Benin City: MLD live session & free download "My Love" single

Is it possible to will a record to success just by concentrating really really hard?
Internet research and common sense (not always closely linked) suggests it’s about as likely as moving an object with mind power alone (one presumably American commenter claims to have “pooped their pants they concentrated so hard“).
But for Benin City I’ll take that risk!
Their last single “Baby” strolled to the summit of MLD’s Top 200 tracks of 2012, and on the basis of what Ive heard so far, their debut album “Fires In The Park” (out June 24th) fills me with enough excitement to risk the same fate as the previously mentioned internet commenter.

As a teaser for the album they’re offering up their new single ‘My Love‘ to DOWNLOAD FREE!! <—Nab it there.
Spread the word by visiting the Benin City Hype Machine page & tweeting your love for the track.

It combines two twin loves of mine, intelligent thought provoking lyrics and a stonking great brass sound. Main man Joshua Idehen delivers poetic reflections on his imperfect love over a sparse repetitive loop, while the brass section builds slowly with the kind of fanfare that usually signals the arrival of a head of state. Finally it explodes into a melodramatic climax that were the London Olympics still on would surely soundtrack a montage of British success.

MUSIC LIKE DIRT SESSION

Benin City were kind enough to record a session for the blog. Joshua Idehen (Vox), Theo Buckingham (Drums) Tom Leaper (Tenor Sax), Rob Peterson (bass), Rebecca Nash (Keys) and Faye Treacy (Trombone) crammed themselves into a comically small room in a glamorous corner of Walthamstow to perform “Crush”.

Co-incidentally the Charlie Behrens directed video for “My Love” was shot a few miles down the banks of the River Lea from Walthamstow.

Remixes of “My Love” from Nicolaas Van Reenen, Dan Le Sac and Paper Tiger are also available for free download, with the Paper Tiger mix edging is as the most effective (although to my mind the original version is the best).