Postcards From Scotland was assembled from more than 100 interviews by Teenage Superstars filmmaker Grant McPhee.
Here's the scoop from Omnibus Press...
By 1983, many of Scotland’s post-punk bands had broken up or moved south to chase the major labels in London. That vacuum was filled by an influx of young musicians who were determined to remake the scene in their own image.
In this compelling and dynamic oral history, Grant McPhee chronicles the radical transformation of Scotland’s independent music scene from 1983-1995. Including archival photos and drawing from over 100 interviews with the key players of the time, Grant McPhee allows them to set the scene in their own words; including the Cocteau Twins, Shop Assistants, Teenage Fanclub, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Primal Scream and many more.
Postcards from Scotland – published by Omnibus Press on June 20th – is the definitive story of the radicals, misfits and experimentalists who made independent music what it is today. Get a copy right here.
"This is a brilliant account of one of the most fruitful periods of Scotland's musical heritage. The cast list is longer than Norman Blake's hair circa 1992. Devour!"– Marc Riley
"A truly deep dive. Like the best rock and roll, not everyone will get this. And thank God for that."– John Niven
"An enjoyable ride through independent Scottish music of the era, and it will send you scurrying back to record, so many of which still sound refreshing and fearless"– Shindig 4****
"Enthrals... Creates something historically solid from a butterfly box of Scottish pop"– Outside Left
Jad Fair & Kramer's new album The History of Crying, Revisited is out now. Check out the video for "I Wanna Make A Movie"
Here' s the scoop...
Indie rock duo Jad Fair & Kramer just shared a video for "I Wanna Make A Movie" to coincide with the release of their new collaborative album The History of Crying (Revisited) on Shimmy-Disc/Joyful Noise. Watch the entertaining black & white video co-directed by Kramer and acclaimed Scottish filmmaker Grant McPhee below.
On "I Wanna Make A Movie," Kramer says: So one of the 12 song titles i sent to Jad for this LP (hoping he'd write some great lyrics for it) was "I Wanna Make A Movie."
And a few hours later he sent me some lyrics in his truest style...with "happy endings", and "starring you and me", and "action packed and thrilling". all things that reflected his lifelong, unbreakable optimism and love for everything and everyone around him and all around the world. Jad is Joy. Jad is Hope. Jad is Love.
But i knew from personal experience that the world of movies was filled with jealousy and rejection and a sea full of vindictive people who will stop at nothing in their unholy crusade to destroy the lives of others, their livelihoods, even destroying their own love for the cinema itself in the process of destroying others. I have seen it. some people will stop at nothing when their goal is to stop you. it's the air that they breathe. they'll wither and die and blow away if they don't have someone to destroy.
So i added some lyrics that reflected MY feelings about the world of movie making. Lyrics like, "I am a power couple, like Angelina Jolie, and Mr. Pitt will call me, he says he'll work for free", and, "my head is big as Texas, my ego bigger still". stuff like that. I felt this brought some realism to the proceedings that the music was screaming out for, and Jad was fine with us co-writing lyrics whenever i felt compelled to put my two cents in. and i thought to myself...no one's ever going to think that Jad wrote a line like, "I will die in a car crash, and have my dreams fulfilled."
i mean, that's not Jad. not in a million years. That's me.
"And he can go climb a tree."
So it is with the deepest reverence that Jad Fair and I (and guitarist Paul Leary) give you this song, in dedication to all the great songwriters who'll never make a record, and all the great actors who'll never get the shot they deserve, all the great directors who never got to make their movie, and all the great singers who never saw a microphone. Their stories are fully half of the stories in THE HISTORY OF CRYING. – Kramer, June 2021
This is Jad Fair & Kramer's third collaboration (and first in almost 20 years): The History of Crying, a 12-track record produced and recorded by Kramer at his studio in Florida, Noise Miami. Long-time fans of Jad Fair will be blown away by his vocals on the album, and fans of Butthole Surfers will go "hog wild" for Paul Leary's fiery guitar solos across the record. Kramer's music & arrangements glue it all together in a startling mix that pulls his entire history as a producer into a single glorious celebration.
Jad Fair & Kramer – The History of Crying (Revisited)
