{"title":"Circuitry","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"lyceum","title":"Lyceum","description":"\u003cp\u003eHailing from the suburbs of Glasgow, this five-piece are best known for their three starry-eyed albums on the renowned Sarah Records - this being an expanded version of their first (an eight-track 10” at the time).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBy the tail end of the 1980s, the independent music scene in the UK was turning its back on the polish and over-indulgence of the mid-80s with its gated drums and wallpaper production. Influences were more likely to be Television and the Television Personalities than MTV. The Orchids and The Sea Urchins were the first two bands to release 7” singles on the Sarah label.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Scottish five-piece released \u003cem\u003e‘I’ve Got a Habit’\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003e‘Underneath the Window, Underneath the Sink’\u003c\/em\u003e as EPs before really finding their feet with \u003cem\u003e‘Lyceum’\u003c\/em\u003e. The album opens with \u003cem\u003e‘It’s Only Obvious’\u003c\/em\u003e and its gloriously youthful chorus of “who needs tomorrow when all I need, all I needed was you”. James Hackett somehow appears both forthright and rejected, something that one of their musical heroes The Go-Betweens also had down to a fine art.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis record by \u003cstrong\u003eThe Orchids\u003c\/strong\u003e was a spirited source of comfort for an 18-year-old at the time and still shudders with the best type of melancholy, one that’s spirited not indulgent. If you’re not familiar with the band’s charm, this is where you should begin.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e2LP - Remastered from the original Toad Hall Studios tapes. Includes 10 bonus tracks from \u003cstrong\u003eThe Orchids'\u003c\/strong\u003e first 3 singles on Sarah Records. Standard weight double black vinyl with printed inner sleeves.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Circuitry","offers":[{"title":"2LP - Black","offer_id":52772580065611,"sku":"R4748-3256","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52772580098379,"sku":"R4748-7570","price":10.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/PLEXUS001_b9a39891-da85-4f86-b174-c9b8afccc754.jpg?v=1752298820"},{"product_id":"slippin-out","title":"Slippin’ Out","description":"\u003cp\u003eRemastered 25th anniversary edition on vinyl for the first time and on Digipack CD. Having ended the 90s with the spirited \u003cem\u003eLaughing Mostly\u003c\/em\u003e compilation of singles and demos (\u003ci\u003eGuardian Album Of The Week\u003c\/i\u003e) Delta finally released their debut studio album of twelve songs in the summer of 2000 on the Dishy Recordings label. Accepting that this might be their sole studio album the band threw everything at these recordings allowing it to exist in its own sphere, unbothered by their contemporary generation and disregarding the idea of even releasing a single.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRecorded at DEP International there was a notable difference to the scruffier, looser charm of their 1990s recordings, a tighter focus developed by having the experienced Lenny Franchi mixing the LP with them. Lenny had been working with a number of Island artists including My Bloody Valentine and Tricky so knew his way around a desk. There was also the question of budget (a few months passed between recording and mixing whilst funds were raised) so every day counted. Ultimately though you can hear the joy in the recordings, even amongst the melancholy and angst. As James recently recalled in an interview in Shindig! Magazine: “It was such a big deal for us. It’s one of my fondest memories doing that record. Everyone was happy. If there’s anything that I’d stand by, I think it would be that”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLouis Clark Jr joined the band towards the end of the ‘90s and brought a classically-trained element to the recordings particularly with his string arrangements. For ‘Cuckoo’, ‘I Want You’ and the prophetic ‘We Come Back’ Louis brought in eight players from the Birmingham Conservatoire; the baroque style is partly why the record often receives comparisons to Love’s ‘Forever Changes’.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOn release\u003cem\u003e Slippin’ Out\u003c\/em\u003e was a big favourite with writers at the NME, Mojo and The Guardian again and before long the band were signed to Mercury\/Universal for their second studio album ‘Hard Light’, a far more expensive and expansive love affair. It was a temporary palatial home where things quietly fell apart again, but that’s another chapter.\u003cspan class=\"Apple-converted-space\"\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Circuitry","offers":[{"title":"2LP - Black","offer_id":53526798696779,"sku":"R8221-8512","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":53526798729547,"sku":"R8221-6575","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"2LP - Purple","offer_id":56449993113931,"sku":"R8221-9287","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/PLEXUS002.jpg?v=1759507143"},{"product_id":"the-eighteenth-day-of-may","title":"The Eighteenth Day Of May","description":"\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eBeginning life as a trio in London, 2003, the original line-up consisted of Allison Brice (vocals, flute), Richard Olson (acoustic guitar) and Ben Phillipson (guitar, mandolin) before expanding the following year to include the rhythm section of Mark Nicholas (bass) and Karl Sabino (drums, autoharp) and finally Alison Cotton (viola). \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis being the mid zeros, the independent music scene in the UK was reluctant to embrace a sun-dazed folk band but this, their sole album, has gradually feathered a bed of affection amongst international folk fans. Twenty years on, the album is now rightfully seen as a trailblazer for the myriad alternative\/psych folk bands that emerged in its wake. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAndy Childs who signed the band originally takes up the story. “I first heard their music on a cover mounted CD with the much missed Comes With A Smile magazine and as far as I could tell no-one was making music like this anymore, certainly not with such panache and confidence. To my jaded ears it all sounded so uninhibited - old weird folk songs, Americana, original psych-folk, minimalist drones. Great melodies and all six of them could sing! A joyous, unfettered sound that could in one moment conjure up flashes of The Byrds and then effortlessly the spirit of Velvet Underground would drift through. They even covered a Spacemen 3 song. I loved the fact that they had the aplomb to tackle traditional folk songs like Lady Margaret and Flowers In The Forest and not be afraid to stamp their own identity on them. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eSigning them to the Hannibal label was straightforward. If anything the album somehow sounds fresh and undated, even better than it did in the day when perhaps eclecticism was out of synch with the times; its subtleties have become more apparent.” \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Circuitry","offers":[{"title":"2LP - Lime \/ Sherbert","offer_id":56813270171979,"sku":"R1901-4143","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"2CD","offer_id":56813270204747,"sku":"R1901-4392","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/PLEXUS003.jpg?v=1773680366"}],"url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/fr\/collections\/circuitry.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}