Artist: The Charlottes
Album: LoveHappy
Release: 1989
Label: Subway Organization
Tracklist:
1. Are You Happy Now?
2. Cold
3. Keep Me Down
4. Stubborn
5. See The Danger Shine
6. Everything To Me
7. In My Hair
8. Love Happy
Introduced to me by my coolest friend (sorry, it's not you, Trey) fairly recently, the pre-Slowdive band the Charlottes have seem to flown under most peoples' radars and I don't exactly understand why. The band predated the shoegaze movement, releasing their final LP Things Come Apart in mid-1991, around the time of the birth of the genre. That album stands as an unheard pillar of early shoegaze and is certainly a milestone of the sound. It seems to me that most people seem to cite that as their masterpiece (it sounds shoegazey, their hit "Liar" is on it, etc.), but I actually enjoy their debut LP, LoveHappy more.
LoveHappy sees the band in a more embryonic state than Things Come Apart. First, the album's sound is rooted way more in the noise pop and indie pop of the 80s in the U.K. than shoegaze or dream pop, making it more poppy and energetic; I've even heard to it referred to as "tweegaze." This is made apparent from the get-go with the ultra-poppy opener of "Are You Happy Now?," which is potentially the definitive moment of this earlier sound. The band is just sloppier and more fun here than on their later material. This energy is partly due to the driving percussion of future Slowdive drummer, Simon Scott. While he drummed on both albums (and other singles), the more pop-structured songwriting on this album allows for him to go crazier. Only the slower, druggier "Keep Me Down" and "Love Happy" break the pop mold of this album and foreshadow what the band would eventually become.
Another difference between the two albums is the length. While Things Come Apart is 48 minutes, LoveHappy is only 22 minutes, which is a godsend. It's the perfect length to an album of this kind. I certainly don't get bored during Things Come Apart, but the length LoveHappy is just perfect; it's just long enough without any hint of wearing on the listener and its pacing is flawless.
This has quickly become one of my favorite noise pop records and while not as revolutionary as their sophomore release, I find this to be the stronger effort. Still, one should definitely seek out both of their albums because this band deserves to be heard on a much wider scale.
Download Here
-Adam
Album: LoveHappy
Release: 1989
Label: Subway Organization
Tracklist:
1. Are You Happy Now?
2. Cold
3. Keep Me Down
4. Stubborn
5. See The Danger Shine
6. Everything To Me
7. In My Hair
8. Love Happy
Introduced to me by my coolest friend (sorry, it's not you, Trey) fairly recently, the pre-Slowdive band the Charlottes have seem to flown under most peoples' radars and I don't exactly understand why. The band predated the shoegaze movement, releasing their final LP Things Come Apart in mid-1991, around the time of the birth of the genre. That album stands as an unheard pillar of early shoegaze and is certainly a milestone of the sound. It seems to me that most people seem to cite that as their masterpiece (it sounds shoegazey, their hit "Liar" is on it, etc.), but I actually enjoy their debut LP, LoveHappy more.
LoveHappy sees the band in a more embryonic state than Things Come Apart. First, the album's sound is rooted way more in the noise pop and indie pop of the 80s in the U.K. than shoegaze or dream pop, making it more poppy and energetic; I've even heard to it referred to as "tweegaze." This is made apparent from the get-go with the ultra-poppy opener of "Are You Happy Now?," which is potentially the definitive moment of this earlier sound. The band is just sloppier and more fun here than on their later material. This energy is partly due to the driving percussion of future Slowdive drummer, Simon Scott. While he drummed on both albums (and other singles), the more pop-structured songwriting on this album allows for him to go crazier. Only the slower, druggier "Keep Me Down" and "Love Happy" break the pop mold of this album and foreshadow what the band would eventually become.
Another difference between the two albums is the length. While Things Come Apart is 48 minutes, LoveHappy is only 22 minutes, which is a godsend. It's the perfect length to an album of this kind. I certainly don't get bored during Things Come Apart, but the length LoveHappy is just perfect; it's just long enough without any hint of wearing on the listener and its pacing is flawless.
This has quickly become one of my favorite noise pop records and while not as revolutionary as their sophomore release, I find this to be the stronger effort. Still, one should definitely seek out both of their albums because this band deserves to be heard on a much wider scale.
Download Here
-Adam
11 comments:
thanks alot for this, just found this blog, really love it.
NEXT LEVEL SHIT!
Thanks so much for this, Adam...I swear I'll get a post in soon.
fantastic.
I really enjoy all the Slowdive stuff thats posted here. Do you by any chance have the Pumpkin Fairies recordings?
i just found this blog and am just amazed i can find henry's dress and altars next to each other. thanks.
Wow, great find! You're right - these guys are unbelievably unknown. Thanks!!!!
Damn, I've been wanting this for some time. Thank you so much!
this album is great. at times reminding me of what slowdive would do later or what a handful of bands are doing now but also having a naive tint to it, reminding me of the earlier green day records for lack of a better comparison.
i'm loving this album, thanks so much for posting it!!
Thanks so much for posting this! You folks have turned me on to some awesome noise pop stuff!
Found this one very late, but what a find. Great indeed. It sounds fantastic. Thank you very, very much for sharing this one.
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