Pocketbooks - Carousel

The second Pocketbooks album was recorded during the winter of 2010. The band gathered in the basement underneath a ukulele shop in east London’s Brick Lane, and played songs late into the night. It would have been a wintry record anyway, but the snow and the dark nights definitely played their part. The album begins and finishes with a bleak, distant piano, but inbetween there’s a mix of bright harmonies, shimmering guitars and gorgeous strings. The band were joined by the violin section of A Little Orchestra (set up by The Pipettes’ maestro Monster Bobby) who added some warmth and sadness in equal measure.  The album was recorded by Simon Trought, who has also produced The Wave Pictures, Allo Darlin’, Fanfarlo and Darren Hayman. Pocketbooks are a pop band from London. Their first album, Flight Paths, was released in 2009 on How Does It Feel To Be Loved?, and its songs picked up radio play on BBC Radio 1, BBC 6Music and Xfm. Their song Fleeting Moments appears on the Rough Trade Shops Indiepop 09 compilation. Members of the band are involved in organising the annual Indietracks festival, which takes place on a 1950s steam railway in Derbyshire. The next festival takes place on 29-31 July 2011 with headliners including Edwyn Collins, Herman Dune, The Hidden Cameras, Jeffrey Lewis, Crystal Stilts and Jonny. Praise for previous releases: "At times Flight Paths is wonderfully enchanting, and with songs like this it’s hard to resist Pocketbooks’ charms". Bearded.. "This is Bacharach, and this is Bob Stanley. This is all those 60s pop groups who never aspired to be as cocky or salacious as The Shangri-La’s… This is 6pm practice for choral song after school. This is The Pale Fountains. This is Dickon Edwards. This is Sarah Records without any delusions of inadequacy. None of these might seem to be recommendations to you – same as my hastily-discovered solution to meat leftovers might seem even vaguely palatable – but shit. I know what I like, and I like this" Everett True  //   "As attractive as a day off school in the summer when you were twelve and as sweet as a Mr Whippy, Pocketbooks songs shimmer like a heat haze and sparkle like stars on a hot summer night"  The Devil has the best Tuna.

Tracklist:

1 Fireworks At Midnight
2 Promises, Promises
3 The Sky At Night
4 Sound Of The Carnival
5 Sparklers
6 Gaumont State Cinema
7 Harbour Lights
8 The Flowers Are Still Standing
9 The Beaujolais Lanes
10 Five Day Forecast
11 The End Of The Pier

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