Hello

This is our final Shine newsletter of the year so we thought we’d do
something slightly different to pass the time. Compared to the last 4
years, 2009 has been a quiet year for us. We made a lot of progress on the
album but gigging wise, we’ve only played two Big Pink Cake shows in
Bristol and 4 gigs in Germany. It takes a lot of our time to rehearse for
gigs and we felt the album was the priority this year. However, all the
shows we have played have all been special in their own way and thanks to
everyone who turned up or organised them!

We think 2010 could be a vintage Shine year. The new album will be ready in
the spring, all being well and we hope to follow it up with more gigs in
the US and Germany - keep an eye on our website which has admitedly been
pretty static this year. We are intending to update with snippets of new
songs and stuff but just haven’t got round to it yet. This is my first job
in the new year!

As well as the new album, we hope to release some vinyl 7 inches in 2010
with Andi Jenner who takes care of our German tours, and also with ‘All in
the Golden Afternoon’ who we played with in Germany this year. I think
Rachel from AITGA has the most amazing voice and on that subject (Rachel
sings in MM) - I can’t wait to hear the new Monster Movie album next year.

And if you’re ever in Bristol on a Saturday that the Big Pink Cake is in
town then come along and hear some great bands It’s the only club left
still playing C86, Sarah and new indie stuff - you can’t beat it. You can
find out more about the Big Pink Cake on myspace and facebook.

And finally to our little end of year indulgence. We each compiled a list
10 songs that mean something to us for various reasons. Not necessarily our
favouite songs but there’s just something about them. Feel free to send me
your selections to scott@secretshine.co.uk

Happy festive season and see you next year!

Best wishes
Scott


JAMIE”S TOP 10

ELO - MR BLUE SKY
I love this song because its complexity and richness are working at a whole
other level to most bands of any era, and I also love it because it’s so
audacious.  Above all though, I love it because it makes me smile whenever
I listen to it.

Pixies - WHERE IS MY MIND?
This song sums up what make the Pixies great to me.  Most of their stuff
has no right to work as well as it does, but they have a magic about them
which transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary.  Kim Deals
otherworldly opening harmony, followed by Black Francis’s scuba diving
inspired lyrics conspires to create a modern day classic for the MTV
generation. It’s even been transmitted to Mars.  Not sure why though...

Arcade Fire - WHERE NO CARS GO
This is the best song on Neon Bible – and there are a lot of good songs on
Neon Bible.  It’s so good, it managed to travel back in time to also appear
on their self titled debut EP, (or maybe it’s the other way around?).  From
the opening keyboard lead to the chanted “Heys!” and brass sections in the
chorus, this song mixes feel good factor into their sound by the bucket
load and is a great counterpart to the oddly transport inspired lyrics.

Pale Saints - THROWING BACK THE APPLE
This came late in the day for the original line up of the band, but was I
think their finest hour.  Throwing back the apple is an example of why the
Pale Saints were  one of my favourite bands in the early nineties.  It has
a complex rhythm, sweet vocals and excellent melodies.  Melody wise, they
always had a knack of throwing you a curved ball when you were expecting a
straight and this song is no exception.  Adding female vocals for this and
later songs only made the whole package sweeter.

The Smiths – Please please please let me get what I want this time
If you’re going to wallow in misery, you should do it properly.  This to me
is what The Smiths are all about. Yes, they can fill the dance floor with
William and Charming Man, but at Morrissey’s core, you just know he just
wants to be back under the covers crying about the unbearable lightness of
being. This swan song should have been their last, but instead came
somewhere in the middle.  It doesn’t really matter, because I never tire of
listening to it, and taken at face value, its one of the saddest and most
poignant songs ever written.

My Bloody Valentine - SUE IS FINE
Yes, the mix could have been clearer, the production bigger and the
mastering louder, but to complain about any of these things would be to
miss the point. This song is the proverbial indie rollercoaster revelling
in something that is difficult to define but lots of fun to indulge in. It
smacks along at a pace that you feel even the band are struggling to keep
up with and the drums I suspect, are actually being played by an octopus.
Put this on the deck. Turn it to 11. Watch the night club explode.

Kate Bush - WUTHERING HEIGHTS
Ok – this seems the odd one out here?  Quite frankly, it could be put in
any top ten and still be the odd one out. It’s just strange and beautiful
and a little bit scary, like some alien goddess that’s just come floating
out of a UFO and declared intergalactic war on the human race. It doesn’t
really sit comfortably in any genre, which I love, and defied the ability
of most music critics to review in any meaningful sense.  A review after
all is relative, and since this sounds like it was written in a different
dimension, the rules ceased to apply.  Although many pretenders to the
sound have come and gone in the intervening years, this debut by Kate Bush
is still rightly cherished as the original and best.

