SCOWL - BLOB HOTEL
The 2nd album
By Mark Tingley
By Mark Tingley
Mark Tingley: Lead vocal, Guitars, Bass, Percussion, Drums Helen Smith: Keyboards, Violin, Recorder, Mandolin, Vocal Kevin Saunders: Lead guitar Nigel Marvin: Lead guitar Growlin' Sturgeon: Bass Graham Bateman: Drums John Birtles: Burps on "The Burp Rap" Steve Bilbe: Vocal on "Spender" Peter Kelsey: Trumpet on "Scowl" Recorded: Woodwharf, Greenwich / Plotts, Sittingbourne, Kent / New Road, Abbey Wood / Harborough, Sidcup, Kent, England / Boston, USA July 1987 - September 1989. Cover drawn by Guy Tarrant. Cover coordination: Mark Tingley. "Scowl" was the first purpose built Blob Hotel album to be recorded. It sprang to life from a session with Drummer Graham Bateman in the summer of 1987 where I played bass and the results proved interesting and exciting. Soon after while suffering from glandular fever, I came up with several ideas for new material. By the end of the year I met Helen Smith and Nigel Marvin, who would both prove hugely important to Blob Hotel, and beyond, with Wilberforce. While "Blob Collect" appeared in early 1988 as a moping up exercise of old tracks, by the summer the "This Optimism" promo was premiered, and the first "Scowl" recording sessions proper were underway. This was the first work where the songs were carefully considered. In fact I told myself that a Blob Hotel song should be good enough to fit on a Beatles album, such was my level of quality control! However some tracks escaped the net, such as the self indulgence of "The Burp Rap"! Helen was very in with me on the experimentation on songs like the 6 minute plus title track, and improved the album by leaps and bounds. "Scowl" has some great ideas, but suffers from some sloppy drumming by Yours Truely, and not enough effects to enhance some of the "drier" tracks. Click below to find out about "Smile" from "Scowl"... |
