Maria Jose
Apr-15-03, 10:15 PM
I have rescued this from a msg in the Cafe because I want to know what you
think of this .
He has a point,for a Felt fan ! I loved the record but thought the production was a bit too overwhelming at times . . .
"By 1985 the Cocteau Twins were all the rage. Peel favourites, they were genuinely strange reclusives from the borders who had made a series of successful records for the terminally hip 4AD label. Feted mainly for singer Elizabeth Fraser's vocal style, really they were little more than Victorian Gothic Whimsy. Felt should have steered well clear, but instead hooked up with Robin Guthrie to record a new LP and single. The resultant LP, 'Ignite the Seven Cannons', with it's blatant 23 Envelope-esque sleeve design, made too many concessions to 4AD style for comfort. Guthrie's production seemed to compress the sound, and made on the whole for a muddy, messy Felt. Most of the songs didn't really help either, and there were fewer memorable moments on this record than on any other Felt LP. 'The Day The Rain Came Down' was a storming Pop song though, and raised spirits sufficiently at the start of side one, whilst 'Serpent Shade' and 'Caspian See' worked well in unison on side two. 'Black Ship In The Harbour' was notable too for it's opening lines of "I was a moment that quickly passed", a line that Lawrence would later refer back to in 1987's 'Declaration'. On the whole though the record was unmemorable, and Lawrence later regretted the fact that it was the only Felt LP not to be symmetrical, with five songs on one side and six on the other. It's ironic then that 'Ignite The Seven Cannons' gave Felt their most remembered moment in the single 'Primitive Painters', although in the climate of the times it was probably remembered for the wrong reason. That reason was, quite simply, Elizabeth Fraser, who appeared as a guest vocalist alongside Lawrence. Some suggested at the time that Fraser pulled Felt from the pits of mediocrity, which couldn't have been further from the truth. Certainly her vocals added something sweet to the record, but only as a counterpoint to Lawrence's own equally characteristic delivery. Imagine 'Primitive Painters' with Fraser as the sole vocalist and you imagine another example of Gothic over-bearance, whereas with Lawrence there was the necessary balance to a SONG that soars effortlessly in it's music, without the need for Frasers' flamboyant ciricules. Witnessed live, Felt proved this to be true.
Regardless of these ins-and-outs though, 'Primitive Painters' was undoubtedly a great record, and would probably have been a genuine chart hit on any major label, which of course must have been a sore point coming so soon after the Blanco-Y-Negro fiasco. Instead it remained a big independent seller, at the top of the indie charts for several weeks, and becoming one of the years' more memorable singles, alongside the Smiths' 'How Soon Is Now' and The Go-Betweens' 'Bachelor Kisses'. "
With this minor commercial success, behind them then, the half way point in the decade seemed as good a time as any for Felt to close their first major chapter."
Alister Fitchett
think of this .
He has a point,for a Felt fan ! I loved the record but thought the production was a bit too overwhelming at times . . .
"By 1985 the Cocteau Twins were all the rage. Peel favourites, they were genuinely strange reclusives from the borders who had made a series of successful records for the terminally hip 4AD label. Feted mainly for singer Elizabeth Fraser's vocal style, really they were little more than Victorian Gothic Whimsy. Felt should have steered well clear, but instead hooked up with Robin Guthrie to record a new LP and single. The resultant LP, 'Ignite the Seven Cannons', with it's blatant 23 Envelope-esque sleeve design, made too many concessions to 4AD style for comfort. Guthrie's production seemed to compress the sound, and made on the whole for a muddy, messy Felt. Most of the songs didn't really help either, and there were fewer memorable moments on this record than on any other Felt LP. 'The Day The Rain Came Down' was a storming Pop song though, and raised spirits sufficiently at the start of side one, whilst 'Serpent Shade' and 'Caspian See' worked well in unison on side two. 'Black Ship In The Harbour' was notable too for it's opening lines of "I was a moment that quickly passed", a line that Lawrence would later refer back to in 1987's 'Declaration'. On the whole though the record was unmemorable, and Lawrence later regretted the fact that it was the only Felt LP not to be symmetrical, with five songs on one side and six on the other. It's ironic then that 'Ignite The Seven Cannons' gave Felt their most remembered moment in the single 'Primitive Painters', although in the climate of the times it was probably remembered for the wrong reason. That reason was, quite simply, Elizabeth Fraser, who appeared as a guest vocalist alongside Lawrence. Some suggested at the time that Fraser pulled Felt from the pits of mediocrity, which couldn't have been further from the truth. Certainly her vocals added something sweet to the record, but only as a counterpoint to Lawrence's own equally characteristic delivery. Imagine 'Primitive Painters' with Fraser as the sole vocalist and you imagine another example of Gothic over-bearance, whereas with Lawrence there was the necessary balance to a SONG that soars effortlessly in it's music, without the need for Frasers' flamboyant ciricules. Witnessed live, Felt proved this to be true.
Regardless of these ins-and-outs though, 'Primitive Painters' was undoubtedly a great record, and would probably have been a genuine chart hit on any major label, which of course must have been a sore point coming so soon after the Blanco-Y-Negro fiasco. Instead it remained a big independent seller, at the top of the indie charts for several weeks, and becoming one of the years' more memorable singles, alongside the Smiths' 'How Soon Is Now' and The Go-Betweens' 'Bachelor Kisses'. "
With this minor commercial success, behind them then, the half way point in the decade seemed as good a time as any for Felt to close their first major chapter."
Alister Fitchett