Date: Fri, 14 Nov 1997 10:12:32 -0800 From: Jef-Marcel Encinas Subject: The Hope Blister Wow!!! big and great news folks! Just a few minutes ago KCRW (in Santa Monica, CA) played a This Mortal Coil track ("Help Me Lift You Up")...when the track faded off Chris Douridas announced that a This Mortal Coil-type of project was already in the works (w. Ivo producing again ) The name of the concept or project is the Hope Blister and due to be released in May of 1998!! It too, is hoped to be a trilogy. Date: Tue, 20 Jan 1998 22:55:20 -0800 From: Snarlo Subject: The Hope Blister + Momus? this seen on the Momus webpage: "Momus has been approached to sing a song on a This Mortal Coil-like project to be released by 4AD Records, the label on which he started his musical career." So maybe this will surface on the album? Maybe Ivo finally convinced David Sylvian to sing for him too??? ANYONE have ANY details on featured artistes on The Hope Blister album? God, that is a godawful name... love, Peter Date: Mon, 23 Feb 1998 22:14:31 -0800 From: Snarlo Subject: Momus Hi all, Saw Momus (ex-Happy Family, for those not knowing and/or needing 4AD relevance of some sort) this past Saturday in San Francisco, and he was just outstanding. His new lp "Ping Pong" is fantastic, in his usual debauched electronic cabaret style... I mustered up the nerve to speak with him after the performance about his supposed appearance as one of the vocalists on the forthcoming Hope Blister project. He said that 4AD had contacted him a few months back about it, but he hasn't heard anything from them since. He did say something about 4AD and money that I didn't quite catch, and seemed a bit disappointed about not having heard from them since the initial call. He is definitely featured on Stephin Merritt's forthcoming The 6ths album as one of the guest vocalistes, which should be just lovely. ok, time to listen to The Fall now. kisses, peter Date: Wed, 4 Mar 1998 18:21:51 -0500 From: Jeff Keibel Subject: Send a rocket for Red (Atkins) The Hope Blister, Ivo's other current project is nearly done. The album "...smiles o.k." features vocalist Louise Rutkowski along with Laurence O'Keefe with mixing from longtime Ivo collaborator John Fryer. Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 07:28:55 +0200 From: Strong Comet Subject: Prepare Your Razor Blades - Here Come HOPE BLISTER Ivo's This Mortal Coil under the new name Hope Blister, bring us one of = 4AD's greatest musical moments of 1998 (and definitely of the last = couple of years or more). All I have is an audio tape with 8 tracks, without any further = information. Anakin's 'Dagger' opens the album after a strange intro, then come three = songs, then comes (are you ready ???) 'Let The Happiness In' - a David Sylvian cover from his "Secrets Of The = Beehive" masterpiece, followed by another cover - this time of 4AD's = home band and one of the newest acts - GusGus, with 'Is Jesus Your = Pal?'. Song no.7 follows and the ending track is another cover, 'Hanky Panky = Nohow' by John Cale from his "Paris 1919" album. I didn't quite recognize all the other stuff, but it wouldn't surprise = me at all if they were also covers. All the songs (as far as I could recognize) are sung by Louise = Rutkowski, and accompanied mainly by strings and keyboards, with some = exceptions of bass, guitar, some percussion and saxophone ! The overall atmosphere starts exactly at the point where 'Blood' ended - = dark, pricking, aching and wonderfully arranged. The album is not built as a concept, with a theme, variations and songs, = but rather as a standard, with some songs fading into the next one. The = strings arrangements give the whole album a sense of classical chamber = music, but added the other instruments and the vocals, this is the sound = of This Mortal Coil, The Hope Blister and 4AD. Date: Sun, 12 Apr 1998 00:30:32 -0400 From: Jeff Keibel Subject: Lisa Gerrard, The Hope Blister Furthermore, I got a copy of the Hope Blister CD today. The most striking thing about it is the fact that they (?) covered GusGus's 'Is Jesus Your Pal'. After a very cursory first listen I must say that it (this track) is not *that* special. Over all, however, the disc does keep the promise the Anakin track gave. It's a wonderful hearing enjoyment - very much TMC. The only thing that I don't like is that the singing