Teenage Fanclub - Shadows

i don't love Man-Made, but the first track, 'It's All In My Mind' is one of TFC's finest...

Howdy! is sorely underrated.

^ both these last two comments otm. howdy! really seems to have been unfairly ignored. though its real out-of-the-park classic (imo) is blake's "straight & narrow", everybody's working near the top of their game. it's only real sin is that it's a noticeable step down from grand prix and songs from northern britain.

edit: "though its only real, out-of-the-park classic..."

The problem with "Howdy" is the very pedestrian production. If it had a bit of roughness and / or gloss it would be regarded better. When they play the songs live they sound so much better. (Regarding the keychange on "IDWCOY", live Norman simply moves his capo up two frets, with a huge grin on his face). Maybe I am getting mellow with age but I still love their newer stuff, because their mellowness reflects mine. They don't need to go back and do what they did in the early 90s, they are different people to then. Having said that, it would be nice if they played "Alcoholiday" live. God, I'm so contrary sometimes.

Also, aren't they living in different countries now? Isn't Norman in Canada or something? Makes it harder to get together to record etc? Must have an effect on their productivity

Yes I did hear Norman lives in or (God help him) near Toronto. Wish he would do a Canadian tour in a van like everyone else does (speaking as an expat Scot living in Canada btw).

God, I'm so contrary sometimes.

Nothing contrary about that - there's no need to pretend they are the same musicians who made "A Catholic Education" but many of their best latter day tracks have the same jammy, wandering feeling as "Alcoholiday". If anything the last two albums have more in common with the feel of that song than a tightly coiled song like "IDWCOY".

this is nice, i'm kind of a sucker for records where band has sort of given up delusions that it's going to be any big deal and just settle in and make nice songs in their own style

this is better than the new real estate record

it's called craftsmanship

anyone listened to the norman blake/joe pernice thing (under the not-great moniker of new mendicants)? i should probably check it out.

baby lee is a great song

tylerw, did you listen to Jonny? I didn't think their album was as good as it could've been.

new one's good but maybe a bit behind Shadows ime. One too many dreary plodding songs but the highs are great - opening track is killer

I dunno... A bunch of Teenage Fanclub threads but none made sense to append with this information and I didn't want to start a new thread so I'm tacking this on here since it seems to be the band's most commented-upon thread...

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Welcome back, Teenage Fanclub! Endless Arcade, the legendary Scottish group’s first album since 2016’s Here, is out March 5. Pre-order today on CD, LP, and translucent pink Peak Vinyl packaged in a special die-cut jacket in the (newly relaunched) Merge shop, or wherever records are sold. The first 100 Peak Vinyl orders in our store will receive a 12” × 12” print signed by the band.

Accompanying the album announcement is Endless Arcade’s opening song “Home,” with a music video to follow tomorrow. Though the track stretches to seven minutes on the album, its coda has been saved for the record’s release day. What we are left with is an incredible display of the assured and relaxed pop that we’ve grown to admire from the group. Listen today:

Listen to & share "Home (single version)" by Teenage Fanclub now

Endless Arcade is quintessential TFC: melodies are equal parts heartwarming and heartaching, guitars chime and distort, keyboard lines mesh and spiral, harmony-coated choruses burst out like sun on a stormy day.

In the 1990s, the band crafted a magnetically heavy yet harmony-rich sound on classic albums such as Bandwagonesque and Grand Prix. This century, albums such as Shadows and Here have documented a more relaxed, less “teenage” Fanclub, reflecting the band’s stage in life and state of mind, alongside which Endless Arcade slots perfectly. The album walks a beautifully poised line between melancholic and uplifting, infused with simple truths. The importance of home, community, and hope is entwined with more bittersweet, sometimes darker thoughts of insecurity, anxiety, and loss.

Still, the title track suggests, “Don’t be afraid of this endless arcade that is life.”

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