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COCTEAU TWINS

Simon Raymonde

In One Ear : Cocteau Twins, Ivor Raymonde And Me

    As one-third of seminal band Cocteau Twins, Simon Raymonde helped to create some of the most beautiful and memorable albums of the '80s and '90s - music that continues to cast a spell over millions. This is the story of the band, in his words. Beginning with Simon's remarkable childhood and exploring his relationship with his father, Ivor Raymonde (the legendary producer, musician and arranger for acts such as the Walker Brothers and songwriter for artists including Dusty Springfield), the book will journey through the musician's rise to prominence and his time with Cocteau Twins and This Mortal Coil.

    It will also chart the successful career he has forged running his own label, Bella Union, for the past twenty-seven years, discovering and developing globally renowned artists like Beach House, Fleet Foxes, Father John Misty and John Grant. And the narrative will lead us back to the present day, reflecting on Simon's most recent experiences in the music industry - all while going deaf in one ear. A must-read for music fans, this is the incredible tale of Simon's life and legacy.

    Chris Tapley

    Cocteau Twins' Blue Bell Knoll - 33 1/3

      In this exploration of Cocteau Twins’ quintessential album, Chris Tapley traces lines in all directions from Blue Bell Knoll to paint a revealing portrait of the enigmatic trio and their career-long struggles with self-doubt, stubborn principles, and pure experimentation. Throughout their career, Cocteau Twins sought to escape definition. Lyrics were a closely-guarded secret, their transcendent recordings sounded completely unique, and they were notoriously tight-lipped during interviews.

      The music, they said, should speak for itself. Only nobody could agree on what the music said. Released in 1988, their fifth full-length, Blue Bell Knoll, is the pinnacle of Cocteau Twins’ legendary ambiguity.

      The first album recorded entirely in their own studio, these dense dreamlike songs capture the band as they refined the key elements of their iconic sound while testing the limits of language and the mixing desk. From lyrics and production to artwork and interviews, everything about this influential, one-of-a-kind band stokes contradictions and uncertainty, and raises the question: can anyone ever really define what a song means?


      Cocteau Twins And Harold Budd

      The Moon And The Melodies - 2024 Remaster

        Almost forty years after it was initially released, 'The Moon and the Melodies' by Cocteau Twins and Harold Budd is reissued on vinyl for the first time – remastered, from the original tapes, by Robin Guthrie himself.

        'The Moon and the Melodies' is a singular record within the Cocteau Twins’ catalogue – unusually ethereal, even by their standards, and largely instrumental, guided by the free-form improvisations of Harold Budd, an ambient pioneer who had drifted into their orbit as if by divine intervention. Building on the atmospheric bliss of Victorialand, released earlier the same year, it signaled a possible future for the trio, yet it was a path they’d never take again.

        Over the ensuing years, 'The Moon and the Melodies' has attracted a passionate fan base. Its most atmospheric tracks routinely turn up in ambient DJ sets. ‘Sea, Swallow Me’ is one of the Cocteau Twins’ most streamed songs on Spotify, having found a new life on TikTok, where it serves as the soundtrack to innumerable expressions of hard-to-express melancholy.

        For such a low-key affair, the album casts a long shadow – but Raymonde believes the record’s uniqueness stems directly from its humble, unpremeditated origins. “It captured a moment in time between friends that are enjoying making music together. Really, that’s the essence of it.”


        TRACK LISTING

        1. Sea, Swallow Me
        2. Memory Gongs
        3. Why Do You Love Me?
        4. Eyes Are Mosaics
        5. She Will Destroy You
        6. The Ghost Has No Home
        7. Bloody And Blunt
        8. Ooze Out And Away, Onehow 

        Cocteau Twins

        Four Calendar Cafe - 2024 Reissue

          Cocteau Twins vocalist Elizabeth Fraser, guitarist Robin Guthrie, and bassist Simon Raymonde formed in Grangemouth, Scotland in the late 70s

          The brainchild of Guthrie and original bassist Will Heggie, by 1981 they had added Fraser and the following year signed to 4AD, one of the most illustrious of the indie labels. With Raymonde replacing Heggie in 1983, the trio went on to create some of the most unique and otherworldly music of the 80s, built around Guthrie's chiming guitar and Fraser's unmistakable soprano. By the early 90s, the group had just released their most successful album, the commercial Heaven or Las Vegas, but the relationship with 4AD was coming to an end. Mercury imprint Fontana was going through something of a purple patch, signing former underground bands, and by 1992, Cocteau Twins had joined The Fall and the House Of Love.