voice is the same on all tracks. Don't get me wrong, I like the Rudkowsky gal but on a TMC (HB) disc I do expect some variation. The track listing is as follows: 1. Dagger 2. Only Human 3. Outer Skin 4. Sweet Unknown 5. Let the Happiness in 6. Is Jesus Your Pal 7. Spider and I 8. Hanky Panky Nohow Written by Ralf Henneking Date: Sun, 12 Apr 1998 15:06:03 +0100 From: Michael Jones Subject: Re: The Hope Blister Jeremy L Orr wrote: > ---from Jeff Keibel: > > > The track listing is as follows: > > > > 1. Dagger > > 2. Only Human > > 3. Outer Skin > > 4. Sweet Unknown > > 5. Let the Happiness in > > 6. Is Jesus Your Pal > > 7. Spider and I > > 8. Hanky Panky Nohow > > Okay, so we know that 1, 5, and 6 are covers (by Slowdive, David Sylvian, > and Gus Gus, respectively). I would assume that 7 is a cover of the > Brian Eno song (from one of the best records ever made, _Before and After > Science_). So where do the rest of the tracks originally come from? Number 8 is from John Cale's (best) album, 'Paris 1919'. Maintaining the exemplary taste shown in TMC cover selections (would be nice to hear Kim and Tanya duetting on 'Andalucia', or Brendan tackling 'The Endless Plain of Fortune', though... maybe Hope Blister II...) Mike. Date: Tue, 14 Apr 1998 20:25:58 +0300 From: Strong Comet Subject: The Hope Blister THE HOPE BLISTER Louise Rutkowski (who contributed to This Mortal Coil) on vocals, Lawrence O'Keefe (ex-Levitation and currently Dark Star) on bass, Audrey Reilly on string arrangements, Ivo on spiritual guidance/production and John Fryer on mixing duties is all. Richard Thomas appears on two tracks (Hanky Panky Nohow and Sweet Unknown). Of the songs, the final selections were Dagger (by Neil Halstead, ex-Slowdive, now of 4AD signings Mojave 3), Only Human (Heidi Berry, who recorded three albums for 4AD), Outer Skin (Chris Knox of New Zealand duo Tall Dwarfs), Sweet Unknown (Alison and Jim Shaw of Cranes), Let The Happiness In (David Sylvian, of Japan and solo fame), Is Jesus Your Pal? (by the Icelandic band Slow Blow, previously covered by 4AD's new Icelandic signings GusGus), Spider & I (Eno, who needs no further explanation) and Hanky Panky Nohow (John Cale - likewise). It's some of the simplest music you'll hear this or any year, and some of the most beautiful - it's a bath-and-candle kind of record, or as Ivo says, "music for people who don't like to go out." It goes against the grain of much modern music - and gladly so. WHY HOPE BLISTER ??? Ivo: "I wanted two words that worked together that normally don't. Hope Blister popped into my head, sitting in a traffic jam one day...it means different things to me, but the meaning is pretty much contained within the name, simultaneously positive and negative. Virtually everything in life is like that." ...smiles OK - UK Release date is May 25th (same as Smashing Pumpkins, BTW). Date: Sat, 18 Apr 1998 21:25:56 -0400 From: Jeff Keibel Subject: The Hope Blister The Hope Blister "...smile's o.k." Vinyl - CAD8008 Compact Disc - CAD8008CD Released May 25th in the UK and May 26th most other places... The Hope Blister is the natural successor to the highly acclaimed This Mortal Coil, a variable line-up of musicians interpreting Ivo's favourite songs, who released three albums between 1984 and 1991. Although the principle of The Hope Blister is similar to that of This Mortal Coil, "...smile's o.k." takes a more streamlined approach and features just a handful of musicians. The line-up on "...smile's o.k." is Louise Rutkowski (who contributed to This Mortal Coil) on vocals, Lawrence O'Keefe (ex-Levitation, Dark Star) on bass, string arrangements by cellist Audrey Reilly, with occassional drums and saxophone provided by Ritchie Thomas. Ivo Watts-Russell produced the album, which was mixed by John Fryer. Tracklisting: Dagger Only Human Outer Skin Sweet Unknown Let The Happiness In Is Jesus Your Pal? Spider And I Hanky Panky Nohow Date: Wed, 22 Apr 1998 02:33:04 +0300 From: Strong Comet Subject: CAD 8008 The Hope Blister - some more notes and information: Ivo is supposed to arrive in Paris and London for a series of rare = interviews to promote the new project. It's been years since he's made "commercial" interviews, and also face = to face ones, so expect big articles in the music press and related = media at the begginning of May. The credits for the album are