Anyone who bought the recent ‘Matinée Holiday Soirée’ EP (matinée 078) surely noticed a new (to Matinée) name among the featured artists— Copenhagen duo Champagne Riot. The band’s excellent contribution ‘Xmas Safari’, with its orchestral and hypnotic feel, provided a nice electronic contrast to the jingle and jangle of labelmates Bubblegum Lemonade, Math and Physics Club, Northern Portrait, and Strawberry Whiplash.

Champagne Riot began several years ago as a solo project of Caspar Bock Sørensen and released the superb ‘Paris and I’ EP with our pop comrades at Shelflife Records in 2008. The following year, Caspar joined Matinée hitmakers Northern Portrait as they were about to embark on their first set of live dates which brought Caspar to the US for a set of Champagne Riot performances in California. One of the many highlights of those early performances was a new song called ‘A Friend of a Friend’ which reminded us instantly of the fragile best of the Pet Shop Boys. Along the way, Champagne Riot became a duo with the addition of Anders Reuter and the two proceeded to experiment with new sounds and a bolder approach to pop music. Each new song recorded became their best and as 2010 came to a close we were corresponding regularly with them about a debut EP for Matinée.

The resulting ‘Moonstruck’ EP (matinée 079) is now nearly ready and we’re very excited to tell you about it! The title track is clearly their biggest and boldest statement to date and may take some of you by surprise. Over the years Matinée has established itself as a label of quality but also one that somehow evoked a ‘Matinée sound.’ While we have flirted on the edge of indie electronica occasionally (most notably with Simpático, Pipas, and The Snowdrops), most Matinée releases probably didn’t reveal our lifetime adoration of bands like New Order, Pet Shop Boys or Depeche Mode. Until now, that is…

‘Moonstruck’ is a popsong that has that sort of sweeping chorus that is both radio friendly and perfectly suited to the dancefloor. Have a listen to it on the Soundcloud player below and just try to resist. The EP features three more A-sides entitled ‘Goldrush’ and ‘Heart Stab’ and the aforementioned ‘A Friend of a Friend’ which were all briefly considered the lead track of the EP until ‘Moonstruck’ came along to claim that spot. The EP is officially released on February 15 but you can preorder a copy right now exclusively from the Matinée shop and we’ll ship it as soon as we have copies back from the pressing plant next week. We also have limited copies of the ‘Paris and I’ CDEP + 7” release on Shelflife available in the shop if you haven’t already picked that up. Watch for more Champagne Riot news over the next few weeks!

Hello popfans! After counting a heap of votes in our ninth annual Matinée fanclub poll, here are the official results!

The 2010 Matinée album of the year award goes to the smashing debut album ‘Criminal Art Lovers’ (matcd054) from our good Danish friends Northern Portrait with a very impressive 48 votes. Other top choices include the celebrated sophomore album ‘I Shouldn’t Look As Good As I Do’ (matcd055) from Seattle trio Math and Physics Club (42), the magnificent album ‘Seconds’ (matcd053) from Sweden’s The Electric Pop Group (24), and the ace retrospective ‘Dealing In Antiques (matcd056) from Finland’s finest export Cats on Fire (16).

In the singles category, Australia’s The Lucksmiths and Math and Physics Club share the spotlight as the ‘Get-to-Bed Birds’ 7” (matinée 077) and the ‘Jimmy Had A Polaroid’ 7” (matinée 075) tied with 36 votes each. Northern Portrait came close with 31 votes for the ‘Life Returns To Normal’ 7” (matinée 076), while Scotland’s Bubblegum Lemonade round out the top tier with 24 votes for the ‘Caroline’s Radio’ 7” (matinée 074). Looks like the 7″ single is back to stay!

In the coveted ‘song of the year’ category, Math and Physics Club get the glory with ‘Jimmy Had A Polaroid’ topping the list with 34 votes. The band has ruled this category five of the past six years so they certainly know how to pen a catchy tune. The top five also includes ‘Get-To-Bed Birds’ from The Lucksmiths (31), ‘Crazy’ from Northern Portrait (20), ‘Caroline’s Radio’ from Bubblegum Lemonade (18), and ‘Life Returns To Normal’ from Northern Portrait (15).

