i'm just noticing this and i'm elated. this band is a hallmark of consistency and they really bring it with every record. as much as a bunch of Englishmen soaked in reverb with twanging guitars can "bring it", anyway.

i slept on God Save the Clientele a bit in 2007, but their That Night, a Forest Grew EP last year had me buzzing. Strange Geometry is the classic that got me into the group and i've been enlightened by all three of their other records since then.

this blog has a link to everything they've ever released except the 2008 EP. just let me know if you'd like that, though: http://shallyboy.blogspot.com/2008/05/clie...iscography.html

anyone else ready for THE ROCK TO BE BROUGHT?

Very cool. Have really enjoyed everything this band has put out. Definitely interested to hear more about this one!

i haven't been able to find anything close to press coverage of this. everyone likes this band but no one gives a shit. that's what you get for being samey and traditional in these MODERN TIMES.

i anticipate this album to be more of the same with a few more psychobillyfreakouts where they crank the guitars for like 15 seconds then pretend like it never happened. maybe less gauze and more pristine production, too.

My pick as album of the year in 2007. Of course I'm anxious.

How ridiculous would it be if this band made an album full of songs like "The Garden at Night"?

Really looking forward to this.

Hoping it's more Here Comes The Phantom style stuff, probably my favourite song they did. And a couple of Losing Haringey's as well.

I am so angry at myself for missing The Clientele when the played with Spoon a few years back. I had the tickets and everything.


Fantastic band, everything they put out is intricate and worth hearing. "Violet Hour" is overlooked so much in my opinion. Just glorious, and hauntingly beautiful. But really, "God Save the Clientele" and "Strange Geometry" are top tier albums as well.Oh and there is that other album..."Suburban Light?" with the ethereal "Reflections After Jane"..thats brille too.

God Save The Clientele (which I just finally bough on vinyl, a few days ago) stomps all over the rest of the discography. Great band, though. Been looking forward to this for a while. The announcement did get some coverage, as I've already read this. Just not too much, I guess. One of those non-major stories, for sure.

i like god save the clientele but it is their worst album imo

i am excited for this tho, love this band

This thread inspired me to finally check these guys out, so I downloaded Strange Geometry last night. Listening to it for the first time now.

Wow.

Wow.

How have I overlooked this band for so long? I can't remember the first time I was this enamored with a band I had never listened to before on first listen. So where do I go from here?

With an opening salvo as good as "Since K Got Over Me", it's very difficult to not fall in love with this band at the Strange Geometry intro point... I'm absolutely giddy about this new album.

That 20-or-so second guitar workout in the middle of E.M.P.T.Y. kicked my ass.

all their albums are more or less the same so it doesn't really matter. i guess move on to God Save the Clientele? but you'd do just as well to grab The Violet Hour or Suburban Light

Chrono, thanks a ton for the directions to that blog. Helped fill in some gaps in these guys' discography.

I actually remember Rob Gordon talking up God Save the Clientele a lot that year it came out. I'd probably never call something like GSTC an 'album of the year' (I think it had it at #18 or somewhere around there on my year-end) just 'cause I'm not often in the mood for an album like that, but it is really good. Just full of classic songwriting and just so... pretty.

I've been burning through this band's stuff since reading this thread and news of the upcoming album. This band deserves more love. Their stuff can seem really slight and it's hard to get "excited" about a band like The Clientele, but if you're in the right mood when you're listening to these guys - goddamn.

You can download their entire discography for free if you follow Chrono's link, people!

If I go to my grave and this band's biggest claim to fame is still having a song on the soundtrack of the fucking Keanu Reeves/Sandra Bullock time-traveling love letter mailbox movie, I will have died in vain.

To me the exciting thing is that I firmly believe they are getting better with every release.

P4K Interview

Good news:
There's a new Clientele album on the way pretty soon.

Bad news:
It might be the last Clientele album.

They've got a track from the new one, "I Wonder Who We Are", and the album cover up on a bunch of sites now. The album cover frightens me a little bit.

http://stereogum.com/archives/mp3/new-clie...are_078692.html

Made my morning.

Really looking forward to this, and while I don't have any problem with the promo track, I'm happy to hear it doesn't reflect the overall mood and sound of the record.

This is pretty much exactly how I feel. I never, ever would have predicted it, but it looks like God Save The Clientele is going to wind up as one of my more loved albums of the decade. I hope that this one keeps with the (comparatively more) somber tone and mood there on display, and that the pedal steel sticks around. More like the comma-less "No Dreams Last Night" and "These Days Nothing But Sunshine," please. This is a good track, but after that 'Fork interview, I was hoping for something a lot more melancholy.

Another song from the new one, "Harvest Time", is on P4K and Stereogum. Not really in a Clientele mood right now, though.

I'm not quite in that mood, either, but I really like this song. Still not loving either of these tracks, but this one is closer to what I want from my ideal version of The Clientele (and surprisingly acid-tinged, keeping with his LSD story). In my perfect world, this record would be full of songs like "These Days, Nothing But Sunshine" and "No Dreams Last Night." That weepy, somnabulant, steel pedal guitar Clientele is the one I most enjoy.

