The revered final album from Talk Talk — 1991’s Laughing Stock, which saw the English group fully abandon its synthpop roots for a more a more experimental, art-rock sound — will receive its first-ever vinyl release in the U.S. this fall alongside a vinyl reissue of frontman Mark Hollis’ lone solo album, originally released in 1998.
As Exclaim.ca reports, the new vinyl reissues of both Laughing Stock and Mark Hollis will arrive on Oct. 11 via Ba Da Bing Records. Vinyl pressings of the Talk Talk album, which was originally released on jazz imprint Verve, are much sought-after collectibles; an original pressing of the record from Spain currently is listed on Amazon.com for $400.
In the 20 years since, Laughing Stock’s reputation has grown immensely, with bands such as Radiohead citing it as a major influence. In 2003, Pitchfork ranked it No. 11 on its list of the Top 100 Albums of the 1990s, calling it “a record that makes its own environment and becomes more than the sum of its sounds. ‘Entrancing’ barely describes the effect of Laughing Stock.”
As for Hollis’ sparse solo album, the former Talk Talk frontman retired from music after its release. He didn’t tour in support of the record, saying, at the time, that it wasn’t “suited to play live.”
glad to see it will be offisially re-released since there is a bootleg released last year….