Greetings! We have brand new treats available now from The Hermit Crabs, Math and Physics Club, and The Lucksmiths, plus our special 10-year anniversary ‘Matinée Hit Parade’ CD, a new supply of t-shirts and badges, and exclusive singles on the way from four new Matinée artists. Yes, it’s true!
We are delighted to report the debut album ‘Saw You Dancing’ (matcd046) from celebrated Glasgow band The Hermit Crabs is out now! The band’s ‘Feel Good Factor’ single (matinée 063) turned lots of heads upon its release early this year, with Tangents calling it “sweet succinct pop that snaps and crackles in all the right places,” Aversion.com describing it as “a dose of California sunshine filtered through Scottish bedroom-pop sensibilities,” and All Music Guide heralding it as “classic Scottish indie pop.”
Following release of the EP, the band expanded to a five-piece with the addition of a full time violinist and percussionist before completing the recordings for this magnificent debut album. Rich with instrumentation and recorded with notable guest musicians including members of Teenage Fanclub and Camera Obscura, ‘Saw You Dancing’ is one of those classic debut albums that impresses right from the start.
The album kicks off with ‘Tonight’, a folk-tinged indiepop song with prominent violin and percussion, and ‘Goodbye My Friend,’ a bouncing jangle pop hit with great harmonies. ‘Closet Fan’ is a country-tinged pop masterpiece with great lyrics, hypnotic percussion, splendid violin and more exquisite harmonies, while ‘Lean Free Summer’ is straightforward pop that swings along nicely with keyboards, handclaps, and violin. Meanwhile, ‘Bad Timing’ adds depth to the album with impressive percussion and a bit of a soulful twist.
‘Friend’s Folk Festival’ makes a case as one of the album highlights with splendid guitar work and a sprightly melodica, while ‘Secrets and Lies’ is a brooding folk pop song that is captivating in its simplicity. ‘Feel Good Factor’—the song that first got the band noticed as one of the winners in Scotland’s Burnsong song writing competition—shows that The Hermit Crabs are indeed worthy of the accolades suggesting they are next in line to join the Scottish pop elite currently fronted by fellow Glaswegians Belle and Sebastian and Camera Obscura. ‘Third Time Lucky’ is lilting guitar pop with exquisite vocals, and the album concludes with the multi-layered and hauntingly beautiful ‘Soul Mate.’
The album is a remarkable debut and another dazzling success for Matinée! Among the early enthusiasts of the album is highly respected music site Aversion.com, which is streaming the album in its entirety right now if you click here. Aversion has also conducted a great interview with the band and awarded the album a glowing review. See the catalog page for the full tracklisting and other release details. We’re featuring a selection of album highlights on the sounds page and showcasing various other tracks on Myspace this month too so please have a listen. This is a good one so don’t miss it!
Also now featured on new release shelves across the globe is the fantastic ‘Baby I’m Yours’ EP (matinée 066) featuring four new songs from Seattle hipsters Math and Physics Club!
Lead track ‘Baby I’m Yours’ is a swinging pop hit on which MAPC drummer Kevin was encouraged to break out the drumsticks instead of brushes so it’s really cooking! It’s a brilliant little number with jangling guitars and great vocals that will have you singing along from the very first listen and reaching for the replay button just as it ends.
‘Nothing Really Happened’ is a special one as it is allegedly the first original Math and Physics Club song and was one of the four songs on the original demo tape sent to Matinée back in 2004. This newly recorded version features expanded percussion and a strong violin part from Saundrah that provides a lovely counterpoint to Charles’ vocals. A long overdue release for an early classic!
‘In This Together’ began taking shape around the time of the ‘Movie Ending Romance’ EP in the spring of 2005 and was featured in live sets almost immediately. Its arrangement evolved over time and the intertwining melodies of the vocals, guitar, and violin on this recording are superb. Think early Beautiful South and you’re nearly there.
‘Do You Keep A Diary’ finishes off the EP with a bit of a surprise. The song was written around the time of the album recording sessions last year but didn’t seem to fit on the album for some reason. MAPC bassist Ethan snuck into the recording studio one day and muted everyone’s tracks, turning it into a little synth-pop number that evolved over time into this brilliant version balancing electronic and real instruments along with superb vocals and a bit of a John Squire guitar explosion from James.
