Trembling Blue Stars began in the winter of '95 as a solo project from London-based singer-songwriter Bobby Wratten in the aftermath of his short-lived band Northern Picture Library breaking up. Until then, he'd been better known as the lead singer and songwriter of English cult faves the Field Mice, flagship group of the much-loved and very idiosyncratic indie label Sarah Records.
Wratten borrowed his new band's name from a line in The Story of O, Pauline Reage's classic novel of S&M erotica and took the title for TBS's 1996 debut album, Her Handwriting, from a Go-Betweens lyric. What started out as a do-it-yourself, one-off effort received so much attention from U.K. critics and indie rock fans that Wratten was persuaded to assemble a band to perform TBS songs live. Early shows, which included an acoustic session for BBC Radio 1, were infrequent enough to be regarded as rare and special occasions; an out-of-the-way gig in Brighton during summer '97 attracted fans who flew in from the U.S., France and Switzerland.
Over the course of five subsequent albums, Trembling Blue Stars have indeed become a "real" entity. The current lineup features vocalist-guitarist Wratten, backing vocalist Beth Arzy (of former Field Mice label mates, Aberdeen), bassist Keris Howard (another Sarah alumnus, from Brighter) and drummer Jonathan Ackerman. The Seven Autumn Flowers, produced in collaboration with Saint Etienne engineer Ian Catt, is the first TBS disc of all-new material in three years. This North American edition includes four bonus tracks previously available as import-only B-sides.
Product Description
For eight years now, Bobby Wratten of Trembling Blue Stars has been composing startlingly intimate, deeply emotional love songs that deal with infatuation and obsession, longing and lust, rapture and regret. In spirit, his work recalls the youthful candor of seventies singer-songwriters like Jackson Browne and Joni Mitchell as well as the melancholic romanticism of Nick Drake. In sound, however, his material is far more up to the minute, artfully incorporating elements of electronic dance music and computer-generated ambient touches.
TBS songs are often heartbreakingly specific. A girl stands poised before a jukebox, intently contemplating the ten plays she'll get for a dollar. A man at an airport terminal window turns his back on a departing plane, unable to watch his lover leave and, perhaps, a relationship end. A couple takes a respite from their troubles and the din of the city by dozing off side by side in the pastoral oasis of London's Kensington Gardens. While there is a brooding tone to the album, the overall mood is brighter and more hopeful than on prior discs - -a hint of the dawn that all the late-night darkness had promised at its end. The arrangements are simple but almost cinematically stirring, with bedroom instrumentation yielding big-screen effects.
The Seven Autumn Flowers,Trembling Blue Stars,Bar None Records,Indie Electronic,Indie Pop,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop
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The Seven Autumn Flowers
Trembling Blue Stars Manufacturer: Bar/None Records ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD  General
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ASIN: B0002XEDSA Release Date: 2005-01-11 |
Tracks:
- Helen Reddy
- Sorrow Has a Way
- The Rhythm of Your Breathing
- Moonlight on Snow
- If I Handle You With Care
- All Eternal Things
- The Sea Is So Quiet
- All I'm Doing Is Losing
- One Prayer Answered
- Further To Fall
- Last Port of Call
- Kensington Gardens
- A Beginning of a Kind
- Open Skies
- Hurry Home Through the Crowds
- One Wish Granted
Album Description
For eight years now, Bobby Wratten of Trembling Blue Stars has been composing startlingly intimate, deeply emotional love songs that deal with infatuation and obsession, longing and lust, rapture and regret. In spirit, his work recalls the youthful candor of seventies singer-songwriters like Jackson Browne and Joni Mitchell as well as the melancholic romanticism of Nick Drake. In sound, however, his material is far more up to the minute, artfully incorporating elements of electronic dance music and computer-generated ambient touches.TBS songs are often heartbreakingly specific. A girl stands poised before a jukebox, intently contemplating the ten plays she'll get for a dollar. A man at an airport terminal window turns his back on a departing plane, unable to watch his lover leave and, perhaps, a relationship end. A couple takes a respite from their troubles and the din of the city by dozing off side by side in the pastoral oasis of London's Kensington Gardens. While there is a brooding tone to the album, the overall mood is brighter and more hopeful than on prior discs - -a hint of the dawn that all the late-night darkness had promised at its end. The arrangements are simple but almost cinematically stirring, with bedroom instrumentation yielding big-screen effects.
Customer Reviews:
some outstanding songs.......2006-09-22
It's the case of all the TBS albums I know; about half is great, half I could live without(usually not bad, just kinda plain).
Great voice, nice arrangments, incredible guitars, beautiful melodies make this band a favorite of mine. Robert Wratten is somewhat of a genius.
On this CD I love Helen Reddy(rocks), beginning of a kind, moonlight on snow, Kensington garden and last port of call, all four have melodies and arrangments I find beautiful.
I also like a lot open skies(despite the simple drum machine beat and casio sound) and hurry home through the crowd.
I'd give 5 stars if the songs I find weak weren't there.
Personally, I'm glad the bonus songs are there, some of which I praised above.
Not everyone's cup of tea, but if you like TBS don't miss this CD.
If you like this type of music, check Mojave3, starting with out of tune, their second and(to me) most accomplished album. Neil Halstead's also a melody genius with a golden voice. Worth knowing...I got a lot of listening pleasure from most of their songs(though I don't care for puzzles like you, their new CD at this time, I find it commercial, "bubble gum").
Trembling? Not so much........2005-02-27
Bobby Wratten got the name for his London-based band, Trembling Blue Stars, from a line in "The Story of O", librarian Pauline Reage's classic novel of S&M erotica. The similarities end there. "The Seven Autumn Flowers" is about as dangerously erotic as a handshake with your grandmother. Most of the songs on the album are the kind of melancholic romantic thing you hear in the last couple minutes of a teen television drama. You know, the slow, steady strum of an acoustic guitar, the soft, sensitive male vocals, and all the characters feeling bad, hugging, taking walks by the water, etc. Just imagine Matt Pond PA's "New Hampshire" being played on "The OC" (which actually happened recently).
Don't take this the wrong way; "Autumn Flowers" is a pretty good listen. There are some real gems to discover on this heartbreaking album. "The Rhythm Of Your Breathing" features a nice click-clack rhythm and a lovely chord progression that will keep you listening. The beautiful "One Prayer Answered" is simple and sweet, featuring a very romantic violin filling in the background in places. Backup vocalist Beth Arzy adds her brilliance to "Helen Reddy" and "Further to Fall." On the pensive, paralyzed "All I'm Doing Is Losing," Wratten sings, "I waited at the airport gate/ until your plane started to move." It's an effective, emotional song with a story, like so many songs on this album.
"Kensington Gardens," is a wonderful closer. Unfortunately, the American release of "Autumn Flowers" features four bonus tracks that actually detract from the overall product. However, the extra tracks aren't a complete loss, with "Hurry Home Through the Crowds" perhaps the best song on the whole album.
Running at sixteen songs and seventy-five minutes, "Autumn Flowers" can get a little old. You pretty much have to be in the same sorrowful mood as the lead singer to really enjoy it.
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