Greetings happy customers! Yes, we have started off 2005 with a bang but there is so much more on the way. In addition to new releases from The Lucksmiths, Math and Physics Club, The Happy Couple, Lovejoy, and Pipas, this month we report on three further albums coming your way in a matter of weeks (and now available for preorder), opportunities to catch Matinée bands playing live in the US this spring, and assorted other treats. Dear reader, we present the latest Matinée news:
Making its way into shopping baskets across the globe is the splendid new ‘San Francisco’ CDEP (matinée 057) from The Lucksmiths! Featuring new songs ‘The Chapter In Your Life Entitled San Francisco,’ ‘Young and Dumb,’ and ‘The Winter Proper’ plus a splendid cover of the venerated Bee Gees’ classic ‘I Started A Joke,’ the band’s first release since 2003’s ‘A Little Distraction’ (matcd027) is a very welcome return indeed. The lead track is taken from the forthcoming album ‘Warmer Corners’ (matcd039) scheduled for release early next month. Initial reviews for the single are in, with All Music Guide proclaiming it “as fine an artifact as they have yet produced…another example of indie pop at its best proving once again that you just can’t go wrong with the Lucksmiths.” Meanwhile, Tangents reports “The Chapter In Your Life Entitled San Francisco is a real gem with one of those memorable sing-along chorus lines that stick in your head for days on end and that you find yourself singing aloud at bus stops,” while Losing Today declared it “absolutely perfect.” If you don’t have a copy yet, you can listen to the title track on the catalog or sounds pages and order the EP from the Matinée mailorder or in your favorite shop right now. More on the new album plus tour dates below!
Also making a grand entrance is the debut ‘Weekends Away’ CDEP (matinée 056) from Seattle quintet Math and Physics Club! Radio giant KEXP has been championing the single since before its release and hosted the band for a second in-studio visit last week. The station broadcasts on the web and the response has been fantastic so special thanks to John Richards and everyone at KEXP for their support. All Music Guide has joined them in praise of the single, calling it “a four track gem that manages to escape any charges of imitation by delivering four very strong songs loaded with tender emotion and easy going charm.” Erasing Clouds contend “Weekends Away might seem somewhat typical at first glance, but in the end it will sweep you off your feet,” while Losing Today concluded “A classic all said and done.” The EP includes the wonderful title track plus ‘Sixteen and Pretty,’ ‘Love, Again’ and ‘When We Get Famous.” You can listen to ‘Weekends Away’ on the sounds page and order the EP from the Matinée mailorder or your favorite record emporium as we speak. The single is selling very well so make sure you get a copy soon because they’re talking about it at all the coolest parties and you want to stay hip right? No pressure…
The third of our magnificent trio of singles is the ‘Fools in Love’ CDEP (matinée 054) from German duo The Happy Couple! Featuring terrific tracks ‘Another Sunny Day,’ ‘Hopeless Case,’ ‘The Pop Kid’ and ‘Don’t Call It,’ the EP is a modern classic incorporating all the right influences. In early review action, All Music Guide proclaimed “this is the kind of EP that leaves you breathlessly anticipating a full-length record from the Happy Couple [and] nice proof that the classic sound of indie pop is alive and well and thriving. In the UK, Speakers Push The Air declared “It’s immediate, it’s pop in bloom and it deserves to be ear candy for the nation this spring,” while Losing Today called it “another slice of pristine pop… top-drawer loveliness, warming harmonies a la Boo Radleys beaming so bright you could get a West Coast tan just by sitting in the same room.” Fans of Shop Assistants, Pipas, Even As We Speak, Tender Trap, or Club 8 watch out because The Happy Couple just might be your new favorite band by this time next week! You can listen to ‘Another Sunny Day’ on the catalog or sounds pages now, and order the EP from the Matinée mailorder or your favorite shop in mere minutes. You know you want it…
Also featured on a new release shelf near you is the brilliant new album ‘Everybody Hates’ (matcd035) from Lovejoy! Our friends at Fraction Discs have declared it “an early contributor to your album-of-the-year list” and we couldn’t argue with that now could we? The Swedes are always right. The follow-up to Lovejoy’s classic 2002 album ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?’ (matcd018), the album expands on the multilayered sound of previous releases with a sophisticated mix of guitars, keyboards, and percussion plus exceptional melodies and harmonies. ‘Everybody Hates’ contains nine new Lovejoy compositions including our favorites ‘Sid Vicious’ and ‘Petrol Stars’ plus a sparkling cover of ‘Drug Autumn’ by Matinée labelmates The Windmills. Peppered with commentary on the music business, relationships, politics and pop culture, the album is the strongest Lovejoy release yet. The sounds page now features full-length previews of ‘Sid Vicious’, ‘Petrol Stars’ and ‘Everybody Hates Us And We Don’t Care’ so have a listen and see what you think. Nice eh? You can get your very own copy right now from the Matinée shop, your favorite mailorder, or any decent record shop. Lovejoy are currently weighing offers for live shows in England, Sweden and Denmark so watch this space for the latest news.
