Self Made compilation 2021.
Disc 1:
01 Ghost
02 Sunset at Smurf's Castle
03 Deliverance
04 Mary George
05 Tall Dark Pines
06 Shady Grove
07 1913/Dancer
08 10 Minutes From Olympia
09 Lone Transmission #1
10 The Day She Walked Into My Mind
11 On Fire
12 Old Yellow Moon
13 Angels of the Rain
Disc 2:
01 High-Rise
02 Take Flight
03 How Do You Get High
04 Down Terrace
05 Grow My Dears
06 Suicide #2 (Electric Boogaloo)
07 Dreams of Civic Pride
08 Close to Me
09 A Tree With Roots
10 Angry Bees
11 Steig & Eva
12 Driven to Dust
I've known Marc Gillen for over 24 years and we've been making music together, in one way or another, since we met.
Initially I joined his Carlisle based space-rock band 'The Dream Stealers', although at the second rehearsal I attended, the band decided to split. Marc and I decided to form a new band alongside Kevin Pearson and Alan Graham, both from Aspatria. Garage psych band 'Edsel' recorded one single ('Don't Want To Go Now') and played one gig (The Twisted Wheel in 1999) before calling it a day after a little over 18 months.
The recording experience for the single soured us to the idea of commercial studios; recording against the clock, no input into the mixing process and ultimately a disappointing result. We decided to invest in home recording equipment (a four track Fostex cassette recorder) and the two of us started the band 'Harbourcoat'.
The initial years of Harbourcoat, 2001 to 2004, were essentially myself and Marc recording every and any idea we had. Alastair Popple enters the scene at this point; helping with production, sound and CD reproduction. As much as Marc and I were learning how to play and how to write and record songs, Al was learning how to produce.
The years 2005 saw an expanded Harbourcoat perform live and record material of a higher quality. Shane McGee and Jeremy Bye joined as long term members on guitar and drums respectively.
In 2007, the situation became undesirable for Marc as he found the constraints of a recording a frustration. Now writing way more songs than the slow paced Harbourcoat could manage, he decided to quit, invest in further home recording equipment and came up with the concept of Treehouse Orchestra Recordings.
The idea was to have an 'umbrella' name, a home in which everyone could record their ideas and release to the new ethically pleasing music platform Bandcamp under whatever moniker they choose. Ideas and songs could be released as solo artists, in pairs or in bands.
The first band to record within this concept was Treehouse; a four piece consisting of Marc, Rachel Gillen, David Thompson and Alex Thompson. I guested on a few tracks and was immediately enamored with this new way of working. Once the Treehouse project was complete, Marc recorded and produced my first release as a solo artist; 'Dag Lief' under the name 'We Are The Wooden Houses'.
Further releases followed (and right up until this day, we're on our eighty-second release) and in 2010, myself, Marc and David Thompson formed 'The Dead West'. Our first release was a double album. The majority of the material was ensemble based, but we also included solo recordings. As usual, Marc had written and recorded way more than was necessary and the session that bore the solo tracks for 'The Dead West Volumes I & II' became the basis of the first release by new artist name 'The Nightowl Sings'.
Disc 1:
Ghost
Released on 'Ghosts' E.P. June 1st 2010
Recorded Spring 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Radio.
Sunset at Smurf's Castle
Released on 'Dream Logic Truckstop Jams' L.P. December 1st 2010.
Recorded Autumn 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen and Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Synth.
Stephen Benson - Guitar & Drums.
David Thompson - Bass.
I have fond memories of recording the first Nightowl Sings album; performing and mixing in the music room. As I remember, our expanding range of instruments had recently included a floor tom to join our snare. A dream sequence set in my hometown, always been a favourite.
Deliverance
Released on 'Ghosts' E.P. June 1st 2010
Recorded Spring 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Piano.
A lot of Marc's early Treehouse compositions were solo piano pieces, several appearing on the first Treehouse album and the intial NOS releases.
