The dance and hip-hop textures on the Charlatans U.K.'s 2001 album, Wonderland, fade to the back on the surprisingly subdued Up at the Lake, the Charlatans' eighth studio album. On Wonderland, the band sounded like it still wanted to change the world (or, at the very least, the world's dancefloors), but Up at the Lake sounds like its title suggests: a retreat and a retrenchment. The classic-rock coloring that dominated discs like the band's self-titled release and Tellin' Stories are back, combined with some previously unheard brief flirtations with classic folk. There's a defined sense that this is the beginning of a new chapter for the band, and that Up at the Lake is their first work as "mature" artists. It makes sense, since the Britpop torch had been passed on from the Charlies and their peers to the next generation (the Futureheads, Dogs Die in Hot Cars, the Coral, Franz Ferdinand, etc.) by 2004. What's here instead is the boozy barroom shuffle of "Bona Fide Treasure," British trad rock in the title track, and just a touch of the band's post-Madchester tendencies on "Feel the Pressure." Up at the Lake is a relaxed and assured record, the work of craftsmen who know how to produce something solid and consistent. As such, there isn't much of a spark, but anyone who's bothered to follow the Charlatans U.K. this long (which hasn't been easy, since Up at the Lake was denied a U.S. release) won't be disappointed. ~ Jason Damas, All Music Guide
Tracks
Track Title
Composers
Performers
Time
Up at the Lake
Martin Blunt, Mark Collins, Tim Burgess, Jon Brookes, Tony Rogers
Mark Collins (Vocals (Background)), Mark Collins (Guitar), Tony Rogers (Piano), The Charlatans UK (Producer), Martin Blunt (Bass), Linus of Hollywood (Vocal Engineer), Ken Nelson (Mixing), Jon Brookes (Drums), Tom Sheehan (Photography), Mike Cave (Engineer), Ian Bracken (Cello), Tim Burgess (Piano), Mark Collins (Pedal Steel), The Chemical Brothers (Mixing), Tony Rogers (Vocals (Background)), Tim Burgess (Vocals), James Spencer (Engineer), James Spencer (Mixing), Tony Rogers (Vocals), John Mark James (Design), Frank Arkwright (Mastering), Ged Lynch (Percussion), Tony Rogers (Organ (Hammond)), James Spencer (Producer), Johnny Marr (Compilation), Jon Brookes (Percussion)
"Loving You Is Easy"
Released: December 20, 2004 (Radio only promo single)
Up at the Lake is an album by the British band The Charlatans (known in the United States as The Charlatans UK), released on May 17, 2004. It is the band's only album to have never received a U.S. release.
Track listing
All songs by Blunt/Brookes/Burgess/M. Collins/Rogers
"Up at the Lake" – 3:45
"Feel the Pressure" – 3:35
"As I Watch You in Disbelief" – 3:48
"Cry Yourself to Sleep" – 4:25
"Bona Fide Treasure" – 3:24
"High Up Your Tree" – 4:01
"Blue for You" – 3:56
"I'll Sing a Hymn (You Came to Me)" – 2:43
"Loving You Is Easy" – 5:00
"Try Again Today" – 3:42
"Apples and Oranges" – 4:20
"Dead Love" – 2:21
UK and Japanese release as above. Rest of the world release does not include "I'll Sing a Hymn (You Came to Me)".
