1996’s Queen of the Troubled Teens was their debut, a self released 7” single that got praised by popular BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamaq. 1997 saw their next single “Chandelier”, which was released by Feirce Panda. 1998 saw the release of “Captain” (on Deceptive Records) a mini-album of chaotic punk, which, while achieving a significant fanbase among British teenagers, demonstrated little of the facets that would mark them out as such talented indie-rockers. Some of those were seen on that year’s full-length, “Hope Is Important”. Carrying a more subdued, top 20 hit single “When I Argue I See Shapes”, Idlewild started to make commercial and critical inroads. Jeremy Mills joined the band in 1999 (he left in 2002). 2000’s “100 Broken Windows” took this indie-punk sound and refined it, ballads like album closer “The Bronze Medal” were already a million miles from the nihilism and chaos of early tracks such as “Self Healer”. “Windows…” was a substantial success, charting inside the top 15, and drawing early comparisons to R.E.M’s angrier output - as both bands were declared fans of each other at the time, this is unsurprising. 2002’s “The Remote Part” finally saw them lose the tag of being a teenager’s band, embracing the music-buying fraternity full on with affecting anthems, driving rockers, and an album as full of maturity as it is songs. Lead single “You Held The World In Your Arms” combined melodramatic strings with an affecting, near-angry riff in the most tasteful way of their career, and pitched itself inside the top 10. The album then charted at number 3. The greatest breakthrough seemed to come with second single “American English”, which while less successful in Britain, became their biggest hit in Europe by a mile. After the making of this record, bassist Bob Fairfoull left the band due to musical differences; Fairfoull felt the band was straying too far from their original jagged, punky sound, a sentiment shared by many fans. And after much time spent in America, (frontman Roddy Woomble moving to New York) the band returned with further evolution from their noiser days. Gavin Fox, longtime Irish friend, joined and a fifth member was found in Allan Stewart, who became a permanent member after years as a touring guitarist. While Fox learned the bass parts in Dublin, technician and friend Alex Grant filled in to assist the band. 2005’s “Warnings/Promises” leapt to glossier heights of an even softer sound, leading to a mixed reaction from the public. However, despite its mild ‘mature’ nature - which at first glance would seem more commercially friendly -“Warnings/Promises” was the first Idlewild album not to produce a top 20 hit single since “Captain”. Contrary to Woomble’s promise of “noisy ragged glory”, this album featured a much more stripped-down sound, essentially bereft of any angry rock songs, and furthering the comparison to R.E.M. Although not essentially critiqued as a bad album (most reviews were fairly warm) one of the main complaints of this record is Tony Hoffer’s lacklustre production, which is alleged to rob the band of any identity they had with its polish. Whatever the technical cause, “Warnings/Promises” is definetly a sign that the band have settled down beyond return. Disappointing, but not without perks such as ‘I Understand It’. After their December 2005 Glasgow Barrowlands gig, Gavin Fox left the band and was replaced by former Astrid bass player Gareth Russell. Following “Warnings/Promises” Roddy Woomble has now decided to completely separate the “folky” and “not so folky” sides of Idlewild. This has been realised with the release of a Roddy Woomble “solo” album in 2006’s “My Secret is my Silence”, an album with a very authentic folk sound, containing songs co-written with Idlewild bandmate Rod Jones and various musicians including members of fellow Scot folk-punks Sons and Daughters. Idlewild released their latest album “Make Another World” in 2007. A greatest hits album - “Scottish Fiction - Best of 1997-2007” was also released in October of the same year concluding the band’s record deal with Parlophone. |
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