Ahoy! Sorry for the tardy update this month but we are still getting settled in the new Matinée office. The move is over,
and we finally have all the Matinée stock in one place again. Thanks for your patience! This is a fairly short update as
we plan to resume our timely news reports next month.

As you may have noticed if you visited the site during the past week, the April Artist of the Month is Lovejoy!
One of the early signings for the label, Lovejoy released their debut “A Taste of The High Life” EP
(matinée 012) in January 2000. Later that year came the magnificent debut album
“Songs in the Key of Lovejoy” (matcd008) and a special holiday single “A Christmas
Wish” (matinée 025). The band followed up with the highly anticipated “Lovejoy Plays
Biff Bang Pow!” single (matinée 028) in 2001 and the daring “Who Wants To Be A
Millionaire” album (matcd018) in 2002. Since then, Lovejoy has contributed exclusive
songs to our recent collections “Matinée 50”, “The Matinée Autumn Assortment” (matinée
051) and “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware” (matcd030). So yes, they
are a prolific bunch only limited by the size of the meager Matinée recording budget! Lovejoy are responsible for so
many fantastic moments in the Matinée history that it is really difficult to pick a highlight, but for those of you who have
not discovered their magic, we suggest that “Butter Wouldn’t Melt,” “Radio,” “Hug Me Honey” and “You Fell From Grace”
(all featured on the sounds page) may be a good place to start.

To coincide with the Artist of the Month residency, we have updated the Lovejoy artist
page with links to a bunch of interviews and the very cool “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire” video produced by
Alistair Fitchett of the superb Tangents website. The page also includes a
poll about your favorite Lovejoy song and everyone who enters has the chance to win a special prize. On the
sounds page, we have added three Lovejoy mp3s, including an exclusive demo of “Nicotine
+ Love” which will feature in different form on a forthcoming Lovejoy album this summer. Finally, now is the time to
complete your Lovejoy collection as all releases are on sale at the mailorder this month only.
We’re including free Lovejoy badges with all orders so get to it! Those 7″ singles all have exclusive tracks so they won’t
last forever and you will kick yourself if you wait until they are only available on eBay.

Respondents to the Artist of the Month poll in March awarded “I Do Not Not Love You” a narrow victory over
“Summerness” as the favorite Melodie Group song. “Wildest Dream” came in third. Thanks to everyone who
voted!

In tour news, lucky Antipodeans can witness live dates with The Lucksmiths and Pipas in just ten
days! The bands hit it off at last year’s San Francisco Pop Holiday and reconvened for a handful of shows in London
and Madrid last October before hatching a plan for this series of Australian dates:

April 30th Melbourne, Australia at Corner Hotel (+ The Smallgoods & Mid State Orange)
May 1st Canberra, Australia at Tilley’s
May 6th Brisbane, Australia at The Troubadour
May 7th Sydney, Australia at The Annandale (+ The Smallgoods & The Zebras)
May 8th Katoomba, Australia at The Clarendon (Pipas & Darren Hanlon but no Lucksmiths)

For more information, check the Pipas,
Lucksmiths or Candle
Records webites. Pipas play an Australian warm-up show tomorrow (April 21st) in London at the Arts Café with
new Rough Trade band Aberfeldy so if you happen to read this in the next 24 hours and are already in London well off
you go.

Staying with Pipas for another moment, their brilliant “Bitter Club” EP (matinée
052) is still featured on a new release rack near you! In reviewing the disc,
Tangents pulled out all the alliterative punches, calling it “a perfectly
proportioned parcel of pure Pop…pocket masterpieces that light up the sky with brittle cracks of spangled
phosphorescence.” Erasing Clouds wrote “whether
Pipas are teasing you with a hint of a manic dance groove or calming you into a Sunday afternoon spent crying over
old photos, they know the path to your heart,” while
Pennyblack
concluded “quite frankly, Pipas could probably put the stations of the London Underground to music and we’d all still be
fawning over it!” Yes, we would! Check out what all the fuss is about…pick up “Bitter Club” or a copy of the freshly
repressed album “A Cat Escaped” today.

Also receiving a lot of respect is the celebrated “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware” compilation
(matcd030) featuring 12 Matinée bands remaking a favorite song by 80s legends
The Smiths! In reviewing the album, Delusions of
Adequacy wrote “what makes this tribute so perfect is that these are talented bands putting their own take on
Smiths songs, giving them a fresh and new feel while showcasing the Smiths’ brilliant songwriting. And since Matinée
is at the forefront of the best modern indie-pop, the quality here is assured. In short, this is the perfect tribute to the
Smiths.” Meanwhile, Losing Today wrote a second
piece on the CD with a nice track-by-track analysis, summarizing with “all in all a beautifully gathered collection of long
forgotten memories and a long overdue reminder of some of the greatest treasures to be found in pop’s crown.” Yes sir;
believe the hype. You can see the full tracklisting and read the excellent reviews here,
or just head straight to the order page because you know you want one, right?

Also glistening are recent albums “Tide” (matcd029) from The Liberty Ship,
“Now Is Then” (matcd028) from The Windmills, “A Little Distraction”
(matcd027) from The Lucksmiths, and “Singles 1989-1992”
(matcd026) from Brighter, plus our “Matinée Autumn Assortment” CD
(matinée 051), “True Love Waits Volume Two” EP (matinée
048) from The Pines, and “California Morning” EP (matinée 043) from The
Young Tradition. Click those links to read all the latest reviews, and catch up with this essential Matinée listening
while there is a break in the new release action!

Next up on the release schedule are brilliant new albums from The Fairways and Would-Be-Goods. “This is Farewell”
(matcd031) is the swansong for San Francisco pop darlings The Fairways.
The CD is held up slightly in the art department, but the good news is that we may be adding three more tracks to the
CD! More news on the release in the May update. For now, have a listen to “The Back of Her Hand” playing on the
sounds page.

The brilliant new album “The Morning After” (matcd032) from Would-Be-Goods
is also awaiting final artwork but should be ready very soon. The tracklisting is now set as 1. Pantomime Devil, 2.
Morning After, 3. Bluebeard, 4. Big Cat Act, 5. Le Crocodile, 6. Too Old, 7. What Adam and Eve Did Next, 8. I Broke the
Spell, 9. The King of Lace, 10. Miss La-di-dah, 11. Innocent Abroad, 12. Dear St Valentine. You can preview “Morning
After” and “Miss La-di-dah” now playing on the sounds page. Look for complete release
details next month.

Ten other Matinée artists are currently in the studio, so the summer is shaping up to be our best yet!

The Matinée mailorder is closed April 28th through May 5th, but feel free to send orders anyway and we will ship
everything on the 6th. Thanks again for your support! Finally, the March hit parade confirms that “Romantic and Square
is Hip and Aware” is tops!

10. Various – The Matinée Spring Collection! CD
9. Various – Matinée 50! CD
8. The Windmills – Now Is Then CD
7. The Lucksmiths – A Little Distraction CD
6. Brighter – Singles 1989-1992 CD
5. Various – The Matinée Summer Splash! CD
4. The Liberty Ship – Tide CD
3. Pipas – Bitter Club CDEP
2. Various – The Matinée Autumn Assortment! CD
1. Various – Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware CD

See you next month with more news.

adios,
Jimmy

Hi again! We are moving the Matinée office eight blocks away this month so things are a bit less organized than usual.
It’s all good though, because by the end of the month we will have consolidated stock from our former DC and current
Santa Barbara offices into hopefully one ultra organized stockroom. Future orders should practically mail themselves!
We have some exciting news to share before the computer packs up for the move so here goes:

Poking its head into the world in the midst of this chaos is the brand new CDEP from London superstars Pipas!
Entitled the “Bitter Club” EP (matinée 052), the single features great new songs Mental,
Bitter Club, Sixten, Minilife, Jean C and South (bend-able mix). The early reviews are in, with the infallible
Tasty saying “quite simply, there’s no one to touch Pipas at the moment
for bitter sweet pop… ‘Jean C’ might be the best song you’ll hear this year…yet another triumph for both Matinée and
Pipas.” The wonderful Vanity Project
has also piped in, remarking “caught in the breeze blowing a Sarah/C86 delicate flower beauty toward glitchy
disfigurement, they actually create something quite startling. Both the gloss and twinkle of ‘Mental’ as well as the cute
lethargy of ‘Bitter Club’ showcase the duo’s overriding romance and gentleness.” Our friends at
Friends of the Heroes concur, saying “Bitter Club contains a
distinctive charm that comes from the contrast between the almost apologetic but irrepressibly exuberant nature of the
band.” So, another hit for Pipas, another hit for Matinée. Are you surprised? “Jean C” and “Bitter Club” are now playing
on the sounds page so have a listen because this is perhaps the strongest Pipas release to
date and a sign of some very good things to come.

In other top news, the March Artist of the Month is Melodie Group! With four releases, a handful of compilation
appearances, and two live sets over the past four years, Melodie Group may not be the most outspoken artist on the
Matinée roster but they certainly have earned a lot of respect among fans and the music press. The key is superb
songwriting and the dulcet tones of Mr. Roy Thirlwall’s voice. We happen to think they are brilliant…in fact if forced to
make a list of the best songs EVER released on the label, “You’ve Got The Whole of the World In Your Mouth” and
“Summerness” would both be hovering near the top which is quite impressive given that the competition is somewhere
nigh on 500 songs. For those who have only heard Melodie Group’s gender-bending cover of Would-Be-Goods’
“Emmanuelle Béart” on the “Matinée 50” CD, there is a whole lot more to discover. To coincide with the Artist of the
Month residency, we have updated the Melodie Group artist page with new
text, images, and a link to a new band weblog. The page also
includes a month-long poll about your favorite Melodie Group song and everyone who enters has the chance to win a
special prize. On the sounds page, we have added four Melodie Group mp3s, including
exclusive track “Hamlet” which was recorded at the same time as the “Matinée 50” contribution last summer. Finally,
now is your chance to complete your Melodie Group collection as all releases are on sale at the
mailorder this month only. We’re also including free Melodie Group badges with all orders!
There are two designs available…pink Raincoat or yellow logo so let us know if you have a preference.

We had a huge response to the February Artist of the Month poll, with nearly 100 votes cast for the favorite Pipas
song on Matinée. “Barbapapa” took top honors (27 votes), with “Cruel and Unusual” (11), “A Short Film About Sleeping”
(10), brand new song “Jean C” (9) and “Rock and/or Roll” (7) rounding out the top five. Thanks to everyone for voting. The
lucky prize draw will happen this week so cross your fingers and watch your inbox for notification because somebody
will win a special Pipas prize very soon.

Switching to our smashing recent releases, the praise keeps pouring in for the “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware”
(matcd030) compilation. Featuring Matinée all-stars The Guild League, The Liberty
Ship, Lovejoy, The Lucksmiths, Pale Sunday, The Pines, Pipas, Simpático, Slipslide, The Snowdrops, Would-Be-Goods
and The Young Tradition performing cover versions of Smiths classics, the album is on course to be one of the biggest
label releases to date. In one of its final reviews, the esteemed writers at In Love With
These Times (the incomparable south London webzine that wrote so many spot-on reviews of Matinée releases over
the years) said “this record is a present. It has been put together with love and yes it will also send you scurrying back
to your Smiths records and if you think that’s a bad thing then there is little we can do for you.” Meanwhile, the hip folks
at Losing Today reported “Romantic and Square is Hip and
Aware collects together 12 swooning cover versions of old Marr/Morrissey favourites by some of the catchiest dudes
around and featuring among others the delightful Pines, the Lucksmiths, Simpático and the Liberty Ship. Believe me
you will not be disappointed.” Finally, the ever-enthusiastic Mundane
Sounds concluded “This is, hands down, the best and most worthy tribute record I’ve heard in years.” Right on Joe!
So believe these experts and the multitude of other reviews collected here. There are
soundclips by Pale Sunday, The Guild League and The Snowdrops up on the catalog and sounds
pages if you want to try before you buy, but come on, can you really resist this gem?

The debut album “Tide” (matcd029) from The Liberty Ship is quickly earning
acclaim in all the right places. The latest converts include Splendid,
which wrote “The Liberty Ship are nothing like rock stars, and that lack of attitude helps to make them one of the best
acts going today. The music makes your feet tingle, then dissipates, barely remembered — but each time you revisit it,
it will seem warmer, more comfortable and more essential to your life.” English e-zine
Vanity Project said “Nottingham-based
Liberty Ship’s debut album exudes a calm and understated jolliness with chiming and jangling guitars ruling the roost
pretty much all the way through,” while the usually loquacious In Love With These
Times summarized the album with a Joy Division reference by saying “somewhat inevitably therefore, the Liberty
Ship tear us apart.” The album continues to be a top seller in the Matinée shop so check out
the hit “Baseball Caps and Novas” now playing on the sounds page and order your copy today!

The latest release from The Windmills – their third album “Now Is Then” (matcd028) –
is also turning lots of heads lately. Our lovely hosts IndiePages, after a thorough analysis of the album,
concluded “Favorite Windmills record to date. Just about all the songs here are gems, but ‘Beach Girls 1918’ is easily
the band’s best song yet!” Meanwhile, Pop
Matters offered this piece of advice: “The Windmills have returned with another album that still has all the greatness
of previous records without repeating themselves too often. If you like British pop, or just outstanding yet meticulous pop
in general, do yourself a favor!” We happen to think The Windmills are one of the most talented bands going today so if
you have not yet discovered their magic, head straight to the sounds page and have a listen
to album cuts “Now Is Then,” “Something Spring” and “Summer Snow,” and then imagine eight more equally brilliant
songs waiting for you on the album. We suspect you’ll make the right move. The Windmills rule, OK?

We knew the “True Love Waits, Volume 2” EP (matinée 048) from south London duo
The Pines would be an instant favorite among Matinée fans, and the word continues to spread among press
types too. In reviewing the single, Vanity
Project recently wrote “An unexpected delight. Five just wonderful examples of modern folk behaviour with wry,
intelligent lyrics and an uncomplicated musical style reminiscent of Camera Obscura.”
Splendid commented “In a world
that offers little consolation to the shy, quiet and bookish, records such as this should be celebrated, while
Losing Today concluded “simply gorgeous as if you needed
telling.” Check out “Anita O’Day” now playing on the sounds page. We’ll be chatting up
The Pines for more recordings sometime soon.

