Goldfrapp

[mackos]

Ah, it's so beautiful indeed!

 

[Scott]

btw,really happy to see that she's returned to her gothic/witchy milkmaid look....love the dress and her hair (always loved that heidi style for some reason) ....that gives me great optimism on the forthcoming material,in addition to this song. i do hope we get to hear some of the more blippy,bleepy,burpy synth stuff from that era though to sort of contrast the organic aspects. but i am pleased with the new direction.....françoise would definitely approve!

 

[mackos]

btw,really happy to see that she's returned to her gothic/witchy milkmaid look....

I was just about to mention it as well! When I saw the video it instantly made me think about her early, Felt Mountain era

After having played this song a billion times I'm even more in love with it and it's definitely promising. I'm assuming it's a kind of new album's promo then, not a lost Head First b-side?

 

[Scott]

it's definitely new material. but there has been speculation if this might be included on a completely new album or that 'best of' album which still hasn't yet been confirmed yet. we'll probably find out in the coming months. nevertheless,i too have had this song on repeat.....it's so lush.....some keep saying seventh tree but you know where seventh tree was beautiful and organic itself,it wasn't that sort of sweeping romanticism we heard on certain songs on felt mountain. this song kind of reminds me of their unrecorded,unreleased b-side 'fondue knight'....which was definitely a very felt mountain kind of song.

 

[Scott]

okay alison confirmed that MS and this one will be new tracks off their upcoming (february) singles album.....which is like a best of....

here's yellow halo



have to say i think i prefer melancholy sky. i don't dislike it but to me it's not as strong as MS. it actually has a aphex twin feel about it.

 

[mackos]

Thanks so much for the new track, Scott! While I myself like MS better as well, due to its Felt Mountain-ish feeling, YH is truly lovely too

 

[Scott]

you're very much welcome,mackos,as always it's definitely lovely but i suppose it's because i feel as though that sound is still fresh on my mind as clowns was a bit like that one and a couple of the more ambient tracks on head first too.

btw here is the official press release and details about the singles album-

On Feburary 6, Mute/Parlophone will put out a Goldfrapp collection called The Singles, which draws material from their five full-length albums. It also includes two new tracks, "Yellow Halo" and "Melancholy Sky". Watch the video for "Yellow Halo" after the tracklist.
The Singles:

01 Ooh La La
02 Number 1
03 Strict Machine (Single Mix)
04 Lovely Head
05 Utopia (Genetically Enriched)
06 A&E
07 Happiness (Single Version)
08 Train
09 Ride a White Horse (Single Version)
10 Rocket
11 Believer
12 Black Cherry
13 Yellow Halo
14 Melancholy Sky

*pitchfork.com

have to be honest,a tad disappointed with the cover art. i mean,i love the kaleidoscope concept but considering how great a lot of their covers have been,they could have done more,i think.

 

[Scott]

it's actually too bad this is all we're being treated with as this only represents a mere minuscule of what goldfrapp is about as a whole. where is human and pilots? to call it a singles collection i would have expected all their singles releases not just the more popular variety. and i'm sure it wasn't ali and will as there were likely some restraints being dealt by mute and parlophone. i like the two new songs but i wish there was more.....more depth....especially in this milestone juncture of their career. i mean not very many artists reach this point to which they are able to release such a best of collection with the kind of body of work they've given. also would have been lovely to see some of their b-sides and covers included as well,which i thought traditionally occurred on these sorts of releases. maybe even some recorded versions of some of those wondrous live b-sides we've had on heavy rotation for some years.

all in all,it seems a good album but not stellar. seems more commercially dictated than anything really to do with honoring goldfrapp's music.

 

[LolitaLuxe]

Helloooo Scott!!!!

Yes , I'm being off topic- long time no see!

 

[Scott]

Lo!! indeed it has,lovely!

 

[diorelle]

Loving the new tracks! No one can do it like Alison!

 

[Scott]

melancholy sky has been released through iTunes.....it's even more romantic and luscious recorded.

very much in the vein i described of the live version.....very françoise with maybe a nod to the carpenters.

 

[Scott]

have you guys been reading alison's twitter? a couple days ago she clarified something she had said weeks earlier regarding HF.....that she didn't like it that much in hindsight. not sure if it had anything to do with certain entities over them but has less than positive feelings about it now.

 

[Scott]

i just read this straight from alison on the goldfrapp twitter as they're in the midst of finishing their next album-

If albums F.M & S.T are your sort of thing, i think you might like our new album?! xxxx

 

[mackos]

^Given Felt Mountain is definitely my sort of thing, I'm all excited right now!

 

[Scott]

she added later that there will be an announcement morning-time in the UK today....apparently the album name will be "tales of us".

 

[Scott]

the trailer-



it actually sounds very kate bush......the sensual world.

 

[Scott]

Let’s get one thing out of the way: my own feelings aside on Goldfrapp‘s last album, 2010′s Head First (I loved it), Alison Goldfrapp herself is not fond of the record. Last year, during an interview for Idolator, she said to me, “For me, if I’m being completely myself, I didn’t like the last album very much. I’m not very proud of that one. I think there are some good tunes on there. I feel like we should have given them to someone else instead of us releasing them as Goldfrapp.”

So enter new album Tales Of Us, which was just announced this morning. The duo have a September 9 release date set for the 10-track LP, and a few songs off it can be previewed via a black and white trailer.

During our chat last year, Alison was in the midst of recording the pair’s new album. And while she didn’t give too much away at the time, she did note the following:

“I’ve been reading a lot and watching lots of films. Like I said, I feel like the aesthetic of Felt Mountain and Seventh Tree is a sound and vision that feels very relevant to me. I would like to expand on that… I think we’ll always play with acoustic sounds and the synth sounds. Even on Felt Mountain, we had these lush string sounds, but we also had lots of cranky old synthesizers. And that’s still very much there now. We’re just going to be expanding on that territory, I feel.”

In other words, expect less bouncy synth-pop, a la “Rocket” and “Believer,” and more of a mellow, pensive Goldfrapp (if said trailer is anything to go by) this time around.

As far as taking the show on the road, so far a lineup of European tour dates through the fall has been announced. Below is the album’s name-filled tracklist.

Tales Of Us
1. Jo
2. Annabel
3. Drew
4. Ulla
5. Alvar
6. Thea
7. Simone
8. Stranger
9. Laurel
10. Clay

*idolator.com

 

[mackos]

It does sound really lovely, quite Seventh Tree-like. Love the last piece in the trailer, magical.

 

[Scott]

i really can't wait to hear the music more expanded to get a better sense of what the actual direction will be. they are so known for their layerings it's difficult for me to gauge a great deal from these snippets.