Released June 11, 2009 Length 40:45 Release date 11 June 2009 | Recorded February – March 2009 | |
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Studio Wales & Chem 19, Glasgow, Scotland Similar Idlewild albums, Other albums | ||
younger than america idlewild
Post Electric Blues is the sixth full-length studio album by Scottish indie rock band Idlewild, self-released to around 3000 fans in June 2009. The album was subsequently released on October 5, 2009 on Cooking Vinyl. Prior to recording, guitarist Rod Jones revealed that the album has "quite an upbeat musical feel," and that it sounds "like a band having a good time."
Contents
- younger than america idlewild
- Idlewild post electric blues promo
- Background and recording
- Artwork
- Leak
- Track listing
- B sides
- Personnel
- Songs
- References
Upon the album's traditional release, Jones stated: "I think the way we approached making this record, and doing things ourselves and involving our fans just gave us the freedom and time to do what we wanted to do without any pressure. I think it has been a turning point for us."
The album peaked at #90 in the UK Album Charts in its first week of physical release. It might have charted higher but the band sold a number of pre-order copies via their website, which is not a registered chart company.
The album's first single, "Readers & Writers" was released digitally on September 28.
The album was performed in full on May 19, 2009 at Dingwalls, in London.
Idlewild post electric blues promo
Background and recording
Following the release of Make Another World, Idlewild's label, Sanctuary Records, went into administration, leaving the band without a recording contract. Idlewild subsequently decided to release their next studio album directly to their fanbase. In November 2008, the band launched a new website, www.idlewildmusic.com, with the following message:
Those that pre-ordered the album received fifteen exclusive live tracks from the band's recent King Tut's residency, blog entries from band members and exclusive video footage from the recording process.
According to vocalist Roddy Woomble, the first track written for Post Electric Blues was album opener "Younger Than America". Influenced by Westerns and Neil Young & Crazy Horse, Woomble states that:
Regarding the album's lyrical content, Woomble states that he wanted "to have a more off-the-cuff feel to the record".
In early January 2009, the band entered pre-production with frequent producer Dave Eringa at their rehearsal space in Rosyth, Fife. In February, Idlwild and Eriga decamped to a converted farm house in Bethesda, Wales, near Snowdonia National Park, to record the album. The band spent two weeks recording the album in Wales, before returning to Scotland to add overdubs from additional musicians, John Blackshaw, John McCusker and Heidi Talbot at Chem19 Studios. By March, guitarist Rod Jones and Eringa had relocated to Eringa's house in London to being mixing the album. At this time, Jones began recording his debut solo album, A Sentimental Education using Eringa's equipment.
The album was subsequently posted to fans in June 2009, and released on October 5, 2009 on Cooking Vinyl records.
Artwork
The album's artwork features band photographs taken by photographer David Gillanders. The photographs were taken in January 2009 at the band's rehearsal studio in Rosyth. Regarding the album's artwork, vocalist Roddy Woomble states that:
Leak
A note was included with the pre-order album package thanking fans for their patience and asking them not to upload the album on to the internet. However, this note was ignored and it has been freely available on the internet since mid-June 2009.
Track listing
All songs written by Jones/Newton/Russell/Stewart/Woomble.
- "Younger Than America" – 3:57
- "Readers & Writers" – 2:50
- "City Hall" – 3:21
- "(The Night Will) Bring You Back to Life" – 3:24
- "Dreams of Nothing" – 3:08
- "Take Me Back to the Islands" – 4:58
- "Post-electric" – 5:08
- "All Over the Town" – 2:07
- "To Be Forgotten" – 3:23
- "Circles in Stars" – 3:47
- "Take Me Back in Time" – 4:38
B-sides
Personnel
Songs
1Younger Than America3:58
2Readers & Writers2:51
3City Hall3:21