New songs from Math and Physics Club are always instant classics and this EP is perhaps the strongest one yet! To celebrate the release, the band is playing a special in-studio session on KEXP radio on November 13 at 1pm Pacific time and you can listen to it live even if you aren’t in Seattle through the wonders of internet streaming. Check the KEXP site for details.
‘Baby I’m Yours’ is now featured on the Matinée sounds page so have a listen! We’re streaming tracks from the EP on our Myspace page all month too, and if you pay attention there just may be a free download there as well. Assuming you want to hear the EP in its full stereo glory, why not head straight to the order page to secure a copy of your very own? The artwork is smashing of course and it would look so good sitting next to your ‘Weekends Away’ (matinée 056) and ‘Movie Ending Romance’ (matinée 059) EPs, don’t you think?
If you can’t get enough of new songs from The Hermit Crabs or Math and Physics Club, you’ll be pleased to hear that there’s more from each of them on our very exciting new compilation ‘The Matinée Hit Parade’ (matcd045)! To celebrate a decade of top quality pop music from your favorite independent record label, we invited 13 artists to record a new, 45-caliber A-side for this elite collection, and the result is nothing less than spectacular!
The album features previously unreleased, exclusive recordings from popular Matinée artists The Guild League (Australia), Harper Lee (England), The Hermit Crabs (Scotland), Lovejoy (England), The Lucksmiths (Australia), Math and Physics Club (USA), The Pines (England), Slipslide (England), and Would-Be-Goods (England), which is nine reasons enough to celebrate! In addition, the album presents Matinée debuts from new artists Bubblegum Lemonade (Scotland), Clay Hips (Germany/Finland), The Electric Pop Group (Sweden), and Strawberry Whiplash (Scotland)! For anyone keeping score, that’s 13 exclusive tracks that you won’t find anywhere else and they’re all smashing pop hits so this will be an instant best seller for the label. Please see the catalog page for the full tracklisting.
Demonstrating the continuing strength of the Matinée roster, this extraordinary collection serves as an essential new release for devoted followers and a wonderful introduction for label dilettantes. You can get a copy exclusively through the efficient and friendly Matinée mailorder RIGHT NOW, or from your favorite struggling record shop or online record emporium starting October 30. If you’re reading this page we trust you’ll find this release compulsory listening. Oh, did we mention the CD looks exactly like a tiny 45 rpm record (grooves and all)? Yes, it’s very cool indeed. We are featuring select songs on the Matinée sounds page and our Myspace page all this month as well so have a listen!
In addition to contributing a new favorite to the ‘Matinée Hit Parade’ CD, The Lucksmiths have returned to the new release racks with their own deluxe double CD ‘Spring a Leak’ (matcd044), an exhaustive new 45-track collection of lost treasures. No mere greatest hits collection, ‘Spring a Leak’ compiles over a decade’s worth of great recordings that have never made it onto a Lucksmiths full-length: b-sides, alternative versions (from 7″ singles and demos), songs recorded especially for compilations, live, radio and TV sessions, cover versions, remixes, and various previously unreleased ephemera.
A major undertaking, both for the band and the mastering engineer who had to sift through piles of CDs, old DATs and cassette tapes, ‘Spring a Leak’ is the first time many of these songs have turned up on a digital format. The ‘Macintyre’ 7″ (recorded in 1995 and originally limited to 500 highly sought-after copies) sits comfortably amongst more recent work including cover versions of well-loved songs by The Bee Gees, The Smiths, The Modern Lovers, and The Magnetic Fields, as well as lesser-known tracks by some of The Lucksmiths’ friends such as The Simpletons, The Ladybug Transistor, and The Sugargliders. Also included are live tracks and radio sessions recorded in various corners of the world.
As on previous compilations ‘Happy Secret’ (1998) and ‘Where Were We?’ (2001), The Lucksmiths have done some tidying up around the archival recesses and gathered these loose ends into one neatly-knotted bundle more likely to satisfy the completists than to win themselves an army of new fans. In its entirety, ‘Spring a Leak’ exhibits both the remarkable consistency and ongoing development of one of this generation’s most esteemed and distinctive pop groups.
We’re featuring a selection of tracks on the sounds page and the full tracklisting and more release information on the catalog page. You probably already have this but if not, get over to the order page pronto and we’ll send you your very own!
