The Crayonettes are Kathryn Williams (“Without doubt one of the most authentic folk voices in the country,” Q Magazine) and Anna Spencer (formerly of punk band ‘Delicate Vomit); two mums weary of the traditional ‘children’s CD’ format, those well meant but over-earnest singalongs performed inevitably in a ‘well-to-do horse-y voice’.
Meeting up for their boys – Louis and Lenny – to play together, Kathryn and Anna noticed the weird and wonderful ideas the boys would conjure up from their imaginations ‘and we got to thinking about creating something that would make them laugh and make us laugh. We wanted songs that sounded like punk or disco or hip hop or country – The Small Faces brushing their teeth or The Velvet Underground asking questions about toads!’
The end result is a truly road-tested kid’s record that takes in everything from hip hop and electro to 50’s crooners with songs about robots in the rain, sweets on the floor and pirates taking over buses! Incidentally, the album’s sleeve art and booklet is the work of Anna’s eldest son, Sam, 11.
“Songs For Children and Robots” is out on September 6.
