Everything is sorted with our next two releases so we’re soaking up the glorious sunshine here in Santa Barbara while we wait for them to return from the pressing plant. Of course this means you are now able to preorder them assuming you are the patient sort that doesn’t need immediate gratification. Here are the necessary details:
‘The Fallen Aristocracy’ EP (matinée 068) is the debut release from Danish trio Northern Portrait who are ready to take the world by storm with—dare we say it—one of the strongest singles released by Matinée to date! The release has all the makings of a modern pop classic and, according to somebody in the know, will “shake the indiepop world to its very foundations.” The band lists indie legends The Smiths, Echo and the Bunnymen, and The Housemartins among its influences and they certainly should appeal to fans of these and other classic pop groups.
Lead track ‘Crazy’ is the one that many of you have heard already and really got the band noticed when it appeared on a newly-christened Myspace page late last summer. The guitars jangle in all the right places and the vocals are just perfect in that Morrissey-before-he-got-excruciatingly-whiney sort of way. Check it out now playing on the Matinée sounds page. It’s a hit!
‘A Quiet Night In Copenhagen’ is the first of the three additional tracks on the EP and sets the bar pretty high with more jangling guitars, nice tempo changes and other instrumentation. ‘Waiting For A Chance’ is a bit slower and recalls the Trash Can Sinatras or The Sundays if they had a male singer, while final track ‘The Fallen Aristocracy’ bounces along nicely and just might be the current favorite around the Matinée office. The EP demonstrates amazing promise for a new band and leads one to wonder if the b-sides are this good just what do they have in store for the debut album? We are rotating all tracks on the Matinée Myspace page this month so head there for a listen to at least one of these at any given time. The band has additional tracks on its own Myspace page so please pay them a visit as well.
The EP is available for preorder now so head to the order page to reserve your very own. Preorder copies ship exclusively via the Matinée mailorder starting March 7th and the release will be in shops worldwide March 31st.
Perhaps even more anticipated is the debut Matinée release the ‘Sunrise’ EP (matinée 067) from The Electric Pop Group! A quartet hailing from Gothenburg, Sweden, the band recalls the chiming brilliance of some of our favorite bands of all time—including fellow Matinée artists Razorcuts and Brighter—so we’re confident they will become a favorite among the Matinée legion as well. If the Matinée 2007 fanclub poll results are any indication, they already have as their song ‘My Only Inspiration’ from the ‘Matinée Hit Parade’ CD (matcd045) earned them a number two ranking in the favorite song of 2007 category!
The new EP kicks off with ‘I Could See The Lights’, an incredible tune and one of the first new songs we heard from the band last summer. Guitars jangle, drums pound, keyboards chime…the song simply shimmers and will serve as your perfect summertime anthem even if you are facing weeks more of miserable weather. It demanded to be released as a single so here it is! You can listen to it now on the Matinée sounds page.
In addition to the lead track, the EP features three astonishing additional songs: ‘This Is The Town’ is another chiming A-side which has the high honor of topping this week’s hit parade playlist on the Matinée iPod, while ‘Summer’s Day’ is a fragile one that is similar to and every bit as precious as the classic ‘For Always’ from Razorcuts, and ‘Come And See Me’ is an especially lovely way to end the EP for sure. We are rotating all tracks on the Matinée Myspace page this month so head there for a listen. The band has additional tracks on its own Myspace page including choice cuts from the self-released debut album.
The ‘Sunrise’ EP is now available for preorder so head to the order page to reserve a copy of your very own. Preorder copies ship exclusively via the Matinée mailorder starting March 14th and the release will be in shops worldwide March 31st.
That’s all for now. Back to that sunshine now…