THE CAROUSEL Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz 1994

 

Discogs

Twee/indie folk/pop/ethereal group, featuring members of Heavenly, Razorcuts, Marine Research, Talulah Gosh, Sportique, and Saturn V.

Tracklist

1		Henry Please Don't Chop Off My Head	3:28
2		Sugarbowl	2:11
3		Like A Honey Bee (Honey Bee)	2:54
4		Truelove	2:42
5		Sidesaddle	2:38
6		Baby Sweetness	3:04
7		G.U.N.	2:52
8		My Boy And His Motorbike	3:15

SPORTIQUE Black Is A Very Popular Colour 1999

 

Discogs

Sportique Biography by Stewart Mason

After the demise of the popular late-'80s indie band the Razorcuts, singer/guitarist Gregory Webster did time in a couple of minor and short-lived side project bands, the Carousel and Saturn V, in his native Oxford, England, before forming Sportique in 1997. Although the band is otherwise entirely composed of people with other musical duties (keyboardist and singer Amelia Fletcher and bassist Rob Pursey have worked together in Talulah Gosh, Heavenly, Marine Research, and Tender Trap; and drummer Mark Flunder was in both the Television Personalities and the McTells, among others), Sportique has thrived, even managing more releases than the Razorcuts did during their four-year run.

Sportique released three singles in 1998, "The Kids Are Solid Gold," "If You Ever Change Your Mind," and "Tiny Clues," all on the cumbersomely-named U.K. indie Where It's At Is Where You Are. Their debut album, Black Is a Very Popular Colour, came out in April 1999 on the slightly larger indie Matinee Recordings, which also released an all-new single, "Love and Remains," in July of that year. A second album, Modern Museums, followed in the summer of 2002.

Tracklist

1		Just Friends	2:28
2		Anatomy Of A Fool	3:07
3		P58	2:39
4		It Couldn't Last Forever	4:17
5		The Impersonator	3:10
6		If You Ever Change Your Mind	3:00
7		Tiny Clues	2:45
8		The Cover	3:14
9		Northern Sky	3:31
10		A World Without Pity	3:40

THE POOH STICKS Multiple Orgasm 1991

 

by request

Discogs

The Pooh Sticks Biography by Jason Ankeny

The Pooh Sticks were rock's most inside joke, a monumental yet affectionate prank on the very mythology of pop music itself. Cloaked behind ridiculously overblown marketing schemes, made-up histories, and cartoon-character images, the Welsh group punctured the industry's myriad excesses, freely pilfering from the entirety of pop's past by shoplifting titles, lyrics, and melodies at will; wrapping their barbs in cotton-candy singalongs, their subversions worked on many levels -- postmodern cultural criticism, retro-irony, slavish imitation, and power pop manna among them -- to forge an identity as high concept as it was lowbrow.

The Pooh Sticks were ostensibly led by frontman Hue Pooh (born Hue Williams), who in October 1987 teamed with Swansea-area schoolmates Paul, (guitar), Alison (bass), Trudi Tangerine (keyboards), and Stephanie (drums) -- no last names, please -- and debuted with the single "On Tape," a witty jab at indie rock fan boy mentality released on manager/svengali Steve Gregory's Fierce label. (In actuality, Gregory was the real mastermind behind the Pooh Sticks, writing, arranging, and producing their records, designing their cover artwork, and even choreographing their live performances.) Alan McGee -- an ironically lavish box set comprised entirely of one-sided singles including the famed "I Know Someone Who Knows Someone Who Knows Alan McGee Quite Well," a nod to the Creation Records chief -- followed in 1988.

The Pooh Sticks EP, a streamlined collection of the box set material, appeared later in 1988, trailed by Orgasm, a set "recorded live...in Trudi Tangerine's basement" including the wonderful "Indie Pop Ain't Noise Pollution." The 1989 mock-bootleg Trademark of Quality was next, compiling live material from a pair of recent club dates including a cover of the Vaselines' "Dying for It" as well as an early rendition of the group's semi-original "Young People." In 1990, they even finally recorded a proper studio LP, Formula One Generation.

