Pitchfork: Fire Engines Compilation in the Works

The current onslaught of comeback gigs and reissue packages glorifying the once-loved or loathed artists of yesteryear can be overwhelming and predictable, but it's still comforting to see a lot of post-punk Brit bands finally enjoying another day in the sun. Perhaps encouraged by the wave of critical acclaim heaped upon its Orange Juice collection, The Glasgow School, Domino Records will now display more of its treasure hunting skills as the label will release a compilation dedicated to the great forgotten Edinburgh band the Fire Engines entitled Codex Teenage Premonition.

Despite a back catalog consisting only of three singles and one official album, the Fire Engines nevertheless had the knack of salvaging pop nuggets out of scrap racket and was responsible for molding many young Scots' minds over the years. Veteran devotees like Stephen McRobbie (the Pastels) and Norman Blake (Teenage Fanclub) and more recent fanatics Stuart Murdoch (Belle and Sebastian) and Alex Kapranos (Franz Ferdinand) have all taken turns singing the praises of the uncompromising band. Franz Ferdinand in particular have jumped towards pumping up the band's public profile lately by inviting them along as the opening act at their Glasgow SECC gig last December and by releasing a single with the band which couples covers of each other's songs. Hopes of a mini-comeback of sorts were dashed by singer and guitarist Davey Henderson speaking to Uncut back in April: "Those shows and that single were fun, but really, it was a one-off. That's it for the Fire Engines...though talking to Uncut has got me all bloody excited."

If Henderson was excited then, he must be doing cartwheels now. While the release date is still unknown, the Fire Engines will be celebrating the event regardless with a couple of live dates-- September 11 at Sub Club's Optimo Night in Glasgow and September 17 at I.C.A. in London. While the "Sound of Young Scotland" band has enjoyed underground recognition since the group split and had the Rev-Ola recollection Fond issued in 1992, the band has gained greater public attention in recent years due to the efforts of labels like Domino and Hamburg's Marina Records, who has long-acted as an unofficial cheerleader of all things Scottish pop. Codex Teenage Premonition will include early takes on tracks which inevitably became parts of the band's first album and single and live recordings, including some from their first live show ever. Domino gives this tracklisting:

01 Sympathetic Anaesthetic #
02 Get Up and Use Me #
03 Hungry Beat #
04 Everything's Roses #
05 The Untitled One #
06 12.01.81 +
07 Meat Whiplash +
08 Discord +
09 Get Up and Use Me +
10 New Things in Cartons +
11 Plastic Gift +
12 Hungry Beat +
13 The Untitled One ^
14 Everything's Nothing ^
15 Discord ^

# Codex sessions recorded by Wilf Smarties
+ Live at Valentino's, Edinburgh, September 09, 1981
^ Debut gig at Leith Town Hall, Edinburgh