To celebrate 10 years of releasing music Matinee Recordings have compiled the Matinee Hit Parade. It features 13 of the artists on their impressive roster and the CD is designed to look like a vinyl single.This is no run of the mill compilation either with each and every contribution being set to a single release standard. This means you get brand new recordings from the likes of Matinee stalwarts The Pines and Harper Lee as well as tracks from more recent artists such as The Hermit Crabs and the Math and Physics Club.
The album also sees the début of bands new to the Matinee roster being tasters to forthcoming releases. The Electric Pop Group prove that their début album was no one off with the splendid My Only Inspiration with it's underlying shimmering shoegazing currents. Two big plusses are the appearances of Scottish acts Bubblegum Lemonade and Strawberry Whiplash whose demo mp3's I have been playing to death what seems months now. Both bands manage to recreate the classic 1980's indie pop sound to great effect, both being influenced by the echoes of Glasgow musical past.
London based Slipslide are a new name on me despite forming in 2001 and their track Let Things Fall Apart is the highlight for me. Jangling guitars and melancholy vocals. It's wonderful and has me scuttling off to find out more which I suppose is the purpose of compilations like these. And what of the rest? There is not one filler or weak track here from The Lucksmiths Good Light to German newcomers Clay Hips with the lovely Failure. You would be hard pressed to come up with a better compilation if you were making your own mixtape. Don't rain on their parade and buy!
The Matinee Hit Parade is out now. More about it and Real Player previews can be found here.
Clay Hips is a new name to me. Though it seems that Andrew from the Fairways, now living in Finland apparently, is one of the two members and the other bloke, a Japanese living in Munich has a first name that has a Fairways-connection too.
I have not started investigating them yet but do want to hear more. Maybe a future post!
The Fairways My Space states that " Kenji & Andrew are now the CLAY HIPS."
Not got too much by The Fairways. Any recommendations?
The Fairways compilation "This Is Farewell" is wonderful.
I especially love the song "The Back Of Her Hand".
Think the album is sold out by now but if you like I can make a copy for you.
http://www.indiepages.com/matinee/catalog/cd031.html
Just buy everything. It's the safest - and best - option in their case.
Matinee says that Clay Hips is Kenji Kitahama and Andrew Leavitt, while elsewhere they say it's Brent Kenji and Andrew Leavitt. Confusing.
cracking little CD. Been playing a lot since it arrived a week or so ago.