And Also The Trees is one of the most productive and long running Post Punk bands of the UK, having a loyal fanbase and a tradition of utterly satisfying and successful live gigs. On the occasion of them visiting Greece, I took the liberty and wrote an article about their career so far, with a small commentary on their full length releases. So, …
And Also the Trees formed in 1979 in Inkberrow, a small village in Worcestershire, with a lineup featuring two sets of brothers: Simon Huw Jones (vocals), Justin Jones (guitar), Graham Havas (bass) and Nick Havas (drums). The band elaborated (and was obviously inspired of) the post-punk movement that was blooming that era and preferred to attach to their tracks a more rural environment / history narrative point of you, that would stick with AATT to this day. The band recorded a demo tape, which was sent to the band The Cure, who at that time were looking for support bands on their tour. That led to a beautiful friendship between the two bands. In 1981, And Also the Trees played several shows in support of The Cure’s UK tour. Their second demo tape, ‘From Under the Hill’ (1982), was partly co-produced by Robert Smith and Mike Hedges. Graham Havas was replaced at this time by Steven Burrows. In 1983, the band released their first single, ‘Shantell’, which was produced by The Cure’s Lol Tolhurst. Their second single, ‘The Secret Sea’, also produced by Tolhurst, followed in 1984.
And Also the Trees released their self – titled debut studio album, ‘And Also the Trees’ (also produced by Tolhurst) in February 1984, via Reflex Music. It featured eight tracks and comparing them both musically and lyrically with the efforts of other bands of the same genre, they stood out as they were greatly influenced by the rural surroundings of Worcestershire, themes referring to Old England and vastly by poetry (in the lyrical part); those themes are even noticeable on the cover of the band’s debut, which depicts a misty, gloomy (probably) part of a forest. One can find many similarities and connecting links with The Cure’s album ‘Pornography’ (keeping however their on personality and character), but that’s only logical, since Lol Tolhurst was in production. In general, the record reeks of that British post-punk/proto-goth aesthetics, that captures you instantly. The album was reissued in 1992 on the German label Normal Records. The band received the attention of BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel, and was invited to do a session in April 1984, which was produced by Dale Griffin for broadcast on 24 April.
In 1985 And Also the Trees introduced the mandolin-like guitar sound with the release of the EP ‘A Room Lives in Lucy’, which actually became their trademark for the next few years and releases. In 1986, the band released their second full length album, entitled ‘Virus Meadow’ via the record label Reflex. The dramatic, poetic nature of the ‘Virus Meadow’ attracted the crowd’s interest right away. Its success led to the band’s first European tour, which yielded the live album ‘The Evening of the 24th’ (1987). In ‘Virus Meadow’ And Also The Trees incorporated more electric guitar sounds, which along with the more arty touches in lyrics and their dark theatrical performance, plus the use of passages that bring in mind Classical Music structures, they resulted into a record full of romantic and simultaneously melancholic emotions. And Also the Trees became more creative and experimented on their sound, which proved to be successful, as they established a sound that would create a following for the years to come.
Another EP, ‘The Critical Distance’, was released in 1987. The singles ‘Shaletown’ and ‘The House of the Heart’, and the next album ‘The Millpond Years’ released in 1988, were produced by Mark Tibenham. ‘The Millpond Years’ was recorded in February 1988 at The Abbatoir in Birmingham, England and was released once again via Reflex. Strings, passionate percussions and brass instruments seem to have dominated the compositions, resulting into outbursts of extremely ardent emotions. Soothing sounds and an underlying yet strongly flavored melancholy are the pillars of this release.
The Millpond Years
‘Farewell to the Shade’ (the band’s forth full length album, released in 1989 via Reflex) was followed by the single releases of ‘Lady D’Arbanville’ (a completely revised Cat Stevens cover) and the French-only ‘Misfortunes’. ‘Farewell to the Shade’ featured intensely dramatic orchestral arrangements, with reverbs / delays on vocals intensifying the rural / rustic aesthetics of the band. The album’s opener “Prince Rupert” is considered one of the best tracks ever written by the band. Funny thing is that even though “Prince Rupert” is evidently one of the most “English” songs And Also The Trees have recorded, ‘Farewell to the Shade’ is the only US release to date. Fantastic, innit?
In 1990, the band changed their management. They toured America during the following year, and reactivated contact with The Cure, which resulted in the USA-only release of the EP The Pear Tree featuring a remix by Robert Smith and Mark Saunders.
