Push Barman to Open Old Wounds

Belle & Sebastian never felt tied down to the album as the ultimate expression of a band's worth. Put simply, they didn't feel the need to hold back their best songs for albums; the fourth song on a four-song EP was just as likely to be among their finest as any other. For proof check out Push Barman to Open Old Wounds, a handy compilation of Belle & Sebastian's EPs recorded between 1997 and 2001. Normally when a band releases an album of old EPs it’s perfectly acceptable to view it as a cynical cash-in – a pointless re-hash of dodgy b-sides. Belle & Sebastian are no ordinary band though. This ludicrously titled collection of EPs from a time when the Scottish collective were signed to the Jeepster label sticks two fingers firmly in the face of your average record company exec. Push Barman to Open Old Wounds isn’t a greatest hits collection, it just so happens that these songs are some of the most cherished B&S works amongst long-time fans and newbies alike.

Beginning with Dog on Wheels all the way through, the band used its EPs as means of exploring new sounds and angles (check the groovy '60s spy song Legal Man, the epic in length and scope This Is Just a Modern Love Song, the bubbly sunshine pop of I Love My Car, or the silly instrumental Judy Is a Dick Slap) as well as an outlet for great songs that wouldn't fit on albums, like Slow Graffiti, A Century of Fakers, and Lazy Line Painter Jane. Some of the tracks here would be pillars on a B&S greatest-hits compilation too; fantastic songs like Dog on Wheels, The State I Am In, I'm Waking Up to Us, and Put the Book Back on the Shelf. What Belle & Sebastian do best is elevate the ordinary into something remarkable. For instance, This Is Just A Modern Rock Song is a self-deprecating story of every day life but musically this seven-minute epic takes you to a beautiful world far away from the grotty reality of your humdrum existence. Collected as a whole, these tracks are probably the quintessential Belle & Sebastian album, and The State That I'm In and A Century of Fakers are still arguably their best songs.

Push Barman to Open Old Wounds is essential listening. Even if you already have all the EPs, you'll want to get this disc. Hearing all the songs back to back reinforces what an amazing group Belle & Sebastian were and are. If anything, this 25-song set sees Belle & Sebastian at their finest; experimenting with different sounds and a variety of instruments to move seamlessly from 60s pop through folk to whimsy psychedelia, all held together by leader, Stuart Murdoch’s, clever lyricism. They might be awkward, publicity-shy and undoubtedly precious, but Belle & Sebastian aren’t as twee as they are often portrayed. Indie snobs have no reason to turn their nose up at this fine collection, and newcomers should definitely pick it up. This compilation is a reminder that few bands have come close to generating so much excellent material in so short a time.