It's been a long time coming, but Tracey Thorn has finally re-teamed with her old Everything But the Girl partner Ben Watt for some new material. Specifically, the singer got together with her old bandmate to cover an XX tune.
A press release explains that the pair initially put together a version of the XX's "Night Time" for a planned tributary album to the young English outfit, but plans for that release have been scrapped. Instead, the track will pop up on Thorn's upcoming Night Time EP, which Merge Records will release on November 1.
The EP features Watt playing guitar and providing backing vocals alongside Thorn for the first time on record in over ten years. Drums, programming and mixing on the tune come courtesy of Ewan Pearson, who produced Thorn's recent Love and Its Opposite LP, as well as 2007's Out of the Woods.
According to the PR, "Tracey rearticulates [XX vocalist] Romy [Croft]'s lyrics, Ben fluidly arpeggiates the original interwoven guitar lines into one seamless pass while Ewan adds crisp, fresh half-tempo drums, atmospheric misty synths, and booming bass."
The rest of the EP is filled out by remixes of Love and Its Opposite track "Swimming" from Visionquest and Charles Webster. Down below, you can listen to Everything But the Girl's "Night Time" cover.
This November Thorn will also be releasing a digital compilation called Extended Plays 2010-2011 that gathers Night Time, as well as a bunch of recent remixes and B-sides from the Love and Its Opposite-era, including a cover of Vampire Weekend's "Taxi Cab."
"Although there is a minimal and traditional feel to the recordings on Love and Its Opposite, the remixes and B-sides from the same period offer more experimentation and playfulness," Thorn said in a statement. "'Taxi Cab' was recorded in an afternoon for fun. The Andre Lodemann remix of 'Why Does The Wind?' is one of my favourite deep house mixes of my songs, and Walls brought a woozy dreaminess to the reflective 'Kentish Town.' I love them all. A perfect companion piece to the original album."
Extended Plays 2010-2011 drops November 8 via Merge. You can check out the tracklisting for both releases below.
Night Time EP:
1. "Night Time"
2. "Swimming" (Visionquest Remix, Ewan Pearson Re-Edit)
3. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Remix)
4. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Dub)
Extended Play:
1. "Taxi Cab" (Vampire Weekend Cover)
2. "Why Does the Wind?" (Ewan Pearson Radio Edit)
3. "Why Does the Wind?" (Morgan Geist Remix)
4. "Why Does the Wind?" (Michel Cleis Remix)
5. "Why Does the Wind?" (Andre Lodemann Remix)
6. "Why Does the Wind?" (Andre Lodemann Dub)
7. "Swimming" (Visionquest Remix)
8. "Kentish Town" (Walls Remix)
9. "Late in the Afternoon" (Blue Daisy Remix)
10. "You Are a Lover" (Clock Opera Remix)
11. "Sister Winter" (Sufjan Stevens Cover)
12. "Night Time" (the XX Cover)
13. "Swimming" (Visionquest Remix, Ewan Pearson Re-Edit)
14. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Remix)
15. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Underwater Mix)
Tracey Thorn - Night Time (The xx Cover) by MergeRecords
A press release explains that the pair initially put together a version of the XX's "Night Time" for a planned tributary album to the young English outfit, but plans for that release have been scrapped. Instead, the track will pop up on Thorn's upcoming Night Time EP, which Merge Records will release on November 1.
The EP features Watt playing guitar and providing backing vocals alongside Thorn for the first time on record in over ten years. Drums, programming and mixing on the tune come courtesy of Ewan Pearson, who produced Thorn's recent Love and Its Opposite LP, as well as 2007's Out of the Woods.
According to the PR, "Tracey rearticulates [XX vocalist] Romy [Croft]'s lyrics, Ben fluidly arpeggiates the original interwoven guitar lines into one seamless pass while Ewan adds crisp, fresh half-tempo drums, atmospheric misty synths, and booming bass."
The rest of the EP is filled out by remixes of Love and Its Opposite track "Swimming" from Visionquest and Charles Webster. Down below, you can listen to Everything But the Girl's "Night Time" cover.
This November Thorn will also be releasing a digital compilation called Extended Plays 2010-2011 that gathers Night Time, as well as a bunch of recent remixes and B-sides from the Love and Its Opposite-era, including a cover of Vampire Weekend's "Taxi Cab."
"Although there is a minimal and traditional feel to the recordings on Love and Its Opposite, the remixes and B-sides from the same period offer more experimentation and playfulness," Thorn said in a statement. "'Taxi Cab' was recorded in an afternoon for fun. The Andre Lodemann remix of 'Why Does The Wind?' is one of my favourite deep house mixes of my songs, and Walls brought a woozy dreaminess to the reflective 'Kentish Town.' I love them all. A perfect companion piece to the original album."
Extended Plays 2010-2011 drops November 8 via Merge. You can check out the tracklisting for both releases below.
Night Time EP:
1. "Night Time"
2. "Swimming" (Visionquest Remix, Ewan Pearson Re-Edit)
3. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Remix)
4. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Dub)
Extended Play:
1. "Taxi Cab" (Vampire Weekend Cover)
2. "Why Does the Wind?" (Ewan Pearson Radio Edit)
3. "Why Does the Wind?" (Morgan Geist Remix)
4. "Why Does the Wind?" (Michel Cleis Remix)
5. "Why Does the Wind?" (Andre Lodemann Remix)
6. "Why Does the Wind?" (Andre Lodemann Dub)
7. "Swimming" (Visionquest Remix)
8. "Kentish Town" (Walls Remix)
9. "Late in the Afternoon" (Blue Daisy Remix)
10. "You Are a Lover" (Clock Opera Remix)
11. "Sister Winter" (Sufjan Stevens Cover)
12. "Night Time" (the XX Cover)
13. "Swimming" (Visionquest Remix, Ewan Pearson Re-Edit)
14. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Remix)
15. "Swimming" (Charles Webster Underwater Mix)
Tracey Thorn - Night Time (The xx Cover) by MergeRecords