Broad Oak – Not a Lemur (ft. Jumps)

Not a Lemur is the first single from Broad Oak’s debut album to be released 2022

Broad Oak aka Nigel Braddock, set up Monkey Records in 2000 to release a project he was working on and then got a bit distracted with running the label, producing and managing/touring with bands. His forthcoming debut album has been some twelve years in the making.

Not a Lemur was originally recorded as a piano piece in 2006 one stormy night when he was living out at Karekare in New Zealand. In 2014, John White came to stay with him in Berlin (where Braddock is now based) and they recorded his Henry Green album.

Although John White is well known in New Zealand as an indie folk/dream pop musician thanks to his band Mestar and his own solo albums, not many people know that he also raps as “Jumps”.

In between sessions working on his new album, White sang, rapped and played viola on a couple of tracks Braddock had been working on including Not a Lemur. Not long after that Brooke Singer, from French for Rabbits, was in town with her band and contributed some backing vocals.

Says Braddock, ” I really like John’s stream of consciousness rap and silly word play. There’s no posturing or macho nonsense. In fact he sometimes describes it as twee rap, which I believe is a genre he’s invented. Despite the whimsy in this song though, at the heart of it there is a love story about a girl he met on a train in Berlin, although unfortunately he lost her number and never saw her again.”

Not a Lemur is now available on 12″ vinyl featuring a remix by Berlin-based producer Boxroom Rebel. Also out now as a digital release on all the usual platforms.