The Orchids - Dreaming Kind

Eine noch (oder besser gesagt: wieder aktive) Sarah Records-Band! 

Nachdem die 1985 gegründeten The Orchids drei Alben auf dem Indiepop-Label heraus gebracht hatten, löste sich die Band Mitte der 90er Jahre auf, um sich rund 10 Jahre später wieder zusammenzufinden. Auf vier unterschiedlichen Labeln wurden seitdem eben so viele Alben veröffentlicht, zuletzt und nach 8 Jahren Funkstille „Dreaming Kind“ via Skep Wax Records, dem Label von Amelia Fletcher und David Pursey (Heavenly/The Catenary Wires).

Unaufgeregten, ausgefeilten, melancholisch-nostalgischen Gitarrenpop mit mehrstimmigem Harmoniegesang und teilweise elektronischen Rhythmen bietet die schottische Band, die aus Ronnie Borland (Bass, Keyboards), James Hackett (Gesang, Gitarre), Chris Quinn (Schlagzeug) , John Scally (Gitarre, Keyboards) und Keith Sharp (Gitarre) besteht. Ihr Langzeit-Produzent Ian Carmichael ist wohl so etwas wie das inoffizielle sechste Bandmitglied.   

Ihr siebtes Album „Dreaming Kind“ ist als CD und LP (black Vinyl) erhältlich, jedoch wird die Schallplatte erst im Verlauf des Oktobers herauskommen. 

I was drawn in straightway with the opening track and recent single Didn’t We Love You with it’s harmonised chorus and sweet guitar melodies; a lyrical lament, expressing the desire to live in a better place – a place unspoilt by the phonies who’ve taken over. Limitless 1 (Joy) wouldn’t be more opposite, with it’s positivity. “All those little things, the smile that you bring / The joy that you make, it’s such a wonderful thing”. Throughout the album there is a laid back, soulful sound which is almost Californian in origin.

The upbeat This Boy Is A Mess, the first single from the album, is one of the highlights of side one. Whilst the lyrics confess frailty, the music gets stronger and stronger with the vocals soaring making it both bittersweet and exhilarating. Somethings Missing has a funk to it which will have you dancing in your seat or around the kitchen. It’s hard not to compare to Orange Juice, while I Should Have Thought has a late evening soul vibe with harmonies added by long time associate Pauline Hynds Bari. (…)

Whilst listening to Dreaming Kind I’ve also been dipping into The Orchid’s back catalogue. There is a parity between previous releases and this album, however there is a little more magic about this. I don’t know if that’s because the technology in recording has finally allowed them to translate what’s in their heads to tape. Whatever it is, Dreaming Kind has a timeless quality to it which will please long term fans and bring in new followers too.

(Louder Than War)

 

At first listen you think Dreaming Kind offers classic, understated indie pop, but if you put on your headphones and pay more attention to the thirteen new tracks, you’ll hear that they contain a deeper layer of electronic rhythms, uplifting harmony vocals, alienating soundscapes and an occasional guitar solo reaching for the spotlight. (…) Producer Ian Carmichael has subtly accentuated the drama of the songs, with an enlightened choreography that leaves the tenderness of the music in tact. The Orchids have reinvented themselves and the modern look suit them well.

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