Between the recording and release of Slowdive's ambient Pygmalion, Neil Halstead began writing more song-based tunes to occupy down time. Weeks after being dropped by Creation, Halstead and the remaining members of Slowdive (Rachel Goswell and Ian McCutcheon) recorded six demos within three days, much of it live without overdubs. Their manager brought the tape to 4AD head Ivo Watts-Russell, who immediately gave the trio money to record more material. Feeling that the direction was too removed to retain the Slowdive moniker, they christened themselves Mojave, only to add "3" later for legal purposes. Signed to 4AD, the six demos and three later-recorded songs made up 1996's Ask Me Tomorrow. Subtle, sparse, and somber, the record drew likenesses to Mazzy Star and Cowboy Junkies, along with some debatable country references. Not necessarily country, it sounded like unplugged Slowdive with a slight twang. The band gigged for several months, including a package 4AD tour in the U.S. with Scheer and Lush, dubbed the "Shaving the Pavement Tour." The shift away from Slowdive was completed with 1998's Out of Tune. More upbeat in nature, it also featured more involved arrangements. Former Chapterhouse guitarist Simon Rowe was officially added as a member, as well as Alan Forrester on keys. Their full-time presence helped round out the band's sound. At this point, Mojave 3 -- and Halstead's classicist songwriting in particular -- began to earn favorable comparisons to Bob Dylan, Nick Drake, and Neil Young. Excuses for Travellers followed two years later, continuing in similar fashion as something of a hybrid of their first two LPs. Three years came and went -- and were broken up by a Halstead solo album -- before the release of Spoon and Rafter, an album that was recorded throughout the course of a year, at the band's studio in Cornwall. The next bandmember to release a solo record was Goswell, whose 2004 release Waves Are Universal was met with critical and commercial indifference. Perhaps the whole group was feeling this wave of indifference too, because their next record, 2006's Puzzles Like You, threw their formula out and recast them (quite successfully) as an uptempo pop band with the occasional country-influenced ballad. — allmusic
Album List:
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow
1998 - Out Of Tune
2000 - Excuses for Travellers
2003 - Spoon and Rafter
2006 - Puzzles Like You
Media Report:
Genre: dream pop, indie rock
Country: UK
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits
Compression mode: Lossless
Writing library: libFLAC 1.2.1 (UTC 2007-09-17)
Note: If you like the music, support the artist
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FILE LIST
Filename
Size
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/01. Love Songs On The Radio.flac
32.5 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/02. Sarah.flac
21.4 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/03. Tomorrow's Taken.flac
30.5 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/04. Candle Song 3.flac
28.4 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/05. You're Beautiful.flac
13.7 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/06. Where Is The Love.flac
25.1 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/07. After All.flac
17.8 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/08. Pictures.flac
22.7 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/09. Mercy.flac
29.8 MB
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/audiochecker.log
632 B
1995 - Ask Me Tomorrow/cover.jpg
40.7 KB
1998 - Out Of Tune/01. Who Do You Love.flac
23.3 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/02. Give What You Take.flac
29 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/03. Some Kinda Angel.flac
25.4 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/04. All Your Tears.flac
27.9 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/05. Yer Feet.flac
19.6 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/06. Caught Beneath Your Heel.flac
37 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/07. Keep It All Hid.flac
26.3 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/08. Baby's Coming Home.flac
34.4 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/09. To Whom Should I Write.flac
19.2 MB
1998 - Out Of Tune/audiochecker.log
665 B
1998 - Out Of Tune/cover.jpg
119 KB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/01. In Love With A View.flac
37.5 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/02. Trying To Reach You.flac
29.9 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/03. My Life In Art.flac
41.7 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/04. Return To Sender.flac
31.2 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/05. When You're Drifting.flac
35.6 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/06. Anyday Will Be Fine.flac
23.9 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/07. She Broke You So Softly.flac
29 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/08. Prayer For The Paranoid.flac
16.9 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/09. Bringin' Me Home.flac
25.1 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/10. Got My Sunshine.flac
25.5 MB
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/audiochecker.log
747 B
2000 - Excuses for Travellers/cover.jpg
74.3 KB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/01. Bluebird of Happiness.flac
50.8 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/02. Starlite #1.flac
30.1 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/03. Billoddity.flac
28.5 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/04. Writing to St. Peter.flac
32.4 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/05. Battle of the Broken Hearts.flac
38.5 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/06. Hard to Miss You.flac
12.8 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/07. Tinkers Blues.flac
31.1 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/08. She's All Up Above.flac
19.3 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/09. Too Many Mornings.flac
20.2 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/10. Between the Bars.flac
29.2 MB
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/audiochecker.log
723 B
2003 - Spoon and Rafter/cover.jpg
95.9 KB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/01 - Truck Driving Man.flac
26.4 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/02 - Puzzles Like You.flac
16.9 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/03 - Breaking The Ice.flac
29 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/04 - Running With Your Eyes Closed.flac
15.4 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/05 - Most Days.flac
26.4 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/06 - Big Star Baby.flac
31.1 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/07 - Ghostship Waiting.flac
23.2 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/08 - Kill The Lights.flac
23.3 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/09 - You Said It Before.flac
24.9 MB
2006 - Puzzles Like You/10 - To Hold Your Tiny Toes.flac