In 2003 Paulusma was happily putting the finishing touches to shed-recorded debut album ‘Scissors in my Pocket’ when Bjork’s label One Little Indian signed her up and catapulted her round the world for six years, supporting Bob Dylan, Jamie Cullum, Joseph Arthur, Coldplay and many others.
In 2012 she set up her own label Wild Sound to release her third studio album, Leaves from the Family Tree; the label is now growing.
From humble musical beginnings in a garden shed, Polly Paulusma was signed to Bjork’s label One Little Indian in 2003 and in 2004 released her self-produced, home-shed-recorded debut album Scissors In My Pocket to international critical acclaim.
Uncut Magazine gave Scissors In My Pocket **** calling her “the finest young female British singer-songwriter to emerge over the last 12 months” (in a year that saw Amy Winehouse and Joss Stone step into the limelight). The Independent heralded her “the most literate songwriter of her generation”. Scissors… was playlisted on BBC Radio 2 and championed by Michael Parkinson and Terry Wogan, to name but a few.
Over the pond, Nic Harcourt from LA’s prestigious KCRW radio show The Morning Becomes Eclectic called Scissors…“the best album from the UK this year”. Veteran Canadian DJ Howard Mandshein dubbed her “the best British female singer-songwriter in a decade”.
Paulusma toured the UK, the US and Europe continuously through 2004-5 supporting Bob Dylan, Coldplay, Jamie Cullum, Marianne Faithfull, The Divine Comedy and Joseph Arthur, playing Glastonbury, Glasgow’s T in the Park and the Cambridge Folk Festival, amongst many others.
Released in 2007, her second album Fingers & Thumbs was a heartfelt cry for help after a series of miscarriages. It was a difficult and very personal album, driven predominantly by a live electric sound. It was recorded and mixed in 2006 (while Paulusma was expecting her first baby) live at Liverpool’s acclaimed Parr Street Studios in just 5 weeks with acclaimed producer Ken Nelson (Coldplay, Kings of Convenience, Gomez, Badly Drawn Boy) and featured Paulusma’s long-time drummer Rastko Rasic and Italian bassist Al-Maranca. Due to the distressing subject-matter of its songs, it expressed a much darker side to Paulusma’s personality.
In May 2012 (two children later), Paulusma released her third album, Leaves from the Family Tree on her label Wild Sound. On this joyful third album, she e-collaborated with Adem and Erin McKeown, rock violin diva Anna Phoebe and acclaimed film composer Michael Price of recent Sherlock fame, combining recordings from her garden shed, Pinewood Studios, and everywhere in between to create an insightful representation of the joys and complications of modern family life.
When Tom Robinson recently played a live version of Last Week Me on BBC 6Music, he said: “Just goes to show, all you need is talent… just one woman, a guitar and a voice.”
In 2013 Paulusma successfully raised £3,000 using crowd-funding platform Pledge Music via preorders to fund a vinyl LP pressing of “Leaves From The Family Tree”, which was released on Diverse Vinyl, the vinyl home of Richard Thompson, Laura Marling and Joan Baez.
In 2013 Paulusma also began a rich collaboration with US singer-songwriter Annie Dressner after they met at the Cambridge Folk Festival to form bluegrass duo The Pollyanna Band; their stunning left-field Christmas single ‘Christmas All The Time’ featured on the For Folk’s Sake Christmas Compilation and was tipped by the Daily Telegraph for the UK Christmas No 1. They are writing towards a full album.
In the meantime, her Wild Sound label is growing exponentially; through production and emotional support, more than a decade of industry experience and an ocean of enthusiasm, she brings on the artists she truly believes in. From the ballads of Welsh troubadour Harry Harris to the harmonies of Coventry’s Stylusboy, all the Wild Sound artists share deep lyrical content and an ear for a melody.
Press Quotes
Ruth Barnes (BBC 6Music): “pure folk pop genius”
Tom Robinson (6Music): “Just goes to show, all you need is talent … just one woman, a guitar and a voice.”
Howard Mandshein (Canadian DJ): “They say music is supposed to be a reflection of life, to be something that gets inside of our souls, forget our circumstances. This does just that and more. It breathes, it is in my inspiration. You made a wonderful connection with me.”
MOJO Magazine: **** “complete, pure and personal” ****
Uncut Magazine: **** “the finest young British female singer-songwriter to emerge over the last 12 months”
Daily Telegraph: “outstanding…and passionate”
Rolling Stone (USA): “an enchanting debut of understated, intelligent folk pop”
The Independent: “the most literate songwriter of her generation”