4AD for Record Store Day – Pale Saints, Lisa Germano and Belly

Pale Saints – Slow Buildings (30^th Anniversary Re:Masters)

Formats: Petrol Blue 2xLP, CD (out 23 May), and Digital (out 23 May)

Tracklist
A1 – King Fade
A2 – Angel (Will You Be My)
A3 – One Blue Hill
A4 – Henry
B1 – Under Your Nose
B2 – Little Gesture
B3 – Song Of Solomon
B4 – Fine Friend
B5 – Gesture Of A Fear
C1 – Always I
C2 – Suggestion
C3 – Special Present (Edit)
C4 – Marimba
C5 – Reprise
D1 – On Your Own (Tape Demo)
D2 – Always I (Demo)
D3 – Loopy (Tape Demo)
D4 – Henry (Demo)
D5 – Angel (Acoustic)
D6 – Marimba (Demo)

Pale Saints complete their series of 30th anniversary reissues with the release of an expanded edition of their third and final album, Slow Buildings.

By 1994, they were the quartet of Meriel Barham (vocals / guitar), Chris Cooper (drums), Graeme Naysmith (guitar) and Colleen Browne (bass guitar/vocals), who having just left The Heart Throbs replaced founding member Ian Masters who had departed the band to form Spoonfed Hybrid with AC Temple’s Chris Trout.

Primed by the brilliant single ‘Fine Friend’ (a song adapted from 1981’s ‘Poison in the Airwaves’ by Scottish band Persian Rugs), third album Slow Buildings shows the band still venturing forward – this time, keeping the experimentation and guitar fuzz of their early records whilst opening-up their songs so Meriel’s vocals could hit new, pop heights.

As with the 30th anniversary reissues of their previous two albums, this special pressing sees this long out of print record being remastered and expanded to include a wealth of bonus material that’s sure to delight fans. Working with mastering engineer Kevin Vanbergen, this new edition runs over two discs with the album being packaged with the Fine Friend EP and a great selection of previously unheard tracks and demos as handpicked by the band.

Slow Buildings (30^th Anniversary Re:Masters) is pressed on petrol blue vinyl, housed in a gatefold sleeve designed by Timothy O’Donnell and Roy Burns III, using the original art photography by Dominic Davies.

A record that stands the test of time 30 years on, Slow Buildings is well worthy of reappraisal. This reissue is being released in the memory of Graeme Naysmith.

Lisa Germano – Geek The Girl (30^th Anniversary Special Edition)

Formats: Crystal Clear 2xLP, CD (out 23 May) and Digital (out 23 May)

Tracklist
A1. My Secret Reason
A2. Trouble
A3. Geek The Girl
A4. Just Geek
A5. Cry Wolf
A6. …A Psychopath
B1. Sexy Little Girl Princess
B2. Phantom Love
B3. Cancer Of Everything
B4. A Guy Like You
B5. …Of Love And Colors
B6. Stars
B7. The Mirror Is Gone
C1. Happiness
C2. Energy
D1. Puppet
D2. Sycophant
D3. (Late Night) Dresses

“A bold investigation of a woman’s journey through self-acceptance and the systemic issues fuelling her personal struggles.”
PopMatters

Lisa Germano’s landmark 1994 album, Geek The Girl, is a prescient yet unsettling listen. A record that explores themes of stalking, sexual harassment, anxiety and the female experience, word of mouth has only grown since its release and despite now widely being seen as a classic of its time, it’s somehow evaded a vinyl pressing, much to the chagrin of fans. So, in great news, 4AD are finally righting this on Record Store Day 2025 with a special double vinyl pressing to celebrate the album’s 30th Anniversary.

A record that is as vital a statement today as when first released, Lisa is unflinching and unbowed throughout Geek The Girl, giving a platform to the silenced, or as she says, “people who are stuck but want to go somewhere else.” Writing with a raw, emotional honesty – sometimes from a kowtowing perspective – she holds little back. An incredible body of work, the atmosphere is heightened by a jaunting violin sound and her use of (with permission and after much deliberation) of a real 911 call in which a woman confronts an intruder in her own home. Her recurring use of Sicilian folk tune ‘Frascilita’ as an interlude jars too, even though she intended for it to give the album some needed “comic relief.”

Ranked in SPIN Magazine’s Top 100 albums of the 90s, Geek The Girl is unlike most music of the period and a testament to both Lisa’s artistry and courage. Working with Abbey Road Studios in London, the album has been remastered for its 30th anniversary and has had both ‘Cry Wolf’ b-side ‘The Mirror Is Gone’ and 5 track pre-cursor EP, Inconsiderate Bitch, added to deliver the complete package. Destined to be one of Record Store Day 2025’s highlights, it’s being pressed on double, crystal clear vinyl while designer Chris Bigg (v23) has returned to the porcelain doll cover shoot by Dominic Davies to deliver a stunning new design that complements the original album art.

Belly – King (30^th Anniversary Edition)

Formats: Green Vinyl Single LP, CD (out 23 May) and Digital (out 23 May)

Tracklist
A1 Puberty
A2 Seal My Fate
A3 Red
A4 Silverfish
A5 Super-Connected
A6 The Bees
B1 King
B2 Now They’ll Sleep
B3 Untitled and Unsung
B4 L’il Ennio
B5 Judas My Heart

Belly found themselves at something of a crossroads when it came to following up their 1993 debut album Star – a wildly successful record that earned the band two GRAMMY nominations including the coveted Best New Artist award. With bassist Gail Greenwood having joined the ranks in between, she plus the trio of Tanya Donelly and brothers Chris and Tom Gorman rented a house in rural Rhode Island to write collaboratively before heading to Nassau in the Bahamas to record in Island Records founder Chris Blackwell’s legendary studio Compass Point (a place famed for where AC/DC, Grace Jones, Tom Tom Club, and countless others recorded major works). Away from industry pressure and guided by veteran producer Glyn Johns (Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, The Who), they made the most of the relaxed surroundings, recording live in the room and minimising overdubs so to capture as much of the band’s chemistry on tape as they could.

Featuring singles ‘Now They’ll Sleep’, ‘Seal My Fate’, and ‘Super-Connected’, the resultant King was a step on, a deceptively complex album where the quartet had chosen artistic growth over commerciality. Their lyrics took more of a political and personal bent, while musically it was heavier, in part due to Gail’s muscular playing style and more deft guitar interplay between Tanya and Tom. SPIN Magazine said at the time that it marked their evolution from “indie darlings to rock contenders”.

Having been out of print on vinyl since its release 30 years ago, 4AD are delighted to be working with both the band and Rhino in North America to finally put it back on the shelves on Record Store Day 2025. Keeping its original sleeve design by Chris Bigg (v23), featuring photography by Christopher Gorman and Stephen DiRado, this long demanded repress is coming on limited green vinyl with the album having been remastered by Kevin Vanbergen.