St. Christopher (band)

St. Christopher
Origin York, England
Genres Indie pop
Years active 1984–present
Labels Sarah, Vinyl Japan
Members Glenn Melia
Jim Fletcher
Matt Collinge
Past members Terry Banks
Ian Kay

St. Christopher are a British indie pop band formed in York in 1984, who released several records on Sarah Records in the late 1980s, and have continued to release records since.[1]

History

St Christopher are mainly known among indiepop fans for their four singles and 10" mini-LP on Sarah Records, although they actually have a much longer history, both before and after their time on Sarah, producing a prolific quantity of recordings on a variety of labels, from the early 1980s to the present. .

The songs?:-

'Antoinette' is a sophisticated keyboard-driven song drenched in reverb.... 'If Black Was Blue' features Eastern-tinged melodic motifs set to a thumping dance beat...... 'Dive' is a creative, even experimental, song with a catchy pop chorus, one of St Christopher's finest moments....... 'Chemical King' pairs a meaty guitar sound with harpsichord...... 'The Last Laugh' is classy balladry reminiscent of Scott Walker....... 'Utopian' has shades of late 60s rock bands, especially Love, although St Christopher add their own inventive twist...... 'Burnout' is energetic fuzzy powerpop. ........'The Summer You Love' is an amazingly catchy song .....'You Deserve More Than a Maybe' and 'All of a Tremble' are classic janglepop with a sophisticated touch..... 'Say Yes To Everything' is another classic St Christopher song from their Sarah Recordsera; catchy 60s-ish pop with an original and distinctive twist courtesy of the pounding kettle drums...... 'Wildest Dreams' has an inventive arrangement making up a big, luxurious wall of sound, and sounds like it ought to be the theme song for some big budget movie. Anyone with preconceived ideas about what St Christopher sound like due to their association with the indiepop scene and particularly with the oft-misunderstood Sarah label, will surely get their eyes opened with the 2014 Cherry Red 2CD, 53 track compilation 'Forevermore Starts Here' - the album comes with a 12 page booklet featuring band photos, memorabilia pictures, and an extensive interview with St Christopher founder Glenn Melia, providing some very interesting background info on the band's history. This very important album is a must for anyone curious about this long-running yet often overlooked band. The only constant member of the band during its more than twenty years of existence has been Glenn Melia, and, during this time, Melia and St. Christopher have recorded with many well-known indie labels, including Sarah, Bus Stop, Vinyl Japan, Elefant, Slumberland, Caff, and Parasol. The band probably achieved greatest recognition for the single "All of a Tremble", released in 1989.

The original line-up of the band also featured Terry Banks, who went on to lead Tree Fort Angst.[1]

St. Christopher began gigging again mid-2007 with new members Jim Fletcher and Matt Collinge, and Glenn is currently writing new material for release early 2008. In 2007, a compilation album of their previous releases titled Lost at Sea - The Sarah Recordings was released by Plastilina Records. Their last record is the CD single "Burnout".

Discography

Singles

Albums

Studio albums

Live albums

Compilations

References

  1. 1 2 Strong, Martin C. (2003) "St. Christopher", in The Great Indie Discography, Canongate, ISBN 1-84195-335-0
  2. ↑ Lazell, Barry (1997) Indie Hits 1980-1989, Cherry Red Books, ISBN 0-9517206-9-4
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