We’re back on board with brand new releases from Brighter and Math and Physics Club, a forthcoming CD from The Pines, and what’s this? A brand new Matinée band?! Yes way! You’re going to love them too… All this plus great new reviews for 2006 releases from Lovejoy, Harper Lee, Tender Trap and The Lucksmiths, a surge of new band interviews, and the return of our massive mailorder sale with prices slashed as much as 50 percent on some titles for the rest of this month only. Carry on then…
The highly anticipated debut album (matcd042) from indie darlings Math and Physics Club is now officially released and available from all decent record merchants. The world fell in love with this Seattle band as soon as its debut ‘Weekends Away’ (matinée 056) was released in 2005. The EP sold out of its initial pressing in just a few months and has now earned the distinction as the best selling single on Matinée. The follow-up ‘Movie Ending Romance’ (matinée 059) was released later that year to worldwide acclaim and proved the success of the debut was no happy accident.
The band spent the past year writing and recording its debut album and the results are truly spectacular. The self-titled album features ten highly melodic songs about relationships and heartbreak. The album kicks off with a new indie classic called ‘Darling, Please Come Home.’ The lyrics draw you in immediately with images of fireflies and coals burning low, while the jangling guitars, precise drumming, and keyboards keep things moving. What would normally be a difficult one to follow for most bands is handled with ease by second track ‘I Know What I Want,’ a strings-laden jangler that builds to a superb Softies-inspired finish. It swings!
‘April Showers’ comes next and shows that here’s a band that holds the Housemartins in the high regard they deserve. Written staring out the window at the rain (of course…this is Seattle), it recalls the brilliance of the famous Hull act with its ba-ba-ba’s and jaunty melodies. ‘Holidays and Saturdays’ is the moody one of the bunch, showcasing plaintive lyrics and violin to match, while ‘La La La Lisa’ picks it back up with the story of a high school crush that is made especially grand with some genuinely inspired trumpet parts. ‘Look At Us Now’ is perfect café music with its sparse bossa nova beat, ba-ba-ba’s, and violin… perhaps the best Style Council song Paul Weller never wrote? ‘You’ll Miss Me’ is classic Math and Physics Club with a surprise rollicking piano in the second chorus, while ‘Cold As Minnesota’ has a bit of Motown/Supremes flavor to it—full of tambourine, handclaps, organ and violin flourishes along with some very Peter Buck guitar work. ‘Such A Simple Plan’ is another perfect three-minute pop song with excellent lyrics and a toe-tapping quotient that can’t be beat, and final track ‘Last Dance’ is a swanky little number that will make you want to dance like Fred Astaire.
The album has enjoyed a tremendous response in the music press so far, with the always spot on Tasty declaring “if you think you’ve heard your album of the year already, think again… because this is it,” and Coke Machine Glow writing “this is a record that would’ve fit in well ten years ago and will likely sound as smooth and sweet a decade hence.” The band has also proven popular on the blog circuit, with the fantastically named Renaissance Men Don’t Surf calling the new album “a must have for not only fall, but for 2006,” The Fire Note writing “not only is it a quality release but the album is timeless – providing the perfect soundtrack for any day of the week, any season of the year,” and Rawkblog declaring it “the year’s best pure indie-pop album.”
You can listen to three album tracks on the catalog page, and ‘Darling, Please Come Home’ is also featured on the sounds page. Get thee to the mailorder if you haven’t heard this album yet because it’s a new Matinée classic and selling like hotcakes for good reason!
Also out now is the essential 20-track ‘Out To Sea’ (matcd041) collection from beloved English band Brighter! From 1989 to 1992, the trio of Alison Cousens, Keris Howard and Alex Sharkey recorded four singles for the renowned Sarah Records imprint—previously compiled on the ‘Singles’ CD (matcd026) in 2003—and a wealth of other songs collected on this new compilation. ‘Out To Sea’ begins with eight tracks that originally formed the ‘Laurel’ mini-album released on Sarah. These tracks are archetypal of the Brighter sound—melodic, pastoral pop with carefully strummed guitars, keyboards, and wonderfully introspective, poignant vocals from Keris Howard. The album features several of the band’s best known songs including indie classics ‘Ocean Sky’ and ‘Christmas.’ Also showcasing Brighter’s ability to pen upbeat, jangly pop hits, ‘Out To Sea’ features five early recordings originally released on limited edition flexidiscs in Germany. Perhaps more than later recordings, these fan favorites demonstrate the band’s expertise in layering instruments and voice to form a melodic wall of sound. Elsewhere, the beautifully fragile ‘Still’ is a melancholy pop song originally found on the ‘Beckett House’ compilation.
