{"title":"Pete Astor","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePete Astor is a British songwriter, singer and multi-instrumentalist, best known for his work with The Loft, The Weather Prophets and Ellis Island Sound. Born on August 13, 1960, he has made significant contributions to the indie music scene.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith a career spanning several decades, Pete Astor has established himself as an influential figure in the music industry. His collaborations with bands such as *The Chesterfields*, *The Orchids*, and *BMX Bandits* have showcased his versatility as an artist.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAstor's unique blend of indie pop and rock has earned him a dedicated fan base. Drawing inspiration from artists like *Felt*, *The Jazz Butcher*, and *Robert Forster*, his music captivates listeners with its melodic hooks and introspective lyrics.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"33-1-3-richard-hell-and-the-voidoids-blank-generation","title":"33 1\/3: Richard Hell And The Voidoids' Blank Generation","description":"\u003cp\u003eTo wander the streets of a bankrupt, often lawless, New York City in the early 1970s wearing a T-shirt with PLEASE KILL ME written on it was an act of determined nihilism, and one often recounted in the first reports of Richard Hell filtering into the pre-punk UK. Pete Astor, an archly nihilistic teenager himself at the time, was most impressed. The fact that it emerged (after many years) that Hell himself had not worn the T-shirt but had convinced junior band member Richard Lloyd to do so, actually fitted very well with Astor s older, wiser self looking back at Blank Generation. Richard Hell was an artist who could not only embody but also frame the punk urge; having seeded and developed the essential look and character of punk since his arrival in New York in the late 1960s, he had just what was needed to make one of the defining records of the era. This study combines objective, academic perspectives along with culturally centred subjectivities to understand the meanings and resonances of Richard Hell and the Voidoids Blank Generation\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bloomsbury","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":50402317828427,"sku":"375075","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/a0105ca5-8dbc-4cae-9156-4df2766f240b_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726540574"},{"product_id":"time-on-earth","title":"Time on Earth","description":"\u003cp\u003eBrand new solo album by Pete Astor (Weather Prophets\/The Loft).\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\"In my 50s I realised that the past slowly becomes a bigger country than the future. As always, the future is where I’m headed, but now the past and all that comes with it is stacked up behind me. And, as time on earth passes, more and more of my contemporaries have started to disappear from the planet. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI’ve made 11 albums of new material since 1987. I realise that anything I’ve ever thought that mattered, that told the real story, is in those records. It’s been 5 years since my last album of new songs. Perhaps more than before, there’s been plenty of time over the last few years to think and reflect. Like every set of work, Time on Earth is an attempt to make sense of life by making work about it. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAs erstwhile editor of the NME and Q, journalist Danny Kelly wrote recently while interviewing The Loft: ‘a lifetime of listening to them has led me to believe that Pete Astor’s songs would have always found a way to reach an audience. If he’d been a Californian baby boomer, he’s have ended up in the Capitol Records building in Los Angeles, laying down late-night grooves with the Wrecking Crew for a largely-neglected, slightly gloomy, pop album that’d now be worth a fortune. If he’d been born into post-War Britain, earnest girls in sweaters would’ve fallen in love with him, and his songs, in Embassy-fogged folk clubs.’ Of course, I love this quote. And I believe that Time on Earth is most of these things. But then I would say that, wouldn’t I? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eTime on Earth\u003c\/i\u003e has songs which were written in direct response to loss and bereavement (Undertaker, Fine and Dandy); songs striving for different kinds of belief (New Religion, Time on Earth, Miracle on the High Street); stories from either end of the cycles of life (Sixth Form Rock Boys, English Weather). And a few still searching for fulfilment of the heart. (Stay Lonely, Grey Garden, Soft Switch). \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI was lucky enough to be able to make the music with the help of multi-instrumentalist Ian Button (Wreckless Eric, Death in Vegas, Papernut Cambridge) on the drums, bass maestro Andy Lewis (Spearmint, Paul Weller, and DJ at London’s legendary Blow Up Club and Soho Radio), long time guitarist Neil Scott (Everything But the Girl, Denim) and last but by no means least, Sean Read (Dexys, Edwyn Collins, Rockingbirds) who recorded and produced the album at his Famous Times Studios. As you would expect, I’m convinced it’s the best record I’ve made.