A one-man assembly of bold and vibrant caricatures in sound; The Voluntary Butler Scheme makes its debut with the EP 'Trading Things In' released on The Lowest Layer Of The Trifle Recordings.
22-year-old Rob Jones aka The Voluntary Butler Scheme takes a wry look at life's shortcomings and styles a plasticine pop of ruggedly organic and excitingly abstract songs.
Opening track "Trading Things In" is lyrically vivid English-summer pop. With ambitiously realised harmonies, and pleasingly shabby arrangement, it recognises the truly defining symptoms of love and devotion; Broccoli, running shoes and bad MP3 playlists.
With "The Eiffel Tower And The BT Tower", Rob welcomes a swinging, ska inflected Motown group into his Midland home, "The BT Tower is the first thing that catches your eye when you go into Birmingham. Some sort of warped Midlands' pride made me want to put it in the title."
The apparent pop soul whimsy of "Hot Air Balloon Heart", shares the eccentric gifts of Nilsson and more immediately Gruff Rhys, as it spins classic songwriting into new, surreal and otherworldly shapes - "I've been dreaming of you so often, makes my hot air balloon heart soften..."
Hailing from Stourbridge, Rob's inauguration as a solo artist was inspired - albeit indirectly - by fellow mid-lander Pato Banton. Under the misapprehension that collaboration with the lyrical toaster might be on the cards, Rob wrote and recorded an album's worth of songs. When the partnership inevitably came to naught, Rob set about filling in the gaps with his harmonica and The Voluntary Butler Scheme was born.
Calling forward his own proverb "a bass drum on the back is worth two on the floor", Rob now tours with a collection of keyboards, guitars, kick drum and percussive accoutrements, recreating his progressive pop opuses as a one man band, most recently alongside Joe Lean and the Jing Jang Jong and Duke Special.
Having garnered the support of Radio 1 and BBC 6 Music, Rob was scheduled for a Huw Stephens session broadcast on 18th June and a Marc Riley session on 16th July, 2008.
Watch "Trading Things In" video:
The video was filmed by James Copeman, the director behind Laura Marling's "Ghosts" and "My Manic And I", Mystery Jets "Young Love" and "Flakes", Noah And The Whale "Shape Of My Heart" and "Five Years Time" and Emmy The Great "Gaberiel".
July 2008 Live Dates:
July 9th, 2008 London, The Slaughtered Lamb
19th Suffolk, Latitude Festival (Introducing Stage)
26th Ripley, Indietracks Festival
The Voluntary Butler Scheme Myspace
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