Greetings popsters…it’s Monday morning here in Washington on a day scheduled to break 80 degrees…not bad for
the second week of April and quite the motivation for me to complete this news update early so I can get on with things
outside this afternoon. At last, summer’s on its way!
Two new releases to brag about this time around…first off it’s a new single from The Windmills called “When It
Was Winter” which we appropriately released the first day of spring. Featuring four exceptional new songs, this EP is
the band’s strongest release to date and a keen precursor of a new album scheduled for this summer. Songs include
the resplendent title track plus “Pounds Shillings & Pence,” “Snow White” and “Good Riddance To Bad Rubbish.” The
band previewed the first two tracks last November at the Matinée Pop Spectacular and are planning to support the single
and forthcoming album with additional live dates (including a possibility of US shows) this year.
Just out today is the debut release from London trio Slipslide called “Four Day Weekend.” The band impressed
more than a few pop glitterati at their premiere live performance last November in London, and they follow up in fine
fashion with this debut cd release. Featuring three-fourths of the superb London combo Astronaut, Slipslide is a further
creative outlet for the legendary Graeme Elston, who spent a good part of the last decade crafting pop classics under
the pseudonyms the Love Parade, Pure and Eva Luna. Little did I know when I first read about the Love Parade in This
Almighty Pop! fanzine way back when that a dozen or so years later I would receive a Slipslide demo that would literally
leave me speechless. Three of the four songs from that demo were re-recorded for this single, including “Firefly,”
“Unlucky Charm” and “Waiting for the Call,” while the fourth EP track, “Airport Song,” is every bit as impressive. The
band has just launched a snazzy website too, which you can visit by clicking here.
More release information is posted on the updated catalogue page. Both releases are now
available from the usual suspects, so check the order page for links to our authorized pop
purveyors around the globe and also for details about a special Spring Clearance Sale on all singles purchased
directly from us between now and the end of May.
The Windmills and Slipslide plan to celebrate their new singles by playing at The Matinée Spring Collection, a
pair of upcoming performances in London hosted by Stylus and the Track &
Field Organisation. First up is an acoustic gig sponsored by Stylus, a relatively new deejay
night hosted by eminent popstars Pam Berry (The Pines, Glo Worm, Castaway Stones, Shapiros, Black Tambourine…)
and Keith Girdler (Blueboy, Beaumont, Lovejoy, Snowdrops). While the first two Stylus nights featured hours of quality
record spinning, this third adds a special live element with acoustic performances by Lovejoy, Melodie Group and
Beaumont. It’s now set for Saturday, April 21st upstairs at the Blue Posts pub (corner of Newman and Eastcastle
Streets; one block north of Oxford Street and equidistant between Oxford Circus and Tottenham Court Road tubes).
Things kick off at 6:30 pm and should finish up around 11, and the entry is a mere £2. (Click on the flier to see all this
information in a lovelier format.) Please note that there are at least five pubs in London called the Blue Posts so get out
your A to Zed and make sure you get to the right one!
the TRACK & FIELD organisation presents part two of the matinée spring collection featuring electric sets from: sunday 29 april 7:30pm sharp! |
To commemorate the two events, there also is a new release called (oddly enough) The Matinée Spring Collection!
It features new, exclusive tracks from Slipslide (“Life”), The Windmills (“Unkiss”), and Would-Be-Goods (“Everybody
Wants My Baby”), a non-lp b-side from Airport Girl (“Striking Out On Your Own”), and previously released gems from
Lovejoy (“Radio”), Melodie Group (“Raincoat”), and Sportique (“A Nation of Soul”). Limited to just 1000 copies, the first
200 include a free Snowbound fanzine (issue seven, although it might be numbered differently as they tend to follow a
rather haphazard numbering system over at Snowbound HQ) and one of several Matinée postcards…and it’s all for the
price of a single so get yourself to one of the shows to secure a copy.
