(Make Me A) TRISTE© Mixtape Episode 110: Heavenly – Special Edition 1992

Heavenly

Heavenly formed in 1989 from the ashes of legendary Oxford band Talulah Gosh, in which all four original members – Amelia Fletcher (vocals/guitar), Peter Momtchiloff (guitar), Rob Pursey (bass) and Mathew Fletcher (drums) – had played. Cathy Rogers joined later on keyboards/vocals. They released four studio albums, that are all being re-issued on vinyl by Skep Wax Records: in November 2022 Heavenly Vs. Satan was reissued and Le Jardin De Heavenly, originally released in 1992, is the second offering (and, to celebrate, the band are re-uniting to play two sold-out dates at Bush Hall in London in May: at the live shows, drums will be played by Ian Button. Mathew sadly took his own life in 1996). By the time their second album was ready, 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 Le Jardin De Heavenly was released by K Records.

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(Make Me A) TRISTE© Mixtape Episode 109: The Lost Days

The Lost Days (©Alicia Vanden Heuvel)

After meeting at a memorial for a mutual friend, Tony Molina (Ovens) and Sarah Rose Janko (Dawn Riding), both fans of each other’s respective musical projects, bonded over a shared love of The Byrds and Bill Fox. So they decided they wanted to record all they’d been pouring their hearts into and The Lost Days was born. The Lost Days released Lost Demos, in April 2021, on cassette by Oakland label The Long Road Society, and on vinyl with the Spanish label Mapache. Inspired by the solo work of Bill Fox, The Byrds, Dear Nora and Guided by Voices, The Lost Days started recording what was to be their first full-length LP,  In The Store: ten tracks in thirteen minutes. In The Store came on March 17, 2023 on Speakeasy Studios SF, a new label run by friend Alicia Vanden Heuvel of the Aislers Set and Tony’s long term Slumberland labelmates.  

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(Make Me A) TRISTE© Mixtape Episode 108: Brook Terrace

Brook Terrace

Brook Terrace is Californian (but with Italian origins) Zachary Vito, a man who, to make his debut album, quit his job and used unpaid leave in order to fund a plane ticket to the UK just to work with Bill Ryder-Jones, who had just announced he’d opened a home studio. Vito was involved in many from the San Francisco area, including Union Pacific, Sonny and the Sunsets, Blades of Joy and April Magazine. When he discovered Billy Ryder-Jones (co-founded of The Coral, and solo artist, writing both his own albums and film scores, as well as producing records for other artists) specifically his 2016 album, West Kirby County Primary, Zachary fell in love with his music which served as a soundtrack to the artist’s life. So, after seeing an Instagram announcement, Zach took a chance and sent over some demos. Ryder-Jones invited him to spend a productive week of recording sessions in his home studio.  Vito found himself in the small seaside town of West Kirby, delicately breathing life into already beautiful songs alongside producer and songwriter Bill Ryder-Jones. Brook Terrace was born.

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(Make Me A) TRISTE© Mixtape Episode 107: Scott William Urquhart

Scott William Urquhart

Scott William Urquhart is an acoustic fingerstyle guitarist from Stirling, Scotland. His debut album, A Recipe For Reverie, was released in January 2020 following a run of self released singles and EPs and, in 2022, Golden Sunlight Mountain Snow was out. Scott’s music has been described as peaceful and meditative and is characterized by single take solo guitar compositions, often in open tunings, released on micro-edition lathe vinyl pressings coupled with original paintings and upcycled sleeve art.
On April 14th, a collaborative album with Stirling-based group Constant Follower -led by Stephen McAll-  Even Days Dissolve, will be released. For Even Days Dissolve, Urquhart and Constant Follower frontman Stephen McAll drew from a very specific inspiration: after a violent attack that left him partially paralyzed, on the long road to recovery, McAll often found relief to the works of Scottish poet Norman McCaig. Those same poems serve as the inception point for Even Days Dissolve. Central to this record is Urquhart’s magnificent guitar work, which serves as the album’s instrumental core, incorporating blues and folk into the record’s arrangements.

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(Make Me A) TRISTE© Mixtape Episode 106: The Declining Winter

The Declining Winter

The Declining Winter started out as the meanderings of Richard Vincent Adams, a musical project to keep him occupied whilst his band, Hood, was on hiatus (they’re still on prolonged hiatus, apparently). In 2008 their first 7″ The Future Sound of Hip Hop parts 1 and 2 was released, together with a bonus CD of remixes by Epic 45, Remote Viewer, Part Timer and Northstation and their first album, Goodbye, Minnesota came out on Ireland’s Rusted Rail Record. The next Declining Winter record was entitled Haunt the Upper Hallways and appeared on Home Assembly Music in 2009. In 2010 the band released their Official World Cup Theme 2010 again on Home Assembly Music and Scenes from the Back Bedroom Window, a very limited 3″ CDr release on Secret Furry Hole. In 2013 Fragment 5, a 10″ record a was released. The cassette only Lost Songs came out on the same year. 2015 was a busy year for The Declining Winter: they released Home For Lost Souls (Home Assembly), Endless Scenery (Sounds in Silence) and a split 12″ with Isnaj Dui on Rural Colours. Three years later the band released Belmont Slope. Recordings Of Weird Air, a collection of songs recorded onto iPad in late summer/autumn 2020 by Adams alone, was out in 2021, again on cassette only. Really Early ,Really Late, the first proper album since 2018, will be out March 31st and, believe us, it’s magnificent.

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