Belle and Sebastian hit the ground running in 2023 with new album Late Developers.

Arriving almost back-to-back to 2022’s Top Ten album ‘A Bit of Previous’, ‘Late Developers’ comes on like its predecessor’s sun-kissed cousin. It is a full-hearted embrace of the band's brightest tendencies that is not only fresh and immediate but possessing of that Belle and Sebastian je ne sais quoi of a group that will always be there for you with the perfect word or melody for the moment, while admitting tunefully that “Every girl and boy / each one is a misery” (“When The Cynics Stare Back From The Wall”).

“Juliet Naked” channels frantic Billy Bragg-energy with rugged electric guitar and a football stadium worthy chant from Stuart Murdoch. The aforementioned “When The Cynics Stare Back From The Wall” is an unearthed 1994-era pre-Belle and Sebastian gem, with help from Camera Obscura’s Tracyanne Campbell. "So In The Moment” is breathless psychedelic pop that is arguably one of Stevie Jackson’s best ever songs. “When We Were Very Young” is Smiths-esque jangle rock that is bittersweet, devotional and yearning: “I wish I could be content / With the football scores / I wish I could be content with my daily chores / With my daily worship of the sublime”.

TRACK LISTING

1. Juliet Naked
2. Give A Little Time
3. When We Were Very Young
4. Will I Tell You A Secret
5. So In The Moment
6. The Evening Star
7. When You’re Not With Me
8. I Don’t Know What You See In Me
9. Do You Follow
10. When The Cynics Stare Back From The Wall
11. Late Developers

A Bit of Previous is the tenth studio album by Belle and Sebastian and their first full-length in seven years. This may be surprising to anyone following the recent life pursuits of the Glasgow 7-piece: a trilogy of EPs; a soundtrack for the directorial debut of The Inbetweeners’ Simon Bird; The Boaty Weekender – a 3000 capacity star-studded four-day music festival on a cruise liner sailing the Mediterranean; a live album showcasing the band’s present-day iteration as savvy main stage entertainers; and in 2020 a collaborative project with fans called ‘Protecting The Hive’. But in all these idiosyncratic endeavours, as intrinsic to the band’s DNA as the stage invasion at the end of each of their shows, a full-length has eluded us.

A Bit Of Previous was recorded in Belle and Sebastian’s hometown of Glasgow when plans to fly to Los Angeles in spring of 2020 were scrapped due to the pandemic. Says Murdoch in the liner notes: “We did it together, us and the city. This record was the first ‘full’ LP recording for B&S in Glasgow since Fold Your Hands Child, 1999. We clocked in every morning, we played our songs, we wrote together, we tried new things, we took the proverbial lump of clay, and we threw it every day.”

A Bit Of Previous is a classic Belle and Sebastian album preoccupied with songs and melodies that won’t leave your head and lyrics that can make you smile and ponder and sometimes be melancholic. The result is one the most diverse, hands-on and thrilling entries in the bands catalogue, self-produced and recorded (with contributions from Brian McNeill, Matt Wiggins, Kevin Burleigh and Shawn Everett). ‘Young And Stupid’ is a stuttering folk rock earworm that faces the passage of time with wry ennui, ‘Come On Home’ with its warm fireside piano evokes a handing over of the generational baton, while the deceptively feelgood, choir-backed ‘If They’re Shooting At You’ reads like a poignant ode to defiance and survival.

A Bit of Previous is also scattered with big, occasionally delirious pop moments. ‘Unnecessary Drama’ rips through a cacophony of overdriven riffs and a droning harmonica that borders on the unhinged and is one of the band’s heaviest outings since, well, ever. The 140+ bpm ’Talk To Me Talk To Me’ is ablaze with euro synths and keyboard horns as the voices of Murdoch and Martin intertwine on a breathless chorus. ‘Working Boy in New York City’ exists in a parallel universe where the band did in fact make it to California – such is the escapist bliss of its sloping flute and bittersweet funk. On the other side of the spectrum are some of Belle and Sebastian’s most moving ballads. Tender finger-picked paean to a lover ‘Do It For Your Country’ and doo-wop-inflicted ‘Sea Of Sorrow’ showcase Murdoch’s tenor at its most bare and affecting, while Stevie Jackson contributes lovelorn country waltz ‘Deathbed of My Dreams’.

