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Belle & Sebastian's Late Night Tales
words by Laura Hughes
Following the likes of Four Tet and Zero 7, Glaswegian indie-folksters Belle and Sebastian have tried their collective hands at making a mix CD for the latest offering in the Late Night Tales series. The concept is simple: the band chooses a few songs, then record a cover version of their choice, which will also have a low-key 7" release. Don't expect this to be a melting pot of twee Scottish pop bands, though. Whereas the most recent compilation by The Flaming Lips saw offerings from Bjork, Radiohead and a massacre of 'Seven Nation Army', Belle and Sebastian have opted for Sixties psyche, Seventies rock and er, Dennis Roussos. It isn't a bad thing, exactly. Stereolab's 'French Disko' sits comfortably with the Northern Soul sounds of Elsie Mae, Butch Cassidy Soundsystem's reggae-infused 'Cissy Strut' or Johnny Cash's legendary 'Ring of Fire'. The bands' own contribution is a Brazilian bossanova tune, which will tide fans over until 2006's 'The Life Pursuit' is released. Variety, great songs and the downright unexpected make this as pleasant to listen to as any Belle and Sebastian album - definitely worth your time.
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