Another Form of Relief

It seems kind of silly to come to such conclusions, but Belle & Sebastian just might be my favourite band ever. A cursory glance at my Lastfm page proves I have played them more than anyone else, and nearly twice as much as my beloved Rilo Kiley, who come in a distant second.

Yet despite all of this I was incredibly late to the Belle & Sebastian party. I first heard them a long time ago, when, if I’m not mistaken, they picked up a Brit award. Yes, this was long enough ago that I actually watched the Brit awards. Anyways, they won a couple of awards and the parts of songs that I heard there sounded awful. And that was it. I’d dismissed them as boring crap and never gave them any more thought. That was until hearing I’m A Cuckoo blasting out of 6 Music. Of course I had no idea who it was, I just knew that I loved it. I was slightly taken aback to discover that it was the “boring crap” band, but it did encourage me to explore more of their material and I haven’t looked back since. I certainly wouldn’t label them as boring crap now, even if I still dislike a number of their albums (Arab Strap, Fold Your Hands..).

2003’s ‘Dear Catastrophe Waitress’ was the first album that Belle & Sebastian actually released singles for. Sure, they had singles for, but each was it’s own unique EP, containing nothing you’d find on any of their albums. You’ll find these collected together in the awesome ‘Push Barman To Open Old Wounds’ compilation. Still, singles meant b-sides, and a bunch of songs a lot of people may not have been lucky enough to hear.

(from Step Into My Office, Baby)
MP3 Belle & Sebastian - Love On The March (expired)
MP3 Belle & Sebastian - Desperation Made A Fool Of Me (expired)

We start off with two songs that perfectly represent the transition that Belle & Sebastian have gone through over the years. Love On The March is of the modern B&S variety, a cheerful, slightly retro number that wouldn’t feel out of place on either of their past two albums. Desperation Made A Fool Of Me on the other hand, is a throwback to the classic sound, and proves to be the best song on the single. Stuart Murdoch captures world weary with a hint of optimism perfectly, and that is what this song is. It’s the kind of misery with a smile tone that has unfortunately been missing from the modern sound.

(from I’m A Cuckoo)
MP3 Belle & Sebastian - Stop, Look And Listen (expired)
MP3 Belle & Sebastian - (I Believe In) Travellin’ Light (expired)

Stop, Look And Listen is seven minutes long, and sounds like one of the happiest things you’ll ever hear. Look a little underneath though, and the song is so much darker. I love songs that are like this (you might have noticed by now), and this is no exception. I’m not such a fan of the guitar part at the end, but the rest of the song is rewarding enough to make up for it. The second song, (I Believe In) Travellin’ Light is a Stevie song rather than a Stuart one, but don’t let that put you off. I generally find his songs to be the weakest on the albums, and that is the case here, but it’s still pretty darn good.

(from Books)
MP3 Belle & Sebastian - Your Cover’s Blown (expired)
MP3 Belle & Sebastian - Your Secrets (expired)

Your Cover’s Blown is one of my absolute favourite Belle & Sebastian songs. It beggars belief that it wasn’t deemed album worthy as it really is among their best material. NME even dubbed it the ‘indie Bohemian Rhapsody’. That may not be the greatest of comparison, but the constant time changes and Murdoch’s variations in singing styles do turn it into quite the epic. Your Secrets isn’t the most complex song B&S have put out, but it’s just too damn cheerful to dislike. And really, who can argue with anyone who calls themselves a doozer in all seriousness?

I know that there is a love them or hate them thing with Belle & Sebastian on the most part, but if I can’t make you at least appreciate them with the variety of this lot, there really isn’t any hope. Their newest album, ‘The Life Pursuit’ didn’t click with me at first, but now I’m gradually finding myself liking nearly every song on there. Their latest single from it, ‘The Blues Are Still Blue’ will be released on April 3.

In site related news, updates will be a tad slower over the upcoming days as we carry out a switch to a vastly superior server. This will hopefully decrease the amount of downtime we’ve been experiencing and work out far better all round for everyone.