After the completely amazing single, "East India Trading Company", Shout Timber is back with the B-Side, "Rich Man". I'm just going to come right out and say it, there is something that is so magical about this track.

It's easy to point fingers and compare Shout Timber to other vibrant indie pop bands that utilize the unique vibes of African music, but I'd rather focus on what sets this band apart from those other acts.

"Rich Man" touches on the subject of how money can't buy you love. In the song, this wealthy character constantly brags about his material goods trying to impress a lady, with no luck.

I'm impressed with Shout Timber's ability to turn such a sad topic of being unable to find love and happiness into a catchy, upbeat piece of tribal pop. You can now download both "East India Trading Company" and "Rich Man" for free. Both tracks are worthy additions to any music library. - The Record Stache

After the completely amazing single, "East India Trading Company", Shout Timber is back with the B-Side, "Rich Man". I'm just going to come right out and say it, there is something that is so magical about this track.

It's easy to point fingers and compare Shout Timber to other vibrant indie pop bands that utilize the unique vibes of African music, but I'd rather focus on what sets this band apart from those other acts.

"Rich Man" touches on the subject of how money can't buy you love. In the song, this wealthy character constantly brags about his material goods trying to impress a lady, with no luck.

I'm impressed with Shout Timber's ability to turn such a sad topic of being unable to find love and happiness into a catchy, upbeat piece of tribal pop. You can now download both "East India Trading Company" and "Rich Man" for free. Both tracks are worthy additions to any music library. - The Record Stache

Shout Timber’s new single has a definite purpose: it’s called East India Trading Company, and is supposed to evoke the sights and sounds of travelling round India for the first time. The video underscores this by having the band intercut with sights from said trip. The effect is to give typical British indie pop a little bit of an angle, and it works well as a subtle, charming tune. You can buy it on October 29th, and another single is promised before 2012 is up. - Supajam

Shout Timber are a London quartet, who formed at my old university. (A bit like recent Surfacing band Islander.) A favourable start. Not that I'd foolishly write about them just because of that, they also happen to be quite splendid, providing joyously melodic indie pop vibes.

The band are heavily influenced by Indian roots, new track 'East India Trading Company' not only a tale of a virgin journey through India but complete with a video shot in India. Not bad for a bunch of bloody students. The track itself has that Paul Simon/'Graceland' feel so memorably popularised in recent times by Vampire Weekend, anarchic afro-pop meets upbeat folk.

Their debut EP from earlier in the year is also well worth investigation, particularly its lead track 'First Love' - heartfelt lyrics, glorious harmonies, and a superb flourish of brass. I'm eagerly awaiting more new stuff from Shout Timber, and pretty confident that it'll be more of the same good stuff. I mean it's academic, right? Yeah. I went there. Enjoy the tracks below, with 'East India Trading Company' available as a free download. - Faded Glamour

Shout Timber is a London band that delivers indie-pop with 50’s twist. Their EP only has 3 songs, but man, are they good.

“First Love,” the first single off the same titled EP, has a quirky and slight coming of age feel, as the singer talks about his unreciprocated first love as he waits by the hotel, but life has it’s way and soon she’s waiting. It’ll have you tapping your foot with it’s catchy lyrics and jaunty beat.

The second single “Buccaneer,” is the kind of song that you turn up to it’s loudest and dance like nobody’s watching. The high point of the song is when the singer hits his falsetto, taking this song to a whole other level.

Lastly, there’s “Let’s Go Dancing.” Back to that classic 50’s vibe with it’s enthusiastic beats, full bodied vocals and fun lyrics, “Let’s Go Dancing” is an all around feel good song.

Shout Timber keeps true to it’s claim as an indie-pop band with a 50's vibe, and with an EP that shows an effortless blend of modern and the classic sounds, we hope there’s more to come! - Indie Current

Shout Timber are a four piece band from London making us feel like we’re living through a heatwave with only a bottle of Bombay Saphire and two lonely Romeo y Julietta’s to keep us company. That is to say really quite upbeat. They sound like the resurrected corpse of 2009's afro-pop boom and, in a world or lo-fi doom-pop guitar bands, that’s pretty refreshing. They also played alongside one of our favorite bands ‘Jaws’ the other week, which is never a bad thing…
- Shiny Shiny New