Today will be like Yesterday and Tomorrow---Shop Assistants, Your Once And Future Band

I must say I have a lot of warm feeling for Edinburgh. I've only visited once, but from the moment I hiked up the steps from the train station and gazed on the historic city in the twilight I had a feeling that this was going to be a momentous trip. Probably the most beautiful city I've ever visited, the people were pretty interesting, funny, sharp. And I had my first haggis there. What better place for an initiation. My friends thought I was insane, but to me it tasted like hash--maybe not my favorite meal ever (as I like spicy food), but not too bad. I was intrigued with haggis ever since the Monty Python poem about a man who ate himself and became a haggis. So I persevered despite my friends protestations and lived through the three scoops--haggis, tatties and neeps--a traditional Scottish sundae. You never forget your first time.

Thet's Wha Haggis Is

But I probably most enjoyed strolling the streets and closes of the Old Town, The Royal Mile walking where the progenitors of our intellectual heritage like Robbie Burns, Hume and Adam Smith once walked. I've since learned a little more about the City by reading the Inspector Rebus books by Ian Rankin and The Fanatic by James Robertson. Probably should break out my Alastair Gray and Irvine Welsh books again, sooner than later.

Oh, and Edinburgh's Shop Assistants were one corker of a band. Energetic, noisy, melodic, utterly charming. In some ways, they are a throwback to the girl groups of the 60's, and in other ways they fully embrace the Punk crunch of the Buzzcocks and the squalling sheets of noise popularized by The Jesus and Mary Chain. And equally wonderful is the fact that despite the discernible influences they definitely have created and defined themselves in a unique way. And they have proved influential in indie circles, among groups like The Vivian Girls, The Dum Dum Girls, and even the hugely popular Belle and Sebastian, not long ago voted Scotland's all time greatest rock group. This album is a true stunner--in many ways I think they were coming from a similar place as the great New Zealand all female group Look Blue Go Purple. Listen to their song Cactus Cat, and the Assistants Somewhere in China. If you love great 80's indie music this belongs in your collection.

Lead Vocalist for the Shop Assistants is Alex Taylor, who does a fantastic job throughout, her charismatic and nuanced singing style raising this album to another label entirely. The second most distinctive thing about this album is the wonderful noisy guitar work of David Keegan. The six string dissonance juxtaposed against the honey sweet vocals creates a special kind of magic here. Sarah Kneale plays bass and sings backing vocals and Laura MacPhail plays drums and percussion. What a band!



This album is a brief one, 16 songs in 38 minutes. But I can't say there is a bad moment here. You have high powered tunes like the sunny ode to dreary days and no prospects, Caledonia Rd. Prior that the band breaks into the sweet ballad Before I Wake. All Day Long is one of the top tunes another hyper energetic screed about unrequited love. The only odd moment is the song What A Way To Die, which is sort of a pre-British Invasion Cavern Club workout, which is fun, but seems a little out of place here. But hell, I still enjoy that song.

If I had to choose a favorite I would have to choose Fixed Grin. "You send shivers down my spine, A Million thoughts run through my mind." But with the overall high quality here it was a pretty tough call. The driving pop of Home Again  and Seems To Be are superb cuts in their own right. And I have no aversion whatsoever to the more subdued jangle-pop of songs like After Dark or All Of The Time. The percussive and melodic Looking Back is another highlight, one that can hold its own with a band like The Primitives.



The reissue of this came out in 2008 on Cherry Red and I highly recommend this recording. It may sound a little familiar to the uninitiated now, but that is because a substantial number of acts have been inspired by their wonderful music. I know that with all the product that is put out these days, it is easy to be tempted by the next new thing. Be assured that this is a classic recording that needs to be heard. So, what are ye waitin' fer?