LIFE WITHOUT BUILDINGS Any Other City LP slits smiths radiohead cure liliput mum
$
143
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Description
LIFE WITHOUT BUILDINGS "ANY OTHER CITY" LP (TUG LP 023) 2000 Tugboat Records. Made in the U.K. Sleeve and Record are in EXCELLENT condition. OUT OF PRINT. Includes printed inner sleeve.
Track listing:
SIDE A:
1.PS Exclusive
2.Let's Get Out
3.Juno
4.The Leanover
5.Young Offenders
SIDE B:
1.Phillip
2.Envoys
3.14 Days
4.New Town
5.Sorrow
Biography by Andy Kellman:
Named after a Japan B-side, Life Without Buildings actually drew a little more from several post-punk bands and another that their name seemed to acknowledge: Talking Heads. Formed during the summer of 1999 at the Glasgow School of Art, Will Bradley (drums), Chris Evans (bass), Robert Johnston (guitar), and Sue Tompkins (vocals) decided to fuse their talents out of their admiration for other proto- and post-punk bands like Television, ESG, and early PiL. They also reminded many of the late-'70s Rough Trade sound, which was well-known for a deep roster that largely featured jerky/martial rhythms, sparse instrumentation, and sung/spoken vocals. So it made perfect sense that the Rough Trade-affiliated Tugboat label would ask the band to record a single after their first London gig. Released in March of 2000, "The Leanover" b/w "New Town" secured the band a deal with the label. Numerous radio sessions ensued, including one for Steve Lamacq's Evening Sessions on the BBC. A second single was released in June, and a third followed shortly thereafter. The band's debut full-length, Any Other City, was released in late February of 2001 in the U.K.; DC/Baltimore 2012 issued it months later in the States. Numerous positive comparisons were drawn, almost to the point of becoming an albatross for the group; despite this, Life Without Buildings were every bit a modern pop band, not at all retro in the manner of a garage band. Well apart from other Scottish acts of the time like Travis and Arab Strap -- only Johnston was Scottish, anyhow -- Life Without Buildings clearly offered something that music was lacking in the early 2000s. Unfortunately, the group broke up in 2002.
Review by Andy Kellman:
The numerous comparisons drawn by Life Without Buildings are across-the-board positive. Through the music and sleeve design, they come across as refugees from Rough Trade's class of 1979. Liliput, the Fall, Delta 5, and even the Slits occasionally come to mind. These female-fronted groups have certainly inspired LWB, but this quartet -- simply a drummer, a bassist, a guitarist, and a vocalist -- offers much more than nostalgia and post-punk plundering. They're more of a pop band, which is just fine. The jagged, economical rhythms of late-'70s and early-'80s post-punk are prominent. Robert Johnston's guitar playing is melodic and pleasant, differing from the cut-and-scrape methods of his forebears: think of Talking Heads' or Throwing Muses' first albums. Unlike many post-punk rhythm sections, the bass of Chris Evans and the drums of Will Bradley aren't reggae-influenced. They provide a plaintive, professional surface for firecracker Sue Tompkins to glide atop, throwing in the occasional, non-jutting shift in tempo that also avoids predictability. Tompkins' scat-speak singing is the band's main attraction, a youthful chirp that never pierces. Her repet-pet-petitive repetitive style might be at odds with the ears of some listeners, but it's just as unique as the exuberant vocals featured on records by any of the bands mentioned above. The set is remarkably cohesive, with the differences in each song taking a few listens to sink in. Only six of Any Other City's ten songs will be new to those who purchased the band's trio of 2000-issued singles. The overlap is reworked, usually with slight improvements made over the original. Only "The Leanover" suffers, losing some of the raw thrill of the single version. If there's a gripe to be had with the record, that's it. An ex-excite-exciting, phenom-enom-phenomenal debut.
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