Deep and cool

IT may seem a bit premature to induct Tindersticks into our own little hall of fame but remarkably enough their new album is going to be their sixth and when you place those alongside a brace of sublime singles, it's sure seems time to welcome them in. There's an ineffable coolness about the band, they just seem to do everything right without making a big deal out of it (or for that matter talking drivel to journalists) and if the right attitude leadeth to the right music, then they're the only ones. Let's face it, bringing out one of your first singles on Rough Trade records says a tad more about a band than entering the 2FM Yoplait Song Contest.

Based around the deep and sombre vocals of Stuart Staples (who obviously goes to the same singing teacher as Messrs Waits and Cave - if indeed any of them knows such a thing as a singing teacher exists) with added support from Dickon Hinchcliffe (violin) and David Boulter (keyboards), the band are from the well known rock'n'roll city of Nottingham but recorded their first single, Milky Teeth - already a bit of a collector's item - in the livingroom of the house they shared in Kilburn.

Always totally autonomous and independent (again, without making a big deal out of it) they were a rarity in the early days - and indeed still are - for the simple fact that they never professed themselves to be any good, at least in public, which was and is a refreshing change from any number of shouty young brats who tell us they're going to be bigger than The Beatles (Hi there, Three Colours Red).

Always ones to bring out their records on vinyl and buck the inane promotional trend that would have them telling illiterate halfwits their favourite colour, they only came to the attention of the HMV/ Virgin recordbuying public when their debut album, called Tindersticks, was made album of the year in Melody Maker and people wanted to know who were this band whose album was judged to be better than Simply Red's Greatest Hits.

To copperfasten it all, they then went and released a cover of We Have All The Time In The World (the John Barry song from On Her Majesty's Secret Service - the only good thing about the film) thus proving the strange but simple rule that if you want to be a really great band you have to cover this song.

Although they've more songwriting ability than 29 out of the 30 bands in this week's Top 30 singles charts, they persisted in seeking out inspired cover versions to release as vinyl - only singles and the next one, a version of the Townes Van Zandt classic, Kathleen, was more than a bit on the remarkable side. Their second album was, rather humorously also called Tindersticks - it meant you had to ask for the second Tindersticks album in the record shop (how we laughed) and that too was coming down with all sort of late night, noire-ish brilliance. It also contains an all time classic in the shape of Travelling Light, a track the fab Donal Dineen religiously plays once a week on his Radio Ireland show.

An uncharacteristically busy period in 1995 saw them release a live album, The Bloomshaty Theatre, take time out to record a single for the legendary Sub Pop label in the US and record a film soundtrack for a French film (what else?) called Nenette Et Boni. A bit later they wrote the string arrangements for the Frank and Walters single, How Can I Exist, but for some odd reason The Franks didn't like it so it won't be coming out as a single after all. Around about this time they started to hang out in Dublin a lot, which made a pleasant change from some of the musically challenged tax avoiders from Britain who come over to stay on the pretence of the "people being really friendly". We're not, we just want your money.

UP to the present day and the band have just released their 14th (I counted them all) single, Bath time. As per usual, the B sides are just good as the A sides and there's even a live version of Kathleen and a cover of Pavement's Here included. The new album, with the great title Curtains, is out in two weeks time - a lot of it was recorded and mixed in Dublin - and it will feature a duet with Isabella Rossellini - and just how cool is that?

Tindersticks - they're what great music is all about.