{"title":"Skep Wax Records","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSkep Wax Records\u003c\/strong\u003e is a UK indie label orbiting Amelia Fletcher and Rob Pursey’s world, with releases by \u003cstrong\u003eHeavenly\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eSwansea Sound\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eThe Catenary Wires\u003c\/strong\u003e and related projects alongside newer groups including \u003cstrong\u003eThe Cords\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eTulpa\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eLightheaded\u003c\/strong\u003e. Its catalogue joins sharp songwriting, indie-pop nous and a clear feel for community.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"heavenly-vs-satan","title":"Heavenly vs Satan","description":"\u003cp\u003eHeavenly released four albums in the early 1990s. Skep Wax Records are going to re-issue all four of them over a two year period. Classic black vinyl. The albums will include a 7” booklet with lyrics and new sleeve notes by the members of the band. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHeavenly were one of the pioneers of indiepop. Formed from the smouldering ashes of Talulah Gosh, they took all that energy and attitude and used it to fuel catchy, infectious pop melodies. The influence of 60s girl groups was never far from the surface. This was girl-pop, but with the girls in control. Loved by many but derided as ‘twee’ by some, Heavenly ignored the increasingly macho environment of the contemporary UK scene and forged a separate path, along with other bands on the Sarah Records label. Later, having co-released their albums on K Records in Olympia, Heavenly toured the US, hooking up with bands in the embryonic riot grrrl scene. Heavenly’s quiet feminism became louder and more articulate, and the hostility of the UK music press became irrelevant. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHeavenly came to an abrupt and tragic end when drummer Mathew Fletcher took his own life in 1996. After a year’s hiatus, the group reformed as the short-lived Marine Research, before going their separate ways musically. Amelia Fletcher and Rob Pursey currently play in The Catenary Wires and Swansea Sound. Peter Momtchiloff plays in Would-Be-Goods and Tufthunter.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eHeavenly vs Satan\u003c\/i\u003e. The first LP. Recorded in the Oxfordshire countryside, the first Heavenly album was a bid to make a pure pop record. The punk noise of Talulah Gosh had exploded and expired. Amelia had had a go at making a disco hit (‘Can You Keep A Secret’, subsequently released on Fierce Recordings), which was fun, but wasn’t going to trouble the charts. Unbothered by critical or popular reactions, the new band decided to immerse themselves in the creation of a sweet, tuneful pop record. It’s true that the punk influences aren’t hard to discern (Mathew’s favourite band was The Ramones), but it’s Pete’s elegant guitar and Amelia’s melodies and multi-layered harmonies that win out on these recordings. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe eight-track album was released as CD, LP and cassette by Sarah Records. Subsequent versions included a Danceteria LP and cassette (France), a Quattro CD (Japan) and a CD by K Records (US). These versions included various additional tracks from early 7” releases.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Skep Wax re-issue of \u003ci\u003eHeavenly vs Satan\u003c\/i\u003e includes Heavenly’s first two Sarah Records singles – ‘I Fell In Love Last Night\/Over And Over’ and ‘Our Love Is Heavenly\/Wrap My Arms Around Him’.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"Black | LP","offer_id":50389182054731,"sku":"1167653","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/a90582ed-eb75-4e20-82cc-581f30c60ad6_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726354828"},{"product_id":"youre-just-jealous","title":"You’re Just Jealous","description":"\u003cp\u003eNew Album From The Most Danceable Post-Punk Pop Band In The UK. It’s like something has exploded!\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eCrumbs have been incubating this, their second album, for a few years now.  Who knows how they kept all the energy in check.  It must have been like sitting on a volcano.  The songs burst out with pure pop fire, sending splinters of guitar, sharp lyrics and snatches of the catchiest backing vocals.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe rhythm section (Jamie and Gem): it’s like Delta 5 meeting Le Tigre in a dark alley in Leeds, fusing blindly and completely, and then forcing its way into the back entrance of a venue, sending volts through the limbs of the unwitting punters, forcing them to dance.  This is Tight.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAnd as the lights come on and the indie kids throw themselves around, Ruth’s vocals sweetly assault their ears with anger, joy, political intelligence - and all around, Stuart’s guitar, sometimes twangly-melodic like the B52s, sometimes sweet and ringing like a memory of Scars, sometimes furious and feeding back, keeps you alert and thirsty for more.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThese songs do not outstay their welcome. Starts and ends are cut hard: no pre-echo, no wistful, drawn-out regretful fade-outs. Crumbs have imbibed the key lessons taught by The Gang Of Four and The Au Pairs:  never let the energy dissipate. But there is more than anger here. The band have smuggled a pop sweetness into the disciplined shapes of their angular songs. \u003ci\u003eYou’re Just Jealous\u003c\/i\u003e has sharp edges, but it’s generous too.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50416862298443,"sku":"2188128","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50416861741387,"sku":"2188127","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Crumbs__Youre_Just_Jealous_14c7f8c3_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726711516"},{"product_id":"indies-of-the-world-je-ne-sais-quoi","title":"Indies of the World \/ Je Ne Sais Quoi","description":"\u003cp\u003eLimited edition 7” single (300 only for the world). \u003ci\u003eIndies of the World\u003c\/i\u003e is a call to arms. Its aim is to revitalise the Global Pop Underground, fortifying it as it prepares to vanquish the corporate behemoth. OK, it’s just a limited release 7” single. But the revolution has to start somewhere. Hue Williams and Amelia Fletcher of the Pooh Sticks were reunited earlier this year on the first Swansea Sound single \u003ci\u003eCorporate Indie Band\u003c\/i\u003e. It got a lot of attention - and airplay - and sold out in a few hours. This new single has the same energy and joy, combined with sardonic, sharp-edged lyrics. \u003ci\u003eIndies of the World\u003c\/i\u003e is for record-lovers, indie dancefloors, non-corporate radio shows, and the flourishing online indie DJ\/blogging scene. Flipside \u003ci\u003eJe Ne Sais Quoi\u003c\/i\u003e is a fizzing duet in which feckless male Hue is berated by nonplussed female partner Amelia. It’s like ‘C is the Heavenly Option’ after a lovers’ tiff. Guitars and bass are by Rob Pursey (Heavenly, The Catenary Wires). Drums are by Ian Button (Death in Vegas, Papernut Cambridge). 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You’ll find tangles of sharp-edged guitar, as if Swiss she-punks Kleenex had been left to evolve here in the rich fertile soil (I Had A Thought). You’ll find dark pools full of lyrical complexity, deceptively deep and immersive, with shimmering reflections of The Go-Betweens (Perennial).  