To celebrate the release, The Lucksmiths spent two weeks in the States last month playing live shows which by all accounts were some of their best. We had the honor of having them headline a Matinée 10-year anniversary show in Santa Barbara at the start of the tour supported by label mates Math and Physics Club, The Guild League (Tali White solo set), and Oxnard popstars Maria. The show was a fantastic success for everyone and generated some nice press including a brilliant full-page feature in our local Santa Barbara Independent and a great review on the hip new Los Angeles blog Square Girls. The show also generated numerous video posts on Youtube that you can watch here (Lucksmiths/Guild League) and here (Math and Physics Club…including a grand cover of ‘Sally Cinnamon’ by The Stone Roses). Thanks to everyone who came out to the show including some long time Matinée mailorder customers…it’s really nice to put a face to the emails!
In other recent release news, we have fresh stock again of the magnificent debut album ‘Go Back To Bed’ (matcd009) from Matinée favorites Harper Lee! Originally released in 2001, the album was an early highlight of the Matinée catalog and received a bit of attention from the late John Peel who played singles ‘Dry Land’ and ‘Bug’ on his legendary radio show. An English duo featuring Keris Howard (Brighter, Hal, Trembling Blue Stars) on vocals and guitar, and Laura Bridge (Hood, Kicker) on guitar, keyboards, and drums, Harper Lee has proven one of Matinée’s most popular artists. Named after the famous American author of the classic novel ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’, the duo formed in 1999 with a plan to release one brilliant single, take the world by storm, and withdraw from the public eye just as Lee did following the success of her single novel. Luckily, the modest success of its debut did not afford the band an early retirement so they continued creating classic releases through the brilliant ‘He Holds A Flame’ EP last year. Featuring ten classic tracks of melancholy pop with beautifully layered keyboards and guitars plus heartbreakingly earnest lyrics, ‘Go Back To Bed’ is an essential release from the Matinée catalog in stock again following years of unavailability. Check the sounds page for some album highlights and see the order page to get a copy of your very own!
Moving on to some especially enticing forthcoming releases, we are delighted to report details of Matinée debuts from four fantastic new artists! The debut release from Glasgow, Scotland’s Bubblegum Lemonade is the four song ‘Ten Years Younger’ EP (matinée 064) featuring ace tracks ‘Ten Years Younger,’ ‘The Tomorrow People,’ ‘Unsafe at Any Speed’ and ‘That Thing You Do!’ Bubblegum Lemonade is principally a man called Laz, a 12 string Rickenbacker enthusiast with more than a few Velvet Underground, Jesus and Mary Chain, Byrds, and Razorcuts records in his collection. The EP is in the hands of our trusty pressing plant now and on course for late November release. In the meantime, lead track ‘Ten Years Younger’ is playing on the Matinée sounds page and you can hear several other songs on the band’s Myspace page so head there for a taste of what’s to come. We’ll be featuring tracks from the EP on Myspace the entire month of November so you may want to check there once a week as well. Bubblegum Lemonade has also contributed an exclusive song called ‘Tyler’ to the brand new ‘Matinée Hit Parade’ CD (matcd045), which as you know is available right now from the friendly Matinée shop so get going!
Also now at the pressing plant is the debut ‘Who’s In Your Dreams?’ EP (matinée 065) from new Glasgow noise pop act Strawberry Whiplash! The duo features Sandra on vocals and Laz (moonlighting from Bubblegum Lemonade) on instruments and they have built a feedback wall of sunshine sound out of old fuzz boxes and reverbed drums that reminds this pop enthusiast of the great Shop Assistants or The Primitives. The debut single includes the infectious lead track ‘Who’s In Your Dreams?’ which has been making the rounds on hipster blogs across the land for a little while now. The EP also includes three brand new recordings—’It Rains On Other Planets’, ‘My Day Today’ and ‘Factory Girl’ which are immediate pop hits as well so we predict some of you may have a new favorite band on the horizon. We’re featuring ‘Who’s In Your Dreams?’ on the sounds page right now and you can hear additional songs on the band’s Myspace page. As with the above single we’ll be featuring tracks from the EP on the Matinée Myspace page the entire month of November so you’ll want to check there for a pop fix once a week as well. Strawberry Whiplash has also contributed the amazing song ‘Summershine’ to the brand new ‘Matinée Hit Parade’ CD (matcd045), which you can pick up right now from the trusty order page!
