the orchids
ltm catalog

Formed in 1987, this prolific yet overlooked Glasgow five-piece recorded a string of singles for Sarah as well as three excellent albums, Lyceum (1989), Unholy Soul (1991) and Striving for the Lazy Perfection (1994). Often compared to similarly cerebral pop operators such as Felt, Aztec Camera and Primal Scream, the band split in 1995 at the height of their powers, but reformed in 2004. Fourth album Good to be a Stranger was released in 2007, followed by The Lost Star in 2010. For full band biography click here. To purchase CDs click here.


LYCEUM + SINGLES LTMCD 2442 £10
Newly remastered for CD, Lyceum + Singles runs for 66 minutes, features 20 tracks and includes liner notes by Alistair Fitchett. Stand-out tracks on the 1989 mini album Lyceum include It's Only Obvious, the punk-rock rush of Caveman and the minor chord gem Blue Light. Among the pick of the twelve bonus cuts are Tiny Words, Yawn and the anti-Poll Tax protest song Defy The Law. Also included are both sides of the rare 7" single released on Bob Stanley's Caff label. Full tracklist: It's Only Obvious, A Place Called Home, Caveman, The York Song, Carrole-Anne, Hold On, Blue Light, If You Can't Find Love, I've Got a Habit, Apologies, Give Me Some Peppermint Freedom, Defy the Law, Underneath the Window Underneath the Sink, Tiny Words, Walter, What Will We Do Next, As Time Goes By, Yawn, An Ill Wind that Blows, All Those Things.

Reviews: "Exemplary reissue of Postcard-pretty twangle" (Uncut, 10/05); "Another fountainhead of unqualified greatness" (Melody Maker, 1990); "splendid - 8/10" (NME, 1989); "Apologies is a lost jangly pop gem, and even more interesting is Yawn, where the group begins to understand space and atmosphere" (Leonard's Lair, 9/05); "It's Only Obvious is a winsome, old skool indie-pop rush of a thing featuring the first flush chorus 'who needs tomorrow?'" (Whisperin' & Hollerin', 10/05); "If ever a band needed their back catalogue reissued, it's The Orchids, who evolved in a far more dignified fashion than their contemporaries. They brought topgether all the best parts of the 80's Scottish music scene, a wonderful mix of Orange Juice, Aztec Camera, The Pastels and their ilk, while adding something that's hard to pin down, yet made them so very special" (Exclaim!, 11/05)


UNHOLY SOUL + SINGLES LTMCD 2445 £10
Also remastered for CD, Unholy Soul + Singles runs for 70 minutes, boasts 20 tracks (including nine bonus cuts) as well as more liner notes by Alistair Fitchett. Stand-out tracks on the 1991 album Unholy Soul include Dirty Clothing, Bringing you the Love, The Sadness of Sex Pt 1 and the should-have-been single Peaches. Among the pick of the bonus cuts are the singles Something for the Longing and Bemused, Confused and Bedraggled. Full tracklist: Me and the Black and White Dream, Women Priests and Addicts, Bringing You the Love, Frank De Salvo, Long Drawn Sunday Night, Peaches, Dirty Clothing, Moon Lullaby, Coloured Stone, The Sadness of Sex (Pt 1), Waiting for the Storm, You Know I'm Fine, Bemused, Confused and Bedraggled, Pelican Blonde, Tropical Fishbowl, How Does That Feel, Sigh, Something for the Longing, Farewell Dear Bonnie, On a Sunday.

Reviews: "Ecstatic and blanched, the Orchids' career runs oddly parallel to that of Bobby Gillespie, but without the ruthless historical revisionism" (Uncut, 10/05); "A beautiful album - timeless melodies for sure" (Melody Maker, 1991); "Twelve songs of emotional wit and sparkling indie pop, spiked with a variety of electronic elements and a killer touch in James Hackett's vocals. That his singing and the band's playing so perfectly match song for song makes for one treat after another - the gentle melancholy of Long Drawn Sunday Night, the proto-trip-hop-meets-ringing-guitars of Waiting for the Storm" (All Music Guide, 10/05); "Increasing confidence made their masterpiece, the band experimenting with electronic beats and dance rhythms, much like Primal Scream were doing around the same time" (Exclaim!, 11/05); 'A lovely, unpredictable record' (NME, 05/1991)


STRIVING FOR THE LAZY PERFECTION + SINGLES LTMCD 2451 £10
This remastered and expanded edition of SFTLP runs for 67 minutes (18 tracks) and includes yet more liner notes by Alistair Fitchett. Originally released in 1994, stand-out tracks on SFTLP include Obsession No 1, A Kind of Eden, Lovechild and A Living Ken and Barbie. The five bonus tracks are culled from the 1992 single Thaumaturgy plus demo tracks. Full tracklist: Obsession No. 1, Striving for the Lazy Perfection,The Searching, Welcome to my Curious Heart, Avignon, A Living Ken and Barbie, Beautiful Liar, A Kind of Eden, Prayers to St Jude, Lovechild, Give a Little Honey, I've Got to Wake Up to Tell You My Dreams, The Perfect Reprise, Thaumaturgy, I Was Just Dreaming, Between Sleeping and Waking, It's Ours, The Letter.

Reviews: "Here, the tension between wanting to wig out (as on Beautiful Liar) and grow more evanescent (as on the sublime St Etienne single that never was, A Kind of Eden) is evident" (Uncut, 10/05); "Thaumaturgy is a gem, languid and alluring, like one of Mickey Spillane's femme fatales seducing Mike Hammer with their oh-so-obvious guiles" (Tangents, 09/05); "One of British pop's best-kept secrets - lithe, evocative and memorable music" (NME, 1994); "More eclectic, and moving further along the path they were already traversing. Every single song is a gem" (Exclaim!, 11/05)

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