eugenie

the popguns ~ eugenie (midnight music records, 1990)

the popguns is a band from brighton(uk) that started in 1986 and released their first ever song on a flexi disc that was given away with an issue of 'how many beans make five', a zine - also from brighton - of the second half of the 80's.
eugenie is their first full lenght and contains a compilation of songs that were previously recorded on singles.
i became a fan of the popguns the first time i heard 'because he wanted to': a classic fast pace a la the wedding present way (in fact, the wedding present's ex-drummer joined the band in 1988)... the perfect song to dance as loose as possible and singing along verses of love, pain, loneliness and breaking ups (when he said that nothing happens here/ seemed like something just to say/ how could I turn round and say to him/ how I loved this perfect day).
and the whole album is filled with songs just like that... twee and c86 energy from the early 90's through a female perspective!
here's the video for the (also) classic 'waiting for the winter'.



(the band never officially split up and every now and then play some gigs.)



01. landslide
02. down on your knees
03. leave it alone
04. waiting for the winter
05. every dream
06. because he wanted to
07. someone you love
08. those other things
09. don't smile

site

'neath the staring skies

punky's dilemma ~ 'neath the staring skies ep (shelflife records (cd-r series)), 2003

first release of the trio from malmö. a consistent and breathtaking debut setting a unique mood that in their second cd-ep is more refined and polished.
the opening track 'airliner' is a classic and could be part of a trilogy with 'shooting stars' and 'scandinavia' from echelon, released in 2006. melancholy in its best.
from shelflife:
"...'neath the staring skies' immerses the listener in haunting male-female vocal harmonies echoing through layers of folky acoustic guitar and sparse but well-arranged bass, piano and percussion. To truly appreciate the sum of the parts, you'll want to sit back and let the waves of emotion wash over you".

here you can also hear a sort of first version of the beautiful 'century of time'...



01. airliner
02. not if i lose
03. dream mtv
04. for sale
05. century of time
06. grace

site
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my maudlin career (preview)

camera obscura ~ my maudlin career (preview) (4ad, 2009)

tracyanne and the band come back in a forth album (that'll be released on april, 20) with more sugar, love, melancholy and addictive pop. after the success of their previous album with songs like 'lloyd, i'm ready to be heartbroken', 'let's get out of this country' and 'if looks could kill' they're back with an album that reminds their two first albums: relaxing, easy listening, melodic and cute... extremely cute.
the pianos are there... the ringing guitars are there... and tracyanne's sugary voice is there.
music that will take the sensitive ones and make them sing along and dance...
here's what tracyanne said about the album in a press release:
“some people who have heard it say it’s intense and quite dark. i suppose it is in a way. we were even more open and brave when making it than we were with the last record. i’ve never been so brutal when its come to writing lyrics. i wouldn’t even call them lyrics. just documentation of what was going on with me for a while. i truly believe it’s the best we’ve done so far.”

since the album hasn't been released yet i won't make available all songs. i chose three songs - you have no idea how hard it was:

french navy: opens the album with uplifting melody and tracyanne singing "spent a week in a dusty library/ waiting for some words to jump at me"... five seconds after that you'll be dancing and certain that'll spend 35-40 minutes in a state of joy mixed with melancholy, naivety and love.

james: a heartbreaking ballad that'll make you feel like falling in love with some guy called james and have your heart broken just to suffer listening to this song.

my maudlin career*: the classic camera obscura slow pace song (with piano lines to die for).
*made available on february, 9.



01. french navy
02. the sweetest thing
03. you told a lie
04. away with murder
05. swans
06. james
07. careless love
08. my maudlin career
09. forest and sands
10. other towns and cities
11. honey in the sun


site
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into the light again

her name in lights ~ into the light again (laughing outlaw records, 2005)

melodic pop-folk...moody...unashamedly 'girly'...
mary wyer - member of the classic sarah records act even as we speak - with her fiancé almond cafarella, simon holds from the hummingbirds (the should-have-been band from the 90's) and simon gibson from sneeze got together to record some songs wyer had written.

"... with the merest flicker of vengeance in her winsome voice, wyer's pink confessions save themselves with a refreshing honesty and manage to document with charm and insight the many ways love seduces, then ruins, then rebuilds and redeems us. buried in the middle of all this heartache is a strummy acoustic lament which turns out to be a breathtaking version of the otherwise completely execrable 'sex bomb '..."
(inspired review from the site americana-uk.com)





01. prelude
02. here she comes
03. dream
04. you know i really loved that boy
05. headstrong
06. waiting
07. key (part 1)
08. wicked girl
09. key (part 2)
10. car
11. mess
12. sex bomb
13. first kiss last kiss
14. against the blue
15. deep water
16. she said

site
buy it

the hiss we missed

memory cassette ~ the hiss we missed (independent, 2008)

summerish dream pop experience... memory cassette (a lovely name that evokes the nostalgia of all the mixtapes we used to create for walks using a brand new technology called walkman).
little is known about them... actually this is a one man project from new jersey. the enchanting, whispery female voice belongs to someone that remains unknown.
warm beats and fuzzy shoegazing with influences coming from the early 80's new wave and dance scene to the late 80's indierock, noise pop and post punk scenes. delicious like a sunset in the end (or beginning) of summer by the beach is delicious.

(the guy behind memory cassette also makes music under the name weird tapes, a more electro project).




01. asleep at a party
02. tortoise pace
03. 50 mph
04. ghost in the boombox

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