\" \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePete Astor is a musician, writer and educator. He led Creation Records’ groups The Loft and The Weather Prophets, writing songs and releasing records that helped define the sound of the label and the emerging Indie genre. He has gone on to a lengthy solo career since then; writing, recording and releasing music on a range of labels including Matador, Heavenly, Warp, EMI and Fortuna Pop. He is Senior Lecturer in Music at the University of Westminster. As well as touring extensively, he also makes records with David Sheppard as Ellis Island Sound and releases his spoken word work as The Attendant on his label Faux Lux with the help of Ian Button. Since 2017 Astor has been signed to Tapete Records, home to Robert Forster, Lloyd Cole and Comet Gain among many estimable others.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tapete","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50423538549067,"sku":"1163110","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50423535960395,"sku":"1160564","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50423537336651,"sku":"1160565","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/6a403ea1-10da-478d-bb65-83ff0b50a4e8_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726769330"},{"product_id":"water-tower","title":"Water Tower","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWater Tower\u003c\/em\u003e is the new two-track single from \u003cstrong\u003ePete Astor\u003c\/strong\u003e, the seasoned and erudite Indie auteur, ex-leader of Creation Records' favourites The Loft and The Weather Prophets.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIt features all new material, again made with James Hoare of Ultimate Painting, Proper Ornaments, and Veronica Falls. He is now joined by The Wave Pictures' rhythm section of Franic Rozycki on bass and Jonny Helm on drums; Pam Berry of Withered Hand and Black Tambourine contributes vocals.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe record appears on Pete's new label, Tapete, where he will be in the excellent company of kindred spirits Robert Forster, Lloyd Cole, and Martin Carr to name but a few.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tapete","offers":[{"title":"7\"","offer_id":50471367147851,"sku":"1016924","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/7d7e7fb4-f619-4836-b83d-acc8c5317e0c_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727400065"},{"product_id":"one-for-the-ghost","title":"One for the Ghost","description":"\u003cp\u003eProlific singer \u003cstrong\u003ePete Astor\u003c\/strong\u003e strikes again, and we have a \u003cem\u003eRough Trade Exclusive!\u003c\/em\u003e This is a record born through time; seasoned and erudite Indie auteur, ex leader of Creation Records’ favourites The Loft and The Weather Prophets, \u003cstrong\u003ePete Astor\u003c\/strong\u003e brings together strands and tributaries in his work over the years, mining timeless guitar pop to frame wry lyrical insights and melodic hooks, making music for today, with a true line from the past and an eye to the future.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHaving released \u003cem\u003eSpilt Milk\u003c\/em\u003e (Fortuna Pop!) in 2016 to an overwhelmingly positive response, \u003cstrong\u003eAstor\u003c\/strong\u003e continues the musical spirit of that album with \u003cstrong\u003eJames Hoare\u003c\/strong\u003e (Ultimate Painting, Proper Ornaments, Veronica Falls) remaining a mainstay on guitar. He is now joined by The Wave Pictures’ rhythm section of \u003cstrong\u003eFranic Rozycki\u003c\/strong\u003e on bass and \u003cstrong\u003eJonny Helm\u003c\/strong\u003e on drums; \u003cstrong\u003ePam Berry\u003c\/strong\u003e of Withered Hand and Black Tambourine contributes vocals. One for the Ghost’s rainy day psychedelia maintains \u003cstrong\u003eAstor\u003c\/strong\u003e’s engagement with relevant and contemporary worlds; from the mordant wit of the title track (“It’s the wallpaper or me you know\/one of us has got to go\/ said Oscar Wilde\/ and then he died”), to the London-based outsider ache of Walker (“Walking the town, joining the future to the past\/ the line from Arnold Circus all the way to Marble Arch”), via the ageless love song of Water Tower and its paean to rural modernism (“Meet my by the water tower\/ it’s my favourite concrete flower”). Bruised but very much alive, \u003cstrong\u003eAstor\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cem\u003eOne for the Ghost\u003c\/em\u003e face the future with a wry smile and hungry heart.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eLP - Black Version with CD Version.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLP+ - Limited to 200 copies on Transparent \/ Clear vinyl with CD Version. Exclusive to \u003cem\u003eRough Trade\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tapete","offers":[{"title":"LP","offer_id":50471445430603,"sku":"1023823","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50471445627211,"sku":"1023822","price":13.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/5d9a85b5-1671-4b3a-86f3-b6a72366afea_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727403618"},{"product_id":"spilt-milk","title":"Spilt Milk","description":"\u003cp\u003e'​Spilt Milk' is the brand new album from indie auteur Pete Astor (The Loft, The Weather Prophets). It was recorded onto 1\/2 inch tape at the home studio of James Hoare of Ultimate Painting, The Proper Ornaments and Veronica Falls, with James playing guitar, bass, drums, keyboards and singing backing vocals. \"He was\", says Astor, \"an amazing band.