We are over the mooooon to announce that our most recent signing to Fence Records is none-other than Home Game favourite SEAMUS FOGARTY.

Seamus Fogarty hails from the west of Ireland and writes songs about mountains that steal t-shirts, women who look like dinosaurs and various other unfortunate incidents.

We’ve been a fan of Seamus’ for years – first introduced to him by James Yorkston – and we’re dead chuffed to have him on board.  His debut album, God Damn You Mountain, will be FNC 908 – to be released in the Spring of 2012.

Until then, you should go and meet Seamus properly over on our bandstand section of the site – where he’s being grilled by JY.

>> GO ON, COME AWAY AND READ THE BANDSTAND INTERVIEW 

You should also check out this gorgeous video – a live take performed by Seamus himself, of album track ‘Rita Jack’s Lament’, accompanied by visuals that Seamus triggers during the show.

Rita Jack’s Lament from Seamus Fogarty on Vimeo.

The latest release on Fence Records is an LP by New York duo The Shivers, entitled More.

We’re delighted to let you know that More has just been named Album Of The Week on Tom Morton’s BBC Radio Scotland show.  Alan Morrison from The Herald joined Tom on his show yesterday to discuss the album – which you can listen to here (about 52 minutes in, followed by a play of the track ‘Love Is In The Air’).  Alan also wrote about the album on the BBC website:

What are you waiting for?  Go and get yourself a copy of the album right now.  Each copy of the LP comes packed with a CD inside, containing all the tracks.

>> YOU CAN BUY THE ALBUM FROM FENCE RECORDS RIGHT NOW!

Still need a bit o’ convincing? Well, The Pictish Trail has put together a three-part blog about how he met the band, and how the new album came about – which you can read in the BandStand section of our website, here.  It’s quite gushy.

We’ll have some special news about The Shivers later this week, too – so keep your eyes peeled to the Fence website!

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PRESS IS MORE: SOME PRAISE FOR THE SHIVERS …

“A perfect introduction to their idiosyncratic and gentle form of genius. Delivers the requisite shivers down the spine. Quietly inspired.” FOUR STARS ****, THE LIST

“Somehow, it’s taken five self-released albums for someone in the UK to prick up their ears and sign New York’s The Shivers. Johnny Lynch (aka The Pictish Trail, aka Fence’s high heid yin) is the good soul responsible for terminating the stalemate, and this sixth full-length is a perfect profile-raiser that should have newcomers raiding the preceding pentad hungrily.” FOUR STARS ****, THE SKINNY

“This record is full of quality moments. Like the brilliant “Love Is In The Air” which has a snappy structure and great catchy lyrics. Also a favourite is the striking “Silent Weapons For Quiet Wars” which is a delicious slice of The Shivers pizza pie.  An album that the E Street band would be proud of. Let The Shivers take you down…” NORMAN RECORDS

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Bearing the catalogue number FNC 812, the next release on Fence Records is More, by New York City-based duo, The Shivers.  Officially released on Monday, September 26th 2011, this album is available to pre-order, at a special price, NOW!

>> PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY FOR JUST £12.99, WITH FREE POSTAGE!

Copies are also available to purchase RIGHT NOW from our local shop in Anstruther- the Lovely Pigeon pop-up shop!  The shop is only open until September 18th – so make sure you have a wee visit before it closes!

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THE SHIVERS are a rock-pop group, based out of Queens, New York, comprising the exceptional talents of Keith Zarriello (lead vocals, guitar) and Jo Schornikow(vocals, keys/organ).

Keith is your typical East Coast American tortured neurotic / love-lorn romantic, and part time estate-agent;  Jo, your typical Australian travelling dreamer, virtuoso keyboard player, and part time church-organist.  Together, they’ve created one of the most beautifully compelling albums you’re likely to hear all year: MORE.

MORE is The Shivers’ sixth album, and first with Fence – indeed, with any label in UK – and is their strongest, most focussed collection of songs yet.

The duo travelled over to the UK in 2010 with their drummer friend Tom Raysmith, and recorded straight to tape at Analogue Catalogue – an all analogue studio, in Manchester. The album was taken back over the Atlantic, mixed by Adam Lasus (Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Yo La Tengo), and mastered to tape by Joe Lambert (Dirty Projectors, Animal Collective, Deerhunter) – the band proudly declairing on the sleeve notes “no computers were used in the recording, mixing or mastering of this record”.

To maintain this non-digital feel and ethic, Fence have pressed the album on vinyl LP (ensuring that every copy comes with a CD, incase you don’t have a turntable!).

Although recorded in Manchester, MORE is very much rooted in New York City – Keith’s delivery steeped in the spirit of classic songwriters from his hometown and the surrounding scene, spread over the last 5 decades. From the Springsteen-sway of ‘Irrational Love’, and The Strokes-fuelled punch of ‘Used To Be’, to the biting Cohen-esque balladry of ‘Silent Weapons For Quiet Wars’, and the Dylan-soaked drawl of ‘More’; an emotional integrity and personality is preserved, infused with a reverence that never once strays into pastiche.

In much the same way as the band sought to capture a pure, untouched recording, at its core, this is an album of love songs that each possess an undeniable sincerity of expression and feeling. Frustration, lust, anger, relief, bitterness and yearning all exist in their separate guises across ten tracks – with Keith’s performance suitably volatile throughout.