As if those two weren’t exciting enough, we are thrilled to announce details of the Matinée debut from Swedish sensations The Electric Pop Group! A quartet hailing from the indiepop hotbed of Gothenburg, The Electric Pop Group self-released its debut album late in 2006 to rave reviews. As one of the many indie record labels that took notice, Matinée was excited to make contact with them just as they started work on new recordings this summer. 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 firm favorite for a large majority of the Matinée faithful as well. Their debut single is the ‘I Could See The Lights’ EP (matinée 067) featuring an absolutely astonishing title track that will preview a second album planned for 2008, plus additional non-album tracks ‘This is the Town,’ ‘Summer’s Day,’ and ‘Come And See Me.’ We are finalizing artwork for the EP now and should have copies available by the end of November if all goes as planned. ‘I Could See The Lights’ is now featured on the Matinée sounds page and you can hear additional songs on the band’s website or Myspace page. We’ll be featuring tracks from this EP on the Matinée Myspace page in November so you might as well bookmark it so you don’t miss out. The Electric Pop Group has also contributed a fantastic new song ‘My Only Inspiration’ to the brand new ‘Matinée Hit Parade’ CD (matcd045), which is available now exclusively right here or in shops from October 30th. We have limited copies of their debut self-titled album for sale on the order page too so grab one before it sells out.
Our final single in production is the debut release from new Danish band Northern Portrait! Hailing from Copenhagen and the first Danish act for the label, Northern Portrait list indie legends The Smiths, Echo and the Bunnymen, and The Housemartins among its influences—an excellent starting point for sure! The band has recorded a host of fantastic songs in short order including four brilliant selections for its debut single, ‘The Fallen Aristocracy’ EP (matinée 068). The EP features lead track ‘Crazy’ along with ‘A Quiet Night In Copenhagen,’ ‘Waiting For A Chance’ and ‘The Fallen Aristocracy.’ The recordings are nearly completed and we’ve just finished the artwork so we’re hoping to have this out before the holidays as well. You can preview ‘Crazy’ and two other Northern Portrait songs on the band’s Myspace page, and we’ll be featuring Northern Portrait on the Matinée sounds page and our own Myspace page very soon as well. Stay tuned for additional release details!
Our merchandise selection has expanded tremendously lately with the addition of a dozen new badges and some great new t-shirts too! The badges include new designs for Brighter, The Fairways, Harper Lee, The Hermit Crabs, Lovejoy, The Lucksmiths, Math and Physics Club, The Pines, Tender Trap and Matinée and they’re all now displayed on the updated fanclub page. You can buy them singly or in economical packs of five or ten on the order page.
The t-shirts include great new Lucksmiths and Math and Physics Club designs that we made for their recent US shows plus a fantastic Matinée 10-year anniversary shirt. All shirts are ultra trendy American Apparel models and we even have a small stash of kids sizes (2, 4 and 6 just like the images above but all on navy blue shirts) for those wee indiepop fans out there! The shirt designs are also now displayed on the fanclub page so check them out soon because quantities are limited and they’re going fast. See the order page for availability and sizes.
Our new Myspace page continues to be a happening place so check it out if you haven’t lately. We are showcasing tracks from all the new and forthcoming releases for the next month including songs that you can’t even hear on the website yet so if you’re after new music from Bubblegum Lemonade, Clay Hips, The Electric Pop Group, The Guild League, Harper Lee, The Hermit Crabs, Lovejoy, The Lucksmiths, Math and Physics Club, Northern Portrait, The Pines, Slipslide, Strawberry Whiplash or Would-Be-Goods, check there as we are uploading new songs every week this month.
As expected, The Lucksmiths ruled a significantly overhauled hit parade of best sellers for the month of September. Here’s the top ten:
10. Brighter – Out To Sea CD
9. The Lucksmiths – Warmer Corners CD
8. Harper Lee – He Holds A Flame CDEP
7. The Hermit Crabs – Feel Good Factor CDEP
6. The Lucksmiths – A Hiccup In Your Happiness CDEP
5. Math and Physics Club – Math and Physics Club CD
4. Harper Lee – Go Back To Bed CD
3. The Hermit Crabs – Saw You Dancing CD
2. Math and Physics Club – Baby I’m Yours CDEP
1. The Lucksmiths – Spring A Leak 2xCD
We’ll be back in a few weeks with more new release information, our annual fanclub poll, and other exciting news!
Regards,
Jimmy