RECORD TURNOVER 80s HITS #241
Reserve was a London group that was around in late 80s London and a part of the DIY pop scene that formed alongside the success of groups like The Smith and The Jesus & Mary Chain. Led by singer and songwriter Torquil Macleod, they were active 1986-1989 and shared members with other forgotten bands (Bob, James Dean Driving Experience). Macleod was also instrumental helping The Siddeleys get together.
Releasing only a flexi (a split with The Siddeleys) and a 12” called Two Hearts Beat In a Hole they disbanded without having left a mark. The EP came out via the short-lived Sombrero Records which was run by the same person who published the fanzine that their flexi was distributed with. Once, many years ago I was in touch with all these people and got to hear a bunch of unreleased demos by both Reserve and The Siddeleys.
Thanks to Firestation Records those finally saw the light of day 2013-2017. Last year the 2013 Reserve compilation Beneath the London Sky was reissued on vinyl for the first time, losing two of the cd tracks. The recording quality isn’t the best (the first four tracks taken from vinyl) but the songwriting is as good as Morrissey’s. And it’s great to finally have this material available again, as it took me many years to track down copies of the elusive Sombrero releases.
