(2020) The Divine Comedy - Absent Friends (2004, Reissue)


Review:
In 1990 Neil Hannon started recording and releasing under the name The Divine Comedy. Thirty years and twelve great albums later, Hannon is rightly adjudged one of the finest singer songwriters of his generation . To celebrate, Divine Comedy Records are remastering and reissuing nine of the band’s classic albums. Absent Friends was first released in 2004. Describing the album, Neil said: “The songs use stories and characters as a framework to pin my ideas on. It’s mostly about the eternal battle between the pull of personal freedom and the comfort of domesticity”. The album was recorded by Guy Massey, mixed by Nigel Godrich and features guest appearances by 6 Music DJ Lauren Laverne and French multi-instrumentalist Yann Tiersen. “The whole album is rich, beautiful and can make you smile and cry on the turn of a chorus” stated Phill Jupitus in the Radio Times, while the Guardian described it as an “ornate gem” and Word magazine said, “it’s Neil Hannon’s best yet”. Stand out tracks from the album include singles Come Home Billy Bird and Absent Friends, as well as fan favourites ‘Our Mutual Friend’ and ‘Charmed Life’. The album has been remastered from the original tapes at the legendary Abbey Road Studios by mastering engineer Frank Arkwright (Blur, The Smiths.) Overseeing the audio throughout the campaign is engineer/mixer/producer Guy Massey, whose work on the Beatles Stereo Remasters won him a Grammy Award. The CD release consists of 2 discs: the original remastered album, with a second CD of B-sides, demos and alternate versions lovingly curated by Neil Hannon, much of which has never been heard before.





Tracklist:

Disc 1
1. Absent Friends (2020 Remaster) (03:40)
2. Sticks and Stones (2020 Remaster) (04:47)
3. Leaving Today (2020 Remaster) (04:18)
4. Come Home Billy Bird (2020 Remaster) (04:06)
5. My Imaginary Friend (2020 Remaster) (02:42)
6. The Wreck of the Beautiful (2020 Remaster) (04:57)
7. Our Mutual Friend (2020 Remaster) (05:57)
8. The Happy Goth (2020 Remaster) (03:37)
9. Freedom Road (2020 Remaster) (03:55)
10. Laika’s Theme (2020 Remaster) (03:07)
11. Charmed Life (2020 Remaster) (04:43)

Disc 2
1. Absolute Power (03:51)
2. Our Mutual Friend (Early Idea) (01:36)
3. The Bird Evolution (04:07)
4. Girl Least Likely (03:58)
5. Mr Right (03:22)
6. Sticks and Stones (Demo) (04:37)
7. The Dark Horse (02:59)
8. Idaho (04:06)
9. All Things (Alternate Version) [Konk Sessions] (04:37)
10. Rose For The Lady (04:18)
11. Smiler (03:11)
12. Absent Friends (Demo) (03:38)
13. Anthem For Bored Youth (Demo) (03:04)
14. Our Mutual Friend (Alternate Version) (05:27)
15. Antidepressant (01:14)
16. Windy Pop (03:17)
17. Laika’s Theme (The Promise) (02:18)
18. Charmed Life (Alternate Version) (04:46)


Media Report:
Genre: chamber pop, indie-pop
Format: FLAC
Format/Info: Free Lossless Audio Codec, 16-bit PCM
Bit rate mode: Variable
Channel(s): 2 channels
Sampling rate: 44.1 KHz
Bit depth: 16 bits