Monday, April 29, 2013

Fiomily : Harmonising Sisters

Well it's about time I wrote about these two. I think they must have been the first Youtube artists I ever came across back in 2006-2007. I've been trying to recall what the first video of theirs I saw was and can't seem to pin it down, but I do remember one of the first ones being "Star Of The County Down" (old Irish ballad). I knew the song through Van Morrison, and must have stumbled upon this cover through Youtube's suggestions, and I'm lucky I did. If I hadn't come across their cover, I would never have gotten so into looking up Youtube covers. The two girls were phenomenal for the time. A Youtube sensation, with lovely harmonising voices accompanied by Emily's guitar playing, which always rocked in my mind. They are not as active on Youtube nowadays, but they were certainly pioneers in the whole Youtube cover artist thing and I really respect them for that. Check out their cover of "Star Of The County Down."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t94aVr5S2pE

Love it. Even if it isn't as flashy or polished as some of today's Youtube videos, it's certainly a part of my Youtube history and am glad the girls haven't taken their videos down. I was always stunned by how high Fiona's voice seemed to go. Through time of course, it matured and blossomed into this incredible sound, which you'll hear soon enough. Emily...was a girl a truly looked up to at the time. She seemed incredibly musical overall and just knew where to go vocally. She seemed to be an iguana that would match up to Fiona's voice perfectly.

Moving along, the girls continued uploading videos for years to come and I kept listening/watching. What I loved about them was the fact that they never changed. They definitely improved and evolved, but they stuck to their base, they stuck to the songs they believed in. About a month before I graduated they uploaded a cover of The Beatles' big first hit "Love Me Do", with Emily on guitar, harmonica and vocals, and Fiona on vocals. Needless to say, I loved it and still think it's great. Have a listen.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=byeaD_P_SEY

I'm sitting here with my friend Brenda listening to this, and she's not really digging it but I'm saying "You know what? These girls just get out there and do it. If they had all that equipment and time, like most artists do today, they'd sound incredible." Nevertheless, I do think she'll see my point with the next video I'll be talking about. But as for this, who can can say that Emily isn't incredible with that multitasking and Fiona isn't great with those really high vocals? What I was always curious about was why they starred at the camera so intently, but I guess I'll remain curious about it forever.

Now, I do remember the girls having some originals up on myspace way back when, but I would like to share another cover with you, because I feel it's what they do so incredibly well and looking through their videos you can see their evolution and improvement through time. So, here's a cover they did of "You Need Me Man, I Don't Need You" by Ed Sheeran. It's been a long and winding road and I hope it doesn't end there. If you love the sisters as much as I do, subscribe to their channel and "like" their Facebook page (Fiomily). Check back tomorrow for another fantastic artist.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrerq4N3kZ8

Alex Hamel

1 comment:

  1. Ah, that talented English-German duo of sisters.

    Unfortunately though, the road has ended there indeed. :( I became a fan, but I was told by a bigger fan, who knows more about them, that Emily (the more polished musician of the two) is off to college and simply isn't interested in playing music any more. Such a pity. :/

    Both are hugely talented though. Had room to improve (especially Fiona), but surely would have done so and become even more awesome, if they had kept singing together; and, of course, if they had been given a chance, i.e. - been offered a record contract of some sort... Unfortunately, I've noticed the music industry in Germany is weird and tends to focus on things other than talent far too often (and that's all I'm gonna say about that...).

    What is especially important is that even at a young age they had great taste for music and liked (hence - chose to cover) good songs, regardless of which period or genre the original comes from... unlike most of today's teenagers, who only like "new" music and dismiss anything that's considered "old"; while we know there isn't such a thing as "new music" and "old music" - there's good music and not so good, that's it. And they were among the few kids their age that realized that.

    And what impressed me the most is they had developed their own characteristic style for those covers (just like that Cornish band I keep hinting to you about :P). It did evolve in time, obviously, as they gained experience and improved as musicians but I agree with you - they did manage to stay true to that style and that sound they had created. That makes it even more of a pity that they have chosen paths in life other than becoming professional musicians.

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