The Child Ballads – Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life) EP (CD, UK)

15 January 2007 Loog Records LOOG014
01. Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life)
02. They Hunt We Run
03. Old Man October
04. Green Jewelry
05. Blackbird Trax
06. Laughter From The Rafters
The Child Ballads - Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life) EP (CD, UK) - Cover
VIEW:
NOTES:
Child Ballads CD EP in gatefold card sleeve features Judah Bauer playing lead guitar on tracks one and five and he is also pictured on the inside sleeve.

The band name is written as ‘Childballads’ on the promo edition and as ‘The Child Ballads’ on the commercial release.

Press Release/Label Information at bottom of page.

The artwork of this release mimics the cover artwork of ‘Edgar Allan Poe & The Juke-Box: Uncollected Poems, Drafts, and Fragments’ by Elizabeth Bishop (see image).

The EP was originally due to be released March 2006 and simply referred to as ‘The Childballads EP’. The opening track of this release was originally “White Chocolate Tea” and later referred to as ‘Cheekbones’ on the Loog Records site and ‘Cheekbones (White Chocolate Tea)’ on the Childballads site.

Eventually when this EP was released the title and opening track was finally titled “Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life)” and the sleeve had changed from the original high-contrast black and white image to the red/yellow cover.

The sleeve on the edition released in the US on 15th April 2008 featured additional sleeve notes and an alternate ‘thanks’ list.

In July 2007 The Stool Pigeon magazine featured a cover story and extensive interview with Stuart Lupton which mentions this EP and his work with Judah Bauer.

Prior to it’s UK release there were alternate titles and running order announced on various websites. The changes are as detailed below.

ORIGINAL TITLE/s RELEASED TITLE
‘White Chocolate Tea’,

‘Cheekbones’ and
‘Cheekbones (White Chocolate Tea)’
Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life)
Blackbirds Blackbird Trax
Old Man October Old Man October
I Can Hear Your Hair Grow They Hunt We Run
Rafters Laughter From The Rafters
Green Jewelry Green Jewelry

ORIGINAL ORDER RELEASED ORDER
01. White Chocolate Tea 01. Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life)
02. Blackbirds 02. They Hunt We Run
03. Old Man October 03. Old Man October
04. I Can Hear Your Hair Grow 04. Green Jewelry
05. Rafters 05. Blackbird Trax
06. Green Jewelry 06. Laughter From The Rafters
SONG CREDITS:
All songs written by Stewart Stevensong Lupton

01. Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life)
Vocals/Acoustic Guitar: Stewart Lupton
Wurlitzer/Farfisa/Viola/Vocals: Betsy Wright
Drums: Hugh McIntosh
Lead Guitar: Judah Bauer
Engineered: Steve Killey
Run Time: 4:53

02. They Hunt We Run
Vocals/Acoustic Guitar: Stewart Lupton
Wurlitzer/Farfisa/Viola/Vocals: Betsy Wright
Drums: Hugh McIntosh
Engineered: Milan Macalevey
Run Time: 4:53

03. Old Man October
Vocals/Acoustic Guitar: Stewart Lupton
Wurlitzer/Farfisa/Viola/Vocals: Betsy Wright
Drums: Hugh McIntosh
Engineered: Steve Killey
Run Time: 5:38

04. Green Jewelry
Vocals/Acoustic Guitar: Stewart Lupton
Wurlitzer/Farfisa/Viola/Vocals: Betsy Wright
Drums: Hugh McIntosh
Engineered: Steve Killey
Run Time: 3:42

05. Blackbird Trax
Vocals/Acoustic Guitar: Stewart Lupton
Wurlitzer/Farfisa/Viola/Vocals: Betsy Wright
Drums: Hugh McIntosh
Lead Guitar: Judah Bauer
Engineered: Steve Killey
Run Time: 3:50

06. Laughter From The Rafters
Vocals/Acoustic Guitar: Stewart Lupton
Wurlitzer/Farfisa/Viola/Vocals: Betsy Wright
Drums: Hugh McIntosh
Lead Guitar: Milan Macalevey
Engineered: Steve Killey
Run Time: 4:40

SLEEVE NOTES / INFORMATION / PRESS RELEASE:
“I bought a white chocolate tea in the park on my lunchbreak. I bought a painting off the street of a haunted lake. I tried hard to make my world an exciting place. But I keep hjearing talk of doom, and they’re sending the meek home. And that’s not half as bad as the shadow that’s caught in the hollow of your cheekbone.”