If the thought of four new releases in the past month overwhelms you, sit back because there’s more! In a matter of weeks we will have brand new full-length additions to the Matinée catalog from Pale Sunday, The Young Tradition and The Lucksmiths!
The debut album ‘Summertime?’ (matcd037) from Brazilian trio Pale Sunday is finally ready and in the hands of our trusty pressing plant! Since release of the fantastic “A Weekend With Jane” EP (matinée 049) in 2003, the band has contributed superb tracks to the ‘Matinée 50’ (matinée 050) and ‘Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware’ (matcd030) compilations while completing the 10 songs for this debut full-length. The album is loaded with all the essential POP! ingredients…jangling guitars, sing-along choruses, sha-la-la’s, handclaps, trumpets, tambourines, keyboards, and perfectly undulating melodies. Sometimes the guitars get all noisy and fuzzy in classic shoegaze fashion but in the end the spirit of C-86 wins out. The album features one song sung in the band’s native Portuguese which it goes without saying is the most beautiful language in the world. The full tracklisting is: 1. The White Tambourine; 2. Mary; 3. Sunday Morning; 4. Twiggy Superstar; 5. My Punk Girl; 6. Sweet Goodbye; 7. A Safe Place; 8. 1978; 9. She’ll Never Be Mine; 10. Strangeways. You can preview three of those on the catalog page and preorder the CD right now on the Matinée order page. The official release date is in late April but we should have copies earlier in the month. Hurrah!
Also now at the pressing plant and scheduled for April release is the debut album ‘Northern Drive’ (matcd038) from The Young Tradition! Renowned for creating its classic debut single “California Morning” (matinée 043) entirely through the post, the duo of Erik Hanspers and Brent Kenji finally met in San Francisco last year to add vocals and additional instrumentation to ten songs recorded in Erik’s native Sweden. The result is a sophisticated mix of classic pop sounds with a strong 60s vibe throughout. Featuring a combination of guitars, keyboards, and strings with prominent bursts of trumpet, flute, and saxophone, this is no simple indiepop record. Brent’s distinctive vocals will of course appeal to fans of The Fairways but the album has the potential to reach a much broader audience if we do our job properly. The full tracklisting is: 1. Gone Are The Days; 2. California Morning; 3. Pink Opaque; 4. Footprints; 5. Triangle; 6. Northern Drive; 7. Now You Know; 8. Whores; 9. Endlessly; 10. Everything We Knew. You can preview four songs on the catalog page, and preorder the CD right now on the Matinée order page. The CD is officially released in late April but we should have copies earlier in the month so the wait is nearly over!
Our final imminent release is the brand new album from your favorite Australians The Lucksmiths! Entitled ‘Warmer Corners’ (matcd039), the album is the follow-up to their excellent ‘Naturaliste’ album from 2003 and dare we say it, this is the best album yet! As usual, there are lots of guitars, some soothing basslines, and a singing drummer who’s far better than Phil Collins, but this time there’s also a horn section having a party, a string section who dig Phil Spector, some fiery organs, and a lazy pedal steel. The full tracklisting is: 1. A Hiccup In Your Happiness; 2. The Music Next Door; 3. Great Lengths; 4. Now I’m Even Further Away; 5. The Chapter In Your Life Entitled San Francisco; 6. Sunlight In A Jar; 7. If You Lived Here, You’d Be Home Now; 8. Young And Dumb; 9. Putting It Off And Putting It Off; 10. I Don’t Want To Walk Around Alone No More; 11. The Fog Of Trujillo; 12. Fiction. With off-kilter guitar riffs, dreamy harmonies, trumpets galore, some brilliant Rickenbacker jangle, Orange Juice ripoffs, dancefloor sizzlers, a little bit of wah-wah, a hobo lament, some rocking whistling, and even a little zydeco wigout, it’s everything we’ve always wanted in a Lucksmiths album and more! You can preview four songs on the catalog page, and preorder the CD right now on the Matinée order page! The CD is released April 11 but we should have copies by the the week prior and can ship all preorders then. The CD is released in Australia via Candle Records and in the UK via Fortuna POP!