Still squarely in the coming soon category is the excellent “This is Farewell” CD (matcd031)
by San Francisco quintet The Fairways! The band was one of Matinée’s first associations, releasing their debut
“Darling Don’t You Think?” single (matinée 009) nearly four years ago. We are still
perfecting the artwork for the new album, but the tracklisting is now set as follows: 1. Don’t Call Me Dear, 2. The Back
Of Her Hand, 3. Catch That Man, 4. Starstruck, 5. Winter Song, 6. Nowhere To Go, 7. Little White Lies, 8. Fine Day, 9.
Emily, 10. Goodbye California, 11. This Is Farewell. You can preview three tracks on the catalog
page now. We will announce release details in the April update. Brent Kenji of the band is also busy finalizing
recordings for the debut album from his new band The Young Tradition, so stay tuned for news on that as well.

Also in the coming soon category is the welcome return of London quartet Would-Be-Goods! The first release
since their magnificent “Brief Lives” (matcd017) album in 2002, the band is finalizing
artwork on a brand new fourth album “The Morning After” (matcd032) as we speak. In keeping with “Brief Lives” and prior
albums “Mondo” and “The Camera Loves Me,” the songs from this new album tell a story of the colorful characters so
abundant in the world of Would-Be-Goods. Although we are still deciding the final tracklisting, songs include: 1.
Pantomime Devil, 2. Morning After, 3. Big Cat Act, 4. Bluebeard, 5. Le Crocodile, 6. Too Old, 7. What Adam and Eve Did
Next, 8. I Broke the Spell, 9. Miss La-di-dah, 10. Innocent Abroad, 11. Dear St Valentine and 12. The King of Lace.
We previewed “Morning After” on the recent autumn sampler (matinée 051), and have
just added “Miss La-di-dah” to the sounds page so have a listen and get ready for a
splendid release this spring!

The new “Sleepydust” CDEP (matinée 053) from English trio The Snowdrops is
also progressing nicely. Following 2003’s magnificent “Mad World” 7″ (matinée 029) and
celebrated contributions to the “Matinée 50” and “Romantic and Square is Hip and
Aware” (matcd030) compilations, The Snowdrops have returned to the studio with an
abundance of songs vying for a spot on the new four track EP. So far they have completed the brilliant title track, which
showcases Keith Girdler’s magnificent voice, the sophisticated instrumentation of Dick Preece, beautiful melodies from
the unparalleled Pam Berry, and a decided influence of prime era Pet Shop Boys. We have added the song to the
sounds page to get you excited about this new release, and will confirm the release date
and other details shortly. Hooray for The Snowdrops!

As reported in previous updates, other Matinée bands currently in the studio include Lovejoy, Harper Lee,
The Guild League, Pale Sunday, The Young Tradition, Gregory Webster, and Airport
Girl, so 2004 is shaping up to be our best year yet!

In mailorder news, we have repressed the sold out “Where Were We? compilation (matcd019)
from The Lucksmiths and “A Cat Escaped” (matcd021) from Pipas,
so if you were looking for a copy we now have fresh supplies. Harper Lee‘s “Go Back To Bed”
(matcd009) is currently sold out, but we will repress it shortly. Several more singles
are very close to selling out too, but these will not be repressed so order now if you want something.

We are moving the week of March 20th and will have sporadic email access through the end of the month as Verizon
figures out how to provide DSL service at the new address. Apologies in advance for any delays. The post office box will
remain the same. We’ll leave you with the results of the February hit parade, which prove that a little artist of the month
discount goes a long way encouraging sales. Now, get along and complete your Melodie Group collections today!

10. Harper Lee – Everything’s Going To Be OK CD
9. Pipas – A Cat Escaped CD
8. The Liberty Ship – Tide CD
7. The Windmills – Now Is Then CD
6. Various – Matinée 50! CD
5. Various – The Matinée Autumn Assortment! CD
4. Pipas – A Short Film About Sleeping 7″
3. Brighter – Singles 1989-1992 CD
2. Pipas – Bitter Club CDEP
1. Various – Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware CD

Until next time,

Jimmy
x

Sorry for the late website update this month but we are just finalizing the sale of a house and the purchase of another
on opposite coasts of this very large country and, as a magnificent band from Manchester once sang, these things
take time…

…this of course sets me up nicely to report on the unbelievable response to our brand new tribute CD “Romantic and
Square is Hip and Aware” (matcd030). The CD features current Matinée pinups
The Guild League, The Liberty Ship, Lovejoy, The Lucksmiths, Pale Sunday, The Pines, Pipas, Simpático, Slipslide, The
Snowdrops, Would-Be-Goods and The Young Tradition performing cover versions of songs originally performed by our
favorite band of all time – The Smiths!

The songs chosen span the illustrious Smiths career, including recordings from 1983 (This Night Has Opened My Eyes,
Back To The Old House), 1984 (Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want, That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore), 1985
(Bigmouth Strikes Again, There Is A Light That Never Goes Out, I Know It’s Over), 1986 (Panic, Ask) and 1987 (Sweet
and Tender Hooligan, Sheila Take A Bow, Girlfriend In A Coma).

We created the CD to pay respect to the brilliance of The Smiths and to mark the 20th anniversary of their debut album.
Some people will undoubtedly miss the point but in the end it was a lot of fun to create and a nice way for us to say
thanks. The wonderful Italian webzine Indiepop.it recently contacted us and
interviewed all the bands for a nice feature on the release, so click
here to read more about our collective thoughts on
The Smiths and the new CD. Mille grazie Salvatore and Alessandro!

Among the many excellent album reviews so far, our favorite quotes include:

“Bands you love covering the songs of a band you love equals a unique pleasure that’s hard to describe. Romantic and
Square Is Hip and Aware is one of those rare tribute albums that makes you remember how much you love the original
musicians and makes you love the interpreters even more at the same time.” –
Erasing Clouds (USA)

“Only Matinée bands could pull something like this off. And, by crikey, they have.” –
Tasty (UK)

“The fact that “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware” is another matter is clear from the first seconds of song one.
From that moment you know that the right place for it is in the same filing row of “The Queen is Dead”. –
Indiepop.it (Italy)

“This is a collection that doesn’t allow admiration (or indeed adulation) get in the way of a good time; is an artful nod and
a wink instead of a deferential grovelling. And for this we should be more than happy.” –
Tangents (UK)

“Needless to say the brave Matinée artists paying tribute to this legendary band had their work cut out [and] met this
challenge head on.” –
Friends of the Heroes (UK)

To see the tracklisting, read reviews, and listen to soundclips, visit the catalog page.
The CD is available now at your favorite record shop or online music emporium, and if they do not carry Matinée releases
then you can always order directly from our handy order page for same day shipping.

Also still shining on the new release racks is the debut long-player from Nottingham quartet The Liberty Ship!
The 12-track album “Tide” (matcd029) remains on heavy rotation at Matinée HQ and
has made a few friends in the music press too. Tasty described it as “a
mighty album in its own right [that] doesn’t need comparison with anything else, because, let’s be honest about it…this
album could just about be the best place for anyone to start listening to indie pop music.”
Friends of the Heroes called it “intelligent pop at its best,” while
Tangents said “a blend of minor chord melancholy and steel toed sharpness,
Tide is an album that sits neatly beside labelmates The Windmills’ offerings of bittersweet melodies whilst casting a
glance over its shoulder at the bedroom Pop of, say, White Town.” The album is one of the top sellers in the
Matinée shop so get over there or to your favorite groove merchant to secure your own copy.
The brilliant track “Baseball Caps and Novas” is now playing on the sounds page if you’d like
to try before you buy.

The second installment in our Matinée Artist of the Month series features Pipas! As February artist of
the month, Pipas have contributed a wealth of new information to their artist page
including new interviews and several video clips. We are also featuring Pipas mp3s on the sounds
page, a sale on all Pipas titles at the mailorder, and a special poll about your favorite Pipas song
where everyone who enters has the chance to win special limited edition Pipas ephemera. The prize is a secret but you
would be delighted to win so go here to enter your vote.

Voters in the January Artist of the Month poll selected “School Life” as the favorite Simpático song, narrowly
edging out “Train Not Stopping”, “The Postal Museum”, “Union Station” and “Let Him Go.” Thanks to everyone who cast
a vote.

To further celebrate all things Pipas, on February 23rd we are releasing their brand new “Bitter Club” EP
(matinée 052) featuring six fantastic new songs in the chord of bitter. Lead track
“Mental” is like the bitterness of going to a party after realizing that you’re not really going to be there…”Bitter Club”
features Mark rolling out backwards guitar and slicing the vocals all My Bloody Valentine-like…”Sixten” is a dance hit
reminiscent of those classic early Bananarama collaborations with Fun Boy Three – all echoed vocals and protagonist
beats…”Minilife” is short and to the point; guitar and voice au naturel…”Jean C” is a bitter love song, hopelessly hard
core Pipas with nice harmonies…and “South” (bend.able mix by Pandatone) is a track taken from the recent Annika
album Golden Square and transformed into a music box reverie, full of uncoiled springs and bursting water pipes, by the
wonder of Pandatone. So, six new songs masquerading as a mere single…top quality and quantity from the world of
Pipas and a celebration of their upcoming back-to-back February birthdays. What better way to celebrate than with a
brilliant new release and Matinée artist-of-the-month residency? You can preorder the EP now exclusively from the
Matinée mailorder, or ask your usual pop junkie for it starting the 23rd.

We’ve no real news to report on the rest of the coming soon releases, except that the next two should be the swansong
LP “This is Farewell” (matcd031) from San Francisco pop darlings The Fairways,
and the brand new “Sleepydust” single from Brighton pop purists The Snowdrops! The tracklistings are not yet
final but we will have full release details in the next update for sure. We have two Fairways songs currently featured on
the sounds page and will add Snowdrops songs to the page later this month. Lots of bands
are in the studio as we speak so the springtime release schedule is shaping up nicely.

Fantastic autumn releases from The Windmills (matcd028), The
Lucksmiths (matcd027), Brighter (matcd026),
The Pines (matinée 048) and The Young Tradition
(matinée 043), plus our latest label sampler “The Matinée Autumn Assortment”
(matinée 051), continue to generate excellent reviews. We are giving you a short break
in our otherwise relentless release schedule so take this opportunity to catch up on some top quality pop. See the
catalog and order pages for the latest reviews and ordering
information.

If you are looking for scoop on Matinée artists, you’re in luck this month with seven features just published! Check out
interviews with The Lucksmiths in
Pennyblack
Magazine (UK) and Britpop Arsenal (Germany), a nice article in
Ya No Puedo Mas (Spain) crowning Pam Berry of
The Pines “Indie Pop Queen,” a lovely chat with The Liberty Ship in Tasty
fanzine (UK), an interview with Sean Price of Airport Girl in Pennyblack
magazine (UK), and an interview with Pipas in The
Belle Music (Spain).

We also completed Matinée interviews this month with Pennyblack
(UK) and In Love With These Times (UK) so visit their fine sites to read all the latest
gossip…we even told them things we haven’t reported here! If you’re one of those people who like to stay at home
instead, we have copied the interviews to our very own archive page.

Over in the reliable mailorder department, the “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware” CD helped incite a tremendous
January. Here are the top sellers for the month:

10. Harper Lee – Go Back To Bed CD
9. Razorcuts – R is for Razorcuts CD
8. The Lucksmiths – Where Were We? CD
7. Various – Matinée 50! CD
6. Pipas – A Cat Escaped CD
5. The Windmills – Now Is Then CD
4. Brighter – Singles 1989-1992 CD
3. The Liberty Ship – Tide CD
2. Various – The Matinée Autumn Assortment! CD
1. Various – Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware CD

More news next month!

Jimmy
x

Happy New Year!!! Matinée had its best year yet in 2003 with 17 great new records, but we are even more thrilled
about our 2004 release schedule. In addition to reports on all the new releases, this month we offer you a brand new
website feature, exclusive new sounds, lists of 2003 favorites from Matinée artists and the results of the second annual
Matinée fanclub poll, so let’s get to it!

The foremost release of the year is the brilliant debut album “Tide” (matcd029) from
The Liberty Ship! The album builds on the celebrated “I Guess You Didn’t See Her” 45 from 2002 and last
year’s “Northern Angel” CDEP, which together earned the Nottingham four piece comparisons to pop greats The Byrds,
East Village, Weather Prophets, The Rain Parade, Go-Betweens, Beachwood Sparks, and Hurrah! The dozen songs on
this new album feature chiming guitars, brilliant melodies, and catchy choruses that further demonstrate the impressive
songwriting of this band. Mixed male and female vocals, clever bits of electronica, tambourines and harmonica combine
for one strong debut album. The tracklisting is: 1. Finer Feelings; 2. Chords Drag You Down; 3. Final Kick; 4. Precious
Time; 5. Coast; 6. Cabin Fever; 7. Shine On; 8. Baseball Caps and Novas; 9. I’ll Try; 10. Stars Above; 11. Actually; 12.
Yuri Gagarin. You can preview three of the songs on the current sounds page, or trust us
and just add it to your shopping cart. Have we let you down yet? It’s available now exclusively via the
order page and in shops worldwide on the19th.

Our report last time about the “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware” compilation
(matcd030) engendered discussion on numerous websites. A daring and impressive
tribute to legendary mid-80s English band The Smiths, the album is now set for release! Arguably one of the finest pop
groups of all time, The Smiths released an impeccable collection of records between their debut in 1983 and their
swansong in 1987. Among their many fans are several top Matinée artists, so we invited twelve of them to pay respect
to the brilliance of The Smiths and mark the 20th anniversary of their debut album with this sincere tribute.