Air - PLAYGROUND LOVE
Air started to play around with more acoustic instruments in the album
penned for the Virgin Suicide, not least the acoustic drums, and the result
is an album with more breathing space and feel than their debut Moon
Safari.  Playground love stands out for me because of this, but also
because it perfectly caught the sonic mood and feel of the childhood era it
was striving to emulate.  The hooks and melody are all Air and superb for
it, but the melancholy pathos and remembrance of times gone are the main
reason to listen to this song.

Sneaker Pimps - HOW DO
I think this is the only cover in my list.  It’s from a song written by
Paul Giovanni, itself based on a poem, for the film “Wicker Man”.  Some
people (mainly men of a certain age) of are fond of recalling this song
since Britt Eckland managed to sing the entire thing without any clothes
on.  Moving on three decades, and the trip hop outfit, Sneaker Pimps
decided to do a cover.  It’s a great cover because it manages to ensure the
integrity of the original folk melody whilst adding some great depth with
the use of electronica.  The first time I heard it, I fell in love and it
still holds the same appeal for me today.

Suzanne Vega - THE QUEEN AND SOLDIER
From Suzanne Vegas self titled debut album, this is a richly dark, gothic
fairy tale, accompanied by Suzanne Vegas’ sweet vocals and a sublime folk
melody, telling of the ultimate sacrifice.  Why is this not in everybody’s
top ten?


KATHRYN’S TOP 10

Yeah Yeah Yeahs MAPS
Just because

Arctic Monkeys - 505 & CORNERSTONE
Big fan of the monkeys and these songs make me smile

Rachel Goldstar - DISTANT SEAS
Literally took my breath away hearing this live in Berlin & Hamburg this
October (as did a later incident in a dorm in Hamburg (hee hee)). Beautiful
song

Tnichy Stryder FT N-Dubz - NUMBER 1
My VERY guilty pleasure of this year. But it lifts me and makes me dance
like a loon

Placebo - EVERY YOU EVERY ME
Makes me dance like a loon too

The Cure - JUST LIKE HEAVEN
Aw, it’s the cure, it’s late 80’s and I’m regressing as I hurtle towards 40

Girls Aloud - UNTOUCHABLE
because you can take the girl out of pop, but you cant take pop out of the
girl

The Pigeon Detectives - EVERYBODY WANTS ME
A  great reminder of SXSW, and kept me company on my daily run along a
beautiful New Zealand beach

Kate Nash - BIRDS
Aagain another SXSW happy memory, a travel companion since, and love the
chorus lyrics/story


SCOTT”S TOP 10

Belle and Sebastian - A CENTURY OF FAKERS
This is the first B&S record I ever bought and I don’t even know why I did
- I’d never heard them before buying this. Maybe it was meant to be but it
started my 10 year love affair with the band. Their records helped me
through a painful long-term girlfriend break up and unless they diversify
into contemporary jazz then I will always be their number one fan!

Poppyheads - SUN SHINES FOREVER (Sha La La flexi)
This was the first song on a compilation tape made for me by a guy called
Matthew Evans (who later played in Tramway). This was the first true DIY
indie pop song I ever heard at the age of 16 and changed the direction of
my music taste forever. I’m forever indebted to Matthew for a musical
education in many ways.

The Carpenters - SUPERSTAR
My parents used to always listen to their Carpenters-dominated record
collection on a Sunday evening and at the time I probably thought this was
so uncool but call it nostalgia ‘Superstar’ is a classic tune with angelic
vocals from Karen Carpenter.

My Bloody Valentine - CUPID COME (from Isn’t Anything)
‘Isn’t Anything’ is a stroke of genius and Cupid Come sums up the album;
sexy, beautiful, understated vocals, sparse, tremolo guitar and Colm’s
intense rhythmic machine-like drumming. It was also significant because
Jamie and I had just started writing together and it provided this sense of
‘this is how good you could be’, even though we never could of course...

The Sea Urchins - PRISTINE CHRISTINE
This is just about the most perfect 7” I own and perhaps the first and best
record that was ever released on Sarah Records. Pristine Christine is an
indie pop jangly gem and Sullen Eyes and Everglades are no slouches either!

Primal Scream - IMPERIAL (from Sonic Flower Groove)
Reminds me of a perfect summer - 17 years old, playing for a cool indie
band called the Panda Pops, meeting my first proper girlfriend, hanging out
with Jamie for the first time. This song was always playing and still their
best album in my opinion!

Tears Run Rings - WORLD UPSIDE DOWN (from the album Always, Sometimes,
Seldom, Never)
This was my personal soundtrack to our midwest US tour in 2006. I love
Tears Run Rings, the people and the music and this reminds me of our
adventures together, all squashed in a van traveling through bizarre cities
in crazy weather conditions. The whole tour was an experience I will never
ever forget.

