Sometimes an artist is more than that – he or she is more like a force of nature. In combination with another like-minded individual, real power is manifested and all who witness their energy get caught up in their vortex. One half is guitarist, singer and songwriter Juju, a lithe, brunette androgyne. The other half is Nez, a powerhouse, take no prisoners, ruddy drummer. Together they make LITTLE FISH.
Onstage, it's sensual thunder, drawing you in with dangerous warmth. Most often Juju's self taught guitar style blazes through as Nez vigorously propels himself and beats his way through the songs. "It's like an exorcism," says Juju when the songs come. "They are based on human expression, sometimes things that can't be said are best left sung."
As a child Juju found music "too overwhelming". She was so affected by the sound of music that she found it far too difficult to enjoy any listening experience. By her own account, she spent her childhood "running away from it." Preferring sports, she was not one to go out and buy records. "I didn't do any music most of my life. It was only during my last years at school I came close to music. I used to sneak into the music class to learn more about music but got kicked out for not knowing enough. It forced me to go home, get my own instrument and learn how to play chords. This lead to me writing my very first song."
Nez swam a different stream to Juju. "My musical background starts with 'The Old Grey Whistle Test’ (a popular British 70’s and 80’s TV show)," muses Nez. "My Dad was really into '70's music, which lead to my fascination with the drums. He then paid for me to have drum lessons when I was 10 and 11yrs old. I drifted away from it for a bit, but when I was 14 or 15yrs old I regained my enthusiasm and joined a rock band with my schoolmates. It was from this that I got into different styles of music: Big Band Jazz, Led Zeppelin, The Who and Frank Zappa. From there I played in different bands of all differing styles. Then I met Juju and it gave me a new challenge and experience."
LITTLE FISH is a duo, augmented by a Hammond player live, with a broad sonic palette and a very deep emotional range. There are hints of downtown New York post punk circa 1982 as seen in "Darling Dear," but then LITTLE FISH surprises you with a song like "Luck's Run Out" and "Am I Crazy?" Nothing flattens them; LITTLE FISH stand their ground.
Their debut album BAFFLED & BEAT, to be released in 2010 and produced by Linda Perry, fuses the volatile, the crazy, the vulnerable, punk, rock, angry, insecure, refreshing anxiety, and have created a raw and modest record. And then there's the unexplainable, the indefinable, the swagger, the vibe, that thing of "owning it." In their company, on their recordings, at their gigs, LITTLE FISH has it.
