Walking Wounded (2019 Half Speed Master) Vinyl

First released in April 1996, Walking Wounded debuted at 4 on the UK Album Chart and remains the Ben Watt and Tracey Thorn039s bestselling album, approaching 2 million copies worldwide. It contains four UK Top 40 singles, including the Top 10 hits 34Walking Wounded34 and 34Wrong34, and set new a benchmark for the intersection of contemporary electronic music and smart pop songwriting.The seeds of the album039s approach were clearly planted in the successful mix of folksoul and electronica on the duo039s previous millionseller Amplified Heart, but it was the subsequent wild global success of Todd Terry039s remix of album track 34Missing34, and Thorn039s acclaimed contemporaneous collaboration on Massive Attack039s 34Protection34 that encouraged them to go further.Watt began frequenting club nights on the burgeoning London drum 039n039 bass scene in early 1995, and quickly saw a rhythmic connection between Everything But The Girl039s early 80s latinpop arrangements and the high tempo syncopated breakbeats in the sets of DJs like Fabio, Doc Scott and Peshay.039I was immediately inspired,039 he says. 039It was like a futuristic Brazilian sound but undercut with a shadowy, spectral rave flavour. The mix of hightuned propulsive drums, latenight samples and low sub bass just seemed to leave a big plangent hole in the middle, and in it I pictured Tracey039s voice. I was similarly inspired by the modern deep house scene and the downbeat sound.039The album was largely programmed and produced by Ben in 1995 in the basement of the duo039s north London home demo studio. 34Just an Akai sampler, a computer, a synth and guitar, an inexpensive vocal mic, and an 8track tape machine,34 he says of the process. 34We were writing in reverse mood first, then songs, learning and we went along. It just felt like a new frontier,34 adds Tracey.Producer John Coxon Spring Heel Jack with whom Ben and Tracey had worked on their previous album, Amplified Heart was invited to provide the backing track for the album039s title song. Beats specialist Howie B was also approached to create the groove for 34Flipside34. The album was then mixed at The Townhouse in west London by Ben and young emerging engineer, Andy Bradfield.The album was acclaimed on its release. 34The new incarnation of EBTG is the best yet. It039s just going to take a while for people to catch up,34 said NME. 34Sharp, modern, jungloid, cybernautical. Everything But The Girl already look like one of the groups of the year,34 commented The Independent. 34Walking Wounded proves that jungle can be gentle too. Sadness never sounded so sexy,34 added The Face. And in 2019, twentythree years on from its release, Pitchfork honoured the album with a lengthy 9.0 retrospective review.The album has been mastered and cut at halfspeed by longtime Everything But The Girl mastering engineer, Miles Showell, now at Abbey Road Studios, who is one of only a handful of engineers specializing in halfspeed mastering that uses new techniques to more faithfully reproduce the sound of original master tapes.