Great song. I love everything they've done, but this really reflects the sort of mood and sounds I think they do best.

leaked.

First listen - don't love it. I'm hoping that will change. I'm pretty sure it will change, knowing these guys.

This is a major disappointment, given their last two records. The melodies are all safe and sound identical to stuff they have done before. 'Harvest Town' is a standout, apart from that it all runs together; the intro to the first song sounds exactly the same as one of the tracks on 'That Night A Forest Grew' I'm sure.

They put all the longer tracks at the front as well, they should have mixed it up a bit more. It isn't terrible, but nothing worth shouting about.

I really, really like this album. Dig it a lot more than God Save the Clientele, which I still liked quite a bit. Really pretty stuff. "Harvest Time" is quite lovely. And "Tonight" grooves.

Good. Everyone else is bumming me out here.

Waiting until I can pick this up at the record store...

no one told me this leaked...

this is exactly like every other Clientele album, don't be fooled.

a band that actually writes proper bass parts and mixes them well, shocker.

And that's a bad thing?

of course not, this is top notch fantastic. one of the best things i've heard this year.

I'm inclined to agree. Beautiful album.

It's kind of funny. All of the reviews I'm reading for this album and the new Mission of Burma essentially say the same thing, which is "Yeah, it's another recognizable album by (Band), but hey, that's a good thing!"

It leaked during Beatles week.

Only two real good listens for me thus far but sounds heavenly as usual.
Anyone know if the vinyl has been released yet?

I am pretty sure it was supposed to be out, today. I am waiting to pick up a copy in person, so I cannot yet confirm.

Just picked up the vinyl at Waterloo Records, Austin.

Sweet.

Yeah, I just got mine at Reckless, today. They're out there, and they're reasonably priced!

This is their weakest full length. It's the sound of a band that has lost the creative and exploratory impulse.

I've finally come to the realization that what I liked best about this band all along were McClean's vocals, so it's nice enough to hear him hiss through another set of tunes. This also might be his best singing performance. It's not good enough to carry these light songs and boring arrangements, however.

I'm disappointed to see them continue in the same direction as their previous record, with even worse songs. Bummer.

Pretty good interview, though:

http://pitchfork.com/features/interviews/7713-the-clientele/

This album is solid. For some reason I hear Pink Floyd in the vocals and the guitars are reminiscent of Johnny Marr. Not that those are bad things to be reminded of.

Haha no one cares about this band. The refinement of their sound is so slight with each record it's hard to build any buzz. Kinda like Spoon but everyone gets excited for them. Has to be cause they're more rockin. I suppose the Clientele's songs sound more alike than Spoon's too. But like everyone says the Clientete are remarkably consistent and tight. I don't see what strikes about this album being their weakest? It sounds just as good to me as anything else they've done, and a little more lush. I just can't believe they hadn't already released a song called "Walking in the Park."

I am still really enjoying this record, for sure. Should have a happy home on my list. I last listened to it on Monday evening, and it's as consistently good as I've come to expect from this band. I don't think that it's as good as what I consider their best, God Save The Clientele, but it's still damn-ass good.

US dates. Thank fuck.

02-21 Hoboken, NJ - Maxwell's
02-22 Philadelphia, PA - Johnny Brenda's
02-23 Washington, DC - Black Cat
02-24 Chapel Hill, NC - Cats Cradle
02-25 Atlanta, GA - The Earl
02-26 Birmingham, AL - Bottletree
02-27 Baton Rouge, LA - Spanish Moon
02-28 Dallas, TX - Granada Theatre
03-01 Austin, TX - Mohawk
03-04 San Diego, CA - Casbah
03-05 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
03-06 Los Angeles, CA - Spaceland
03-07 Visalia, CA - Cellar Door
03-09 San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
03-11 Portland, OR - Doug Fir Lounge
03-12 Seattle, WA - Tractor Tavern
03-15 Minneapolis, MN - Cedar Cultural Center
03-16 Madison, WI - High Noon Saloon
03-17 Chicago, IL - Lincoln Hall
03-19 Toronto, Ontario - Horseshoe Tavern
03-20 Montreal, Quebec - Il Motore
03-21 Allston, MA - Great Scott
03-23 New York City, NY - Bowery Ballroom

It's not that their sound isn't "exciting" or that the new album is bad or even all that different from previous records. I don't know what it is. I've only listened to it a handful of times and it was just kind of alright. It didn't come close to making my year-end list. Having said that, who knows, I'll probably end up posting in this thread in June about how perfect it is in the right mood and that I like it more than GSTC and SG. Maybe seeing them play the material live will change my mind.

Anybody seen/seeing any shows, on this US tour? Seeing 'em at Lincoln Hall, on Wednesday. Really looking forward to it. Hoping to get some validation for my giddiness. Indulge me.

I won tix to their show tomorrow night in Minneapolis. I'm going because I dig Field Music whose opening. I may stick around for them depending on how late it gets and how good they are.

any love for Minotaur? i like it.

Didn't even hear about it. Got a link?