          The group's debut album for Fontana, Four- Calendar Cafe, was released in October 1993. Its gossamer melodies and largely upbeat pop bely the turmoil the group were going through. Barney Hoskyns, writing in Mojo, said that Four- Calendar Caf was "the most poignant, heartrending Cocteaus record of all, an album of naked confession and raw beauty . . . Sadness never sounded so luscious." Simon Raymonde agreed: "I think in time people will realise what a great album Four-Calendar Cafe is. Because I think it's beautiful." Led by the single Evangeline, the reached No 13 in the UK album chart and is much-loved by fans.

          TRACK LISTING

          Know Who You Are At Every Age
          Evangeline
          Bluebeard
          Theft, And Wandering Around Lost
          Oil Of Angels
          Squeeze- Wax
          My Truth
          Essence
          Summerhead
          Pur

          Cocteau Twins

          Milk & Kisses - 2024 Reissue

            This re-issue of the Cocteau Twins 1996 album faithfully replicates the original 1996 Fontana Records UK release and is pressed onto high quality 140g vinyl.

            Cocteau Twins – vocalist Elizabeth Fraser, guitarist Robin Guthrie, and bassist Simon Raymonde – formed in Grangemouth, Scotland in the late 70s. The brainchild of Guthrie and original bassist Will Heggie, by 1981 they had added Fraser and the following year signed to 4AD, one of the most illustrious of the indie labels. With Raymonde replacing Heggie in 1983, the trio went on to create some of the most unique and otherworldly music of the 80s, built around Guthrie's chiming guitar and Fraser's unmistakable soprano.

            By the early 90s, the group had just released their most successful album, the commercial Heaven Or Las Vegas, after which they moved to Mercury imprint Fontana, joining the likes of The Fall and the House Of Love.

            Although not intended so at the time, Milk & Kisses – released in March 1996 – became the final album issued the group. The trio worked separately but effectively – Raymonde would work in the daytime, Guthrie at night, leaving Fraser to add her vocals. Because of the aftershocks of her split with Guthrie, lyrics came easy to her. Led by the beautiful, hushed Top 30 single Tishbite and containing fan favourites Violane and Eperdu, Milk & Kisses has tended to be overlooked within the group's canon, and therefore is ripe for investigation. Although work had begun on a follow up album to Milk & Kisses, the Cocteau Twins split up in 1997.

            TRACK LISTING

            Violaine 
            Serpentskirt 
            Tishbite 
            Half-Gifts 
            Calfskin Smack 
            Rilkean Heart 
            Ups 
            Eperdu 
            Treasure Hiding 
            Seekers Who Are Lovers

            Cocteau Twins

            Head Over Heels - Vinyl Reissue

              4AD are repressing two more Cocteau Twins’ albums on vinyl this coming March, the albums Head Over Heels and Treasure. Both following on from the recent reissues of Blue Bell Knoll, Heaven or Las Vegas, Tiny Dynamine / Echoes In A Shallow Bay and The Pink Opaque.

              Using new masters created from high definition files transferred from the original analogue tapes, both albums are being pressed on 180g heavyweight vinyl and come with download codes.

              Head Over Heels:
              Released in late-1983, Head Over Heels is the Cocteau Twins’ second album and features classic tracks ‘Sugar Hiccup’ and ‘Musette And Drums’. Coming not long after original bassist Will Heggie had departed the band, the chemistry between remaining members Elizabeth Fraser and Robin Guthrie was flourishing and by moving the band on from the starkness of their debut, they were now making the music that would help them define the decade ahead; her wordless, dreamlike vocals a powerful instrument over his lush, textured guitars their trademark.

              TRACK LISTING

              A1. When Mama Was Moth (3.06)
              A2. Five Ten Fiftyfold (5.01)
              A3. Sugar Hiccup (3.41)
              A4. In Our Angelhood (3.0)
              A5. Glass Candle Grenades (2.45)
              B1. In The Gold Dust Rush (3.40)
              B2. The Tinderbox (Of A Heart) (4.57)
              B3. Multifoiled (2.37)
              B4. My Love Paramour (3.40)
              B5. Musette And Drums (4.38)

              Cocteau Twins

              Garlands - Reissue

                Garlands was the Cocteau Twins debut album, released in the early autumn of 1982. It was the only album they made with original bassist Will Heggie. Describing it as “haunting”, “spellbound”, “diaphanous”, and discerning a “frosting of sweetness”, the critics wore out their adjective; this was rock music - just - but it was conjured in the unlikeliest environment from the strangest of material. This is Garlands’ first vinyl pressing in over ten years, remastered from the original analogue tapes.