And you’ll come across delicate love songs, creeping up the trunks and branches of the bass and drums, displaying their fragile beauty (Thank You And Goodbye).  And what’s that exotic striped animal prowling through the undergrowth?  Actually, it’s Crayon Potato, Sassyhiya’s pet cat, the other resident of their flat in South London, taking up her role as the feline star of a lilting, singalong anthem written in her honour.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThat’s what is so great about this album.  You are somehow, simultaneously, exploring the most exotic forest in the world while also sitting in a flat in an ordinary, familiar English street with Sassyhiya and their cat.  This album transports you without pretending the real world doesn’t exist: it doesn’t get all mystical on you (Take You Somewhere is as unlike Enya as anything you’ve heard).  Sometimes you might be reminded of Girls At Our Best, and then Delta 5.  You might even, on occasion, think of Echo and the Bunnymen.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe album opens with their single, Boat Called Predator: an appropriate start, inviting you to embark: insistent, almost ominous, but with a siren call of a chorus that means you can’t go back. The first single, Kristen Stewart, is here too: a bold love song to a queer icon, affirming Sassyhiya’s status as the queens (and kings) of a thriving indiepop scene.  It’s joyous and it’s life-affirming. There are other love songs here too, like the jokey, wonkily flirtatious Puppet Museum.  The album ends with You Can Give It (But You Can’t Take It) - a proper anthem of defiance, gently but insistently taking down the bullies and reactionaries who trample over beauty and diversity: the kind of people you might, unfortunately, bump into as you make your way back onto the streets of South London.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSassyhiya  (pronounced “Sassy Hiya”) were formed when Helen and Kathy, real-life partners and co-songwriters, joined up with Pablo and Neil (drums and guitar). Helen had previously been in Boys Forever and Basic Plumbing, collaborating with much-missed Veronica Falls musician Patrick Doyle. She and Kathy then formed Barry, a stripped-down queercore outfit, with Bart McDonagh (The Male Gays) and Mark Amura (My Executive Dysfunction). Sassyhiya feels like a culmination of all these elements, hitting the sweet spot between post-punk and indie pop. They know their way around a melody but still keep it wonky, with influences ranging from the Breeders and Broadcast to Dolly Parton.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50456363565387,"sku":"2224122","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50456360026443,"sku":"2224121","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/c1965256-f797-9af2-dba4-2e5ba356825d_97482f9a_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727197906"},{"product_id":"live-at-the-rum-puncheon","title":"Live at the Rum Puncheon","description":"\u003cp\u003eSwansea Sound started in the middle of lockdown. They realised that fast, loud, joyous, angry indiepop punk was the answer to being stuck indoors. Who needs introspection? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eHue Williams is reunited with Pooh Sticks partner Amelia Fletcher (ex- Talulah Gosh, Heavenly). Rob Pursey (also ex-Heavenly) and Ian Button (Wreckless Eric’s live collaborator) provide the noise. Swansea Sound are the fast, acerbic and joyous past, present and future of indie.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFour of the tracks were released as singles, all of them now impossible to obtain. ‘Corporate Indie Band’ was a limited edition cassette, ‘I Sold My Soul on eBay’ was a one-off lathe cut that got auctioned on eBay (with a £400 winning bid), ‘Indies of the World’ was a 7” inch single that briefly hit the UK physical charts, but immediately sold out and plummeted back out again. And then there was ‘Swansea Sound’: a requiem for a lost radio station; an anti-corporate lament - another limited edition cassette single.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFirst track Rock N Roll Void gives a three minute revision session, just in case you’ve forgotten about The Ramones, The Kinks, The Buzzcocks and the brief explosion of indie noise pollution of 1986. Some of the songs are reflexive – ‘Swansea Sound’ and ‘The Pooh Sticks’. (Who else was going to write a tribute to The Pooh Sticks?) Others are searching for hope in the digital desert – ‘Let It Happen’, ‘I’m OK When You’re Around’, ‘Pasadena’, ‘Angry Girl’. ‘Je Ne Sais Quoi’ is pure pop throwaway fun. The others songs are dead catchy too, they just happen to express a sickness and a contempt for the state of things. ‘Corporate Indie Band’ is about a group who have mortgaged their creativity to a major label and sold their identities to an online marketing team of public schoolboys. Freedom of Speech takes a look at three contemporary ‘alternative’ music stars and considers how they’ve responded to BLM, the pandemic and the rise of right-wing populism. ‘Like self-serving arseholes’, is the unfortunate answer. (You won’t struggle to work out who the three ‘alternative’ stars are.)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eSwansea Sound took their name from a well-loved local radio station when it was given a corporate makeover in 2020. They even used the radio station’s abandoned logo. Like the indiepunk pop songs, something modern acidic and angry has taken up residence in a familiar, borrowed frame. You can throw yourself around to Swansea Sound like it’s 1986, but if you catch the lyrics you’ll remember you’re in 2021. 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Panic Pocket know how to turn anger and humour into brilliant pop songs.”  Panic Pocket will be the main support band at Heavenly’s sell-out London shows in May.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMany of \u003ci\u003eMad Half Hour\u003c\/i\u003e’s 10 indie-pop anthems are concerned with being at odds with life's accepted milestones, feeling alienated from the people you thought wanted the same things as you, while trying to forge your own path. So the top-down janglepop of ‘Boyfriend’ reflects on what happens when your best friend finds love…and insists on bringing it everywhere, and ‘Get Me’ answers claustrophobic questions about ‘settling down’ with a not-so-silent scream over some deliciously dirty riffs.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eBut Panic Pocket’s superpower is their sense of fun. 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From receiving a cryptic “frog emoji” from a long-forgotten one-night stand, to ‘Don’t Get Me Started’’s streetlit walk of shame “via Morrisons car park”, no memory is off-limits, no matter how painful.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIf you want punkpop exuberance, lyrics that are so truthful they hurt, plus some very infectious tunes - then \u003ci\u003eMad Half Hour\u003c\/i\u003e is exactly the soundtrack you need, right down to the minute.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50463727976779,"sku":"2015998","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50463729516875,"sku":"2016000","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0-1_ce6ec95c_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727266003"},{"product_id":"im-not-sure-at-all","title":"Im Not Sure At All","description":"\u003cp\u003eMarlody’s first album\u003ci\u003e I’m Not Sure At All\u003c\/i\u003e takes anxiety, weakness, fear - and turns them into strength: powerful melodies, the sweetest harmonies you ever heard, and lyrics that insist on the possibility of hope, without losing sight of the possibility of despair.