Other favorite songs of the year include ‘New Favourite Moment’ from Northern Portrait (12), ‘Not By Another’ from The Electric Pop Group (10), ‘Boy In The Bubble Car’ from Strawberry Whiplash (10), ‘Trying To Say I Love You’ and ‘We’re So DIY!’ from Math and Physics Club (both with 9), ‘The Operation Worked But The Patient Died’ from Northern Portrait (9), ‘The Way It Used To Do’ from The Electric Pop Group (8), and ‘The Münchhausen In Me’ from Northern Portrait (8). Additional songs from Cats on Fire, The Electric Pop Group, The Guild League, Northern Portrait, Pale Sunday, and Simpático complete the top 20.

In the favorite Matinée artist category, The Lucksmiths secured the number one spot for the ninth straight year with 37 votes. Consistent with last year, Northern Portrait (35) and Math and Physics Club (27) took second and third place. Other favorite bands of 2010 include Cats on Fire (15), Brighter (13), Harper Lee (12), Bubblegum Lemonade (10), The Electric Pop Group (10), The Guild League (9), and Would-Be-Goods (8).

The Lucksmiths also retained top billing in the favorite Matinée album of all time category with 31 votes for ‘Warmer Corners’ (matcd039). New release ‘Criminal Art Lovers’ (matcd054) from Northern Portrait proved a serious challenge (30), while old favorites ‘Math and Physics Club’ (matcd042) from Math and Physics Club (25), ‘Singles 1989-1992’ (matcd026) from Brighter (23), and ‘Everything’s Going To Be OK’ (matcd020) from Harper Lee (16) also made the elite top five.

Other album favorites include ‘Where Were We?’ (matcd019) from The Lucksmiths (15), ‘Seconds’ (matcd053) from The Electric Pop Group (14), ‘Out To Sea’ (matcd041) from Brighter (13), ‘Our Temperance Movement’ (matcd052) from Cats on Fire (12), ‘First Frost’ (matcd049) from The Lucksmiths (12), ‘R is for Razorcuts’ (matcd012) from Razorcuts (12), ‘This is Farewell’ (matcd031) from The Fairways (11), ‘I Shouldn’t Look As Good As I Do’ (matcd055) from Math and Physics Club (11), ‘All Things Can Be Mended’ (matcd033) from Harper Lee (10), and ‘Spring A Leak’ (matcd044) from The Lucksmiths (9).

Northern Portrait have the top Matinée single of all time as their debut ‘The Fallen Aristocracy’ EP (matinée 068) earned 26 votes to lead the final category for a second year. ‘T-Shirt Weather’ EP (matinée 018) from The Lucksmiths (25), ‘Napoleon Sweetheart’ EP (matinée 070) from Northern Portrait (22), ‘Weekends Away’ EP (matinée 056) from Math and Physics Club (18), and ‘Movie Ending Romance’ EP (matinée 059) from Math and Physics Club (17) also made the top five.

Other favorite singles include ‘Train Not Stopping’ EP (matinée 032) from Harper Lee (16), ‘Sunrise’ EP (matinée 067) from The Electric Pop Group (15), ‘Baby I’m Yours’ EP (matinée 066) from Math and Physics Club (14), ‘Feel Good Factor’ EP (matinée 063) from The Hermit Crabs (11), ‘Midweek Midmorning’ EP (matinée 042) from The Lucksmiths (10), ‘He Holds A Flame’ EP (matinée 061) from Harper Lee (9), ‘A Hiccup In Your Happiness’ EP (matinée 060) from The Lucksmiths (10), ‘Picture Perfect’ EP (matinée 072) from Strawberry Whiplash (9), ‘Sunday Lovely Sunday’ EP (matinée 016) from Edson (8), and ‘Emmanuelle Béart’ EP (matinée 030) from Would-Be-Goods (7).

