Half Cousin is a collective revolving around main songwriter/singer Kevin Cormack. The ethos behind the music of Half Cousin is “short, melodic songs made from junk!”. It’s perfect pop, but rather the pop of Tom Waits or Arab Strap. Not trying too hard. Music made with accordions, clarinet and wooden blocks all tripping over each other. But like all great music it just doesn’t need to try, it just is.

Half Cousin’s impressive new single Big Chief is released this week. Featuring the first remix that label mates ‘The Earlies’ have put their name to, this is the lead single from their new album, the brilliant, Iodine. Following on from classic tracks such as The Diary Fire and Country Cassette Half Cousin build on their unique sound with their trademark verve and intensity creating something timelessly original and infectious.

…blithely provoking comparisons with Art Garfunkel, Led Zeppelin and Ivor Cutler all at once. (Mojo 04/07)

"Welcome to the Dawn of Witchrock, windswept and euphoric." NME
"A joyous fun filled ride...an organic beauty" TIME OUT

Part of the joy of listening to Half Cousin comes from hearing the joins and spotting the cracks. There are electronic squawks, asthmatic accordion, finger picked acoustic guitar, shambolic junk percussion and otherworldly vocals from Cormack. So Lo-Fi then? Definitey not, but there aren't many more natural or organic sounding groups around, as you'll no doubt hear as soon as the off-beats and acoustic strumming of "The Diary Fire EP" make their presence known.

Half Cousin is a collective revolving around main songwriter & singer Kevin Cormack who simply crafts "short, melodic songs from junk!", a sound that if you believe NME heralds the "dawn of witchrock".

However, witchcraft has little to do with the band or their debut "The Function Room", even if acclaim such as "Magical... one of the most important albums of the year" DJ and "Darkly magical bucolic rusticity." I-D fails to dispel such pagan connotations.

"A joyous fun filled ride...
an organic beauty" TIME OUT

The founding members of the band met at school in the Orkneys, Scotland where much of their subject matter comes from. Listening to their music its difficult not to conjure up your own images of the place, as the majority of the songs are inspired by life on the islands. For instance, the latest single "Country Cassette" was inspired by Kevin's Uncle who booked Country and Western bands for the Pubs and Clubs of Orkney. 'I used to work at a petrol station with him and we'd drive to work on freezing cold, snowy winter mornings listening to his Country cassettes on his car stereo.'