Jo (who is pictured on the album’s sleeve) compliments Keith’s passion with arrangements that provide a rich warmth and gritty confidence to MORE – taking care not to overwhelm the songs. Her feel for balance and symmetry is apparent as soon as the needle drops, with both sides of vinyl opening with instrumentals; ‘My Mouth Is For My Love’ mirrors a melodic theme from album closer ‘More’; side B opens with ‘Two Solitudes’, an atmospheric organ-led coda to the previous side’s ‘Love Is In The Air’.

Honest, considered, and heartfelt – such is the nature of MORE, in both recording and performance, you’ll agree that it sounds and feels timeless.

>> PRE-ORDER YOUR COPY TODAY FOR JUST £12.99, WITH FREE POSTAGE!

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ALSO in the Fence web-shop this month …

We’ve got copies of Jonnie Common‘s debut solo album, Master Of None.  You might remember Jonnie as being front-man for Dunkeld/Glasgow foot-stompers Down The Tiny Steps – who released a few Picket Fences and an album on Fence.  This new album is released through our friends at Red Deer Club Records, and they’ve given us a quantity of the album on vinyl LP, with download code inside.  That’s not all – all Fence webshop copies come packed with a CD-R inside, containing alternate mixes of all the tracks on the album.  Hoots!

>> PURCHASE MASTER OF NONE FROM THE FENCE WEBSHOP!

Fence Records is holding its 2nd annual HaarFest event across 4 days in August – Thursday 11th until Sunday 14th.   During the afternoons, there’ll be workshops & walks taking place throughout the towns of Anstruther and Cellardyke; and each evening there’ll be a gig at the Cellardyke Town Hall.

Until now, we’ve only made ‘Season Tickets‘ available to purchase in advance – which allow access to all four evenings of entertainment (including a special dinner, Sunday tea-time).   These are still available to purchase from the Fence website, priced at £65 – although places are going fast …
>> PURCHASE YOUR HAARFEST SEASON TICKET HERE!

If you can’t make all four days of fun, don’t worry.  We’ve now made tickets available for each individual day of HaarFest.

EVENING ONE: http://www.fencerecords.com/gigs/haarfest-evening-1/
* KING CREOSOTE + DAN LYTH + GEESE + JONNIE COMMON

EVENING TWO: http://www.fencerecords.com/gigs/haarfest-evening-2/
* JAMES YORKSTON + THE PICTISH TRAIL + ADRIAN CROWLEY + SEAMUS FOGARTY

EVENING THREE: http://www.fencerecords.com/gigs/haarfest-evening-3/
* ONTHEFLY + FOUND + WILMACAKEBREAD

EVENING FOUR: http://www.fencerecords.com/gigs/haarfest-evening-4/
* WITHERED HAND + KID CANAVERAL + GUMMI BAKO + DOCKEN LEAF

Tickets are priced at £15 each, for over 18′s only.  The music starts at 8pm each night, with live music stopping at 12midnight, and the bar closing by 1am.  There is no postage charge on these individual tickets, as – upon purchase – they will be reserved under your name at the ticket desk of the venue.

For more information on what is happening during the afternoons, have a look at H.M.S. Ginafore’s Bandstand blog: http://www.fencerecords.com/bandstand/hairy-heroes-hail-haary-hi-dee-hi/

NEW FOR JUNE:

We’ve got a very limited batch of t-shirts in the Fence webshop.

There’s some Away Game 2010 ones: CLICK HERE

There’s some Home Game 2011 ones: CLICK HERE

There’s a few James Yorkston ones (specifically for the men): CLICK HERE

There’s a few James Yorkston ones (specifically for the not men): CLICK HERE

Aaaand, there’s a fair few James Yorkston Tote Bags: CLICK HERE

If you’re interested, we recommend you buy ‘em quick sharpish, as we don’t have many in stock.

The kids from Kid Canaveral are back on Scottish soil, after a wee sojourn over in Texas for SxSW. You can read about their travels on the Skinny website. You can also see a video, on the BBC website, of Kid C performing as King Creosote’s backing band. Yum yum.

We’re currently pressing up vinyl copies of their debut album, Shouting At Wildlife … which should be ready in the next month, hopefully! In the meantime, you might want to go and see these upcoming showssss,

Saturday 23rd April, 2011
Ides of Toad present … KID CANAVERAL
w/ Thee Single Spy + Monster Island
Henry’s Cellar Bar, EDINBURGH
7PM, £5 ENTRY
>> TICKETS

Sunday, 24th April, 2011
Captain’s Rest 3rd Birthday
The Captains Rest, GLASGOW
Doors from 3pm, Kid C on at 10pm
£3 ENTRY

Tuesday, 24th May 2011
Limbo present … KID CANAVERAL
w/ The Lovely Eggs + Cancel The Astronauts + Zed Penguin
7.30PM, £5 EARLY BIRD TIX
>> TICKETS

Saturday 21st August
King Creosote, Kid Canaveral, Smackvan @ Cellardyke Town Hall

Doors 8pm

TICKETS AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR

Friday 20th August
FOUND, Withered Hand, Meursault @ Cellardyke Town Hall

Doors 8pm

TICKETS AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR

Thursday 19th august
Lonepigeon, Pip Dylan, HMS Ginafore, Gummi Bako @ Hew Scott Hall

TICKETS AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR

Wednesday 18th August
OnTheFly, Seamus Fogarty, Eagleowl @ Hew Scott Hall

TICKETS AVAILABLE ON THE DOOR

Doors 8pm