“The Child Ballads would like to thank: Judah Bauer, Steve Killey, Milan Macalevey, Jess McIntosh, James Oldham and Matt from The Magic Shop”

SLEEVE TEXT:
COVER:
“The
Child
Ballads
You Are Now Entering
Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life) EP
1| Cheekbone Hollows (Pop. 1/2 Life) 2| They Hunt We Run 3| Old Man October
4| Green Jewelry 5| Blackbird Trax 6| Laughter From The Rafters”

REAR: “I bought a white chocolate tea in the park on my lunchbreak. I bought a painting off the street of a haunted lake. I tried hard to make my world an exciting place. But I keep hjearing talk of doom, and they’re sending the meek home. And that’s not half as bad as the shadow that’s caught in the hollow of your cheekbone. LOOG, LOOG014, www.loogrecords.co.uk [and barcode]”

INSIDE SLEEVE: Information as detailed in ‘Song Credits’.

DISC: Title, tracklisting and “LOOG, LOOG014”.

PRESS RELEASE/LABEL INFORMATION:

PRESS RELEASE: “This childballads mini-album is the first recording singer stewart lupton has made since the demise of cult band jonathan fire*eater. originally from washington dc, but based in new york, in the late ’90s jonathan fire*eater were the new york band inspiring groups as diverse as interpol, the yeah yeah yeahs and the strokes. when they split in 1998, lupton disappeared, while the remaining band members went on to form the walkmen. lupton was occasionally sighted, but more often presumed dead. actually, he’d moved back to washington dc to study, as well as forming the childballads with his then girlfriend betsy wright and drummer hugh mcintosh. loog tracked him down via a walkmen message board and offered to release his record, which (after being mixed and augmented with guitar work from blues explosion guitarist judah bauer) is finally seeing the light of day. stewart lupton is a lost hero and a legendary figure – and this new record shows he’s lost none of his talent as both a brilliant lyricist and singer. reminiscent of the likes of bobby charles and johnny cash, but with a hint of the more street savvy lou reed, lupton’s new songs are a reminder of why people like the kills (who have covered their songs) and interpol (who have taken their sartorial cue from them) hold jonathan fire*eater and stewart in particular in such high regard.”

LABEL INFORMATION: “It’s rare that someone gets another shot at becoming the next big thing – especially when people aren’t quite sure whether you’re still alive. In the late 1990s, Stewart Lupton was poised to be the biggest rock star to emerge from the burgeoning New York rock scene that his band, Jonathan Fire*Eater, had helped revive.

The sonic and spiritual forerunners of acts like Arcade Fire and Interpol, they were the ultimate elegant Lower East Side wastrels, purveyors of noirish, organ-laden rock and sunken-eyed, dishabille glamour.”

The Childballads’ look and sound is deliberately far removed from Jonathan Fire*Eater’s. The new music is influenced by country and folk, with lyrics steeped in old-fashioned storytelling. The stories and sound of the South hide under the alt-rock underpinnings of the band. Stewart Lupton describes the music as “sounding like doilies, like your grandmother’s living room. There’s a certain hollowness there; it’s a roomy sound.”

“Stewart’s in his prime to leave the mark he didn’t leave with Jonathan Fire*Eater,” says Erin Norris. “That kid is never gonna fall from grace any further than he already has. He’s a lifer.”

DETAILS:
ARTWORK: [no details]

BARCODE: 5 021449 083732

MATRIX: “LOOG014 202653 01