Editors - "A bunch of miserable gits"
The AOL Session that Editors did in 2006 is a wonderful thing and, as with most of the posts I do here, there's a related bit of trivia. The videos were shown on AOL's website, but with a crucial difference here in the UK. We only got 5 of the 6 songs, with AOL viewers in the U.S. getting the missing track Bullets. However, the general rule of thumb is that if it can be broadcast online it can be grabbed, and it was the case here. As is becoming more regular, this is one more instance of the band outlasting the medium. AOL music, which was the home to this and a bunch of other sessions was officially shut down back in April of 2013.
You'll notice 2 tracks that very rarely get an airing are included here; Colours and Find Yourself a Safe Place which both appeared as b-sides on the Munich single release. They have since been made available on the Unedited box set, and have been collected and released before as tracks on the Cuttings disc, which accompanied a limited run of the Back Room album. Editors put a lot of effort into their b-sides, and it has been said that the extra tracks that appeared on Cuttings 2, which accompanied the limited edition release of In This Light and on This Evening, could have easily fitted in well on that album. And let's not forget that one of the band's greatest live tracks, You Are Fading, was originally tucked away as a b-side.
The kinetic energy that we normally see manifest itself in Mr Smith's stage prowling is completely distilled down in the music itself during this set. There's a weird air of restraint about the whole thing, almost like they're all being confined in some way and it really adds to the power of these songs. It creates some nice edges.
As well as the AOL session, I'm including a little bit of bonus material in the form of an audio broadcast featuring Editors as part of AOL's "The Interface" show, also from 2006. It's 33 minutes of Tom and Chris interview goodness, with an acoustic run-through of All Sparks and Bullets included. Enjoy the music ;)
Videos
All Sparks - stream it here
Bullets - stream it here
Fall - stream it here
Colours - stream it here
Find Yourself a Safe Place - stream it here
Munich - stream it here
AOL Session MP3s - download here
stream it here
All Sparks (acoustic) MP3 - download here
Bullets (acoustic) MP3 - download here
brought to you with lots and lots of lemming-love :) x