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDominated by her extraordinary keyboard playing, Marlody’s songs are illuminated - and sometimes made sinister - by occasional bursts of programmed percussion, submarine bass and distant, chiming digital bells. These are deep, darkly beautiful pop songs.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhen she was a girl, Marlody was one of the higher-achieving classical pianists of her generation, winning competitions and destined for greatness.  She hated it, and threw it all away.  In the intervening years, putting more and more distance between herself and her classical origins, she listened to Yo La Tengo and Shellac and a hundred other things that took music to new, untutored extremes.  \u003ci\u003eI’m Not Sure At All\u003c\/i\u003e is the outcome. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMarlody’s painful personal journey is not glossed over in the lyrics: Words is about the debilitating effect of psychiatric medication; Malevolence is about the horrible urge to commit inexcusable violence; Friends in Low Places is a remarkable hymn of solidarity with all those people who’ve contemplated taking their own lives.  But the songs are strangely uplifting: they offer up their truths so calmly and are so generously wrapped in harmonies that they feel like gifts.  There are great stories here too: Summer takes a child’s point of view, describing the beginnings of new life after the loss of a parent.  Wrong relates the history of an adulterous affair, with a piercing sympathy for the emotional state of the adulterer.  \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThere are musical echoes: the infectiousness and daring of some of the vocal melodies might remind you of Kate Bush, the intimacy might remind you of Cate Le Bon, the stabs of anger and pain might remind you of Liz Phair.  The keyboard is sometimes as smooth as Fleetwood Mac; other times it’s as raucous and distorted as Quasi.  The harmonies are from another place again – you could imagine hearing them in an Unthanks recording. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"White LP","offer_id":50465256276299,"sku":"2004902","price":21.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50465256046923,"sku":"2004901","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0-2_f50e711e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727284012"},{"product_id":"le-jardin-de-heavenly","title":"Le Jardin De Heavenly","description":"\u003cp\u003eBy the time their second album was ready to roll Heavenly were an established part of the Sarah Records stable in the UK and honorary members of the International Pop Underground in the USA, where \u003ci\u003eLe Jardin De Heavenly \u003c\/i\u003ewas released by K Records.  The songs on the album are rich with pop melodies and complex harmonies but the band aren’t holding back – Mathew’s drumming is intense; Peter’s guitar flourishes are sharp-edged and loud.  There are still elements of the gentler twee sound that had become the band’s hallmark (or curse): Different Day and So Little Deserve are winsome, delicate pop songs.  But there are also swirls of early shoegaze – Starshy is a dreamy, atmospheric confection heavy with reverb and harmony. And there’s a defiant attitude in there too: I’m Not Scared Of You is the sound of a young woman refusing to be cowed by a male bully.  It’s not hard to see how Heavenly ended up as part of the riot grrrl scene in the US (an encounter that would have a profound influence on the band’s later output).  At the heart of the album, ‘C Is The Heavenly Option’ feels like a perfect celebration of Heavenly’s transatlantic existence, and the marriage of two indie traditions: Amelia’s English pop voice duets with Calvin Johnson’s gravelly American baritone while the band alternate between cute melody and all-out thrash.  It’s a joyous combination.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe eight-track album was released by Sarah Records and by K Records.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Skep Wax re-issue of \u003ci\u003eLe Jardin De Heavenly\u003c\/i\u003e includes Heavenly’s third Sarah Records single – So Little Deserve\/I’m Not Scared Of You’ and the first K Records single - ‘She Says\/Escort Crash On Marston Street’.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50466282930507,"sku":"2013808","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0-1_328fe411_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727310166"},{"product_id":"under-the-bridge","title":"Under The Bridge","description":"\u003cp\u003eA compilation of new songs. 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With a casual, unpretentious air they made writing perfect pop songs seem easy, almost accidental, and several great releases followed. The Orchids gained a passionate following: people knew a good thing when they heard it and they hugged it close. But maybe now it’s time for the rest of the world to be let in on the secret.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe songs themselves are a beautiful mix of strength and gentleness. They wrap you in a powerful embrace, making you feel comfortable and secure – and then whisper their insecurities and anxieties into your ear. They say: ‘it’s OK to admit weakness. It’s OK to be fragile. That’s where true strength comes from’. From Glasgow, and proudly Scottish, the band shares a musical lineage with other great groups from that city, from Aztec Camera to Orange Juice, Lloyd Cole to Teenage Fanclub - bands that specialise in song-writing that can tell big stories through small personal fragments, that can make the ordinary extraordinary. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIan Carmichael has helped the band create a perfectly produced masterpiece. He subtly accentuates the drama of the songs, with a sophisticated choreography and gloss that never overwhelms the tenderness of the music. In ‘This Boy Is A Mess’ (the first single from the album), the lyric confesses frailty while the arrangement gets stronger and stronger. 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The promotional tour was cancelled, the surviving members of the band went into emotional hibernation and no-one could bring themselves to celebrate these vibrant, upbeat songs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo, this release by Skep Wax Records, nearly thirty years on, is more like an album launch than a re-issue. Time has healed most wounds, and the songs on \u003cem\u003eOperation Heavenly\u003c\/em\u003e feel like they can finally emerge onto the stage, with Mathew’s spirit very much alive: his effervescent witty drumming sounding as fresh now as it did then. These tracks are gleeful, melodic, sophisticated and knowing. The tough riot grrrl edge that Heavenly had developed a year before with seminal singles P.U.N.K. Girl and Atta Girl, has been blended with a deliberate quantity of Britpop styling. Heavenly were clearly listening to what was going on, liked the energy, but didn’t necessarily feel the need to join in. Some of the tracks (eg Ben Sherman) are as jaunty as early Blur, but the lyrics, mocking a narcissistic boyfriend for his obsession with hair, clothes and his own erections, show that Heavenly didn’t need or want to be part of the la - or even ladette – herd.