Magic Roundabout "Sneaky Feelings"

Unexpectedly, Third Man Records has released a fun slice of lost 80s indiepop in the form of Magic Roundabout's "Sneaky Feelings" which bears all the hallmarks you could wish for (dual tambourine action! Moe Tucker/Bobby Gillespie thump! roughed-up guitars! insouciant vocals!) from a mid-80s, Manchester-based collective who supported some of the greats such as The Pastels and My Bloody Valentine in their day. The provenance of this release is great: the 2 songs on the 7" (the other's title and lyrics name-check Gerard Langley of The Blue Aeroplanes for added period colour) were turned up by Ian Masters of Pale Saints and then reworked for release by His Name Is Alive's Warren Defever. Tonight's mission is to locate a copy of the 7" as it seems to have sold out at a bunch of the usual UK places - it was only released less than a fortnight ago - as is so often the case in 2021. In the spirit of recent posts on Not Unloved, there's a VHS-res (actually, upon reflection, it's better than that) video of "Sneaky Feelings" to enjoy:

I Wish You The World of Happiness

If Beatin' Rhythm in Manchester wasn't quite the palace of delights it had been the last time I visited it 4 years ago, I still came away an essential reissue 45 (on the shop's own label) of a Northern Soul diamond:

Eddie Holman and James Solomon's lyrics recount a moving tale of stoicism in the face of rejection:

The world's just not the same

At least not to me

'cause I won't see you again

You're setting me free

But I wish you the world of happiness

Though you're hurting me

Musically, it's archetypal mid-60s dancefloor-targeted soul.  It could prove a pricey acquisition as, if I keep playing it so much, I'll need to buy a rug to cover the living room carpet's threadbare patch.

Screen Prints

In recent weeks it's been thrilling to read such positive reviews of The Clientele's "Suburban Light" (Merge Records) reissue.  That record and the singles from which it was compiled are nigh on untouchable in terms of music released in the 1990s.  Coincidentally, another group who also touched perfection at around the same time has seen its music restored to print recently: Manchester's brilliant Screen Prints.

Fastcut Records of Japan have done the honours with their collection "Hum and Hiss" and it's an utter joy from start to finish.  "Missed" still has the power to make your heart swell and your eyes moist with its sweet, Gerard Love-like vocals (I wonder if they ever played with Teenage Fanclub; they seem such kindred spirits) and crisp, delightful melody:

What an arrangement! The hesitant intro, the distant drums, the glockenspiels, the cooing backing vocals, the changes in pace, that crystalline little guitar line; it breaks my heart that it's all so beautiful.  When they use strings as on "Her Name I Don't Remember" they soar to Michael Head and The Strands levels of majesty. There isn't a track on "Hum and Hiss" that doesn't deserve to be cherished.  If anything, Screen Prints sound better now than they did at the time and there's something about the fidelity of the recordings - home recorded, anything but anodyne - that adds to the poignancy.  Listening to "Hum and Hiss" is like going through a shoebox full of old Polaroids remembering and at once feeling happy and sad.  I hope desperately that it isn't overlooked and is clutched to the heart by a legion of romantic melody lovers.

There's talk of new Screen Prints recordings being made.  I, for one, will be waiting impatiently to hear them!

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Note the Shop Assistants record at the front of the picture accompanying this (Japanese) interview - evidence of impeccable taste!