Mary George
Released on 'Dream Logic Truckstop Jams' L.P. December 1st 2010.
Recorded Autumn 2010. Produced by Marc Gillen.
Marc Gillen - Vocals.
Stephen Benson - Banjo & Drum.
Recorded live (save for the tom overdub), this recording and it's lyrics have always been in my top five.
Tall Dark Pines
Released on 'By The Light Of The Fallen Moon' L.P. November 11th 2011.
Recorded Autumn 2011. Produced by Marc Gillen, Alastair Popple and Stephen Benson.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitar.
Stephen Benson - Guitars & Percussion.
An early example of a vocal and guitar version (or another sparse variation) of a song that Marc hands over to me to do what I please. The dark vibe of this song is all over the album 'By The Light Of The Fallen Moon', which is why I'm so fond of it.
Shady Grove
Released on the various artists album '8 Folk Songs' September 2012.
Recorded Summer 2012. Produced by Marc Gillen and Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Electric Guitar, Piano, Bass & Drums.
I've always liked this various artists album; after two years of us recording in different configurations, it's interesting to see where we are as solo artists. This track sounds like the outlier of disc one of this compilation, but sounds more like what was to come than anything else here.
1913/Dancer
Released on 'Lone Transmissions' E.P. February 23rd 2013.
Recorded January 2013. Produced by Marc Gillen and Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Piano.
Connor Gillen - Vocals.
Alastair Popple - Programming.
'Lone Transmissions' was one of a series of cassettes released on TOR at this time. Al takes more of a compositional role on this track and Marc's son Conner provides a vocal at the age of 12. This release still remains one of my favourite NOS releases.
10 Minutes From Olympia
Released on 'Tip The Maps' L.P. September 1st 2012.
Recorded Summer 2012. Produced by Marc Gillen, Alastair Popple and Stephen Benson.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Radio.
Stephen Benson - Bass, Drums & Saxophone.
Endless summers belting out this kind of Beefheart/Pavement/Can style jam on a Saturday afternoon.
Lone Transmission #1
Released on 'Lone Transmissions' E.P. February 23rd 2013.
Recorded January 2013. Produced by Stephen Benson.
Marc Gillen - Piano.
Stephen Benson - Effects, Looping & Construction.
'Lone Transmissions' was a cassette release and Marc asked myself and Al to come with a new track apiece, using sequences of other songs as well as discarded parts. These songs were meant to end the consecutive sides. This is my effort.
The Day She Walked Into My Mind
Released on 'The Day She Walked Into My Mind' L.P. August 3rd 2013.
Recorded Winter/Spring 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitars.
Stephen Benson - Guitars, Bass & Drums.
On Fire
Released on 'The Day She Walked Into My Mind' L.P. August 3rd 2013.
Recorded Winter/Spring 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Bass.
Stephen Benson - Guitar & Drums.
David Thompson - Vocals.
Fond memories of recording this album. Lots of collaboration and the extensive Dead West sessions were habit forming and carrying on into 2013.
Old Yellow Moon
Released on 'All Hail the Town to Town Troubadour' L.P. April 12th 2014.
Recorded Autumn/Winter 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Piano.
Angels of the Rain
Released on 'All Hail the Town to Town Troubadour' L.P. April 12th 2014.
Recorded Autumn/Winter 2013. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitar & Bass.
Stephen Benson - Guitars, Drums & Violin.
Recorded after a summer spent recording 'Hills! Werewolves! Run! 4', 'All Hail the Town to Town Troubadour' was the next project started. Always felt like a trilogy along with 'All Is Quiet Now' and 'After The Flowers'.
Disc 2:
The songs on disc 2 represent material from the latter half of the NOS recorded output. It is presented less chronologically than disc 1, has more guests and with that more diverse material.
High-Rise
Released on 'After the Flowers' September 19th 2015.
Recorded January 2015. Produced by Marc Gillen & Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Keyboards & Drum Machine.
Alastair Popple - Programming.
