Saint Etienne - Home Counties [New Album 2017]

Still the only album of theirs I never bought. You’d be out a fortune being a hardcore fan of this lot.
 
FetchFugly said:
I got the latest 'fanclub' compilation release for Xmas. Included together with two other Home Counties offcuts is this wonderful Et go dancey number:



Further evidence that there was a better album in the Home Counties sessions than the one we ended up with.
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That was the ‘no cd’ release?

No thanks 😞
 
BoysForSeles said:
Still the only album of theirs I never bought. You’d be out a fortune being a hardcore fan of this lot.
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In a way, don’t I know it.

But in another way, this is “new” music, so don’t think this really counts.
 
jyxz said:
That was the ‘no cd’ release?

No thanks 😞
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Martin Kelly has said that they don’t make money off cd releases as demand is so low but is looking into doing this on cd because lots of people have been moaning.

I do love how the cd gang are just getting what us vinyl aficionados had to put up with for years and are whining constantly about it!
 
FetchFugly said:
I got the latest 'fanclub' compilation release for Xmas. Included together with two other Home Counties offcuts is this wonderful Et go dancey number:



Further evidence that there was a better album in the Home Counties sessions than the one we ended up with.
Click to expand...

It’s absolutely magnificent, isn’t it? The highlight of what is a great fan club release- it does that brilliantly Saint Etienne thing of being drawn from various sessions but sounding cohesive as an album.

Home Counties remains my least favourite Saint Etienne album overall, though.
 
Yes some very nice songs and it really does work rather well as an album. I think I will be revisiting it more than I've Been Trying To Tell You which I haven't gone back to much at all.
 
FetchFugly said:
Yes some very nice songs and it really does work rather well as an album. I think I will be revisiting it more than I've Been Trying To Tell You which I haven't gone back to much at all.
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I’ve Been Trying To Tell You actually is what they said it is- a hazy, late summer album. It made a lot more sense when I threw it on then than earlier in the year.
 
I still listen to Broken Bricks regularly. The MADNESS of not releasing it properly.

Is much known @Sheena about the 'lost album' that included Shade of Love?
 
FetchFugly said:
I still listen to Broken Bricks regularly. The MADNESS of not releasing it properly.

Is much known @Sheena about the 'lost album' that included Shade of Love?
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Not a lot really. They were recording a different album before “I’ve Been Trying To Tell You” (some said “folk inspired”, but then Tiger Bay was supposedly that too) and I imagine some of the stuff will appear on the next album.

I agree about Broken Bricks. It’s absolutely top tier Saint Etienne. But it doesn’t fit on Home Counties, which I guess was the issue,
 
Yes I guess anything from those sessions they don't use for the upcoming album is more fodder for the fan club releases.

I can see that Broken Bricks isn't a neat fit with most of the Home Counties material, but then Dive isn't exactly as one with the album either. I just love it so much, their best since Words and Music probably.
 
I hadn’t thought about Dive but yes, I suppose you’re right.

They never were the best at song selection. The amount of wonderful stuff they’ve tossed aside…
 
Sheena said:
I hadn’t thought about Dive but yes, I suppose you’re right.

They never were the best at song selection. The amount of wonderful stuff they’ve tossed aside…
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They were a little more prolific back in the day though so it didn't matter quite so much.

I have been listening to Home Counties tonight and Dive is definitely an outlier, but it is retro so still just about works with the album. You were quite right, Broken Bricks is glorious but wouldn't fit at all.

Magpie Eyes isn't that bad but I just REALLY RESENT IT for probably quite irrational reasons. Still love Out of My Mind and dirty Heather. YUCK at Sweet Arcadia though, and I am not keen on Train Drivers in Eyeliner either.

Nice to remind myself of the charms of London Like a Distant Sun and the wonderful Camel Coat too.
 
Heather is the only 10/10 moment for me, though I do love Dive too. The rest of Home Counties is not really my bag- it’s easily their worst album for me, although I gave it a spin a few weeks back and I admit that time has made me soften on it a bit.

Magpie Eyes is just dull. Something they’ve never been guilty of! The fact it was a single and still takes a place in their (now annoyingly rarely changing) set list makes me resent it too!
 
I thought it was a bit odd that of all the songs Magpie Eyes was in their Glastonbury set, but making it a permanent live fixture is just bizarre.

Part of the problem with Home Counties is that there are too many quite similar so-so songs. A good edit and a substitution or two would have really improved things.
 
FetchFugly said:
I thought it was a bit odd that of all the songs Magpie Eyes was in their Glastonbury set, but making it a permanent live fixture is just bizarre.

Part of the problem with Home Counties is that there are too many quite similar so-so songs. A good edit and a substitution or two would have really improved things.
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I kind of agree but, as I said earlier, it does hold together thematically at least.

Magpie Eyes they clearly love. Against universal disinterest from everywhere else.
 
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