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eOperation Heavenly\u003c\/em\u003e was the band’s first release on a label other than Sarah Records. Matt Haynes and Clare Wadd had brought that exceptional label to a deliberate and dramatic end. The liaison with US punk label K Records continued – as did the duets with Calvin Johnson: Pet Monkey is a moving duet between a growling Calvin Johnson and a sweet-voiced Cathy Rogers, as they dramatize another complex, maybe doomed relationship, with another self-centred boy finding himself frustrated by a girl who won’t take any shit. But in the UK, Heavenly needed to find a new home - and Wiija Records were welcoming hosts, ushering the band into a brasher, less cloistered world: the production on this album is brighter than before, the artwork is colourful and upbeat. With tracks as catchy and as complete as Fat Lenny, Trophy Girlfriend and Space Manatee there was an expectation that Heavenly might finally emerge from the indiepop shadows and trouble the charts. And who knows if this might have happened. Mathew was lost before the album was released, and the band had no choice but to bring things to an end.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis reissue also contains two tracks that appeared on the B side of the 7” single of Space Manatee. They are both cover versions, and along with Serge Gainsbourg’s Nous Ne Sommes Pas Des Anges on the main album, these vivacious assaults on Art School by The Jam and You Tore Me Down by The Flamin’ Groovies show that the band, briefly in its prime, could happily embrace any variant of pop music and make it something Heavenly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":51826326798667,"sku":"R0938-6842","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Heavenly_OperationHeavenly.png?v=1747390928"},{"product_id":"portland-town","title":"Portland Town","description":"\u003cp\u003eIt’s been a long time coming but influential indiepop band \u003cstrong\u003eHeavenly\u003c\/strong\u003e release a brand new 7” single. \u003cem\u003ePortland Town\u003c\/em\u003e is as effervescent a pop song as any of Heavenly’s past recordings, with duelling vocals from Amelia and Cathy; looping, twanging, ‘how-did-he-do-that’ guitar escapades from Peter, and a super-catchy melody.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs so often with Heavenly, though, the lyrics have real bite. The song embraces those who find themselves on the margins of a hostile world where maleness, straightness and conformity are in the ascendant. So why Portland? It has always been a sanctuary – one of those places where difference is celebrated, a place where, as the song puts it, anyone can fit in.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe B side is a cover version of a much-loved Only Ones song, \u003cem\u003eSomeone Who Cares\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"7\" - Yellow","offer_id":51969968767307,"sku":"R5888-5424","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Heavenlya_PortlandTown7_904bb461-3ec6-477a-be80-153a84f6e97e.jpg?v=1752254069"},{"product_id":"oasis-v-blur-pacio-r-fan","title":"Oasis v Blur \/ Pacio’r Fan","description":"\u003cp\u003e2025 is a special Britpop anniversary year, and Swansea Sound are keen to celebrate this summer’s coming together of every single music-lover in the UK with the release of their new single Oasis v Blur. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe song probably sounds more like The Fall getting into bed with The Sweet, but that’s just the way it turned out. \u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe B side, Pacio’r Fan, is about a journey back to a remembered teenage time, when idealism still burned and the world was full of potential. It is a wistful song, but it’s hopeful too: the idealistic flame is still there if you seek it out. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"7\" - Purple","offer_id":51969980760395,"sku":"R7396-4933","price":8.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/SwanseaSounda_OasisvBlur7.jpg?v=1749205651"},{"product_id":"the-cords","title":"The Cords","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Cords have released the best indie pop album of 2025. It has songs, style and will stick in your head for the rest of your life. Simply the best.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eComprised of sisters Eva and Grace Tedeschi, the duo began playing drums at a young age. Their love for 80s and 90s indie music led them to form a band together, with Grace on drums and Eva on guitar.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe sisters quickly gained popularity, with their cassette and flexi single selling out in hours. They played gigs with renowned Scottish pop bands like The Vaselines, Camera Obscura, and Belle and Sebastian, as well as newer indiepop groups like the Umbrellas and Chime School. The Cords' eagerly-awaited debut album will be co-released by Skep Wax and Slumberland Records.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTheir music has been compared to bands like The Shop Assistants and Talulah Gosh, but with a unique dreamy melodic power that sets them apart. The album features catchy pop tunes like \"\u003cem\u003eFabulist\u003c\/em\u003e\" and \"\u003cem\u003eJust Don’t Know (How To Be You)\u003c\/em\u003e\", as well as more introspective tracks like \"\u003cem\u003eOctober\u003c\/em\u003e\" and \"\u003cem\u003eWhen You Said Goodbye\u003c\/em\u003e\". Produced by Jonny Scott and Simon Liddel, the record showcases Eva's sinuous guitar and silky vocals, along with Grace's expressive drumming.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Special Purple \/ Signed | Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":52881003479371,"sku":"R2592-4543","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Baby Blue","offer_id":52881003512139,"sku":"R2592-2457","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52881003544907,"sku":"R2592-5664","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Cords-Cords_93ca183f-dacf-45c8-9dba-7878c5d7e701.jpg?v=1752250338"},{"product_id":"monster-of-the-week","title":"Monster Of The Week","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTulpa - it's love at first listen. It hints at Teenage Fanclub, Altered Images, Pavement, Josef K and the Wedding Present - but really only hints. It's such a joyous mix and instantly brilliant\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003e.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWhat is a Tulpa?\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIt’s a mythical being manifested into existence through the act of concentrated thought, like an imaginary friend brought to life, but (sometimes) scarier…\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis album has some of the same qualities. A whole set of loud, catchy, perfectly-crafted pop songs have been conjured into existence - and want to be part of your life. Josie’s hyper-melodic lead vocals are cool and crystalline - but the lyrics are warm and human. The twin guitars create a sonic mesh, a web of textures that traps you, whether you like it or not. And yes, something scarier does lie below the surface. Occasionally the guitars force their way to the front, furious and intense. And sometime those lyrics aren’t as innocent as they first appear. The danger, just below the surface of the songs, is maybe that’s what makes this album so arresting…\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eTulpa consist of Josie Kirk (vocals, bass), Daniel Hyndman (guitar), Myles Kirk (guitar) and Mike Ainsley (Drums), and are based in Leeds. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIt was recorded by Jamie Lockhart (The Cribs, Mush, Drahla), the first to be produced at his new studio at Lamigo Bay, in the Highlands of Scotland.