Stereogram Recordings are pleased to announce the release of “Longhope”, the fourth single by Only A Ghost. It will be available on all digital platforms from March 11^th  2022.

By far the most ambitious track released to date by the Aberdeen duo, “Longhope” is a long-form song in the classic folk tradition, which tells the story of the Longhope Lifeboat Disaster of 1969.

The Longhope Lifeboat Disaster

On 17 March 1969 the RNLI Longhope Lifeboat Station, in operation since 1874, suffered one of the worst tragedies in British lifeboat history when its 47-foot wooden lifeboat, T.G.B., capsized with the loss of all eight crew after answering a mayday call from the Liberian cargo vessel Irene during a gale of Force 9. It is believed that the capsize was caused by an unusually high wave, in what were described as “maelstrom conditions”. This, and a similar incident at Fraserburgh lifeboat station the following year, led to the introduction of self-righting boats. The T.G.B. was salvaged, repaired and re-allocated to another station. It is now on display at the Scottish Maritime Museum.

December 10^th, 2021 sees the release of “The Year Of The Ox”, the first new music from Edinburgh outfit New Leaf since 1999. It is preceded by lead track “Raincloud” on November 26^th, which is accompanied by a video created by leading Australian author Felice Arena.

Originally formed in 1994 around the song writing partnership of singer Andy Kelly and multi-instrumentalist Jeremy Thoms, the band stubbornly swam against the prevailing Brit Pop, dance and grunge tide. Drawing on easy listening, folk/country rock, blue eyed soul, jazz, reggae and orch-pop influences, Kelly and Thoms wrote a collection of songs which attracted the attention of Japanese stained-glass artist Yoshiro Oyama. He subsequently became their manager and secured a deal with Sony/Epic Japan via his own independent label Foundation.

The band released three albums: “On Safari”, “Stereophonic” and “Panorama” in 1995, ‘97 and ‘99 respectively, before calling it a day.

In the early noughties the Kelly/Thoms songwriting partnership was revived with a collection of fourteen new songs. Recruiting original New Leaf member John Hall on bass, plus drummer David Mack, guitarist Andy Stevenson, harpist Sophie Askew and trumpeter Reginaldo Dias, a prospective album was recorded. However, fate conspired against its completion, with all seven participants going their separate ways.

Fast forward to 2020/21, and lockdown draws Kelly and Thoms back to the abandoned project. With new overdubs, remixing and mastering completed in Thoms’ home studio, the album has been finished at last.

Once again drawing on the eclectic influences of their earlier work, “The Year Of The Ox” is a timeless collection of songs which simultaneously sounds totally contemporary.

Aswell as creating the video for “Raincloud”, Felice Arena has provided the striking visuals for the project’s artwork, which commemorates the Chinese year of the ox, the year of both Kelly and Thoms’ birth.

Stereogram Recordings are delighted to announce the release of “My Secret Ways”, the second single by recent signings Only A Ghost. The follow up to debut release “Love Or The Devil”, it will be available on all digital platforms from September 17^th 2021.

About “My Secret Ways”:

“We wrote “My Secret Ways” after a quiet moment when, alone in an empty house, I reached for my ukulele, and the song just fell out of the ether. We managed to catch it, but when we started to record it I have to confess, when Bob outlined what he wanted me to sing for the backing vocals I thought it was really weird! But I trust his instincts, and when we heard it on the track we both felt something had cracked open, and the song had emerged. By the time Bob had added the percussion and the lead guitar, it was fully fledged. We loved it, but we weren’t sure if anyone else would. So it sat quietly in the cloud until Jeremy from Stereogram Recordings came along and suggested we release it as a single.

Releasing a song feels a bit like releasing a bird into the wild. It has to fly or fall all by itself. It will resonate for someone, or it won’t, because of what they have inside them and who they are at that moment. If someone connects with the song, then at that point the emotional content of the song is theirs, not ours. Talking about what the song means for us could cut across that connection, and we don’t want to do that. But we can share something odd that Bob noticed when he was working on the mix: he was sure he could hear the sound of a clock ticking, right on the end of the guitar track. Eventually we worked out that it was the little clock on the other side of the room where Bob had recorded the guitar. The clock had belonged to a loved one who had died, the person who was the inspiration for the song. We’ve recorded in that room many times, but this is the only time we’ve heard the clock on a track. Maybe it’s not so odd though, as we’ve noticed that ghosts often turn up when we are writing songs.

We worried about releasing this song at this time, given what’s been going on for everyone over the last year. It was originally meant to be our first single and we held it back because of that concern. But life goes on, right? Maybe in these strange times we are all, at some level, trying to come to terms with what lives in the shadows, and with the ticking of the clock.”

Louise McCorkindale, September 2021.

Stereogram Recordings are delighted to announce the signing of Only A Ghost to their ever-burgeoning roster, with the release of their debut single “Love Or The Devil” on all good streaming and download platforms from June 4^th 2021. 