Borrowing a title from the run-out groove of the “William, It Was Really Nothing” single, “Romantic and Square is Hip and
Aware” provides solid interpretations of Smiths classics by current Matinée artists from England, Australia, Brazil,
Sweden and the United States. The contributors include The Pines, with a jangly version of the hit “Ask”;
Pale Sunday, providing a magnificent bossa-nova/shoegaze reworking of “I Know It’s Over”; The Lucksmiths,
who approach the mighty “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out” as a duet and come out smelling of roses;
Slipslide, with an expertly crafted cover of “Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want”; Pipas,
adding a dance beat to the early classic “This Night Has Opened My Eyes”; Lovejoy, contributing an admirable
cover of “Girlfriend In A Coma”; Would-Be-Goods, with an unforgettable version of “Back To The Old House”;
The Young Tradition, putting their polish on an untraditional version of “Sheila Take A Bow”; Simpático,
with a convincing rendition of “That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore”; The Guild League, glam-ing up the already glam
hit “Panic”; The Liberty Ship, attacking the rollicking “Sweet and Tender Hooligan” in fine fashion; and The
Snowdrops, with a splendid live recording of “Bigmouth Strikes Again”.

Created with immense reverence for the band, the album is a passionate tribute to the most influential pop band of the
past 20 years. We have copies available exclusively through the mailorder now, or look for it
in shops on January 26th.

Also new for 2004 is a special website feature called Artist of the Month and we are kicking off this spotlight with
the very wonderful Simpático! One of the personas used by Jason Sweeney after
the demise of his band Sweet William in 1999, Simpático has expanded to a full four-piece lineup for 2004! We can only
wonder how rich the resulting recordings will sound, and suspect we’ll not have to wait too long to find out. As resident
artist of the month, Simpático has a freshly updated artist page with new text,
band photo, a favorite song poll and a video clip! You’ll also need to check out the sounds
page, where we have added three brilliant Simpático mp3s for your listening pleasure. The songs are “School Life” (taken
from the album “The Difference Between Alone & Lonely”), “Garden Greene” (from the “Club Life” EP) and a brand new
exclusive mp3 for “100 Ways To His Heart” which you’ll only find here for a limited time. It is a fantastic new song and
Jason has even made a sleeve in case you want to download the track and make
your very own CD! Finally, all Simpático releases are on sale throughout the month on the order
page so you have no excuse for not completing your collection today! We’ll have a featured artist each month this year,
so stay tuned.

First up in the coming soon category is the welcome return of Pipas with six great new songs collected as the
“Bitter Club” EP (matinée 052)! Their album “A Cat Escaped”
(matcd021) has been a top seller since its release 15 months ago, and this new
release should expand their fanbase even further. The tracklisting is: 1. Mental, 2. Bitter Club, 3. Sixten, 4. Minilife, 5.
Jean Cocteau, and 6. South (bend-able mix). So, that’s six exclusive new songs for a top quality release that you won’t
want to miss! We are featuring “Jean Cocteau” on the updated sounds page, so get hip to it
now because they are talking about it at all the coolest parties. The EP is released in mid-February to coincide with two
Pipas birthdays, but don’t say I told you…

We are also nearing completion on a full length release from beloved San Francisco pop group The Fairways!
The band was one of the first associated with the label, releasing their debut and our 9th single – the “Darling Don’t You
Think” 7″ (matinée 009) – nearly four years ago. The band co-released the fantastic “Is
Everything All Right” album on Paris Caramel and Shelflife later that same year, and contributed tracks to a few
compilations before band members went on to play in the Aislers Set and The Young Tradition. This new release serves
as the band’s swansong, and is appropriately titled “This is Farewell” (matcd031). The
album combines five unreleased gems (Emily, The Back of Her Hand, Don’t Call Me Dear, Goodbye California, and
Starstruck) with non-album tracks (Nowhere To Go, This Is Farewell, Winter Song, Fine Day, and Little White Lies) from
sold out singles and compilations. There may be one more song added, but we are still trying to locate the master so
the final tracklisting is forthcoming. In any event, this should be a highlight for many this year and we are thrilled to
release it on Matinée! One listen to the brilliant song “The Back Of Her Hand” now playing on the
sounds page should be all it takes to place this album on your future shopping list, so have
a listen! We will confirm the release date next month.

On the springtime horizon, watch for the return of The Snowdrops with their “Seven Days to Perfect Skin” CDEP,
a new mini-lp from Lovejoy, the debut long-player from our latest superstars The Young Tradition, and
the return of Harper Lee. More details on these releases and others next month.

Thanks to everyone who voted in the second annual fanclub poll last month! We
had an excellent turnout with nearly 130 votes cast. In the singles category, Razorcuts took top honors with the
“A is for Alphabet” EP (50 votes), while The Young Tradition‘s “California Morning” EP (34) came in second and
Pale Sunday‘s “A Weekend with Jane” EP tied with The Pines‘ “True Love Waits Volume Two” EP for
third (33 votes each). Hurrah for our newest bands, eh?!

The coveted album of the year goes to the “Matinée 50” compilation (55 votes), followed by Brighter‘s
“Singles 1989-1992” (48) and The Lucksmiths‘ “A Little Distraction” (39). We also surveyed to identify your
favorite songs from Matinée 50, and the top five are: The Lucksmiths – Falling Off Of My Feet Again (25), The Fairways –
Sunday, Lovely Sunday (17), Gregory Webster – Untidy Towns (11), Harper Lee – Motorway (9), and Would-Be-Goods –
Southernmost (9).

In the favorite band category, The Lucksmiths had a strong showing at number one (69 votes), followed by
Harper Lee (30), Pipas (29), Brighter (24) and Razorcuts (22).

As expected, there was little consensus on the favorite song ever released on Matinée, with 158 different songs receiving
at least one vote. In the end, ten songs emerged with more than five votes each, so top honors this year go to “T Shirt
Weather” by The Lucksmiths (18 votes), “Untidy Towns” by The Lucksmiths (13), “Sunday, Lovely Sunday” by Edson
(12), “Train Not Stopping” by Harper Lee (9), “The Golden Age of Aviation” by The Lucksmiths (9), “Darling, Don’t You
Think?” by The Fairways (8), “Jade” by Razorcuts (7), “Barbapapa” by Pipas (6), “Sunshine Thuggery” by The Siddeleys
(6) and “California Morning” by The Young Tradition (6).

Congratulations to all the Matinée bands and thanks to everyone who entered! The lucky winner of the five CD prize pack
is a very nice chap called William Serpas. Congratulations! Wish you had won? Then why not sign up for the
fanclub to stay hip to this sort of thing?

Query: what in the world do Mosquitos, Bridget Riley, Cat Power, Love, Groove Armada, the Soft Pop tour, Broadcast,
The Legends, The Hours, Anita O’Day, The Man Without a Past, and City of God have in common? They’re favorites of
at least two Matinée artists from 2003, of course! Check out the complete rundown of what makes your favorite artists
smile by clicking here. Additional lists coming soon.

Switching now to autumn releases, The Windmills superb album “Now Is Then” (matcd028)
continues to pile up accolades in the music press. Tangents
summarized it as “shivering guitars, subdued infectious tunes, a beatific undertow that will drag you up to the stars, lines
of words that coyly wrap themselves around your spine and squeeze your heart tight. Thank God for the Windmills.”
Thank God indeed! Friends of the Heroes concluded “you know that
you are listening to a quality recording as soon as you hear the first few bars,” while
Erasing Clouds said “Now Is Then is a rich, deeply
rewarding experience masquerading as just another pop album.” Finally, In Love With
These Times reported “while the ‘feel’ of “Now Is Then” remains inspired by the great, mellifluous guitar bands of the
ages – like Brisbane’s Go-Betweens or Glasgow’s The Orchids – many of the songs also remind us of the Morrissey band
around the times of “Sunny” or “Boxers” – unassuming but carefully tempered reminders of a great English tradition, atop
which Roy Thirlwall’s deep voice drips semicircles of detached irony.” The album is the strongest release by the band to
date so believe the hype and get yourself a copy now!

Now Brighter is a band that is so celebrated you may not need further evidence of their greatness, but further
evidence we’ll give you. One of the nicest things about their “Singles 1989-1992” collection (matcd026)
is that it makes their long out-of-print recordings for Sarah Records available again for anyone who missed them the first
time around. In particular, we’ve heard from a lot of Harper Lee fans who never heard Brighter until now and are thrilled
to finally own the 15 songs on this CD. The album has enjoyed exceptionally positive reviews as well, with
IndiePages recently calling it “essential for any fan of heartbreakingly beautiful indiepop,”
Splendid describing the “music
as gorgeously sad as it was gently uplifting,” and Friends
of the Heroes concluding “their talent shines through song after song and unlike many compilations, they gel
together well giving this album a very complete all round effect.” The packaging is lovely too so there’s really no reason
not to own this, right?

The Pines seem to be at the top of their game lately, thanks in part to the excellent “True Love Waits Volume
Two” CDEP (matinée 048) released in October. Some of the most respected minds in
the business have been singing their praises too, with the venerable Tangents
writing “The Pines of course are Pop, and this ‘True Love Waits, Volume Two’ is finely in the tradition of the great Pop
EP…with heads full of high neck dresses and Buddy Holly glasses they deliver gently sharp and smart mementoes of a
past they are too young to remember.” Meanwhile, those smart lads at In
Love With These Times suggested “True Love Waits Volume 2″ is of course the sound of Belle and Sebastian
gambolling in the, er, Foxgloves, with folk harmonies, an obvious fondness for wordplay and some smashing guitar
work.” Right on. The band is surely working on new songs as we speak so stay tuned for the latest news.

Label samplers often get ignored by reviewers who prefer to focus on proper albums instead, but we are happy to report
that our latest “Matinée Autumn Assortment” sampler (matinée 051) is so good
that we can barely keep up with the reviews. Mundane
Sounds suggested “more samplers and compilations need to take a lesson – all of these songs are winners, but, of
course, that Matinée logo should already tell you that,” while All Music Guide
said “a nice introduction to the label, a must for Matinée devotees, and more proof that the Matinée crew knows the
score.” Finally, in comparing Matinée to a fashion company unveiling their clothes for the season,
Erasing Clouds praised the “gorgeous songs that
are as intelligent and emotion-filled as they are catchy and pleasing on the ear.” Yes sir, this one’s a winner.

In recent interview action, you can catch up with Graeme Elston of Slipslide and Pam Berry of The Pines
in Tasty fanzine, Gregory Webster of Sportique and
Razorcuts at Pixelsurgeon, and
Mark Monone and Tali White of The Lucksmiths in Pennyblack
Magazine. There is also a neat article in Think Small
featuring a joint interview with Matinée and Shelflife about our recent 50th celebrations and pop in general. If you don’t
read Dutch, there is an English translation of the Matinée interview on the archive
page.

Finally, thanks for all your orders last month at the mailorder! There are numerous new items, including some on
affiliated labels, so go here for the latest. In a combined November/December hit parade,
Brighter retained the top spot despite a strong challenge by the “Autumn Assortment” sampler.
Here’s the top ten:

10. Razorcuts – R is for Razorcuts CD
9. Various – The Matinée Summer Splash! CD
8. The Guild League – Private Transport CD
7. The Windmills – Now Is Then CD
6. The Young Tradition – California Morning CDEP
5. Various – Matinée 50! CD
4. The Pines – True Love Waits, Volume Two CDEP
3. The Lucksmiths – A Little Distraction CD
2. Various – The Matinée Autumn Assortment! CD
1. Brighter – Singles 1989-1992 CD

Until next month,

Jimmy
x

Hello news seekers and a happy holiday season to you all! We’ve wrapped up our 2003 release schedule with two
November gems and our 16th and 17th new records of the year. Plus, we have some very exciting releases planned
for next year, so sit back for a quick update on the world of Matinée.

Our latest release is the splendid third album from The Windmills! New records from The Windmills always
cause a commotion around these parts, as we think they make one of the most harmonious rackets today. Entitled “Now
Is Then” (matcd028), the album features 11 great new songs: 1. Ever to Exist; 2. Beach
Girls 1918; 3. Now Is Then; 4. Footprints; 5. Walking Around the World; 6. Your Fingers and Mine; 7. Something Spring;
8. Across the Playing Fields; 9. Amelia; 10. Summer Snow; 11. Time Machine. All
Music Guide provided the foremost review, saying: “Now Is Then is strong in every department; the songs are rich
and full of emotion, the guitars ring and strum like they should, and Roy Thirlwall’s vocals are deep and poignant, falling
firmly in the style of crooners like Robert Forster, Lawrence from Felt, and Nick Heyward.” We said last month that the
album could prove to be the band’s defining moment to date, so add this to your holiday shopping list now and discover
one of our favorite albums of the year. Check the sounds page for previews of a couple
choice tracks. We’re sure you’ll like what you hear.

Also now featured on a new release shelf near you is the latest in our popular series of seasonal Matinée samplers, the
Matinée Autumn Assortment (matinée 051)! Released to commemorate live
performances in England and Spain last month, the album includes previously unreleased tracks, previews of forthcoming
albums, and exclusive songs from ten top Matinée artists. The tracklisting is: 1. Would-Be-Goods – Morning
After; 2. Slipslide – Love Split; 3. The Lucksmiths – After the After Party; 4. Harper Lee –
Autumn; 5. The Pines – A Rainy Day; 6. The Liberty Ship – Baseball Caps and Novas; 7. Airport
Girl – I’ve Seen Mexico; 8. The Windmills – Summer Snow; 9. Pipas – Don’t Remix; and 10.
Lovejoy – Strike A Pose. In reviewing the album, the highly reputable editors at
Tasty had this to say: “It is a measure of this fantastic label’s brilliance
that it can simply chuck out cheap priced samplers of the quality of this one…All in all, a perfect little package.” The
album sells for the price of a single so this one should be an easy addition to your shopping cart. A few tracks are now
featured on the sounds page if you’d like to try before you buy, but at 50 cents per song
how could you go wrong?

The next release for the label is the magnificent debut album “Tide” (matcd029) from
The Liberty Ship! This Nottingham band just keeps getting better and better, and should win lots of new fans
with their first full-length release. The tracklisting is: 1. Finer Feelings; 2. Chords Drag You Down; 3. Final Kick; 4.
Precious Time; 5. Coast; 6. Cabin Fever; 7. Shine On; 8. Baseball Caps and Novas; 9. I’ll Try; 10. Stars Above; 11.
Actually; 12. Yuri Gagarin. Reviews of the band’s two Matinée singles suggested The Liberty Ship were on the verge
of greatness, and we’re happy to report they have attained that lofty goal with this superb album. We are delighted to
have it as our premiere release of 2004, so squirrel away a $10 bill someplace so you don’t come up short after your
holiday spending frenzy – this one you’ll definitely want. We will accept preorders starting next month and have copies
available exclusively via the Matinée mailorder until its official release January 5th. Until then, have a listen to some
preview tracks on the sounds page.

