Exclusive Late Night Tales stream

Yo, Sherlock! Benedict Cumberbatch performs spoken-word with Friendly Fires

Get an exclusive first listen here of "Flat of Angles" - a collaboration between the actor and the English band

Alice Jones Author Biography

Alice Jones

Alice Jones is Deputy Arts Editor of The Independent.

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Wednesday 31 October 2012

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Benedict Cumberbatch continues his global conquest, this time as an indie music star.

The Sherlock actor lends his voice to Late Night Tales, a compilation album created by Friendly Fires, and released next month, and exclusively premiered here, which includes tracks by Cocteau Twins and SBTRKT.

The band approached the actor and, a fan of their music, he agreed. "There's a mutual love there," I'm told. Cumberbatch performs the closer, a spoken-word piece, "Flat of Angles", by Simon Cleary.

"When I met him I accidentally called him 'Ben' in the confusion," says Cleary. "He was very friendly… and really got into subtleties in the text I didn't realise were there."

The story relates the aftermath of a house-party in alternating voices. And while he doesn't sing, there is a brief chance to hear "Ben" spitting Prodigy lyrics, rude-boy style, which is worth a listen.

Late Night Tales is out 5 November 2012, latenighttales.co.uk

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