Right. Still in the coming soon category are those elusive albums from The Siddeleys and Ego. While
both have been promised for ages, they WILL eventually see the light of day as soon as things fall into my hands. I gave
you images of both last time around, so I’ll tease you this month with tracklistings:
The Siddeleys “Slum Clearance” is a co-release with London’s Clarendon Records and hums along with the following:
My Favourite Wet Wednesday Afternoon/You Get What You Deserve/When I Grow Up I’ll Be A God/Theft/Sunshine
Thuggery/Are You Still Evil When You’re Sleeping?/Love With Blood/What Went Wrong This Time?/No
Names…/Bedlam on the Mezzanine/Bribes and Bruises/Falling Off Of My Feet Again…/Wherever You Go/Something
Almost Brilliant Happened Last Night/Every Day of Every Week/I Wish I Was Good. In case you lost track that’s 16
songs pulled from previous singles on Sombrero and Medium Cool, plus a few compilation appearances and several
unreleased Peel Session tracks. Out sometime in May…really.
“La Main Devant La Bouche” from Ego is a co-release with French label Libellule Records and features 13 songs:
Oriane/What Am I Supposed To Do?/Sunny Day/To Sleep Like You/Alone in Rome/(Die for) Drew
Barrymore/Charlie/Under My Tree/The Speed of Sound/Patricia’s Kitchen/What Is Fame?/Une Petite Fantaisie
Sentimentale/Faire L’affaire. None are previously released, although a different version of “What Am I Supposed To Do?”
was included on Ego’s debut “The Question Mark EP” (matinée 002) back in 1998. Out whenever the #!*% parcel finds
its #!*% way to Washington.
Something squarely in my hands now is the exciting release of the “Train Journeys” EP by Remember Fun.
With the artwork and tracklisting confirmed, we are planning for a mid-May release and hoping for smooth sailing at the
pressing plant. For those of you scratching your head, yes, it’s that Remember Fun…the Scottish band from the late
1980’s who released a flexi on Sha La La and contributed tracks to a few compilations of the day. “Train Journeys” is
one of several brilliant unreleased songs from the band’s past, along with “Three Chers (When She’s Dead)” and “Car.”
They’re all on the EP, along with “Doze Off Them” which had a previous tour of duty on the compilation LP “The Rise of
the Phoenix.” Various members of the band have resurfaced in and around Glasgow and have threatened new
recordings, so watch this space for the latest happenings from these Scottish stalwarts.
Matinée’s summerwear should begin with the return of Lovejoy on the “Plays Biff Bang Pow!” 7″, a summer tour
7″ from The Lucksmiths, the sophomore album from Sportique entitled “Modern Museums,” the debut 7″
from a band called The Snowdrops, the definitive Razorcuts compilation “R Is For Razorcuts,” and the
first label compilation “France On A Bicycle.” Other releases on the horizon include a new EP from Harper Lee,
the new album from The Windmills, the return of Would-Be-Goods, and new singles from Melodie
Group, Airport Girl, and Slipslide.
Finally, in the “things you shouldn’t miss” category are several releases from Matinée bands on other labels: First up,
the brand new CD from The Lucksmiths is called “Why That Doesn’t Surprise Me” and it’s out now on Drive In in the US, Candle
in Australia, and Clover in Japan. The band is just finishing up a month of Australian dates
before heading to Japan and the US in May and June. The band’s Matinée tour 7″ should be ready in time for most US
dates. The debut album from Edson is called “Unwind With Edson” and is out now in Sweden via
Summersound Recordings. It features eleven tracks including
alternate versions of “Sunday, Lovely Sunday” and “September” from the Matinée EP of last summer. Simpático
follow February’s “Postal Museum” EP with a split single (alongside the new Pam Berry/Joe Booker band The Pines) on
Australian label Gifted Records. Each
band does one original and one cover…Simpático choosing “By Tomorrow” from Pam’s first band Black Tambourine,
and The Pines covering “Not Actual, Not Lasting,” a b-side from the “Lovely Norman” single by Jason’s former band
Sweet William. We have copies of these and a handful of other top quality releases in the Matinée Pop Shop so click
over to the order page and do some shopping.
Until next time, thanks for reading and hope to see some of you at the
upcoming shows! Jimmy xx