Among the album’s six unreleased tracks are four songs from a scrapped debut album recorded in 1990. Other songs from this album were later rerecorded for ‘Laurel’ but these four—’There’s Nothing We Can Do,’ ‘Nothing At All,’ ‘Hope To God’ and ‘Amy Never Knew’—were passed over for newer compositions and remained unreleased until today. Additional unreleased gems ‘If I Could See’ and ‘Wallflower’ were recorded at the same time as ‘Laurel’ but dropped from the release and languished in the vaults. They are among the most immediate songs the band ever wrote and, with this release, are likely to become posthumous Brighter classics more than 15 years after their recording. Following the final release as Brighter in 1992, Keris Howard and Alex Sharkey released the one-off ‘Election Day’ EP under the name Hal. Several years later, Howard formed the popular band Harper Lee and appeared as bassist for Trembling Blue Stars, while Sharkey joined Fosca for a time before launching a solo career as Pinkie. Packaged in a lavish digipak and digitally remastered, ‘Out To Sea’ is the perfect complement to the ‘Singles’ collection and another inspired entry in the Matinée discography.
As expected, the early reviews are ecstatic with Erasing Clouds calling it “a treasure trove of music from a truly remarkable band,” Derives declaring it “a true classic of 90’s intimate melancholic indie pop music,” Kisschase writing “Out To Sea is the business,” and The Rain Fell Down concluding “Brighter are even more deserving of our love and worship than we had thought… record of year!”
You can listen to four tracks on the sounds and catalog pages. The CD is available now from all good record shops or direct from the Matinée mailorder for a mere $10. Would I lie to you?
As if the new releases weren’t exciting enough, we’re also delighted to announce the latest addition to the Matinée collective – Glasgow band The Hermit Crabs! Ever since the early days of the label when we released the brilliant ‘Train Journeys’ EP from Remember Fun we have longed to have another Scottish band on the roster because, let’s face it, Scottish people are ace and there is quite a groovy scene happening in Glasgow at the moment. Although their influences range from The Magnetic Fields to Teenage Fanclub to Belle and Sebastian to Donovan (among others), the Hermit Crabs sound probably falls neatly between the playfulness of Pipas and the seriousness of fellow Glaswegians Camera Obscura. Band members Melanie Whittle (guitar and vocals) and Des McKenna (bass) are veterans of Shelflife favorites California Snow Story, while John Ferguson (guitar) and Tony McDonald (drums) complete the current lineup.
The debut Hermit Crabs release is the ‘Feel Good Factor’ EP (matinée 063) with a spectacular title track plus ace exclusive songs ‘China Girl,’ ‘Vegan Vows’ and ‘I Spend My Time.’ The title track was one of 15 winners in the Burnsong song writing competition in Scotland last year so prepare yourself for something truly remarkable. We’ve just added the song to the sounds page if you’d like a preview. The EP is released to shops on November 27th but we’ll have copies available here in advance of that date so go ahead and order your copy now! We won’t make you wait too long.
To celebrate the upcoming release, the band is playing a free acoustic set with California Snow Story on November 16th at Tchai-Ovna in Glasgow. They have a nifty website and are part of the myspace generation with an unfeasibly high number of friends who we hope all buy their records. If you follow those links you can actually listen to more great songs including some that we’re saving for their debut album next year. We trust you will welcome them with your usual vigor. It’s great to have someone new to rave about!
Our final release of 2006 is a superb 20-track collection of singles, compilation appearances, and unreleased tracks from South London pop duo The Pines! Entitled ‘It’s Been A While’ (matcd043), the album is the first release from The Pines since their magnificent ‘True Love Waits, Volume 2’ EP (matinée 048) three years ago. In addition to Matinée, The Pines have graced the discography pages for Annika (Spain), Becalmed (UK), Foxyboy (USA), Gifted (Australia), and Long Lost Cousin (UK), and contributed compilation tracks to collections by Chickfactor (USA), Papercuts (UK), and Red Square (USA). Over the years they also recorded a handful of covers and other gems that saw limited release or languished in the vaults with no release at all. In addition to highlights from the aforementioned releases, ‘It’s Been A While’ includes three songs from the extremely rare self-released Christmas 2000 CD and unreleased covers of songs by Young Marble Giants and The Cat’s Miaow! Of course being absent from the new release shelves for three years means there are some of you who may not know anything about The Pines at all so we’ll tell you that the band consists of an amiable English gent called Joe Brooker plus legendary American expat songstress Pam Berry. Joe is a prolific songwriter and also one-half of pop duo The Foxgloves, while Pam’s distinguished resume includes association with numerous indie bands including Belmondo, Black Tambourine, Bright Coloured Lights, The Castaway Stones, Glo Worm, The Seashell Sea, The Shapiros, The Snowdrops, and Veronica Lake, plus guest spots on recordings by The Clientele, Jasmine Minks, The Lucksmiths, The Relict, and The Saturday People, among others. The album is at the pressing plant now and is scheduled for release in early December but we’ll start taking preorders later this month so check the order page for details. In the meantime, have a listen to the splendid track ‘Milk Bar’ now playing on the sounds page. You can see the full tracklisting and listen to a few more songs on the catalog page too – I’ll tell you that for free!