as follows: Vocals: Louise Rutkowski Bass Guitar: Laurence O'Keefe Cello: Audrey Reily Violins: Chris Tombling and Leo Payne Viola: Sue Dench Saxophone and Drums: Ritchie Thomas String arrangements: Audrey Reily Backing Vocals: Louise Laurence, Dmitri Williams and Astrid Williamson = (of Nude Records) anyone ??? Recorded by Alex Russell in London Mixed by John Fryer in New York Produced by Ivo-Watts-Russell Compiled by Ivo and Chris Staley Design: Paul McMenamin Photography: George ??? No sign of V23. Some of the typography is quite the same, but it's clear = different hands have made this sleeve. The front cover shows an upside down some sort of glass/vase, and back = cover features an old photograph of what seems to be a scenario of a big = tree, 2 horses and a dog. Lyrics of 'Outer Skin' are the only ones featured in the booklet. Sleeve scans will soon be available for the list. Date: Tue, 5 May 1998 04:54:40 -0400 From: Jeff Keibel Subject: One unlucky bum May 25th is the UK date for "...smile's ok" from Ivo's new project The Hope Blister. In addition to other countries that'll see it on or around the 25th, it'll be out in Canada on the 26th of May. No official US release date yet but ADA will distribute it in the summer sometime. See http://www.4ad.com for info on the soon to be manufactured two track promo CD "Sweet Unknown" which features a different version of "Is Jesus Your Pal" not on the album... Watch out for the interview with Ivo to be posted on 4ad-l from lucky list member Mr. Curtis as well!! Date: Fri, 22 May 1998 22:26:10 EDT From: Freak4ad Subject: Hope Blister Promo Review I picked up the Hope Blister Promo (with two tracks) from the record store when I shouldn't have. The record store said they were being given with purchases (and is on freeze) on Memorial Day only. That sucked because my friend wanted one too but can't until the 25th. On the cover is a grey, dark clothed Ivo, with only the top of his head showing, leaning over a dog (what is with dogs and 4AD this year?). The cd is also an import (Made in England). That is interesting because I thought 4AD was manufacturing the promo in the states. Cool though--an import for free. The Hope Blister have an interesting icon for the name--very industrial looking. Of course, many of us have heard the very beautiful "Sweet Unknown" so I won't comment on it. The other song is a demo mix of "Is Jesus Your Pal." Very interesting mix--a very downbeat song. There is a drone in the background and a very heavy echoing beat. My friend thought that Louise sounded like she was going to commit suicide after singing this. The gusgus version is much more upbeat (believe it or not). The singing is quite restrained like if a female Siddhartha was standing at the edge of a river about to drown. Something, perhaps the drone of it and the lyrical nonvariation, reminds me of "Late Night" by TMC. Very cool. Looking forward to the album. The cd says The Hope Blister . . . sort of a sequel to This Mortal Coil. Date: Sun, 24 May 1998 22:01:27 EDT From: Freak4ad Subject: Hope Blister VS. Cranes I actually think that the Hope Blister's "Sweet Unknown" improves considerably on the song. I am a fan of the Cranes, but the lead singer's voice is so much like a small girl's that the song is not as nice as with Louise. I also think Dagger is better by the Hope Blister, however "Is Jesus Your Pal", as much as I like the HB version, is better by gusgus (at least the version I heard). Date: Mon, 8 Jun 1998 01:28:38 -0500 From: Jose A Garcia-Camil Subject: THB Review (From NME) Since I haven't got the chance to hear it yet, this review kind of surprised me since all I've been hearing is rave after rave.... THE HOPE BLISTER=20 Smile's OK=20 (4AD)=20 IT'S NOT A PARTICULARLY GOOD start is it? That name. Lifted from the humourless depths of Gothsville and no doubt intended to symbolise some kind of Yin and Yang of joy and ultimate pain. But then Mr Blister, Ivo Watts-Russell, is hardly a man given to laughs. He founded the surrealist-heavy 4AD records in 1980 and also assembled the arch-introspective This Mortal Coil. Now, seven years after the final TMC release, his creative urges have welled up to breaking point. Darling, meet The, ahem, Hope Blister.