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Pink | Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":53338125107531,"sku":"R9654-7157","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":53338125140299,"sku":"R9654-9827","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":53338125173067,"sku":"R9654-2728","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Tulpa-MonsterOfTheWeek.jpg?v=1757333910"},{"product_id":"all-is-calm","title":"All is Calm","description":"\u003cp\u003eFor the last three years Swansea Sound have released a Yuletide single, and they are at it again this year, with two new songs. \u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003ePrevious seasonal offerings have manifested as CDs inside greetings cards.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eBut this time, the two new tracks are presented on a vinyl album along with the previous six songs, creating a perfect soundtrack for a sad and angry Christmas.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe new songs:\u003ci\u003e Not My Order\u003c\/i\u003e is about the neurosis and existential angst that are the inevitable result of hurried online shopping.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eClick It And Pay (Walking In The Air), \u003c\/i\u003ea rewritten version of a song from the band’s acclaimed ‘Twentieth Century’ album, continues the theme.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eDesperate online consumer Hue Williams enjoys a duet with harassed warehouse fulfilment operative (Amelia Fletcher).\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eHue orders a load of crap in a panicked frenzy, she struggles to pick the items he’s chosen and worries if she’ll be sanctioned by her managers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSwansea Sound’s Christmas isn’t just about consumerism though.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eOn \u003ci\u003eHappy Christmas To Me \u003c\/i\u003ewe get to share the festive joy of the billionaires who own the warehouses and the social media platforms.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eOn \u003ci\u003eSanta Bail Me Out, \u003c\/i\u003ewe experience the optimistic dreams of someone who can’t afford to buy anything but knows a friendly load-shark in a jolly red coat.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003e(I Wanna Wear A) Mirrored Hat Like Slade \u003c\/i\u003eis genuinely festive, celebrating the hit song that still provides the best soundtrack to Christmas parties five decades after it was written.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eDreamland \u003c\/i\u003eis a tale of a trip to a really nasty Christmas theme park.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Life We Led \u003c\/i\u003eis a heartfelt song about doomed nostalgia and bewilderment.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eThe album is rounded off with a rollicking version of Cheap Trick’s \u003ci\u003eMerry Christmas Darlings\u003c\/i\u003e.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e  \u003c\/span\u003eThe ‘party sequence’ at the end sees the return of everyone’s favourite oligarchs, as they trade corporate mission statements over glasses of wine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEnjoy Christmas with Swansea Sound this year!\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":53637696618827,"sku":"R3288-6996","price":21.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/a2309176592_16.jpg?v=1761752270"},{"product_id":"when-britain-was-great","title":"When Britain Was Great","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eIf one LP could act as a refutation of the toxic culture of ‘masculine energy’ and the tech bro-sponsored whipping up of hatred that blights our lives - this is it. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eIt is true of Steve Miles’ lyrics.  Nostalgia for an imagined past where men were men, and racism was de rigeur is eviscerated in title track When Britain Was Great.  Fetishisation of a World War by patriots who are too pumped up to realise the war was a fight against Nazism is picked apart in Angels In The Clouds.  And the clumsy, half-arsed struggle to seek something better, to try to escape the trap of cynical acceptance of it all, is sardonically observed in the comically accident-prone Falling Down The Stairs With Arthur Seaton. All this is interspersed with deeply personal tracks like The Space She Left, unflinchingly exposing emotional vulnerability and anxiety, and with carefree pop songs, still able to access the wide-eyed wisdom of childhood: The Sea Is A Pirate’s Best Friend expresses a kind of joy that we all had once, but have lost contact with.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003eThe music is a refutation of ‘masculine energy’ too.  Sometimes echoing the casual, intimate, fragile tones of the TV Personalities, the songs are bluntly emotional but shamelessly catchy.  On other occasions - louder occasions - the echo of an angry Wreckless Eric riff can be heard.  The warmth and gentleness of the vocal might remind you of Jonathan Richman.  The experimentation - the brass section, the feedback, the occasional reggae rhythm – is reminiscent of the earliest, fearless phase of punk adventurism – The Slits, The Mekons, The Desperate Bicycles even.  Punk before it regressed to Rock.  This hand-made music is the opposite of AI-generated crud.  Every bit of it, even the chaotic bits – especially the chaotic bits - are deliberate and meticulously thought through.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAlong with the vinyl LP, Skep Wax will also release a special CD single featuring just one track: School Report, a 17-minute pop song in which a diary of an anxiety-ridden day is punctuated with readings from the singer’s school report: the acid, dismissive remarks made by uncaring teachers years ago echoing cruelly down the years. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eWhen Britain Was Great\u003c\/em\u003e is a punk record.  It is also an angry, gentle, heartfelt plea for humanity. For fans of Billy Bragg, The TV Personalities, Wreckless Eric.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Red","offer_id":55864813158731,"sku":"R4026-4497","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/EuropeanSun_WhenBritainWasGreat.jpg?v=1762630826"},{"product_id":"tears-before-bedtime","title":"Tears Before Bedtime","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTears Before Bedtime\u003c\/em\u003e is the sparkling new album by the Would-be-goods, Jessica Griffin’s band of pop adventurers. Since The Camera Loves Me, their cult classic 1988 debut for the legendary él Records, they have blazed a musical trail through indie guitar pop, with a garage band edge and forays into other territories - glam rock, tango, French chanson… The result is unique and timeless. The songs on\u003cem\u003e Tears Before Bedtime\u003c\/em\u003e balance delicacy and power. Perfect pop melodies are delivered in Jessica’s gorgeous and idiosyncratic voice. Her lyrics are intelligent and wry, wistful and witty. Every song tells a story, taking us on a journey through space and time, from belle époque Paris to a 1960s London biker café, from a riverbank in ancient Greece to a 1970s teenage bedroom.