                Cocteau Twins

                Victorialand - Reissue

                  Victorialand, Cocteau Twins’ fourth album, was released in spring 1986. The largely acoustic, non-percussive album was made with Elizabeth and Robin, while Simon was working on This Mortal Coil's second album. Dif Juz label mate Richard Thomas guested on tabla and saxophone. The Guardian said "It’s not quite ambient, but it’s definitely not rock’n’roll even by the Cocteaus’ standards, building on the moments of guitar shimmer from the previous years’ EPs, while also stripping back at points to where it’s nothing but a Guthrie guitar line and Fraser’s voice."  Victorialand is remastered from the original analogue tapes.

                  Cocteau Twins

                  Treasure - Vinyl Reissue

                    4AD are repressing two more Cocteau Twins’ albums on vinyl this coming March, the albums Head Over Heels and Treasure. Both following on from the recent reissues of Blue Bell Knoll, Heaven or Las Vegas, Tiny Dynamine / Echoes In A Shallow Bay and The Pink Opaque.

                    Using new masters created from high definition files transferred from the original analogue tapes, both albums are being pressed on 180g heavyweight vinyl and come with download codes.

                    Treasure:
                    The band returned to being a trio in 1984 with guitarist Simon Raymonde joining their ranks in time for third album, Treasure. Produced by Robin Guthrie and featuring tracks ‘Lorelei’, ‘Ivo’ and ‘Persephone’, Treasure is often celebrated as one of the band’s finest works.

                    As Pitchfork put it when including the album in their Top 100 Albums of the 1980s, “Treasure was titled simply enough. An adjective for the endlessly inventive melodic lines you'd find buried in these songs, and a verb for what you'd do with them for years to come.”


                    STAFF COMMENTS

                    Andy says: Amazing record. Stunningly beautiful tunes and voice, incredible guitars, and not one bad track. We thought we'd all died and gone to heaven when this came out in the early 80's!

                    TRACK LISTING

                    A1. Ivo (3.53)
                    A2. Lorelei (3.42)
                    A3. Beatrix (3.11)
                    A4. Persephone (4.17)
                    A5. Pandora (For Cindy) (5.35)
                    B1. Amelia (3.29)
                    B2. Aloysius (3.26)
                    B3. Cicely (3.27)
                    B4. Otterley (4.03)
                    B5. Donimo (6.11)

                    Back in 1986, ‘The Pink Opaque’ brought together the best of the Cocteau Twins’ early works to become their first official release in the US.

                    Already a cult band on college radio, some classics like ‘Pearly-Dewdrops’ Drops’ and ‘Aikea-Guinea’ were given new mixes for this release, while it also featured ‘Millimillenary’, the first run out for incoming band member Simon Raymonde.

                    To this day, ‘The Pink Opaque’ remains a great entry point to a wonderful band. 

                    Using new masters created from high definition files transferred from the original analogue tapes, the album is a 180g vinyl pressing complete with download code. 

                    TRACK LISTING

                    The Spangle Maker
                    Millimillenary
                    Wax And Wane
                    Hitherto
                    Pearly-Dewdrops’ Drops
                    From The Flagstones
                    Aikea-Guinea
                    Lorelei
                    Pepper-Tree
                    Musette And Drums

                    Cocteau Twins

                    Tiny Dynamine / Echoes In A Shallow Bay

                      With a history of releasing singles between albums, the two EPs of ‘Tiny Dynamine’ and ‘Echoes In A Shallow Bay’ were originally released two weeks apart back in November 1985. Seen as companion pieces, they both acted as a precursor to the band’s fourth studio album, ‘Victorialand’.

                      30 years later, the EPs are now being married together on to one piece of heavyweight vinyl, using new masters created from high definition files transferred from the original analogue tapes and completed with reformatted artwork. 

                      STAFF COMMENTS

                      Andy says: Dreams as music. One of the best bands ever.

