Idlewild release ‘Captain’ on vinyl for the first time
Idlewild have announced that their debut mini-album, Captain will be available on vinyl for the first time, to celebrate the band’s 25th anniversary.
The six-track release is a reflection of their early alt-rock sound. Recorded in October 1997 and initially released on Deceptive Records in January 1998, the band signed to EMI shortly before the release of Captain. The album featured Roddy Woomble on vocals, Rod Jones on guitar, Bob Fairfoull on bass, and Colin Newton on drums.
The band met and formed in Edinburgh in 1995 and released the mini-album Captain and eight studio albums, including 2019’s Interview Music. They’ve toured all over the world as both a headline act and supporting stadium acts such as U2, REM and Pearl Jam.
Lead singer Roddy Woomble said of the release, “At the time we didn’t have much experience in the recording studio. We were known as a chaotic, noisy live band. Producer Paul Tipler had his work cut out to try and turn our songs into something more cohesive. Captain, which we had decided to name this first collection of songs, not only surprised us with its direct, punchy melodic maelstrom, it surprised almost everyone who heard it. Tony and Bruce at Deceptive had the confidence that we would record something promising and were delighted that Paul had managed to capture the live energy of Idlewild, while bringing the songs together and pulling out the melodies. Captain made a fantastic introduction to Idlewild, and after its release word of mouth started to spread.”
Accompanying the re-release of Captain is the book In The Beginning There Were Answers – 25 Years Of Idlewild, which contains archive photographs and text written by Roddy Woomble. The band’s plans for a 25th anniversary tour have been rescheduled for 2021, due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The vinyl release of Captain will be out on 20 November exclusively on the Dig! Store. It is available to pre-order here.