Is this C(20) 06? Germany's Firestation Records have compiled an album of the new sound emerging from Britain. The label is better known for it's wonderful compilations and re-issues of the UK jangle pop scene of the 1980's and therefore it's no surprise that many of the bands featured are actively influenced by that era and in the case of The Bishops further than that!The past two years have certainly been excellent for the British 7" singles but does the compilation actively reflect that fact? It doesn't start too promising with a weak demo track by Neat People. However with one or two exceptions it picks up and whilst not every single track is a worthy inclusion there are some real diamonds sparkling through. There are excellent contributions from the likes of Milburn, Pipettes, The Sequins and The Lodger whilst the stand out tracks are Lucky Soul's Spectorish My Brittle Heart and Decoration's underrated single Pine, which harks back to the early days of The Wedding Present and Reception Records. There were surprises from The Brights and Redcarsgofaster as well.
However it is sadly let down in parts by a lack of diversity which results in several tracks blurring into one without any distingushing features amongst them. Tracks from The Boyfriends, Harrisons and Keith are proven examples of these. Whilst they are not bad at all, the tracks struggled in the main. Others like the Rumble Strips Motorcycle and This Et Al's All You Ever Be Is A Dancer are somewhat baffling choices when you consider the gems that didn't make it onto the list such as Snowfight In The City Centre, Good Shoes, Bricolage or The Bridge Gang. Those omissions become more confusing considering the album relies on a number of demo tracks or those yet to be released.
A very mix and match album worth picking up if you didn't get hold of the singles the first time around or you want a quick and easy introduction to what isn't played on UK mainstream radio - it's just a question of separating the wheat from the chaff. 7/10
The album is released tomorrow. If you are in Berlin or Hamburg there are launch parties tomorrow and Saturday night. More details and access to downloads from the bands can be found here.
Buy direct from Firestation Records.
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