DELTA Slippin' Out double LP/CD/DL (Circuitry)

Circuitry is a new reissue label co-run by Guy Sirman, founder of the Dishy and Dell'Orso labels, and some friends of his who share his musical tastes. Following on from a welcome reissue of The Orchids' Lyceum, which includes all songs from their first three Sarah EPs as bonus material, the label has now turned its attention to Slippin' Out by Delta, which originally came out on Dishy back in 2000.

Delta were of course the band that followed on from The Sea Urchins, founded in the early 1990s by James and Patrick Roberts and Robert Cooksey from that band, along with Matthew Eaton from Pram. Various line-up changes happened along the way, with one of the biggest alterations to the band's sound occurring when Robert left. His lead guitar style had been an integral part of the early Delta sound, and without him they sounded like a completely different band in many respects. By the time Slippin' Out was released, only two of the original members remained, the singer/songwriter brothers James and Patrick Roberts, so to all intents and purposes they basically were a different band by then.

Another notable change to the band's style occurred with the addition of classically trained musician Louis Clark Jr, son of ELO arranger Louis Clark, who brought a new level of sophistication to the band's sound. He contributed some amazing classical-style arrangements to Slippin' Out, which were performed by a 19-piece orchestra from the Birmingham Conservatoire.

The original band had a raw sound that encapsulated the general vibe of late 60s West Coast rock, but with enough of their own originality and talent that they didn't come across as a ripoff of anything that came before. They didn't fit in with any 90s trends, and all the better for it. The later version of Delta still retained some vestiges of the West Coast sound, but was however more poppy and polished, drawing in addition from a broad range of styles from classical to Britpop.

I had been a fan of early Delta since the beginning, but had initially been disappointed by their new material when attending a gig by the new line-up in late 1999. I had therefore approached Slippin' Out with some reservations on its original release, but was surprised at how much I actually liked most of their new songs, and I think it's fair to say that the album has grown on me even more over the years.

To celebrate the 25th anniversary of Slippin' Out, Circuitry have brought out this deluxe expanded reissue with new artwork and new sleeve notes by James Roberts. An enormous amount of care and attention has gone into this reissue. The expert remastering and high quality vinyl pressing (with ZERO surface noise!) bring out the best in the music. Both the outer and inner sleeves are printed on high-gloss card. The new artwork features a hallucinatory blur of wild horses, hinting at the West Coast psychedelia that fed into their sound.

There's a whole side of bonus material comprising three songs from the debut Dell'Orso release from 2001, the The City's Bigger than Both of Us EP, and two songs that were never released elsewhere until now. The other track from the EP, the rough acoustic demo Not What I'm Saying is omitted, though that song appeared in fleshed-out form on the following album Hardlight. Maybe we'll see that album getting the deluxe reissue treatment as well some way down the line?

The two songs I had originally noted as standout tracks back in 2000 were Color Madre, a West Coast-informed jangler sounding somewhat like a more grown-up version of the Roberts brothers' earlier band The Sea Urchins, also taking in analogue synth sections that impart an element of sci-fi experimentation, and Everybody, joyous vintage-styled pop swathed in vibrato guitar and Rhodes piano. These are still the standout tracks for me, but are not the only ones.

Cuckoo has an undeniable Beatles influence, but its additional aspects of funk and smooth filmic neoclassicalism mean it can hardly be dismissed as a straightforward Beatles knockoff. The bouncy title track sounds like Delta reinventing themselves as a Britpop band, not a genre I was a fan of back in the 90s but aspects of it have grown on me over time, including this track. L'Egohead is a boisterous mix of Beatles, Britpop and rock 'n' roll and is also a grower. The soulful and triumphant We Come Back is superb, combining the mellower side of West Coast rock with sophisticated 1970s pop and swooping orchestration. I'm sorry to say I still cringe at the "I'll see you out later / I'll bring my calculator" couplet, but that can be forgiven considering how astonishingly beautiful the rest of the track is.

Elephant Man, a twisted, harrowing tale of bulimia, is still an uncomfortable listen, but then it's supposed to be. I Want You features huge, epic orchestration sounding like something from a blockbuster movie soundtrack, as well as a couple of lines whose melody echoes (believe it or not!) Madonna's Papa Don't Preach, an unexpected similarity for sure, but one that highlights the band's level of ambition. The early Sea Urchins may have been content with releasing DIY indiepop songs on flexis put out by fanzine writers, but Slippin' Out-era Delta had the sound of a band aiming for the big time. On revisiting this album after a few years away from it, I was blown away by the level of sophistication on offer here, in particular the top class orchestral arrangements, and agree with all those commentators, both press and fans, who think the band should have been huge.

The hidden orchestral bonus track from the original CD has been left off for reasons of space, but the reissue has, as mentioned above, brought in several bonus tracks from other sources. The gentle, flute-adorned balladry of The World That You See is followed by Shake It, a rollicking, rocked-up Britpop number overlaid by punchy trumpets and trombones. I'd had mixed feelings about that song when first hearing it in 2001, liking the music but having trouble with the lyrics, eg "He's a big gorilla, he's an imbecile-a [...] / Here comes dirty Trevor, cooking in his leather overcoat". I didn't think this foray into daft humour suited an otherwise serious band like Delta, but this time around it raised a chuckle, plus I found the forceful brass arrangement an impressive touch.

Previously unreleased track I'm a Window follows in a similar vein, combining the bounce and swagger of Britpop with daft surreal humour, "silly nonsensical whimsy" as James puts it in the sleeve notes. The other previously unheard track The Bigger Picture is the main reason why I bought this reissue. With its throaty, thrashing garage riffage and impassioned vocals, it recaptures some of the spirit of early 90s Delta classics like Low Flying.

Circuitry have done a really great job with this reissue, with excellent sound quality and packaging, and a clutch of bonus tracks that fit well alongside the original album. Very highly recommended. Downloads are available at circuitryrecordings.bandcamp.com. The orange vinyl LP has sold out and there's only a handful left of the CD at the label at the time of writing, though a re-press of the LP on purple vinyl is due out in February 2026. CDs should still be widely available from third party stockists. The black vinyl LP seems to have sold out from most online shops I looked at, though I did manage to track down a copy from Jumbo Records, a seller I would recommend for their fast service and the personal touch of a handwritten note.

For more information on The Sea Urchins and Delta, I STRONGLY recommend reading the two-part feature in Shindig! magazine, The Sea Urchins in issue #161 and Delta in #162, published in March and April 2025. A very informative read and an absolute must for fans of these bands. Excerpts are available here and here, with links to purchase the magazines. The second link also includes a web-only exclusive with Robert Cooksey's memories of Trish Keenan of Broadcast. See also the 2025 interview with James Roberts in Terrascope.

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