falling in love with the cocteaus again.

you don't mean the frosty the snowman thing right?
heckfire, well i consider myself a cocteaus peak-period trainspotter
but that's foxed me. tell u what the NME COMPELTE DISCOGRAPHY from 1993, which had EVERYTHING listed on it (dates, prices, trax, cat numbers) never mentioned anything called 'SNOW'.

enlighten me please alex, kyle et al.

it was called Snow

One of the joys of the BBC album is that Guthrie didn't produce it.

Oh, definitely. It's still a transition album as such, and consisted only of Guthrie and Fraser, Raymonde hadn't joined yet. But it's got some absolutely crackerjack numbers, and they also do a few things throughout that they didn't try much again (the overt jazz-scat nods on "Multifoiled," for instance). Still had a lot of early hyperdourness but was channeled into different directions -- the glowering guitar and doom beats on "When Mama Was Moth" and then the explosion/cascade of the concluding "Musette and Drums," which is a monster and a half.

-- Alex in NYC (vassif...), November 1st, 2004 7:11 PM. (vassifer) (later)

There's a big "BUT" however, which is that the sound on this pre-remaster CD is absolutely atrocious, it sounds like it was recorded using a dictaphone from three rooms down the hall. I suspect this may be a big barrier to my enjoyment, as it certainly clouds a lot of the sonic intricacies at work. My copy of Treasure sounds startingly clear by comparison.

It occurred to me that a good band doing a version of "Musette and Drums" via a huge sound system would be genius.

i almost agree, but can't completely because of the overwhelming sadness (to my ears anyway) on those eps. they are wonderful though. and quite a solid package together too. i wrote a random phone number on the case to "twinlights" and i curse that damn number everytime i look at the case.

every once in awhile i'll pull out blue bell knoll or four calendar cafe and bliss out. "spanglemaker" is my favorite though. i can't imagine treasure without those big fake drums either.

The whole EP is perhaps a perfect summation of that period of the band, but yeah, the song itself...man. A friend, many years ago, said she envisioned the song almost like a green slip of material, a scarf or something silken, twirling through a dark cavern that suddenly at the end came forward and enveloped you and took you somewhere else. It was a striking and strictly visual metaphor for the song that has never left me.

And there's no new album to promote so that leaves the set lists wiiiiiiide open.

http://www.nme.com/news/111427.htm

..and last night.

so the box set then. in february it's coming out in 2 seperate volumes (for like, a tenner each) usefully bisecting their career into 'the amazing 4ad bits 82 - 90' and 'the boring fontana biot onwards'. which is very nice.

Their music was such an important part of my old life (which is why I've been reluctant to write much about them) and for years I couldn't listen to them - it was too painful - but now, in my new life, I can.

Now that's magic.

Charlie, I recommend following your Cocteau purchases in one direction or the other -- I mean, I'd push like Treasure or at least Blue Bell Knoll on you, but if you want to head in their hot-milky-bath direction, start the other way!

having just uncovered this powerful band quite recently, i'm suddenly confronted with the delightful chore of navigating their back catalogue, and i find myself treading a little carefully so as to not overdose on all the riches at once. i think i'll go with 'treasure' next, and then take it step by step from there. :)

i'll suss out that ep. collection tomorrow i think. particularly since the material is strong.

i know it's been said many times many ways but my god what a band.

You betcha.

damn I haven't listened to the Cocteau Twins in like a year now, time for another obsessed dive

I'm not as big a fan as many around here, but some of their singles -- e.g., Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops -- are near perfect pop songs.

Had an In The Gold Dust Rush IPA the other day. The can even looked like it was designed by Vaughan Oliver. It was quite good!

Being in Cocteau Twins from 21-35 years of age, was like riding on a rollercoaster for 1/2 a lifetime. Thrilling at times, then a bit nauseous, then wanting to get off, but realising you can't and gritting your teeth but also finding moments of sad beauty to savour amongst the terror. Here are 13.

Melancholy of the festive season hitting hard! Thanks for sharing Pisces, it's lovely.

(can someone post a tracklisting for those of us who don't spotify? ta)

01. For Phoebe Still a Baby
02. Eperdu
03. Cico Buff
04. Fifty-fifty Clown
05. Watchlar
06. I Wear Your Ring
07. A Kissed Out Red Floatboat
08. Crushed
09. Those Eyes, That Mouth
10. Athol-brose
11. Orange Appled
12. Calfskin Smack
13. Blue Bell Knoll