Switching to recent release action, the magnificent album ‘6 Billion People’ (matcd040) continues to bolster the reputation of indie legends Tender Trap! As lead singer of Talulah Gosh, Heavenly and Marine Research, Amelia Fletcher was the voice and face that launched a thousand fanzines, an iconic presence whose influence can be traced in bands as diverse as Le Tigre and Belle and Sebastian. Together with her cohort in the latter two of those bands, Rob Pursey (guitar), and Marine Research drummer John Stanley aka DJ Downfall (bass), Tender Trap formed in 2001 and released the coolly electronic album ‘Film Molecules’ and a clutch of fine singles.
With the addition of The Magnetic Fields’ Claudia Gonson on drums, ‘6 Billion People’ marks a move away from the pared-down approach of its predecessor towards a sound recalling the best of the band’s previous incarnations. This is immediately evident on the big chorused title track, while ‘Talking Backwards’ is a pop rush of shimmering guitars and mellifluous vocals and ‘I Would Die For You’ marries a chugging rhythm to an ethereal melody. The short-but-spiky ‘Applecore’ ups the sass quotient as Amelia demands answers from an indecisive lover to a series of oblique questions over a stop-start bassline, whereas the spacey-keyboard sounds of ‘Fahrenheit 451’, the heartfelt ‘(I Always Love You When I’m) Leaving You’ and the haunting album closer ‘Dead and Gone’ lend the album variety and depth. ‘6 Billion People’ is Tender Trap’s most fully realized work to date, a collection of sumptuous tunes and bold arrangements that makes a claim to be one of the best pop albums of the year.
In recent press, All Music Guide declared “Amelia Fletcher amazingly manages to show no drop-off in songwriting quality after 20+ years in the indie pop game,” while Magnet Magazine lauded the album as “infectiously melodic, hip shaking and laced with thick harmonies,’ concluding its review with the rhetorical question “twee wasn’t ever this good, was it?” Elsewhere, Tasty called it “one of the best pop albums you’ll hear this year” and Plan B concluded “respect is entirely due.” You can listen to album highlights and read all the latest press on the sounds and catalog pages. You need a little new Tender Trap in your life don’t you think? Click here to remedy that situation.
Also making loads of new friends lately is the new four-song ‘England Made Me’ EP (matinée 062) from Lovejoy! We think lead track ‘Brightness Falls’ is possibly the finest Lovejoy song to date, mixing keyboards and jangling guitars in a twinkling pop hit. ‘Are You Analogue or Digital?’ sports a bit of the electronica that first showed its face on the popular ‘Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?’ set (matcd018) and also recalls the sparkling pop of The Human League, while ‘In the Rain’ is a lusciously paced and mesmerizing cover of the mid-80s indie hit from The June Brides. ‘Made in England’ closes the EP in top form, layering guitars, strings and percussion alongside a rhythmic vocal track with angelic backing—a return of sorts to the chiming orchestral pop of Lovejoy’s debut album ‘Songs In The Key of Lovejoy’ (matcd008).
The release is riding a wave of magnificent reviews, including Friends of the Heroes calling it “a slice of poetic genius,” IndiePages concluding “Brightness Falls could be the band’s brightest moment,” All Music Guide declaring it “definitely one of [Lovejoy’s] finest releases,” Kisschase calling it a “delectable ep [that] boasts just the right blend of electronics and guitars,” and indie-mp3.co.uk saying “smashing stuff!”
If you don’t trust the press, have a listen to the title track now featured on the sounds page and decide for yourself. This one is limited to 1000 copies though, so head to the mailorder now if you want one!
Also in the spotlight, the wonderful new 5-track ‘He Holds A Flame’ EP (matinée 061) is the first release in two years from revered English duo Harper Lee! The exquisite title track, presented here in two takes, contrasts trademark Harper Lee melancholy with an upbeat, keyboard-driven tune that recalls the more optimistic moments of lead singer Keris Howard’s former band Brighter. Among the three other exclusive tracks, ‘I Could Be Wrong’ is a slice of Go-Betweens-by-numbers acoustic pop, its jangling guitars the perfect complement to a curiously hopeful message. The moody and churning ‘William Blake’ is a sumptuous textured pop gem that best demonstrates the multi-layered instrumentation characteristic of the band’s acclaimed previous releases, while ‘Come Rest Your Weary Head,’ a chiming lullaby featuring hypnotic percussion and the most plaintive of vocals, ends the EP in sublime fashion.