Our 30th album release is a daring compilation entitled “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware” (matcd030) … and the exceptionally
bright among you may recall that phrase from the run-out groove of a certain single by 80’s mega-legends The
Smiths! The keen management here at Matinée happen to think The Smiths are the greatest band of all time so we
asked our talented coterie of artists to take a stab at a Smiths cover and compiled this special tribute album to mark the
20th anniversary of the band. Yes, we know there have been Smiths tributes already but none of them in our humble
opinion come anywhere close to paying proper respect to the brilliance of the band so we’ve had a go ourselves.

Offering a mix of songs from throughout the band’s venerable career, the contributors include: The Pines, with a
jingly-jangly version of the hit “Ask”; Pale Sunday, providing a magnificent bossa-nova and shoegaze reworking of
“I Know It’s Over”; The Lucksmiths, who approach the mighty “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out” as a duet
and come out smelling of roses; Slipslide, with an expertly crafted cover of “Please Please Please Let Me Get
What I Want”; Pipas, adding a great dance beat to the early classic “This Night Has Opened My Eyes”;
Lovejoy, contributing an admirable cover of “Girlfriend In A Coma”; Would-Be-Goods, with an unforgettable
version of “Back To The Old House”; The Young Tradition, putting their polish on a slowed-down version of “Sheila
Take A Bow”; Simpático, with a convincing rendition of “That Joke Isn’t Funny Anymore”; The Guild League
, glam-ing up the already glam hit “Panic”; The Liberty Ship, attacking the rollicking “Sweet and Tender
Hooligan” in fine fashion; and The Snowdrops, with a splendid live recording of the single “Bigmouth Strikes
Again.”

A demonstration of our profound hubris? You bet! Preparing ourselves for cries of blasphemy? Of course! It’s at the CD
plant now and we will have copies available sometime in late December exclusively via the
mailorder. Otherwise, look for it in shops in January. There are a few soundclips now playing
on the sounds page for anyone who just can’t wait.

We have nearly finished the 2004 release schedule, and at this point can announce new records early in the year from
Pipas, Lovejoy, The Young Tradition, The Snowdrops, and The Fairways
(really)! More news on these and other 2004 releases next month.

Switching now to some recent hits, our four autumn releases are all basking in the glow of exceptional reviews in the
music press. The “Singles 1989-1992” CD (matcd026) from Brighter has
earned plenty of applause in just a few short weeks, with In Love With These Times
praising us for “dusting off this particular legend for exposure to a new and thankful generation of music lovers,” and
All Music Guide
concluding “once again Matinée proves itself to be just about the best pal an indie kid could have.” Fair enough. If you
missed the details on this retrospective release in last month’s update, here’s the
skinny in just nine letters: essential! Collecting 15 songs from four legendary singles Brighter released on Sarah Records
between 1989 and 1992, the album is just one of the highlights of our star-studded year. For more details, check out the
band’s artist page, or listen to a few clips on the sounds
page. Keris Howard of the band will return to the studio early next year with Laura Bridge, the other half of his current
band Harper Lee, to record the follow-up to their 2001 masterpiece “Everything’s Going To Be OK”
(matcd020). To tide you over until then, Harper Lee contributed the excellent outtake
“Autumn” to our recent “Matinée Autumn Assortment” sampler (matinée 051).

Also making friends in the music press is the “True Love Waits, Volume 2” CDEP (matinée
048) from The Pines! Erasing Clouds
said “True Love Waits Volume Two gives us love in all its sadness and beauty, within some of the best-written pop songs
you’ll hear,” while Tasty summarized it as “most lovely.” We couldn’t
have put it better ourselves. Of course The Pines are a London duo of Joe Brooker and Pam Berry, two talented
individuals who are also members of The Foxgloves and The Snowdrops respectively. They have just finished recording a
brilliant cover of The Smiths hit “Ask” for the “Romantic and Square is Hip and Aware” compilation
(matcd030) announced above. Check out their artist page for more information on
previous releases, and see the sounds page for a taste of The Pines’ enchanting sound.

Swedish-American duo The Young Tradition has earned instant recognition with its debut hit “California Morning”
(matinée 043). Among the lofty praise for this new release,
IndiePages called it “a perfectly joyous masterpiece of light and airy indiepop,”
Splendid said “the beginning of a
long tradition of fine music from this pop duo…well worth your time,” and
Tasty dubbed it “cracking grown-up pop.” The single is dazzling from start
to finish and just the beginning in a series of fine popsongs from this young band. Next release for the duo is a cover of
“Sheila Take A Bow” on our upcoming Smiths tribute album “Romantic and Square…” (matcd030)
followed by the debut Young Tradition album next year. Have a listen to “California Morning” now featured on the
sounds page and you should be hooked.

The Lucksmiths continue their reign as press darlings with the new mini-CD “A Little Distraction”
(matcd027). Recent reviews came from
Mundane Sounds, which
called it “an unsurprisingly wonderful record by an unsurprisingly wonderful pop band on an unsurprisingly wonderful pop
label,” and Rock City, predicting the
band “could quite easily replace such staid dullards as Travis and The Thrills as your newest and most charming friends.”
The band just concluded the European leg of its 2003 tour and heads back to Australia for some well deserved time off.
They contributed a splendid version of the Smiths classic “There Is A Light That Never Goes Out” to the “Romantic and
Square…” tribute CD (matcd030), and now look forward to summer days in the
southern hemisphere.

The updated catalog pages also include great new reviews of our summer hits – the Matinée
50 compilation (matinée 050), Airport Girl EP
(matinée 037), and Slipslide album (matcd025).
In particular, we should point out the second mention of The Thrills in one week of Matinée reviews – this time courtesy of
Do Something Pretty fanzine who, in
reviewing the new Airport Girl EP, said “The Thrills can f#@k off and make way for Airport Girl…the real retro, feel
good/feel bad, West Coast, pop-tastic musical treat.”

Starting this week we are conducting a poll of your favorite 2003 releases through
the Matinée fanclub and every entry will give you a chance to win five free CDs of your choice! If you are not yet a
member of the fanclub, you can remedy that by visiting our fanclub page today. The list
of contenders includes:

2003 albums…
Melodie Group – Updownaround CD (matcd022)
The Guild League – Private Transport CD (matcd023)
Sportique – Communiqué No. 9 CD (matcd024)
Slipslide – The World Can Wait CD (matcd025)
Brighter – Singles 1989-1992 CD (matcd026)
The Lucksmiths – A Little Distraction CD (matcd027)
The Windmills – Now Is Then CD (matcd028)
Various Artists – Matinée 50! CD (matinée 050)
Various Artists – The Matinée Autumn Assortment CD (matinée 051)

2003 singles…
The Snowdrops – Mad World 7″ (matinée 029)
Airport Girl – Do You Dream In Colour? CDEP (matinée 037)
The Young Tradition – California Morning CDEP (matinée 043)
Simpático – Club Life CDEP (matinée 044)
The Liberty Ship – Northern Angel CDEP (matinée 046)
Razorcuts – A is for Alphabet CDEP (matinée 047)
The Pines – True Love Waits Volume Two CDEP (matinée 048)
Pale Sunday – A Weekend With Jane CDEP (matinée 049)

We will announce the poll results in the January update.

In an effort to make room for great new 2004 releases, we are having a massive warehouse clearance sale on all back
catalog releases. This is our biggest sale to date, but it only lasts through the end of the year so head to the
order page now to take advantage of the savings!

Brighter took over the number one spot on the hit parade, for what looks like an extended residency. Here is the
top ten from October:

10. Slipslide – The World Can Wait CD
9. Pale Sunday – A Weekend with Jane CDEP
8. Razorcuts – A is for Alphabet CDEP
7. Various – The Matinée Autumn Assortment! CD
6. Airport Girl – Do You Dream In Colour? CDEP
5. The Pines – True Love Waits, Volume Two CDEP
4. The Lucksmiths – A Little Distraction CD
3. Various – Matinée 50! CD
2. The Young Tradition – California Morning CDEP
1. Brighter – Singles 1989-1992 CD

We’ll be back in January with brand new releases, 2004 release news, annual top ten lists from Matinée artists, the
results of the year-end poll and much more. In the meantime, happy holidays!

Jimmy
x

Wow! Four fantastic new slices of pop made it into the released category in September, and even we’re impressed with
this bunch. Apparently, so are you because the Matinée mailorder is doing brisk business this month!

Our newest release is the wonderful “Singles 1989-1992” CD (matcd026) by
Brighter! A trio of Alison Cousens, Keris Howard and Alex Sharkey, Brighter was a beloved English band equally
comfortable creating introspective, poignant songs and jangly pop hits. The songs all possessed the signature Brighter
elements: beautifully strummed guitars, gorgeous melodies, and heartfelt, intelligent lyrics. Between 1989 and 1992, the
band released four brilliant EPs (“Around the World in Eighty Days”, “Noah’s Ark”, “Half-hearted” and “Disney”) on
legendary English pop imprint Sarah Records. Long out of print, the 15 songs from these singles are collected here in
their entirety. Brighter disbanded in 1993, leaving a devoted legion of fans heartbroken until band members reemerged in
recent pop outfits Harper Lee, Pinkie, Trembling Blue Stars and Fosca. A document of what came before these
distinguished bands, “Singles 1989-1992” is an essential release for any serious student of indiepop. We have added a
Brighter artist page to the website and a few soundclips to the
sounds page as well. This CD is one of Matinée’s fastest sellers to date and is currently
fending off Belle & Sebastian, Death Cab for Cutie, Stereolab, the Shins and the High Llamas atop the
Parasol sales chart. Sarah Records fans also should note a new compilation
CD by Sarah band Secret Shine just out on Clairecords.

Also just out is the lovely “True Love Waits, Volume 2” CDEP (matinée 048) from top
London pop duo The Pines! A twosome of Joe Brooker and Pam Berry, the Pines have earned a reputation for
strong songwriting, intricate guitars, clever lyrics and exquisite harmonies and have an esteemed catalogue of singles
already to prove it. Joe sometimes moonlights in London duo the Foxgloves, while Pam is also a member of Matinée
hitmakers The Snowdrops. She also boasts association with scores of indie bands of yore including Belmondo,
Black Tambourine, Bright Coloured Lights, The Castaway Stones, Glo Worm, The Seashell Sea, The Shapiros, The
Snowdrops, and Veronica Lake, and has contributed vocals to recent recordings by The Clientele, Jasmine Minks, The
Lucksmiths, The Relict, and The Saturday People. This exclusive new EP is the second half of the thematically-related
“True Love Waits” series (the first recently released on DC’s FoxyBoy Records)
featuring the most compelling Pines compositions to date. Listen for yourself to “Anita O’Day” now playing on the
sounds page, and check the order page for a copy of the new
single and to catch up on previous Pines releases too.

Still dazzling on the new release shelves is the debut “California Morning” single (matinée
043) for new Swedish/American duo The Young Tradition! A unique alliance between Brent Kenji (The
Fairways, The Guild League, Skypark) and Erik Hanspers, The Young Tradition produces beautifully orchestrated songs
with jangling guitars, keyboards, trumpet, rich melodies and Brent’s captivating vocals. The sort of single that demands
repeated listens again and again, this brilliant release features two inspired originals and an earnest cover of “Isolation”
by San Francisco pop heroes Poundsign. In reviewing the single, All
Music Guide put it best saying “these two have hit on some magic here. The three tracks on the EP are light and
lush indie pop songs that are drenched in sunshine and bathed in instrumentation. California Morning is a magical EP
that will leave indie pop fans desperate for a full-length.” Fortunately, the band has spent most of the past month working
on songs for an upcoming album, so hopefully the wait will not be too long. For now, help yourself to the magic of this
great new single. We have created a Young Tradition artist page on the
website, and a clip of the title track is now playing on the sounds page.

The fourth September release was the welcome return of Australian pop legends The Lucksmiths with their new
mini-CD “A Little Distraction” (matcd027). A mere five months after the release of
acclaimed album “Naturaliste,” the six exclusive songs comprising “A Little Distraction” were written and recorded during
The Lucksmiths’ brief intermission between Australian and US/Japanese tours. Reminiscent of their brilliant “Staring At
The Sky” CD from 1999, “A Little Distraction” is the Lucksmiths at their very best. In four short weeks the mini-album
has piled up numerous accolades in the press, including Tasty calling it
“just about the most perfect pop there is at the moment,” Erasing
Clouds remarking on the “songs you’ll find yourself singing along to after only a few listens,” and
In Love With These Times concluding “it is almost impossible to think of another
band who have released so many records without ever having lost the plot from time to time.” Right. It is a truly great
release so have a listen to “After the After Party” now playing on the sounds page and
order your very own copy today.

