Rob Ellis

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Perhaps Rob Ellis's most widely acknowledged work is that with PJ Harvey, with whom he has worked since 1991. Rob co-produced and performed on PJ Harvey's 2001’s Mercury Prize winning 'Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea', and was the only collaborator on PJ Harvey's Grammy nominated 'Uh Huh Her'.

Rob is also highly regarded in the world of contemporary classical music having released 'Music For The Home' Vols. 1 and 2, on The Leaf Label (Brian Eno and Scott Walker are amongst these album’s admirers). Where the first 'Music For The Home' consisted almost entirely of pieces created and edited inside a computer, 'Music For The Home Vol 2' includes many piano pieces recorded ‘live’. A self-taught pianist, Ellis’s idiosyncratic approach to composition has drawn comparisons to the work of Messaien, Reich and Cage among others, and has received plaudits in The Times, The Gaurdian, Mojo, Q, NME, The Independent, The Wire, Musicweek, Bizarre and Muzik.

Rob’s own band, Spleen, recorded two well-regarded 'soundtrack' albums for the Swarfinger label, and he also recorded as Christmas with Tim and Roo Farthing. He has worked with Laika, Placebo, Pooka and Swell.

In recent years, between extensive world tours with PJ Harvey, Rob has been involved with a wide range of creatively rewarding projects. He has worked as both producer and musician on Marianne Faithfull's critically acclaimed 'Before The Poison'; played drums on Charlotte Hatherley from Ash’s solo debut 'Grey Will Fade'; acted as musical director for Martina Topley-Bird; produced the first solo tracks by David Holmes’ Free Association vocalist Petra Jean Philippson; and produced, arranged and performed on 'Senza Peso' by Italy's Marlene Kuntz which went top five in Italy's national chart; Danish band Kitty Wu's 'Rules of Transportation'- tracks from which were A-listed on Danish national radio and garnered them a best new act nomination; and arranged strings for Norwegian band Madrugada's 'Majesty' for which they received international recognition.

Acting as a producer and arranger is extremely rewarding work for Rob, so having completed the PJ Harvey 'Uh Huh Her' world tour just prior to Christmas 2004, he returned to Italy in the New Year to work again with Marlene Kuntz on their new album performing and arranging strings and keyboards which gained the great Italian soundtrack composer Ennio Morricone’s seal of approval.

Rob is currently holed up in Sweden producing the new Kitty Wu album.

(Biography Last updated 1 January 1995)

‘Check The Water’ by various artists [The Leaf Label]

Release date 7 November 2005
2CD Out Of Stock || MP3 £5.00 buy

Celebrating the anniversary of any record label is always a strange thing, as the quality of releases are down to the bands the label chooses to work with. Still, ten years feels like a bit of a milestone. That’s especially true for The Leaf Label, which was launched by ex-4AD ... [more]

‘Delivery Room’ by various artists [The Leaf Label]

BAY37CD Budget Priced CD Sampler coverimage

Release date 4 May 2004
CD In Stock £3.00 buy || MP3 £3.00 buy

A full-length compilation album for the price of a CD single, Delivery Room follows on from 2002’s Lost For Words and the Osmosis sampler from 1999.

The release of the compilation coincides with the long-awaited launch of The Leaf Label’s new website ( www.theleaflabel.com ). Both CD and website follow ... [more]

‘Music For The Home Vol. 2’ by Rob Ellis

Release date 5 April 2004
CD Limited Stock £10.00 buy || MP3 £7.00 buy
( play all tracks )

Three years since the release of the first volume of Music For The Home, Rob Ellis returns with his second solo album.

Ellis’s solo work is intensely personal in nature. A companion piece to Vol. 1, the album opens a treasure chest of archive recordings from the last decade, documenting ... [more]

‘Watch For Tsunami When You Feel Earth Quake’ by various artists [The Leaf Label]

Release date 10 December 2001
CD

This limited edition promo only CD was created to mark the occasion of The Leaf Label's major London event on 10 December 2001. The concert featured live appearances from Eardrum, Dan Snaith and Gorodisch, plus DJs Graham Sutton, Rob Ellis, Tony Morley and Four Tet. Copies of the CD were ... [more]

‘Leaf Compilation’

Release date 12 March 2001
CD Deleted

With popular demand and critical appreciation for Yokota's work at an all time high, The Leaf Label imported a limited number of copies of Leaf Compilation, Yokota's first ever mix CD. Released own Yokota's own Skintone label, from which Leaf licensed his other album releases, it was the first time ... [more]

‘Music For The Home’ by Rob Ellis

Release date 27 November 2000
CD Limited Stock £10.00 buy || MP3 £7.00 buy
( play all tracks )

Rob Ellis is best known by proxy, for his collaborations. He's worked with PJ Harvey since her first album, 'Dry', and co-produced 'Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea'. His own outfit Spleen released two splendidly sprawling albums for the Swarfinger label and he has played percussion for much ... [more]

‘Invisible Soundtracks : Macro 3’

Release date 17 July 2000
CD In Stock £5.00 buy || MP3 £7.00 buy

Over two years since the release of the last instalment comes the third CD volume in Leaf's renowned 'Invisible Soundtracks' series. These days every electronic label worth its salt has released an 'imaginary' film soundtrack, though when the series began back in 1995, inspired by the work of musicians such ... [more]