Fortuna POP! - 7" Vinyl
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Sold outVisit product page →Capricornia is the first single from the eagerly anticipated second album from Allo Darlin' entitled Europe.
Achingly personal, incredibly poignant and familiar all at once, Elizabeth Morris' songwriting has deepened and developed since their debut, and while the upcoming album may have a more sombre feel to it Capricornia shows that they've lost none of their ability to create sophisticated, intelligent pop music with an uplifting, joyous feel. And for those of you wondering exactly what Capricornia is all about, Elizabeth explains:
Capricornia is the area in Queensland that I'm from. It has imaginary state lines, roughly around the Tropic of Capricorn, which runs directly through my hometown.
There's a nice 70s monument that marks the spot where the line passes, out on a lonely dirt road where all the kids learn how to drive. My family have lived in this area for over 6 generations but none of my generation remain. It's a beautiful place.
Musically, when we first discussed the album with our producer, I suggested that the feel of Europe should be somewhere between A New England by Kirsty Macoll and Cattle and Cane by The Go-Betweens. I think this song is the closest to that.
Tracklisting:
Side A:
Capricornia
Side B:
When You Were Mine -
Sold outVisit product page →Probably the only disco song in the world to feature ukulele and lap steel, Dreaming is a melancholy toe-tapper of a duet with Monster Bobby of The Pipettes, who turned in a guest vocal so bass-worryingly low that he lost a filling.
A paean to going out dancing and falling in love in a cold climate it'll make you almost nostalgic for the sub-Arctic conditions of the last British winter.
Flip it over and B-side You Still Send Me is a total heartbreaker, recorded absolutely live in the studio, vocals and all, with every breath and creak audible.
Tracklisting:
1. Dreaming
2. You Still Send Me -
Sold outVisit product page →Elizabeth from Allo Darlin' describes what Europe the song is about - "About a year ago I wasn't sure how much longer I'd be able to live in the UK, because my visa was running out and I was running out of options.
I've lived here for most of my adult life. I started thinking about what I'd lose if I went home, and what I'd gain. What memories I'd take with me if I left." Oddly though the song also turned out to be a remarkably prescient celebration of the togetherness that pulled the band through a disastrous tour of the continent last year, when noxious fumes in their tour van nearly put paid to them altogether.
The B-side is an alternative version of the song "Some People Say", recording during the mostly abandoned original album recording sessions in Manchester. It's a slower version than the album version, and is quite beautiful.Tracklisting:
Side A:
Europe
Side B:
Some People Say (Alternative Version) -
Sold outVisit product page →Written while visiting her parents on the Queensland Coast If Loneliness Was Art captures some of that Australian sea air with its laidback reggae-ish beach vibe and summery Sha-la-la-la-las.
Listen carefully though and you'll hear that the carefree disposition of the song masks a quiet despair and longing in the lyrics. As Elizabeth herself says, It's about wanting somebody. Really really badly.Even if the British weather fails to cooperate, If Loneliness Was Art is going to bring a slice of Aussie pop sunshine to proceedings.
Tracklisting:
1. If Loneliness Was Art
2. Girlfriend -
Sold outVisit product page →My Heart is a Drummer is the fourth single from Allo Darlin's self-titled debut on Fortuna POP!, an album so chock-full of great tunes that it just keeps on giving. Brightening up the dull wintery days, My Heart is a Drummer calypsos and sashays, combining Elizabeth Morris' signature ukulele with Bill Botting's rumbling bass lines, Paul Rains' rhythmic guitar and Mikey Collins' swinging drum beat.
Allo Darlin' are a breath of fresh air breezing through stale music everywhere. Elizabeth Morris' thoughtful yet playful creations are achingly personal, incredibly poignant and familiar all at once. Incorporating tunes that you think you must have heard before, she twists them into something new and highly intoxicating. Bringing a certain Australian aesthetic from her native country, she translates effortlessly into the London scene, using ideas very much based on every day life and observations.
My Heart is A Drummer is a statement of inner strength and defiance with lyrics somehow manages to include a chain-smoking asthma suffering boyfriend, that nervous in love feeling of twisting your fingers round the telephone cord and Paul Simon's Graceland. Meanwhile the b-side, an acoustic version of their last single If Loneliness Was Art, tells of longing for someone who is seemingly out of reach.
Tracklisting:
1. My Heart Is A Drummer
2. If Loneliness Was Art (acoustic) -
Sold outVisit product page →The superbly jangly Northern Lights is the third single to be taken from Allo Darlin's second album 'Europe'. It's written about a New Year's Eve spent in Sweden and somehow manages to imbue a wintery scene with a sweet breath of sunshine as Elizabeth Morris' voice rings out clear as a bell and Paul Rain's guitar melodies shine brightly.
It's backed by Golden Age, a B-side which seems to exist simply to prove that Allo Darlin' have super-catchy melodic pop gems to burn. In any other band's hands this might be a single rather than tucked away as the flip of the third single from the album, but then it's this kind of willful perversity that makes Allo Darlin' so very special!
Tracklisting:
1. Northern Lights
2. Golden Age -
Sold outVisit product page →The Polaroid Song is the first fruit from Allo, Darlin's debut album, recorded at Soup Studios below the Duke of Uke and scheduled for release in 2010.
A breezy, bouncy, eighties-style pop song that could have come straight from the soundtrack of a John Hughes movie, it was inspired by Polaroid's decision to stop manufacturing the iconic film, a move that prompted Elizabeth's photography-obsessed boyfriend to start his own stockpile.
B-side Will You Please Spend New Year's With Me? possesses a childlike naivety and emotional directness that conjures up the anti-folk lullabies of Kimya Dawson. -
Sold outVisit product page →Limited Edition (500) 7" Single.
The first single to be taken from Allo Darlin's album 'We Come From the Same Place', "Bright Eyes" is a hugely enjoyable duet between singer Elizabeth Morris and guitarist Paul Rains.
Recording their vocals simultaneously in the live room of the studio, the two were able to play off one another and capture the humour and affection inherent in the song's lyrics.
"Bright Eyes" isn't the first duet the band have recorded, early single "Dreaming" featured Monster Bobby of The Pipettes trading lines with Elizabeth, but as she notes, that then poses its own problems when it comes to playing live.
"I wanted to write another duet, but the only problem with doing that is that when you play live it's very rare that the person you recorded it with can be there. So I thought it would be great to write a song with Paul singing the other part. I love Paul's singing and I wanted to hear him do it more, so it's quite selfish really!"
"We Come From The Same Place" is the third full-length recording from the much loved Anglo-Australian four-piece and is made up of smart, beautiful pop music, with lyrics that resonate with experience and melodies that chime, echo and soar.
The album combines the eagerness, urgency and immediacy of their 2010 self-titled debut with the contemplation, sophistication and ambition of their 2012 follow-up "Europe," and yet it goes beyond either both sonically and in the songs.
It was written at a time of considerable change for songwriter Elizabeth Morris, a time during which she fell in love, moved to Italy and got married. The truism is that third albums are difficult beasts, but by remaining true to themselves Allo Darlin'have side-stepped the pitfalls to produce a wonderful record - thoughtful and exciting and exquisitely played - that will please their existing army of fans and newcomers alike.
Tracklisting:
Side A:
Bright Eyes
Side B:
The Best I Can