Speaking of The Lucksmiths, they have just arrived in the UK for a set of dates in support of “A Little Distraction” which
is released October 27th on 10″ vinyl courtesy of our good friends of Fortuna
POP! In addition to nearly a dozen UK dates, the band plays Barcelona and Madrid later this month before heading
to Sweden and Germany in November. Here are complete details on the UK and Spanish shows:

15 October – The Lucksmiths + The Windmills @ Bitterscene Club, The Bassment, Chelmsford, England, £4, doors 8:30 pm.
16 October – The Lucksmiths + Would-Be-Goods + Aislers Set + Comet Gain @ The Quad, LSE, London, England, £6 advance/£7.50, doors 7:30 pm, presented by Track & Field.
17 October – The Lucksmiths + Aislers Set @ The Winchester Club, Glasgow, Scotland, £5, doors 9:00 pm.
18 October – The Lucksmiths + The Aislers Set + Homescience @ Baby Tiger, Caledonian Backpackers, Edinburgh, Scotland, £5, doors 8:30 pm.
23 October – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + Las Dolores @ Sidecar, Barcelona, Spain, 6 Euros, doors 10:30 pm, presented by Strange Ones.
24 October – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + Pipas @ Barbarella Pop Club (Sala Nasti), Madrid, Spain. 10 Euros.
27 October – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + Sodastream + Anthony Atkinson @ The Royal Park, Leeds, England. £4, doors 7:30 pm, presented by Strangeways.
28 October – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + Mavis + Anthony Atkinson @ The Dog and Parrot, Newcastle, England. £5, doors 7:30 pm.
29 October – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + The Escape Pod + Anthony Atkinson @ The Star and Garter, Manchester, England. £6, doors 8:00 pm, presented by Pop Art vs. Industry.
30 October – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + Sodastream + Anthony Atkinson @ The Porter, Bath, England. FREE ENTRY, doors 7:30 pm, presented by Moles Club.
31 October – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + Slipslide + Anthony Atkinson @ The Metro Club, London, England. £5.50 advance/£7, doors 7:30 pm, presented by Strange Fruit.
1 November – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + The Liberty Ship + Anthony Atkinson @ The Rescue Rooms, Nottingham, England. £5 advance, EARLY SHOW! doors 6:30 pm.
2 November – The Lucksmiths + Airport Girl + Anthony Atkinson + Champion Kickboxer + Offbeat DJs @ The Grapes, Sheffield, England. £4, doors 7:00 pm, presented by Sheffield Alternative Music Society.
3 November – The Lucksmiths + Anthony Atkinson + Frankie Machine @ The Lamplighters, Leicester, England. £4, doors 8:00 pm, presented by Red Leicester.
4 November – The Lucksmiths + Would-Be-Goods + Anthony Atkinson + Wob @ The Cellar Bar, Oxford, England. £4, doors 7:30 pm, presented by Trailer Park.

Labelmates Airport Girl, The Windmills, Would-Be-Goods, Slipslide, Pipas
and The Liberty Ship join the Lucksmiths on various dates of the tour, so get off the couch for a top night out
this month! Thanks to Sean Price at Fortuna POP! for arranging such a spectacular tour.

To celebrate this prodigious bounty of live performances, we are releasing the third in a series of seasonal Matinée
samplers, following the wildly popular Matinée Spring Collection (matinée 026) in 2001
and the Matinée Summer Splash (matinée 040) in 2002. This one’s called the Matinée
Autumn Assortment (matinée 051) and it features splendid new tracks from the
seven aforementioned bands plus Harper Lee, Lovejoy and The Pines. Nearly all of the songs
are previously unreleased, and several remain exclusive to this CD so mark this down as an essential purchase because
we’re selling it at the price of a single…yes way!

The tracklisting is: 1. Would-Be-Goods – Morning After (preview of forthcoming album); 2. Slipslide –
Love Split (exclusive new track); 3. The Lucksmiths – After the After Party (from the brand new “A Little
Distraction” CD); 4. Harper Lee – Autumn (previously unreleased); 5. The Pines – A Rainy Day (from
the “True Love Waits Volume One” EP on Foxyboy); 6. The Liberty Ship – Baseball Caps and Novas (preview of
forthcoming album); 7. Airport Girl – I’ve Seen Mexico (preview of forthcoming album); 8. The Windmills
– Summer Snow (preview of forthcoming album); 9. Pipas – Don’t Remix (exclusive remix of “Don’t Walk” from
the Annika LP “Golden Square”); and 10. Lovejoy – Strike A Pose (exclusive remix of “Night On Earth”). We
will have advance copies available at some UK shows and the CD sees general release November 3rd.

Also released on the 3rd is the stunning new long-player from Essex hitmakers The Windmills! Entitled “Now Is
Then” (matcd028), this new album is the band’s defining moment and the gauge
against which all future releases will be judged. The tracklisting is: 1. Ever to Exist; 2. Beach Girls 1918; 3. Now is
Then; 4. Footprints; 5. Walking Around the World; 6. Your Fingers and Mine; 7. Something Spring; 8. Across the
Playing Fields; 9. Amelia; 10. Summer Snow; 11. Time Machine. I revealed last month that “Summer Snow” just may
be the best Windmills song to date but you may find yourself humming “Beach Girls 1918” or “Something Spring” or the
title track after just one listen as well. If you were tuned into the Windmills from their previous two albums “Edge of
August” (matcd002) and “Sunlight” (matcd014)
then you undoubtedly have this one down on your shopping list already, but if you’ve yet to delight to the band make this
one your first stop. The catalogue number is no coincidence, but instead a scientific recognition that the new album is
twice as good as “Sunlight” and 14 times better than “Edge of August”. You didn’t know we were scientists here at
Matinée, did you?

Thanks to the Matinée press corps for continued favorable reviews on our summer releases. If you need further
convincing, following are some recent quotes that should induce a trip straight to the order
page for copies of your very own:

“Clever ploy or simple celebratory fun, the fact is that Matinée 50 is great because it achieves what it sets out to do.
Much more than a label sampler, Matinée 50 is its own product, and it’s all the better for it. Grab yourself a copy and
see for yourself.”
Pop Matters

“Ineffably cool.”
Careless Talk Costs Lives

“What this compilation really says is that Matinée’s bands are all just stepping into their best form now, and that the
next 50 singles are going to be even better.”
Pennyblack

“A glorified and exceedingly pleasant self-tribute album.”
Splendid

“When You Fall sounds like ‘Wake Up Boo!”s great uncle Colin splintering his thorax on a bison’s spare rib at his mum’s
barbecue.”
Drowned In Sound

“Four tracks of summertime sweetness and light. Belle And Sebastian used to sound this good, you know. Remember?”
Tangents

“The madly bouncing trumpet on “When You Fall” is worth the price of admission by itself, like boss brass a-go-go.”
Unpeeled Fanzine

“One of the best indie pop albums to come out all year. For a label that’s released many wonderful albums, The World
Can Wait is easily Matinée’s crown jewel.”
Mundane Sounds

“Those who like your guitars jangly, your pop stylings tight and your acoustic guitars double-strung — welcome to your
favorite album of the summer.”
Splendid

“A big fat triumph.”
Tasty

“Unabashedly influenced by situationist art and the politics of the late ’60s and early ’70s art world, Communiqué No. 9
is a time machine back to a radical and mod scene where culture was a form of activism. It continues to be one of the
most interesting bands in the indie pop scene and Communiqué No. 9 only further cements Sportique’s reputation as a
wry, slippery band that actually has something to say.”
Pop Matters

“An appropriately energetic post-punk pop record.”
All Music Guide

Oh! We are pleased to announce that we now have limited copies of the 10″ vinyl version of Sportique’s Communiqué
No. 9 in stock! This courtesy of the fine pop purveyors at Where It’s At Is Where
You Are Records, and we only have 150 so get in touch quickly if you want one. See the order
page to secure your copy.

In pending release news, coming soon is the debut album from Nottingham tunesmiths The Liberty Ship! It’s
called “Tide” (matcd029) and is one of the best debut albums we’ve heard in a long while. Anyone who enjoyed the “I
Guess You Didn’t See Her” (matinée 036) or “Northern Angel” (matinée
046) singles will be delighted with the 12 new songs on this album. The tracklisting is: 1. Finer Feelings; 2. Chords
Drag You Down; 3. Final Kick; 4. Precious Time; 5. Coast; 6. Cabin Fever; 7. Shine On; 8. Baseball Caps and Novas; 9.
I’ll Try; 10. Stars Above; 11. Actually; 12. Yuri Cagarin. You can listen to a preview of “Baseball Caps and Novas” now
playing on the sounds page and also featured on the imminent “Matinée Autumn
Assortment” (matinée 051) CD. We will reveal more details and the release date next
month, but add this to your holiday shopping list now!

We have one other album in the final stages of production but cannot confirm a release date on it yet either. This one is
a bit of a surprise anyway, but what we can tell you is that it is a tribute album to the greatest band of all time in our
humble opinion. We have 12 Matinée bands finalizing superb covers of classic hits from this band to celebrate their
20th anniversary. If that’s not enough to go on, we could also point out that their name appears on this page no fewer
than 25 times. Go on then, start counting! We’ll reveal the bands involved and songs covered in the next update.

There are various Matinée bands working on new releases for next year, including The Snowdrops, Pipas,
Lovejoy, Harper Lee, The Young Tradition, Pale Sunday, Would-Be-Goods
and more. We are working to establish the 2004 release schedule now.

In hit parade action, Matinée 50 continued its stronghold atop the sales chart but in the end was edged out by the new
Lucksmiths. Here are the top sellers for September:

10. Pale Sunday – A Weekend with Jane CDEP
9. Airport Girl – Do You Dream In Colour? CDEP
8. The Snowdrops – Mad World 7″
7. Razorcuts t-shirt
6. Razorcuts – A is for Alphabet CDEP
5. Matinée t-shirt
4. The Young Tradition – California Morning CDEP
3. Slipslide – The World Can Wait CD
2. Various – Matinée 50! CD
1. The Lucksmiths – A Little Distraction CD

The mailorder is closed October 21st through November 3rd while we are in London and Madrid, but you can still place
orders and we will ship everything when we return on the 4th. Thanks for your patience and hope to see some of you
at the upcoming shows!

Jimmy
x

Hey! We’re posting news early this month because our friends at IndiePages are taking off for a month of travels in
Australia. Yes, we are envious! This will be rather quick so I can get it posted before they leave. September is a big
new release month for Matinée, with no fewer than four hits coming your way in as many weeks!

First up is a sparkly new mini-album from our good friends The Lucksmiths! It’s called “A Little Distraction”
(matcd027) and yes, it’s a winner. The band has had a remarkably busy year,
recording recent album “Naturaliste” and playing sold out live dates in Australia, USA, and Japan…with the UK, Spain
and Sweden still to go. Now they spoil us again with a brand new mini-album “A Little Distraction” featuring six exclusive,
eclectic songs. The tracks are 1. Transpontine; 2. Successlessness; 3. Little Distraction; 4. Moving; 5. After the After
Party; 6. Honey Honey Honey. The music is warm and familiar – recalling the classic jangle of The Pastels and The
Wedding Present as well as the infectious summery strum of Jonathan Richman. Housed in a gorgeous matte digipak,
“A Little Distraction” is the Lucksmiths at their very best! We’ve had a preview of “After the After Party” up on the
sounds page for a few weeks, but now you can hear the CD in its entirety. You’ll find it in
shops from September 8th but you can probably get a copy earlier than that from our handy order
page.

Our second September release is the highly anticipated debut single by The Young Tradition! First product of a
partnership between Brent Kenji (The Fairways, The Guild League) and a Swedish lad named Erik Hanspers, the
“California Morning” EP (matinée 043) marks the auspicious beginning of your new
favorite band. So take note! Brent and Erik have yet to meet, collaborating instead through the marvels of our
international postal service and a keen shared sense of songwriting. These songs are beautifully orchestrated, with
jangling guitars, keyboards, trumpet, rich melodies and superb vocals that will cause you to have another listen again
and again. This brilliant debut single features two inspired originals and a cover of “Isolation” by San Francisco pop
heroes Poundsign. A definite score for the Matinée roster, the duo will meet this month to work on tracks for the debut
Young Tradition album. In the meantime, you can listen to “California Morning” on the sounds
page and preorder the EP on the order page for delivery as soon as we have copies available.
The official release date is September 22nd. Come on, shouldn’t you hear your new favorite band as soon as possible?

Speaking of favorite bands, we are honored and amazed to help bring one of our all-time favorites back to the new release
shelves on September 29th. It’s legendary indie band Brighter with their “Singles 1989 – 1992” compilation CD!
As the name suggests, this CD (matcd026) compiles singles that were released
between 1989 and 1992 on Bristol pop imprint Sarah Records, home
to lots of ace pop bands like the Orchids, Blueboy, Heavenly, Sea Urchins, Field Mice, Sugargliders and more. As far
as Sarah bands go, though, Brighter leads the pack as this wonderful 15-track CD will evidence. A trio of Alison
Cousens, Keris Howard and Alex Sharkey, Brighter recorded four singles and a mini-album for Sarah before calling it a
day in 1993. Keris and Alex collaborated on the splendid “Election Day” single as Hal in 1994. More recently, Keris
has delighted the world with Laura Bridge in the beloved Harper Lee, while Alex has released top quality
popsongs as Pinkie. This highly anticipated CD compiles the 15 tracks from Brighter’s four Sarah singles – long out of
print and highly sought after – and is an essential release for any good student of indiepop. The tracklisting is: 1. Inside
Out; 2. Tinsel Heart; 3. Around the World in 80 Days; 4. Things Will Get Better; 5. Noah’s Ark; 6. I Don’t Think It Matters;
7. Does Love Last Forever?; 8. Poppy Day; 9. Half-hearted; 10. So You Said; 11. Killjoy; 12. British Summertime; 13.
Hope Springs Eternal; 14. Never Ever; 15. End. We will begin taking preorders for the CD later this month, so save up
your clam shells because this one’s essential!

Our final September release is the “True Love Waits, Volume Two” CDEP (matinée 048)
from London pop duo The Pines! We have grooved to the sound of The Pines since first seeing them live back
in 1999 opening for The Windmills and Jasmine Minks at a church in Greenwich. Since then, the band has released
top platters for Long Lost Cousin, Becalmed, and Annika plus a score of compilation appearances on the hippest labels
of the land. Most recently, they released the astounding “True Love Waits, Volume One” CDEP on the fresh new DC
imprint FoxyBoy. After making good on their numerous commitments for other
labels, the band has finally completed its masterpiece and by coincidence, it just so happens to be a single for us here
at Matinée! Hurrah! Now don’t be confused by the similar sounding title to the Foxyboy release…the EPs, while
thematically related and containing songs written at the same time, are in fact completely different. Volume One (the
Foxyboy release) came out just last month, and Volume Two (on Matinée) follows on September 29th. Capiche?
You’ll need to buy both to understand, and to help you in this regard we have a handful of copies of the Foxyboy release
available now via our order page. Oh, the Pines is a band featuring the prolific and wonderfully
eccentric Joe Brooker (also one-half of The Foxgloves) and the incomparable loveliness that is Pam Berry. Pam has a
little or a lot to do with countless indie undertakings of the past decade, including (in alphabetical order) Belmondo,
Black Tambourine, Bright Coloured Lights, The Castaway Stones, Chickfactor, Glo Worm, The Seashell Sea, The
Shapiros, The Snowdrops, and Veronica Lake, plus guest spots on recent recordings by The Clientele, Jasmine Minks,
The Lucksmiths, The Relict, and The Saturday People. I’ve undoubtedly missed something but you probably get the
point: this gal can sing! Look for a preorder button later in the month and have a listen to “Anita O’Day” now playing
on the sounds page. You’ll be singing it for days.

