Swallow and the Wolf are an indie-folk duo, consisting ofHadleigh, Suffolk born, Russell Swallow, who provides main vocals, lyrics and plays the acoustic guitar, and Australian Jess Kennedy on piano, keyboards and harmonising vocals. Russell was once a backing singer for Tallulah Rendall in 2011. Originally they were 'Russell Swallow and the Wolf' which was a 9-piece group with brass, strings, piano, drums, bass, guitar and extra singers. Russell had met Jess, when she had put an advert online as a musician/writer looking for work. She originally joined as a pianist, but later became a co-writer / singer as well. The set-up included singers such as Neo Joshua and Yvette Riby-Williams, both from 'The Boxettes', and Alison Jones. These, and jazz and classically trained musicians from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, were enticed with large Sunday roast meals to play these indie-folk pop tunes. Their debut was at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, in August was awarded with a five star review and an invitation to play in the BBC's own EdFringe tent. The Sunrise Mountain EP was released in 2012. It was produced by Gavin Hammond, Russell and Jess invited friend musicians to join them and contribute drums, bass, violin and additional vocals. The album includes; "Christmas Eve", "Home", "Paper Aeroplanes", "Newfound Shore", "Sunrise Mountain" and "What Am I Supposed To Do?". Russell found touring with the band to be prohibitively expensive and time consuming, so downsized to, as they shared music tastes, the desire to pursue writing and harmonise exceptionally well together. They still invite additional musicians to record and play live on various tracks. The band name has since changed to Swallow and the Wolf. The duo then released a 3-track single Every Time She Comes on 7 May 2013. It contains "Every Time She Comes", produced by Gavin Hammond, and "Charge of The Light Brigade" and "Africa" each recorded at Urchin Studios with Dan Cox, and produced by Russell. They subsequently recorded their second EP 'Fire EP' at Guy Chambers's Sleeper Studios with producer Oliver Som, but they have a growing fan base. The duo self-released their Fire EP on 19 May, featuring 3-tracks Fire, Fight Tonight and SOS, and conducted a DIY tour of the UK, and small festivals. They head back into the studio with Oliver Som in June to record their next EP, due for release in the Autumn, along with a UK and German tour.