So what is a A Bit of Previous? It’s a bit of everything, and a lot of what makes Belle and Sebastian so special and enduring. It’s a band tackling age and growing older with grace, irreverence, musical bravado and lyrical exactitude and emerging as an endless source of energy and reinvention.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: I famously adore Belle & Sebastian, but this is definitely one of my favourites of theirs thus far, and goes some way to cementing their place on the greatest bands of all time list. Swimming melodies, clever progressions and heartfelt lyricism make for a classic Belle & Sebastian LP.

TRACK LISTING

1. Young And Stupid
2. If They're Shooting At You
3. Talk To Me Talk To Me
4. Reclaim The Night
5. Do It For Your Country
6. Prophets On Hold
7. Unnecessary Drama
8. Come On Home
9. A World Without You
10. Deathbed Of My Dreams
11. Sea Of Sorrow
12. Working Boy In New York City

7” (Indies Only)
1. A Bit Of Previous
2. Sometimes

Belle and Sebastian present twenty-two live performances featuring songs from across their 25 year career. The recordings showcase the Scottish septet at the height of their power during their 2019 tour, including tracks performed on the band's own Mediterranean cruise, "The Boaty Weekender."

TRACK LISTING

1. The Song Of The Clyde
2. Dirty Dream Number Two
3. Step Into My Office, Baby
4. We Were Beautiful
5. Seeing Other People
6. If She Wants Me
7. Beyond The Sunrise
8. Wrapped Up In Books
9. Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John
10. The Boy Done Wrong Again
11. I Can See Your Future
12. Funny Little Frog
13. The Fox In The Snow
14. If You’re Feeling Sinister
15. My Wandering Days Are Over
16. The Wrong Girl
17. Stay Loose
18. Poor Boy
19. Dog On Wheels
20. The Boy With The Arab Strap
21. I Didn’t See It Coming
22. Belle And Sebastian

Days of the Bagnold Summer began life as a 2012 award-winning graphic novel by Joff Winterhart, was turned into a feature film and the directorial debut of Simon Bird (The Inbetweeners, Friday Night Dinner), and is now a wonderful, rich, bittersweet, and warmly welcoming original soundtrack album by Belle and Sebastian on Matador Records.

The album features eleven brand new Belle and Sebastian songs, as well as re-recorded versions of classics 'Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying', originally appearing on 1996's If You’re Feeling Sinister, and ‘I Know Where The Summer Goes’, from 1998's This Is Just a Modern Rock Song EP.

STAFF COMMENTS

Barry says: Whether they're writing stand-alone albums, performing live or soundtracking, Belle And Sebastian have a pedigree that can't be denied. 'Days Of The Bagnold Summer' is in the latter camp, but works perfectly as a standalone album too, showcasing exactly why they're one of the most beloved bands on the indie circuit and have been for a great many years.

TRACK LISTING

Sister Buddha (Intro)
I Know Where The Summer Goes
Did The Day Go Just Like You Wanted?
Jill Pole
I'll Keep It Inside
Safety Valve
The Colour's Gonna Run
Another Day, Another Night
Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying
Wait And See What The Day Holds
Sister Buddha
This Letter
We Were Never Glorious

Harking back to their 1997 release of three consecutive EPs (Dog On Wheels, Lazy Line Painter Jane, and 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds Of Light), Belle and Sebastian have kicked of 2018 with three new EPs under the umbrella title How To Solve Our Human Problems. The EP trilogy culminates with this beautifully packaged limited edition vinyl box set containing all three EPs.

