Annie is back, Back, BACK! The Norwegian songstress has returned with a bubbly, 90s rave inspired EP bristling with pop brilliance! "A&R EP" has been masterfully produced by Richard X who has worked with Annie in the past, and has also twiddled knobs for such pop luminaries as Pet Shop Boys and Saint Etienne. In fact, the A&R in the title of the EP refer to Annie and Richard. Simples!
The artwork for the sleeve is all bright and brash which reflects a clubbing era from once a upon a time and long ago. The EP has the look, feel and sound of E fueled evenings (and mornings!) of yesteryear. Actually, it also reminds me of the single sleeve for "How To Be A Millionaire" by ABC which preceded the rave scene by half a decade.
The lead track, "Back Together", features Annie cooing over a ramped up pop banger filled with 909s and Italo piano which wouldn't have sounded out of place in the summer of 1992. To these ears, it sounds like a cross between Saint Etienne and Cathy Dennis. And the video is a treat for anyone that remembers "The Chart Show".
The rest of Annie's EP is just as jubilant as the opener. If this EP was part of an album and this was the early 90s, four of the singles would be massive hits.
"Hold On" is gorgeous with a rhythmic nod to "Break 4 Love" by Raze, lots of tinkly bits and lovely steel drum sounds. A song titled after the act who played the hero in the movie, "The Karate Kid", could have been a cheesetastic embarrassment, but "Ralph Macchio" is a glorious ode to a childhood crush resplendent with swishing hit hats and plonky keyboard bleeps. "Invisible" moves into darker territory with its rave bits, acid squiggles and machine gun handclaps. Think the love child of Baby D and Altern 8 as a reference point. The EP closes with "Mixed Emotions" another slice of 90s retro activity with a killer chorus. It throws a few rave shapes and seems to hint at shades of Electribe 101.
All in all, it's a tremendously strong EP. It's a welcome return considering she dipped her toe back in the pop landscape with the ill-advised "Tube Stops And Lonely Hearts" last April.
Saint Etienne, that thrilling threesome, graced the stage of Shepherd's Bush Empire last Friday. I never managed to catch them live even though they remain one of my all time, favorite groups. Seeing them in the heart of London, the city which has provided the backdrop and inspiration for most of their repertoire, made seeing them even more special.
To my surprise, Annie, who's long delayed album, "Don't Stop", finally sees a release on October 19, occupied the opening slot for Saint Etienne, who played the entirety of their debut album, "Foxbase Alpha", in its original running order.
Annie strutted on stage with a short, seven song set accompanied by nothing more than a drummer, a spooky, cloaked guitarist who also ran all the computer assisted sequences, and lots of reverb on her vocals.
It was a more raw and rocked out sound than I had expected, but still managed to have a slightly bouncy feel due to her sweetly sung vocals. Most of the gloss associated with her recordings was stripped away which provided her songs more grittier edge. Her set featured the following songs:
1. Chewing Gum 2. My Love Is Better 3. I Know Ur Girlfriend Hates Me 4. Take You Home 5. Loco 6. My Heartbeat 7. Songs Remind Me Of You
Between sets, a DJ spun a fabulous, eclectic set of music spanning which featured everything from early Roxy Music to 808 State. Just before Saint Etienne took the stage, he played a healthy does of early 90s, Italo house records which provided the perfect segue into the group's "Foxbase Alpha" set.
One of the things about a band playing one of their albums in its original running order from beginning to end, is that there are usually no surprises. An audience which has a level of expectation doesn't allow for much anticipation through the show. However, Saint Etienne's rabid and dedicated fanbase is happy to have any opportunity to see their beloved band in a live setting.
Saint Etienne kicked things off with album opener, "This Is Radio Etienne", and a montage of film clips projected on two large screens at the back of the stage. In fact, each song in their set was accompanied by a unique set up videos and gave the show the feeling of attending an art installation.
The regal, radio transmission of the opening number was followed by the plinky, piano driven, 90s house classic of "Only Love Can Break Your Heart" which sent the audience into fits of excitement. The euphoria of their debut hit single gave way to the slightly wonky, "Wilson", the crackling vinyl and repeat refrain of "Would you like some sweets, Willie?" while Sarah Carcknell tossing small bags of sweets into the audience.
The dubbed out bliss of "Carnt Sleep" slid fluidly into "Girl VII", which, at one point, required Sarah to read from piece of paper for the spoken bit, which made for a very charming moment which added to the art installation feel of the evening.
After the driving rhythm of "She's The One", Sarah and backing vocalist, Debsy, retreated to the table at the side of the stage for a short rest while Pete Stanley and Bob Wiggs behind a bank of keyboards on risers, dressed in cream colored blazers with matching trousers and black t-shirts, floated through the instrumental, ambient, Balearic beats of "Stoned To Say The Least".