Monster Movie - DRIVING THROUGH THE RED LIGHTS
I only discovered this band last year after about their third album but I
love everything they do. This is another perfect slice of shoegazy/electro
pop. When I first discovered this on Last FM I bought all of their albums
imeadiately without hearing anything else and wasn’t disappointed.

Beach Boys - GOD ONLY KNOWS
I don’t know if other people have this but this is my ‘default’ song locked
in my brain. If I were to randomly hum something at any given moment it
would be this.

Portishead - GLORY BOX
This song and their debut album reminds me of my early twenties, having
fun, finding my way after uni, making lasting friendships and a carefree
existence. Glory Box a beautiful song on a groundbreaking album and
watching Portishead at the Bristol Ashton Court music festival was one of
my favourite gigs ever!


DEAN’s TOP 10

Ride - VAPOUR TRAIL
Watching Mark and the boys on Top of the Pops back in 1989 was the moment I
realised I wanted to sing in a band.

Bluetones - KEEP THE HOME FIRES BURNING
The start of this song reminds me of the song used in the Hovis bread
advert. Sad songs are always the best.

My Vitriol - ALWAYS YOUR WAY
Blown away by the power of this band live.

Thompson Twins - DOCTOR, DOCTOR
A band that I grew up with and loved from the moment I heard them. Remember
being aloud to stay up late to watch them on Live Aid live from the states.

Blur - END OF A CENTURY
One of my favourite bands from the Britpop era. Very excited about seeing
them at Glastonbury in 1996 that spent all day drinking and ended up
passing out half way through their set.

Brilliant Corners - BRIAN RIX
The lead singer doesn’t like me much but one of my favourite early indie
tunes.

Depeche Mode - ENJOY THE SILENCE
Brilliant song that always seems to come up on all of my playlists! One of
my last conversations with Tim was about doing a cover of this song in the
Shine.

Strangelove - TIME FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE
Genius band who never made it big! Brilliant musicians and the tortured
soul Patrick Duff was a great frontman... they’re also from Bristol.

Placebo - COME HOME
Just a brilliant tune!

PJ Harvey - YOU SAID SOMETHING
You have to listen to this when you’re in New York! 

Secret Shine's little autumn burst of activity in the shape of our German
tour has now finished and we had such a brilliant time. Our two German mini
tours in 2008 and 2009 have been some of the best shows we've played in the
last few years and again we thank all the people who made it happen - Andi,
Laura, Frank (sorry you were ill in Münster!), Nils and Fred. Lets hope we
can go back next year when our new album finally surfaces.

Also, it was a pleasure to play two gigs with the wonderful All in the
Golden Afternoon. If there's time to catch Rachel and Carlos on their final
European dates then make sure you go along. We hope for a Secret Shine /
All in the Golden Afternoon collaboration in the future, if only just to
hang out with them both again!

We're now furrowing back into our den and going into winter hibernation,
except we won't be sleeping. We will be working hard (until Christmas
intrudes) recording vocals, some more guitars and adding some sparkly
touches to our new record, with a spring 2010 release in mind. We are
finally conceding that CDs are not as popular as they once were so the
actual pressing may be limited but it will be available to download
everywhere. For those, like me, who still love vinyl and CDs (I've never
downloaded one single song), don't worry because we have a couple of offers
to do some vinyl seven inches next year.

If you fancy a sneak preview of one of our new songs then visit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XVES_P7jxs
This is Touching Nothing recorded acoustically at the Big Pink Cake
weekender during the summer. Kathryn was actually in the audience rather
than singing but Dean does a good job as choir boy.

On the subject of Big Pink Cake - keep an eye on their myspace for some
great gigs and events, although it's better if you live in Bristol because
this is where most of them are held. We're looking forward to seeing Clare
Wadd from Sarah Records DJ'ing December 5th at the Mother's Ruin. We'll be
on the dancefloor, unless she plays one of our songs like last time - that
might look a little embarrasing, dancing to your own song!

And finally, we've really enjoyed our laptop gigs lately but we're kind of
thinking a drummer would be cool again so if you know anyone who might be
interested in joining us then please let us know. Preferably someone who
lives somewhere in the south west UK!

Happy winter, more news soon

Scott

It's been quite a while since we got in touch. We've all been busy in our
own worlds so Secret Shine has taken a bit of a back seat for a few months.

Kathryn has just come back from a month in New Zealand visiting her brother
whose a bit ill at the moment so it's a very tough time for her. Jamie has
been tinkering away on the album but has had his own family situation to
deal with. I've been investing all my time into launching a new magazine
called Cloth all about clothes and homeware making and mending which
launches on 23rd September (www.clothmagazine.co.uk). Dean has been sunning
himself in the South of France but has also managed to record vocals for a
few new songs so we're still moving along with the new record.