                      TRACK LISTING

                      Pink Orange Red
                      Ribbed And Veined
                      Plain Tiger
                      Sultitan Itan
                      Great Spangled Fritillary
                      Melonella
                      Pale Clouded White
                      Eggs And Their Shells

                      Cocteau Twins

                      Heaven Or Las Vegas - Remastered Vinyl Edition

                        ‘Heaven Or Las Vegas’ followed in 1990 and was to become their most commercially successful release, reaching Number 7 in the UK Album Charts. Numerous publications have since declared it one of the best albums of the 90s, with Pitchfork calling it “a core of ungodly gorgeous songs that is every bit as moving and relevant today as it ever was.” Label founder Ivo Watts-Russell goes further, candidly revealing in the recent 4AD biography ‘Facing The Other Way’ that this album wasn’t just his favourite Cocteaus album but also his favourite all-time 4AD album and, “by a long shot,” calling it “the perfect record.” With tracks as majestic as the title track, ‘Cherry-Coloured Funk’ and ‘Iceblink Luck’, who’s to argue?

                        STAFF COMMENTS

                        Andy says: Their pinnacle. Out of this world. Label head Ivo Watts-Russell says it's his favourite 4AD album ever.

                        TRACK LISTING

                        Cherry-Coloured Funk
                        Pitch The Baby
                        Iceblink Luck
                        Fifty-Fifty Clown
                        Heaven Or Las Vegas
                        I Wear Your Ring
                        Fotzepolitic Wolf In The Breast
                        Road, River And Rail
                        Frou-Frou Foxes In Midsummer Fires

                        Cocteau Twins

                        Blue Bell Knoll - Remastered Vinyl Edition

                        Released in 1988, ‘Blue Bell Knoll’ is the Cocteau Twins’ fifth studio album. Delivered after a slightly longer period between records than fans had been used to, this was the first they recorded in their own studio. Freed to now make music how they wanted and with no clock to beat, they rose to the challenge of producing it themselves with real aplomb, introducing a new pop sensibility to their sound, expressed through shorter, ‘hookier’ songs with occasionally intelligible lyrics. Sound On Sound magazine praised the band for showing “an uncanny feel for contemporary sound possibilities without making even the slightest concessions towards the mainstream.”

                        A beautiful record that showed the band’s continued maturity, it also included one of their most enduring songs, ‘Carolyn’s Fingers’, which was reflected on the album’s cover - a close-up of their friend Carolyn’s hand as shot by Juergen Teller.

                        STAFF COMMENTS

                        Martin says: Liz Fraser possesses possibly the most sublime voice in the history of contemporary music, and never was it put to more exquisite use than on the peerless 'Carolyn's Fingers, the very high point of a celestial, iridescent sonic daydream.

                        TRACK LISTING

                        Blue Bell Knoll 3:25
                        Athol-Brose 3:00
                        Carolyn's Fingers 3:08
                        For Phoebe Still A Baby 3:16
                        The Itchy Glowbo Blow 3:21
                        Cico Buff 3:50
                        Suckling The Mender 3:35
                        Spooning Good Singing Gum 3:53
                        A Kissed Out Red Floatboat 4:10
                        Ella Megalast Burls Forever 3:39

                        Cocteau Twins

                        Stars And Topsoil - A Collection (1982-1990)

                        ‘Stars and Topsoil’, Cocteau Twins’ collection of the best of their 4AD years, is belatedly issued on vinyl. Perfectly suited to the format, there’s a greater cohesion to the tracks when they are split into four sides.

                        Following their ascent from alternative novices to universally acclaimed artists, ‘Stars and Topsoil’ is a fine testament to one of the most original bands to emerge in the last three decades. Over a career at 4AD that spanned six albums and seven eps, Cocteau Twins retained an intriguing uniqueness of style that defied comparison. Elizabeth Fraser (vocals), Robin Guthrie (guitars) and Simon Raymonde (bass guitar) were always fiercely protective of their privacy, preferring to let the music speak for itself; it spoke volumes and continues to do so.

                        From day one Cocteau Twins had something special; Liz’s glittering vocals, unintelligible and perfect, Robin’s edgy guitar, all grounded by Simon’s bass. This chronological collection is a fitting reminder of why Cocteau Twins are so important: musical visionaries who transcended convention yet achieved massive international success.