In 1991, the Pooh Sticks added Talulah Gosh and Heavenly vocalist Amelia Fletcher to their ranks; the resulting LP, The Great White Wonder, was their masterpiece, a collection of ace pop songs built entirely around other people's ideas, from the Neil Young "Powderfinger" guitar solo at the heart of "The Rhythm of Love" to the liberal use of Stephen Stills' "Love the one you're with" credo right down to the record's title, borrowed from a legendary Bob Dylan bootleg. 1993's sublime Million Seller took the same path; 1995's Optimistic Fool was the Pooh Sticks' swan song.

Tracklist

1		I Know Someone Who Knows Someone Who Knows Alan McGee Quite Well	2:24
2		Heroes And Villains	2:39
3		Foxy Boy	1:36
4		Force Fed By Love	3:01
5		Sex Head	2:51
6		On Tape	3:31
7		Indiepop Ain't Noise Pollution	2:05
8		1-2-3 Red Light
1:51
9		Heartbreak	1:35
10		Cinnamon	1:35
11		When The Night Falls	1:38
12		Do Something To Me
2:16
13		Force Fed By Love	2:53
14		Tear The Roof Right Off My Head	1:08
15		Goody Goody Gumdrops
2:01
16		Saturday Night's The Big Night	2:08
17		It's A Good Day For A Parade
1:26
18		Just Another Minute	1:52
19		Do It Again (A Little Bit Slower)	2:19

MARINE RESEARCH Sounds From The Gulf Stream 1999

 

Discogs

 

Artist Biography by Mike DaRonco

Marine Research formed in late 1997 as a continuation of Heavenly -- who disbanded the prior year following the tragic suicide of drummer Mathew Fletcher. With the remaining four-fifths of Heavenly moving on with drummer John Stanley (aka DJ Downfall), Amelia Fletcher (vocals), Cathy Rogers (vocals/keyboards), Rob Pursey (bass), and Peter Momtchiloff (guitar) continued with their formula of uppity twee-pop and punk rock undertones that root back from their Talulah Gosh days. Immediately releasing their debut single "Queen B" in 1998 and a split EP with Built to Spill, K Records eventually signed the Oxford quintet that resulted in the CD EP Parallel Horizons and the full-length Sounds of the Gulf Stream later on that same year.

 

Tracklist

1	Parallel Horizontal
2	You And A Girl
3	Hopefulness To Hopelessness
4	Queen B
5	Chucking Out Time
6	Glamour Gap
7	At The Lost And Found
8	Venn Diagram
9	End Of The Affair
10	Y.Y.U.B.

 

TALULAH GOSH They've Scoffed The Lot 1991

by request

Discogs

Tracklist

A1	Talulah Gosh
A2	Do You Remember
A3	Looking For A Rainbow
A4	Sunny Inside
B1	My World's Ending
B2	Be Your Baby
B3	Break Your Face
B4	In Love For The Very First Time
B5	Spearmint Head

THE POOH STICKS Million Seller 1993

Discogs

Tracklist

1	Million Seller	1:50
2	Let The Good Times Roll	2:27
3	The World Is Turning On	1:48
4	Sugar Baby	1:37
5	I Saw The Light	4:19
6	Susan Sleepwalking	2:32
7	When The Girl Wants To Be Free	2:11
8	Baby Wanna Go Round With Me	2:27
9	Sugar Mello	0:45
10	Rainbow Rider	4:30
11	Goodbye Don't Mean I'm Gone	1:50
12	Jelly On A Plate	4:52
13	That Was The Greatest Song	3:36

