Harkin’s second solo album ‘Honeymoon Suite’ is out everywhere now via Hand Mirror.
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“Harkin is a seasoned songwriter, but the circumstances have brought out the best in her creatively “ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - Narc Magazine
“With Honeymoon Suite, Harkin has proven that there’s beauty to be found within the darkness” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - Loud And Quiet
“After years of collaborating, Katie Harkin is proving she has plenty to say on her own terms” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ - DIY Magazine
With album 'Honeymoon Suite' out June 17th via Hand Mirror, Harkin shares her new single from the album "Driving Down A Flight Of Stairs" alongside a short film directed by Dejan Mrkic for the 11-minute instrumental album closer.
The director Dejan Mrkic heard the track and asked if he could pair it with some footage he’d shot in LA, which I thought was so beautiful and matched the expansive stillness of the track. In his words, “we reverse engineered the more traditional way of making a music video”. I was seeking peace and communal experience when I composed this track in lockdown. The geographically remote collaboration of this video feels like my call for that has been answered." Harkin
"The film follows a 10-year-old child (played by newcomer Ava Zane) as she searches for her presumed father in Los Angeles before she is picked up by her mother. It’s a meditation on childhood. The fluid camerawork by cinematographer Hayden Mason is complimented by BAFTA-winner Livia Ruzic’s distorted diegetic sounds to give the audience a hyper subjective experience.” Dejan Mrkic
Pre-order 'Honeymoon Suite' and new merch bundles
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We're happy to announce that Harkin's second solo album ‘Honeymoon Suite' will be released on June 17th through Hand Mirror. The album, recorded at home in the depths of UK lockdowns, is now available to pre-order via the Hand Mirror stores.
“For me, this album was a rabbit hole and escape hatch. It’s a very vulnerable record. There are no performances - I made it alone. Releasing it into the world feels like an extension of the solitary process and remote collaboration which created it. I hope it travels far and wide.” - Harkin
The album features additional performances by Harkin's friends, sent down the wire to her home studio. Keep an ear out for brass byNate Walcott (Bright Eyes) and Aaron Roche (Lower Dens, Sufjan Stevens, Anohni, Flock of Dimes), slide guitar by J.R. Bohannon (Torres) and backing vocals by Sophie Galpin (Soft Lad, Self Esteem). It was even mixed and mastered remotely (mixed by Jeff T Smith in Leeds and mastered by Guy Davie in London).
'Body Clock', the first single from the record, is now streaming, alongside an animated video created by Leeds-based Pastel Castle.
"I was a big fan of Pastel Castle's work and felt like this song would be a perfect fit. I wrote and recorded it during lockdown in a flat with no outdoor space. My brother loaned me a Nintendo Switch and I found solace in games with large maps to explore. Songwriting and gameplay can both have the power to transport and the video Pastel Castle has created takes me on a beautiful and perilous quest." - Harkin
"The video for 'Body Clock' is a piece of frame-by-frame pixel art animation, which I had the best time making here at my little home studio in Leeds. Many days were focused entirely on tailoring the movement of Katie's Sprite / Avatar to align with the mood of the track. I'm very happy with our collaboration and feel inspired now to go on a bit of an adventure of my own." - Pastel Castle
Kate Leah Hewett’s poem ‘Grace Period’ features as part of musician and friend Tim Mislock’s new collaborative album ‘With Love’, out now for streaming and purchase. Tim made the album in lockdown in 2020. Kate recorded her bit into her phone in her sister’s spare bedroom. Kate and her wife Katie were staying there when they had to return from NY, where Kate and Tim had met.
As Tim says, “all of these songs were born as audio postcards sent to members of my musical family in the spring of 2020. They were meant as ways of checking in on friends, of trying to keep a creative spirit alive in a time that felt and continues to feel uncertain. I knew we couldn't be at shows or even play music together, but I wanted to let them know I missed them and they were loved. These are the results of those audio postcards and I hope you find a similar peace and joy inside them that they brought to me.”
For season's greetings or just because. Blank inside or signed and personalised for you by Harkin. Available as single cards, or in a pack of six, or twelve. Ships internationally. Order comes with brown ribbed envelope. The envelopes are C6 size, which measures 114mm x 162mm. Printed in brilliant full colour, onto a 300gsm coated stock (uncoated inside for easy writing!)
We're having a clear out! This week only, help us make some room, with 25% off in the UK/EU and US store. Sweaters, hats, LPs, CDs, prints and tees all available while stocks last.
Your discount will be automatically added at checkout.
Sale ends 9AM BST on Monday, July 12
Enjoy!
All proceeds to akt
Available now in the Hand Mirror online store while they last
Pictured here in the wild and full of (Yorkshire) tea. Perfect for your summer outdoor adventures.
We decided to wait until after Pride month for this one. We strongly believe that fundraising shouldn't start and end with the month of June, and we're marking this in our small way with another merch fundraiser.
We'll be donating all proceeds of these limited edition Hand Mirror enamel mugs to akt, a UK-based charity whose work supports young LGBTQ+ people experiencing homelessness. During the first UK lockdown, the number of new young people who needed akt's help increased by 118 per cent, compared to the same period the year before. And their referral numbers continue to rise.
Hand Mirror Enamel Mugs
£12 GBP plus shipping
Ships worldwide
One-of-a-kind custom 'Sun, Stay With Me' denim jacket
Hand Mirror x Long Time Gone x Lesbian Asylum Support Sheffield
Enter to win this one-of-a-kind chainstitched vintage denim jacket designed and embroidered by Long Time Gone.
All proceeds will go to Lesbian Asylum Support Sheffield (LASS), a volunteer run support organisation for refugees and asylum seekers who identify as women or as non-binary, and are lesbian, bisexual and/or queer.
Entry is £1 per ticket. You may enter as many times as you like.
Kellye of Long Time Gone is based in Yorkshire, where she makes custom designs on her antique machine where each stitch is placed by hand via a crank. See more of her work here. This design is inspired by our love of the Peak District and is named after Harkin's song 'Sun, Stay With Me'.
This unique item is only available through this charity raffle. The winner will have their name or word of choice embroidered above the front chest pocket.
Size men's large/XL, but can fit small and medium as oversized. Model usually wears a medium.
Open internationally.
Raffle closes at 2pm GMT on Tuesday 23rd December.
LASS provide support to LBTQ+ people who are seeking asylum in the UK and are in the early stages of the refugee process. They provide practical and emotional support, alongside signposting to therapeutic services for those experiencing mental health issue or have lived experience of abuse, violence or torture. Learn more about their work here.
love poem with facetime by Kate Leah Hewett
it isn’t often that
i learn something new about you
but today you tell me about being thirteen
and of feeling yourself growing
like really actually feeling it
limbs aching a head taller than everyone else
you tell me
it felt bad
sudden awareness of being a person with shins
sure they could kick
but mostly they just ached
and when you slept you dreamt of running
'my sister stages a breakup in zeugma turkish restaurant' by Kate Leah Hewett
my sister more than most is fair
and diligent, craves certainty, is
disappointed to find that it’s
rare to get a one and done, a
that’s the day i knew i had to go.
and we’re all dogs at heart
chew our old bones into pulpy shreds
rather than risk the flighty unknown of new ones