                        Cocteau Twins

                        Heaven Or Las Vegas

                          Originally out in 1990, "Heaven Or Las Vegas" was the Cocteau Twins' last LP for 4AD, and the pinnacle of their releases to date. Everything you love about the trio's music is present here: phased, shimmering guitar soundscapes, subtle synth washes and textures, and of course Liz Fraser's swooping, soaring vocal. If you had to pick only one Cocteau Twins LP to own, then this has to be it!

                          Cocteau Twins

                          Treasure

                            "Treasure" is arguably the Cocteau Twins finest album, bassist Simon Raymonde joined the band in 1983 and after a couple of brilliant EPs came "Treasure". Opening with "Ivo", one of their best album openers featuring a brilliant Robin Guthrie guitar solo and followed by one of my all time favourite Cocteau Twins tracks in "Lorelei" the pace never slackens, the quality of the songs never lets up right to the last note on the albums climax "Donimo" which ultimatly explodes into a heavenly choral wall of sound.

                            Cocteau Twins

                            Victorialand

                              "Victorialand" is an altogether more relaxed affair than some of their early work as the Cocteau Twins reverted to a duo of Fraser and Guthrie in Simon Raymonde's absence. Without Raymonde's hectic bass the rhythms are subtler as layered guitar lines and lush soundscapes fill the air. Over all Liz Fraser's wonderfully fine voice weaves in and out. A few saxophone textures, a little tabla and the effect is complete. Highlights include the albums majestic opener "Lazy Calm", the multi textured "Fluffy Tufts", and the haunting and darker closing number "The Thinner The Air".

                              Cocteau Twins

                              Head Over Heels

                                Creating one of the most distinctive sounds in 80s music, The Cocteau Twins were one of the 4AD label's greatest bands. In Elizabeth Fraser, the band had an utterly unique performer who eschewed conventional lyrics for the sound and textures that were layered onto Robin Guthrie's banks of distorted guitars, tape loops and echo.

                                Losing original member Heggie might at first have seemed a troubling blow, but in fact it allowed the duo of Fraser and Guthrie to transcend the darkened one-note gloom of "Garlands" with "Head Over Heels". The album introduces a variety of different shadings and approaches to the incipient Cocteaus' sound, pointing the band towards the exultant, elegant beauty of later releases. Opening number "When Mama Was Moth" demonstrates the new musical range nicely; Fraser's singing is much more upfront, while Guthrie creates a bewitching mix of dark guitar notes and sparkling keyboard tones, with percussion echoing in the background. Other songs, like the sax-accompanied "Five Ten Fiftyfold" and "The Tinderbox (Of a Heart)" reflect the more elaborate musical melancholy of the group, while still other cuts are downright sprightly. "Multifoiled" in particular is a charm, a jazzily-arranged number that lets Fraser do a bit of scatting, while "In the Gold Dust Rush" mixes acoustic guitar drama into Fraser's swooping singing. Perhaps the two strongest numbers of all are "Sugar Hiccup," mixing the mock choir effect the band would use elsewhere with both a lovely guitar line and singing; and "Musette and Drums," a massive, powerful collision of Guthrie's guitar at its loudest and most powerful and Fraser's singing at its most intense.

                                Now remastered from the original tapes by Robin Guthrie.

                                Cocteau Twins

                                Garlands

                                  Formed by guitarist Robin Guthrie and bassist Will Heggie in Stonehaven in 1979 and with the addition of Guthrie's then girlfriend Elizabeth Fraser as vocalist, the Cocteau Twins signed to 4AD in 1982 releasing their debut "Garlands" later that year. Anchored by a Roland 808 drum machine and Heggie's swooping bass lines, guitarist Guthrie created an atmospheric sound providing a perfect platform for Fraser's remarkable vocals.

                                  Easily the darkest and most straightforwardly post-punk album Cocteau Twins ever recorded, "Garlands" has a spare, desolate, insistently minor-key sound that owes a clear debt to Joy Division; however, what keeps the proceedings from sounding derivative are Robin Guthrie's spiraling guitar textures (far more primal than on future albums) and Elizabeth Fraser's vocals, which somehow manage to evoke beauty and dread simultaneously. While the album suffers a bit from the use of a drum machine and several songs that are overly repetitious (something rarely found on their later albums), "Garlands" manages to create a sound that, while not indicative of where Cocteau Twins were heading next, still played an important role in defining the 4AD sound of the early 80s.

                                  Now remastered by Guthrie with new artwork.


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