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eListening to a Would-be-goods album is like wandering through a gallery of portraits. Innocence gives way to experience. Danger lurks amid the lights of the funfair in the 1950s carousel whirl of The Gallopers. The sinister Dr Love promises heaven but sends you down to hell, to the sound of a last dance in a smoky soul basement. A nymph meets a god in disguise in a garage-band take on a Greek myth (Tears for Leda). The Rose Tattoo is the tale of a doomed love in a sultry Southern state. Don't Come Crying To Me flames an ex-lover to the sound of Bollywood horns and shivery guitar. In Madame X a portrait painter vents his fury on a spoilt socialite beauty. The album closes with a sweetly jazzy lullaby (The Moon Doesn't Mind). The Would-be-goods began playing as a full band in the 2000s and have been previewing some of these songs at recent shows in England, Scotland, France, and Spain. The album was recorded in London with Jessica on guitar and vocals, Peter Momtchiloff (Heavenly, Talulah Gosh) on guitar, Debbie Greensmith (Thee Headcoatees and many others) on drums, and Andy Warren (The Monochrome Set, Adam and the Ants) on bass. Guest musicians have contributed organ, piano, vibraphone, cello, trumpet, and flute to make this the richest-sounding Would-be-goods record yet.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":55932371796299,"sku":"R1734-9575","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":55932371829067,"sku":"R1734-8982","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/unnamed_14_cacbc8c8-5c29-4a42-a22c-6c4df93bb03c.jpg?v=1763479882"},{"product_id":"highway-to-heavenly","title":"Highway To Heavenly","description":"\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHeavenly are seen as the originators of a whole genre of music – known to some as ‘jangle’, others as ‘twee’ and to the band themselves as ‘indiepop’.  As fiercely independent as any punk band, but as sweetly melodic as any chart-topping act, Heavenly combine sharp-edged politics with shamelessly joyful pop music.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eHighway To Heavenly\u003c\/em\u003e shares this recipe with the band’s first four albums, all of which were released in the 1990s at a time when sensitive indie types in the UK were sheltering from the prevailing macho-rock storm under the Sarah Records umbrella, and when women in the US were starting to find their Riot Grrrl voices in the small town of Olympia, where labels like K and Kill Rock Stars were designing a new creative space.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHeavenly were on Sarah Records in the UK and on K in the US - and maybe this is a useful shorthand for understanding the band’s ability to meld the attitude of American Riot Grrrl bands with the pop charms of the English indie scene.  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIn terms of style, Heavenly presented an androgynous look – short hair and pinafores for Amelia and Cathy - while Peter Rob and Mathew determinedly avoided the theatrics of male rock.  Heavenly did not want to fit in with the hyper-gendered corporate music scene of the 1990s, and the band have stayed determinedly independent ever since (this new album is released on Rob and Amelia’s Skep Wax label).  \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe new songs are full of anger, of grief, of empathy, of love, and set themselves in opposition to the resurgence of the cold ‘masculine energy’ that is making the world a miserable, aggressive place today.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHeavenly have recently enjoyed a huge resurgence of interest from a younger generation of fans, who have cottoned on to Heavenly’s music, but also embraced the band’s inclusive version of feminism. \u003ci\u003ePortland Town \u003c\/i\u003eis a joyful celebration of a place where diversity is welcomed. \u003ci\u003ePress Return \u003c\/i\u003eis a demolition of those men who think technology and wealth make them winners rather than sad losers. \u003ci\u003eExcuse Me \u003c\/i\u003eis an outburst of punk energy, as effervescent as a song on the first Undertones album, gleefully celebrating a teenage romance with the nerdiest boy in school. \u003ci\u003eA Different Beat \u003c\/i\u003etells the entire story of a doomed relationship, its heroine falling for and then escaping from an oppressive man, before heading for the metaphorical disco of freedom. Heavenly have clearly been to a disco or two lately: opening track \u003ci\u003eScene Stealing\u003c\/i\u003e feels like a distant cousin of Blondie’s ‘Heart Of Glass’ and tells the story of self-obsessed YouTube influencers who don’t know how to treat women with respect.  By contrast, album closer \u003ci\u003eThat Last Day \u003c\/i\u003emay be most poignant song about bereavement you will hear all year, certainly the only one you’ll want to sing along to.  It’s all pop here, but \u003ci\u003eHighway To Heavenly\u003c\/i\u003e has a huge range of tones and moods.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe band comprises original members Amelia Fletcher, Peter Momtchiloff, Cathy Rogers and Rob Pursey, who are now joined on drums by Ian Button.  (An important element of the Heavenly story was the loss of Mathew Fletcher, who took his own life just before the fourth album was released.  It took Amelia, Peter, Cathy and Rob a long time to get over the loss; maybe it took even longer to find a drummer as good as Ian.)  The new Heavenly have played a number of sell-out shows in the past couple of years, where older fans have mingled with new devotees.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Coke \/ Signed Postcard \/ Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":56137805922635,"sku":"R0077-9476","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - White","offer_id":56146566480203,"sku":"R0077-3514","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":56146566512971,"sku":"R0077-0710","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/a3850842468_16.jpg?v=1766045877"},{"product_id":"clipping","title":"Clipping","description":"\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSpecial Friend have become the masters of weaving elegant and sophisticated pop musical webs while staying true to their low-fi indiepop roots. The French\/American duo (Guillaume on guitar and vocals, Erica on drums and vocals) manage to create a sound like no other band.  When they play live, audiences marvel at the huge, intricate structures the band construct, while falling in love with the crystal-clear vocal melodies that are threaded in between the shards of guitar and the rattle of the drums. How can a duo achieve so much?  UK audiences will be able to ponder this question in March: Special Friend are coming over from France to do a substantial tour of the UK. These shows are highly recommended!\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe new album is more diverse that the last, with the high-tempo indiepop of first single ‘Breakfast’, the majestic, Yo La Tengo-like dreampop of ‘Clipping’ and the country-ish, gentle, homesick melancholy of ‘Isolation’.  Final track ‘OOO’ is a bold piece of Krautrock-inspired experimentation; ‘Mold’ is a beautiful slice of slowcore and opener ‘Paint A Picture’ is modern pop at its catchiest and most direct. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eClipping\u003c\/em\u003e, the album title, refers to the discipline of pruning growth back, removing dead wood to create a perfectly shaped tree with abundant blossoms: an accurate description of the album, and of the songs that hang from its elegant branches.  The album artwork is by Erica: Special Friend are in control of every aspect of this elegant artefact.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cem\u003eClipping\u003c\/em\u003e was recorded in 2025 at Studio Claudio by Alexis Fugain and Margaux Bouchaudon. Set in an isolated rural environment conducive to immersion, the band had seven days in the studio—significantly more than for previous records—allowing for greater care in the recording process, particularly for vocals and arrangements. Several tracks feature synthesizers and organs, acoustic guitar, and even an electric bass on “Sanctuary,” a first for Special Friend.  