The joyous, swinging 60s vibe of "Nothing Can Stop Us", received an ecstatic response from the crowd. And it was clear that Sarah was beginning to have few slight problems with her voice. She let it be known that she was suffering from a throat infection and apologizes if she wasn't in top form. Even with a touch of flu, she shimmied across the stage and waved her arms in the air without ever appearing sluggish. She was a real trooper throughout.
The final four songs from the "Foxbase Alpha" cycle, the filmic "Etienne Gonna Die" (which features dialogue from David Mamet's 1987, motion picture, directorial debut, "House Of Games"), the pastoral strains of "London Belongs To Me", the extended trippiness of "Like The Swallow", and the dreamy "Dilworth's Theme", comes across like a live movie soundtrack rather than the closing songs of a landmark, pop album.
After a brief pause for refreshment, the mighty Saint Etienne returned to stage and performed a selection of their biggest hits, but not before we were treated to "John & Marsha", Stan Freberg's novelty single released on Capitol Records in 1951, being played over the sound system.
After the hilarity of "John & Marsha", which left many in the audience scratching their heads, Sarah return to the stage without Bob and Pete. She performed "Hobart Paving" by special request with only a Debsy on backing vocals and Gerard, one of the group's staff dressed in a white lab coat, on piano. Sarah was sure she would remember all the words, but she did. However, Gerard flubbed his parts toward the end of the performance, Sarah giggled and the audience roared with laughter and applause.
Bob and Pete returned to the stage in more comfortable attire and launched into a set of dance favorites from across their nearly 20 year career including "Who Do You Think You Are?", "Method Of Modern Love", "Pale Movie", "Like A Motorway" and "Sylvie".
After a high energy romp through "He's On The Phone" as an encore, Sarah thanked the packed house for sticking with her through the show and apologized for her throat infection. She blew kisses to the audience and ended with handing her white, feather boa to an enthusiastic fans at the foot of the stage.
Saint Etienne's set list for the evening was as follows:
Foxbase Alpha
1. This Is Radio Etienne 2. Only Love Can Break Your Heart 3. Wilson 4. Carnt Sleep 5. Girl VII 6. She's The One 7. Stoned To Say The Least 8. Nothing Can Stop Us 9. Etienne Gonna Die 10. London Belongs To Me 11. Like The Swallow 12. Dilworth's Theme
Greatest Hits
13. Hobart Paving 14. Who Do You Think You Are? 15. Method Of Modern Love 16. Pale Movie 17. Like A Motorway 18. Sylvie
Here's a lovely, new video clip from Annie for her current single, "Songs Remind Me Of You".
Deliciously low budget but very effective right down to the big lips at around 2.09. I believe that's called "retro".
As Stephen at XO's Middle Eight pointed out a few weeks ago, Annie has the best choker by a mile! And she's got a lovely selection of jumpers, too.
And if my ears don't deceive me, I believe the drum fills are lifted right out of "Showing Out (Get Fresh At The Weekend)" by Mel & Kim. See if you agree.
Annie's new album, "Don't Stop", will finally be unleashed to the salivating masses on October 19. Shall we have another look at the cover?
Over the last few months, I have had casual conversations with various artists - some you know and others you might not have heard of. Most of those discussion usually wound their way toward the artist's dissatisfaction with their label and its staff. It's a complaint as old as time itself. One of the things that sticks in their collective craws is the lack of attention paid to their artistic vision, especially when it comes down to the subject of cover art.
I've always been a sucker for great packaging and inspired artwork. With the advent of digital files and the disappearance of CDs and, before them, vinyl LPs, most creative departments at the labels slap together any old designs. And I use that term loosely.
So let's compare and contrast. Shall we?
Here is the original cover art for the album, "Complete Me", by Frankmusik.
Gorgeous! Really interesting, deep and layered. A work of art, if you will. This was the visual theme for the album and its attendant singles.
However, after several singles didn't exactly light the UK charts on fire, Island, the label to which Frankmusik is signed, decided this would be a better choice for the album sleeve.
Dull. Boring. Average. But hey! It's got a shot of his face on it. People will make the connection. Right? He doesn't look like a happy kitten.
Here's the proposed cover artwork for Annie's new album, "Don't Stop", which isn't terribly new since it has been well over a year since many of the songs on it originally appeared on an advance sampler.
Stunning! Who doesn't love a bit of flash and some light trickery? This release of this album has been wrestled away from the corporate hands of a major label and lovingly placed back in the domain of the artist.
The first single from the album, "I Know Ur Girlfriend Hates Me", was a pop masterpiece. Then artistic differences with Island, the label to which she was signed, prevented any further singles from being released and Annie, subsequently, parted ways with the company.
Here's the sleeve for the album as it was intended to be released on Island toward the end of 2008.
Yawn! Nothing that screams "star quality". Rather average. I bet the designer thought the off center, spilt image was edgy. Note to artists, especially those signed to Island. Stick to your guns on the artwork tip.
Don't get me wrong. Sometimes artists don't have their best intentions in mind. At that point, an intervention is necessary. But it's important the artwork somehow convey the mood, feeling and emotion of the music contained within.
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