I'm delighted to announce that after several months spent collaborating with my brother Stuart, our debut full-length album is out now on Time Released Sound.
In January this year, we released an EP called Recovered Artefact on Audio Gourmet to test the water as we were busy recording 'Over Exposure', an album with lots of underlying detail, centered around nostalgia and loss.
The cover photograph was taken by our father back in the late seventies when he was young. To the rear of the tractor sporting a flat cap, stands our grandfather with his colleagues.
This is the centre piece to an ode to generations of family up-bringing on a farm in Rutland, the smallest county in Britain. The farm itself is set for a housing redevelopment and between Stuart and I, we have come up with a package of sound and art working closely with Colin Herrick (Time Released Sound) that serves to preserve the memories we cherish from our childhood, before the physical reference points get swiped away in favour of something new for the next generation.
The album is riddled with nostalgic references for us as we attempt to capture the fading memory of past events.
A glance at the packaging, as mentioned, the cover shot was taken by our Dad as well as the back cover. On both, illustrations captured from 100 year old botanical prints creep into focus, signifying the passing of the fading memories beneath. Inside, the credits are printed onto a scanned image of some discareded building plans I found lying in a puddle one day, which tie in with the iminent redevelopment that lies ahead. These have been stained with tea, just for extra effect. There is also some apt words of poetry written back in 1749 by Thomas Gray:
"The curfew tolls the knell of parting day,
The lowing herd wind slowly o'er the lea
The plowman homeward plods his weary way,
And leaves the world to darkness and to me."
This short poem ties in perfectly with the references to time passing and helps further imbue the prevailing pastoral theme.
The CD itself has a print of an old map of the area we live, just a few miles away from the farm.
There was also a deluxe version, as with all Time Released Sound releases, in which Colin really went to town on as usual.
All kinds of things can be found within the package, which has been stamped and addressed with the farm itself. The disc lies inside a sleeve with another old photograph printed to it - this time of the family home which will still stand, despite the housing development plans. Separately to this, there is a hand sewn booklet that has been carefully assembled, fusing all sorts of ideas together. A kind of scrap-book, if you will.
All of these are unique, with no edition being the same.
That cover photograph is printed onto an actual piece of the hundred-year old botanical print. Inside, page one introduces the album with the catalog number and TRS logo. Next up is a print of the old local map on the back of a vintage wall-paper piece. To the rear there is obviously the retro wallpaper design lying clear for all to see. You should at this stage find a foam cut-out of some form of animal which sits opposite another old family photograph printed to more of the botanical diagram paper. Next up is Thomas Gray's poem - either written in short or full. This is alongside a section of an old map, littered with stamps and text. In the centre of the book, the references move from nature and location onto music. Part of an old manuscript and text cover the next few pages. Then we move back to nature, with anatomical diagrams of sea-creatures or flowers. On the flip is a Paper Relics cover page which lies opposite of a hand-stencilled/spray painted farmyard scene.Then next is a hand-written nature account on lined-paper which houses a 3" bonus CDr copy of our EP Recovered Artefact. Opposite is a decorated wallpaper piece and then the final page is the edition number with the credits page closing this short booklet.
The digi pack copies are still available from Time Released Sound here:
The ultra arty edition that I just described sold out within a day on Time Released although there are a couple of copies available here at Stashed Goods:
There will also be a few copies at Norman Records and other distributors over the next week or so but these will sell quick so act fast to avoid disappointment.
The music itself focusses around Stuart's guitar composition, with all kinds of instrument and field recording accents to create a blurry nostalgic soundtrack for a soon to be destroyed farm.
For more information and further reading, you may be interested in taking a look at our recent interview on Fluid Radio:
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1 comment:
redolent of faded memories. amazingly detailed textures and plaintive guitar melodies. very nice work
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