It's springtime here at Quinquireme Towers (and possibly everywhere else in the Northern Hemisphere), and as the sun unfurls the sukebind buds in the verdant lanes and meadows that girt my stately pile around, my fancy turns lightly to thoughts of my blog readers and how loyal and tolerant they are.
'Time to give something back,' I think.
'Even if it's something they don't want,' I think.
As luck would have it, I had a very pleasant email correspondence last week with a chap called Patrick, at Future Appletree Records in Davenport, Iowa. Patrick's record label is home to a Chicago band called Track a Tiger, who specialise in twee acoustic alt.country harmonies with just enough blips and bleeps to keep the lo-fi electronica fans happy.
I was going to buy just one copy of their album, Woke Up Early The Day I Died, but Patrick was so lovely, and the current dollar-sterling exchange rate so great, that I ended up buying THREE copies, plus shipping, for the same price as you might pay - if you were so inclined - for ONE James Blunt album in HMV. Fantastic! From now on I'm going to buy everything on mail order from the States! Because it's cheaper than going down the shops!
Anyway, this means I have two spare copies to give away to the first two people who want one and are prepared to reveal their postal address to me by email. Unless I know your postal address already, in which case it'll be even easier!
This album isn't going to change your life, but it's full of sweet, melodic, country-ish, melancholy-ish songs that will make you feel oddly pensive and sad in a sort of happy way*, especially if you listen to it while having a bath or re-potting some geraniums, or doing the ironing. Or writing a rubbish blog post about how you bought some CDs really cheaply from America.
And should you want to try before you commit yourself, here are the first three tracks:
Track A Tiger - Glad To Be Scattered (mp3)
Track A Tiger - Sound As Ever (mp3)
Track A Tiger - Seashaken Heart (mp3)
The first two commenters to claim a copy get a copy. Go to it!
UPDATE: Copies now duly dispatched to long-time reader and super high-powered globetrotting chum Tabby Rabbit, and to newcomer Aimee (welcome!). Oo, that was fun, wasn't it? Might do that again sometime.
* Unless you're Betty, in which case I can pretty much guarantee that you'll hate it.
tags: track a tiger
About Father Christmas
2 days ago
11 comments:
Did you ask your new mate which music shops in the states actually stock / sell their records?
I would claim one but it seems like cheating*. Though I did wear out good shoe leather trying to track down the elusive tiger...
It's all yours, TR. Hee, I don't even have to put it in the post!
I don't actually think it's in any shops, nor on iTunes, nor on Amazon, but I didn't say that in case I gave the impression that it's like one of those Classics Of Soft Rock collections that you get advertised on TV. All major credit cards accepted! Not available in the shops!
Which reminds me, tell us about the time your Dad sold a carburetor to Bonnie Tyler!
I'm a strange random blogreader (not even one of your loyal & trusted fans - although I'm willing to be converted) who has just happened to come across your blog in the usual sort of way these things tend to happen.
So although I'm not actually one of those people you need to give anything back to as such, if no one else claims one of those cds, I wouldnt say no...You could call it a down payment. I could potentially become a faithful blog fan worth giving something back to - by which point, you wont need to. If you see what I mean.
Sold to the woman giving Steve Mangan a saucy kiss! Send me a postal address (my email address is in the profile there) and I shall dispatch it forthwith. As long as you promise to listen to it while ironing or re-potting geraniums, that is.
Curses. Third reader to comment.
As you're not having to post to TR, perhaps you could just send me an empty envelope, to reduce my distress somewhat.
Dave, if an empty envelope is what you'd like, an empty envelope is what you'll receive. Anything to keep the readers happy. You'll have to tell me where to send it, though.
I will continue to lurk without pay. I have dignity.
.......No I don't.
No, neither do I. Address on its electronic way. Perhaps you could spinkle some stardust in the envelope, or fill it full of London air (or a scraping off the pavements, which are, as we all know, made of gold).
Could you send me some sukebind? We don't have it in Hackney.
Sounds quite cool, wish I'd got in earlier.
>>tell us about the time your Dad sold a carburetor to Bonnie Tyler>>
*clears throat*. My dad once sold a carburetor to Bonnie Tyler.
See, a born storyteller. That's why I have to put a big picture on every blog post - use the room up without using any of these word things.
Thank you for my new album.
Dave, I hope you get something nice - and not off a London street floor - in your envelope..
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