Here’s a quick Dreamboat summer update before we announce an exciting new addition to the Dreamboat Records roster later in August:

Robin Allender is as busy as ever playing guitar for Yann Tiersen on their world tour. The Gala Band have just played Glastonbury and will be playing the show at Colston Hall’s grand re-opening night in Bristol as a two piece Saturday 15th September. And finally, The Rollercoaster Project will release his fantastic new album “Revenge” next month with our friends at Absolutely Kosher Records.

Hot on the heels of his star turn in How To Be, The Rollercoaster Project will be performing his music on May 27 in Hay-on-Wye at How The Light Gets In — the UK’s first ever philosophy and music festival. The festival is running from May 22-31 at the same time as the Hay Literary Festival and has a great line up of bands, comedy and speakers, including music from Michael Nyman, Stephen Fretwell and Jeremy Warmsley, debates and speeches with Zygmunt Bauman, AC Grayling, Simon Blackburn, Will Hutton, Phillip Blond and more, and comedy sketches from Ed Aczel and Robin Ince, among others. Visit howthelightgetsin.org to find out more, download the full programme and book tickets.

After we had so much fun doing Dreamboat Christmas 2006 last year, we are pleased to announce the release of Dreamboat Christmas 2007, a free, download-only E.P. of Christmas songs from Dreamboat Records artists and friends.

1. Christmas Eve Part I — The Rollercoaster Project
2. A Christmas Song With No Cheer — Robin Allender
3. Farewell My Friend — Tom Wilson
4. Christmas Eve Part II — The Rollercoaster Project

• All tracks in one zip file.

But that’s not all from Dreamboat Records in 2007. We’ll be finishing up the year with a Christmas live show and party with Dreamboat acts and DJs and The Croft in Bristol. You should totally come!

Dreamboat Records 2008 is the second annual sampler from Dreamboat Records, featuring new material from Dreamboat artists, collaborators and friends. This full-length album is available to buy on CD for £6 from our shop, or as DRM-free MP3s from Bleep.

From our own acts, we have the increasingly wonderful Rollercoaster Project, Robin Allender’s new full band sound, the lovely new Gala Band, and a solo track from Simon Grant (ex-Azalea City Penis Club). We’ve also included Dreamboat collaborations (Yellow6, Kiska) and new stuff we just think is rad (Tom Wilson).

The first three tracks are available as free MP3 downloads here, and you can stream the entire album at Bleep.

Watch out for news of the launch/Christmas party for this record, which will take place on Thursday 20th December and will blow your mind. Details to follow.

We’ve found a handful more copies of our extremely successful Summer 2006 sampler CD so it’s back in the shop at just £1.50, and — while stocks last — we’re also throwing a free copy in with all purchases of Drone 1.

We sell Drone 1 for £4, but we’re now being undercut by five pence by our friends at Norman Records, who have lovely things to say about the record (“injecting soul into the circuits on the title track with staggering results…”). Of course Norman won’t give you a free summer sampler. The choice is yours!

And finally, Venue, Bristol’s Time Out has published a full page interview with Robin Allender. We’ve put a copy on our website for you to read if you’re not in Bristol. Allender (and band) are playing a headline set this Friday at Bristol’s Folk House. See the live page for more details.

Drone 1 by The Rollercoaster Project is finally out today.

You can download the title track for free from our website (where you can also watch the video, directed by Jo Coates) or stream all three tracks at Bleep.

If you like what you hear then you can buy the CD for £4. It features beautifully printed artwork from Owen Jones’s classic The Grammar of Ornament (pictured right, more pictures on our Flickr account). Or, for instant gratification, you can buy one or all tracks online from Bleep or iTunes.

The Rollercoaster Project will be playing live with Anteater (Tom from ¡Forward Russia!) at The Cardigan Arms in Leeds next Friday, 19 January.

Robin Allender will be playing his first two live shows with the band with whom his debut album The Bird and the Word was recorded. (Tracklisting has been finalised, and it’s sounding great by the way.)

They will playing with Patrick Duff at The Louisiana, Bristol on Saturday, 20 January and Dreamboat friends The Gala Band at Industry in Shoreditch, London on Tuesday, 13 February. Tickets for the London show can be purchased here.

We’re very pleased to announce a video to accompany Drone 1. The video was directed by Jo Coates (myspace.com/jocoatesfilm).

As of right now, you can also buy Drone 1 online at Bleep and iTunes. We recommend Bleep because you get high quality MP3s that will play on any device (unlike iTunes). Dreamboat Records is opposed to Digital Rights Management. Suck on that, RIAA/BPI.

Speaking of MP3s, just a reminder that Drone 1′s title track and the Dreamboat Christmas E.P. are available as free downloads from this site. You’re free to do whatever you want with these. If you like them then please do consider buying the Drone 1 CD or digital single

We are pleased to announce the release of Dreamboat Christmas 2006, a free, download-only E.P. of Christmas songs from Dreamboat Records artists and friends.

It features Robin Allender‘s widely praised cover of “Walking In The Air” (read reviews at Paper Thin Walls, and Shake Your Fist), “Little Donkey” by Azalea City Penis Club‘s Simon Grant, a bossa nova arrangement of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” by Dreamboat friends The Gala Band, and a peaceful doom hymn by The Rollercoaster Project.

• Download the free E.P. here.

And that’s all from Dreamboat Records for 2006. We’ll be back in the New Year for the release of Drone 1 (15 January), Robin Allender’s debut album The Bird and the Word (around Easter), Azalea City Penis Club’s self-titled debut (also around Easter), and perhaps another Summer Sampler. Be sure to sign up to the mailing list to receive updates.

Happy Christmas!

Buy MP3s at Bleep

Drone 1 by The Rollercoaster Project will be released on 15th January, 2007. It is available for pre-order now.

Drone 1 is the third release and the first single on Dreamboat Records, and the second release by The Rollercoaster Project. It features the obnoxiously beautiful title track (stream here), a remix by Dave Collingwood of Gravenhurst and Dreamboat Record’s own Azalea City Penis Club, and another new track. Total running time is around 18 minutes, and it costs just £4. It comes in a lovely hand-printed, recycled sleeve, with a mean looking botanical image. It is available in a limited numbered edtion of 500. Pre-order here.

Some Rollercoaster Project news:

1. His remix of Forward Russia’s new single “Eighteen” is out now on limited clear 7″ vinyl on Dance To The Radio (DTTR016VL). Get it from the usual independent outlets in Leeds, HMV, or iTunes.

2. On Saturday August 26 he will be playing with Napoleon iiird at the Leeds Festival.

3. Bafflingly, he appeared in last week’s issue of NME in an article on “New Yorkshire Rave”.