TRACK LISTING

1. Sweet Dew Lee
2. We Were Beautiful
3. Fickle Season
4. The Girl Doesn’t Get It
5. Everything Is Now
6. Show Me The Sun
7. Same Star
8. I’ll Be Your Pilot
9. Cornflakes
10. A Plague On All Other Boys
11. Poor Boy
12. Everything Is Now (Part Two)
13. Too Many Tears
14. There Is An Everlasting Song
15. Best Friend

Harkening back to their 1997 release of three consecutive EPs (Dog On Wheels, Lazy Line Painter Jane, and 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds Of Light), Belle and Sebastian will release three new EPs under the umbrella title How To Solve Our Human Problems, with the first EP coming out on December 8th, the second on January 19th, and the third on February 16th.

Just as those three early EPs are at the very heart of the Belle and Sebastian canon, so these three new releases deserve to be treated not as a stopgap, but as definitive releases in their own right. How To Solve Our Human Problems is both an era of its own, and part of a long, rich history. How To Solve Our Human Problems is, if you like, Belle and Sebastian Redux.

Harkening back to their 1997 release of three consecutive EPs (Dog On Wheels, Lazy Line Painter Jane, and 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds Of Light), Belle and Sebastian will release three new EPs under the umbrella title How To Solve Our Human Problems, with the first EP coming out on December 8th, the second on January 19th, and the third on February 16th.

Just as those three early EPs are at the very heart of the Belle and Sebastian canon, so these three new releases deserve to be treated not as a stopgap, but as definitive releases in their own right. How To Solve Our Human Problems is both an era of its own, and part of a long, rich history. How To Solve Our Human Problems is, if you like, Belle and Sebastian Redux.

TRACK LISTING

1. Show Me The Sun
2. Same Star
3. I’ll Be Your Pilot
4. Cornflakes
5. A Plague On All Other Boys

Harkening back to their 1997 release of three consecutive EPs (Dog On Wheels, Lazy Line Painter Jane, and 3.. 6.. 9 Seconds Of Light), Belle and Sebastian will release three new EPs under the umbrella title How To Solve Our Human Problems, with the first EP coming out on December 8th, the second on January 19th, and the third on February 16th.

Just as those three early EPs are at the very heart of the Belle and Sebastian canon, so these three new releases deserve to be treated not as a stopgap, but as definitive releases in their own right. How To Solve Our Human Problems is both an era of its own, and part of a long, rich history. How To Solve Our Human Problems is, if you like, Belle and Sebastian Redux.

Recently, The Quietus published an interview with Stuart Murdoch and Richard Colburn which gives a hint of what to expect from "Girls In Peacetime Want To Dance". The album opens with “Nobody’s Empire,” which Stuart said “is absolutely the most personal [song] I’ve ever written.” About the beginnings of his lifelong struggle with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome which led to his first forays into songwriting, it is easily one of his most musically and emotionally epic songs.

What it doesn’t indicate is how fun the album is. Produced and mixed at Maze Studios in Atlanta by Ben H. Allen III, best known for his work with Gnarls Barkley, Animal Collective, and Raury, among others, the band – who have been listening to things like vintage Detroit techno and Giogio Moroder – have brought a dance-party element (and a disco song about Sylvia Plath) into their gorgeous tales of sensitive souls navigating a world gone awry. It is perhaps the most inspired and wide-reaching album Belle and Sebastian have ever made.

TRACK LISTING

1. Nobody's Empire
2. Allie
3. The Party Line
4. The Power Of Three
5. The Cat With The Cream
6. Enter Sylvia Plath
7. The Everlasting Muse
8. Perfect Couples
9. Ever Had A Little Faith?
10. Play For Today
11. The Book Of You
12. Today (This Army's For Peace)

Unlike its predecessors, "Write About Love" is an album which has come together in a relatively short period of time. After reconvening in February 2010, a period of writing and pre-production in Glasgow was followed by a trip to Los Angeles for recording with Tony Hoffer (who also produced ‘The Life Pursuit’) at the renowned Sound Factory Studio B.

Adopting a more fluid approach than on the previous record, fourteen songs were recorded and mixed by the start of June, of which eleven feature on the CD and vinyl releases. Two further tracks from these sessions appear on a bonus 7” with the vinyl edition of the album.

