Wake The President -‘You Can’t Change That Boy’ (Electric Honey)
…and here it comes. I’ve championed Wake The President since I saw them supporting Emma Pollock at Edinburgh’s Cabaret Voltaire in December 2007. That night, with just two singles to their name ‘Mail Alice’ and ‘Remember Fun?’ they convinced me that here was a band who were going to be going places. They were signed to Electric Honey, the scottish label that has been the launch pad for, amongst others, Biffy Clyro, Snow Patrol and most famously, Belle and Sebastian.
In 2008 they released a split single (the title track), were interviewed by yours truly for this blog and recorded this debut LP with Mr. Emma Pollock Paul Savage (who to date has also worked with Franz Ferdinand, King Creosote, Malcolm Middleton and the Phantom Band). So has it been worth the wait?
Yes, in a word. Over the course of ten songs and thirty six minutes, including the three previous singles (and their next, ‘Miss Tierney’) they set out their stall. Comparisons have already been made with the Postcard stable (Go-Betweens/Aztec Camera/Orange Juice et al) but there’s a freshness here that says WTP are more than just another band stuck in 1981. Which is just as well being as it’s 1982, at least that was the concensus from the music business in January. This album has had spins since it pitched up at 17 Seconds Towers a couple of weeks ago, and it grows on each listen. You’ll love it more with every listen you give it, too.
It may only be February, but this is shaping up to be a bumper year for the scottish indie scene already. And – make no mistake – Wake The President are up there with De Rosa and the Phantom Band.
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You Can’t Change That Boy is out on March 9 on Electric Honey Records.
Wake The President -‘Remember Fun?’ mp3
Wake the President -‘I’m Sorry.’ mp3 (not on the album, but the b-side to ‘Remember Fun?’
Wake The President -‘Mail Alice.’ mp3
Wake The President -‘Sorrows For Clothes.’ mp3 (not on the album, but the AA-side to ‘Mail Alice’)
Wake The President -‘Sorrows For Clothes.’
Wake The President -‘You Can’t Change That Boy.’