On tap for October is the welcome return of The Windmills with their third album “Now Is Then”
(matcd028). We have waited patiently for the final mixing of this album and oh, was
it worth the wait! Featuring 11 outstanding tracks, it’s amazing that bands like Coldplay and Travis sell million of records
and tour the world over while the Windmills are still releasing records on a lowly California indie like us. Oh well…good
for us! The tracklisting is: 1. Ever to Exist; 2. Beach Girls 1918; 3. Now is Then; 4. Footprints; 5. Walking Around the
World; 6. Your Fingers and Mine; 7. Something Spring; 8. Across the Playing Fields; 9. Amelia; 10. Summer Snow;
11. Time Machine. Although “Beach Girls 1918” and “Now Is Then” provide some serious competition, “Summer Snow”
may just be the absolute best song this band has recorded. Ever. There, I’ve said it. We’ll accept preorders as soon
as we confirm a release date. In the meantime, dig “Something Spring” now featured on the sounds
page.

Switching to the recent past, our summer releases are receiving some well-deserved praise in the music press. The
wonderful debut Slipslide album “The World Can Wait” (matcd025) has made
a lot of friends in a few short weeks. The esteemed Pennyblack
Magazine called it “a joyous record and an immensely promising debut,” while
Splendid advised its readers:
“Solid songcraft, beautiful vocals, clever lyrics – Slipslide is just itching to be the soundtrack to the waning days of your
summer, as well as the cooler, more contemplative autumn. Let them.” This is one of the best albums we’ve released to
date, so have a listen to some samples on the sounds page and order your very own copy today!

The latest offering from Airport Girl, the “Do You Dream In Colour?” EP (matinée
037), received an honorary “Single of the Week” from Mundane
Sounds, while Strange Fruit called it “gorgeous stuff indeed” and
Tasty concurred, saying “it’s bloody great, as ever.” Believe it. This is
one classic single worthy of your attention. The band is currently working on its sophomore album “Notes and Tones”
but until then you’ll want to get hip to the “Do You Dream In Colour?” EP. They’re talking about it at all the coolest
parties. Will you have something to say if you are invited?

…and then there’s Matinée 50 (matinée 050)! We knew this would be a hit but the
reviews so far are just exemplary so congratulations to all the bands involved! Mundane
Sounds dubbed it “terribly brilliant,” while All Music Guide said “a charming
listen throughout.” Erasing Clouds called it “a fantastic,
diverse collection of superb pop songs,” and In Love With These Times summed it
up as “absolutely compulsory.” Check out all the reviews and listen to soundclips on the Matinée 50
catalog page, and order your copy today!

In recent press action, we should point out a rather funny interview with Sportique up now on
Pennyblack Magazine, and invite you all for a taste of our delightful
hometown Santa Barbara, where the local paper The Independent just
published a nice article on Matinée and The Lucksmiths. A local hipster quickly dubbed me a
“minor celebrity.” The article is featured on the Independent website this week, but we’ve archived it
here if you’re reading this sometime in the future.

On the hit parade, Matinée 50 continues its reign at the mailorder despite strong Matinée and Razorcuts
t-shirt sales. If you want a shirt, check the fanclub page for further details and order yours
today! Here is the top ten for August:

10. Pale Sunday – A Weekend with Jane CDEP
9. The Snowdrops – Mad World 7″
8. Razorcuts – A is for Alphabet CDEP
7. Pipas – A Cat Escaped CD
6. Airport Girl – Do You Dream In Colour? CDEP
5. Razorcuts – R is for Razorcuts CD
4. Razorcuts t-shirt
3. Slipslide – The World Can Wait CD
2. Matinée t-shirt
1. Various – Matinée 50! CD

Until next month…
Jimmy

Hello popular music buffs and welcome to the latest Matinée news page! We are gearing up for a splendid September
of POP, but before we get there we have some reports on our sparkling new releases.

Foremost, thanks to everybody for the great response to our latest release, Matinée 50!
This is a very special one for us, as it’s the 50th release in the singles category and has exclusive tracks from our
favorite bands in the world. Of course, it’s not really a single at all but a 20-track album and at just $8 who could resist?
But don’t take our word for it…read some of the brilliant early reviews and decide for yourself:

“We are not exaggerating when we say that one in love with these times in spite of these times contributor fell off his
chair when disclosed the tantalising tracklist to this record. Suffice it to say that you will collectively be toppling from
your bar stools no later than track one… if you have liked anything you’ve heard on the Matinée roster, this release is
absolutely compulsory.” In Love With These Times

“Here’s to 50 great releases so far – and hopefully 50 more! Jimmy’s really struck gold with his label, and it’s a safe bet
to say that the Matinée logo is one to trust. A toast, then, to quality pop music!!”
Mundane Sounds

“It doesn’t matter whether you’ve heard the original songs before or are already familiar with these artists or not, the plain
and simple truth is that this is a fantastic, diverse collection of superb pop songs.”
Erasing Clouds

“The bands and songs on Matinée 50! are precious, sweet, heart-breaking, and totally heartfelt: all the things that make
indie pop so great. A fitting tribute to one of the labels keeping indie pop alive.” – All
Music Guide

Hurrah! We knew it would be a hit as soon as the first masters arrived back in February. The great thing about the
reviews so far is that everybody appears to have different favorites, with each of the 20 songs highlighted someplace in
the reviews to date. The CD is now available from all good record shops and mailorders, or direct from us via the
order page.

Also winning friends on the new release shelves and in the music press is the superb “Do You Dream In Colour?” EP
(matinée 037) from Airport Girl. Those hip cats at In
Love with These Times said it best: “It’s been too long since we last heard from Airport Girl, but perhaps the
renaissance can start here.” We agree! The single was delayed due to the burglary of the studio housing the original
master tapes, and in the end the songs had to be recorded all over again. The band has subsequently pushed back the
release of their second album to 2004, so this EP is all you’ll hear from Airport Girl for the next few months. Of course,
the band also contributes a superb cover of the Windmills “Three Sixty Degrees” to the Matinée 50 compilation so
anyone anxious for more music from the band should pick that up too.

Meanwhile, Slipslide is winning fans around the globe with the new album “The World Can Wait”
(matcd025). Following ten singles over as many years as leader of The Love Parade,
Pure, Eva Luna and Slipslide, Graeme Elston has finally delivered his first full length release and what a gem it is!
Legendary fanzine This Almighty Pop! was the first to turn me on to the sounds of Mr. Elston many years ago with his
debut release as The Love Parade. A somewhat resurrected This Almighty Pop! was also one of the first to
review this new album, calling it “a great combination of The Orchids, Sugargliders and Edwyn Collins all at their very
best. Listen to it, sing along to it and fall for it, just like I do everytime it’s on. Soundtrack to my summer.”
Erasing Clouds chimed in, remarking “Clearly
influenced both by Postcard Records pop groups (Orange Juice, Aztec Camera) and the Byrds (listen to that 12-string
shine), Slipslide deftly take genuine human emotions and mold them into songs that work their way into your brain.”
Finally, In Love With These Times declared “The World Can Wait” as “worth the
wait…it displays a wealth of strength in depth [and] leaves you shimmering with a real ready brek glow. We knew it was
only a matter of time before somebody took the bait on this pun, but we couldn’t agree more. An essential purchase
indeed. In other news, the band was invited to record a session for the Gideon Coe show on BBC’s
6 Music! They played “Palm House Crawling” and “Back To Work”
and had a nice chat with Gideon as well. The session will eventually be archived at
6 Music.

Following their outright domination of the hit parade last month, The Snowdrops have collected a nice clutch of
reviews for their double A-side 45 “Mad World”/”Don’t Buy Anything.” Tangents
wrote “hmmm, isn’t the Snowdrops’ version of ‘Mad World’ the best thing ever (this week)? Yes it is”…while
In Love With These Times said “you will find the melancholy that the vocals bring out
trailing you around for days…and the b side “Don’t Buy Anything” is also tenderly brilliant, Girdler’s soft lead vocal
peeping out from under the rain.” The band also received a threat this week, courtesy of
Saint Mary Mead Zine, who wrote: “Don’t buy anything” is
shockingly short and shockingly good, possessing a gentle naiveté which makes me squeal “Come back soon! Or else!”
The band is scheduled to record a new single and several compilation tracks for release over the next few months, so
hopefully we’ll keep St. Mary Mead from knocking down our doors!

Wow, all those words and I still haven’t mentioned the brilliance that was the San Francisco Pop Holiday!
Suffice it to say it was one of the best four days of pop we have experienced in our humble lifetime…so many great
bands and great people all together in one dark club! Highlights would be the brilliant sets from our own Pipas,
Gregory Webster and The Lucksmiths, but for the non-Matinée crowd, I’d have to give the nod to The
Radio Dept. for one of the best live sets I’ve seen in a very long time. Thanks so much to the Popfest organizers for a
great job!!!

Pipas and Gregory Webster also did an interview at KALX radio
on Friday which was loads of fun. Anyone in the station at the time would have witnessed me and Lupe of Pipas dancing
madly to Razorcuts’ “Summer In Your Heart” while Greg was trying to concentrate on answering some serious questions
posed by Nommi. Thanks to Mike and Nommi for making this possible and putting us all up Thursday night!

Of course, the absolute best thing about the weekend was the Saturday afternoon party we hosted with
Shelflife Records to celebrate our 50th compilations. The bands for the party
were kept secret, but now that it’s over we can tell you the crowd marvelled to fantastic sets by The Guild League,
Free Loan Investments, Pipas, The Frenchmen, Gregory Webster, Laura Watling, and The Lucksmiths. And we did it
outside in the sunshine instead of inside a dark club! Thanks to the bands for making the day great, to Jaime for hosting
the party, to Brent for supplying the PA, and to Ed for serving as co-organizer!

Anyone at the Pop Holiday knows we had some groovy Matinée and Razorcuts t-shirts at the
merchandise stall, and for anyone who missed it, we have limited quantities of all shirts still available! See the
fanclub page for shirt details, or go straight to the order page to
secure your very own! We don’t have many of some sizes left, so please order early if you want one.

The Lucksmiths US tour is winding down, but you still have four opportunities to catch them before they jet off to
Japan and Australia. Here are the details:

August 8th – Washington, DC Signal 66 w/Sprites & Mosquitos
August 9th – Santa Barbara, CA The Mercury Lounge (5871 Hollister Avenue) w/The Flower Machine, 9pm, $5
August 10th – Los Angeles, CA instore @ Sea Level Records (1716 West Sunset Blvd.), 4pm, all ages, free!
August 12th – San Francisco, CA @ The Hemlock Tavern w/Dear Nora, 10:30pm

After a few weeks home in Australia, the band heads to the UK, Spain and Sweden for shows in October and
November. Check back here for details!

Our coming attractions list seems to grow each day, with close to 20 new releases on the horizon! The next one up is a
sparkling new mini-album from The Lucksmiths! Entitled “A Little Distraction” (matcd027),
the CD features six brand new songs that we think are among the best they’ve recorded to date. Anyone who has seen
the band during their US tour will recognize a few they are now playing live. The tracklisting is: 1. Transpontine; 2.
Successlessness; 3. Little Distraction; 4. Moving; 5. After the After Party; 6. Honey Honey Honey. It comes in a suave
matte digipak in lovely shades of blue. The release will also come out on Candle
Records in Australia with an alternate yellow sleeve in jewel case, and on Fortuna
Pop! in the UK on dashing 10″ vinyl! Collectors of the world unite, this one’s for you! The CD is at the plant now,
and we will begin taking preorders this month. The official release date is September 1st, but we will have advance
copies available here sooner than that if you just can’t wait. There is also a preview from the album up now on the
updated sounds page.

Also on course for September release is the stunning retrospective CD “Singles, 1989 – 1992” (matcd026)
from Brighter! A band that should need no introduction to our astute readership, Brighter recorded four singles
and an album for legendary UK indie label Sarah Records before calling it a day in 1993. Keris Howard and Alex
Sharkey of the band went on to record a one-off single under the name Hal for Vinyl Japan in 1994. Five years later,
Keris formed the beloved Harper Lee with Laura Bridge, and a few years later Alex resurfaced with his new
project Pinkie. This highly anticipated CD compiles the 15 tracks from Brighter’s four Sarah singles – long out of print
and highly sought after – and is an essential release for any good student of indiepop. The tracklisting is: 1. Inside Out;
2. Tinsel Heart; 3. Around the World in 80 Days; 4. Things Will Get Better; 5. Noah’s Ark; 6. I Don’t Think It Matters; 7.
Does Love Last Forever?; 8. Poppy Day; 9. Half-hearted; 10. So You Said; 11. Killjoy; 12. British Summertime; 13. Hope
Springs Eternal; 14. Never Ever; 15. End. More release details next month.

Two albums in production for release this autumn are “Now Is Then” (matcd028), the third album from Southend-on-Sea
popstars The Windmills… and “Tide” (matcd029), the debut album from Nottingham’s The Liberty Ship.
We will reveal tracklistings and release dates in the next update, but you can hear an exclusive preview from each album
now on the sounds page!

The Young Tradition and Pines singles are also in production, and WILL see the light of day sometime
soon. We promise. Just for the record, these delays have nothing to do with us… You can listen to a preview from each
release now on the sounds page.

Alright then…in upcoming live action, The Liberty Ship and Slipslide play September 20th at the
Rescue Rooms in Nottingham in support of Camera Obscura (who have an absolutely brilliant new album out soon on
Elefant Records). Pipas play September 23rd at Waterrats in London,
also in support of Camera Obscura. We are booking Matinée shows for London, Madrid, and Barcelona in October, so
check back next month for details. You could have the chance to see as many as 12 Matinée bands in the span of a
week if you play your cards just right. Living in London would help.