We're all very excited about our 4 dates in Germany in October. We've
hardly played this year so it'll be great to plug in the guitars and play
some new songs, as well as the old ones of course. I'm also personally
ecstatic about playing with 'All in the Golden Afternoon' in Berlin and
Hamburg. I'm a recent convert to all things Monster Movie and Rachel sang
on a couple of their albums as well as her own band Experimental Aircraft.
Here are the dates in case you don't know:

21st October Bang Bang Club, Berlin, with AITGA and Pop Assistants DJs
22nd October Gleiss 22, Münster
23rd October Astra Stube, Hamburg, with AITGA
24th October Blue Pearl, Cologne

We hope that you can make it to one of our shows. It'll be quite a
different set from the last time we played in 2008 and we've dusted off a
few old tracks.

One of the biggest disappointments this month was going to see one of my
favourite old bands, The Pastels in Bristol. They had kind of merged into
another band called the Tenniscoats. The music was OK but they only played
Baby Honey and Thru Your Heart in an hour-long set. I was so excited
beforehand but this was a major let down and I felt a bit duped!

Anyway, be back to you soon with some news on our new album. After the
German dates we'll all be nestled in the studio again so hope to finish
before Christmas.

See you soon
Scott

Hope you’re enjoying the summer. It’s been surprisingly warm in England which is nice but will it last...

More Big Pink Cakes
Just a quick update from the Shine camp. We’re playing at the Big Pink Cake weekender on Saturday July 11th. This will be an entirely acoustic set and we have a few little surprises up our (short) sleeves, including a somewhat unusual cover which Dean is in training for as we speak.

Germany here we come again
Our German tour is shaping up nicely and we are excited to be playing with All in the Golden Afternoon in Berlin and Hamburg (and hopefully more). This is the new shoegaze band from Rachel Goldstar, known for her beautiful vocals in Monster Movie and Experimental Aircraft. Check out their myspace:
http://www.myspace.com/allinthegoldenafternoon

Here are the German dates so far. Please note, these dates replace any previously reported dates:
Wednesday 21st October, Bang Bang Club, Berlin
Thursday 22nd October, Gleis22, Münster
Friday 23rd October, Astrastube, Hamburg
Saturday 24th October, Blue Shell, Cologne

We hope to add more dates soon and as usual thanks to everyone who’s worked hard to get this off the ground. It’s harder than you would think but very much worth it!

Secret Shine go Twitter!
We’ve succumbed to this latest social networking site. Thought it may be fun but I need to keep finding interesting things to say. Follow us on twitter.com/secretshineUK

Jamie keeps writing more songs
The album is also coming along very nicely. We’ve recorded music for about 15 songs - maybe we’ll do an old-style double album! The actual release date of the album is likely to be delayed due to Kathryn having to deal with some serious family matters which could take her out of the country for a few months. But we’re working on it every week so it’s looking like late 2009/early 2010.

Until next time...

Sorry it's been so long since we got in touch!

When we go quiet it's usually because we're concentrating on something or
just not doing all that much but in the last few months we've actually been
furrowing away at our new album. Jamie and I have recorded lots of music
for most of the songs and Dean has just started laying down his vocal
tracks. Jamie made him sing one of our new songs 'Touching Nothing' 97
times last week so he wasn't that happy about it.

It's so different now to how we recorded when we were on 'Sarah'. Back then
we would decamp to the studio for a few days and just record and mix
everything in one go. Now we record one guitar one week, then some drums,
then vocals, then a submix, add something else - all on a big computer in
Jamie's home studio. We have more time to experiment now and get things
right but I miss the days of sitting on a sofa drinking a cup of tea in the
control room watching Jamie sing through the window of the darkened vocal
booth.

Anyway, I'm reminiscing. On to some things coming up in the near and
distant future. Secret Shine play our second tour of Germany in October
2009. We have four confirmed dates in Berlin (20th), Münster (21st),
and Hamburg (23rd) and are waiting to hear from some other venues.
We'd love to play even more dates so if you happen to be from
a German town and know a good, small venue then please let us know!

On Saturday June 6th, I will be playing a short'ish DJ set at the infamous
Big Pink Cake Club, Mother's Ruin, Bristol. I will be joined by host of
other much better DJs for what promises to be another fantastic Big Pink
Cake night - you can't beat these nights - I mean - what club still plays
The Sea Urchins and the Flatmates!

Honourable music mentions this month - the new Doves album 'Kingdom of
Rust' and everything by Monster Movie who were recommended to me by Andi
who helps us set up all our German gigs. I can't believe I've been missing
out all this time. I just wish I could entice them to play on our German
tour!!

Until next time...

Take it easy

Scott