Congratulations to all the Matinée artists and thanks very much to everyone who entered the poll this year. We had a great number of entries from people in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Norway, Russia, Scotland, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, and USA. The lucky winner of the $50 Matinée prize pack is Jim Dean from Melbourne, Australia. Hurrah! Now, on to the 2011 releases…

We are still counting votes in our annual Matinée fanclub poll and will reveal the 2010 winners following a trip to Washington DC this week. In the meantime, the smashing ‘Matinée Holiday Soirée’ EP topped the Matinée hit parade last month. Here are the top sellers for the final month of 2010:

10. Cats on Fire – Dealing In Antiques CD
9. Various Artists – The Matinée Winter Warmer CD
8. Math and Physics Club – Jimmy Had A Polaroid 7″
7. Bubblegum Lemonade – Caroline’s Radio 7″
6. Northern Portrait – Criminal Art Lovers CD
5. Math and Physics Club – I Shouldn’t Look As Good As I Do CD
4. Northern Portrait – Life Returns To Normal 7″
3. The Lucksmiths – Get-to-Bed Birds 7″
2. Bubblegum Lemonade – Sophomore Release CD
1. Various Artists – The Matinée Holiday Soirée CDEP

The new “Matinée Holiday Soirée’ EP (matinée 078), with fantastic new and exclusive seasonal songs from Bubblegum Lemonade, Champagne Riot, Math and Physics Club, Northern Portrait, and Strawberry Whiplash, has received plenty of well deserved attention from the indie music press the past few weeks. In its review, the always sharp A Layer of Chips suggested “when you’re around your folks house on the 25th, and your Mum tipsily suggests putting on that bloody Cliff Richard album for the 15th year in a row, pour her another glass, sit her down and put The Matinee Holiday Soiree on the stereo instead. She’ll thank you for it.” Some of our other favorite quotes include:

“A holiday staple for years to come.” —Three Imaginary Girls

“Stunningly brilliant [and] arguably the most interesting Christmas compilation of 2010.” — Hits in the Car

“The perfect gift for your pop loving friends” — Austin Town Hall

“A smashing little EP from those nice folk over at Matinée” — God Is In The TV

“The perfect way to start the festive season with a bang.” — The Devil Has The Best Tuna

“A welcome addition to the world of holiday music.” — Erasing Clouds

As expected, the EP is our top seller at the moment so pick up a copy now so you don’t miss out!

The great holiday sale at the Matinée shop is keeping our elves nice and busy so we’re extending the sale prices through midnight on January 2. Please see the Matinée shop for all the savings.

Finally, there’s just over a week left to vote in the 2010 Matinée fanclub poll! Each person entering the poll is eligible to win a cool $50 worth of Matinée merchandise so you really have nothing to lose. Please see complete poll details on the fanclub poll page.

Thanks again for all your support in 2010 and best wishes for a superb new year!

The final Matinée release of the year is a very special Christmas single called ‘The Matinée Holiday Soirée’ (matinée 078) and here are the complete release details:

VARIOUS ARTISTS – THE MATINEE HOLIDAY SOIREE CDEP

Tracklisting:
1. Math and Physics Club – It Must Be Christmas
2. Northern Portrait – Leave The Trees Alone
3. Strawberry Whiplash – Santa Needs A Holiday
4. Champagne Riot – Xmas Safari
5. Bubblegum Lemonade – White Noise Christmas

Brilliant release featuring exclusive new seasonal songs from five of Matinée’s most beloved current artists.

Seattle’s Math and Physics Club arrive with sleighbells on, as ‘It Must Be Christmas’ successfully manages to knit candy canes, carolers, mistletoe, reindeer, Santa’s sleigh, snowflakes, stockings, and winter into an indie Christmas carol of their very own. Copenhagen’s Northern Portrait answer the challenge with an acutely jangling take on Christmas tradition called ‘Leave The Trees Alone’ which speeds along at a distinctly steady pace. Tis the season to be jolly, indeed!

Glasgow duo Strawberry Whiplash celebrate the season with a reverb-drenched and highly melodic nod to our overworked chubby pal up north called ‘Santa Needs A Holiday,’ while new label signing Champagne Riot from Copenhagen set the bar high with their debut Matinée track, the orchestral and hypnotic holiday love song ‘Xmas Safari’.

