VARIOUS ARTISTS - Under the Bridge 2 CD/Double LP/Download (Skep Wax)

Skep Wax Records, run by Amelia Fletcher and Rob Pursey of Heavenly, The Catenary Wires, etc, have followed up 2022's Under the Bridge compilation of former Sarah Records artists with an expanded second volume with 20 tracks spread across two LPs, or the same songs on a single CD. You may expect an album that celebrates the work of bands associated with a label from the 1980s and 90s to be an exercise in nostalgia, but this is actually an anti-nostalgic project which emphasises what these bands are doing now and shows they are just as active and creative as ever.

There are bands who are arguably making some of their best material today. St Christopher still have the immediately recognisable songwriting style and vibrato-rich vocals of Glenn Melia, but their sound is now beefed up with a noisy energy that adds an exciting new dimension to their music. Action Painting!'s Just Who Are the Cockleshell Heroes? is spiky pop, strongly melodic though infused with a punk spirit, and easily one of the best songs I've ever heard from this band. Boyracer combine pop melody with intense squalling guitar noise; their Unknown Frequencies is undoubtedly up there with their best stuff from the 1990s.

There are bands who haven't changed a great deal; Secret Shine's Captivate this Broken Love is a huge shoegaze wall of noise in the spirit of My Bloody Valentine, which continues seamlessly from their late-period Sarah output. Then there are the bands who have changed considerably; Even As We Speak's Beauty, You Will Break Us All is sombre and atmospheric, a far cry from their pure pop gems from the 90s like Blue Eyes Deceiving Me or Straight As An Arrow, though this is a band who have continually reinvented themselves over the years so this change in direction shouldn't be too much of a surprise.

Some bands here weren't on Sarah but include members of other bands who were. There's the exhilarating fuzz and jangle of Jetstream Pony who include Beth Arzy (ex-Aberdeen) as well as Shaun Charman (ex-Wedding Present and Popguns). The Catenary Wires, including Amelia and Rob from Heavenly along with members of Makin' Time, Papernut Cambridge and Spearmint, provide the slow, woozy, dark-edged, sophisticated pop of Alone Tonight, arrayed with shimmering ethereal effects, piano and accordion. The Gentle Spring is the Paris-based duo of Michael Hiscock and Emilie Guillaumot. Their Dodge the Rain is thoughful, melancholic indie pop that's not a million miles away from Michael's Sarah-era band The Field Mice, accompanied by piano, acoustic guitar, and that melodic bass style that will be instantly recognised by Field Mice fans.

Some online sources claim Leaf Mosaic is a Springfields offshoot, but in fact the ex-Sarah artist in this band is Josh Meadows, formerly of The Sugargliders. Their track here is post-punk synthpop with shades of early New Order, combined effectively with jangling Rickenbacker. Mark Tranmer, formerly of St Christopher, has also been making music as GNAC since the late 90s. GNAC's Double Ninth is a largely instrumental piece drawing from lounge music and vintage soundtracks. Mark is also in Vetchinsky Settings with James Hackett of The Orchids; their Laugh While You Can features the unmistakeable vocals of Hackett over a combination of melancholia and jangle that I find quintessentially Sarah.

I was especially pleased that Mystic Village, the current band of Robert Cooksey of The Sea Urchins, were invited to contribute to this compilation. Regular readers will know I was a huge fan of The Sea Urchins and have followed their subsequent musical activities with great interest. Open Your Eyes is the first widely available recording from Mystic Village, following a limited self-released demo CD. Their line-up has expanded since the demos were recorded, the sound fleshed out into an exceptional brand of baroque folk-pop with intricate swirling organ. They have two new singers; I'm not completely sure if it's Chabala Hall or Melanie Walwyn Martin on lead vocals here but either way, the singer's voice is a perfect fit for the song. I'm really glad this band is now reaching a wider audience through Under the Bridge 2; hopefully there will be more to follow from them soon.

Other notable tracks include The Orchids' A Final Love Song, well-crafted classic pop incorporating a laid-back jazz trumpet solo for maximum effect, and The Hit Parade's Apple Tree, partway between wistful indie pop and a more ambitious and sophisticated synth and guitar pop, the kind of which was all over the charts in the early 80s.

The album comes with a booklet that pictures each band on, near or under a bridge in their local area, as well as panoramic shots of Skep Wax's local railway bridge. This is a nice touch that continues in the spirit of Sarah's love of local Bristol landmarks, which they would proudly display on their artwork. The variety of locations pictured here, as near as Moseley and as far as Queensland, emphasises the vast range of the underground music network, with bands spread across countries and continents but a common musical ethos brings them together. I'm hoping Skep Wax will continue with the Under the Bridge series; both of the albums released so far have been great. Available at ndrthebridge.bandcamp.com/album/under-the-bridge-2

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