Overall, the record benefits from a more developed and detailed production while preserving the band’s direct approach and spontaneity.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"MsoNormal\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe album was mixed by Syd Kemp, who has worked with artists such as Thurston Moore, Ulrika Spacek, Caroline, Crack Cloud, and Vanishing Twin.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":56311592517963,"sku":"R9463-5387","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Orange \/ Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":56312148263243,"sku":"R9463-7531","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/SpecialFriend_Clipping.jpg?v=1768494998"},{"product_id":"pets-sounds","title":"Pets Sounds","description":"\u003cp\u003e15 pop songs about animals by 15 of the best indiepop bands in the world: \u003cem\u003ePets Sounds \u003c\/em\u003eis as simple as that. Ranging from the playful (Sassyhiya, Gay Skeleton Club) to the heartbreaking (Caleb Nichols, Jetstream Pony) to the enigmatic (Railcard, Oh Hippo) to the satiric (The Magnetic Fields, Brian Bilston and The Catenary Wires), there’s more diversity on this album than you can shake a stick at. Or throw a bone at. The LP comes with a full colour insert and the CD comes with a booklet featuring artwork by Elodie Ginsbourg.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMusicians spend a lot of time working at home, with their pets for company. The pets sit around, happy in their own worlds, sublimely indifferent to their humans’ endeavours. As familiar as family members, but as unknowable as aliens, pets are the perfect muse. They can be treated as objects of adoration – ‘Rufus’ by Tugboat Captain is an expression of pure joy – or they can be treated as metaphors. More reliable than lovers but less dangerous than heroin, pets are a great vehicle for singing obliquely about something else. Swansea Sound’s ‘I Don’t Like Men In Uniform’ is about an ageing, irascible terrier, but it’s also about men striving to maintain their potency as territorial aggressors. The Magnetic Fields’ ‘Fido, Your Leash Is too Long’ is a libidinous and unreliable partner, as well as a dog that likes sniffing other dogs’ private parts.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFor the most part, animals come off better than humans on this album. In ‘Kings Of The Animal Kingdom’, The Burning Hell dramatise our indulgent love of pets in order to expose our cruelty to other human beings. In ‘Bo’s New Haircut’, The Cords express the injustice and unfairness of an innocent animal having to submit to human demands. In ‘Crayon Potato’ by Sassyhiya, the magnificent Crayon contemptuously rejects the gifts offered by her besotted human owners.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn ‘Lola’, the opening track, Lande Hekt tries to put this enigmatic human-animal relationship into words. And concludes that however much we love our animals, and no matter how much we manage to communicate with them, we can never really know them. A melancholy conclusion maybe, but the music – as with all the songs on this album – is expressive of the wonderment and the joy that comes from sharing your life with a member of another species. The tracks by Brian Bilston and The Catenary Wires, Jetstream Pony and Railcard are previously unreleased. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eTracklisting:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e01. Lande Hekt - Lola\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e02. Brian Bilston And The Catenary Wires - Under A Cat\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e03. The Cords - Bo’s New Haircut\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e04. Railcard - Foxy\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e05. Tugboat Captain - Rufus\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e06. Special Friend - Breakfast\u003c\/div\u003e\n\u003cdiv\u003e07. 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The shared history, the same pop references, the parallel lives… Railcard had to happen, and there was no time to lose. \u003cem\u003eTwo Steps At A Time\u003c\/em\u003e - the album title and theme song - express exactly how quickly Railcard have worked since then - jumping over pavement cracks and whistling past graveyards to get these songs written, recorded and released while they are still sweet and fresh.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe band released three digital EPs in early 2026, which were then gathered onto a CD and released by Skep Wax and Slumberland. They sold out very quickly. The critical response to a mail-order-only CD was far greater than anyone expected.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRailcard made their live debut in December 2025 and had by then recruited their fourth member: Allison Thomson (Trash Can Sinatras, The Love Band), whose flawless trumpet and swirly keyboard-playing complete the Railcard sound, allowing the band to fulfil the significant ambition and range of the songs, which are mostly co-written and often co-sung by Love and Button. “Flannelette” and “Sunday Sun”, delicate and swoony, could almost be Slapp Happy at their most Bacharach. “Foxy”, mysterious and charming, has more than a hint of Kate Bush December magic. The raucous duet “I’m A Disaster” is The Kinks meets deadpan Shangri-Las. The title track could have been an alternative theme tune for Whatever Happened To The Likely Lads. “Runaround” is like a school choir doing The Raincoats. “Unstable Neighbour” is mesmerising and insistent: it might make you think of Stereolab; we might imagine an indiepop Hawkwind. 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Based in Chorley, Lancashire, siblings \u003cstrong\u003eBobby Townson\u003c\/strong\u003e and \u003cstrong\u003eEmma Townson\u003c\/strong\u003e write, record and create everything themselves, building a sound that feels immediate, ambitious and unmistakably theirs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOpener \u003cem\u003eLie Down With Dogs, Stand Up With Fleas\u003c\/em\u003e takes aim at weak authority, while \u003cem\u003ePolka Dot Eyes\u003c\/em\u003e follows Lancashire school friends returning from the Army physically and mentally damaged. Across the album, dark humour, social observation and personal reflections meet choruses that hit hard.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eScary Movies\u003c\/em\u003e looks back at their grandfather’s love of horror, \u003cem\u003eJust Like Them\u003c\/em\u003e celebrates introversion, and \u003cem\u003eBlame Game\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eThunder Claps\u003c\/em\u003e dig into relationship tensions. 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This album is loud and it’s outspoken, but it’s also energetic, emotional and very witty.  There’s an awareness of impotence too: the songs are often self-mocking, asking if it’s even possible to make subversive statements in a world where the communication channels are all owned by the tech-bros themselves.   \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eThe Grease That Oils the Wheels, \u003c\/i\u003ea runaway train of a song, Amelia and Hue sing three duets: in the first part, they’re a young couple struggling to make ends meet in a gig economy dominated by Uber and Deliveroo; in the second they are in a middle class band, arguing how much money they should spend on online influencers to achieve digital fame, and in the third they are a wealthy political couple (think Nick Clegg and his wife) who’ve traded in their political influence to secure lucrative jobs advising big-tech companies.  