The music press continues to toss superlatives at Harper Lee, with All Music Guide writing “He Holds a Flame continues the group’s fine string of heartbreakingly good releases,” Aversion.com concluding “He Holds a Flame is just as relevant and meaningful as anything from Death Cab or The Shins,” I’d Rather Be Fat Than Be Confused calling it “lyrically perfect pop and heavy hearted hindsight,” and Mundane Sounds declaring it “one of the best records of 2006.”
‘He Holds A Flame’ is now featured on the sounds page so you can listen for yourself. This one’s also limited to 1000 copies so get to the mailorder or your favorite shop soon!
Also enjoying its stay on the new release shelf is the splendid ‘A Hiccup In Your Happiness’ EP (matinée 060) from The Lucksmiths! The second single lifted from the ‘Warmer Corners’ album (matcd039) validates yet again why The Lucksmiths are among the most popular indie bands of our time. Boasting strings, horns, a funky guitar and a bassline possibly borrowed from Orange Juice, ‘A Hiccup In Your Happiness’ is a dancefloor sizzler that just had to be a single. The EP also includes exclusive tracks ‘From Macaulay Station,’ ‘Rue Something’ and ‘To Absent Votes,’ which combined with ‘A Hiccup In Your Happiness’ form a brilliant EP designed to give ‘Warmer Corners’ another shot at the glory it deserves.
The superb reviews continue for this release too, with Mundane Sounds calling it “a satisfying platter of beautiful, melancholy pop,” Delusions of Adequacy writing “more light, summertime pop from Australia’s brilliant Lucksmiths proving themselves at the forefront of the genre,” and Amplifier Magazine warning “you should truly feel ashamed of yourself if you don’t get your hands on a copy.”
‘A Hiccup In Your Happiness’ is playing on the sounds page now if you fancy a listen, but come on now, can you really resist a new Lucksmiths record? I didn’t think so. Yep, back to the order page for you.
In other press action, we have added numerous interviews to Matinée artist pages this month, including chats with Keris Howard of Harper Lee and Brighter on Aversion.com and Mundane Sounds, Lovejoy on Pennyblack Magazine, Math and Physics Club on Erasing Clouds, Tender Trap on Verbicide, Pennyblack and Wears the Trousers, and yours truly on indiemp3.co.uk.
While it’s hard to imagine cooler weather as we endure nearly triple digit temperatures here in Santa Barbara, I trust that some of you are breaking out the sweaters and gloves already which is a perfect excuse to plug our seasonal-themed compilations from a few years back, the Matinée Autumn Assortment (matinée 051) and the Matinée Winter Warmer (matinée 055). Both contain ten seasonally-appropriate tracks from Matinée favorites including exclusive songs you won’t find anywhere else. Right now they are just $3 each too so how could you go wrong?
While we’re at it, we’ve gone ahead and put the entire back catalog on sale again because our massive September sale was such a hit and we’re excited about all the newfound space we cleared out in the stockroom. Some titles are marked 50 percent off and there are additional releases likely to sell out by the end of the year so take advantage of the savings to expand your Matinée collection today. The sale ends November 30th though so get going!
Our final word as always is a recap of top sellers from the past month. This one is a combined September/October chart which demonstrates the royal battle between new releases over the past sixty days. Brighter ruled supreme the month of September but Math and Physics Club took over big time in October. In the special combined tally, however, the nod goes to Brighter by a mere two additional copies sold. They’re neck and neck so far in November so stay tuned…
10. Various – Matinée Winter Warmer CD
9. Harper Lee – Everything’s Going To Be OK CD
8. The Lucksmiths – T-Shirt Weather 7″
7. Razorcuts – R is for Razorcuts CD
6. Math and Physics Club – Weekends Away CDEP
5. Brighter – Singles 1989-1992 CD
4. Math and Physics Club – Movie Ending Romance CDEP
3. Harper Lee – He Holds A Flame CDEP
2. Math and Physics Club – Math and Physics Club CD
1. Brighter – Out To Sea CD
We’ll be back in early December with the final news of the year including our annual fanclub poll and maybe some hints about 2007 release plans. Take advantage of the big November sale to buy some early holiday presents and help us clear room for additional new releases!
Adios,
Jimmy
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