There's some good news for fans of the late great Austin anomaly Cotton Mather from founding member Robert Harrison who has announced plans to assemble an expanded double-disc edition of the group's 1997 power-pop classic Kontiki (Copper Records).
The group was still unknown to even hipster Austin indie record store clerks when Oasis mainman Noel Gallagher heard Cotton Mather's fantastic second album Kontiki and realized that singer/songwriter Harrison was every bit his match in swiping Beatles moves with the added advantage of being blessed with a perfectly suited surname for the job. Gallagher took it upon himself to champion the band and Kontiki – re-released by Rainbow Quartz in late 1998 – to every journalist within shouting distance and then invited Cotton Mather to open Oasis shows on their upcoming tour of the UK and France.
Despite the hype, Cotton Mather never really caught fire and after a number of line-up changes they disbanded in 2003. Since then Harrison formed
Future Clouds and Radar and released two critically acclaimed albums, 2007's self-titled debut and 2008's Peoria on the
Star Apple Kingdom label yet the magical sound of that 4-track Kontiki recording has never been equalled. It's still among my favourite albums of the 90s and evidently I'm not alone in holding Kontiki in high regard.
John Borack, the author of
Shake Some Action: The Ultimate Power Pop Guide had Kontiki listed at number 26 in his Top 200 Power Pop Albums of all time and considering the many mediocre records among his first 25, it definitely deserved a higher placing.
In any case, Kontiki has been unavailable for far too long so word of a deluxe-style reissue with a second disc of previously unheard extras is definitely cause for celebration. Before busting out the bubbly however, Harrison is going to need some financial help – $12,500 US to be exact – to complete the project and has started a funding drive on Kickstarter to reach out to Cotton Mather fans around the world. To date, 64 backers have pledged a total of $3,728 with 58 days left to reach his target amount. If you'd care to support the cause, just follow this
link for more information about what size of donation will have Harrison flying to your hometown to perform an acoustic set in your living room for family and friends.
Here's Harrison's pitch:
In 1997 my band Cotton Mather recorded our second record, Kontiki, on 4 track cassette and ADAT in an old house about 30 minutes outside of Austin. It was released in the US without much fanfare on a little label called Copper. But when the record made its way to the UK a year later on the Rainbow Quartz label Kontiki was quite the hit with the press and music fans.
Now Kontiki, the "lost classic" has been out of print for years. I (Robert Harrison) have been busy readying a re-release of Kontiki which will include an entire second disc of bonus tracks. Not just a few out-takes but an entire discs worth of extras because when I dug back into the archives I found some real treasure.
I need YOUR help to finance the release of Kontiki Deluxe! If this record is important to you - you could really make a difference with even the slightest contribution. Its not too late for you to help Cotton Mather. We never had a big record deal and never reached the masses -which some people say is a crime. And although I never really think of it in those terms and I stay pretty busy these days with my band Future Clouds and Radar- I do think there is something undeniably magical about Kontiki. It was a special moment in time we landed on back there. All of us from Cotton Mather would love more people to hear it. So lets get Kontiki in the hands of the people and help Cotton Mather at long last shed the mantle of rock cult obscurity.
The money we raise will pay for mixing an 11 track bonus CD (the first one will remain as it was), mastering, new artwork with extensive liner notes about the making of Kontiki and the history of Cotton Mather, manufacturing, publicity and and if we go past the target a good ways- a vinyl pressing. Then of course if somebody goes for the grand prize..... look out!
Thank you
Robert Harrison