David Thompson - Vocals & Keyboards.
Originally destined for an 'Old Weird' release (Marc Gillen and David Thompson), that project was shelved and this track found it's way onto the second NOS release of 2015.
Take Flight
Released on 'All Is Quiet Now' January 23rd 2015.
Recorded Summer 2014. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Electric Guitar.
Stephen Benson - Electric Guitars.
Sarah Ruddy - Vocals & Acoustic Guitar.
Another song in my personal top five. The initial live performance was solid and Al finishes it of with some post production that elevates it. Featuring Sarah Ruddy who made several vocal and instrumental contributions at this time, most noticeably with The Dead West.
How Do You Get High
Released on 'After the Flowers' September 19th 2015.
Recorded January 2015. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitar.
Stephen Benson - Guitars, Drums & Percussion.
Alastair Popple - Programming.
The final song on 'After the Flowers' using a cut up and loop technique, mainly thanks to Al, making it a slightly Krautrock affair.
Down Terrace
Released on '1955' July 22nd 2016.
Recorded July 2016. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Acoustic Guitar.
Stephen Benson - Guitars & Effects.
David Thompson - Vocals.
Jill Wallace - Vocals.
One of two tracks from my favourite stand alone NOS release '1955'. Myself, Marc and Jill Wallace found ourselves with some downtime because of the band Brocken Spectre breaking up, although this proved to be temporary. This one really has the spook.
Grow My Dears
Released on 'Slow Daze' August 1st 2021.
Recorded Autumn 2020. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Keyboards.
Alastair Popple - Effects.
Taken from the latest Nightowl release 'Slow Daze'. That album had the distinction of being the first Treehouse Orchestra Recordings release on vinyl. During the 'test listen' I remember this sounding fantastic on record.
Suicide #2 (Electric Boogaloo)
Released on 'After the Flowers' September 19th 2015.
Recorded January 2015. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Guitar.
Stephen Benson - Guitars, Drums & Percussion.
Alastair Popple - Programming.
More cut up mixing of performance and post production.
Dreams of Civic Pride
Released on the 'Sliders' E.P. March 7th 2019.
Recorded 2017. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Acoustic Guitar & Bass.
Stephen Benson - Electric Guitar & Percussion.
Jessica Lowes - Vocals.
A series of sessions were recorded upstairs at Warwick Bazaar in 2017 and set aside for release. For one reason or another this didn't happen until 2019. The only song on this compilation not recorded at home, this was originally scheduled to be recorded by Brocken Spectre.
Close to Me
Released on 'Slow Daze' August 1st 2021.
Recorded Autumn 2020. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Keyboards.
Alastair Popple - Effects.
Released ahead of 'Slow Daze' as a promotional video.
A Tree With Roots
Released as the b-side to 'Erupt' October 28th 2014.
Recorded October 2014. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Bass.
Stephen Benson - Banjo & Drums.
David Thompson - Vocals & Guitar.
A song written a long time ago, this is the last released song recorded by The Dead West line up.
Angry Bees
Released on 'Slow Cancellation' June 1st 2020.
Recorded April 2020. Produced by Stephen Benson.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitars & Keyboards.
Steig & Eva
Released on 'Slow Cancellation' June 1st 2020.
Recorded April 2020. Produced by Stephen Benson.
Marc Gillen - Vocals, Guitars & Keyboards.
Stephen Benson - Guitars & Bass.
The first lockdown of 2020 prevented any in person collaboration. Marc recorded ideas and sent them along to me. I added some instrumentation, mixed and finally produced the material. It seems all music recorded in the early days of the pandemic have a similar spook.
Driven to Dust
Released on '1955' July 22nd 2016.
Recorded July 2016. Produced by Alastair Popple.
Marc Gillen - Vocals & Acoustic Guitar.
Stephen Benson - Guitars, Sound Collage & Echo Machine.
Another absolute favourite. The final track on '1955' and a fitting end to this compilation.
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