As ever, the record draws the band’s internal songwriting strengths, but this time includes some guest performances. Stuart Murdoch wrote the majority of the songs on the album, while Sarah Martin takes lead vocals on her two contributions, "I Didn’t See It Coming" and "I Can See Your Future" and Stevie Jackson on his ("I’m Not Living In The Real World"). In addition, Norah Jones contributes lead vocals to "Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John" (which also appears on her forthcoming album of duets and collaborations called "Featuring") and actress Carey Mulligan sings on "Write About Love". Strings were added by LA residents The Section Quartet.

TRACK LISTING

1. I Didn't See It Coming
2. Come On Sister
3. Calculating Bimbo
4. I Want The World To Stop
5. Little Lou, Ugly Jack, Prophet John (Feat. Norah Jones)
6. Write About Love (Feat. Carey Mulligan)
7. I'm Not Living In The Real World
8. Ghost Of Rockschool
9. Read The Blessed Pages
10. I Can See Your Future
11. Sunday's Pretty Icons

After 1997's "If You're Feeling Sinister" made them critics' darlings, Scottish octet Belle And Sebastian ran straight into a series of label woes, and into the inevitable feeding frenzy that surrounds a free agent with their prodigious talents. Their experience with one label exec is detailed in "Seymour Stein" on "The Boy With The Arab Strap", which finds theband building on the pastoral pop charms of "Sinister...", adding a palpable layer of anger and an increasingly rich sonic palette to their painfully shy tales of despair.

Near-overnight success taught the band a lot. This album moves from their trademark confessional diary sketches (still in abundance, as on the disarmingly naive "Is It Wicked Not To Care", and the tender "Rollercoaster Ride") to genuine social criticism, as on the title track, a narrative meditation on Britain's pretensions and societal ills. "Chickfactor" pulls apart the banality the band encountered on arrival in New York, an experience which only served to deepen the bashful anger that makes Belle and Sebastian so endearing.

TRACK LISTING

1. It Could Have Been A Brilliant Career
2. Sleep The Clock Around
3. Is It Wicked Not To Care
4. Ease Your Feet In The Sea
5. A Summer Wasting
6. Seymour Stein
7. A Space Boy Dream
8. Dirty Dream Number Two
9. The Boy With The Arab Strap
10. Chickfactor
11. Simple Things
12. The Rollercoaster Ride

Their first 'official' release, after the limited edition "Tiger Milk" album. Includes "The Stars Of Track And Field" and "If You're Feeling Sinister". Clever, witty songs - a true indie classic.

TRACK LISTING

1. The Stars Of Track And Field
2. Seeing Other People
3. Me And The Major
4. Like Dylan In The Movies
5. The Fox In The Snow
6. Get Me Away From Here I'm Dying
7. If You're Feeling Sinister
8. Mayfly
9. The Boy Done Wrong Again
10. Judy And The Dream Of Horses

Fifth album from Scots indie-pop heroes and their first for Rough Trade. Featuring their usual blend of twee chamber-pop and dry wit, the album was produced by Trevor Horn, the man behind the desk for such pop luminaries as Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Grace Jones and The Pet Shop Boys.

Seven albums in and Belle and Sebastian have just made the best record of their career. Produced by Tony Hoffer this album feels both familiar and strange at the same time. There is a powerful aesthetic at the heart of the "The Life Pursuit" that places it at some time in the early-to-middle Seventies without ever specifically sounding like anything you can put your finger on. Belle And Sebastian pull in stuff from all over the place, so that Sly & the Family Stone/Funkadelic inflections ("Song For Sunshine") sits side by side with the classic Bubblegum riffs and call-and-response vocals of "White Collar Boy" (another sure-fire stomping single); the "Queen Bitch"-era Bowie stylings of "Sukie In the Graveyard"; the glammy T-Rex of "The Blues Are Still Blue"; the prime-time miserablism of a Terry Hall "Mornington Crescent" and the irrepressible rousing piano drive of "The Price Of A Cup Of Tea". All formats come beautifully packaged.