\" Other contributions came from members of Astor's live band, with Pam Berry (Black Tambourine, Withered Hand) supplying vocals, Jack Hayter (Hefner) on pedal steel, Alison Cotton (The Left Outsides) on viola, and Robin Christian (Male Bonding) and Susan Milanovic (Feathers) on drums. The album has all the hallmarks of a future Pete Astor classic, drawing together key strands and tributaries of his work over the years, blending intuitive songwriting, acute lyrics and incisive melodies. After many years making more experimental, electronic music Astor has come full circle to the sound that made his name. From the opening track \"Really Something\" to the recent single \"Mr Music\" (a favourite of Marc Riley and Gideon Coe on BBC 6 music) the album's re-connects Astor's bespoke guitar pop with his long-standing embrace of The Velvet Underground's musical DNA. Other standout tracks include \"My Right Hand\", a hymn to everyone's best friend, with guest appearances from Tony Hancock, Marvin Gaye, Philip Larkin and a host of ex-girlfriends; the slow burning drama of \"The Getting There\" recalling the atmospheres of Astor's 80s kindred spirits, The Go-Betweens. Also, there is the wry drive of \"Very Good Lock\", summed up by Astor as \"a description of an injurious medical condition that often affects the male of the species\". Elsewhere there are the gorgeous harmonies of the grown up country lament \"Good Enough\", which wouldn't be out of place on one of George Jones' most heartbroken albums. Spilt Milk is part of a continuum: from Astor's beginnings with The Loft and The Weather Prophets on Creation Records in the 1980s, via his solo work through the 1990s and his more left field albums with The Wisdom of Harry and Ellis Island Sound on Matador Records, Heavenly and Peacefrog, through to his return to solo work with the Songbox album in 2012. LP - White Vinyl with Download.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Fortuna Pop","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50493672751435,"sku":"396767","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/98e04db6-ced3-4816-bf4a-902fff99c150_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727699718"},{"product_id":"tall-stories-and-new-religions","title":"Tall Stories and New Religions","description":"\u003cp\u003e2024 marks 40 years of \u003cstrong\u003ePete Astor\u003c\/strong\u003e making records, a suitable anniversary point at which to take stock and double back on songs that first appeared on records by Astor-fronted combos such as Creation Records trailblazers \u003cem\u003eThe Loft\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThe Weather Prophets\u003c\/em\u003e and Matador recording artists \u003cem\u003eThe Wisdom of Harry\u003c\/em\u003e, as well as selections from solo albums that appeared on labels such as Danceteria and Static Caravan.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAstor’s motivation for \u003cem\u003eTS\u0026amp;NR\u003c\/em\u003e, as his extensive notes below make clear, is manifold. Some songs are effectively re-examined in the way one might linger over a resonant picture from a box of old photographs – connecting with the essence of a younger self. Other songs are newly recast in wiser and more reflective hues, while others simply demanded exhumation from wilfully opaque, lo-fi non-production.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe songs chosen are not the obvious ones – there’s no \"\u003cem\u003eUp the Hill and Down the Slope\u003c\/em\u003e\" or “\u003cem\u003eAlmost Prayed\u003c\/em\u003e” here - but have been selected for more interesting, often esoteric, reasons.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAstor is accompanied by an estimable band of co-conspirators, evolving out of many hours spent playing music together on records and at shows over the last decade. They are drummer Ian Button, (Death in Vegas, Papernut Cambridge, Go Kart Mozart), bassist Andy Lewis (Paul Weller, Soho Radio and Blow Up DJ), guitarist Wilson Neil Scott (Summerhill, Felt, Everything But the Girl) and keyboardist\/ multi-instrumentalist\/ producer Sean Read (Dexys, Mark Lanegan, Dave Gahan, Iggy Pop, Manic Street Preachers, Beth Orton, Chrissie Hynde...).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTogether they’ve revisited these lost gems of songs in a manner that has allowed Astor to balance the way that they still make sense to him now, looking both to the future and to that big and interesting new country, the past.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tapete","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50520666669387,"sku":"2175133","price":30.