HEAVENLY Heavenly Vs. Satan 1991

Artist Biography by Jason Ankeny

Formed from the ashes of C-86 giants Talulah Gosh, Heavenly spearheaded the twee-pop charge of the 1990s, becoming the legendary Sarah Records label's biggest international stars. The four founding members of Heavenly -- vocalist Amelia Fletcher, her drummer brother Mathew, guitarist Peter Momtchiloff and bassist Robert Pursey -- were also among the founding members of Talulah Gosh back in 1985; their new project followed in a direction similar to their previous work, retaining their trademark sweetness-and-light pop flavor but with a tighter, more mature sense of craftsmanship. Formed in Oxford, England during the summer of 1989, Heavenly debuted early the following year with their Sarah label single "I Fell in Love Last Night," a second seven-inch, "Our Love Is Heavenly," preceded the release of the mini-album Heavenly vs. Satan in early 1991. Keyboardist and backing vocalist Cathy Rogers was recruited for the full-length follow-up, Le Jardin de Heavenly; the first of the band's releases to receive an overseas release thanks to a licensing deal with Calvin Johnson's K Records, it helped further establish Heavenly as Sarah's flagship act in the wake of labelmates the Field Mice's recent demise. Another EP, P.U.N.K. Girl, appeared in 1993, and in 1994 Heavenly issued their second LP, The Decline and Fall of Heavenly. After completing 1996's Operation Heavenly, tragedy struck when Mathew Fletcher -- also the group's primary songwriter -- took his own life on June 14 of that year; Heavenly immediately ceased to exist, although the surviving members later announced their intentions to carry on under the name Marine Research. 

Tracklist

1	Cool Guitar Boy	3:12
2	Boyfriend Stays The Same	4:37
3	Lemonhead Boy	3:27
4	Shallow	4:41
5	Wish Me Gone	4:08
6	Don't Be Fooled	4:15
7	It's You	2:30
8	Stop Before You Say It	5:25

TALULAH GOSH Backwash 1996

by request

 

biography

[+] by Jason Ankeny

Avatars of the British twee pop movement, Talulah Gosh formed in late 1985 when economics student Amelia Fletcher and struggling artist Elizabeth Price met at an Oxford area club; both were wearing Pastels badges, and their common love for indie rock prompted them to immediately found their own group. Originally intending to form a post-punk variation on '60s-era girl groups, neither of the aspiring vocalists had the time or energy to find compatible female musicians, so they instead recruited Fletcher's 15-year-old brother Mathew on drums, her record-store clerk boyfriend Peter Momtchiloff on guitar, and Chris Scott on bass; Rob Pursey, who rounded out the initial Talulah Gosh roster, exited after only three shows. The band bowed in March 1986, opening for the Razorcuts; their introductory song was "Pastels Badge," a celebration of their origins. Soon Talulah Gosh made their recording debut with "I Told You So," one side of a split flexi-disc with the Razorcuts issued on the tiny Sha-La-La label (whose owner, Matt Haynes, went on to co-found the highly influential Sarah Records imprint). A session for the BBC Radio One's Janice Long show followed before they signed to the Edinburgh label 53rd and 3rd, releasing their debut EP, Steaming Train, in 1987; the group's jangly, winsome songs and cotton-candy vocals won them a fervent cult following, and placed Talulah Gosh at the forefront of what the U.K. press dubbed the "shambling" scene. Prior to the release of Steaming Train, Price left the band, having grown tired of their haphazard, out-of-tune live shows -- guitars broke, amplifiers shorted out, and cymbals crashed over, forcing the group to attempt to repair their instruments between songs. With Eithne Farry sharing vocal duties, Talulah Gosh returned to the studio in 1987 to record their second EP, Where's the Cougar, Matey?; a single, "Testcard Girl," followed, but after a final John Peel session, the group splintered in February 1988 to allow its members to continue their university careers. The Fletcher siblings and Momtchiloff later reunited in Heavenly, which also featured original Gosh bassist Rob Pursey.

read more

THE POOH STICKS The Great White Wonder 1991

Discogs


Wikipedia says:

The Pooh Sticks were an indie pop band from Swansea, Wales recording between 1988 and 1995. They were notable for their jangly melodiousness and lyrics gently mocking the indie scene of the time such as on "On tape", "Indie-pop ain't Noise Pollution" and "I Know Someone who Knows Someone who knows Alan McGee Quite Well". The band changed direction on their 1991 U.S breakthrough The Great White Wonder, eschewing the 'twee' British indie pop sound for a more American-styled Power pop sound, akin to bands like Jellyfish and Redd Kross. Subsequent albums Million Seller, considered by some Power Pop fans to be the band's best work, and Optimistic Fool followed in this style.

Tracklist 

1	Young People	3:55
2	The Rhythm Of Love	3:26
3	Sweet Baby James	3:11
4	Pandora's Box	2:59
5	Desperado	4:45
6	Good Times	2:01
7	The Wild One, Forever	1:15
8	I'm In You	14:39
9	When Sunny Gets Blue	2:41