King Of The Flies

The music of Catching Flies aka George King was another unexpected and very welcome birthday gift last week. Yes, I know I said I'd stop banging on about my bleeding birthday, but...!

 

I look forward to the No Badger Required Tracks And Album Of The Year countdown with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. Excitement because I know that there will be a majority of artists and songs featured that I've either not yet to got around to hearing or that I've never heard of, full stop. Trepidation because I know that I'll end up spending a load of money on music that I should otherwise be setting aside for the festive period. 

Happily, I think I've found the perfect balance between adding to my music collection without compromising on a quality Christmas dinner at Casa K this year.

On 11th December, SWC had reached #9 in the countdown. I won't spoil the album reveal, but the track was Tides by Catching Flies. You know the feeling when you hear something for the first time and you're torn between wanting to go back and play it again and again and again, or immediately looking for anything else that the artist has released and listening to it?

I did a lot of the former and then moved swiftly to the latter at the weekend. And the rewards are rich. In 2024 alone, George has released - deep breath - an album (also called Tides), a remix companion called [Reworks], an EP of versions with strings called, you guessed it, [Strings], a standalone single called WORRY. the first single from the second album (Ojai). 

Oh, and George has also found time to deliver a stunning 2-hour BBC Radio 1 Essential Mix. An extract, featuring a blend of Flutter by Bonobo and Fruits Of The Spirit by Jay Electronica has been posted separately and heads up today's post.

The latter is Catching Flies' trademark. Elsewhere in the mix, you'll find Chick Corea performing with MJ Cole. On Remixes, a collection of Catching Flies reworks of other artists released in January (which I forgot to add to the above list!), there's a truly astonishing remix of a Billy Fury single from 1960. Listen to this...

...and then the original. Wow.

 

I've cherry picked tracks from each of Catching Flies' releases this year, with the relevant health warning that you will be clicking on that online payment, with a basket full of goodies, before you know what's happening.

 

Worth every second of every song. 

 

Beats & PIeces, the second Catching Flies album, is out in April 2025 and available as a digital pre-order right now for a fiver.

 

Much love and respect to SWC for some stunning suggestions ...but can my bank balance withstand the remainder of the countdown...?!

 

 

 

 

 
 

And if you've made it this far, having overcome your initial disappointment that the post wasn't about the titular song by Fad Gadget, here's your reward.