Released: January 28
Post-Britpop outfit Starsailor revisit their debut album ‘Love Is Here’ for an expanded reissue celebrating its 20th anniversary.
Originally released in 2001, the record was a critical and commercial hit, peaking at No. 2 in the UK charts and spawning the hit singles Alcoholic and Good Soul.
Two decades on and the group are revisiting the collection with a new reissue of the LP, which features the original album with a bonus disc full of covers, demos, session recordings, rarities, five brand-new 20th Anniversary Edition tracks and newly written liner notes by the band.
The new tracklist includes re-recordings of Good Souls, Alcoholic, Fever, Way To Fall and the title track, offering “new arrangements and new sounds”.
In the new liner notes, James Walsh writes: “With the new tracks we didn’t want to simply re-record the same versions so we worked on new arrangements & new sounds.
“Way To Fall is much more understated & gentle than the original but it works really well & Good Souls evokes the powerful song it’s turned into after numerous big live performances where it’s had to take on a larger life than the subtle studio recording on ‘Love Is Here’.”
Other bonus tracks include a demo version of Coming Down, a 2006 acoustic performance of From A Whisper To A Scream, plus three cover versions.
It’s a curious approach to an expanded reissue, offering retrospective revisions rather than alternates and outtakes from the original recording sessions, but one that allows the band to explore the music with a fresh perspective.
Still, the lack of archival content is somewhat disappointing – for the 25th Anniversary, perhaps?
‘Love Is Here’ 20th anniversary edition is out now.
