Categories
LOST CLASSICS

Lost Classics: Trash Can Sinatras “A Happy Pocket”

They’re nobody’s buzz bands anymore. But since 1993, MAGNET has discovered and documented more great music than memory will allow. The groups may have broken up or the albums may be out of print, but this time, history is written by the losers. Here are some of the finest albums that time forgot but we remembered in issue #75, plus all-new additions to our list of Lost Classics.

trashcansinatras550:: TRASH CAN SINATRAS
A Happy Pocket // Go! Discs, 1996

Tracking down the third album from these Scottish popsters was a difficult quest. Released only in the U.K., A Happy Pocket recalled the days when literate, proudly geeky pop bands such as the Smiths and fellow Scots Aztec Camera appeared on the British charts. Vocalist Francis Reader and guitarist John Douglas offered wry observations on life and love in a charming brogue, while the group maintained a lush, swooning guitar interplay. Belle And Sebastian would soon wave their fey wrists, but Trash Can Sinatras helped keep Scottish pop moving forward in the dry years, however gently.

Catching Up: In the late ‘90s, the band faced bankruptcy and lost its Shabby Road studio. A 1999 single, “Snow,” showed signs of life, but it would be five more years before the group released Pocket follow-up Weightlifting. A new album, In The Music, will be out sometime this year, and reissues of Trash Can Sinatras’ previous LPs are in the works.

“Twisted And Bent”:

https://magnetmagazine.com/audio/TwistedAndBent.mp3