15 January 2011

The Field Mice - skywriting + singles (1990, LTM)

Second volume of the anthology of Field Mice, released on LTM, “Skywriting + singles” presents their mid-career. There isn't early fulgurations or moving fragile shyness and the crepuscular beauty of their comet's tail is absent too. It's the belly of the band, where they do what they really are, confident in their style, their summer and early harvest season. Before autumn and winter and after sewing and germination.


So, there is no big surprise here, 21 songs but only 12 absolutely memorable if you avoid their unsuccessful trials to explore new styles or the unavoidable weaker songs. It combines the second Field Mice album “Skywriting” (1990) with all tracks from the EPs “The Autumn Store” (1990) and “So Said Kay” (1990), along with two compilation tracks and three previously unreleased tracks: I Thought Wrong, Right As Rain and Heart Disease Called Love.

This album is the place to enjoy Field Mice for their melodic songwriting, for the efficiency of their song, the power of their sensitivity, the proudness of their adolescent sentimentality, the naive purity of their pastel-blue melancholy. Because, if you want to discover what Field Mice brought to their kind of music you'll have to look for it on the previous and next volumes. Here it's their craftsmanship on pure melodic indie songwriting that shines brightly.

While I'm not totally blown away by Bobby Wratten's feat on this collection of song, I know that Field Mice is part of me, part of my history. As around 1990, back when I was a teenager, these songs helped me to see things more positively, gave me hope, I wasn't alone, so sad, feelings were natural and time would heal. I have an enormous respect for these songs, like “If you need someone”, “Indian Ocean”, “Quicksilver” or “It isn't forever”. If I am what I am, they definitely played a role in it. And I can just smile thinking of it, happy that this part of me isn't completely gone as I still can feel deliciously slightly blue so many years after.

I will always love Field Mice.






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