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50520668209483,"sku":"2175134","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/image003_1_6bb55185_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727985675"},{"product_id":"amber-lights","title":"Amber Lights","description":"\u003cp\u003eTwo Tapete Records acts who know and appreciate each other are releasing a split 7\" on which they cover each other: \u003cstrong\u003ePete Astor\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eDie Liga der gewöhnlichen Gentlemen\u003c\/strong\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWhile \u003cstrong\u003ePete Astor\u003c\/strong\u003e conjures up a heartfelt psychedelic moritat called \"\u003cem\u003eAmber Lights\u003c\/em\u003e\" from the DLDGG hit \"\u003cem\u003eAlle Ampeln auf Gelb\u003c\/em\u003e\", DLDGG transform the ballad \"\u003cem\u003eLike Frankie Lymon\u003c\/em\u003e\" by \u003cstrong\u003eAstor's\u003c\/strong\u003e former band \u003cem\u003eThe Weather Prophets\u003c\/em\u003e into a Modern Lovers-esque uptempo song including a saxophone solo (\"\u003cem\u003eWie Frankie Lymon\u003c\/em\u003e\").\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFun fact: \u003cstrong\u003ePete Astor\u003c\/strong\u003e often spent his summer vacations with his aunt in Pinneberg near Hamburg. Just a few miles away, presumably at the same time, one of \u003cstrong\u003eDie Liga der gewöhnlichen Gentlemen\u003c\/strong\u003e was sitting in his room listening to the original version on the Creation Records compilation \"\u003cem\u003ePurveyors Of Taste\u003c\/em\u003e\" and of course had no idea that the interpreter and author of The Weather Prophets song, a genuine British (indie) pop star, was spending his summer holidays in the neighborhood.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis split 7\" somehow closes a circle.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tapete","offers":[{"title":"Black 7\"","offer_id":50543993258315,"sku":"2183232","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/TR560_da864c2c_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1728318168"},{"product_id":"unsent-letters-home-recordings-1984-2024","title":"Unsent Letters : Home Recordings 1984-2024","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eUnsent Letters\u003c\/em\u003e is the weird cousin to songs on half a lifetime of albums. It has been living in the basement, in a box and is now emerging, blinking into the daylight. Even though it’s a bit rough around the edges, it turns out to be a rather charming and likeable fellow for all that. And with stories to tell.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePete Astor is a musician, writer and educator. He led Creation Records’ groups The Loft and The Weather Prophets, writing songs and releasing records that helped define the sound of the label and the emerging Indie genre. He has gone on to a lengthy solo career since then; writing, recording and releasing music on a range of labels including Matador, Heavenly, Warp, EMI and Fortuna Pop. He is Senior Lecturer in Music at the University of Westminster. As well as touring extensively, he also makes records with David Sheppard as Ellis Island Sound and releases his spoken word electronic pop project as The Attendant with Ian Button (Go Kart Mozart, Death in Vegas) on his label Faux Lux. Since 2017, Astor has been signed to the estimable Tapete Records, home to Robert Forster, Lloyd Cole and Comet Gain among many excellent others.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e2025 has been a year where Pete Astor has revisited his first group, The Loft, who split up in 1985 and have just completed their debut album, Everything Changes Everything Stays the Same. As the title suggests, the band are in one way rooted in the past but undeniably facing forward into the future. \u003cem\u003eUnsent Letters\u003c\/em\u003e comes from a similar place; there are songs here that Astor wrote while in The Loft at that time but which the group never played, along with songs from throughout his forty year career that are now, finally coming out into the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePete says about the collection: \"\u003cem\u003eUnsent Letters\u003c\/em\u003e contains a selection of songs that, like all my songs, started at home, but these stayed at home, tucked away at the back of analogue and digital drawers, coins lost down the back of the sofa. Selecting, pruning, colouring, and programming these has brought to light songs that were conceived as private recordings; they were made without thinking about them ever appearing, and so falling outside of the usual parade of albums. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAll musicians know that there is always the danger that, when you are making songs to formally release, you can end up aiming at that often-unhelpful place called ‘perfection’. These songs, as they exist here, arrived before that process could begin. And so, I think there is an openness, vulnerability and unguardedness that I really like. Listening back, I have to say I’m rather proud of these unsent letters.“\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tapete","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":51951431876939,"sku":"R3428-6825","price":30.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":51951431909707,"sku":"R3428-8585","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/image006_4.jpg?v=1748951729"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_994ba5b3_thumbnail_4096_9b78141b-368c-44f0-9ec8-6f8663e6c340.jpg?v=1726540558","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/pete-astor.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}