Groove Farm/ Esmeralda's Kite 7" Split FLEXI

I just love the guitar works of Vampire Girl which made me pick Esmeralda's Kite as the favorite among the two.

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Strawberry Story - Midsummer Daydream 7" FLEXI

One of the best flexis in my collection, the Midsummer Daydream is my recommended cut! Ironically, that song has strong resemblance to Strawberry Switchblade. Coincidence? I don't think so. The other split, Buttercups & Daisies has the punk energy of The Flatmates, not as good as the first but worth enough to be part of this flexi!

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

The Love Parade - Under The Weather 7" FLEXI

Definitely, The Love Parade belong to the league of The Smiths-like bands such as Brilliant Corners and The Hardy Boys. Don't get me wrong though, TLP was not another The Smiths prototype band, they had their own personality. Although they possessed the jangly-guitar trademark and ala-Morrissey vocal of the Smiths, their unique melodies made them separate from the former.

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Field Mice - Missing The Moon 12"

The last of my Sarah Records series, at least for now. Not the usual Field Mice yet one of their best songs ever, Missing The Moon has the perfect blend of male and female vocal with a touch of electronic music. This song reminds me of Club 8 and Saint Etienne. In my theory, the single would have had a remixed version only if they were released under the big budgeted major label. Nonetheless, the song is a top-notch!

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

The Sweetest Ache - If I Could Shine 7"

No doubt The Sweetest Ache were one of the very best in Sarah Records' roster and they've proven it in my earlier posting, the Jaguar LP. These dreampop artists had what it takes to deliver the perfect dreampop tunes.

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

The Sugargliders - Ahprahran 7"

3 great pop songs from The Sugargliders. Their songs remind me of The Kensingtons, another obscure indie pop band from England.

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Tramway - Maritime City 7" [SARAH 43]

One of the essential releases in the Sarah Records' catalogue, Tramway has created their chef d'oeuvre on this seven incher. Listening to this 3 wonderful songs will make you appreciate the guitar pop like never before.

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Gentle Despite - Torment To Me 7" [SARAH 45]

Again, not much info about the band in the internet just like many other indiepop bands that existed and faded away imperceptibly without being noticed. The title track, Torment To Me has been heavily influenced by the fast, distortedly-driven shoegaze guitar of early 90s while the rest are mellow yet captivating.

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Even As We Speak - One Step Forward 7" [SARAH 49]

After a week-long hiatus, I'm back again in style! To make up for my posting absence, I'm declaring this week the Sarah Records Week!!! I will post nothing but Sarah Records releases, my one of the all time favorite record label! As a debut I present to you Even As We Speak, an indie pop band from down under, Australia. Fronted by male and female vocals, EAWS sounds much like The Wake. These three beautiful songs were released under SARAH 49.

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

The Wedding Present - Nobody's Twisting Your Arms EP

Picture this, the angst-driven vocal of Mark Smith of The Fall backed by the raspiness of Gang Of Four, that's how the songs of The Wedding Presents sound to me. These guys have been around for two decades now but were able to remain leveled. I remember seeing them played in Hollywood some years back with bunch of my indie friends and they were jaw-dropping live (I even got an autograph from David Gedge!). With their countless singles released almost every year, this is one of the songs I truly recommend. Endulge!

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Fat Tulips - Four Songs For Simon 7"

Four fantastic songs, not just for Simon, but for all of you! Jangly pop tunes from song one to four, Fat Tulips had captured the twee essence of The Softies and the melodic artistry of The Sea Urchins. This 7" will fit perfectly on your tweepop collection!

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Frazier Chorus - Dream Kitchen [Extended Mix] 12"

Frazier Chorus - Cloud 8 [Future Mix] 12"

Frazier Chorus - Nothing [Raid Mix] 12"

Indie pop turned indie dance, Frazier Chorus were one of the 80s bands who have transformed in the late nineties to follow the indie dance scene initiated by the Mancunians. Their metamorphosis was a blessing in disguise as they've gained more acceptance and have continuously entered the UK charts all throughout. Paul Oakenfold, a renowned DJ around the globe, got involved on their late-eighties/early-nineties singles as he did most of their remixes.

I'll be changing the blog format a little bit and post songs from same band as individual postings so it will be more organized and more user-friendly for you all!

The Lover Speaks - Every Lover's Sign [New Extended Mix] 12"

This was one of the many New Wave bands that can be easily mistaken as Gothic because of their uncanny album covers and their near-Goth outfits, not to mention the deep and dark vocals (The Church, Gene Loves Jezebel, The Bolshoi and Flesh For Lulu were the few others). The Lover Speaks were very much New Wave or the connotative Post-Punk because of their approach. They were in fact used to open for Eurythmics. Annie Lennox's landmark song as solo No More I Love You's was originally by this group and was extracted from the same self-titled album. If you want to know more about this band, this song is the right way to start!

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]

Nautical William - Love House EP

This is the 2nd part of my Nautical William post, I've let you savored their first single for good 2 weeks before posting this 2nd single of theirs. Its a 2 song EP, both quite substantial. Love House is more on the jangly side, very catchy, a perfect pop song for jangle pop enthusiast. The song was actually in the Sound Of Leamington Spa Volume 4 (for indiepop completist I urge you to collect all SOLS releases, It's being distributed by Firestation Records if I'm not mistaken).

The flipside is something the Charlatans UK would write in their early career. The groove is very Madchester, the acid house beat, the organ, the wah-wah guitars, can't believe these guys were from Bristol!

[GET SAMPLE AUDIO HERE]