Dan Joy wrote on 15
th Aug, 2008 at 11:46pm:
Still very interested in anyone's recommendations regarding the best releases of The Beta Band...
Hi there Dan,
Delighted to hear that you're interested in the
Beta Band, as they're a favourite of mine.
They unfortunately didn't release that many albums and are now sadly disbanded. As far as recommendations go, personally I would put their '
3 EPs' CD at the top of the list. As the title suggests, it's a full release of their first three 'mini-albums'. Often featured here at S.A., it presents the
Beta Band at their quirky best with tracks such as '
Dogs Got A Bone', '
The House Song', '
Doctor Baker' and
She's The One'. The excellent craftsmanship of the songs aside, the production values are definitely on the 'lo-fi' side which gives this album it's warmth and certainly assists in the final output of the excellent tracks included - personally, there isn't a bad song here !!
They then went onto release the self-titled 1999 outing '
The Beta Band' - an album which the band themselves panned before it's release !! I remember them being courted by the (awful, fickle British) music press at the time and was personally unsure whether this berating of their own work was a publicity stunt or a genuine critique. In any event, the album isn't the strongest in all honesty. The only tracks that spring to mind from this CD are '
It's Not Too Beautiful' and '
Number 15'. Unless you become a real fan of the group, I wouldn't put this on my 'to buy' list.
They then went on to release '
Hot Shots II' - an album that I have to admit is currently missing in my collection (and of course on the S.A. database) but a number of tracks from this outing feature on the '
Best Of ...' CD. This is the
Beta Band on excellent form. Having fully established themselves as a popular 'alternative act' by this time, it has very polished production and a number of excellent tracks. '
Squares' and '
Dragon' spring to mind.
The group's Swan Song comes next in the form of the wonderful '
Heroes To Zeros'. Almost hinting at the group's forthcoming break-up, with it's glorious cartoon cover, is in my opinion only second to '
Three EPs'. The production is again very polished with the song writing a true tour-de-force as it opens with the spell-binding '
Assessment'. Perhaps the most accessible of their albums though, this particular release doesn't offer anything experimentally 'over-the-top' but is a joy to listen to.
Finally, having disbanded, the group released the double-CD '
Best Of' album. A collection of songs from all of the above studio albums on the first CD, it also features an excellent live-set on the second CD. Recorded in London towards the end of their career, it's worth buying in my opinion simply for the live CD. Having never officially released a live recording before, it shows off the band in a totally different light. Again, featuring a live selection of songs from all previous recordings with a very different sound and feeling.
I hope this helps.
Amazon links ...
Three EP's
The Beta Band
Heroes II
Heroes To Zeros
Best Of
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