The Lucksmiths are planning short Australian and US tours in support of the new album, joined by top bands including Matinée labelmates Pipas and Math and Physics Club on select shows! The dates are as follows:
Australian tour:
March 30 – Ballarat @ Karova Lounge with The Ladybug Transistor + Fred Astereo
April 1 – Adelaide @ Jade Monkey with The Ladybug Transistor + Fred Astereo
April 2 – Fremantle @ Mojo’s with The Ladybug Transistor + The Bank Holidays
April 7 – Canberra @ Tilley’s with The Ladybug Transistor (All Ages)
April 8 – Sydney @ Annandale Hotel with The Ladybug Transistor + Fred Astereo
April 9 & 10 – Brisbane @ Troubadour with The Ladybug Transistor + Fred Astereo
April 15 – Melbourne @ Corner Hotel with The Ladybug Transistor + Fred Astereo
April 16 – Hobart @ The Venue with The Ladybug Transistor + Fred Astereo
US tour:
April 29 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Knitting Factory with Math and Physics Club
April 30 – San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop with Remedy & Wren + Math and Physics Club
May 1 – San Francisco, CA @ The Make-Out Room with The Mosquitoes + Scrabbel
May 2 – Eugene, OR @ Café Paradiso with Andrew Kaffer
May 3 – Portland, OR @ Berbati’s Pan with Andrew Kaffer
May 4 – Seattle, WA @ Sunset Tavern with Tullycraft + Math and Physics Club
May 5 – Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen with Pipas + The Icicles + Scotland Yard Gospel Choir
May 6 – Grand Rapids, MI @ Shuler’s Books with Pipas and The Icicles
May 7 – Boston, MA @ PA’s Lounge with The Ladybug Transistor and Pipas
May 8 – New York, NY @ The Knitting Factory with The Ladybug Transistor + Pipas + In Interview
May 9 – Philadelphia, PA @ Space 1026 with The Ladybug Transistor + Pipas + The Snow Fairies
May 10 – Washington, DC @ DC9 with The Ladybug Transistor + Pipas + Lil’ Hospital
Speaking of Pipas, you wouldn’t think that a January release would make it so far down the news page this quickly but with everything else going on that’s just the fate they find themselves in this month with their still quite new ‘Chunnel Autumnal’ CD (matcd036). As you know, the album is a reissue of the sold out Pipas debut originally released on 10” vinyl in 2001 with added bonus tracks from the debut Matinée 45, ‘A Short Film About Sleeping.’ It has been collecting accolades from various places, including the wonderful Tangents commenting “cool but welcoming, detached but involving, the contradictions of modern life rolled into Pop that similarly sounds strangely contemporary yet infused with the spirit of the Ancients all at once.” We can only grin and nod at the Erasing Clouds observation “after you’re done listening certain words and melodies and sounds come back to you and get under your skin,’ and the somewhat funny conclusion to the Splendid review: “Some people are born with a knack for writing simple, emotionally resonant songs—Pipas among them. The fact that much of Chunnel Autumnal sounds like it was recorded in a bathroom only adds to the disc’s down-to-earth charm.” The sounds page features three full-length previews for your listening pleasure, and the CD is available from the Matinée mailorder or all good shops now. The band is currently recording songs for a new album so stay tuned for more Pipas action soon!
With four new releases last month, the hit parade was anybody’s game so we were pleasantly surprised when one of the new kids on the block outpaced label veterans The Lucksmiths and Lovejoy and Pipas at the top. Nicely done! If early March sales are any indication they might just retain the top spot for awhile… Here are the top sellers for the month:
10. Harper Lee – All Things Can Be Mended CD
9. The Fairways – This is Farewell CD
8. Pipas – Bitter Club CDEP
7. The Guild League – Inner North CD
6. Various – The Matinée Winter Warmer CD
5. Pipas – Chunnel Autumnal CD
4. Lovejoy – Everybody Hates CD
3. The Happy Couple – Fools In Love CDEP
2. The Lucksmiths – San Francisco CDEP
1. Math and Physics Club – Weekends Away CDEP
Until next month,
Jimmy
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