The one thing all three pairs have in common is that they are totally expendable: they are merely the grease that oils the wheels.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e20mph, \u003c\/i\u003emusically more akin to Wire or The Ruts, presents a tech-bro who is surprised how easy it is to stir his British followers up into a frenzy of fascistic rage – ‘\u003ci\u003eI thought they’d go for trans\/but no, it’s speeding bans’.  \u003c\/i\u003eThe choruses feature the fired-up mob, chanting the song title as they head out to destroy another speed camera and replace it with a Union Jack.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOther tracks come at the same theme from different angles: the poignant, chiming Flamin Groovies-like \u003ci\u003eOn Our Own \u003c\/i\u003etraces the history of a building and the people who inhabited it: once upon a time it was a small venue where the band first played; in the 80s it was demolished to make way for an office block, giving employment to the white collar working class (‘\u003ci\u003ethe work was dull but paid enough’\u003c\/i\u003e), and now the building lies empty: all those clerical jobs have been sucked up by AI.  The friends who played and worked together don’t hang out any more because they are all stuck at home, doom-scrolling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut there’s no point getting nostalgic.  As the title of the album suggests, the pre-post-truth era of innocence is long-gone, if it existed at all. The eerie psych pop of \u003ci\u003eThat Life \u003c\/i\u003esees the band immersed in a haze of memory, struggling to access some Utopian space that may be a pre-tech world, or may be childhood – it’s hard to separate the two.  \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEither way, it has disappeared.  And, as \u003ci\u003eMean To Be Mean \u003c\/i\u003ereminds us, it wasn’t that great in the past anyway: a world dominated by well-paid opinion-formers, mostly male, who had the power to police our culture.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Clear \/ Signed \/ Rough Trade Exclusive","offer_id":58234353320267,"sku":"R9777-0299","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Turquoise","offer_id":58235216003403,"sku":"R9777-9245","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":58235216036171,"sku":"R9777-6323","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/img-a85bb78d-c74a-45bb-93e0-f716e57f1cc8.jpg?v=1787506463"},{"product_id":"northernhay","title":"Northernhay","description":"\u003cp\u003eSkep Wax are proud to present a second album by The Gentle Spring. Michael Hiscock, co-founder of legendary indiepop band The Field Mice, along with his new cohorts Émilie Guillaumot and Jérémie Orsel have created an album that combines wisdom, wistfulness, reflections on love and celebrations of community - all threaded through a set of songs whose melodic power and sheer catchiness recall The Field Mice at their best.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe music is more upbeat than on debut album \u003cem\u003eLooking Back At The World\u003c\/em\u003e. The shimmering acoustic guitars and sinuous bass are still present, but this time Michael’s and Émilie’s voices are accompanied by drums and percussion. With this new recipe, the songs sometimes remind you of early Microdisney, and sometimes The Pet Shop Boys, with deadpan, considered, unvarnished, but deeply emotive human vocals, and an insistent rhythm that drives on regardless.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe album title,\u003cem\u003e Northernhay\u003c\/em\u003e, is a clue to the inspirations that drive the songwriting. It is the name of a winding street that led from the Croydon suburbs where Michael lived as a kid, leading out to a wilderness, surprisingly close to the city, where foxes are seen, where the streetlights don’t penetrate - where you can get lost: one of those places where you first discover that the world is awesome, mysterious, deeply romantic and unknowable. The track We Let Our Feelings Show picks up directly on this reminiscence. It’s the celebration of the early days of forming a band, The Field Mice in Michael’s case, where he and a trusted friend first realised that you could capture some of the romance, mystery and awesomeness of the world in song. A blissful, exciting time, beautifully and sincerely rendered. Northernhay is very good at reminding us of the joys and of the freedoms that we start to take for granted - these songs are able to access the wonderment that we first experienced when we were young. The Second City is another song that achieves this. Hometown Croydon, sometimes dismissed as a mere suburb of London, an adjunct of the fashionable capital, is celebrated as the place where the magic began. A place where books and records could be found, creative friendships forged, and freedom discovered. It’s a sincere tribute to those uniform new towns and mundane streets where most of our creativity is born - the backwaters are where most great songs are written.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Gentle Spring are based in Paris now, a long way from the suburbs. Two thirds French, one third English, there is a cosmopolitan sophistication to their music as well as an emotional directness. Lives have been lived, and the realities of love and of liberty have been experienced. Some of the songs on Northernhay counterpoint the idealism of youth with a very adult assessment of what actually happens when you grow up. Infectious pop song Down With Love is a witty, tongue-in-cheek dismissal of the oppression than can accompany emotional attachments. Could I Ever Feel The Same Again reflects on the pressure to be ‘in love’, to subscribe to the magazines that process it, to buy the products that will make it more likely. Émilie’s voice is important here: women and men are both trapped by a world that prioritises conventional romance. But it’s the women who bear the brunt of that pressure.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCutting Me In Two, which would not be out of place blasting out at a late-night indie disco with its insistent bass drum and melodic bass guitar line, makes us realise that we may be adults now, but it’s still impossible to navigate a relationship without experiencing wrenching pain. Some things don’t change! Love hurts, and it always will.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSo let’s dance to that, but then play the album again - and have another listen to opening track Tied To You. It’s another upbeat pop song with a big heart. But this track spills over with positive feelings of love.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe song is a metaphor for the whole album: \u003cem\u003eNothernhay\u003c\/em\u003e is a box full of precious items that will move you, remind you of what you love, and rekindle those feelings of idealism and optimism you thought you’d forgotten. Love and community are the two most valuable things we have, Northernhay concludes. But neither of these precious commodities are easily won – and both can easily be lost.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Skep Wax Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":58968297472331,"sku":"R3676-2023","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":58968297505099,"sku":"R3676-2580","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/GentleSpring-Northernhay.jpg?v=1792768414"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/collections\/skep-wax-records.oembed?page=3","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}