I have Belle and Sebastian Questions; You have answers

I became obsessed with The Life Pursuit last year and am looking for proper input as to how to go along listening to the rest of their work.

Please recommend which album I should buy next, what's most essential in whatever orders, what I'd enjoy most based on my love for TLP, etc.

Any assortments of lists would help my shopping and burning desire.

You really can't go terribly wrong starting with any of them. But I'd say start with Boy With the Arab Strap. Then move to the first four eps and get them in descending order starting with This is Just a Modern Rock Song. Then the first two albums and so on.

Um, other than that, just skip Storytelling for now.

I would just get their albums in order. They are all good but the first two (Tigermilk and If You're Feeling Sinister) are their best IMHO. BTW I think The Life Pursuit is awesome but a little atypical for a BnS album.

If You're Feeling Sinister is generally considered the definitive work. Tigermilk is also very strong. Push Barman to Open Old Wounds is interesting because it contains a lot of songs recorded over a long period, and it is one of the best "B-side" records ever put out (unlike most, the B&S tracks that don't make it on to albums are usually as good as the ones that do).

The others are really good but not quite up to the big ones.

This is my concern and partially why I've asked for help! Can you say why?

This is all really helpful so far, thank you. More please, any helpful commentary.

Question:

When I look them up on Amazon (my shopping guide), soooooooooooo many releases com up b/c they've been generous with singles. Just how many full albums do they have and how many eps?

I think these are the albums

Tigermilk
If you're Feeling Sinister
Boy With the Arab Strap
Fold Your hands Child You Walk Like a Peasant
Push Barman To Open Old Wounds (B Sides)
Dear Catastrophe Waitress
The Life Pursuit

Those are the ones I know. If there are other albums I would be very pleased to learn of them...anyone?

^ Bless you for the proper chronology

Except for the first two and last one, I could be wrong about the chronology....

And if you want to get a feel for the type of stuff that is their signature, "She's Losing it" and "Stars and Track and Field" are pretty representative. Maybe "A Century of Fakers" too...

Ok. I knew everyone else was gonna say go in order. Everyone is wrong but me.

This has the correct chronology of albums, eps.

Snap to it, Jeez.

I never though to check Wiki.

I know this question's already been answered, but all music guide is so useful for stuff like this, I have it in my firefox search bar.


plus I find their ratings are usually a good guide when I'm trying to get into a band one album at a time.

Where are these songs located? I definitely want to hear what you say is "signature."

Here is She's Losing it, from TigerMilk



youtube


Here is Stars of Track and Field, live because I cannot find the original on youtube. It can be found on If You're Feeling Sinister.

Life Pursuit is very upbeat and dancy for most of it. Most of their albums are more subdued and introspective (though there are exceptions on every album of course). There is usually less electronica, synths and more chamber poppy stuff... cellos, acoustic guitar, piano, etc. The songwriting is always top notch however IMHO. That's my $.02 anyway.

If you get "Push Barman to Open old Wounds"... that contains all of the songs from most of the singles (up until Dear Catastrophe Waitress anyway). So if you get that comp you don't have to go out and buy Dog On Wheels (BTW I love love love love the Dog on Wheels EP), LazyLine Painter Jane, etc.

you cant really go wrong honey. One of the few groups that is flat out enjoyable most of the time.

I say to get more esoteric check out the group arab strap philiphobia too to see who he was singin about after you listen to the boy with the arab strap!

Don't know if that was a joke or not, but I assume he is talking about the device, not the band.

The album is named after the band, not the device.

I see after some digging that that is the accepted source of the title. However, I can't actually find anything from anyone in BnS discussing it. Anyone have a primary source? (Can't find many interviews with Stuard Murcdoch at all actually...) Only stuff about members of Arab Strap being mad about it. Anyhow, I stand corrected.

I would be interested in that too. Why such an honor? And why being mad about it?

'tigermilk' and 'if you're feeling sinister' and the EP's around those two albums are their best stuff by some distance, then 'the boy with the arab strap'. but it's all been basically downhill since after 'the boy with the arab strap', success, line-up changes etc.

its been a while since I heard that it was about arab strap but if memory serves me right the guy from arab strap boned the guy from, belle and sebastians girlfriend

I LOVED IT! Dear Lord.