Finally, Glasgow’s prolific Bubblegum Lemonade deliver a Jesus and Mary Chain-infused tale of the telly going out on Christmas day called ‘White Noise Christmas.’ This is not your standard Christmas fare and we’re all the better for it! Five festive songs from Matinée’s finest, the ‘Matinée Holiday Soirée’ is a sparkling celebration of the season that will be an essential holiday staple for years to come. All five tracks are featured on the Soundcloud player below.

The single is in stock for immediate shipping so please visit the Matinée shop to secure your copy. If you just can’t wait, the songs are also available to download right now via the usual digital services. While you’re in the shop, you should probably pick up one of the ace ‘Matinée Winter Warmer’ CDs (matinée 055) too because it contains ten seasonal songs from The Fairways, Harper Lee, The Liberty Ship, Lovejoy, The Lucksmiths, Melodie Group, The Pines, Pipas, Slipslide, and The Windmills. It’s also now on sale! There are even some of the limited edition Matinée 45 holiday ornaments left too but best be quick as the stack is growing shorter every day.

Hey, it’s time for the annual Matinée fanclub poll! Every December we survey the Matinée faithful to see which new releases made your A-list and reward voters with free records in the process. We are accepting poll entries all month long so if you haven’t ordered the latest releases yet there’s still plenty of time to get them before votes are due.

The six 2010 album of the year contenders are ‘Sophomore Release’ (matcd057) from Bubblegum Lemonade, ‘Dealing In Antiques’ (matcd056) from Cats on Fire, ‘I Shouldn’t Look As Good As I Do’ (matcd055) from Math and Physics Club, ‘Criminal Art Lovers’ (matcd054) from Northern Portrait, ‘Seconds’ (matcd053) from The Electric Pop Group, and ‘The Matinée Grand Prix’ (matcd050) compilation. Surely one of our best years ever, don’t you think?

The six single of the year contenders for 2010 are the ‘Matinée Holiday Soirée’ EP (matinée 078) plus the ‘Get-to-Bed Birds’ 7” (matinée 077) from The Lucksmiths, ‘Life Returns To Normal’ 7” (matinée 076) from Northern Portrait, ‘Jimmy Had A Polaroid’ 7” (matinée 075) from Math and Physics Club, ‘Caroline’s Radio’ 7” (matinée 074) from Bubblegum Lemonade, and ‘Shooting Star’ EP (matinée 073) from Pale Sunday. Now that’s a classy run of singles!

We are also collecting votes for song of the year, favorite Matinée artists, and favorite Matinée albums and singles of all time so please take a moment to vote for your favorites! As always, simply entering earns you a chance to win free music and this year a special $50 merchandise prize is up for grabs for one lucky winner. The poll closes January 1st so complete your entry today and best of luck in the draw!

If you haven’t picked up the latest releases yet now’s the time as our Matinée holiday sale is happening right now at the mailorder. Please see the Matinée shop for superb seasonal savings—7” singles starting at just $1 each, cd singles from $2 each, and cd albums as low as $5 each.

In addition to nice markdowns on virtually the entire Matinée catalog, we are offering an additional 10 percent off all orders $50 and above or 20 percent off all orders $100 and above through December 18th only. These discounts apply to everything in the catalog including new releases so take advantage of the savings to pick up some nice gifts for your friends!

Stock is perilously low on several titles so this may be your last chance at a few of these gems. There’s also another postal rate increase (boo!) scheduled in January so best to get things shipped before the new rates take effect. Happy holidays and thanks for all your support in 2010!

Finally, we have a new #1 on the Matinée hit parade with Bubblegum Lemonade claiming top honors with their brand new ‘Sophomore Release’. Here are the top sellers in the Matinée shop for the month of November:

10. Various Artists – The Matinée Winter Warmer CD
9. Various Artists – The Matinée Hit Parade CD
8. Bubblegum Lemonade – Caroline’s Radio 7″
7. Cats on Fire – Dealing In Antiques CD
6. Math and Physics Club – Jimmy Had A Polaroid 7″
5. The Lucksmiths – Get-to-Bed Birds 7″
4. Math and Physics Club – I Shouldn’t Look As Good As I Do CD
3. Northern Portrait – Life Returns To Normal 7″
2. Various Artists – The Matinée Holiday Soirée CDEP
1. Bubblegum Lemonade – Sophomore Release CD

The spectacular ‘Sophomore Release’ (matcd057) is the brilliant second album from modern Scottish pop revivalists Bubblegum Lemonade! The record is the highly anticipated follow-up to the celebrated 2008 debut album ‘Doubleplusgood’ (matcd048) and proves there’s no end to Laz’ pipeline of bubblegum pop hits.

