If you really want to know....
Once apon a time, singer Biff Smith's sister Gill attended The Glasgow School of Art where drummer Craig Laurie was working. Gill mentioned Craig's name to Biff who was trying unsuccessfully to get a band together and they met up for a rehearsal. On the day of the rehearsal Craig had been to a football match and was slightly the worse for wear after having had "a few". He entered the practice room, sat behind the drum kit and fell backwards off the drum stool. It was love at first sight.
Over the next year or two, other members came and went until The Starlets finally settled on their first team of Biff Smith - voice, Mark McSwiggan - Guitars, Stephen McGourty - Bass, Craig Laurie - Drums, Nigel Baillie - Brass, and Iain White - Strings, in time to deliver their debut album "Surely tomorrow you'll feel blue" (2001). Inspired in part by alternative guitar pop and old string-laden movie soundtracks, it was a lush poetic album which, despite being utterly out of step with prevailing musical trends, gained critical acclaim, winning "Jockrock album of the year", and was included in "Is this Music" top 100 albums by Scottish artists, as the band began to find an audience beyond their home town of Glasgow. This continued with the release of the second album "Further into night forever" (2003) which was again a critical success and brought the band to the attention of the Japanese label Muzak which licensed the record for Japan and helped promote The Starlets' first ever live performances in Tokyo.
The new album, "Out into the days from here", is out now in Japan on Fastcut Records and is also now available in the UK on the band's own label, Stereotone. A compilation of songs from the first three albums, "I wake up dreaming", has been released in Spain on the Discos de Paseo label. Dates in the Netherlands and Spain are currently being confirmed for later this year.
Please support our Indie Pop "EP CLUB" presented by Series Two Records and Eggnog Records. It is a collaboration between an Indie Pop label in Nebraska and one in New Zealand. The indie pop EP CLUB's include artists from around the world.
2's UP, it's ma fuckin birthday... Free Limited Edition Print (1/50) and an 80min mix cd (1/150) to the earliest arrivals...
NOTE THAT WE ARE STARTING AT 9 THIS MONTH, TO MAKE ROOM FOR THE TREMOLO BEER GUT (all the way from Denmark) AND BIG NED (all the way from the black lodge).
Thanks Biff! 'Issie kits dan?' We really really enjoyed your show, next time in Glasgow ;) Nice to hear you all had a great time, loved your radiotune also, The Key To Cloud Nine was it, right?! Haha, good luck, see you soon!
Have a nice time in the Netherlands! Nice song:) As for us froggies We're going on a Canadian adventure next April! all the best and hopefully see you soon Michel
We're doing great, just made it to the finals of Hollands most prestigious band competition, which is great for a band existing just 1,5 years. You're working on your Dutch I guess, very nice ;) See you in october mates, it's gonna be great!
"You're So Changing Your Mind" by The Starlets on my radio show, The British Breakfast, on WRIR 97.3FM Richmond, Virginia USA this Saturday and streamed live on www.wrir.org between 9-11AM EST which is 2-4PM UK time.
Hi guys, in case you're interested/able to get through... I'll have my posh trousers on this Saturday for some piano/string quartet action: 1st August, Canongate Kirk, 7.30 Elgar & Shostakovich Piano Quintets.
