Animals that Swim.....

"New Boots" is one of my favourite songs, hugely influential on, well, me.

They're now signed to Snowstorm - also home of former ILM regular Chris T-T, Kathryn Williams and The Broken Family Band - although they've only released one album (called Happiness From A Distant Star for them. It was alright, but not a patch on Workshy (which is AMAZING) or I Was The King, I Really Was The King which was damn fine too.

These animal men, I remember.

Animals that swim, I don't.

these animal men still sound shite. "speeed king" reminds me of the strokes

As a result I wrote an article about Animals Tha Swim on our web site a while back which attracted a bit of interest (including the band themselves). Snowstorm are apparently doing a best of/rarities compilation which should be out in a month or so we are told:

The article is here

The url is
http://www.paper-jam.co.uk/features.php?feat_ref=28

Snowstorm are SO still around! Witness:

http://www.gentle-electric.com/images/ICAposter600.gif

(see how I slipped in a plug there? clever me...it's TONIGHT btw)

Yes it's me. Bizarre coincidence, six degrees of separation....etc etc..

Just mailed you anyway about another spooky coincidence...

Paul

Snowstorm's a spiffy label. loved the Magoo and Candidate, both semi-lost classics sure to be discussed with hushed reverence a few years from now - and Wolf, Clive Painter's solo ambient rock thing, is also quite nice. what are Fonda500, Chris T-T and Punish the Atom like?

and there's every chance we both discovered ATS thanks to this man:

http://www.rockbuch.de/pics/metallica_autor.jpg

(Chris Ingham, editor of Metal Hammer)

CharlieNo4, can you give us any info on the above mentioned best-of/rarities disc? Is it in the works?

no argument here. their true lost classic is however the stunning LP by Dukes of Hang-gliding. one of the most underappreciated albums of all time.

No idea I'm afraid, but I bet it'll be bloody good in any case.

Faded Glamour (Best) (+14)
A long deserved retrospective CD spanning their 12 year existence. Initial copies come with a bonus 14 track CD of unreleased tracks, rarities and remixes.
Country: UK
Format: 2xCD
Expected Release Date: 26-Jul-04

YAY!

1. Faded Glamour
2. Pink Carnations
3. The Longest Road
4. Roy
5. All Your Stars Are Out
6. Dirt
7. Smooth Steps
8. The Moon And The Mothership
9. East St. O'Neill
10. Madame Yevonde
11. 50 Dresses
12. Mackie's Wake
13. King Beer
14. 7 Days

Odd that "The Greenhouse" didn't make it onto the album, since it was a single (and a great one at that!).

If anyone can persuade Animals That Swim to reform and play in London, I am willing to buy them many, many pints.

If only I could join you in that effort. Only two albums (and a third if you collect their b-sides) but one of my all-time favorites. The horns - sometimes mournful, sometimes joyous - make this band sound so different. There's a Blue Aeroplanes vibe with the speak-sing delivery sometimes. I wish there was someone else operating in this territory. "7 Days", recounting the 10th, 20th, etc birthdays of one man never fails to bring a tear to my eye.

No wait! 3 albums - _Workshy_, their debut, was a used bin regular for years. _I Was The King_ came out in 97 and I thought that was the end but _Happiness From A Distant Star_ came out of nowhere 4 years later. If you can still find it, the best-of that came out a few years ago initially came with a bonus disc of non-lp stuff.

Anybody else remember?

They just shot right into my head. A blast from the past.

When I was all wrapped up in Yank knows best, all we in the UK was, Animals That Swim, MBV, lush, Wolfhounds , Swervedriver. And that was about it...

Animals that Swim have new material out in March 2011 - see animalsthatswim.wordpress.com

Good news. Hopefully

Holy crap, who knew they still existed?!

Finally hearing Happiness From A Distant Star, nice little album. New interview from a couple of weeks back:

http://finestkiss.wordpress.com/2011/04/23/back-from-their-distant-star-an-interview-with-animals-that-swim/

Still very surprised they're still active!

"Workshy" just got reissued with a bonus disc containing the demos of an aborted album and two b-sides including "Impossible", the flip of their debut single.

Thanks for mentioning that, I just ordered it and wouldn't have known about it otherwise.

The best of just sound-tracked an hour or so's Sunday afternoon ironing ... and sounded beautiful.

Right? They tap into some off-kilter beauty that is darkly joyous. Such a unique band.

I randomly decided to work out the chords for Faded Glamour and had a beautiful ambush of unexpected emotion. Such a great track.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yR32O2vXLHQ

Revises Valentines Day plans to drinking Old Fashioneds and listening to Animals That Swim.

Sounds good to me.

Damn, so much nostalgia.

They still bring me joy 32 years (I reckon) after first hearing them.