Links: https://www.stereogramrecordings.co.uk/audio/love-devil-ghost-dlstreaming-single/

Only A Ghost are a singer-songwriter duo from Aberdeen, Bob Seivwright (songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer) and Louise McCorkindale (songwriter, lyricist and singer). They write thoughtful multi-layered songs with which people of all ages can connect, and which have been described as “a little bit dark, a little bit hopeful, a little bit sexy and a little bit camp”. Their songs tend not to sit in any specific genre, era or gender, and reflect the eclectic musical influences of all decades of the 20^th century with which Bob and Louise’s musical tastes were shaped growing up in the granite city (from Bach to BeBop Deluxe, Peggy Lee to Pink Floyd, Willie Nelson to Mark Knopfler).

Bob and Louise first met in 2013, through a jam session with colleagues, where their song writing journey began and Only A Ghost started to take shape. Folk and jazz influences are evident in their tuneful sometimes retro vibe, and listeners have occasionally mistaken their song writing for Kate Bush or Leonard Cohen, or an “old 50s classic”.

Only A Ghost’s philosophy is: “it’s all about the song”. Their arrangements are sparse, deceptively simple and melodic, using real instrument sounds and vocal harmonies, and are created by Bob’s musical vision, and his production and multi-instrumentalist skills. Every instrumental part, every chord, every note and every word has to earn its place in the song and contribute something essential in supporting the vocal to convey the emotional story.

Only A Ghost hope their songs will please the ear, touch the heart, offer food for thought, and perhaps create a moment of emotional recognition for the listener.

Only A Ghost

Stereogram Recordings are delighted to announce the signing of Only A Ghost to their ever-burgeoning roster, with the release of their debut single “Love Or The Devil” on June 4^th 2021.

Only A Ghost are a singer-songwriter duo from Aberdeen, Bob Seivwright (songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and producer) and Louise McCorkindale (songwriter, lyricist and singer). They write thoughtful multi-layered songs with which people of all ages can connect, and which have been described as “a little bit dark, a little bit hopeful, a little bit sexy and a little bit camp”. Their songs tend not to sit in any specific genre, era or gender, and reflect the eclectic musical influences of all decades of the 20^th century with which Bob and Louise’s musical tastes were shaped growing up in the granite city (from Bach to Bebop Deluxe, Peggy Lee to Pink Floyd, Willie Nelson to Mark Knopfler).

Bob and Louise first met in 2013, through a jam session with colleagues, where their song writing journey began and Only A Ghost started to take shape. Folk and jazz influences are evident in their tuneful sometimes retro vibe, and listeners have occasionally mistaken their song writing for Kate Bush or Leonard Cohen, or an “old 50s classic”.

Only A Ghost’s philosophy is: “it’s all about the song”. Their arrangements are sparse, deceptively simple and melodic, using real instrument sounds and vocal harmonies, and are created by Bob’s musical vision, and his production and multi-instrumentalist skills. Every instrumental part, every chord, every note and every word has to earn its place in the song and contribute something essential in supporting the vocal to convey the emotional story.

Only A Ghost hope their songs will please the ear, touch the heart, offer food for thought, and perhaps create a moment of emotional recognition for the listener.

To celebrate their 40th anniversaries, Stereogram are delighted to digitally reissue the “Out In The Open” and “Reasons For Leaving” EPs on March 19th and March 26th 2021 respectively. This will be the first time they’ve been available to stream or download. In addition, a few remaining copies of the original 1981 7″ vinyl pressing of “Reasons For Leaving” will be made avaialable via the Stereogram Bandcamp site.

November 20th 2020 sees the 25th anniversary of the release of On Safari, the debut album by 90s Edinburgh outfit New Leaf. To commemorate this, a remaster with bonus tracks is being made available to stream and download for the first time, plus limited copies of the original CD being made available too.

Formed in 1994 around the song writing partnership of singer Andy Kelly and guitarist Jeremy Thoms, the band stubbornly swam against the prevailing Brit Pop, dance and grunge tide. Drawing on easy listening, folk/country rock, blue eyed soul, jazz, reggae and orch-pop influences, Kelly and Thoms wrote a collection of songs which attracted the attention of stained-glass artist (and Jeremy’s brother in law) Yoshiro Oyama, who agreed to manage the band and finance the recording of an album.
Completing the line-up, Andy and Jeremy were joined by ex TV21 and Bluebells bassist Neil Baldwin, former Fini Tribe drummer Simon McGlynn and keyboard player John Hall.

Recorded over August and September 1994 at Mighty Reel Studios in Edinburgh and produced by Steve Bradley, the band were joined by a plethora of guest singers and musicians to help flesh out the sound of what was becoming an increasingly ambitious project (at one point the album was jokingly referred to as “A Journey to the Heartland of Popular Music”). These included Rezillos singer Fay Fire (credited to her real name of Sheilagh Hynd), Thanes keyboard maestro Angus McPake and jazz saxophonist Jack Duff amongst others.

