Name: Sunbathing Animal
Brand: Parquet Courts

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

rtradlp710

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Colour

Black

Colour details

Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2014-06-02

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

PIAS

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

0883870071017

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Total Cap

1 / Extended format: No / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No / black

rtradcd710

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0883870071024

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1 / CD / Extended format: No / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No

Artist

Parquet Courts

Genre GB

Alternative / Modern

Label GB

Rough Trade

Parquet Courts is a noise folk band hailing from New York City, USA. With their unique blend of genres, they have established themselves as one of the most influential and innovative acts in the music scene. Known for their raw energy and thought-provoking lyrics, Parquet Courts delivers an unforgettable live experience that captivates audiences worldwide.
Formed in [year], Parquet Courts quickly gained recognition for their distinctive sound and uncompromising approach to music. Drawing inspiration from various musical styles such as punk rock, indie rock, and post-punk, they have created a signature sound that defies categorization.
With critically acclaimed albums like [album name] and [album name], Parquet Courts has garnered a dedicated fan base who appreciate their fearless experimentation and authentic storytelling. Their songs tackle social issues with intelligence and wit, making them both relatable and thought-provoking.

Rough Trade is a multinational label that was started by Geoff Travis in 1976 as a London record-shop. It quickly grew into an independent label and distributor, collaborating with notable labels such as 4AD, Factory Records, and One Little Indian. The label's catalogue numbering system for singles/EPs included prefixes like RT### and RTT###CD for different formats. Albums were numbered sequentially as ROUGH### with extensions for different formats.In the early 1990s, Rough Trade faced financial difficulties after expanding into the US market. The US branch was shut down and the German branch ended up in the Zomba Music Group. One Little Indian provided financing and took over the label in the UK, retaining ownership of key releases like A.R. Kane albums. Geoff Travis eventually regained control of Rough Trade around 1999–2000 and re-launched it alongside Tugboat Records.

The year and change since the release of Parquet Courts monumental 'Light Up Gold' is reflected in ways expected and not with 'Sunbathing Animal', its sharper, harder follow up, due on Rough Trade Records. Following their quietly released 2011 debut 'American Specialties', 'Light Up Gold' caught the ears of everyone paying even a little bit of attention, garnering glowing reviews across the board for its weird colours and raw energy, saturated punk songs that offered crystal clear lyrical snapshots of city life. It was immediately memorable, a vivid portrait of ragged days, listlessness, aimlessness and urgency, broadcast with the intimacy of hearing a stranger's thoughts as you passed them on the street. As it goes with these things, the band went on tour for a short eternity, spending most of 2013 on the road, their sound growing more direct in the process and their observations expanding beyond life at home. Constant touring was broken up by three recording sessions that would make up the new album, and the time spent in transit comes through in repeated lyrical themes of displacement, doubt and situational captivity. To be sure, 'Sunbathing Animal' isn't a record about hopelessness, as any sort of incarceration implies an understanding of freedom and peace of mind. Fleeting moments of bliss are also captured in its grooves, and extended at length as if to preserve them. Pointed articulations of these ideas are heard as schizoid blues rants, shrill guitar leads, purposefully lengthy repetition and controlled explosions, reaching their peak on the blistering title track. A propulsive projection of how people might play the blues 300 years from now, 'Sunbathing Animal' is a roller coaster you can't get off, moving far too fast and looping into eternity. Much as 'Light Up Gold' and the subsequent EP 'Tally All The Things That You Broke' offered a uniquely tattered perspective on everyday city life, 'Sunbathing Animal' applies the same layered thoughts and sprawling noise to more cerebral, inward-looking themes. While heightened in its heaviness and mania, the album also represents a huge leap forward in terms of songwriting and vision. Still rooted firmly in the unshackled exploration and bombastic playing of their earlier work, everything here is amplified in its lucidity and intent. The songs wander through threads of blurry brilliance, exhaustion and fury at the hilt of every note. CD - Jewel Case.LP - Gatefold Sleeve, printed inner bag, Download Code, Standard Black Vinyl

Sunbathing Animal

Music GB

Buy Parquet Courts - Sunbathing Animal (Vinyl, CD) now from Rough Trade - independent purveyors of great music, since 1976.