Give4Greg

Stake Your Claim On The Morning Sun (part 2)

As you may or may not know, Greg Gilbert from The Delays has been diagnosed with bowel cancer. Due to a genetic incompatibility, Greg no longer qualifies for free treatment on the NHS. His wife has set up a Go Fund Me page (link below), which, as a huge fan of the Delays, has been moving to watch the total grow from other fans.

Tomorrow, The Delays, along with Sam Duckworth, Mystery Jets, Eddy Temple Morris, Band of Skulls and many more will take to Greg’s hometown venue 1865 to raise more money for his treatment.  

Please donate and buy tickets and continue to spread the word:

https://www.gofundme.com/give4greg

http://www.seetickets.com/event/cavalry-a-benefit-concert-for-greg-gilbert/the-1865/1060398

In the run up to this great fundraiser, we have revisited all of their singles (part one here):

Valentine

They may have emerged in the 2002/3 boom, but, by their return in 2006 there was a second wave in full swing. Arctic Monkeys and Bloc Party were conquering the charts, so where did they fit? The answer, perfectly in the middle of the aforementioned.

They continued their venture towards dance music with this dancefloor banger and its killer bassline but never losing sight of their pop sensibilities.  

Hideaway

‘Hideaway’ made a return to the roots of ‘Faded Seaside Glamour’ with its jingle-jangle guitar pop style. Their new found spirit of Ibiza was not lost though. Its feel-good factor has the ability to soundtrack a hedonistic trip to the Balearics.  

Hooray

As so often is the case, once bands begin to dominate the charts, the vultures swoon and the industry plies it with shit merchants like Hoosiers and Scouting For Girls to masquerade as authentic alternative pop bands.

So, when Delays the returned with this spikey and spritely pop song, it was annoyingly overlooked. It has the feel of a Bluetones classic and is a must for anyone who missed it first time round.  

Keep It Simple

To go all Jerry McGuire for a moment, “you had me at hello”, and by hello, we mean, Keith from The Office is in the video!!!

 This is the first single which lacks that killer hook in this catalogue. Sonically though, it is not to be sniffed at. It’s by far and away their most mature single and thoughts of the Mercury Prize began to materialise rather than the top 10.

Unsung

Frankie Boyle questioned Radio 2 programmers that Jessica Hoop is not mainstream when she can sell out the Royal Albert Hall in an interview in 2015. The industry’s obsession with a soft and dull sound just never seems to go away.

By the release of ‘Unsung’, the same scenarios were emerging for the band. With this unfortunately apt song title, they were about to drift away. That said, they did so by encapsulating their sound in one song. There are jingle jangle guitars, euphoric synths and Greg’s distinct vocals carrying everything to another level.  

 

 

Stake Your Claim On The Morning Sun (part 1)

As you may or may not know, Greg Gilbert from The Delays has been diagnosed with bowel cancer. Due to a genetic incompatibility, Greg no longer qualifies for free treatment on the NHS. His wife has set up a Go Fund Me page (link below), which, as a huge fan of the Delays, has been moving to watch the total grow from other fans.

This Friday, The Delays, along with Sam Duckworth, Mystery Jets, Eddy Temple Morris, Band of Skulls and many more will take to Greg’s hometown venue 1865 to raise more money for his treatment.  

Please donate and buy tickets and continue to spread the word:

https://www.gofundme.com/give4greg

http://www.seetickets.com/event/cavalry-a-benefit-concert-for-greg-gilbert/the-1865/1060398

In the run up to this great fundraiser, we have revisited all of their singles:

Nearer Than Heaven

We first come across The Delays supporting Ocean Colour Scene at Hammersmith Apollo and, it was this slice of pop heaven that peaked our interest. The vocal from Greg still has the ability to float you away to happier and warmer places. There is an occasional gravel coming through too which, combined with the Oasis-esque guitars at the end showed there was far more to come.

Long Time Coming

Long Time Coming was a great bridge from the Britpop era into that indie boom of 2003-2005. It has a great simplicity to it like many of the great 90s pop singles. The amount of sunshine they crammed into this was remarkable. The harmonies and guitars combine to conjure, for TT, their crowning glory on this coming of age belter.

Hey Girl

For fans of The Byrds, Primal Scream’s debut album and c86, ‘Hey Girl’ was a modern take on jingle-jangle guitars. Considering all who have been drawn to this arena, The Delays remain one of the few to craft a great pop song from it.

Lost In Melody

A big leap was taken on this non-album single, merging dance and indie styles. It came as no surprise that Remix legend Eddy Temple Morris took interest and would later go on to remix ‘Hideaway’.

Everything that had been sun drenched on ‘Faded Seaside Glamour’, now lurked in the ether as this darker, punchy synth laden path was taken. Few could argue that the ground work for Bloc Party’s joyous arrival in 2005 was being laid.

Check back tomorrow for part two.

Please donate and buy tickets and continue to spread the word:

https://www.gofundme.com/give4greg

http://www.seetickets.com/event/cavalry-a-benefit-concert-for-greg-gilbert/the-1865/1060398