Initially released independently on Oyama’s own Foundation Recordings label, it was later picked up by Sony/Epic Japan through Oyama’s Japanese connections. Preceded by the Travelling Man EP (which features three extra tracks and is also getting a digital reissue), On Safari was finally released in Japan on November 22nd 1995. Twenty five years on it still sounds fresh (since it was never particularly of its time in the first place) and hasn’t dated at all.

The band’s next two albums Stereophonic and Panorama, both of which featured additional guitarist Andy Walker and a more expansive rock sound, will be reissued on their 25th anniversaries in 2022 and 2024 respectively.

Stereogram Recordings are delighted to announce the release of a brand new track by The Fabulous Artisans on Setember 25th 2020, mostly recorded prior to lockdown, with finishing touches, mix and mastering completed in July 2020.

Founded in 2007 and named after the iconic Orange Juice track, The Fabulous Artisans is a collaboration between Glasgow based Oscar and BAFTA award winning actor, former stand-up comic and singer Neil Crossan and Edinburgh based songwriter, singer, multi-instrumentalist and producer Jeremy Thoms (also of The Cathode Ray and Stereogram label boss). “With a sound fed from Bacharach to Barry, Brel to Bowie, Cave to Collins, Magazine to Morricone and Wilson to Walker, this is timeless music for or from any era…”

“Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained” is only the fourth track The Fabulous Artisans have released since their warmly received debut album “…From Red to Blue” came out on Swedish indie label Bendi Records in 2008. It continues their lineage of mixing up the classic pop sounds of the past with a modern twist, whilst adding their characteristic big lyrical themes of life and death.

The album “…From Red To Blue” itself was described as “A series of reflections on life in all it’s hues …from red to blue. Twelve songs about love and loss; joy and regret; hope and failure; sex and god; identity and home; parenthood and childhood; mortality and morality; frustration and inspiration; age and optimism; memories and belief; fantasy and reality…”

With previous single “Belongs To You” (2013) they revealed a more soulful side to their sound – one could imagine Jim Morrison jamming with The Four Tops. while Mick Ronson gatecrashes the party. It followed “These Open Arms” (2013) which also featured a hitherto unexplored side to the Artisans sound, bumping and grinding like the sleazy glam rock bastard love child of The Cramps, Johnny Cash and Link Wray, while the lyrics explored the familiar areas of alienation and disconnection.

“Mother & Child” completed the quartet of recent releases and was The Fabulous Artisans’ contribution to “The Sound Of Stereogram” compilation which was released to great acclaim in 2015, coinciding with The Stereogram Revue, a live showcase of Stereogram acts.

The Cathode Ray are delighted to announce the release of the “Love and Death EP”, available on all good streaming and download platforms from Friday 28th February, 2020.

Including three remixes of “Love and Death”, made in collaboration with DJ Paul Croan aka Alex Tronic, who has brought his electronic sensibilities to create a dancefloor classic.

Already a standout track from the band’s critically acclaimed third album “Heightened Senses”, the remixes include a full length vocal version, a radio edit plus an instrumental. The EP is completed by a single edit of the original album version of “Love and Death”.

To accompany the EP, the band are playing some live shows:

Thursday 27^th February 2020. Under The Hammer, Aberdeen

Friday 28^th February 2020. Mono, Glasgow, supporting The Monochrome Set

Saturday 29^th February 2020. Beat Generator Live! Dundee, supporting The Monochrome Set

Stereogram Recordings are delighted to announce the release of ‘Heightened Senses’ , the long-awaited new single by The Cathode Ray on September 27th, 2019, available on video, download and stream formats. It’s released before the band’s third album, also called ‘Heightened Senses’, which will be available on gatefold vinyl, CD, download and streaming formats from November 1st, 2019.

The infectious title track digs deeper into the more positive side of The Cathode Ray, previously hinted at on earlier singles such as ‘Mind’ and ‘This Force Of Nature’. Simultaneously a simple ode to the joy of life and a love song, chief songwriter Jeremy Thoms sings of “living in the here and now” and how “this energy inside” gives him “heightened senses, intensified and true, magnified for you”, all set to an insanely catchy slice of skewed perfect Pop which The Cathode Ray do so well. Think Portugal The Man meets The Strokes via Pharrell and OutKast.

Following on four and a half years from their last long-player, the ‘Heightened Senses’ album itself, as the name implies, finds the bands musical and lyrical palette raised to new levels.

Simultaneously more Pop and progressive, direct and experimental, electronic and acoustic, the albums nine tracks take the listener on a rich and varied sonic journey, while lyrically it concerns itself variously with themes of fantasy and reality, alienation and belonging, hopes and fears, doubts and certainties, optimism and mortality, the past, present, and future.