=20 Ivo's ethos so far is pretty much thus: rope in a bunch of sincere musos to play out the treasure trove of cover version fantasies that swim around in his melancholic little head. A cursory glance at the instrumentation (cello, bass, violin, viola, sax) is enough to throw up worrying images of coffee-table maturity but 'Smile's OK' is no more than a reverb-frenzy of orchestral-backed posh crooning and overcooked atmospherics.=20 Thanks chiefly to fellow TMC collaborator and vocalist Louise Rutkowski, the Blisters spend most of their time (with the likes of 'Let The Happiness In' and 'Hanky Panky Nohow') roaming in that no-man's land between the end-of-the-world bleakness of The Swans and the deadly earnest neo-folk wibblings of Enya or Clannad. However their tendency to cross over the line into mawkish sadness =E0 la Whitney Houston has not gone unnoticed. You see, that's what happens when you try to flesh out all of your dreams - real life drags 'em back to the pit of mediocrity. Ho hum.=20 5/10 Date: Wed, 10 Jun 1998 20:50:41 -0700 From: Peter Clark Subject: THB and other matters I just reprogrammed my e-mail so I lost THAT review of THB that I so carefully saved...rats. Since my TMC vinyl and the cds (I have "the Best Of..."??? set) are on my tunes machine a lot (that's how I discovered Mary Margaret O'Hara, praise be), I waited for THB with bated breath. I even made sure that I would get the vinyl first, since I think it will be scarce in the US. (Forget the cd promo, I live in the fens.) I must be a victim of my setting the bar too high for THB though. It's a workmanlike only effort. Louise does a good enough job with the material she was given, She has a distinctive voice and I like her other work. And I think the strings are refreshing after being subjected to so much aimless electronic noodling and random sound effects elsewhere. But, Ivo seems to have lost his vision here. As in cinema, often a useful question to ask is "why did they make this?" I dunno. Seems an awful lot of hype for an effort that would otherwise get buried in the bins if it weren't for Ivo's imprimatur and the 4ad label. And at import LP prices, to boot! The underappreciated new Lisa Gerrard is a sight better. I sold my US demo cd and got the import 2 cd version instead, THAT is a joy in my life. Date: Sat, 13 Jun 1998 20:58:36 -0800 From: Kurt Thomas Subject: The Hope Blister With gratittude I just received the promo CD and the album. First of all, thanks 4AD and ultimately Ivo Watts-Russell. During my formidable years I was exposed to This Mortal Coil works via 'It'll End In Tears' and other 4AD bands at that time. I have also added to my collection the memorable `Filligree and Shadow' and the indelible spirit of `Blood'and the fantastic This Mortal Coil Box Set. So, in regards to The Hope Blister I will make no such comparison to what ended in 1990. The Hope Blister is significant. smiles ok.. embellishes the original songs it covers. Musicianship is alive; Heidi, David, John, Brian et al should be proud. Ivo has once again put together a very signature, solid album. He picked one of my favorite works by David Sylvian (solo respectively)! And The Hope Blister's version certainly "let's the happiness in..." And we get a free CD too! So in conclusion, This Mortal Coil has had its day for us all. Let's go forward with The Hope Blister.How about another stab at using a males vocalist??? I COMMEND YOU IVO! (My name is Paul Valdez, not Kurt Thomas) Date: Fri, 16 Oct 1998 11:37:10 -0400 From: Jeff Keibel Subject: Always Stay Sweet JAN 12 THE HOPE BLISTER : ...smile's OK The first record from 4AD founder Ivo Watts-Russell since completing the trilogy of the This Mortal Coil recordings. Similar to TMC in theory, The Hope Blister has its own unique interpretations of songs originally written by such artists as David Sylvian, Slowblow, Slowdive, Heidi Berry and The Cranes. Released in the US by Mammoth and distributed by PolyGram. Out now in the UK. Date: Tue, 12 Jan 1999 20:55:42 -0500 From: Jeff Keibel Subject: 4AD's Sound Pool '99 JAN 12 THE HOPE BLISTER : "...smile's ok" Mammoth Records MR0197-2 Domestic US release. The Mammoth web site has a special section devoted to The Hope Blister including a RealAudio remix of "Is Jesus Yoyr Pal?" and a contest where you can win a CD from This Mortal Coil catalogue. Contest open until February 28th with new questions every Monday. Open to US residents only. http://www.mammoth.com/