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Belle and Sebastian biography
BELLE AND SEBASTIAN BIOGRAPHY
With a combination of fey vocals, killer hooks, avant-garde pop experimentalism and general retro twee-ness, Scottish popsters Belle & Sebastian gave indie fans hope that someone had come to fill the gap left by the daffodil-wielding Morrissey and The Smiths. The band's cult status and relative success has been built on minimum promotion and infrequent live gigs, reaching its zenith in 1999, when, with the help of an internet voting campaign and minimum fuss, they pipped Pete Waterman and his Steps combo to the title of Best Newcomers at the Brits.
The band were formed in Glasgow in 1996 by main songwriter (and ex-choirboy and boxer!) Stuart Murdoch and Isobel Campbell under the aegis of a government training scheme in music and business. The pair later met and recruited additional members Stuart David, Richard Colburn, Stevie Jackson and Chris Geddes in a local cafe. They named themselves after a French TV series about a little boy and his mountain dog.
The band's initial release was a limited pressing (1,000 copies) of their debut album, Tigermilk on the Electric Honey label, released as part of their music business course. The album received national radio airplay ensuring the band instant cult status. By the end of the year the band had signed to the slightly larger Jeepster label and had recruited another member, Sarah Martin. They released their second album, the critically acclaimed If You're Feeling Sinister which went on to sell over 15,000 copies followed by a series of EPs throughout 1997 including Dogs On Wheels, Lazy Painter Jane and 3..6..9..Seconds Of Light.
The band's cult following was such that their next album, The Boy With The Arab Strap, released in late 1998, entered the UK Top 20 upon its release. The album crystallised the band's musical ethos, filtering the spirit of the 60s and the 70s through an ultra modern strainer. Hazy, summery tracks like A Summer Wasting and Sleep The Clock Around evoked the ghost of Nick Drake while the stomp of the title track recalled Mark Bolan in his prime 70s pomp.
1999 was a reasonably quiet year for the band, the highlights were the re-release of Tigermilk and the band curating that year's Bowlie Weekender, a suitably kitsch musical festival held at Pontin's Holiday Camp in Camber Sands which featured Mercury Rev, Teenage Fanclub and The Flaming Lips.
In 2000 the band returned with their fourth studio album, Fold Your Hands Child, You Walk Like A Peasant. The accompanying single, Legal Man, was a Top 20 UK hit and gave the band their first TOTP appearance although the album itself received lukewarm reviews.
Later that year Stuart David left the band to concentrate on his side project, Looper and writing books. The other members took it as a cue for a short sabbatical and to concentrate on their own side projects, Richard with Snow Patrol and Isobel with Gentle Waves. In 2001, the group released two Eps, Jonathan David and I'm Waking Up to Us and recorded the soundtrack for Todd Solondz's film Storytelling.
In 2002 the band switched to the Rough Trade record label. The move preceded the band's next album, 2003's Dear Catastrophe Waitress which was produced by 80s super-producer Trevor (ABC, Frankie Goes To Hollywood) Horn and shortlisted for the 2004 Mercury Music Prize. The band released their first ever single from an album with the wistful Step Into My Office, Baby but again despite critical acclaim, the band failed to catapult into pop's big time.
But circumstances that could have led the band into artistic frustration actually produced a fertile, creative period, leading to the release of 2005's endearing The Life Pursuit. Recorded in LA with Beck producer Tony Hoffer, the album's tracks, including Dress Up In You and Another Sunny Day, demonstrated a wider array of styles than ever, with 70s bubblegum glam, Northern soul and country rock lining up next to the more familiar indie pop. The album's glowing critical response suggested a new beginning for a group once bound for indie obscurity.
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