FELT (Go Kart Mozart, Denim)... Lawrence is amazing!

http://www.villagevoice.com/music/0043,seward,18841,22.html

grr.

i always kept meaning to pick it up .. but never plumped up the hard earned for it ..

i suspect a lifetime of regret to follow on now ..

One of my my fav moment was when Select interviewed a bunch of people about the Exciting New Oasis album and Lawrence Hayward was like, "Oh god I hate it when musicians start singing about their kids.... They should be singing about fucking in the bushes, not their stupid families."

Obviously a new Denim album would perhaps be even more glorious, Denim Takes Over has been on the cards since, um, about 1997 maybe? I love the idea that in Lawrence's mind there is zero overlap between Denim and GKM and that they serve entirely different purposes and appeal to totally different audiences, and songs are specifically written either for one or the other.

This is great news! I was just ranting to someone this weekend that Lawrence has never even received half of the recognition that he deserves.

Mooro, can you link to that ETA song again?

Please and thank you.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00097HDW2/ref=cm_mp_wli_/202-7893692-0081442

is being released the same day as this:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00093UQUC/ref=cm_mp_wli_/202-7893692-0081442

Wich I think it's a very happy coincidence.

I've only just got hold of the St Etienne! Overdosing on Most Antipated Records For Several Years, today. I should probably listen to it now.

If you can't appreciate the towering majesty of songs like "Drinkin' Um Bongo" then I feel sorry for you.

It is less psychotic than the last one. It is not dissimilar to Novelty Rock, perhaps. At first I thought it was just an album of "Summer Smash"seses... I don't want to say that it has more 'depth' than that, because, that would be pretty wanky. But. They are "real" songs, yes.

Also, as last time: recommended listening, lyrics to track from next album, bandname suggestions (Shoes & Socks! Salamanda Palaganda!), 'new records to look out for' etc etc. The whole package is a beautiful thing, there is certainly no question at all of this being some kind of sub-Denim pissabout (not that I thought the last album was either, but I gather that others kind of did).

On $|$|< the other day I located a guy who was sharing an unreleased 1998-era-ish version of Denim Takes Over. This was quite surprising. "Trangressions", "City Centre" and "Delta Echo" from the new GKM are also on this, and "At The DDU" apparently previously existed as "Lorra Laughs, Cilla". I need to lavish more time on the rest of it, but, fantastic.

The (Bob Stanley) review of Go-Kart Mozart in the current Uncut includes teensy interview wherein Lawrence claims that a third album will be out later this year, I can't remember if he was referring to Denim or GKM. But the prospect of either is pretty glorious.

!!!

How come I never find anything like that on $|$|< nowadays?

Some downloads here, including Denim's mythical "Summer Smash" single! Good site in general, that. Check out the pictures page, I'll be scouring eBay for those Denim patches and beermats.

http://felt2.home.sapo.pt/gkm-Elephant_trunk.mp3

Got pics, mp3, discography, etc.

Drop by.
Cheers,
Rui

In the meantime, as an intro for the uninitiated, here's what I wrote about the record nearly four years ago (gasp!).

Lawrence is obviously very mentally ill

yeah that does cross my mind from time to time, he has the behaviour and mannerisms of a friend of mine who is a diagnosed schizophrenic (and also a musician), however have to remember that it isn't great to do armchair diagnoses, and it's ultimately none of our business

It is certainly not obvious that he is "very mentally ill".

Sorry that was worded really badly

The Hebden Bridge gig was fun enough. Lawrence remains a not particularly engaging stage presence but he's got a good, young, excitable new band with him and they seemed to be enjoying themselves. Not sure he needed to do "Relative Poverty" twice though.

Finally watched Lawrence of Belgravia last night and thought it was a nice portrait of the man - glad there's no toilet/Summer Smash stuff in there. I'm still not sure if he really believes the "I should have been really, really famous" stuff.

I see Cherry Red has reissued all ten albums on CD with new cover art for a tenner each... assume it's the same mastering job as the 2018 deluxe editions, but do they sound good?

"I'm Gonna Wiggle" - tune of the year.

I see Cherry Red has reissued all ten albums on CD with new cover art for a tenner each... assume it's the same mastering job as the 2018 deluxe editions, but do they sound good?

― Jaime Pressly and America (f. hazel), Sunday, August 21, 2022 9:39 PM (eleven months ago) bookmarkflaglink

Also curious about this. I have copies of most of these album but they are at this point not in great shape

Felt Share Brand New ‘Primitive Painters’ Video

Lawrence has commissioned Douglas Hart to direct a new video, a powerful meditation on the group – and the coterie who surrounded them – at the time. It draws on Super 8 footage, featuring a plethora of characters from the Felt and Creation Records milieu, including a youthful Alan McGee.

Oh wonderful what a treat!

young Lawrence was so dreamy

lol what is this?

https://www.instagram.com/p/C2ilBjWM7w-/

oh the dash has broken the url, please copy n paste

it's video from this thing btw:

https://www.fitzroviachapel.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/fc_Lawence-in-Fitzrovia-hero.jpg

Just heard about this book today:

Street-Level Superstar: A Year With Lawrence

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=THZXxBA2SFM

FELT (Go Kart Mozart, Denim)... Lawrence is amazing!

^ Deebank was here

Really interesting watch, and keen to read the book now.

I don't think nearly enough is made of the way Lawrence has always played with the most critically unfashionable sounds he can find, that refusal to accept that as a boundary, and a lot of that does kind of prefigure aspects of PC Music - like you play Novelty Rock and GFOTY's Secret Mix next to each other and tell me there's no connection there. Though of course I would expect him to disagree with all of that. A good point is made towards the end of the interview, that there's not a single masterpiece album you can point to that explains what he's about - but you could do an incredible let's say 2CD career-spanning compilation (and I might have a try)

Haven't watched the video yet but I pre-ordered the book from Rough Trade when it was first announced and can't wait to read it.

Thanks for posting, will read. I admire how Lawrence is not so keen on the usual boring rock thing of artistic refinement and progression and sophistication, and he seems determined not to have ossified ideas and to be open minded aesthetically… but it’s still a pure expression of himself, he’s not just pretending to be hip with whatever the new thing is whatever, but he seems determined not to get stale… that’s the sense I get, anyway, even if I don’t tend to like the results much post-denim.

Are not the two "Absolute Classic Masterpieces" compilations sufficient to show his brilliance? I suppose you could trim them down and then add highlights from his post-Felt career.

My imaginary 2CD compilation would only have Felt on CD1, not on CD2.

^^^ totally

Oooh he wouldn't like that

My own Felt "greatest hits" consists of the first three albums, "Me And A Monkey On The Moon" (complete album) and "Ballad Of The Band"

Somebody left a synthesiser out on the curb yesterday and it was raining, and I took a photo of it while humming to myself

The audiobook of Street Level Superstar has appeared on Sp*tify

I listened to that...a bit of a grind at times but by the end he'd kinda won me over...just

I thought the book was excellent -- much more of a straight biography than I expected from the subtitle ("A Year with Lawrence").

https://pitchfork.com/features/interview/an-interview-with-lawrence-icon-of-the-pop-underground/

Good stuff.

<3