‘Sophomore Release’ starts off strong with another airing of recent smash single ‘Caroline’s Radio’, a fantastic Scottish pop classic that pays homage to offshore pirate radio station Radio Caroline with spirited lead guitars and rich harmonies perfect for surfing the medium waves. ‘Maybe Someday’ is a mid-tempo hypnotic song with jangling guitars, a pulsing kick drum, groovy 60s bass line, and nice bits of glockenspiel, while ‘She’s Got A Gun’ is number 3 with a bullet, featuring a fuzzy 12-string guitar intro and more ace harmonies.

‘You Only Leave Twice’ is a smashing little tune, boasting big 60s production, soaring harmonies, acoustic guitars, bongos, and more glockenspiel, while ‘We Could Send Emails’ is a clever nod to early Aztec Camera with poetic lyrics, a circular jangle riff, ba-ba-ba refrain, more 12-string guitars, and nice harmonies. Meanwhile, ‘Alice Please’ is slow-burning psychedelic pop that recalls fellow Scots The Bachelor Pad with its fuzzy stop-start guitars and rolling drum rhythm.

Side two of the album kicks off with the up-tempo ‘Living For Today’, a nice slice of ‘Darklands’-era Mary Chain pop with a shoegaze bridge leading to what is possibly the album’s best guitar solo. ‘Girlfriend Ghost’ slows things down a bit with an atmospheric tale of relationships past complete with haunting counter melody and vocal harmonies that bring to mind The House of Love or various bands from the American Paisley Underground. ‘Autumn Sky’ is a page from Laz’ autumn almanac, set in 3/4 time and boasting major seventh chords, a lilting rhythm, Beach Boys percussion, and more handsome harmonies.

‘You’re Still Beautiful (When You’re Sad)’ is another instantly memorable smash with 12-string intro, playful lyrics, and jangling chords that build to a ba-ba-ba conclusion. ‘When She Goes’ is a slow 12-string chimefest originally recorded by Laz’ former band The Search Engines now back by popular demand with Sandra of Strawberry Whiplash on backing vox and a nice Phil Spector-inspired drum pattern. Finally, ‘Last Train To Clarkston’ is an up-tempo album closer that pays respect to the Monkees with plenty of 60s guitars and loads of tambourine.

Inspired by all the right pop music from the past 50 years, Bubblegum Lemonade create insanely catchy and melodic songs filtered through their very own scruffy Glasgow charm school. ‘Sophomore Release’ builds on the great promise exhibited on ‘Doubleplusgood’ with a wide variety of song types, rich instrumentation, superb female harmonies, and enhanced production. A modern classic!

For complete release details and soundclips, please see the catalog page or visit the Matinée and Bubblegum Lemonade pages on Facebook.  You can stream a few key album tracks on the handy player below.

The album is available now in the Matinée shop and smart record retailers across the land, plus digitally via the usual digital outlets including iTunes, emusic, Amazon, Darla.com, Spotify, and others. Don’t forget your copy of the snazzy red vinyl ‘Caroline’s Radio’ 7″ (matinée 074) with two exclusive tracks before they’re gone too!

The final Matinée release of the year is a very special Christmas single called ‘The Matinée Holiday Soirée’ (matinée 078) and it’s now available for preorder! The EP includes exclusive new seasonal gifts from Matinée hitmakers Bubblegum Lemonade, Math and Physics Club, Northern Portrait, and Strawberry Whiplash, plus the Matinée debut of excellent Danish act Champagne Riot! While there are a few mentions of sleighbells and mistletoe on the record, the EP is not your average Christmas offering. We thought about writing some clever text to describe the songs but decided you really must hear them yourself so we’ve just added all five songs to the Soundcloud player below.  The tracklisting is: 1. Math and Physics Club – It Must Be Christmas; 2. Northern Portrait – Leave The Trees Alone; 3. Strawberry Whiplash – Santa Needs A Holiday; Champagne Riot – Xmas Safari; 5. Bubblegum Lemonade – White Noise Christmas.

