Music: long live the Cocteau Twins

I first listened to Cocteau Twins by the mid eighties, as I discovered 4AD and other bands like This Mortal Coil, Propaganda, Clan of Xymox and others… Cocteau Twins sounded strange, like coming somewhere from outer space. I remember trying to figure out their lyrics only to discover that there were only voice sounds but no words. It was a time of melancholy and depressive music, in general, the time of british new wave. The Cocteau Twins were founded in 1981 by Robin Guthrie, Elizabeth Fraser and Will Heggie (who left in 1983) in an industrial town in Scotland. In 1984 Simon Raymonde joined Robin and Liz until their breakup in 1998, when Liz left London and decided to follow a solo career. By then the band had made its unique contribution to pop music,. Its prolific creativity had already left an indelible mark on music that will, no doubt, last forever, with its legacy of songs like "Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops," "Lorelei," "Aikea-Guinea," "Pink Orange Red," "Orange Appled," "Carolyn's Fingers," "Iceblink luck" and "Heaven or Las Vegas." Even nowadays, a 15 year-old Cocteau Twins song like "Fifty-fifty Clown" sounds as fresh and new as if it were recorded only yesterday. The music of the Cocteau Twins remains unique and has influenced many famous singers and groups. The three elements of the band have continued solo careers and Liz Fraser in particular has been remarked, having worked with Massive Attack for instance.

For its 25th anniversary, an year in which the band nearly reunited, 4AD and Robin Guthrie digitally remastered and re-released the full back-catalog of Cocteau Twins EPs, singles and b-sides, including all non-4AD tracks from 1993 to 1996. The new set, entitled "Lullabies to Violaine", (from the album Lullabies to the album Violaine) was released in November 2005 including 59 tunes. previously in 2000 a two-CD collection of radio show performances (BBC Sessions) had been released on Bella Union. That was followed in late 2001 by an eighteen-track digitally remastered retrospective from 4AD entitled "Stars and Topsoil", which chronicled highlights from their career with their long-time record label from 1982 to 1990.

For more details and the latest news, read more in the band’s website: www.cocteautwins.org