'Answers On A Postcard' by The Sunbathers

In talking about the Railcard gig with Foglights at Just Dropped In on Saturday, I referenced the notion of "perfect pop": ideally honed music and lyrics which are delivered in an authentic and unaffected way.

Both Julie & Paul of The Sunbathers were part of the audience that night & they certainly are part of this fine tradition.

And they really do believe in honing their material. Their album ‘A Weekend Away With..' is described on their own Bandcamp page as "long awaited" and the follow up ‘Answers On A  Postcard' which is out today, arrives after an eight year development. So any wrinkles in the compositions will have been definitely ironed out.

 You may well have heard some of this material live already (the tracks are: "Belonging", "Strong Enough", "Plenty More Fish In The Sea", "Still In Love With You", "Where You Are", "Devotion", "So Predictable, "Tea and Sympathy", "Somewhere-On-Sea", "Together Again", "Common Ground" and "Our Town From That Hill"): it's worth pointing out how highly rated the band are by the likes of Sink or Swim Promotions (who were responsible for the Railcard event) and Hot Music Live Presents (and other promoters) so they've certainly been offered plenty of gigs in those years. It's probably also worth saying, if we are looking for indicators of esteem, that despite having a delicate and quiet set, they went down really well with an audience who included people there for fellow performers The Rascals, RobinPlaysChords and Grail Guard: all appreciably louder acts. Quality attracts attention across all sorts of genre borders.

Yes: the duo epitomise delicacy and detail and demand close attention. These songs are born of experience and quiet reflection and consequently you'll be picking little gemstones out as you listen each time. Often you may say to yourself "oh yes… that's so true" or feel that they articulate things you can't quite manage yourself.

The Sunbathers' arrangements tend to have three regular components plus a galaxy of guest ones. Each gives room to a voice, a guitar and third element: a lot of space. To these are added as the song requires various ingredients such as melodica and a miscellany of percussion. Oh and they take a gentle journey into sampling as you'll hear from the very start to ease you into the littoral mood.

These days, music releases come in quite concise packages: mostly singles and EPs, which are readily digestible both to the contemporary listener and the reviewer. Twelve song albums offer special challenges. Track by track commentary produces articles of such length that one doubts they'll be read through (I once exceeded the platform limit too).

Old school albums often had filler tracks which meant identifying key ones was easier: however The Sunbathers have crafted ‘Answers On A Postcard' to a consistency whereby picking tracks out for particular attention is more than just unfair, it's not possible except on an arbitrary level. Do I have favourites then? Well I probably have twelve which isn't terrifically helpful either.

If you like pathos rather than platitudes you'll enjoy this album greatly. If you are one of those who appreciates British understatement of emotions (like for example Railcard, The Catenary Wires or Helen McCookerybook) then again this will be right up your street. If you fear for the effects of AI on music, then I'd say that it could never have come up with these songs. This is a collection composed by Emotional Intelligence.

‘Answers On A  Postcard' is a box of delights to explore whether on the sort of sunny afternoon The Sunbathers thrive on or a rainy day when you could do with being reminded thereof: there are threads of enjoyment of the moment but being also an album of mature contemplation, filaments too of regret, nostalgia & rueful introspection. Consider the melancholy of summer's ending and holiday romances snipped off by the return home If the world were a fair place, it would be a contender for those odd "albums of the year" lists. If I understood the purpose & function of them, it would be on mine.

The Sunbathers play live (you might well expect some of the above songs)

Tonight (October 2^nd) at Just Dropped In with Adam Ross

Tomorrow (Saturday 3^rd) they will be holding a listening party at Just Dropped In (2pm)

Sunday October 4^th The Library in Oxford with The Hobknobs

November 13^th  The Three Wise Monkeys in Todmorden with Helen McCookerybook