We’ve added lots and lots of new reviews to the site since the last update, so check the catalog
pages for all the latest. Here are a few favorite quotes for our spring collection:

“an 18-minute volley of righteous indignation, pitch-black humour, and the sort of sharp-cornered post-punk hooks that
Wire and The Fall used to throw down as effortlessly as falling asleep disappointed and waking up tired.”
Careless Talk Costs Lives

“this album is a riot of colour and sound, with the nihilism of the buzzcocks’ “boredom”, the knowing cynicism of the
adverts and the prickly melodies of the stranglers. second consecutive ilwtt album of the month.”
In Love With These Times

“With the ear for buzz-saw melodies of Buzzcocks and a stripped-down minimalism that’s one part ’90s lo-fi, one part
post-punk experimentalism, Sportique creates a record that balances punk’s rough edges against a sometimes
challenging use of space. In the day of overproduced punk records, it’s shocking.”
Aversion.com

“Oh dear, just how incredible this ‘A Weekend With Jane’ by Pale Sunday really is. I’ve listened to it about dozen times
during the weekend. If you have any interest in jangly indie pop, you’ll love this.”
One Chord To Another

“Pale Sunday is a near perfect soft pop band. They are Belle and Sebastian with a heart-breaking grin. They are the
Smiths all through with irony and truly, madly, deeply in love.”
Splendid

“More choice cuts from the distant past in another lovingly packaged Razorcuts release from Matinée. How I wish I’d
been able to grow up with this band. But how glad I am that Matinée has seen fit to introduce them to me now.”
Tasty

“Naive, formative and devastatingly beautiful.” Careless Talk Costs
Lives

“Guitars shimmer. Tambourine shakes. Harmonies harmonize. Business as usual from Nottingham, then.”
Careless Talk Costs Lives

“The versatility you’ll encounter within this EP’s thirteen minutes is remarkably refreshing, and helps to diversify The Liberty Ship from the ever-congested English pop crowd.” Splendid

“Jason Sweeney: is there anything he can’t do? The fact that I have a new Sweeney record every couple of months is a
delight that I’ve yet to tire of. If you’ve yet to become familiar with his work, ‘Club Life’ is the perfect introduction.”
dB Magazine

“This is bittersweet technoPop with beats and bleeps that make you move, topped off by guitar lines and seeping synth
strings that pirouette in cornflower skies. Lovely.” Tangents

Two recent interviews should be requisite for your summer reading list: part two of the Gregory Webster interview
with Pennyblack,
and a nice chat with The Liberty Ship on Indiepop.it.
Check them out if you want to stay on top of the latest Matinée happenings.

In our blatent promotion for other labels department, this month we bring you details of a superb new compilation from
long-lost Scottish indie Egg Records. Their brand new “An Introduction to
Egg Records: 1988 – 1991” CD features 14 songs by Remember Fun, The Bachelor Pad, The Prayers, The Church
Grims, and Change of Seasons. All ace pop! Of course, Egg graduates Remember Fun released the brilliant
four track “Train Journeys” EP (matinée 015) for us back in 2001 which you all
undoubtedly own by now. The band has two songs on the new compilation: “Cold Inside” and “Apple of My Eye.” The
CD is available direct from the label.

Thanks for a great month with the mailorder! The Matinée 50 compilation left everything else in the dust,
outselling the closest competition by nearly 50 copies. Here’s the top ten:

10. Sportique – Communiqué No. 9 CD
9. Pale Sunday – A Weekend with Jane CDEP
8. Airport Girl – Do You Dream In Colour? CDEP
7. Slipslide – The World Can Wait CD
6. Razorcuts – A is for Alphabet CDEP
5. The Guild League – Private Transport CD
4. The Snowdrops – Mad World 7″
3. The Lucksmiths – Where Were We? CD
2. Pipas – A Cat Escaped CD
1. Various – Matinée 50! CD

We need to clear space for the autumn releases, so we have a summer clearance sale going on now through
August 25th. Check the Order page for great savings on all in stock albums and singles!

Speak to you in September!

cheers
Jimmy

Happy July! It’s crazy busy here with last minute Pop Holiday preparations and new release work, but here is a
mini-update to tide you over for a few weeks until we’re back in Santa Barbara.

The latest Matinée release is the debut album from London’s brilliant Slipslide! Entitled “The World Can Wait”
(matcd025), the album is the first release since the band’s “Sleeptalk” single 18
months ago. Lead vocalist Graeme Elston (The Love Parade, Pure, Eva Luna, Astronaut) penned nine of the 11 songs,
while new member Matthew Hawes wrote and sang the other two. This is a spectacular debut album worthy of a place
in your collection next to treasured classics from Aztec Camera, Orange Juice, The Colourfield and Go-Betweens. It’s
really that good! The band redesigned its website to celebrate and you can check it out here.

While basking in the glow of their album release, Slipslide join their Matinée colleagues with an exclusive contribution
to the brand new “Matinée 50” CD (matinée 050) – a brilliant low-price
compilation commemorating the 50th single released on Matinée Recordings. To celebrate, we invited 20 artists to
record a cover version of a favorite song previously released on Matinée, and this is the result. This collection is a labor
of love showcasing the tremendous artists with whom Matinée has had the honor of working during the past six years.
With 20 exclusive tracks, this compilation is an essential release for all fans of the label and associated bands.

The tracklisting (with original bands noted in parentheses) is: 1. Gregory Webster – Untidy Towns (The Lucksmiths);
2. Melodie Group – Emmanuelle Béart (Would-Be-Goods); 3. The Guild League – Between Delta and
Delaware (Airport Girl); 4. The Snowdrops – Summerness (Melodie Group); 5. The Visitors – Sad
Kaleidoscope (Razorcuts); 6. Airport Girl – Three Sixty Degrees (The Windmills); 7. Pipas – You Kill Me
(Harper Lee); 8. The Lucksmiths – Falling Off Of My Feet Again (The Siddeleys); 9. Sportique –
Goldmining (The Visitors); 10. The Windmills – Striking Out On Your Own (Airport Girl); 11. The Pines –
Darling, Don’t You Think? (The Fairways); 12. Harper Lee – Motorway (Monterey); 13. Slipslide –
Wildest Dream (Melodie Group); 14. The Fairways – Sunday Lovely Sunday (Edson); 15.
Would-Be-Goods – Southernmost (The Lucksmiths); 16. Lovejoy – Drug Autumn (The Windmills); 17.
Pale Sunday – Just Friends (Sportique); 18. The Liberty Ship – Desert Song (Kosmonaut); 19.
Simpático – Train Not Stopping (Harper Lee); 20. Kosmonaut – Northern Angel (Liberty Ship).

The CD is officially released on July 21st, but we have advance copies available now exclusively through the Matinée
mailorder at the low price of just $8! We are launching the album with our friends at
Shelflife Records, who are celebrating the release of their 50th release – a
special compilation called “You’re Still Young At Heart.”

The center of the album launch is next week’s Pop Holiday
in San Francisco. Featuring 21 bands playing over four nights (July 10th – 13th), the event will be one of the great pop
events of the year. Matinée artists Pipas and The Lucksmiths headline Thursday and Saturday nights,
while Gregory Webster of Sportique and Razorcuts fame plays on Sunday. Other bands include Aerospace,
The Radio Dept., Even As We Speak, The Salteens, Free Loan Investments, The Frenchmen, Evening Lights, Tullycraft,
Boyracer, The Sprites, Honeybunch, Bart Davenport, The How, From Bubblegum to Sky, The Mosquitos, Lil’
Pocketknife, Origami and The Crabapples.

Matinée and Shelflife are co-hosting a special launch party for the Matinée 50 and Shelflife 50 releases on Saturday, July
12th at 1010 1/2 Alabama Street in San Francisco. The party features a rare live performance from Matinée hitmakers
The Guild League (featuring members of The Lucksmiths, Poundsign, The Fairways, and Aislers Set), plus short
sets from other bands participating on the compilations. Rumor has it that a supergroup is forming just for this occasion!
The party is 12pm – 5pm and it is free. Look for fliers and directions at the Pop Holiday shows.

We look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new ones next week, so if you’re in San Francisco please come say
hello.

To complement the four days of ace pop at the Pop Holiday, Matinée and Shelflife are also pleased to bring some great
shows to a town near you:

Tuesday, July 8th: Los Angeles, CA
Pipas + Aerospace + Arrogants + Evening Lights + Frenchmen
@ The Garage, 519 Santa Monica Boulevard (Silver Lake)
21+, ticket price: $6

Wednesday, July 9th: Santa Barbara, CA
Pipas + Evening Lights + Frenchmen
@ JoJo, 1134 Chapala Street
all ages, ticket price: $5 (or $4 with flyer)

Tuesday, July 15th: Portland, OR
Pipas + Radio Dept. + Aerospace + Evening Lights + Frenchmen
@ The Blackbird, 3728 NE Sandy Boulevard
21+, ticket price: $6

Wednesday, July 16th: Seattle, WA
Pipas + Radio Dept.
@ Chop Suey, 1325 E. Madison
ticket price: $8 advance at Sonic Boom or Rudy’s

Also on the road this summer are The Lucksmiths! They begin their US tour at the Pop Holiday and travel
across the country before heading back for a handful of West Coast shows in early August. Following is the complete
itinerary. We will post updates to this schedule throughout the month so check back for the latest tour news!

July 12th – San Francisco, CA @ Bottom Of The Hill (Pop Holiday) w/Even As We Speak, From Bubblegum To Sky, The Mosquitos and Lil Pocketknife
July 15th – Portland, OR @ Portland State University (724 SW Harrison), 12pm-1pm
July 16th – Portland, OR @ Stumptown Coffee (on 3rd) w/Andrew Kaffer, 8:30pm
July 17th – Portland, OR @ Magic Marker House (4306 SE 34th St) w/The Salteens and The Mosquitos
July 18th – Bellingham, WA @ 3B Tavern w/The Salteens
July 19th – Seattle, WA @ Sunset Tavern w/The Salteens and Tullycraft
July 23rd – Moorhead, MN @ Ralph’s Corner Bar w/Sprites
July 24th – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry w/Sprites
July 25th – Chicago, IL @ Schubas w/Pas/Cal and Sprites
July 26th – Wyoming, MI @ Marge’s Donut Den (1751 28th St SW) w/Pas/Cal and Sprites, 6:30pm – all ages
July 27th – Indianapolis, IN @ Radio Radio (1119 E. Prospect) w/Sprites, 21+
July 28th – Cleveland, OH @ The Grog Shop w/Kiddo and Sprites
July 29th – Hamden, CT @ The Space w/Sprites
July 30th – Boston, MA @ Zeitgeist Gallery (1353 Cambridge St, Inman Square) w/Sprites, early show 7 – 9 pm, $5/all ages
August 1st – Brooklyn, NY @ Southpaw w/Ladybug Transistor and April March, 18+
August 2nd – Manhattan, NY @ Knitting Factory w/Ladybug Transistor and Sprites, all ages
August 6th – Philadelphia, PA @ Doc Watson’s
August 8th – Washington, DC Signal 66 w/Sprites & Mosquitos
August 9th – Santa Barbara, CA The Mercury Lounge (5871 Hollister Avenue) w/The Flower Machine, 9pm, $5
August 10th – Los Angeles, CA instore @ Sea Level Records (1716 West Sunset Blvd.), 4pm, all ages, free!
August 12th – San Francisco, CA @ The Hemlock Tavern w/Dear Nora, 10:30pm

Speaking of people we like a lot, when we return we’ll have copies of the new “Do You Dream In Colour?” EP
(matinée 037) from Airport Girl! The title track is a violin-led orchestrated gem
which (somewhat disturbingly) joins the exalted company of Kylie Minogue’s “I Should Be So Lucky”, The Farm’s
“Altogether Now” and the Pet Shop Boys’ “Go West” by taking its inspiration from Pachelbel’s “Canon in D.” Second
track “When You Fall” is a trumpet-driven summer pop hit that recalls the best moments of The Boo Radleys. “Easier
To Smile” is a singalong hit à la The Beach Boys’ “Barbara Ann” featuring tambourine, shaky egg and handclaps plus
guest musicians Graeme Elston of Slipslide on backing vocals and Matinée head honcho Jimmy Tassos on bongos.
The EP closes with a beautifully sad lament called “Been Waiting.” It is a jubilant return for Airport Girl, who follow
this release with a new album for Matinée in September. We are taking preorders for the single now, and will ship on
July 14th. The official release date is the 21st.

Forthcoming singles from The Young Tradition (matinée 043) and The Pines (matinée 048), a fantastic
compilation from Brighter (matcd026), and several other releases are progressing as we speak. Look for
forthcoming release news in the next update.

Our recent releases are the talk of the town, so if you’re behind with your Matinée listening you better get busy! We
wrote extensively about the new releases in the June update so check that out if you
need more details. We posted reviews this month for fresh releases from Slipslide,
The Snowdrops, Sportique, Pale Sunday, Razorcuts, The
Liberty Ship, Simpático, Kosmonaut, and more,
so check the release pages for details.

We have one new interview to mention this month – a nice chat with Pale Sunday up now on our favorite Italian
website Indiepop.it. Watch for new interviews
with Matinée bands in the next month.

Thanks to everyone who placed a website order in June. The Snowdrops ruled the roost this month, outselling
the closest competition by 2 to 1. Hooray for vinyl! Here’s the top ten:

10. The Guild League – Private Transport CD
9. The Liberty Ship – Northern Angel CDEP
8. Sportique – Modern Museums CD
7. Simpático – Club Life CDEP
6. The Lucksmiths – Naturaliste CD
5. Slipslide – The World Can Wait CD
4. Sportique – Communiqué No. 9 CD
3. Pale Sunday – A Weekend with Jane CDEP
2. Razorcuts – A is for Alphabet CDEP
1. The Snowdrops – Mad World 7″

The mailorder will be closed from July 9th through 13th while we are in San Francisco, but we’ll be back on the 14th to
ship your orders. Hope to see some of you at the West Coast shows and the Pop Holiday!

cheers
Jimmy

We’re back! Happy June everybody and sorry for the two-month gap between updates but we had a small dose of regular
life getting in the way of label life this Spring. We’ll not let that happen again.