You know four of these bands well of course, and Champagne Riot are sure to be firm favorites too as the band features Caspar from Northern Portrait. You may know their previous EP ‘Paris and I’ released by our good pals at Shelflife Records in 2008? If not, you really should check that out as we’ll be releasing the follow-up ‘Confessions of a Poker Pro’ EP in short order and it’s really pretty amazing.

‘The Matinée Holiday Soirée’ is released December 6th but you can preorder a copy right now exclusively from the Matinée shop and we’ll ship it as soon as we have copies back from the pressing plant. If you’re in a festive mood, you should pick up one of the ‘Matinée Winter Warmer’ CDs (matinée 055) we released a few years back too because it contains ten seasonal songs from The Fairways, Harper Lee, The Liberty Ship, Lovejoy, The Lucksmiths, Melodie Group, The Pines, Pipas, Slipslide, and The Windmills. It’s ace, naturally and it’s also now on sale!

Hope you haven’t already finalized your ‘best of 2010’ list because the new album ‘Sophomore Release’ (matcd057) from Scottish pop revivalists Bubblegum Lemonade is now in stock and you really need to hear it. The record—the penultimate Matinée release of the year and the highly anticipated follow-up to the smash 2008 debut album ‘Doubleplusgood’ (matcd048)—proves there’s no end to Laz’ pipeline of Scottish pop hits.

The album includes a dozen new Bubblegum Lemonade hits, including 1. Caroline’s Radio; 2. Maybe Someday; 3. She’s Got A Gun; 4. You Only Leave Twice; 5. We Could Send Emails; 6. Alice Please; 7. Living For Today; 8. Girlfriend Ghost; 9. Autumn Sky; 10. You’re Still Beautiful (When You’re Sad); 11. When She Goes; and 12. Last Train to Clarkston. Inspired by all the right pop music from the past 50 years, Bubblegum Lemonade create insanely catchy and melodic songs and filter them through their very own scruffy Glasgow charm school. ‘Sophomore Release’ builds on the great promise exhibited on ‘Doubleplusgood’ with a wide variety of song types, rich instrumentation, superb female harmonies, and enhanced production. It’s a modern classic and definitely worthy of a spot on your year-end list!

Listen to a few of our current favorites on the ‘Sophomore Release’ catalog page and grab a free download of the lovely ‘You Only Leave Twice’ on the Matinée sounds page. If that’s not enough, you can hear even more songs now playing on the Bubblegum Lemonade page on Facebook!

The official album release date is November 29th but you can get your copy right now exclusively in the Matinée shop! While you’re there, you may want to pick up the snazzy red vinyl ‘Caroline’s Radio’ 7” (matinée 074) too as it has two additional songs that do not appear on ‘Sophomore Release’ and it’s selling fast!

So that’s two months atop the Matinée hit parade for The Lucksmiths ‘Get-to-Bed Birds’ 45. We are currently shipping copies in the 600s so get yours before they’re all gone. Matinée has just half the pressing (the evens) as we shipped the rest (the odds) to our good pals at the Lost and Lonesome Recording Company in Australia and they are reporting brisk sales as well. Here are the top sellers in the Matinée shop for the month of October:

10. The Guild League – Speak Up CD
9. Cats on Fire – Dealing In Antiques CD
8. Bubblegum Lemonade – Caroline’s Radio 7″
7. Northern Portrait – Criminal Art Lovers CD
6. Strawberry Whiplash – Picture Perfect CDEP
5. Northern Portrait – Napoleon Sweetheart CDEP
4. Math and Physics Club – Jimmy Had A Polaroid 7″
3. Math and Physics Club – I Shouldn’t Look As Good As I Do CD
2. Northern Portrait – Life Returns To Normal 7″
1. The Lucksmiths – Get-to-Bed Birds 7″