In 1992, the band released their last album produced by Tibenham, ‘Green Is the Sea’. The album featured both the old and the latest AATT features, balancing between gloomy compositions / dark vocal performance and the brass-instrument- aesthetic, with a more jazzy essence and keyboards that add a touch of post disco dark rock. The band promoted the record with a two-leg European tour including Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and France. Fan pressure resulted in a digital remastering of their singles and EPs, and the release of ‘From Horizon to Horizon’, a CD collection of primarily single and non-album tracks between 1983–1992.
In 1993 And Also The Trees recorded and released their sixth full length album, entitled “The Klaxon”, which is actually one of my favourite releases by the band. That jazzy feeling I mentioned before, takes the upper hand in this release. A new era begins for And Also The Trees. The outstanding mandolin comes back, providing a more dramatic spin to the overall effort. I should mention that the mandolin, combined with the new approach on drums and percussion, give a whole new kind of dynamics, with the “tribal” feeling filling up the room. The stable, repetitive patters intensify those dynamics. Production – wise, the record is perfect, with the entirety of the instruments being able to breathe without one overlapping the other, despite the tightness of the compositions. The band toured during the following year, which resulted in the release of the live album ‘Le Bataclan’ and a tour video from a concert in Hamburg.
The band’s seventh studio album, ‘Angelfish’ (1996), centered on a British perception of Americana, hence the theme on the cover artwork. And Also The Trees continued to experiment with their sound and add varied arrangements to their compositions, keeping the interest of their fans high. The band’s music became more straightforward, while the compositions are tighter, firmer, despite the lightness of the songs’ spirits. To some ‘Angelfish’ was an attempt of the band to reach out to a more Pop – driven audience, though to my ears ‘Angelfish’ was / is an indicator of the band’s musical growth / development. ‘Angelfish’ was the last album with drummer Nick Havas, who was replaced by Paul Hill.
Angelfish
And Also The Trees released their eighth studio album, ‘Silver Soul’ in 1998. ‘Silver Soul’ was also the band’s first release on their own eponymous record label. A bit of Avantgarde, a further exploration on diverse arrangements with acoustic guitars, an inch of gypsy jazz flavored strings and colourful drums and percussions. The band released an EP, ‘Nailed’, the same year, as well as a video compilation, ‘Live 89-98’.
At that point the band made a calculated, fully conscious decision to change their sound. rather than letting their musical instincts guide them, in order to avoid entering the spiral of copying themselves. As a result, this decision somehow alienated too many of their fan base and with the live music scene increasingly dominated by DJ’s and Brit-pop ‘And also the trees’ began to fade from view.
1998 to 2003 was a period of change and contemplation. The band moved away from their Worcestershire roots and became geographically separated. No live shows or new releases gave rise to rumours of a split. But in truth, the band were biding their time, waiting for their muse to return with something akin to a more honest and contemporary styling.
After this five-year break, And Also the Trees released ‘Further from the Truth’ in 2003, an album that was recorded in the Worcestershire countryside and co-produced with Matthew Devenish. Once again, rhythm guitars take control over the compositions, with subtle blues aesthetics hiding in the background. Easy – listening record, with nice flow and orchestral arrangements. In 2004 and 2005, And Also the Trees played several shows at music festivals such as the Paleo Festival and Wave-Gotik-Treffen in Germany. They celebrated their 25th anniversary with the ‘Best of 1980–2005’ compilation album.
And Also the Trees’ 10th album, ‘(Listen For) The Rag and Bone Man’, was issued in November 2007. It featured two new members, Ian Jenkins (double bass) and Emer Brizzolara (keyboards, dulcimer and melodica). The album was recorded on the estate of an 11th century manor house in rural Herefordshire and finished in a Victorian chapel in the East End of London. The use of the aforementioned double bass, zither and keyboards enriched the band’s sound and in a way brought forth the band’s initial style, that of the early ‘80s.
In June 2009, the band released ‘When the Rains Come’, containing acoustic versions of previously released songs and one new track. This was followed by another acoustic album, titled ‘Driftwood’. In the summer of 2011, the band worked on new material in Herefordshire and France. Later that year, Justin Jones provided guest guitar on the Othon Mataragas album Impermanence (with Marc Almond on vocals, and also featuring Ernesto Tomasini, Laura Moody and Camille O’Sullivan), followed by an intimate concert at London’s Chelsea Theatre to launch the album.
The band’s 12th studio album, ‘Hunter Not the Hunted’, was released in March 2012, followed by “Born Into The Waves”, released in 2016.
And Also The Trees will be visiting Greece for a couple of gigs at Thessaloniki and Athens, on November 18th and 19th respectively.
Thessaloniki: November 18th @ Mavri Trypa (w/ special guests Remain In Light)
Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/2062960157261620/
Athens: November 19th @ Death Disco (w. Doric)
Event: https://www.facebook.com/events/996335303818852/