Foremost, I am pleased to announce not needing to fire myself because the long-delayed 7″ from The Snowdrops
is now out! Sneaking into the released column as of May 26th, the 7″ is a double A-side (matinée
029) featuring “Mad World” and “Don’t Buy Anything” and the band is a collaboration of Keith Girdler (Beaumont,
Blueboy, Arabesque, Lovejoy), Dick Preece (Lovejoy, Beaumont) and Pam Berry (The Pines, Shapiros, Glo Worm,
Castaway Stones, Black Tambourine, etc.). Among the biggest celebrants are the band themselves, who have planned
a special record release party in London later this month (see details below), and have launched a new Indiepages website as well. We have also created a Snowdrops
page in the Artists section of the Matinée site so do some surfing to catch up with
all Snowdrops happenings because they are geared up for new recordings and yet another new release later this year.

Join The Snowdrops to celebrate their first platter at a special Matinée single launch party in London on Saturday, June
21st. It should be a stellar affair with background music assembled by the band plus the debut presentation of
something called the Lips like Belmondo soundtrack. We’ve no idea what it is either but it certainly sounds promising.
Arrive early for freebies in a variety of flavors plus jamzines and records at wallet-friendly sums. This event kicks off at
6pm upstairs at the Blue Posts Pub (corner of Newman and Eastcastle Streets; TCR tube). Everybody is welcome, and
it is free!

Also now ready for public consumption is the debut long-player from London’s Slipslide! Entitled “The World Can
Wait” (matcd025), the album is the first release since the band’s well received
“Sleeptalk” single 18 months ago. Since then, they have expanded to a four-piece and honed their craft on 11 songs
exhibiting heartfelt lyrics and classic songwriting within the three minute pop formula. Lead vocalist Graeme Elston
(The Love Parade, Pure, Eva Luna, Astronaut) penned nine of the 11 songs, including standouts “Baked Alaska,” “Palm
House Crawling,” and “The Right Time”. New member Matthew Hawes wrote and sang the other two, showcasing his
own wry humor and a splendid smokey croon. This is one brilliant debut album worthy of a place in your collection next
to treasured classics from Aztec Camera, Orange Juice, The Colourfield and Go-Betweens. The official release date is
June 23, but we have copies available now exclusively through the order page.

To commemorate the release, Slipslide play a special album launch gig at The Dublin Castle in London on Tuesday, June
17th. This is a Club Fandango night and the band is onstage at 10pm.

Three April releases are shining very brightly as we type. “Communiqué No. 9” (matcd024)
is the latest mini-album from London pop veterans Sportique, described as “near perfect pop” by the esteemed
editors at Pennyblack
magazine. We tend to agree. Their first release since “Modern Museums” (matcd015)
last year, the album includes eight new songs and is released in conjunction with WIAIWYA
Records of London. For a taste of the album’s brilliance, check out “Other Peoples’ Girlfriends” and “Angry Street” now
playing on the sounds page. We should have limited copies of the 10″ for all you vinyl purists
soon.

The debut release by Brazil’s Pale Sunday appears to be a hit, with praise coming in from virtually every corner
of the globe. Entitled “A Weekend With Jane” (matinée 049), the EP features four tracks
reminiscent of indiepop classics from the Creation and Sarah rosters. We had the pleasure of meeting Sineval and
Fabricio of the band while in Parati, Brazil last month and cemented plans for future recordings so rest assured they will
be back in the new release category soon! For now, check out the new Pale Sunday page
in the Artists section and if you haven’t purchased your copy yet, have a listen to the title track up now on the
sounds page and you should be convinced.

The recent “A is for Alphabet” CDEP from Razorcuts will serve well as an introductory sampler to the band or a
companion to the essential “R is for…Razorcuts” retrospective from last October. We listened to all of you who loved the
album and asked for more, negotiating the release of four additional Razorcuts classics from their long out-of-print
archives, including two songs from the highly sought-after 7″ on the Caff label which was limited to just 500 copies in its
original 1990 release. The respected Tangents webzine
summed it up best, saying “This EP is as essential as anything you’ll find this year or any. If the sound of Razorcuts
doesn’t move you then you’re already dead.” Indeed. If you still are not wise to the brilliance of Razorcuts, check out
some songs on the updated sounds page.

The “Club Life” CDEP (matinée 044) by Simpático and the “Northern Angel”
CDEP (matinée 046) by The Liberty Ship are also still fresh on the new release
racks. Check them out on the catalog page where you can listen to sound samples and read all
the latest reviews. The Liberty Ship support their single on June 21st with a live performance in Nottingham. Sponsored
by superb fanzines Do Something Pretty and Tasty, the night also will feature live sets from Fosca and The Hellfire
Sermons plus deejay sets from Stuart Murdoch of Belle & Sebastian and Ian Watson of London’s “How Does It Feel” club
night. It all takes place at Junktion 7 in Nottingham and doors are at 7:30 pm.

In forthcoming release news, we are delighted to finally announce details of our secret “Matinée
50” compilation! Conceived over two years ago, we invited every band on the label to record a cover version of a
song released on Matinée sometime since the label began in 1997. To our delight, every current band on the label
delivered a superb contribution and we are finalizing the artwork now to prepare for its official release next month. The
album is a labor of love showcasing the tremendous artists with whom we have had the honor of working during the past
six years and, with 20 brilliant, exclusive tracks, is an essential release for all fans of the label and our bands.

The tracklisting (with original bands noted in parentheses) is: 1. Gregory Webster – Untidy Towns (The Lucksmiths);
2. Melodie Group – Emmanuelle Béart (Would-Be-Goods); 3. The Guild League – Between Delta and
Delaware (Airport Girl); 4. The Snowdrops – Summerness (Melodie Group); 5. The Visitors – Sad
Kaleidoscope (Razorcuts); 6. Airport Girl – Three Sixty Degrees (The Windmills); 7. Pipas – You Kill Me
(Harper Lee); 8. The Lucksmiths – Falling Off Of My Feet Again (The Siddeleys); 9. Sportique –
Goldmining (The Visitors); 10. The Windmills – Striking Out On Your Own (Airport Girl); 11. The Pines –
Darling, Don’t You Think? (The Fairways); 12. Harper Lee – Motorway (Monterey); 13. Slipslide –
Wildest Dream (Melodie Group); 14. The Fairways – Sunday Lovely Sunday (Edson); 15.
Would-Be-Goods – Southernmost (The Lucksmiths); 16. Lovejoy – Drug Autumn (The Windmills); 17.
Pale Sunday – Just Friends (Sportique); 18. The Liberty Ship – Desert Song (Kosmonaut); 19.
Simpático – Train Not Stopping (Harper Lee); 20. Kosmonaut – Northern Angel (Liberty Ship).

We are launching the album next month in conjunction with our friends at Shelflife
Records, who are celebrating the release of Shelflife 50 – a special compilation of Shelflife bands covering other
Shelflife bands. A happy coincidence, or part of our grand plan for world indiepop domination? We’ll never tell…

The centerpiece for the album launch will be at the upcoming Pop
Holiday in San Francisco. Featuring 21 bands playing over four nights (July 10th – 13th), the event should be one of
the greatest pop spectacles of the year. Matinée artists Pipas and The Lucksmiths headline Thursday
and Saturday nights respectively, while Gregory Webster of Sportique and Razorcuts fame will delight the crowd
with selections from his esteemed back catalogue on Sunday.

Other featured bands include Aerospace, The Radio Dept., Even As We Speak, The Salteens, Free Loan Investments,
The Frenchmen, Evening Lights, Tullycraft, Boyracer, The Sprites, Honeybunch, Bart Davenport, The How, From
Bubblegum to Sky, The Mosquitos, Lil’ Pocketknife, Origami and The Crabapples.

We will be at all shows and we are working to coordinate a special Matinée show on Saturday afternoon with some surprise
guests. Watch this space for details very soon!

Also in conjunction with Shelflife, we have arranged a set of West Coast dates for Pop Holiday participants Pipas,
Aerospace, Evening Lights and The Frenchmen. The dates are as follows:

Tuesday, July 8th: Los Angeles, CA at the Garage (with the Arrogants)
Wednesday, July 9th: Santa Barbara, CA at JoJo
Tuesday, July 15th: Portland, OR at the Blackbird (with The Radio Dept.)

Pipas and The Radio Dept. also play Wednesday the 16th in Seattle, WA at Chop Suey. Special thanks to Tim Hinely
at Dagger and Chris McFarlane at IndiePages for their assistance with the
Portland and Seattle shows.

Moving back to forthcoming releases, also scheduled for July is the highly anticipated return of Airport Girl with
their “Do You Dream In Colour?” CDEP (matinée 037). The superb title track is an
orchestral gem featuring violin, keyboards, tambourine and other grand percussion. “Easier To Smile” is a singalong
rave-up recorded one Saturday afternoon last August in Nottingham and featuring among its guest musicians Graeme
Elston of Slipslide on backing vocals and Jimmy Tassos (that’s me!) of Matinée on bongos. The song features ace
tambourine, shaky egg and handclaps in addition to the usual sort of Airport Girl brilliance and it’s the sort of song that
sticks in your head and makes you dance every time you hear it. The EP also includes the trumpet-driven hit “When
You Fall” previewed on last summer’s “Matinée Summer Splash” compilation (matinée 040) and a sad lament known as
“Been Waiting.” It is a triumphant return for Airport Girl, who follow this release with a new album for Matinée and
Fortuna POP! in September.

A slight setback with The Young Tradition single is now remedied as we are moving forward with a format change
to CD single. It seems that we couldn’t get an acceptable test pressing for the 7″ vinyl so instead of crossing our fingers
for a fifth time, the band recorded a new song and we will now release the single in full digital format. The new tracklisting
includes original tracks “California Morning” and “All Up To Me” plus a new recording called “Isolation” which is a cover
version of the classic song originally recorded by Poundsign! We will announce the release date for the CD single shortly.
Meanwhile, we welcome your suggestions for something to do with the 2000 7″ labels printed for the original release.

Trudging through the Matinée art department are the “True Love Waits, Volume 2” CDEP from The Pines, the
“France On A Bicycle” compilation, and our newest retrospective project, “Singles, 1989-1992” from Brighter!
Although they should require no introduction to regular readers of this site, Brighter were a three-piece who recorded for
Sarah Records just over a decade ago and
introduced the songwriting and vocal talents of Keris Howard (now practicing as Harper Lee) to the world. More
information on these releases in the next update.

Speaking of Harper Lee, they are one of several bands in the studio recording new songs for Matinée release
later in the year. Joining them on the new release shelves will be The Lucksmiths, Airport Girl, The
Windmills, Pipas, Lovejoy, The Liberty Ship, The Snowdrops and maybe more so
save up your dollars, pounds, euros, yen, and kronor for a great season of new releases.

In press action, check out part one of a sharp interview with Gregory Webster just up on Pennyblack
Magazine. Meanwhile, Kosmonaut chewed the fat with our friends at In Love
With These Times, while Speck Fanzine published an interview with
Would-Be-Goods and Pennyblack
caught up with Harper Lee.

You can read a recent Matinée interview with Indiepop.it by breaking out your Italian
dictionary and clicking here. If you want to see an English
translation instead, check the Archive page.

We’ve added more than 60 new reviews to the site since the last update. Some of our favorite quotes about the new
releases include:

“This is what indie pop should be about. It’s fast and fun and near perfect pop.”
Pennyblack

“Definitely an exciting record all around! MTQ = 8/8”
IndiePages

“I’m enthralled and, once again, left eager for their next record! Hurry hurry, Jimmy Matinée! Single Of The Week.”
Mundane Sounds

“These guys are a shoe-in for best new band for 2003!”
IndiePages

“This EP is as essential as anything you’ll find this year or any. If the sound of Razorcuts doesn’t move you then you’re
already dead.”
Tangents

“Indie pop doesn’t get much better than this.”
All Music Guide

“Set against the sleeve art of bare branches in the winter forest it’s all a reminder of why you fell in love with this band in
the first place.”
In Love With These Times

“The versatility you’ll encounter within this EP’s thirteen minutes is remarkably refreshing, and helps to diversify The
Liberty Ship from the ever-congested English pop crowd.”
Splendid

“The title track is just as jangly as the first single was, but less Byrds and more East Village. And it’s definitely a
contender for song of the year!”
IndiePages

“The best thing about this ep is that, like the album, there is no padding whatsoever – if you like the Sweeney thing, then
every song will merit being put on yr headphones and listened to in bed while the night sky tries to fight off the street
lamps and car headlights.”
In Love With These Times

“‘Club Life’ extends further Jason’s music, it’s his most complex effort yet, but also keeps him travelling in the direction
that’s so close to my heart.”
Pennyblack

For anyone complaining about the lack of decent releases so far in 2003, I have to respectively disagree. In addition to
the nine (!) Matinée releases, the following gems are spending lots of time on the stereo this month:

10. The Set Designers – 5 Songs By (Penpal)
9. The Foxgloves – I Dreamt That Love Was A Crime (Foxyboy)
8. The Liberty Ship – Cabin Fever (Sunday)
7. Ballboy – You Can’t Spend Your Whole Life… (SL)
6. The Saturday People – No Photos Exist (Foxyboy)
5. Clearlake – Wonder If The Snow Will Settle (Domino)
4. The Pines – Rainy Day (Foxyboy)
3. Camera Obscura – Suspended from Class (Elefant)
2. The Lucksmiths – Camera Shy (Drive In)
1. The Radio Dept. – Lost and Found (Shelflife)

Thanks to everyone for your continued support of the Matinée Online Shop. A combined April
and May hit parade follows with Razorcuts taking top honors:

10. Pipas – A Cat Escaped CD
9. Harper Lee – Everything’s Going To Be OK CD
8. Melodie Group – Updownaround CD
7. The Guild League – Private Transport CD
6. Simpático – Club Life CDEP
5. Razorcuts – R is for…Razorcuts CD
4. Sportique – Communiqué No. 9 CD
3. The Liberty Ship – Northern Angel CDEP
2. Pale Sunday – A Weekend with Jane CDEP
1. Razorcuts – A is for Alphabet CDEP

Look for the return of monthly updates with the next news coming very early in July before all the San Francisco
festivities. We will update other pages throughout this month so check back for the latest news. Until then, take care!

Jimmy
x